Shloka 21

ध्यानयज्ञः, संसार-विष-निरूपणम्, पाशुपतयोगः, परा-अपरा विद्या, चतुर्वस्था-विचारः (अध्यायः ८६)

Devanagari script

एवेर्य्थिन्ग् इस् दुःख एवमज्ञानदोषेण नानाकर्मवशेन च षट्कौशिकं समुद्भूतं भजत्येष कलेवरम्

Transliteration

everything is duḥkha evamajñānadoṣeṇa nānākarmavaśena ca ṣaṭkauśikaṃ samudbhūtaṃ bhajatyeṣa kalevaram

Translation

Ainsi, tout est souffrance en vérité. Par la faute de l’ignorance (ajñāna) et sous la contrainte de karmas multiples, l’âme liée (paśu) revêt ce corps, né des six enveloppes (ṣaṭ-kauśika), comme effet du lien (pāśa) de l’asservissement.

Word by Word

• evaṁ: thus

• sarvam: all (worldly experience)

• duḥkham: suffering

• evam: indeed/just so

• ajñāna-doṣeṇa: due to the defect of ignorance

• nānā: various

• karma-vaśena: under the control/compulsion of karma

• ca: and

• ṣaṭ-kauśikam: constituted of six sheaths/covers

• samudbhūtam: arisen/produced

• bhajati: assumes/partakes of

• eṣa: this (jīva/paśu)

• kalevaram: body

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating Shaiva doctrine to the sages at Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames embodied life as duḥkha caused by ajñāna and karma (pāśa); Linga worship is implied as the Shaiva means to turn the paśu toward Pati (Shiva) and dissolve bondage.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

By implication, Shiva is Pati—distinct from the body and its sheaths—whose grace and knowledge remove ajñāna and karma that force the paśu into repeated embodiment.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse points to the need for Pāśupata-oriented discipline: purification of ignorance and karma through Shiva-bhakti, mantra-japa, and meditative discrimination from the bodily sheaths.