Shloka 22

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

Devanagari script

गर्भे दुःखान्यनेकानि योनिमार्गे च भूतले कौमारे यौवने चैव वार्द्धके मरणे ऽपि वा

Transliteration

garbhe duḥkhānyanekāni yonimārge ca bhūtale kaumāre yauvane caiva vārddhake maraṇe 'pi vā

Translation

Dans le sein maternel, les souffrances sont nombreuses ; puis encore dans le passage du canal de naissance et sur la terre. Dans l’enfance, la jeunesse, la vieillesse, et même à l’heure de mourir, la souffrance demeure. Ainsi le paśu, enchaîné par le pāśa de l’incarnation, erre dans le saṃsāra jusqu’à se tourner vers le Seigneur (Pati), Śiva.

Word by Word

• गर्भे: in the womb

• दुःखानि: sufferings

• अनेकानि: many

• योनिमार्गे: in the passage of the womb/birth-canal

• च: and

• भूतले: on the earth/world

• कौमारे: in childhood

• यौवने: in youth

• च एव: and indeed

• वार्द्धके: in old age

• मरणे: in death/at the time of dying

• अपि: even

• वा: or

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

By listing suffering from womb to death, the verse creates vairāgya (dispassion) and motivates the paśu (individual soul) to seek refuge in Śiva through liṅga-pūjā as a means to loosen pāśa (bondage) and move toward liberation.

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

Śiva-tattva is implied as Pati—the transcendent Lord beyond the cycle of birth, aging, and death—toward whom the suffering-bound paśu must turn to be freed from embodied limitation.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse primarily highlights viveka and vairāgya (discernment and dispassion), the foundation for Pāśupata-oriented sādhana; in practice this supports disciplined Śiva-bhakti such as liṅga-arcana, mantra-japa, and contemplative detachment from bodily identity.