Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 31
तारकवधोत्तरं देवस्तुतिः पर्वतवरप्रदानं च / Devas’ Hymn after Tāraka’s Slaying and the Bestowal of Boons upon the Mountains
एवं मूढधियश्चाज्ञाः पूजायां ते सनातनम् । आवाहनं न जानीमो गतिं नैव प्रभोद्भुताम्
evaṃ mūḍhadhiyaścājñāḥ pūjāyāṃ te sanātanam | āvāhanaṃ na jānīmo gatiṃ naiva prabhodbhutām
Ainsi, l’esprit égaré et plongés dans l’ignorance, nous ne sommes pas habiles dans la méthode éternelle du culte. Nous ne connaissons pas le rite juste de l’invocation (āvāhana), et nous ne comprenons pas non plus la voie et le fruit sublimes qui naissent du véritable éveil spirituel.
Devotees/supplicants addressing a revered divine authority (contextually within the Kumārakhaṇḍa narrative, likely petitioning Lord Shiva or his divine representative for correct worship)
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Dakshinamurti
Role: teaching
FAQs
It highlights humility before Shiva: ritual without right understanding becomes incomplete, and true worship must mature into prabodha (spiritual awakening) that leads toward Shiva’s grace and liberation.
Āvāhana is a key step in saguna upāsanā (formal worship), including Liṅga-pūjā—inviting Shiva’s presence with devotion and correctness—so that outward acts align with inner reverence and transformative insight.
It implies learning authentic Shiva-pūjā steps—especially āvāhana—supported by mantra-japa (notably the Panchākṣarī, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) so worship becomes a means to prabodha rather than mere formality.