Shloka 65
नारदस्य विष्णूपदेशवर्णनम् — Nārada and Viṣṇu: Instruction after Delusion
आपादमस्तकं सम्यक् भस्मनोद्धूल्य सादरम् । सर्वश्रुतिश्रुतं शैवम्मंत्रञ्जप षडक्षरम्
āpādamastakaṃ samyak bhasmanoddhūlya sādaram | sarvaśrutiśrutaṃ śaivammaṃtrañjapa ṣaḍakṣaram
Après s’être enduit avec révérence de la bhasma, la cendre sacrée, correctement des pieds jusqu’à la tête, qu’on récite avec bhakti le mantra śaiva aux six syllabes, renommé et attesté par toutes les Śruti (Veda).
Sūta Gosvāmin (narrating Shiva’s ritual teaching to the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Sadashiva
Significance: Codifies a portable daily sādhana for all places (not site-bound): bhasma-dhāraṇa plus ṣaḍakṣara-japa as a Veda-affirmed Śaiva upāya leading toward pāśa-kṣaya and Śiva’s grace.
Mantra: oṃ namaḥ śivāya
Type: panchakshara
Role: liberating
FAQs
It teaches a Shaiva sādhana where bhasma (vibhūti) purifies and consecrates the body as Shiva’s domain, and mantra-japa aligns the individual soul (paśu) toward Shiva (Pati), supporting inner purity and liberation-oriented devotion.
Bhasma-dhāraṇa and mantra-japa are core outer-and-inner supports of Saguna Shiva worship: the devotee prepares the body as a fit vessel for pūjā and contemplation, then invokes Shiva through the Śaiva mantra—practices commonly paired with Liṅga-arcana.
Apply sacred ash reverently over the body (commonly as Tripuṇḍra and/or bhasma-dhūlana) and perform steady japa of the six-syllabled Śaiva mantra with devotion.