Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 47
राहोः शिरच्छेदन-कारणकथनम् / The Account of Rāhu’s Beheading
Cause and Background
तत्र युद्धे मृतान्दैत्यान्भार्गवस्तानजीवयत् । विद्ययामृतजीविन्या मंत्रितैस्तोयबिन्दुभिः
tatra yuddhe mṛtāndaityānbhārgavastānajīvayat | vidyayāmṛtajīvinyā maṃtritaistoyabindubhiḥ
Dans cette bataille, Bhārgava (Śukrācārya) ranima les Daityas morts au moyen de la Vidyā Amṛtajīvinī, la science qui rend la vie, en utilisant des gouttes d’eau consacrées par des mantras.
Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages at Naimisharanya)
Tattva Level: pashu
FAQs
It highlights the limited, worldly power of mantra-vidyā: even the dead can be restored for continued conflict, yet such power remains within saṃsāra. From a Śaiva Siddhānta lens, true auspiciousness is not merely prolonging embodied life, but attaining Shiva’s grace that cuts bondage (pāśa) and leads to liberation.
The verse contrasts external, instrumental powers (mantra-charged water used for revival) with the higher refuge of Saguna Shiva worship—Linga-upāsanā—where devotion and surrender seek Shiva’s anugraha (grace), not merely victory in battle or extension of life.
It suggests the principle of mantra-saṃskāra (consecration) and the sanctifying use of water, but the Śaiva takeaway is to apply mantra and purity toward Shiva-upāsanā—japa of the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with inner discipline—rather than toward egoic or violent ends.