Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 38
अनुग्रह-स्वातन्त्र्य-प्रमाणविचारः | Inquiry into Pramāṇa, Divine Autonomy, and Grace
निदानज्ञस्य भिषजो रुग्णो हिंसां प्रयुंजतः । न किंचिदपि नैर्घृण्यं घृणैवात्र प्रयोजिका
nidānajñasya bhiṣajo rugṇo hiṃsāṃ prayuṃjataḥ | na kiṃcidapi nairghṛṇyaṃ ghṛṇaivātra prayojikā
Lorsqu’un médecin qui connaît les causes de la maladie applique à un malade des mesures douloureuses, il n’y a là pas la moindre cruauté ; en ce cas, la compassion seule est le mobile.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti
Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga passage; the verse uses a nyāya (physician–patient analogy) to justify corrective action as compassion, aligning with Śiva’s anugraha through discipline.
FAQs
It teaches that corrective or painful discipline, when guided by true knowledge of the cause and aimed at healing bondage, is not cruelty but compassion—mirroring how Shiva’s grace removes pasha (bondage) for the soul’s purification.
In Saguna Shiva worship (Linga-upasana), devotees accept tapas, vows, and restraints as Shiva’s healing medicine—seemingly harsh to the ego, yet compassionate in intent, leading the pashu (bound soul) toward Shiva (Pati).
Undertake purificatory sadhana with the attitude of “healing”: japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), disciplined vrata on Mahashivratri, and steady meditation, accepting discomfort as remedial rather than punitive.