Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 26
साधक-दीक्षा तथा मन्त्रसाधन
Puraścaraṇa and the Discipline of the Mantra-Sādhaka
साधने विनियोगे च नित्ये नैमित्तिके तथा । जपेज्जलैर्भस्मना च स्नात्वा मन्त्रेण च क्रमात्
sādhane viniyoge ca nitye naimittike tathā | japejjalairbhasmanā ca snātvā mantreṇa ca kramāt
Que ce soit dans la sādhana et sa juste mise en œuvre, dans les observances quotidiennes ou dans les rites occasionnels, on doit accomplir le japa selon l’ordre prescrit : d’abord avec l’eau, puis avec la bhasma (cendre sacrée), et après le bain, avec le mantra, pas à pas.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
Significance: Ritual sequencing (krama) with water, bhasma, and snāna functions as purification and reorientation toward Śiva; pilgrimage is internalized as śauca and niyama supporting japa.
FAQs
It teaches disciplined, ordered worship: inner purification (snāna), sanctification (bhasma), and mantra-japa—uniting external ritual with inward devotion to Pati (Shiva) as the liberating Lord.
The verse supports Saguna upāsanā through prescribed observances—bathing, applying bhasma (Tripuṇḍra), and mantra-japa—common components of Linga worship that steady the mind toward Shiva’s grace.
Perform japa in sequence: cleanse with water, apply sacred ash (bhasma-dhāraṇa/Tripuṇḍra), bathe, and then recite the mantra—ideally the Panchākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”)—as part of nitya and naimittika rites.