Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 64
तुलसी-शङ्खचूडोपाख्यानम् — Viṣṇu’s Disguise and the Tulasī Episode
Prelude to Śaṅkhacūḍa’s Fall
आख्यानमिदमाख्यातं विष्णुमाहात्म्यमिश्रितम् । भुक्तिमुक्तिप्रदं पुण्यं किं भूयः श्रोतुमिच्छसि
ākhyānamidamākhyātaṃ viṣṇumāhātmyamiśritam | bhuktimuktipradaṃ puṇyaṃ kiṃ bhūyaḥ śrotumicchasi
વિષ્ણુ-માહાત્મ્યથી મિશ્રિત આ આખ્યાન કહેવામાં આવ્યું. આ પુણ્યકથા ભોગ અને મોક્ષ બન્ને આપે છે. હવે વધુ શું સાંભળવા ઇચ્છો છો?
Sūta Gosvāmi
Tattva Level: pati
Sthala Purana: Not a sthala-purāṇa passage; it is a phala-śruti style closure praising the narrative’s salvific efficacy (bhukti–mukti).
Significance: Śravaṇa (devout listening) of Śiva-kathā is presented as yielding both dharmic prosperity and liberation; aligns with tīrtha-like merit through śruti-bhakti.
FAQs
It frames Purāṇic listening (śravaṇa) as a sacred means that yields both bhukti (rightful worldly welfare) and mukti (release), emphasizing that holy narration itself becomes a vehicle for spiritual uplift.
Though this line names Viṣṇu’s praise, its Purāṇic intent supports Saguna-upāsanā: devotion through hearing and remembering divine deeds—commonly culminating in reverence to Śiva’s forms (including the Liṅga) as the liberating center of the Shiva Purana.
Regular śravaṇa and smaraṇa of Shiva Purana kathā with devotion—ideally alongside mantra-japa (such as the Pañcākṣarī, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”)—is the implied practical takeaway.