Shiva Purana — Vidyesvara Samhita, Shloka 19
Śivakṣetra–Tīrtha–Māhātmya
The Salvific Function of Shiva’s Sacred Domains
सप्तविंशमुखा प्रोक्ता सर्वाभीष्टं प्रदायिनी । तत्तीराः स्वर्गदाश्चैव ब्रह्मविष्णुपदप्रदाः
saptaviṃśamukhā proktā sarvābhīṣṭaṃ pradāyinī | tattīrāḥ svargadāścaiva brahmaviṣṇupadapradāḥ
તેને સત્તાવીસ ‘મુખ’ (અંશ) ધરાવતી કહેવામાં આવી છે અને સર્વ અભીષ્ટ વર આપનારી છે. તેના કિનારાના તીર્થો સ્વર્ગ આપે છે અને બ્રહ્મા-વિષ્ણુના પદ સમાન ઉત્તમ અવસ્થাও પ્રદાન કરે છે.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
Jyotirlinga: Viśvanātha
Sthala Purana: In the Viśveśvarasaṃhitā’s Kāśī-centered frame, the riverine tīrthas on the sacred banks are praised as granting progressively higher lokas; this functions as a Kāśī-māhātmya motif where contact with the tīrtha becomes a vehicle for Śiva’s grace and liberation-oriented merit.
Significance: Snāna and tīrtha-sevā on the sacred banks are said to yield svarga and even exalted divine states; in a Śaiva Siddhānta reading, such fruits are ultimately subordinate to Śiva’s anugraha culminating in Śivaloka and mokṣa.
FAQs
The verse extols the extraordinary potency of a sacred tīrtha-system: approaching and honoring such sanctified river-banks is said to yield both worldly fulfillments and higher spiritual attainments, pointing devotees toward merit (puṇya) that can mature into liberation-oriented aspiration.
In the Shiva Purana, tīrthas are typically powerful because they are connected to Śiva’s presence and grace; bathing, worship, and remembrance at such places are extensions of Saguna devotion—acts performed with faith that purify the devotee and make them fit for Śiva’s blessings.
A practical takeaway is tīrtha-snāna (ritual bathing) with devotion, followed by Śiva-smaraṇa and japa—especially the Panchākṣarī mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—as a way to convert pilgrimage merit into inner purification.