Shiva Purana: Uma Samhita, Adhyaya 49, Shloka 2

Sarasvatī-avatāra-prasaṅgaḥ

Account of Sarasvatī’s Manifestation and the Humbling of the Devas

Devanagari script

या गीयते परब्रह्ममूलप्रकृतिरीश्वरी । निराकारापि साकारा नित्या नन्दमथी सती

Recitation with translationShiva Purana 5.49.2

Transliteration

yā gīyate parabrahmamūlaprakṛtirīśvarī | nirākārāpi sākārā nityā nandamathī satī

Translation

लोग उसकी पूजा करते हैं, वो सबसे बड़ी शक्ति है। उसका कोई रूप नहीं, फिर भी वो रूप ले लेती है। वो हमेशा से है, सती के नाम से जानी जाती है। वो खुशी देती है।

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Word by Word

• yā: she who
• yā: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; relative pronoun

• gīyate: is sung/praised
• gīyate: Kriyā (क्रिया/Finite verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gai (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra (Present/लट्), Ātmanepada, Prathama-puruṣa, Ekavacana; karmaṇi-prayoga (passive sense)

• parabrahmamūlaprakṛtiḥ: the Prakṛti rooted in the Supreme Brahman
• parabrahmamūlaprakṛtiḥ: Samānādhikaraṇa (समानाधिकरण/Predicate nominative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: para + brahman + mūla + prakṛti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; multi-member Tatpuruṣa: parabrahmaṇaḥ mūlaṃ yā prakṛtiḥ = ‘the Prakṛti whose root/source is the Supreme Brahman’

• īśvarī: the Goddess, the sovereign Lady
• īśvarī: Samānādhikaraṇa (समानाधिकरण/Predicate nominative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśvarī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana

• nirākārā: formless
• nirākārā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nir- + ākāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; adjective ‘formless’

• api: even/though
• api: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक/Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; particle (निपात) meaning ‘even/also’

• sākārā: having form
• sākārā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa- + ākāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; adjective ‘with form’

• nityā: eternal
• nityā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nitya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana

• nandamathī: producer of bliss
• nandamathī: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nanda + mathī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; Tatpuruṣa: nandaṃ mathnāti iti = ‘churning/producing bliss’

• satī: Satī / the virtuous one
• satī: Samānādhikaraṇa (समानाधिकरण/Predicate nominative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: satī (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; also used as epithet ‘the virtuous one’

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadāśiva

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Satī

Role: creative

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Characters & Entities

• Parvati
• Sati

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in the Shiva Purana?

It presents the Goddess (Satī/Umā) as the Lord’s supreme power: rooted in the highest reality yet accessible in form—showing how the transcendent (formless) and immanent (with form) are one divine truth in Shaiva Siddhanta.

How does this verse relate to the worship of the Linga or Saguna Shiva?

By affirming that the formless can be approached through form, it supports saguna worship—such as Shiva-linga devotion—where a concrete symbol becomes a doorway to realizing the nirākāra Supreme.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on the unity of nirguna and saguna while chanting the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), worshipping Shiva with devotion, and contemplating Shakti as the power that reveals bliss and liberation.