Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 22
दीक्षितपुत्रस्य दैन्यचिन्ता तथा शिवरात्र्युपासनाप्रसङ्गः / The Initiate’s Son in Distress and the Occasion of Śivarātri Worship
अथ बद्धस्समागत्य पाशमुद्गरपाणिभिः । निनीषुभिः संयमनीं याम्यैस्स विकटैर्भटैः
atha baddhassamāgatya pāśamudgarapāṇibhiḥ | ninīṣubhiḥ saṃyamanīṃ yāmyaissa vikaṭairbhaṭaiḥ
Kemudian, dalam keadaan terikat, ia ditangkap oleh para prajurit Yama yang mengerikan, bertangan jerat dan gada, yang datang dengan maksud membawanya ke Saṃyamanī, kediaman Yama.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga episode; the verse frames the jīva’s post-mortem subjection to Yama’s jurisdiction when Śiva’s grace has not yet intervened.
Significance: Didactic: remembrance of death (mṛtyu-smaraṇa) and karmic accountability prompts Śiva-bhakti and dharma.
Cosmic Event: Post-mortem transit toward Saṃyamanī (Yama-loka) under karmic compulsion.
FAQs
The verse depicts the soul’s bondage under pasha—karmic and moral restraint enforced by Yama’s order—showing that unpurified action leads to being “led” by consequence rather than led by inner realization; in Shaiva terms, liberation requires the grace of Pati (Shiva) that cuts bondage.
Yama’s attendants symbolize the inevitability of karmic accounting; Linga-worship and devotion to Saguna Shiva are presented in the Purana as purifying disciplines that reorient the devotee from fear-driven restraint to Shiva-centered surrender, making Shiva the ultimate refuge beyond Yama’s jurisdiction.
Contemplate pasha (bondage) and take refuge in Shiva through steady japa of the Panchakshara—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—with ethical living; this is the practical antidote to being dragged by karma toward Saṃyamanī.