यथा भवद्भिः पृष्टोऽहं वदनार्थे महात्मभिः । पुरावृत्तं मया प्रोक्तं शिवार्चनविधेः फलम् । शिवेन दत्तं सालूप्यं न गृहीतं मया तदा
yathā bhavadbhiḥ pṛṣṭo'haṃ vadanārthe mahātmabhiḥ | purāvṛttaṃ mayā proktaṃ śivārcanavidheḥ phalam | śivena dattaṃ sālūpyaṃ na gṛhītaṃ mayā tadā
Sebagaimana para mahātmā bertanya agar aku bertutur, demikianlah kuceritakan kisah purba—buah dari tata cara pemujaan Śiva yang benar. Śiva menganugerahiku sālūpya (keserupaan rupa ilahi dan kedekatan), namun saat itu tidak kuterima.
Nandin (to the Devas/Suras)
Tirtha: Kedāra/Kedāranātha
Type: kshetra
Listener: Mahātmans (great-souled questioners)
Scene: A storyteller addresses ‘great-souled’ listeners, declaring he has narrated an ancient account: the fruit of proper Śiva worship; Śiva offers divine proximity/form (sārūpya/sāyujya), which the devotee declines for a higher chosen purpose.
Śiva-worship (śivārcana) yields exalted spiritual fruits, even liberation-like closeness to Śiva, yet a devotee may choose a specific form of grace according to dharma and divine purpose.
The context is Kedārakhaṇḍa, centered on Kedāra/Kedārnātha and its Śaiva greatness (sthāla-māhātmya).
The verse points to the ‘method of Śiva worship’ (śivārcanavidhi) and its fruit, without listing steps in this specific line.