Shloka 117
एष चैव श्मशानेषु देवो वसति नित्यश: । यजन्त्येनं जनास्तत्र वीरस्थान इतीश्वरम्,ये ही महादेवजी श्मशानभूमि (काशीपुरी)-में नित्य निवास करते हैं। वहाँ मनुष्य “वीरस्थानेश्वर” के नामसे इनकी आराधना करते हैं
eṣa caiva śmaśāneṣu devo vasati nityaśaḥ | yajanty enaṃ janās tatra vīrasthāna itīśvaram ||
Vyāsa said: This very Lord dwells perpetually in the cremation-grounds. There, people worship him as the sovereign called “Vīrasthāneśvara,” the Lord of the heroes’ place—signifying that even amid death and impermanence, the divine is present and worthy of reverent devotion.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents the Lord (Śiva/Mahādeva) as dwelling even in the cremation-ground, teaching that the divine is not confined to auspicious spaces alone; devotion and reverence can be grounded in the truth of impermanence and the transcendence of fear of death.
Vyāsa describes a specific form and abode of the Lord: he is said to reside continually in cremation-grounds, and people worship him there under the title “Vīrasthāneśvara,” indicating a recognized local or cultic epithet connected with a ‘heroes’ place’.