Shiva Purana — Kotirudra Samhita, Shloka 29

Śiva-nāma-sahasraka-kathana

The Recital/Teaching of the Thousand Names of Śiva

Devanagari script

आश्रमः क्षपणः क्षामो ज्ञानवानचलेश्वरः । प्रमाणभूतो दुर्ज्ञेयः सुपर्णो वायुवाहनः

Transliteration

āśramaḥ kṣapaṇaḥ kṣāmo jñānavānacaleśvaraḥ | pramāṇabhūto durjñeyaḥ suparṇo vāyuvāhanaḥ

Translation

彼はアーシュラマ（Āśrama）—聖なる帰依の処、罪を滅する者、苦行にして自制の者。アチャレーシュヴァラ（Acalēśvara）—不動なる者たちの主であり、円満なる智を具える。正しき権威と認識の根拠そのもので、悟り難い。高貴なる翼ある者、そして風に運ばれて乗る者である。

Word by Word

• आश्रमः: āśrama; abode/stage of life
• आश्रमः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आश्रम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• क्षपणः: destroyer, remover
• क्षपणः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षपण (प्रातिपदिक, √क्षप्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• क्षामः: thin/wan; subdued
• क्षामः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षाम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• ज्ञानवान्: possessing knowledge
• ज्ञानवान्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ज्ञानवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; मतुप्-प्रत्ययान्त

• अचलेश्वरः: Lord of the immovable (mountain/steadfast)
• अचलेश्वरः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अचल (प्रातिपदिक) + ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (अचलस्य ईश्वरः), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• प्रमाणभूतः: become the authority/standard
• प्रमाणभूतः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रमाण (प्रातिपदिक) + भूत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, √भू क्त)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (प्रमाणं भूतो = become the standard), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• दुर्ज्ञेयः: hard to know
• दुर्ज्ञेयः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुर् (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + ज्ञेय (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, √ज्ञा तव्यत्/यत्)
• Form: तव्यत्/यत्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (gerundive: “to be known”), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; दुर्-उपसर्गेण कठिनार्थ

• सुपर्णः: Suparṇa (Garuda/bird)
• सुपर्णः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुपर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• वायुवाहनः: wind-bearer; whose vehicle is wind
• वायुवाहनः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वायु (प्रातिपदिक) + वाहन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (वायोः वाहनः / वायुं वहति इति), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Kedāranātha

Sthala Purana: Śiva is praised as Acalēśvara—Lord of the immovable—evoking the Himalayan ‘acala’ setting; Kedāra traditions remember Śiva’s mountain-abiding presence and the sanctity of tapas and refuge.

Significance: Seeking refuge (āśrama) and purification (kṣapaṇa) through darśana and austerity; merit for sins removed and steadiness in jñāna.

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

This verse lists Shiva’s liberating attributes: He is the refuge of disciplined seekers, the remover of impurity (pāśa), and the very standard of true knowledge—implying that liberation comes by taking shelter in Shiva, whose nature is ultimately hard to grasp by the ordinary mind.

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

By naming Shiva as both knowable through attributes (Saguna—refuge, Lord, remover of sins) and yet “difficult to know” (pointing beyond form), the verse supports Linga worship as a sacred focus that leads the devotee from accessible devotion toward realization of Shiva’s transcendent reality.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is nāma-japa and dhyāna: repeat Om Namaḥ Śivāya while contemplating these names as Shiva’s qualities, combined with purificatory Shaiva observances such as Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa to cultivate austerity, purity, and steady knowledge.