Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 32

नारदप्रश्नवर्णन (Nāradapraśna-varṇana) — “Account of Nārada’s Inquiry”

Devanagari script

तद्गार्हस्थ्यं विशेषेण तथा लीलाः परा अपि । एतत्सर्वं तथान्यच्च कथनीयं त्वयानघ

Transliteration

tadgārhasthyaṃ viśeṣeṇa tathā līlāḥ parā api | etatsarvaṃ tathānyacca kathanīyaṃ tvayānagha

Translation

とりわけ彼の家住（かじゅう）のあり方、また至高の神聖なるリーラーを説き明かし給え。おお無垢なる者よ、これらすべてと、なお関わる事柄をも、汝が語るべきである。

Word by Word

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन; demonstrative pronoun used adjectivally

• गार्हस्थ्यम्: householder stage/household life
• गार्हस्थ्यम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गार्हस्थ्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन

• विशेषेण: especially
• विशेषेण: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विशेष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया (करण), एकवचन; adverbial instrumental (विशेषेण = especially)

• तथा: also/likewise
• तथा: Sambandha/Prakāra (सम्बन्ध/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; adverb

• लीलाः: divine plays/sports
• लीलाः: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लीला (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), बहुवचन

• पराः: supreme/other (higher)
• पराः: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), बहुवचन; agrees with लीलाः

• अपि: also/even
• अपि: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; particle (emphatic/additive)

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन; demonstrative used adjectivally

• सर्वम्: all
• सर्वम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन; agrees with एतत् (elliptic: ‘all this’)

• तथा: and also/likewise
• तथा: Sambandha/Prakāra (सम्बन्ध/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; adverb

• अन्यत्: other
• अन्यत्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन; used substantively ‘other (things)’

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; conjunction

• कथनीयम्: should be narrated
• कथनीयम्: Vidhi/Prayojya (विधि/प्रयोज्य)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कथ् (धातु) + अनीय (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (अनीय-प्रत्यय), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; gerundive/passive necessity: ‘to be told/should be described’

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्वद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/सर्वनाम, तृतीया (करण), एकवचन; ‘by you’

• अनघ: O sinless one
• अनघ: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनघ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/vocative), एकवचन; address

Speaker

The sages of Naimiṣāraṇya (addressing Sūta Gosvāmin)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Umāpati

Jyotirlinga Context

Significance: Highlights gārhasthya and līlā as sacred—supporting the Siddhāntic view that Śiva’s worldly-appearing acts can be vehicles of concealment (tirodhāna) and instruction leading to grace.

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: nurturing

Ritual Elements

Offering: dipa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It requests a focused narration of Śiva’s gārhasthya and līlā, implying that even His worldly-seeming life is a deliberate, supreme divine play meant to guide devotees toward devotion and liberation.

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

By asking for Śiva’s līlās to be told, the verse emphasizes saguna contemplation—devotees approach the transcendent (para) Śiva through His manifest deeds and stories, which support faith and worship, including Linga-upāsanā.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The practical takeaway is śravaṇa (devotional listening) and kīrtana (recounting) of Śiva-kathā—hearing and retelling Śiva’s līlās as a form of bhakti-sādhana that steadies the mind on Śiva.