Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 35

अर्धनारीश्वरप्रादुर्भावः

Manifestation of Ardhanārīśvara and the Impulse for Procreative Creation

Devanagari script

सकलभुवनभूतभावनाभ्यां जननविनाशविहीनविग्रहाभ्याम् । नरवरयुवतीवपुर्धराभ्यां सततमहं प्रणतोस्मि शंकराभ्याम्

Transliteration

sakalabhuvanabhūtabhāvanābhyāṃ jananavināśavihīnavigrahābhyām | naravarayuvatīvapurdharābhyāṃ satatamahaṃ praṇatosmi śaṃkarābhyām

Translation

我は常に二柱のシャンカラ——シヴァとそのシャクティ——に礼拝する。あらゆる世界と衆生を養い支え、生滅を超えた神聖なる御身を具え、慈悲により至上の男と気高き若き女の姿（サグナの相として礼拝される吉祥の一対）を現じ給う。

Word by Word

• sakala-bhuvana-bhūta-bhāvanābhyām: by the two who sustain all worlds and beings
• sakala-bhuvana-bhūta-bhāvanābhyām: Karaṇa (करण) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sakala (प्रातिपदिक) + bhuvana (प्रातिपदिक) + bhūta (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāvana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Dvivacana; tatpuruṣa (multi-member): sakalasya bhuvanasya bhūtānāṃ bhāvanā (nourishing/sustaining of all worlds and beings); instrumental dual qualifying śaṃkarābhyām

• janana-vināśa-vihīna-vigrahābhyām: by the two whose forms are free from birth and destruction
• janana-vināśa-vihīna-vigrahābhyām: Karaṇa (करण) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janana (प्रातिपदिक) + vināśa (प्रातिपदिक) + vihīna (प्रातिपदिक) + vigraha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Dvivacana; tatpuruṣa: janana-vināśayoḥ vihīnaḥ vigrahaḥ (forms free from birth and destruction); instrumental dual qualifying śaṃkarābhyām

• nara-vara-yuvatī-vapur-dharābhyām: by the two who bear the forms of a noble man and a young woman
• nara-vara-yuvatī-vapur-dharābhyām: Karaṇa (करण) / Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक) + vara (प्रातिपदिक) + yuvatī (प्रातिपदिक) + vapus (प्रातिपदिक) + dhara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Dvivacana; bahuvrīhi: nara-vara-yuvatī-vapuḥ dharataḥ (the two who bear the bodies/forms of a best man and a young woman); instrumental dual qualifying śaṃkarābhyām

• satatam: always
• satatam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: satatam (अव्यय/सतत)
• Form: Avyaya; kāla-avyaya (adverb of time)

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (common pronoun), Prathamā, Ekavacana

• praṇataḥ: bowed; prostrated
• praṇataḥ: Karta (कर्ता) / Bhāva (भाव)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra + nam (नम् धातु) → praṇata (क्त/PPP as adjective)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; kta-participle used adjectivally (one who has bowed)

• asmi: am
• asmi: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (अस् धातु)
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra (present), Uttama-puruṣa (1st/उत्तमपुरुष), Ekavacana

• śaṃkarābhyām: to the two Śaṅkaras (Śiva and Śakti)
• śaṃkarābhyām: Sampradāna/Prati (सम्प्रदान/प्रति)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaṃkara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Dvivacana

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Ardhanārīśvara

Jyotirlinga Context

Significance: Supports paired worship (Śiva with Śakti) as the sustaining power of the cosmos; encourages devotees to approach the Divine Couple for stability and auspiciousness.

Mantra Metadata

Mantra: सकलभुवनभूतभावनाभ्यां जननविनाशविहीनविग्रहाभ्याम् । नरवरयुवतीवपुर्धराभ्यां सततमहं प्रणतोस्मि शंकराभ्याम्

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: nurturing

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Parvati

FAQs

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

It affirms the Shaiva vision of the Supreme as Śiva together with Śakti: the compassionate sustainers of all beings, transcendent to birth and death, yet approachable through devotional reverence.

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

Though Śiva is beyond origination and destruction (nirguṇa in essence), the verse highlights His gracious acceptability in worship through manifested forms (saguṇa), including the auspicious Śiva–Pārvatī pair; the Liṅga similarly serves as a sacred, approachable focus for the same transcendent reality.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A simple practice is continuous praṇāma and dhyāna on Śiva with Śakti—mentally offering salutations while repeating the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” cultivating steady bhakti toward the deathless Lord.