Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 34
उपमन्युतपः-निवारणप्रसङ्गः / Śiva restrains Upamanyu’s tapas (Śiva disguised as Indra)
स्वं रूपमेव भगवानास्थाय परमेश्वरः । दर्शयामास शिप्राय बालेन्दुकृतशेखरम्
svaṃ rūpameva bhagavānāsthāya parameśvaraḥ | darśayāmāsa śiprāya bālendukṛtaśekharam
そのとき、福徳に満ちた至上のイーシュヴァラは、自らの神聖なる本来の御姿に住して、シプラーに御身を顕し給うた。御頭には柔らかな新月を冠として戴いていた。
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Jyotirlinga: Mahākāleśvara
Sthala Purana: Śiva reveals Himself at Ujjayinī on the bank of the Śiprā, establishing His presence as Mahākāla to protect devotees and grant liberation; the river Śiprā becomes sanctified by His darśana.
Significance: Darśana of Mahākāla is held to destroy fear of death/time, remove pāśa (bondage) through Śiva’s grace, and bestow auspiciousness and mokṣa-oriented merit.
Role: liberating
FAQs
It highlights Shiva’s anugraha (grace): the Supreme Pati, though transcendent, freely assumes a knowable form and grants direct darśana to the devotee, affirming that liberation begins with divine revelation and devotion.
While the Liṅga points to Shiva’s formless infinity (nirguṇa), this verse emphasizes Saguna darśana—Shiva manifesting with attributes like the crescent moon—showing that Liṅga-worship and personal-form devotion are complementary paths in Shaiva Siddhanta.
Meditate on Shiva as Candraśekhara (crescent-crested) while repeating the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”; approach worship with purity and steadiness, seeking darśana as the fruit of bhakti rather than mere ritual display.