Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 17
श्रद्धामाहात्म्यं तथा देवीप्रश्नः
The Greatness of Śraddhā and Devī’s Question to Śiva
साध्या तस्मान्मयि शद्धा मां वशीकर्तुमिच्छता । श्रद्धा हेतुस्स्वधर्मस्य रक्षणं वर्णिनामिह । स्ववर्णाश्रमधर्मेण वर्तते यस्तु मानवः । तस्यैव भवति श्रद्धा मयि नान्यस्य कस्यचित्
sādhyā tasmānmayi śaddhā māṃ vaśīkartumicchatā | śraddhā hetussvadharmasya rakṣaṇaṃ varṇināmiha | svavarṇāśramadharmeṇa vartate yastu mānavaḥ | tasyaiva bhavati śraddhā mayi nānyasya kasyacit
それゆえ、私を勝ち取りたいと願う者は、私への信仰を養わなければならない。信仰こそが、この世のヴァルナ（階級）の人々にとって、自らのダルマ（正法）を守る原因となるのである。しかし、自らのヴァルナとアーシュラマ（生活期）の義務に従って生きる人間、そのような人にのみ私への信仰が生じるのであり、他の誰にも生じることはない。
Lord Shiva
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Significance: Links śraddhā with svadharma/varṇāśrama as preparatory discipline; frames ethical order as a support for devotion that overcomes concealment (tirodhāna).
Role: teaching
Offering: pushpa
FAQs
The verse teaches that śraddhā (devoted, steady trust) is not mere emotion but a dharmic power: when one safeguards svadharma and lives rightly, the heart becomes fit for Śiva, and faith naturally stabilizes in Him—opening the path to His grace (anugraha) and liberation.
Linga-worship and Saguna devotion require inner steadiness and purity. Śiva states that true śraddhā in Him is grounded in right conduct (svavarṇāśrama-dharma); such discipline supports consistent pūjā, mantra-japa, and reverence for the Linga as Śiva’s accessible form for the devotee.
The implied practice is dharma-aligned daily sādhana: regular Śiva-pūjā and japa of the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) supported by ethical living; this stabilizes śraddhā and makes devotion effective.