Shloka 42

नरकलोकवर्णनम् (Narakaloka-varṇanam) — Description of the Hell-Realms

Devanagari script

हालाहलो विरूपश्च स्वरूपश्च यमानुगः । एकपादस्त्रिपादश्च तीव्रश्चाचीवरं तमः

Transliteration

hālāhalo virūpaśca svarūpaśca yamānugaḥ | ekapādastripādaśca tīvraścācīvaraṃ tamaḥ

Translation

‘ಹಾಲಾಹಲ’, ‘ವಿರೂಪ’ ಮತ್ತು ‘ಸ್ವರೂಪ’, ‘ಯಮಾನುಗ’, ‘ಏಕಪಾದ’ ಮತ್ತು ‘ತ್ರಿಪಾದ’, ‘ತೀವ್ರ’ ಹಾಗೂ ‘ಆಚೀವರ’ ಎಂಬ ಘೋರ ತಮಸ್ಸ್ವರূপ—ಇವೆಲ್ಲವೂ (ರುದ್ರನ ಆವರಣಶಕ್ತಿಗೆ) ಸಂಬಂಧಿಸಿದ ನಾಮರೂಪಗಳೆಂದು ಹೇಳಲ್ಪಟ್ಟಿವೆ.

Word by Word

• hālāhalaḥ: Hālāhala (poison/name)
• hālāhalaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hālāhala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• virūpaḥ: deformed, of strange form
• virūpaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयार्थक (conjunction: and)

• svarūpaḥ: of own/true form
• svarūpaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sva-rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (स्वस्य रूपम्): “own-formed/true-formed”; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयार्थक

• yamānugaḥ: follower of Yama
• yamānugaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yama (प्रातिपदिक) + anuga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: “yamasya anugaḥ” (follower of Yama); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

• ekapādaḥ: one-footed
• ekapādaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक) + pāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (संख्यापूर्वपद): “one-footed”; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

• tripādaḥ: three-footed
• tripādaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tri (प्रातिपदिक) + pāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (संख्यापूर्वपद): “three-footed”; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयार्थक

• tīvraḥ: fierce, intense
• tīvraḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tīvra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयार्थक

• acīvaram: without clothing
• acīvaram: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-cīvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन; नञ्-प्रत्यय (without garment)

• tamaḥ: darkness
• tamaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tamas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Rudra

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Yama

FAQs

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

It lists fierce names/forms associated with darkness, death, and poison to show that even these limiting powers are under Rudra’s sovereignty; in Shaiva Siddhanta, Shiva as Pati can dissolve the pasha of tamas and fear.

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

Such names support Saguna worship: devotees contemplate Shiva’s awe-inspiring aspects (protector even amid poison and death) and take refuge in the Linga as the stable symbol of Pati beyond all frightening appearances.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Shiva as the master of tamas and death while repeating the Panchakshara mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya); on Mahashivratri, combine japa with Tripundra (bhasma) and Rudraksha as reminders of dispassion and inner purification.