Shloka 44

Garbha-sthiti, Deha-pariṇāma, and Vairāgya-upadeśa

Embryonic Condition, Bodily Transformation, and Instruction in Detachment

Devanagari script

शतत्रयं षष्ट्यधिकं पंचपेशीशतानि च । सार्द्धाभिस्तिसृभिश्छन्नं समंताद्रोमकोटिभिः

Transliteration

śatatrayaṃ ṣaṣṭyadhikaṃ paṃcapeśīśatāni ca | sārddhābhistisṛbhiśchannaṃ samaṃtādromakoṭibhiḥ

Translation

ມັນມີກະດູກ 360 ອັນ ແລະກ້າມເນື້ອ 500 ມັດ; ແລະຖືກປົກຄຸມຮອບດ້ານດ້ວຍຂົນຈຳນວນ 3 ກະໂຣດຄື່ງ.

Word by Word

• शतत्रयम्: three hundred
• शतत्रयम्: Karma/Measure (कर्म/परिमाण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शत + त्रय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; द्विगु-समास (numerical): ‘three hundreds’

• षष्ट्यधिकम्: plus sixty
• षष्ट्यधिकम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: षष्टि + अधिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘षष्ट्या अधिकम्’ (in excess by sixty)

• पञ्चपेशीशतानि: five hundreds of muscles
• पञ्चपेशीशतानि: Karma/Measure (कर्म/परिमाण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पञ्च + पेशी + शत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन; द्विगु (numerical) indicating count of hundreds of muscles

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• सार्द्धाभिः: together with
• सार्द्धाभिः: Sahakarana (सहकारण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सार्द्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; ‘with/along with’ (used with numerals)

• तिसृभिः: with three
• तिसृभिः: Sahakarana/Measure (सहकारण/परिमाण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रि (संख्याप्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; संख्या (numeral)

• छन्नम्: covered
• छन्नम्: Predicate (विधेय)
• Type: Verb
• Root: छद् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; ‘covered’

• समन्तात्: on all sides
• समन्तात्: Desha-adhikarana (देशाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: समन्तात् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of place: ‘on all sides’)

• रोमकोटिभिः: by crores of hairs
• रोमकोटिभिः: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रोम + कोटि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘रोम्णां कोटिभिः’ (by crores of hairs)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: No jyotirliṅga narrative; anatomical enumeration is used to weaken deha-mamatā and expose the constructed nature of embodiment under māyā.

Significance: Encourages vairāgya and śiva-bhakti grounded in tattva-viveka rather than bodily pride; supports readiness for dīkṣā/śiva-upāsanā (conceptually).

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

By enumerating bones, muscles, and countless hairs, the verse turns attention from pride in the body to discernment (viveka). In Shaiva Siddhanta terms, the embodied soul (paśu) is bound by limitation and misidentification; seeing the body as a constructed, perishable aggregate supports dispassion and opens the way to seek Pati (Shiva) for liberation.

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

The body is described as finite and measurable, while Shiva—worshipped as the Linga—signifies the immeasurable, all-pervading Reality. This contrast encourages shifting refuge from the transient (deha) to the eternal (Śiva), making Linga-worship a contemplative practice of grounding the mind in the imperishable.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is deha-anitya-bhāvanā (meditation on the impermanence of the body) paired with japa of the Panchakshara—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—to steady the mind in Shiva. If performed with Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrāksha, it reinforces inner detachment and devotion.