Shloka 8

Vighneshvara-Prashna and Deva-Krita Shiva-Stava

Adhyaya 104

Devanagari script

अनघाय विरिञ्चाय देव्याः कार्यार्थदायिने अकायायार्थकायाय हरेः कायापहारिणे

Transliteration

anaghāya viriñcāya devyāḥ kāryārthadāyine akāyāyārthakāyāya hareḥ kāyāpahāriṇe

Translation

പാപരഹിതനായ പ്രഭുവിനു നമസ്കാരം; വിരിഞ്ചൻ (ബ്രഹ്മാ) നു നമസ്കാരം; ദേവിക്ക് കാര്യസിദ്ധിയുടെ ശക്തി നൽകുന്നവനു നമസ്കാരം; ദേഹരഹിതനായിട്ടും അർത്ഥപൂർണ്ണ രൂപം ധരിക്കുന്നവനു നമസ്കാരം; ഹരി (വിഷ്ണു) യുടെ ദേഹാവസ്ഥയെയും അപഹരിച്ചു ലയിപ്പിക്കുന്നവനു നമസ്കാരം.

Word by Word

• anaghāya: to the sinless, stainless One

• viriñcāya: to Viriñca, i.e., Brahmā

• devyāḥ: of the Goddess (Śakti/Devī)

• kārya-artha-dāyine: to the giver of the means and success for accomplishing an intended work

• akāyāya: to the bodiless, formless One

• artha-kāyāya: to Him whose ‘body/form’ is purposeful/meaningful (assumed for a divine aim)

• hareḥ: of Hari (Viṣṇu)

• kāya-apahāriṇe: to the remover/withdrawer of bodily embodiment (absorber at dissolution).

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating a received stuti within the Purva-Bhaga context)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Brahma
• Devi
• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames the Linga-theology: Śiva is akāya (beyond form) yet manifests artha-kāya (purposeful form) for grace—precisely the logic by which the Linga is worshipped as the formless made accessible.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

Śiva-tattva is presented as stainless (anagha), transcendent (akāya), and sovereign over cosmic offices—empowering Devī’s function and even withdrawing Hari’s embodied state—showing Him as Pati, the supreme regulator of manifestation and dissolution.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The key takeaway aligns with Pāśupata orientation: meditate on the bodiless Pati who assumes form for the devotee’s uplift and who ultimately removes embodiment (kāyāpahāri), supporting practices of Linga-pūjā with inner detachment and dissolution-oriented contemplation.