Shloka 18
Anasūyā–Atri Tapas-Varṇana
Description of Anasūyā and Atri’s Austerities
मानसैरुपचारैश्च पूजयामास शंकरम् । तुष्टाव शंकरं भक्त्या संसेवित्वा मुहुर्मुहुः
mānasairupacāraiśca pūjayāmāsa śaṃkaram | tuṣṭāva śaṃkaraṃ bhaktyā saṃsevitvā muhurmuhuḥ
മാനസിക ഉപചാരങ്ങളാലും ഭക്തിനിവേദനങ്ങളാലും അവൾ ശങ്കരനെ പൂജിച്ചു. വീണ്ടും വീണ്ടും സേവിച്ച് ഹൃദയഭക്തിയോടെ ശങ്കരനെ സ്തുതിച്ചു।
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti
Type: stotra
Role: teaching
FAQs
It teaches that sincere bhakti expressed through inner worship (mānasa-upacāra), repeated service, and praise pleases Śiva; the Lord responds to devotion grounded in humility and constancy, not merely external display.
Even when Śiva is worshipped in a tangible form such as the Liṅga (saguṇa upāsanā), the verse emphasizes that the mind’s offerings—reverence, attention, and loving praise—complete the worship and make it spiritually effective.
Practice mānasa-pūjā: inwardly offer ācamanīya, flowers, incense, and lamp to Śiva while repeating a Śiva-mantra (such as the Pañcākṣarī, “oṃ namaḥ śivāya”) and concluding with stuti (praise) performed again and again with steadiness.