Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 11

मन्दरगिरिवर्णनम् — Description of Mount Mandara as Śiva’s Residence

Tapas-abode

Devanagari script

निशासु शिखरप्रान्तर्वर्तिना स शिलोच्चयः । चंद्रेणाचल साम्राज्यच्छत्रेणेव विराजते

Transliteration

niśāsu śikharaprāntarvartinā sa śiloccayaḥ | caṃdreṇācala sāmrājyacchatreṇeva virājate

Translation

രാത്രികളിൽ ശിഖരപ്രാന്തത്ത് നിലകൊള്ളുന്ന ചന്ദ്രനാൽ ആ ഉയർന്ന പർവ്വതം ദീപ്തമാകുന്നു; പർവ്വതസാമ്രാജ്യത്തിനുമേൽ ചന്ദ്രൻ രാജഛത്രംപോലെ വിരാജിക്കുന്നതുപോലെ.

Word by Word

• निशासु: in the nights
• निशासु: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निशा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), बहुवचन

• शिखर-प्रान्त-वर्तिना: by (its) being at the peak’s edge
• शिखर-प्रान्त-वर्तिना: Karana (करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शिखर (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रान्त (प्रातिपदिक) + वर्तिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुष: ‘by/with (one) abiding at the edge of the peak’ (instrumental of attendant feature)

• सः: that
• सः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (कर्ता), एकवचन

• शिलोच्चयः: the rocky mountain-mass
• शिलोच्चयः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिल (प्रातिपदिक) + उच्चय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (कर्ता), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘heap/mass of rocks’

• चन्द्रेण: by the moon
• चन्द्रेण: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन

• अचल: of the mountain
• अचल: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अचल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-सम्बन्धे (genitive relation) understood with साम्राज्य-छत्रेण; ‘of the mountain/immovable one’

• साम्राज्य-छत्रेण: by an imperial parasol
• साम्राज्य-छत्रेण: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साम्राज्य (प्रातिपदिक) + छत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: ‘imperial parasol’

• इव: as if / like
• इव: Sambandha (उपमान-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमानवाचक-अव्यय (simile particle)

• विराजते: shines / appears splendid
• विराजते: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + राज् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Mahadeva

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: Kedāranātha

Sthala Purana: The हिमालय as Śiva’s chosen abode: the mountain-king is portrayed as royally crowned by the Moon, echoing Śiva’s candraśekhara iconography and the Kedāra-kṣetra’s identity as a high Himalayan seat of Śiva.

Significance: Darśana in the high Himalaya is framed as approaching Śiva’s sovereign presence; the imagery supports the idea that the kṣetra itself ‘reveals’ Śiva while ordinary perception remains veiled—pilgrimage as movement from concealment to recognition.

Characters & Entities

• Chandra (Moon)

FAQs

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

The verse trains the devotee’s vision to perceive sovereignty and sacred order in the cosmos: the Moon crowning the summit hints at Shiva’s auspicious lordship (Pati) reflected in nature, drawing the mind from ordinary seeing to contemplative seeing.

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

By portraying a visible, beautiful sign (the Moon on the summit) as a ‘royal parasol,’ the text supports Saguna contemplation—using form and symbol to steady devotion—leading the worshipper toward the deeper, formless supremacy that the Linga ultimately signifies.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Night-time dhyāna: mentally place the Moon-crowned summit as Shiva’s auspicious sign, then repeat the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) with steady breath, letting the mind rest on luminous stillness like the moonlit peak.