Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 47

सत्याः पुनस्तपश्चर्या — Satī’s Return to Austerity (Tapas) and Fearless Liṅga-Worship

Devanagari script

निहतौ च तया तत्र समरे दैत्यपुंगवौ । तद्बाणैः कामबाणैश्च च्छिन्नभिन्नांगमानसौ

Transliteration

nihatau ca tayā tatra samare daityapuṃgavau | tadbāṇaiḥ kāmabāṇaiśca cchinnabhinnāṃgamānasau

Translation

ആ യുദ്ധത്തിൽ അവൾ തന്നെയാൽ ദൈത്യന്മാരിൽ അഗ്രഗണ്യരായ ആ രണ്ടുപേരും വധിക്കപ്പെട്ടു. അവളുടെ അമ്പുകൾ—കാമദേവന്റെ അമ്പുകളെപ്പോലെ—അവരുടെ അവയവങ്ങളെ ചിന്നഭിന്നമാക്കി, മനസ്സിനെയും തകർത്തു।

Word by Word

• nihatau: slain
• nihatau: Karta (कर्ता/subject—descriptive)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ni-han (धातु) → nihata (कृदन्त)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त/ktá), Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; agreeing with ‘daityapuṃgavau’

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

• tayā: by her
• tayā: Karaṇa (करण/instrument/agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक: pronoun)
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular; सर्वनाम-शब्दः

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, adverb of place (देशवाचक)

• samare: in battle
• samare: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• daitya-puṃgavau: the two foremost demons
• daitya-puṃgavau: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daitya (प्रातिपदिक) + puṃgava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; तत्पुरुषः (दैत्येषु पुंगवौ)

• tad-bāṇaiḥ: with those arrows
• tad-bāṇaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण/instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक: pronoun) + bāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural; तत्पुरुषः (तस्य बाणैः)

• kāma-bāṇaiḥ: with love-arrows
• kāma-bāṇaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण/instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक) + bāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural; तत्पुरुषः (कामस्य बाणैः / कामवत् बाणैः)

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

• chinna-bhinna-aṅga-mānasau: whose bodies and minds were cut and shattered
• chinna-bhinna-aṅga-mānasau: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: chinna (कृदन्त) + bhinna (कृदन्त) + aṅga (प्रातिपदिक) + mānasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Dual; बहुव्रीहिः—‘ययोः अङ्गं च मानसं च छिन्नं भिन्नं च’

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: null

Jyotirlinga Context

Jyotirlinga: null

Sthala Purana: null

Significance: null

Mantra Metadata

Mantra: null

Type: null

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Durgā

Role: destructive

Ritual Elements

Offering: null

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: null

Characters & Entities

• Kama

FAQs

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

The verse portrays that divine power destroys not only outer violence (the demons) but also the inner root—disturbed mind and desire—hinting, in Shaiva Siddhanta terms, at loosening pāśa (bondage) that binds the paśu (individual) away from Pati (Shiva).

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

Though set in a battle scene, it supports Saguna worship: the devotee contemplates the Lord’s and Devi’s manifest power that protects dharma, and then turns inward—offering the mind’s turbulence into the Linga as the symbol of Pati, the supreme ruler over kāma and all bonds.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is japa of the Panchakshara (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) to steady the mind when desire agitates it, along with simple Shaiva observances like applying Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) as a reminder of mastery over passion and impermanence.