Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 12

षडध्ववेदनम् (Ṣaḍadhva-vedanam) — The Sixfold Path: Sound, Meaning, and Tattva-Distribution

Devanagari script

भुवनाध्वा च तत्त्वाध्वा कलाध्वा चार्थतः क्रमात् । अत्रान्योन्यं च सर्वेषां व्याप्यव्यापकतोच्यते

Transliteration

bhuvanādhvā ca tattvādhvā kalādhvā cārthataḥ kramāt | atrānyonyaṃ ca sarveṣāṃ vyāpyavyāpakatocyate

Translation

അർത്ഥക്രമത്തിൽ ഭുവനാധ്വ, തത്ത്വാധ്വ, കലാധ്വ എന്നിങ്ങനെ ഉപദേശിക്കുന്നു. ഇവിടെ ഇവയൊക്കെയും തമ്മിലുള്ള ബന്ധം ‘വ്യാപ്യ-വ്യാപക’—വ്യാപ്തവും വ്യാപിപ്പിക്കുന്നതും—എന്ന നിലയിൽ വിവരിക്കുന്നു।

Word by Word

• bhuvana-adhvā: the world-path
• bhuvana-adhvā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhuvana (प्रातिपदिक) + adhvan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); समासः—तत्पुरुषः (bhuvanānām adhvā)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• tattva-adhvā: the principle-path
• tattva-adhvā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tattva (प्रातिपदिक) + adhvan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); समासः—तत्पुरुषः (tattvānām adhvā)

• kalā-adhvā: the kalā-path
• kalā-adhvā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kalā (प्रातिपदिक) + adhvan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); समासः—तत्पुरुषः (kalānām adhvā)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• arthataḥ: in meaning / essentially
• arthataḥ: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त-अव्यय (tasil: ablatival adverb), अर्थः—“अर्थतः” = in meaning/essentially

• kramāt: in sequence
• kramāt: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: krama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पञ्चमी-एकवचन-रूपेण अव्ययीभूत (ablatival adverbial use): पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (Ablative/5th), एकवचन; अर्थः—“क्रमात्” = in order/stepwise

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• anyonyam: mutual(ly) / each other
• anyonyam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anyonya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); अव्ययीभावार्थे ‘mutually/each other’

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• sarveṣām: of all
• sarveṣām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Masculine/Neuter), षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), बहुवचन (Plural)

• vyāpya-vyāpakatā: the relation of pervaded and pervader
• vyāpya-vyāpakatā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyāpya (कृदन्त; √vyāp (धातु)) + vyāpaka (प्रातिपदिक) + -tā (तद्धित)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); समासः—द्वन्द्वः (itaretara: ‘pervaded-ness and pervader-ness’), भाववाचक -ता

• ucyate: is said/declared
• ucyate: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), कर्मणि-प्रयोग (Passive), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Īśāna

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It presents a Shaiva Siddhanta map of reality—worlds (bhuvanas), principles (tattvas), and powers/parts (kalas)—and teaches that liberation-oriented knowledge arises by seeing their ordered structure and how each level pervades or is pervaded by another, ultimately pointing to Shiva as the supreme pervader (Pati).

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

Linga worship trains the mind to recognize the pervading Lord within all levels of manifestation. By contemplating Shiva as the inner pervader of the bhuvanādhvā, tattvādhvā, and kalādhvā, the devotee moves from external forms (saguṇa upāsanā) toward insight into Shiva’s all-pervading sovereignty that grounds those forms.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is adhyātma-dhyāna: during japa of the Panchakshara ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya"), contemplate the ascent through the adhvas—gross worlds to subtle principles—while holding Shiva as the vyāpaka (pervader). If practiced with Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and rudrākṣa, it supports steady Shaiva recollection and inner purification.