Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 26
अनुग्रह-स्वातन्त्र्य-प्रमाणविचारः | Inquiry into Pramāṇa, Divine Autonomy, and Grace
निग्रहो ऽपि स्वरूपेण विदुषां न जुगुप्सितः । अत एव हि दण्ड्येषु दण्डो राज्ञां प्रशस्यते
nigraho 'pi svarūpeṇa viduṣāṃ na jugupsitaḥ | ata eva hi daṇḍyeṣu daṇḍo rājñāṃ praśasyate
നിയന്ത്രണവും ശിക്ഷാസംസ്കാരവും സ്വഭാവതഃ ജ്ഞാനികൾക്ക് നിന്ദ്യമായതായി തോന്നുന്നില്ല. അതുകൊണ്ട് ദണ്ഡ്യരോടുള്ള രാജദണ്ഡം പ്രശംസിക്കപ്പെടുന്നു.
Suta Goswami (narrating the Vāyavīyasaṃhitā teachings to the sages at Naimisharanya)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Sthala Purana: Didactic analogy: as wise people do not despise nigraha, so royal punishment of the punishable is praised—supporting the legitimacy of divine concealment/discipline in cosmic governance.
Significance: Frames dharma-śāsana as sacred; encourages devotees to accept corrective constraints (inner and outer) as part of spiritual maturation.
FAQs
It frames disciplined restraint (nigraha/daṇḍa) as a dharmic instrument: when applied rightly, it protects beings from further bondage (pāśa) and supports inner purification, which the wise do not condemn.
Saguna Shiva as Pati (the Lord) is the upholder of dharma; just as Shiva governs the cosmos through law and grace, a king mirrors that cosmic order by correcting wrongdoing, thereby sustaining conditions conducive to Shiva-worship and spiritual life.
The practical takeaway is self-nigraha (self-restraint): maintain ethical vows, regulate speech and conduct, and support this with japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) as a discipline that steadies the mind.