Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 48
आवरणपूजाविधानम् / The Procedure of Āvaraṇa (Enclosure) Worship
अथान्यायार्जितैश्चापि भक्त्या चेच्छिवमर्चयेत् । न तस्य प्रत्यवायो ऽस्ति भाववश्यो यतः प्रभुः
athānyāyārjitaiścāpi bhaktyā cecchivamarcayet | na tasya pratyavāyo 'sti bhāvavaśyo yataḥ prabhuḥ
അന്യായമായി സമ്പാദിച്ച ദ്രവ്യങ്ങളാലും ഭക്തിയോടെ ശിവനെ അർച്ചിച്ചാൽ, ആ പൂജയ്ക്ക് നാശകരമായ പ്രത്യവായം ഉണ്ടാകില്ല; കാരണം പ്രഭു ഭക്തന്റെ ഭാവത്തിന് വശനാണ്।
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Significance: Highlights Śiva’s bhāva-grāhī nature: sincere devotion can initiate purification and turn the devotee toward dharma, even when past livelihood was flawed—encouraging reform rather than despair.
Role: liberating
Offering: pushpa
FAQs
It teaches that Śiva is bhāva-vaśya—won by sincere inner devotion—so the spiritual efficacy of worship depends primarily on purity of intent and heartfelt surrender, not merely on external circumstances.
Linga/Saguṇa-Śiva worship is validated here as a direct path of grace: when the devotee offers pūjā with genuine bhāva, the Lord accepts it and protects the worshipper from the specific fault (pratyavāya) that would otherwise arise from improper conditions.
Perform Śiva-arcana (pūjā) with steady bhakti—ideally with japa of the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—emphasizing inner repentance, right resolve, and heartfelt offering as the core discipline.