Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 7

नैमित्तिकविधिक्रमः

Occasional Rites and Their Procedure

Devanagari script

फाल्गुने चोत्तरान्ते वै प्रारभेत महोत्सवम् । चैत्रे चित्रापौर्णमास्यां दोलां कुर्याद्यथाविधि

Transliteration

phālgune cottarānte vai prārabheta mahotsavam | caitre citrāpaurṇamāsyāṃ dolāṃ kuryādyathāvidhi

Translation

ഫാൽഗുണ മാസത്തിന്റെ അവസാനഘട്ടത്തിൽ തീർച്ചയായും മഹോത്സവം ആരംഭിക്കണം. തുടർന്ന് ചൈത്ര മാസത്തിൽ ചിത്രാ നക്ഷത്രയുക്തമായ പൗർണ്ണമിയിൽ വിധിപ്രകാരം ദോലാ-ഉത്സവം (ഊഞ്ഞാൽ സേവ) നടത്തണം.

Word by Word

• phālgune: in (the month of) Phālguna
• phālgune: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phālguna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; time-locative (काले सप्तमी)

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction particle (समुच्चय-अव्यय)

• uttarānte: at the end of (the) Uttarā (Phālgunī) period / in the latter end
• uttarānte: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: uttara + anta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; time-locative; तत्पुरुष (uttarasya antaḥ)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Prayojaka-nipāta (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: Emphatic particle (निपात)

• prārabheta: should begin
• prārabheta: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + √rabh (रभ्/रम्भ् धातु)
• Form: Optative/विधिलिङ्, Ātmanepada, 3rd Person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular

• mahā-utsavam: the great festival
• mahā-utsavam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + utsava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; कर्मधारय (mahān utsavaḥ)

• caitre: in (the month of) Caitra
• caitre: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: caitra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; time-locative (काले सप्तमी)

• citrā-paurṇamāsyām: on the full-moon day of Citrā
• citrā-paurṇamāsyām: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: citrā + paurṇamāsī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (citrāyāḥ paurṇamāsī)

• dolām: the swing (rite)
• dolām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dolā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• kuryāt: should do
• kuryāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: Optative/विधिलिङ्, Parasmaipada, 3rd Person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular

• yathā-vidhi: according to the prescribed rule
• yathā-vidhi: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā + vidhi (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Adverbial compound (अव्ययीभाव), indeclinable; manner-adverb

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Shiva Form: Umāpati

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Festival injunctions: begin a mahotsava at Phālguna’s close; in Caitra on Citrā-paurṇamāsī perform dolā (swing-rite). This reflects utsava-bhakti where the Lord is honored through regulated, time-aligned celebration.

Significance: Utsava (public festival) and dolā-sevā cultivate communal bhakti and sustained remembrance; in Śaiva Siddhānta, such disciplined worship supports caryā/kriyā leading toward Śiva’s anugraha.

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: nurturing

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

The verse emphasizes that devotion to Shiva should be both heartfelt and disciplined—aligned with sacred time (tithi and nakshatra) and performed as a “mahotsava,” turning ritual order into a vehicle for bhakti and inner purification under Shiva’s grace.

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

By prescribing a public festival and a dolā-rite on an auspicious full moon, the text points to Saguna Shiva worship—honoring Shiva through visible, temple-centered observances (often around the Shiva-linga), where devotion is expressed through sanctioned rites, offerings, and celebration.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

It suggests conducting a properly timed utsava beginning at Phālguna’s end and performing dolotsava on Citrā Pūrṇimā in Caitra, following vidhi—typically including Shiva-pūjā, mantra-japa (such as the Panchākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”), and orderly observance under priestly guidance.