Shloka 77

रुद्राक्ष-माहात्म्य

Rudrākṣa Māhātmya — The Greatness of Rudraksha

Devanagari script

एकादशमुखो यस्तु रुद्रा क्षः परमेश्वरि । स रुद्रो धारणात्तस्य सर्वत्र विजयी भवेत्

Transliteration

ekādaśamukho yastu rudrā kṣaḥ parameśvari | sa rudro dhāraṇāttasya sarvatra vijayī bhavet

Translation

ഹേ പരമേശ്വരീ! ഏകാദശമുഖമായ രുദ്രാക്ഷം സാക്ഷാൽ രുദ്രനാണ്; അതിനെ ധരിക്കുന്നവൻ എല്ലായിടത്തും വിജയിയാകും.

Word by Word

• एकादशमुखः: eleven-faced
• एकादशमुखः: विशेषण (attribute)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एकादश (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + मुख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्विगु-समास (numerical compound), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन; विशेषण (of रुद्राक्षः)

• यः: which/who
• यः: कर्ता (relative subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक (relative pronoun)

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: सम्बन्ध (particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषार्थक-अव्यय (particle)

• रुद्राक्षः: rudrākṣa bead
• रुद्राक्षः: कर्ता (Karta/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रुद्र (प्रातिपदिक) + अक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (‘Rudra’s eye’ → rudrākṣa bead), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

• परमेश्वरि: O Supreme Goddess
• परमेश्वरि: सम्बोधन (address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: परमेश्वरी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• सः: that (one)
• सः: कर्ता (subject; resumptive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन; संकेत (correlative pronoun)

• रुद्रः: Rudra
• रुद्रः: कर्ता (subject/apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रुद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन; (apposition to सः)

• धारणात्: from wearing/holding
• धारणात्: हेतु (cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धारण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग-भाववाचक, पञ्चमी (Ablative), एकवचन; हेतौ (cause: ‘from/through wearing’)

• तस्य: of it/of that
• तस्य: सम्बन्ध (genitival relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (Genitive), एकवचन

• सर्वत्र: everywhere
• सर्वत्र: अधिकरण (location-scope)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सर्वत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of place)

• विजयी: victorious
• विजयी: विशेषण (attribute)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विजयिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन; विशेषण (of सः/रुद्रः)

• भवेत्: would become/should be
• भवेत्: क्रिया (predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Lord Shiva

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Rudra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Parvati
• Rudra
• Rudraksha

FAQs

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

The verse identifies the eleven-faced Rudrākṣa with Rudra Himself, teaching that devotion expressed through sacred Shaiva emblems can confer Shiva’s grace—protection, steadiness of mind, and success in righteous pursuits.

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

Rudrākṣa is treated as a tangible (saguṇa) support for devotion, like the Liṅga; wearing it is a form of constant remembrance and proximity to Shiva, aligning the devotee with Rudra’s auspicious presence.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Wear (dhāraṇa) the 11-faced Rudrākṣa with reverence, ideally alongside japa of the Panchākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and Shaiva disciplines such as Tripuṇḍra/bhasma, cultivating continuous Shiva-smaraṇa.