Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 39
पाशुपतज्ञानप्रश्नः — Inquiry into Pāśupata Knowledge
Paśu–Pāśa–Paśupati
खेचरा ऋषयस्सिद्धा भोगिनो मनुजा मृगाः । पशवः पक्षिणश्चैव कीटाद्याः स्थावराणि च
khecarā ṛṣayassiddhā bhogino manujā mṛgāḥ | paśavaḥ pakṣiṇaścaiva kīṭādyāḥ sthāvarāṇi ca
आकाशचारी, ऋषी व सिद्ध; भोगी नाग, मनुष्य व मृग; पशु व पक्षी; तसेच कीटकादि व स्थावर—हे सर्व (जीवसमूह) अंतर्भूत आहेत।
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Sthala Purana: Not a sthala-purāṇa passage; it functions as a sarva-vyāpti (all-inclusion) catalogue of embodied orders of beings under Śiva’s lordship.
Significance: Supports the contemplative insight that all jīvas—celestial, human, animal, and vegetal—are Paśu dependent on Pati; fosters universal compassion and non-sectarian reverence.
FAQs
It enumerates the full spectrum of embodied existence—moving and unmoving—implying that all are within Shiva’s lordship (Pati) and that bondage and grace can pertain to every order of being, a key Shaiva Siddhanta framing of pashu (the bound soul).
By presenting all categories of life as encompassed in creation, it supports the Purana’s teaching that Saguna Shiva—worshipped as the Linga—receives devotion offered for the welfare of all beings and grants upliftment according to their capacity and karma.
A practical takeaway is universalized Shiva-bhakti: japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and offering prayers with compassion for all beings, paired with simple Shaiva observances like Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and mindful restraint (ahiṃsā).