कैलासमार्गे शङ्करस्य परीक्षा — Śiva Tests the Approachers on the Kailāsa Path
कृतांजलिपुटो भूत्वा ततो गुरुरुदारधीः । नत्वा च दंडवद्भूमौ प्रभुं स्तोतुं प्रचक्रमे
kṛtāṃjalipuṭo bhūtvā tato gururudāradhīḥ | natvā ca daṃḍavadbhūmau prabhuṃ stotuṃ pracakrame
Kemudian Guru yang berjiwa mulia itu merapatkan kedua tangan dalam añjali penuh hormat, lalu bersujud ke bumi seperti tongkat untuk menyembah Tuhan, dan mulai melantunkan pujian kepada-Nya.
Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages at Naimisharanya)
Tattva Level: pashu
Significance: Models the Śaiva Siddhānta approach to grace: humility (añjali) and complete self-surrender (daṇḍavat) as the proximate cause for Śiva’s anugraha.
Type: stotra
It teaches that approach to Pati (Lord Shiva) begins with vinaya (humility): joining the hands, full prostration, and then sincere praise—an outer sign of inner surrender that ripens bhakti and grace.
The verse models Saguna-upasana: the devotee physically bows and offers stuti to the ‘Prabhu’—a personal Lord worshipped through form, ritual gestures, and heartfelt devotion, which in Shaiva Siddhanta becomes a gateway to Shiva’s anugraha (saving grace).
Practice añjali and daṇḍavat praṇāma before Shiva worship, then recite a stotra or the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with a surrendered mind; the key takeaway is posture-backed devotion rather than mere recitation.