Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 20

श्रद्धामाहात्म्यं तथा देवीप्रश्नः

The Greatness of Śraddhā and Devī’s Question to Śiva

Devanagari script

तेन धर्मेण महतां श्रद्धां प्राप्य सुदुर्ल्लभाम् । वर्णिनो ये प्रपद्यंते मामनन्यसमाश्रयाः । तेषां सुखेन मार्गेण धर्मकामार्थमुक्तयः

Transliteration

tena dharmeṇa mahatāṃ śraddhāṃ prāpya sudurllabhām | varṇino ye prapadyaṃte māmananyasamāśrayāḥ | teṣāṃ sukhena mārgeṇa dharmakāmārthamuktayaḥ

Translation

Dengan dharma yang luhur itu, setelah memperoleh śraddhā yang amat sukar didapati dalam kalangan insan mulia, para pencari yang berdisiplin yang berserah diri kepada-Ku (Śiva) semata-mata—tanpa berlindung pada yang lain—mencapai melalui jalan yang mudah: dharma, kāma, artha, dan akhirnya mokṣa (pembebasan).

Word by Word

• tena: by that, through that
• tena: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• dharmeṇa: by (that) dharma
• dharmeṇa: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

• mahatām: of the great (persons)
• mahatām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• śraddhām: faith
• śraddhām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śraddhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

• prāpya: having obtained
• prāpya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकाल-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √prāp (धातु) + ya (ल्यप्)
• Form: ल्यप्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund); क्त्वार्थे (having obtained)

• su-dur-labhām: very hard to obtain
• su-dur-labhām: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su (अव्यय) + dur (अव्यय) + labhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; उपसर्ग/निपात-पूर्वक विशेषण (very difficult to obtain)

• varṇinaḥ: the varṇins (those of the orders/initiates)
• varṇinaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṇin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• ye: who
• ye: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धक-सर्वनाम

• prapadyante: take refuge, resort to
• prapadyante: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √pad (धातु) + pra (उपसर्ग)
• Form: लट्-लकार (present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद; प्रपद्यते = शरणं गच्छति

• mām: me
• mām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• ananya-samāśrayāḥ: having no other refuge (exclusive devotees)
• ananya-samāśrayāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ananya (प्रातिपदिक) + sam-āśraya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (yeṣāṃ samāśrayaḥ ananyaḥ = whose refuge is none other)

• teṣām: of them
• teṣām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• sukhena: with ease
• sukhena: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sukha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

• mārgeṇa: by the path
• mārgeṇa: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mārga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

• dharma-kāma-artha-muktayaḥ: dharma, desire, wealth, and liberation (attainments)
• dharma-kāma-artha-muktayaḥ: Karta/Predicate-nominative (प्रथमा-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक) + kāma (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक) + mukti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः (fourfold: dharma, kāma, artha, mukti)

Speaker

Lord Shiva

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Umāpati

Jyotirlinga Context

Significance: Articulates exclusive refuge (ananya-śaraṇatā) in Śiva as the ‘easy path’ yielding puruṣārthas culminating in mokṣa—classic grace-centered Siddhānta soteriology.

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?

It teaches that rare, mature faith (śraddhā) arising from true dharma culminates in exclusive surrender to Shiva (Pati), and that such single-point refuge loosens the bonds (pāśa) and leads naturally toward liberation.

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

Exclusive refuge in Shiva is commonly practiced through Saguna upāsanā—especially Linga worship—where the devotee offers mind and actions to Shiva alone; this focused devotion steadies faith and becomes the practical ‘easy path’ praised here.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The takeaway is ananya-bhakti: daily Linga-pūjā with steady japa of the Pañcākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), supported by Shaiva disciplines like bhasma (tripuṇḍra) and rudrākṣa as aids to unwavering refuge.