Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 24
मयस्य शिवस्तुतिः — Maya’s Hymn to Śiva
and Śiva’s Gracious Response
कोटिकल्पानि नरके नो वासस्तु भविष्यति । नोद्धारो भविता नूनं शिवभक्तविरोधिनाम्
koṭikalpāni narake no vāsastu bhaviṣyati | noddhāro bhavitā nūnaṃ śivabhaktavirodhinām
အမှန်တကယ်ပင် ရှိဝ၏ ဘက္တများကို ဆန့်ကျင်သူတို့သည် ကပ္ပကောဋိများတိုင်အောင် နရက၌ နေရမည်။ ထိုသူတို့အတွက် မည်သည့် ကယ်တင်ခြင်း၊ လွတ်မြောက်ခြင်းမျှ မရှိတော့သည်။
Suta Goswami (narrating the Shiva Purana account to the sages of Naimisharanya, within the Yuddhakhaṇḍa context)
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Sthala Purana: Not tied to a specific liṅga-site; it articulates a purāṇic ‘phala/daṇḍa’ doctrine: hostility to Śiva-bhaktas yields prolonged naraka-experience.
Significance: Didactic significance: encourages bhakta-sevā and avoidance of bhakta-apacāra; pilgrimage merit is framed as protection of devotion rather than geography.
Cosmic Event: karmic retribution across koṭi-kalpas (vast cosmic timescale)
FAQs
The verse warns that śiva-bhakta-virodha (hostility toward Śiva’s devotees) is a grave aparādha that hardens bondage (pāśa) and blocks upliftment; in Shaiva Siddhanta terms, it obstructs Śiva’s anugraha (grace) and leads to prolonged suffering until repentance and right conduct arise.
Linga/Saguṇa-Śiva worship is not only ritual but also ethical devotion: honoring Śiva includes honoring His bhaktas. Insulting or harming devotees contradicts Linga-upāsanā and weakens the fruit of pūjā, japa, and vrata, because devotion must express itself as reverence and non-enmity.
A practical takeaway is to observe bhakta-sammāna (respect for devotees) alongside daily Panchākṣarī japa (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and to perform prāyaścitta through confession, humility, and renewed vrata/pūjā—avoiding nindā (slander) as a core discipline.