Shiva Purana — Kotirudra Samhita, Shloka 7

नन्दिकेश्वरशिवलिङ्गमाहात्म्यवर्णनम्

The Māhātmya of the Nandikeśvara Śiva-liṅga

Devanagari script

इति श्रीशिवमहापुराणे चतुर्थ्यां कोटिरुद्रसंहितायां नन्दिकेश्वरशिवलिंगमाहात्म्यवर्णनंनाम सप्तमोऽध्यायः

Transliteration

iti śrīśivamahāpurāṇe caturthyāṃ koṭirudrasaṃhitāyāṃ nandikeśvaraśivaliṃgamāhātmyavarṇanaṃnāma saptamo'dhyāyaḥ

Translation

ਇਸ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਸ਼੍ਰੀ ਸ਼ਿਵ ਮਹਾਪੁਰਾਣ ਦੇ ਚੌਥੇ ਭਾਗ ਕੋਟਿਰੁਦ੍ਰ ਸੰਹਿਤਾ ਵਿੱਚ “ਨੰਦਿਕੇਸ਼ਵਰ ਸ਼ਿਵਲਿੰਗ ਦੀ ਮਹਿਮਾ ਦਾ ਵਰਣਨ” ਨਾਮਕ ਸੱਤਵਾਂ ਅਧਿਆਇ ਸਮਾਪਤ ਹੋਇਆ।

Word by Word

• इति: thus
• इति: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/discourse marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उपसंहारार्थक अव्यय (quotative/end marker: thus)

• श्रीशिवमहापुराणे: in the Śrī Śiva Mahāpurāṇa
• श्रीशिवमहापुराणे: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/locative: in)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्री + शिव + महापुराण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (शिवस्य महापुराणम्; श्री-उपपद), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• चतुर्थ्याम्: in the fourth
• चतुर्थ्याम्: Adhikaraṇa-anvaya (अधिकरण-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर्थी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘संहितायाम्’ इत्यस्य विशेषण (in the fourth)

• कोटिरुद्रसंहितायाम्: in the Koṭirudra-saṃhitā
• कोटिरुद्रसंहितायाम्: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/locative: in)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कोटि + रुद्र + संहिता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (कोटिरुद्रस्य संहिता), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• नन्दिकेश्वरशिवलिङ्गमाहात्म्यवर्णनम्: the description of the greatness of Nandikeśvara’s Śiva-liṅga
• नन्दिकेश्वरशिवलिङ्गमाहात्म्यवर्णनम्: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; chapter-title)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नन्दिकेश्वर + शिवलिङ्ग + माहात्म्य + वर्णन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुपद-तत्पुरुष-समास (नन्दिकेश्वर-शिवलिङ्गस्य माहात्म्यस्य वर्णनम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• नाम: named/called
• नाम: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/naming marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नाम (अव्यय)
• Form: नाम-शब्दः अव्ययवत् (title-marker: called)

• सप्तमः: seventh
• सप्तमः: Karta-anvaya (कर्तृ-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सप्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; अध्यायः इत्यस्य विशेषण

• अध्यायः: chapter
• अध्यायः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अध्याय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

Speaker

Suta Goswami (as the traditional narrator concluding the chapter colophon to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Colophon: marks the completion of the chapter on Nandikeśvara-Śiva-liṅga māhātmya; not itself a narrative episode.

Significance: Textual-phalaśruti framing (implicit): hearing/reciting māhātmya chapters is traditionally held to confer merit and devotion.

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Nandikeshvara
• Shiva-Linga

FAQs

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

This is a colophon marking the completion of a chapter devoted to the māhātmya (sacred glory) of the Nandikeśvara Śiva-Liṅga, emphasizing that devotion to Śiva’s liṅga-form is a sanctifying path within the Koṭirudra Saṃhitā.

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

By naming the chapter as a liṅga-māhātmya, it frames the liṅga as Śiva’s accessible saguna focus for worship—through which devotees approach the transcendent (nirguṇa) Lord by a concrete, consecrated symbol.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

While the verse itself is a chapter-ending marker, its context points to liṅga-upāsanā: offering water, bilva leaves, and mantra-japa (especially “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) with steady devotion.