Shloka 47

Glorification of Vārāṇasī: Kapardīśvara Liṅga and the Piśācamocana Tīrtha

Devanagari script

शंकुकर्णोऽथ मुक्तात्मा तदात्मा सर्वगोऽमलः । निलिल्ये विमले लिंगे तदद्भुतमिवाभवत्

Transliteration

śaṃkukarṇo'tha muktātmā tadātmā sarvago'malaḥ | nililye vimale liṃge tadadbhutamivābhavat

Translation

Então Śaṅkukarṇa—liberto no espírito, identificado com Aquilo, onipresente e sem mácula—fundiu-se no liṅga puro; e isso pareceu algo maravilhoso.

Word by Word

• शंकुकर्णः: Śaṃkukarṇa (proper name)
• शंकुकर्णः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaṃku-karṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (शंकुः इव कर्णौ यस्य/नामरूपेण), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अनन्तर/sequence particle: 'then')

• मुक्तात्मा: liberated-souled
• मुक्तात्मा: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mukta (√muc + क्त) + ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास ('liberated' + 'self'), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• तदात्मा: one with That
• तदात्मा: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad + ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (तद्-आत्मा = 'having that as self/identified with that'), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• सर्वगः: all-pervading
• सर्वगः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva + ga (√gam + ड) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास ('going everywhere' = all-pervading), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• अमलः: stainless, pure
• अमलः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: amala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक

• निलिल्ये: merged/entered, dissolved
• निलिल्ये: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni-√lī (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद

• विमले: in the pure
• विमले: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vimala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• लिङ्गे: in the liṅga
• लिङ्गे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• अद्भुतम्: wonderful, marvelous
• अद्भुतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: adbhuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• इव: as if, like
• इव: Upamana-marker (Simile/उपमा)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (उपमा/particle of comparison)

• अभवत्: became, was
• अभवत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (अनद्यतनभूत/imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

Speaker

Narrator (contextual speaker not specified in the provided excerpt; typically within the Pulastya–Bhīṣma dialogue frame in Svarga-khaṇḍa)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Geographic Context

Type: celestial_realm

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: शंकुकर्णोऽथ = शंकुकर्णः + अथ; सर्वगोऽमलः = सर्वगः + अमलः; तदद्भुतमिवाभवत् = तत् + अद्भुतम् + इव + अभवत्.

Characters & Entities

• Śaṅkukarṇa
• Liṅga (Śiva)

FAQs

What does it mean that Śaṅkukarṇa is 'tadātmā' (identified with That)?

It indicates non-dual realization: his identity is established in the Supreme Reality (Brahman/Paramatman), transcending limited individuality while remaining pure and all-pervading in awareness.

Why does the verse say he 'merged into the pure liṅga'?

The liṅga functions as a sacred locus of Śiva and a symbol of the formless Absolute. Merging into it expresses final absorption—liberation depicted through devotional-ritual imagery.

What is the ethical or spiritual lesson suggested by this verse?

Purity (amala), inner freedom (muktātmā), and unwavering identification with the Supreme culminate in liberation; the verse frames mokṣa as both mystical realization and reverent union with the divine symbol.