Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 31

लिङ्ग-बेर-प्रतिष्ठाविधिः / The Procedure for Installing the Liṅga and the Bera

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Devanagari script

शोधितां चंदनालिप्तां श्वभ्रे ब्रह्मशिलां क्षिपेत् । करन्यासं ततः कृत्वा नवभिः शक्तिनामभिः

Transliteration

śodhitāṃ caṃdanāliptāṃ śvabhre brahmaśilāṃ kṣipet | karanyāsaṃ tataḥ kṛtvā navabhiḥ śaktināmabhiḥ

Translation

Tendo purificado a sagrada Brahma-śilā e ungido-a com pasta de sândalo, deve-se colocá-la na cova preparada. Em seguida, realizando o kara-nyāsa, consagrem-se as mãos invocando os nomes das nove Śaktis.

Word by Word

• śodhitām: purified
• śodhitām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śodhita (कृदन्त; √śudh/śodh शुध्/शोध् धातु)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त) ‘purified’

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• candana-ā-liptām: smeared with sandal-paste
• candana-ā-liptām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: candana (प्रातिपदिक) + ā-lipta (कृदन्त; √lip लिप् धातु)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘candana’ उपपदपूर्वक क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; समासः उपपद-तत्पुरुष (candana-ā-lipta = ‘smeared with sandal’)

• śvabhre: in a pit/cavity
• śvabhre: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śvabhra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• brahma-śilām: the Brahma-stone (sacred slab)
• brahma-śilām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + śilā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (brahmaṇaḥ śilā)

• kṣipet: should place/throw
• kṣipet: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṣip (क्षिप् धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• kara-nyāsam: hand-nyāsa (ritual placement on hands)
• kara-nyāsam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kara (प्रातिपदिक) + nyāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (karayoḥ nyāsaḥ)

• tataḥ: then/thereafter
• tataḥ: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/क्रमवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: ‘thereafter’)

• kṛtvā: having done
• kṛtvā: Kriya (क्रिया; पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (कृ धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive) ‘having done’

• navabhiḥ: with nine
• navabhiḥ: Karana (करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक विशेषण

• śakti-nāmabhiḥ: with the names of the Śaktis
• śakti-nāmabhiḥ: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śakti (प्रातिपदिक) + nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (śaktīnām nāmāni)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Umāpati

Jyotirlinga Context

Significance: Explicit Śakti-invocation (navabhiḥ śaktināmabhiḥ) during kara-nyāsa marks the rite as śiva-śakti-samanvita; it sacralizes the body as instrument of worship, aligning the paśu toward Śiva’s grace.

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: liberating

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Shakti

FAQs

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

It emphasizes that Shaiva worship is not merely external: purification, sanctifying the worship-object, and consecrating the body through nyāsa align the devotee’s powers (śaktis) toward Śiva, preparing the mind for grace (anugraha) and liberation.

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

The Brahma-śilā functions as a sanctified support in a prescribed worship-setting; placing it carefully and performing kara-nyāsa frames the ritual as Saguna-Śiva upāsanā, where the devotee establishes sacred presence through mantra, purity, and correct procedure.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

It explicitly prescribes kara-nyāsa using the names of nine Śaktis—an internal mantra-consecration of the hands—so that subsequent acts of worship are performed as mantra-empowered, disciplined sādhanā.