Adhyaya 44: Nandikesvara’s Manifestation and Abhisheka; The Rule of Namaskara in Shiva-Nama
तदा देवीं भवं दृष्ट्वा मया च प्रार्थयन् गणैः मुनिदेवर्षयः सिद्धा आज्ञां पाशुपतीं द्विजाः
tadā devīṃ bhavaṃ dṛṣṭvā mayā ca prārthayan gaṇaiḥ munidevarṣayaḥ siddhā ājñāṃ pāśupatīṃ dvijāḥ
तदा देवीं भवं दृष्ट्वा मया च गणैः सह प्रार्थितौ। मुनयः देवर्षयः सिद्धा द्विजाश्च सर्वे पाशुपतीम् आज्ञां याचन्ति स्म॥
Suta Goswami (narrating the internal scene)
It frames Linga-centered devotion as a request for Śiva’s Pāśupata ordinance—grace-guided discipline that makes worship transformative, aimed at freeing the paśu (individual soul) from pāśa (bondage).
Śiva appears as Bhava and Paśupati—the supreme Pati (Lord) whose authority (ājñā) governs liberation; His presence with Devī indicates that anugraha (saving grace) flows through the Śiva–Śakti unity.
The verse points to seeking the Pāśupata-ājñā—initiation-like authorization into Pāśupata Yoga and its regulated observances, where worship and discipline are undertaken under Śiva’s command.