Shloka 19
Varṇa-adhikāra, Karma, and the Protection of One’s Attained Spiritual Status (वर्णाधिकारः कर्म च स्वस्थानरक्षणम्)
व्यास उवाच । संग्रामस्येह माहात्म्यं त्वयोक्तं मुनिसत्तम । एतदिच्छाम्यहं श्रोतुं ब्रूहि त्वं वदतां वर
vyāsa uvāca | saṃgrāmasyeha māhātmyaṃ tvayoktaṃ munisattama | etadicchāmyahaṃ śrotuṃ brūhi tvaṃ vadatāṃ vara
வ்யாசர் கூறினார்—முனிவரரே! இங்கு இந்தப் போரின் மகிமையை நீங்கள் உரைத்தீர்கள். அதை முழுமையாகக் கேட்க விரும்புகிறேன்; ஆகவே வாக்கில் சிறந்தவரே, எனக்குச் சொல்லுங்கள்.
Vyasa
Tattva Level: pashu
FAQs
It highlights śravaṇa (reverent listening) as a purifying Shaiva practice: the seeker (Vyāsa) asks for the full mahātmya, indicating that sacred glory becomes spiritually effective when heard with sincerity.
Though the verse itself is a request, it sets up the narration of a sacred episode whose mahātmya typically culminates in devotion to Saguna Shiva and reverence for Shiva’s divine governance (pati) over events that bind and liberate beings.
Devotional śravaṇa: hearing Shiva Purana kathā with attention and faith—often paired in Shaiva tradition with japa of the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) before or after the discourse.