Shloka 10
Kṛṣṇādi-Śivabhaktoddhāraṇa & Śiva-māhātmya-varṇana
Deliverance of Krishna and other devotees; Description of Shiva’s Greatness
नवमे तु दिने प्राप्ते मुनिना स च दीक्षितः । मंत्रमध्यापितं शार्वमाथर्वशिरसं महत्
navame tu dine prāpte muninā sa ca dīkṣitaḥ | maṃtramadhyāpitaṃ śārvamātharvaśirasaṃ mahat
ஒன்பதாம் நாள் வந்தபோது முனிவர் அவனை முறையாக தீட்சை அளித்தார்; மேலும் சிவனை வெளிப்படுத்தும் ஷார்வ மந்திரமாகிய மகத்தான அதர்வசிரஸ் உபதேசத்தை கற்றுத்தந்தார்.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Ishana
Sthala Purana: Not tied to a Jyotirliṅga; the focus is dīkṣā and transmission of Atharvaśiras-linked Śaiva vidyā, a classic Siddhānta marker of grace-mediated liberation.
Significance: Highlights initiation (dīkṣā) as the decisive turning point: entry into Śiva’s mantra-mārga under a qualified guru, leading toward pāśa-kṣaya and mukti.
Type: gayatri
FAQs
It highlights that Śiva-realization is approached through disciplined preparation and guru-bestowed dīkṣā, after which the seeker receives an authorized Śaiva mantra and its inner meaning—pointing from practice (pāśa-cutting discipline) toward grace (Śiva as Pati).
By naming Śarva and a Śaiva mantra-teaching (Atharvaśiras), the verse supports Saguna Śiva-upāsanā—mantra-japa and reverent contemplation—often centered on the Liṅga as the accessible form through which the formless reality is approached.
Receiving dīkṣā from a qualified guru and then practicing regular Śaiva mantra-japa with understanding of its meaning; this is the implied sādhana, which may be accompanied (as taught elsewhere in the Purāṇa) by purity disciplines such as bhasma and rudrākṣa observances.