Shloka 38

Shivamurti–Pratishtha Phala: Shivalaya-Nirmana, Kshetra-Mahatmya, Tirtha-Snana, and Mandala-Vidhi

Devanagari script

तस्मिन्वा यस्त्यजेत्प्राणाञ् छिवसायुज्यमाप्नुयात् वाराणस्यां तथाप्येवम् अविमुक्ते विशेषतः

Transliteration

tasminvā yastyajetprāṇāñ chivasāyujyamāpnuyāt vārāṇasyāṃ tathāpyevam avimukte viśeṣataḥ

Translation

అక్కడ ఎవడు ప్రాణత్యాగము చేయునో, వాడు శివసాయుజ్యమును పొందును. అలాగే వారాణసీలో కూడా; ముఖ్యంగా అవిముక్త క్షేత్రములో, దానిని భగవాన్ ఎప్పుడూ విడువడు.

Word by Word

• तस्मिन् (tasmin): in that place/there

• वा (vā): or/indeed

• यः (yaḥ): whoever

• त्यजेत् (tyajet): should give up/renounce

• प्राणान् (prāṇān): the life-breaths, vital airs

• शिव-सायुज्यम् (śiva-sāyujyam): union/identity with Śiva (sāyujya-mukti)

• आप्नुयात् (āpnuyāt): attains

• वाराणस्याम् (vārāṇasyām): in Vārāṇasī (Kāśī)

• तथा अपि (tathā api): even so/likewise

• एवम् (evam): in this manner

• अविमुक्ते (avimukte): in Avimukta (the ‘unabandoned’ Kāśī-kshetra)

• विशेषतः (viśeṣataḥ): especially, pre-eminently.

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Linga Purana to the sages of Naimisharanya, conveying the kshetra-mahatmya tradition)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Varanasi
• Avimukta

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It links liberation (Śiva-sāyujya) to dying in Śiva’s foremost kṣetra—Avimukta/Kāśī—implying that devotion to Śiva (often through Liṅga-oriented worship) culminates in direct union with Pati, the Lord.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

Śiva is presented as the liberating Pati whose presence saturates Avimukta; proximity to Him at life’s end dissolves pāśa (bondage) for the paśu (individual soul), culminating in sāyujya-mukti.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse emphasizes kṣetra-niṣṭhā (abiding in Śiva’s sacred field) and the sanctity of prāṇa-tyāga there; it implicitly supports Shaiva disciplines—japa, smaraṇa, and Liṅga-pūjā—aimed at fixing consciousness in Śiva at the final moment.