Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 16

विष्णु-ब्रह्म-विवाद-वर्णनम्

Description of the Viṣṇu–Brahmā Dispute and Brahmā’s Confusion

Devanagari script

तच्छ्रुत्वा व्योमवचनं द्वादशाब्दं प्रयत्नतः । पुनस्तप्तं तपो घोरं द्रष्टुं स्वजनकं तदा

Transliteration

tacchrutvā vyomavacanaṃ dvādaśābdaṃ prayatnataḥ | punastaptaṃ tapo ghoraṃ draṣṭuṃ svajanakaṃ tadā

Translation

ఆ వ్యోమవాక్యాన్ని విని అతడు పన్నెండు సంవత్సరాలు దృఢప్రయత్నంతో సాగాడు. ఆపై తన జనక-కారణుని దర్శించుటకు మళ్లీ ఘోర తపస్సు ఆరంభించాడు.

Word by Word

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘that’ (object of hearing)

• श्रुत्वा: having heard
• श्रुत्वा: Purvakala-kriya (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund), ‘having heard’

• व्योमवचनम्: the utterance from the sky
• व्योमवचनम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्योम-वचन (प्रातिपदिक; व्योमन् + वचन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (व्योम्नः वचनम्)

• द्वादशाब्दम्: for twelve years
• द्वादशाब्दम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्वादश-अब्द (प्रातिपदिक; द्वादश + अब्द)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; द्विगु-समास (द्वादश अब्दाः)

• प्रयत्नतः: with effort
• प्रयत्नतः: Kriya-visheshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्रयत्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (ablatival adverb) ‘with effort/earnestly’

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Kriya-visheshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण

• तप्तम्: performed
• तप्तम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तप् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘performed’ (agreeing with तपः)

• तपः: austerity
• तपः: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• घोरम्: terrible
• घोरम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: घोर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तपसः विशेषणम्

• द्रष्टुम्: to see
• द्रष्टुम्: Prayojana (प्रयोजन/उद्देश्य)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (infinitive), ‘to see’

• स्वजनकम्: his own father
• स्वजनकम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्व-जनक (प्रातिपदिक; स्व + जनक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (स्वः जनकः)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kriya-visheshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण

Speaker

Sūta Gosvāmin (narrating the Rudra Saṃhitā account to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pashu

Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Brahma

FAQs

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

It presents disciplined tapas as the purifier of the limited self and the means to receive Shiva’s grace—showing that realization of the Supreme Cause arises through sustained effort aligned with divine instruction.

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

The “voice from the sky” indicates Shiva’s guiding presence in creation; the seeker’s renewed austerity points to approaching Saguna Shiva (often revealed as the Linga in this khaṇḍa) as the accessible form through which the Supreme is beheld.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Steady, time-bound sādhanā—japa and meditation with focused resolve—mirroring the Purāṇic model of sustained tapas; in Shaiva practice this is commonly supported by Panchākṣarī japa (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and disciplined observances.