Shloka 48

वीरभद्र-भैरव-आह्वानम् — Invocation of Vīrabhadra/Bhairava for Cosmic Reabsorption

Devanagari script

कुलालचक्रवच्छक्त्या प्रेरितोसि पिनाकिना । नानावतारकर्ता त्वं तदधीनस्सदा हरे

Transliteration

kulālacakravacchaktyā preritosi pinākinā | nānāvatārakartā tvaṃ tadadhīnassadā hare

Translation

ఓ హరీ! పినాకధారి శివుని శక్తిచేత నీవు కుండకారుని చక్రంలా నడిపింపబడుతున్నావు. ఎన్నో అవతారాలు ధరించినా నీవు ఎల్లప్పుడూ ఆయనాధీనుడవు.

Word by Word

• kulāla-cakra-vat: like a potter’s wheel
• kulāla-cakra-vat: Upamā (उपमा/Simile-adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kulāla (प्रातिपदिक) + cakra (प्रातिपदिक) + vat (तद्धित)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव; ‘-वत्’ तुल्यार्थक (comparative) अव्ययप्रयोगः—‘कुलालचक्रवत्’ = ‘like a potter’s wheel’

• śaktyā: by (His) power
• śaktyā: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• preritaḥ: impelled / driven
• preritaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Predicate-participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-īr (धातु)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle) ‘प्रेरित’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• asi: you are
• asi: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन

• pinākinā: by Pinākin (Śiva, bearer of the bow Pināka)
• pinākinā: Karaṇa (करण/Agent-instrumental)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pinākin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; शिवस्य विशेषणम् ‘पिनाकधारी’

• nānā-avatāra-kartā: maker/author of many incarnations
• nānā-avatāra-kartā: Karta (कर्ता/Predicate-noun)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nānā (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + avatāra (प्रातिपदिक) + kṛ (धातु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘कृ’ धातोः कर्तरि कृदन्त ‘कर्तृ/कर्ता’; ‘नानाविधाः अवताराः’ इति

• tvam: you
• tvam: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• tad-adhīnaḥ: dependent on him/that (Śiva)
• tad-adhīnaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Predicate-adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + adhīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष—‘तस्य अधीनः’ = तदधीनः

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kāla (काल/Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time)

• hare: O Hari (Viṣṇu)
• hare: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन/Vocative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन; विष्णोः नाम

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Rudra

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga account; uses the potter’s wheel analogy to express that Viṣṇu’s avatāra-activity is energized by Śiva’s śakti.

Significance: Contemplative benefit: cultivates recognition of the single supreme agency (Śiva) behind multiple divine functions, supporting ekaniṣṭhā-bhakti toward Śiva.

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Vishnu

FAQs

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

It affirms Śiva (Pati) as the supreme Lord whose śakti empowers cosmic functions; even mighty divine roles like Vishnu’s avatāras operate under Śiva’s sovereignty, guiding the seeker toward exclusive refuge in Śiva for liberation.

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

By portraying Śiva as the empowering source behind all divine activity, it supports Linga/Saguna Śiva worship as devotion to the supreme controller whose presence and śakti sustain all manifestations and incarnations.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Contemplate Śiva as the inner mover (antaryāmin) and repeat the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—as a daily japa, aligning one’s actions to Śiva’s śakti rather than ego-driven effort.