Shloka 70
बन्धमोक्षवर्णनम्
Bondage and Liberation: The Prakṛti–Karma Wheel and Śiva as the Transcendent Cause
दग्ध्वा प्रपंचं तद्भस्म् अस्वात्मन्यारोपयच्छिवः । उद्धूलनेन व्याजेन जगत्सारं गृहीतवान्
dagdhvā prapaṃcaṃ tadbhasm asvātmanyāropayacchivaḥ | uddhūlanena vyājena jagatsāraṃ gṛhītavān
శివుడు సమస్త ప్రపంచాన్ని దహించి ఆ భస్మాన్ని తనపై ధరించాడు, భస్మ లేపనం నెపంతో జగత్తు యొక్క సారాన్ని గ్రహించాడు.
Sūta Gosvāmi (narrating to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya in the Vidyeśvara/Viśveśvara context)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Āghoramūrti
Type: stotra
Role: liberating
Cosmic Event: pralaya (implied); bhasmīkaraṇa of prapañca
FAQs
It teaches that bhasma symbolizes the burning away of prapañca (worldly bondage) and the recognition that all effects return to ash; Shiva’s wearing of ash reveals the inner truth that liberation comes through dispassion and resting in the Self under the grace of Pati (Shiva).
In Saguna worship, the devotee approaches Shiva through visible marks like bhasma and Tripundra; the verse explains that these are not mere externals but point to Shiva as the one who absorbs and transcends the universe—just as the Linga signifies the ground of all manifestation.
Practice bhasma-uddhūlana (Tripundra) with remembrance that worldly identifications are ‘burned to ash,’ and combine it with japa of the Panchākṣarī mantra (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) as an inner act of renunciation and surrender to Shiva.