Shloka 16

Devanagari script

वाच्यः पञ्चाक्षरैर्देवि शिवस्त्रैलोक्यपूजितः वाचकः परमो मन्त्रस् तस्य पञ्चाक्षरः स्थितः

Transliteration

vācyaḥ pañcākṣarairdevi śivastrailokyapūjitaḥ vācakaḥ paramo mantras tasya pañcākṣaraḥ sthitaḥ

Translation

โอ้เทวี พระศิวะผู้เป็นที่บูชาในไตรโลก เป็นผู้ถูกพึงกล่าวด้วยห้าพยางค์ และมนตร์สูงสุดผู้เป็นวาจกะก็ตั้งมั่นอยู่ในรูปห้าพยางค์นั้นเอง

Word by Word

• वाच्यः: the One to be expressed/denoted

• पञ्चाक्षरैः: by the five syllables (pañcākṣara)

• देवि: O Goddess

• शिवः: Śiva (Pati, the Lord)

• त्रैलोक्य-पूजितः: worshipped in the three worlds

• वाचकः: the denoter/that which expresses

• परमः: supreme

• मन्त्रः: mantra/sacred formula

• तस्य: of Him (Śiva)

• पञ्चाक्षरः: the five-syllabled (mantra)

• स्थितः: established/abides as

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating an internal Shaiva teaching on the Panchakshara)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Devi (Parvati)

FAQs

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

It establishes that Śiva, the Pati worshipped in all worlds, is directly invoked and contemplated through the pañcākṣara; thus japa of the five syllables becomes a core limb of Linga-pūjā and inner worship.

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

Śiva-tattva is presented as the vācya (the ultimate referent): the supreme reality whom the mantra signifies—implying that the sound-form (mantra) functions as a direct pointer to Pati beyond pasha-bound limitations of the paśu.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Pañcākṣara-japa (repetition of the five-syllabled mantra, classically “Namaḥ Śivāya”)—used as mantra-sādhana within Shaiva practice and as a support for Pāśupata-oriented purification of the paśu from pāśa.