Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 56

शिवशक्त्यैक्य-तत्त्वविचारः / Inquiry into the Unity of Śiva and Śakti

Para–Apara Ontology

Devanagari script

प्रष्टव्यं वस्तुजातं तु धत्ते शंकरवल्लभा । प्रष्टा स एव विश्वात्मा बालचन्द्रावतंसकः

Transliteration

praṣṭavyaṃ vastujātaṃ tu dhatte śaṃkaravallabhā | praṣṭā sa eva viśvātmā bālacandrāvataṃsakaḥ

Translation

สรรพสิ่งอันควรถามและควรรู้ พระเทวีผู้เป็นที่รักของศังกรทรงดำรงไว้ภายในพระองค์; ส่วนผู้ถามก็คือพระองค์เดียวกันนั้น—วิศวาตมัน—ผู้ประดับจันทร์เสี้ยวอ่อนบนมวยผมของพระองค์।

Word by Word

• प्रष्टव्यम्: to be asked
• प्रष्टव्यम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रष्टव्य (कृदन्त; √प्रच्छ् (धातु) तव्यत्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; कृदन्त (gerundive) ‘to be asked’

• वस्तु-जातम्: the whole set of things / all matters
• वस्तु-जातम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वस्तु (प्रातिपदिक) + जात (कृदन्त; √जन् (धातु) क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः ‘collection of things’

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha (particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (indeed)

• धत्ते: bears / holds
• धत्ते: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √धा (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; ‘holds/bears’

• शंकर-वल्लभा: Śaṅkara’s beloved (Pārvatī)
• शंकर-वल्लभा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शंकर (प्रातिपदिक) + वल्लभा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः ‘beloved of Śaṅkara’

• प्रष्टा: the questioner
• प्रष्टा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रष्टृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; ‘questioner’

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; pronoun ‘he’

• एव: indeed / alone
• एव: Sambandha (particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (only/indeed)

• विश्व-आत्मा: the universal Self
• विश्व-आत्मा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विश्व (प्रातिपदिक) + आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः ‘soul of the universe’

• बाल-चन्द्र-अवतंसकः: (he) adorned with the young moon
• बाल-चन्द्र-अवतंसकः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बाल (प्रातिपदिक) + चन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक) + अवतंसक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः ‘he who has the young moon as an ornament (on the head)’

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Mahādeva

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga narrative; it presents a cognitive-theological equivalence: Devī contains the totality of ‘askable knowables’ (praṣṭavya-vastu-jāta), while Śiva is the universal questioner/knower (viśvātmā).

Significance: Supports jñāna-bhakti contemplation: approach Devī as the repository of all tattvas/knowables, and Śiva as the inner inquirer; this orientation is used to cultivate humility and receptivity to anugraha.

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Parvati

FAQs

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

It teaches that all knowable truths and all genuine inquiry ultimately rest in Śiva and Śakti: Devī holds the field of what is to be understood, and Śiva—Viśvātmā—stands as the inner knower who prompts and fulfills the quest for liberation.

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

By naming Śiva as the universal Self and marking Him with the crescent moon (a Saguna emblem), the verse supports Linga/Saguna worship as a concrete focus through which the seeker’s questions resolve into direct recognition of Śiva as the indwelling reality.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Meditate on Chandrashekhara Śiva (the crescent-moon Lord) together with Devī as His Śakti, offering mental inquiry (vicāra) into the nature of the Self while repeating the Panchākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—as the questioner and the answer are realized to be Śiva.