Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 164
रुद्र-स्तवराजः (Rudra-Stavarāja) — Exempla of Śiva’s Boons and the Hymn’s Phalaśruti
जन्मकोटिसहस्रेषु नानासंसारयोनिषु । जन्तोर्विगतपापस्य भवे भक्ति: प्रजायते
janmakoṭisahasreṣu nānāsaṃsārayoniṣu | jantor vigatapāpasya bhave bhaktiḥ prajāyate ||
Sinabi ni Vāyu: “Sa paglipas ng libu-libong milyong kapanganakan, habang pagala-gala sa sari-saring sinapupunan at kalagayan ng makamundong pag-iral, kapag ang isang nilalang ay ganap nang nalinis sa kasalanan, saka sumisibol sa loob niya ang debosyon kay Panginoong Śiva.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Devotion to Śiva is presented as the fruit of deep ethical purification: after innumerable births in saṃsāra, when the residue of pāpa is fully removed, bhakti naturally arises. The verse links moral cleansing (freedom from pāpa) with the spontaneous awakening of devotion.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Vāyu speaks as an authoritative voice on dharma and spiritual attainment. Here he explains the long arc of transmigration and the condition under which true devotion to Bhava (Śiva) manifests in a being.