Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 28
देवस्तुतिः—शिवस्य परब्रह्मत्वं, मायाशक्तिः, कर्मफलप्रदातृत्वं च
Devas’ Hymn: Śiva as Parabrahman, Māyā-Śakti, and Giver of Karmic Fruits
देवानां शंभवे तुभ्यं विभवे परमात्मने । परमाय नमस्तुभ्यं कालकंठाय ते नमः
devānāṃ śaṃbhave tubhyaṃ vibhave paramātmane | paramāya namastubhyaṃ kālakaṃṭhāya te namaḥ
Pagpupugay at pagpapatirapa sa Iyo, Śambhu—ang mapalad na Panginoon ng mga deva; sa Iyo, ang karangalang lumalaganap sa lahat, ang Kataas-taasang Sarili. Pagpupugay sa Iyo, ang Pinakamataas na Katotohanan; pagpupugay sa Iyo, O Kālakaṇṭha, ang May Asul na Lalamunan.
Suta Goswami (narrating a devotional salutation within the Sati Khanda)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Nīlakaṇṭha
Sthala Purana: The epithet Kālakaṇṭha/Nīlakaṇṭha recalls the samudra-manthana episode where Śiva drinks the hālāhala poison to protect the worlds; this is a pan-Śaiva mythic context rather than a single Jyotirliṅga sthala.
Significance: Meditation on Nīlakaṇṭha signifies refuge in Śiva as the one who absorbs विष (poison) of saṃsāra and grants fearlessness.
Mantra: देवानां शंभवे तुभ्यं विभवे परमात्मने । परमाय नमस्तुभ्यं कालकंठाय ते नमः
Type: stotra
Role: liberating
Cosmic Event: Implied cosmic memory of samudra-manthana and the containment of hālāhala (world-protecting act).
FAQs
The verse unites Śiva’s Saguna glory (Śambhu, Kālakaṇṭha) with His Nirguna supremacy (Paramātmā, Parama), affirming Him as Pati—the highest Lord who grants auspiciousness and liberation.
By praising Śiva through His sacred epithets, the devotee approaches the formless Supreme via a worshipful form—commonly the Śiva-liṅga—where names like Śambhu and Kālakaṇṭha anchor devotion and contemplation.
Japa of salutations to Śiva—especially alongside Pañcākṣarī ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya")—with focused remembrance of Him as Paramātmā; this can be done during liṅga-pūjā with bhasma (tripuṇḍra) and rudrākṣa as supportive disciplines.