Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 21

उपमन्युतपः-निवारणप्रसङ्गः / Śiva restrains Upamanyu’s tapas (Śiva disguised as Indra)

Devanagari script

उपमन्युरुवाच । त्वयैवं कथितं सर्वं भवनिंदारतेन वै । प्रसंगादेव देवस्य निर्गुणत्वं महात्मनः

Transliteration

upamanyuruvāca | tvayaivaṃ kathitaṃ sarvaṃ bhavaniṃdāratena vai | prasaṃgādeva devasya nirguṇatvaṃ mahātmanaḥ

Translation

Sinabi ni Upamanyu: “Tunay ngang ipinaliwanag mo ang lahat nang ganyan, O ikaw na masigasig sa pagpupuri kay Bhavānī. At sa daloy lamang ng pag-uusap na iyon, nabanggit mo ang nirguṇa na kalikasan ng Dakilang Panginoon—yaong lampas sa lahat ng katangian.”

Word by Word

• upamanyuḥ: Upamanyu
• upamanyuḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: upamanyu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd Person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)

• tvayā: by you
• tvayā: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• evam: thus
• evam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (रीतिवाचक-अव्यय)

• kathitam: was told/said
• kathitam: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √kath (धातु) (क्त)
• Form: Napumsaka (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); past passive participle (क्त) used predicatively with ‘sarvam’

• sarvam: everything
• sarvam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• bhava-nindā-ratena: by one devoted to criticizing Bhava (Śiva)
• bhava-nindā-ratena: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhava + nindā + rata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन); तत्पुरुष: ‘bhavasya nindāyāṃ rataḥ’ (engaged in blaming Bhava/Śiva)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: Emphatic particle (निपात)

• prasaṅgāt: from context/incidentally
• prasaṅgāt: Hetu (हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prasaṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular (एकवचन)

• eva: only/indeed
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Emphatic particle (निपात)

• devasya: of the god
• devasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन)

• nirguṇatvam: attribute-less nature
• nirguṇatvam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nirguṇatva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• mahātmanaḥ: of the great-souled one
• mahātmanaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन)

Speaker

Upamanyu

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Umāpati

Mantra Metadata

Type: stotra

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: teaching

Ritual Elements

Offering: pushpa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Parvati

FAQs

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

The verse highlights that while devotion may begin through praise of Bhavānī (Śakti), it naturally opens into the highest understanding of Śiva as nirguṇa—Pati, the transcendent Lord beyond limiting attributes—pointing the seeker toward liberation-oriented knowledge.

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

It implies a Shaiva progression: devotees approach the Lord through saguna forms (such as Liṅga worship and the divine couple Śiva–Śakti), and through that very context come to recognize Śiva’s nirguṇa reality, which the saguna worship ultimately reveals.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is to continue saguna upāsanā—especially Liṅga pūjā with the Pañcākṣarī mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—while meditating that the worshipped Lord is inwardly nirguṇa, beyond the guṇas, as the goal of realization.