Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 44

अवभृथस्नान-तीर्थयात्रा-तेजोदर्शनम् | Avabhṛtha Bath, Tīrtha-Pilgrimage, and the Vision of Divine Radiance

Devanagari script

अतस्त्वमेव याथात्म्यं ममास्मै कथयानघ । ब्रह्मणः पूर्वजः पुत्रो मां मूढ इव संस्मरन्

Transliteration

atastvameva yāthātmyaṃ mamāsmai kathayānagha | brahmaṇaḥ pūrvajaḥ putro māṃ mūḍha iva saṃsmaran

Translation

Kaya nga, O walang dungis, ikaw lamang ang magsaysay sa kaniya ng aking tunay na kalikasan. Bagaman siya ang panganay na anak ni Brahmā, inaalala niya Ako na tila nasa pagkalito—gaya ng nagkakamaling ituring ang Kataas-taasang Panginoon na karaniwang nilalang sa daigdig.

Word by Word

• atas: therefore
• atas: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atas (अव्यय)
• Form: Hetu-avyaya (causal adverb)

• tvam: you
• tvam: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; pronoun

• eva: indeed / only
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Avadhāraṇa-nipāta (restrictive particle)

• yāthātmyam: the true nature / reality
• yāthātmyam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yāthātmya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka, Dvitīyā (2nd), Ekavacana; object of kathaya

• mama: of me / my
• mama: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/षष्ठी), Ekavacana; genitive relation

• asmai: to him
• asmai: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Caturthī (4th/चतुर्थी), Ekavacana; dative recipient

• kathaya: tell / explain
• kathaya: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kath (धातु)
• Form: Loṭ (Imperative/लोट्), Madhyama-puruṣa (2nd), Ekavacana; parasmaipada

• anagha: O sinless one
• anagha: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anagha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Sambodhana (Vocative/सम्बोधन), Ekavacana; संबोधन

• brahmaṇaḥ: of Brahmā
• brahmaṇaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī (6th), Ekavacana; genitive

• pūrvajaḥ: the elder-born / first-born
• pūrvajaḥ: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pūrvaja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; apposition to putraḥ

• putraḥ: son
• putraḥ: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: putra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; subject of saṃsmaran (participle clause)

• mām: me
• mām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dvitīyā (2nd), Ekavacana

• mūḍhaḥ: deluded
• mūḍhaḥ: Kartṛ-viśeṣaṇa (कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mūḍha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; predicate adjective to putraḥ

• iva: as if
• iva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: Upamā-avyaya (comparative particle)

• saṃsmaran: remembering / calling to mind
• saṃsmaran: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: saṃ-√smṛ (धातु)
• Form: Vartamāna-kṛdanta (present active participle/शतृ), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; agreeing with putraḥ

Speaker

Lord Shiva

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Īśāna

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Brahma

FAQs

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

It teaches that even exalted beings can fall into misunderstanding, and liberation arises from being instructed in Shiva’s yāthātmyam—knowing Pati (Shiva) as the supreme reality who dispels pasha (bondage) and avidyā (delusion).

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

By urging the teaching of Shiva’s true nature, it supports Saguna worship (such as Linga-upāsanā) as a compassionate means to correct deluded remembrance and lead the devotee toward right knowledge of Shiva’s supremacy.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The practical takeaway is śravaṇa (listening to Shiva-tattva) and smaraṇa (right remembrance) supported by japa of the Panchakshara—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—to transform deluded memory into devotion grounded in true understanding.