Shloka 12
Dāruvana-parīkṣā: Śaṅkara’s Test and the Linga’s Ritual-Theological Grounding
तं दृष्ट्वा ऋषिपत्न्यस्ताः परं त्रासमुपागताः । विह्वला विस्मिताश्चान्यास्समाजग्मुस्तथा पुनः
taṃ dṛṣṭvā ṛṣipatnyastāḥ paraṃ trāsamupāgatāḥ | vihvalā vismitāścānyāssamājagmustathā punaḥ
اُسے دیکھ کر رِشیوں کی پتنیوں پر سخت خوف طاری ہو گیا؛ کچھ گھبرا کر بدحواس ہو گئیں اور کچھ حیرت میں آ کر پھر سے اکٹھی ہو گئیں۔
Suta Goswami
Sthala Purana: Colophon marking the close of the chapter on Liṅga-svarūpa and its causal ground; not a site-specific sthala narrative.
Significance: Textual ‘tīrtha’: recitation/listening (śravaṇa) of Liṅga-tattva chapters is treated in Purāṇic culture as meritorious and clarifying for devotion.
FAQs
The verse highlights how encountering a powerful divine or extraordinary presence can first produce fear and astonishment; in Shaiva understanding, this shock breaks complacency and prepares the mind for reverence (bhakti) and discernment that lead toward Shiva’s grace.
In Kotirudrasaṃhitā, sacred encounters around Shiva’s manifestations (often connected to Jyotirlinga narratives) evoke awe and trembling; such reactions underscore Saguna Shiva’s palpable, world-transforming presence, which devotees approach through worship, humility, and surrender.
A practical takeaway is to steady fear and agitation by taking refuge in japa of the Panchakshara (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and adopting a calm, reverent posture—optionally supported by Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa as aids for composure and devotion.