Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 55
दीक्षितपुत्रस्य दैन्यचिन्ता तथा शिवरात्र्युपासनाप्रसङ्गः / The Initiate’s Son in Distress and the Occasion of Śivarātri Worship
नान्यं धर्मं स जानाति दुर्दमो भूपतिर्दमः । शिवालयेषु सर्वेषु दीपदानादृते द्विजः
nānyaṃ dharmaṃ sa jānāti durdamo bhūpatirdamaḥ | śivālayeṣu sarveṣu dīpadānādṛte dvijaḥ
اے دِوِج! وہ سخت قابو میں آنے والا بادشاہ دَم کسی اور دھرم کو نہیں جانتا تھا؛ وہ ہر شِو مندر میں دیپ دان، یعنی چراغ کی نذر، کبھی ترک نہ کرتا۔
Sūta Gosvāmin
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Īśāna
Sthala Purana: Lamp-offering (dīpa-dāna) is presented as the king’s singular dharma; symbolically it dispels tirodhāna (concealment) by bringing light (jñāna) into Śiva’s abode.
Significance: Dīpa-dāna in Śiva temples is praised as a merit-giving act that supports inner illumination and removal of ignorance.
Role: teaching
Offering: dipa
FAQs
It exalts dīpa-dāna (offering a lamp) as a concentrated form of Shaiva dharma—symbolizing the awakening of jñāna (inner light) and steady bhakti toward Pati (Śiva), the Lord who removes ignorance.
Lamp-offering is a classic upacāra in Saguna Shiva worship—performed before the Liṅga in Śivālaya—honoring Śiva as the manifest Lord who accepts devotion through simple, repeatable temple rites.
Perform dīpa-dāna in a Śiva temple with a prayer that the flame mirror one’s inner awareness; mentally offer the light to Śiva while repeating a Shaiva mantra such as “Om Namaḥ Śivāya.”