Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 15

विदलोत्पलदैत्ययोरुत्पत्तिः देवपराजयः ब्रह्मोपदेशः नारदप्रेषणम्

Vidalotpala Daityas, Defeat of the Devas, Brahmā’s Counsel, and Nārada’s Mission

Devanagari script

स्फुटच्चोलांशुकपथतिर्यदंगप्रभावृता । उल्लसत्कंदुकास्फालातिश्रोणितकराम्बुजा

Transliteration

sphuṭaccolāṃśukapathatiryadaṃgaprabhāvṛtā | ullasatkaṃdukāsphālātiśroṇitakarāmbujā

Translation

اس کے اعضا پر لباس کی صاف ترچھی لکیر گویا جزوی پردہ بن گئی؛ اور گیند کے کھیل کی اچھل کود میں اس کے کنول جیسے کولہے اور ہاتھ شادمانی سے چمک اٹھے۔

Word by Word

• स्फुटत्-चोल-अंशुक-पथ-तिर्यक्-अङ्ग-प्रभा-आवृता: covered with the sideways radiance of her limbs through the clearly visible path of her garment
• स्फुटत्-चोल-अंशुक-पथ-तिर्यक्-अङ्ग-प्रभा-आवृता: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्फुट् (धातु) + चोल (प्रातिपदिक) + अंशुक (प्रातिपदिक) + पथ (प्रातिपदिक) + तिर्यक् (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + अङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रभा (प्रातिपदिक) + आवृत (कृदन्त)
• Form: बहुव्रीहि-समास (या स्फुटच्चोलांशुकपथेन तिर्यगङ्गप्रभया आवृता); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• उल्लसत्-कन्दुक-आस्फाल-अति-श्रोणि-तट-कर-अम्बुजा: whose lotus-like hands shone near her very broad hips while striking the ball
• उल्लसत्-कन्दुक-आस्फाल-अति-श्रोणि-तट-कर-अम्बुजा: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उल्लस् (धातु) + कन्दुक (प्रातिपदिक) + आ + स्फल् (धातु) + अति (अव्यय) + श्रोणि (प्रातिपदिक) + तट (प्रातिपदिक) + कर (प्रातिपदिक) + अम्बुज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहि-समास (यस्याः कराम्बुजानि उल्लसत्कन्दुकास्फालात् अति-श्रोणितटे); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Umāpati

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Pārvatī

Role: creative

Ritual Elements

Offering: dipa

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Parvati

FAQs

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

The verse uses poetic imagery of movement, radiance, and lotus-like grace to present the divine form as a sanctified object of contemplation—guiding the devotee from sensory beauty (saguṇa) toward inner reverence and purified awareness aligned with Śiva-Śakti.

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

Such descriptions support saguṇa-upāsanā: the mind steadies by contemplating sacred form and auspicious qualities. In Śaiva practice, this matures into Linga worship where form becomes a doorway to the formless Lord (nirguṇa) without denying the sanctity of manifested beauty.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is dhyāna (devotional visualization) of Śiva-Śakti with disciplined purity—paired with japa of the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya” to convert aesthetic attention into bhakti and inward steadiness.