Shloka 49
भैरवावतारवर्णनम् (Bhairavāvatāra-varṇanam) — “Description of the Descent/Manifestation of Bhairava”
यतः पापानि भक्तानां भक्षयिष्यसि तत्क्षणात् । पापभक्षण इत्येव तव नाम भविष्यति
yataḥ pāpāni bhaktānāṃ bhakṣayiṣyasi tatkṣaṇāt | pāpabhakṣaṇa ityeva tava nāma bhaviṣyati
چونکہ آپ بھکتوں کے گناہوں کو اسی لمحے نگل لیتے ہیں، اس لیے آپ کا نام یقیناً “پاپ بھکشَن”—گناہوں کا نگلنے والا—ہوگا۔
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Bhairava
Jyotirlinga: Vaidyanātha
Sthala Purana: Vaidyanātha is famed as the ‘physician’ Śiva who removes afflictions; the verse’s ‘instant consumption of sins’ aligns with the jyotirliṅga’s healing-and-purifying soteriology (pāpa-kṣaya).
Significance: Pilgrims seek rapid purification of sins and relief from suffering; devotion is framed as immediate grace (anugraha) removing pāśa (bondage).
Type: stotra
Role: liberating
FAQs
The verse declares Shiva’s grace as immediate and transformative: when a devotee takes refuge in him, the binding impurities (pāpa/karma) are “consumed,” pointing to purification and readiness for liberation (moksha) through bhakti.
In Saguna worship—especially of the Shiva Linga—Shiva is approached as the compassionate Lord who accepts offerings and devotion; this verse frames Linga-bhakti as a direct means to purification, where the Lord’s presence burns accumulated sin and obstruction.
A practical takeaway is sincere Shiva-bhakti with japa of the Panchakshara ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya"), along with purification-oriented observances like applying Tripuṇḍra bhasma and maintaining a vowful, repentant mind—seeking Shiva as the remover of pāpa.