Shloka 21

Devanagari script

आर्तवत्स तु तं वत्सं प्रतिजग्राह वै द्विजः । मिथ्योपचारतः पापमभूत्तेषां च गोघ्नताम्

Transliteration

ārtavatsa tu taṃ vatsaṃ pratijagrāha vai dvijaḥ | mithyopacārataḥ pāpamabhūtteṣāṃ ca goghnatām

Translation

دردمند شفقت سے اُس دِوِج نے وہ بچھڑا قبول کر لیا۔ مگر جھوٹے بہانے سے یہ معاملہ ہونے کے سبب اُن پر گناہ آیا اور ‘گاؤ-ہتیا’ کی آلودگی بھی لگ گئی۔

Word by Word

• ārtavatsaḥ: (one) whose calf was distressed
• ārtavatsaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ārta (प्रातिपदिक) + vatsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa compound (तत्पुरुष): ‘ārtasya vatsaḥ yasya’ in sense ‘having a distressed calf’; Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); qualifies ‘dvijaḥ’

• tu: but
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: Adversative/contrast particle (तु-प्रयोगः)

• tam: that
• tam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• vatsam: calf
• vatsam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vatsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• pratijagrāha: accepted/took
• pratijagrāha: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: prati-√grah (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: Emphatic particle (निश्चयार्थक अव्यय)

• dvijaḥ: the Brahmin
• dvijaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• mithyā-upacārataḥ: due to false/incorrect observance
• mithyā-upacārataḥ: Hetu (हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: mithyā (अव्यय) + upacāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Avyayībhāva compound (अव्ययीभाव): ‘mithyā upacārāt’ → ‘because of false treatment/ritual’; Ablative sense via -taḥ (तसिल्), indeclinable adverbial

• pāpam: sin
• pāpam: Karta (कर्ता) (of ‘abhūt’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• abhūt: arose/occurred
• abhūt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)

• teṣām: of them
• teṣām: Sambandha/Śeṣa (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter (पुं/नपुंसक), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural (बहुवचन)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक)

• go-ghnatām: (the state of) cow-killing
• go-ghnatām: Karma (कर्म) / Phala (फल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: go (प्रातिपदिक) + ghnatā (प्रातिपदिक, from √han)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa compound (तत्पुरुष): ‘goṃ ghnanti’ → ‘cow-killing’; Feminine abstract noun ‘ghnatā’ (घ्नता), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन) as result/state attained

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Bhairava

Jyotirlinga Context

Sthala Purana: Not a Jyotirliṅga passage; it is an ethical-karmic turning point: compassion is present, but deception (mithyopacāra) produces grave doṣa (goghna-taint).

Significance: Warns that dharma is not merely external form: concealment/duplicity (tirodhāna) veils right intention and yields bondage. Siddhānta stresses that karma binds when mixed with mala and adharma; only Śiva’s anugraha plus rectitude dissolves pāśa.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmana
• Calf
• Cow (as dharma-symbol)

FAQs

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

It teaches that even a compassionate act can bind one in pāpa if it is carried out through deception; Shaiva dharma emphasizes purity of intention and purity of means, since karma (pāśa) arises from both.

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

Linga-worship is grounded in śuddhi (purity) and satya (truth). This verse underlines that devotion to Saguna Shiva must be supported by truthful conduct; otherwise, ritual merit is obstructed by karmic taint.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

Practice satya and ahiṃsā as preparatory vows, then perform Shiva worship with repentance and inner purification—japa of the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and bhasma-dhāraṇa as reminders to avoid deceit and harm.