Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 3
नैमित्तिकविधिक्रमः
Occasional Rites and Their Procedure
अयने विषुवे चैव ग्रहणेषु विशेषतः । कर्तव्या महती पूजा ह्यधिका वापि शक्तितः
ayane viṣuve caiva grahaṇeṣu viśeṣataḥ | kartavyā mahatī pūjā hyadhikā vāpi śaktitaḥ
ایان اور اعتدال کے اوقات میں، اور خاص طور پر گرہن کے وقت، شیو کی عظیم پوجا کرنی چاہیے؛ یا اپنی طاقت کے مطابق اس سے بھی زیادہ پوجا بجا لانی چاہیے۔
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Sthala Purana: Not a site-specific māhātmya; the verse gives a general kāla-viśeṣa (time-qualification) for intensified Śiva-pūjā at ayana/viṣuva and especially during grahaṇa, when merit is held to multiply and concealment (tirodhāna) is ritually countered by focused worship.
Significance: Encourages kāla-sādhana: performing Śiva worship at cosmically charged times is said to yield amplified puṇya and quicker purification, supporting eligibility for Śiva’s anugraha (grace).
Offering: pushpa
Cosmic Event: grahaṇa (eclipse); also ayana (solstice) and viṣuva (equinox) as calendrical cosmic thresholds
FAQs
It teaches that certain cosmic junctions (solstice, equinox, eclipse) are spiritually potent, so a devotee should intensify Śiva-pūjā then—offering more devotion and discipline within one’s means—so the soul (paśu) turns more fully toward Pati (Śiva) and loosens bondage (pāśa).
The instruction is practical and ritual-oriented: at these times one performs “mahatī pūjā,” typically expressed as Liṅga-arcana (water, bilva, lamps, naivedya) to Saguna Śiva, using the visible form as the doorway to the formless Supreme.
Increase Śiva worship according to capacity: longer Liṅga-pūjā, more japa of the Pañcākṣarī ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya"), and observances like purity/fasting; if aligned with one’s tradition, apply bhasma (tripuṇḍra) and wear rudrākṣa while maintaining focused meditation on Śiva.