Shloka 1

देवदारुवनौकसां प्रति ब्रह्मोपदेशः—लिङ्गलक्षण-प्रतिष्ठा-विधिः, शिवमायारूपदर्शनं, स्तुतिः

Devanagari script

इति श्रीलिङ्गमहापुराणे पूर्वभागे त्रिंशो ऽध्यायः सनत्कुमार उवाच कथं भवप्रसादेन देवदारुवनौकसः प्रपन्नाः शरणं देवं वक्तुमर्हसि मे प्रभो

Transliteration

iti śrīliṅgamahāpurāṇe pūrvabhāge triṃśo 'dhyāyaḥ sanatkumāra uvāca kathaṃ bhavaprasādena devadāruvanaukasaḥ prapannāḥ śaraṇaṃ devaṃ vaktumarhasi me prabho

Translation

Như vậy, trong Śrī Liṅga Mahāpurāṇa, phần Pūrva-bhāga, chương thứ ba mươi kết thúc. Sanatkumāra thưa: “Bạch Chúa Tể, xin Ngài nói cho con biết: nhờ ân sủng của Bhava (Śiva), bằng cách nào những người cư trú trong rừng Devadāru đã quy phục và nương tựa nơi Đấng Thần Linh?”

Word by Word

• iti: thus

• śrī-liṅga-mahāpurāṇe: in the venerable Liṅga Mahāpurāṇa

• pūrva-bhāge: in the first section (Pūrva-bhāga)

• triṃśaḥ adhyāyaḥ: the thirtieth chapter

• sanatkumāra uvāca: Sanatkumāra said

• katham: how?

• bhava-prasādena: by the grace of Bhava (Śiva)

• devadāru-vana-aukasaḥ: the inhabitants of the Devadāru forest

• prapannāḥ: those who surrendered/took complete refuge

• śaraṇam: refuge

• devam: the God, the Lord

• vaktum arhasi: you are fit/please deign to tell

• me: to me

• prabho: O Lord.

Speaker

Sanatkumara

Characters & Entities

• Shiva (Bhava)
• Devadaru-vanavasins (forest-dwellers)

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames the Devadāru-forest narrative as a movement from ego and ritual-pride toward śaraṇāgati (refuge) in Śiva—an essential foundation for Liṅga-bhakti, where the devotee approaches the Liṅga not as mere rite but as surrender to Pati.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

Śiva is invoked as Bhava, the gracious Pati whose prasāda transforms the pashu (bound soul) into a prapanna (one who takes refuge), indicating Shiva-tattva as liberating grace rather than merely punitive power.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse highlights śaraṇāgati as the inner discipline—central to Pāśupata-oriented devotion—where outer ritual becomes effective when grounded in humility and dependence on Bhava’s prasāda.