Shloka 9

Indra’s Account: Shilada’s Tapas and Shiva’s Manifestation as Nandi

Devanagari script

शिलाद उवाच भगवन्देवदेवेश त्रिपुरार्दन शङ्कर अयोनिजं मृत्युहीनं पुत्रमिच्छामि सत्तम

Transliteration

śilāda uvāca bhagavandevadeveśa tripurārdana śaṅkara ayonijaṃ mṛtyuhīnaṃ putramicchāmi sattama

Translation

Śilāda thưa: “Bạch Đấng Thế Tôn, Chúa tể của các thần, Tripurārdana, Śaṅkara—bậc tối thắng! Con ước có một người con không sinh từ thai tạng, và vượt khỏi tử vong.”

Word by Word

• शिलाद (śilāda): Śilāda

• उवाच (uvāca): said

• भगवन् (bhagavan): O Blessed Lord

• देवदेवेश (devadeveśa): Lord of the lordly gods / Lord of gods

• त्रिपुरार्दन (tripurārdana): Destroyer of Tripura

• शङ्कर (śaṅkara): Śaṅkara, the beneficent Shiva

• अयोनिजम् (ayonijam): not womb-born / not born from a yoni

• मृत्युहीनम् (mṛtyuhīnam): devoid of death, deathless

• पुत्रम् (putram): son

• इच्छामि (icchāmi): I desire

• सत्तम (sattama): O best of the good / best among the virtuous

Speaker

Śilāda

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

The verse shows the devotee’s direct supplication to Pati (Śiva) for a transcendent boon; it reflects the Linga-Purāṇa theme that steadfast tapas and Śiva-bhakti culminate in Śiva’s grace, beyond ordinary worldly causality.

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

Śiva is invoked as Devadeveśa and Tripurārdana—supreme sovereign and destroyer of bondage—implying he alone can grant what is beyond saṃsāra, such as freedom from death, which belongs to the domain of Pati rather than the limited power of pashus.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

While the verse itself is a prayer, its narrative setting implies tapas and one-pointed devotion (a Pāśupata-oriented approach) as the means by which a pashu seeks refuge in Pati for blessings that transcend karmic limitation.