Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 47

Varaha-Pradurbhava Context: Prahlada’s Bhakti, Narasimha’s Ugra-Form, and Shiva’s Sharabha Intervention

Devanagari script

भीमाय भीमरूपाय भीमकर्मरताय ते अग्रेवधाय वै भूत्वा नमो दूरेवधाय च

Transliteration

bhīmāya bhīmarūpāya bhīmakarmaratāya te agrevadhāya vai bhūtvā namo dūrevadhāya ca

Translation

礼敬于您，怖畏者——形相怖畏，乐于怖畏之业；您化为先锋之诛戮者，摧灭诸敌；亦礼敬于您，从远处亦能击杀者。作为主宰帕提（Pati），您斩断束缚众生帕舒（paśu）的缚索帕沙（pāśa），无论障碍在近在远。

Word by Word

• भीमाय: to the Terrible One

• भीमरूपाय: to Him of terrible/fearsome form

• भीमकर्मरताय: to Him intent upon fearsome acts (for protection and destruction of evil)

• ते: to You

• अग्रेवधाय: to the slayer in front/first slayer, the one who destroys foremost

• वै: indeed

• भूत्वा: having become/assuming (that role)

• नमः: salutation

• दूरेवधाय: to the slayer from afar, who destroys at a distance

• च: and

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating a Shaiva stotra/namaskara within the Linga Purana discourse)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It frames Linga-worship as refuge in Pati (Shiva) who actively protects the devotee by destroying inner and outer obstacles—those “near” and those “far”—thereby safeguarding the worship and the worshipper.

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

Shiva is praised as Bhīma—terrible not as cruelty, but as sovereign power that annihilates adharma and bondage; His fearsome form and action express His lordship as Pati who can sever pasha and liberate the pashu.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

It implies protective japa/stotra-recitation as an upacāra to the Linga—invoking Shiva’s Bhairava-like potency to remove obstacles and hostile forces, supporting steadiness in Pashupata-oriented discipline and worship.