Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 38
देवसान्त्वनम् (Devasāntvana) — “Consolation/Reassurance of the Gods”
इतस्ततो रुरोदोच्चैरनीश इव स प्रभुः । योग्यायोग्यं न बुबुधे भ्रमन्सर्वत्र सर्वदा
itastato rurodoccairanīśa iva sa prabhuḥ | yogyāyogyaṃ na bubudhe bhramansarvatra sarvadā
他——虽为主宰——却在此处彼处徘徊，放声哀哭，宛如无依无助。时时处处游走之中，他已不复分辨何为相宜、何为不宜。
Sūta Gosvāmin (narrating to the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Bhikṣāṭana
Shakti Form: Satī
Role: teaching
FAQs
It portrays Śiva’s līlā where the Lord outwardly assumes human-like anguish and confusion, revealing how intense separation and longing can dissolve ordinary social distinctions (yogya–ayogya) and turn the mind wholly toward the Divine—an inner movement toward vairāgya and ultimate grace.
Śiva’s visible, emotional līlā supports Saguna-upāsanā: devotees relate to the Lord personally and take refuge in the Liṅga as the steady, worshipable presence of Pati (Śiva) when the world-mind becomes unstable. The Liṅga anchors devotion beyond fluctuating feelings.
When the mind ‘wanders everywhere,’ stabilize it with japa of the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and simple Liṅga-dhyāna; optionally wear Rudrākṣa for steadiness and apply Tripuṇḍra-bhasma as a daily reminder of detachment and Śiva-smarana.