Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 38

मङ्गलाचरणम्, तीर्थ-परिसरः, सूतागमनम् — Invocation, Sacred Setting, and the Arrival of Sūta

Devanagari script

अद्यापि देवलोके तच्छतकोटिप्रविस्तरम् । यो विद्याच्चतुरो वेदान् सांगोपणिषदान्द्विजः

Transliteration

adyāpi devaloke tacchatakoṭipravistaram | yo vidyāccaturo vedān sāṃgopaṇiṣadāndvijaḥ

Translation

即便在今日，于诸天之界，那一传承仍铺陈至数百俱胝之广。纵使一位“再生者”（dvija）通达四部吠陀，并兼习诸支分与奥义书（Upaniṣad），其浩瀚亦难以穷尽。

Word by Word

• adya: today/now
• adya: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: adya (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• api: still/also
• api: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्भावना/अपि (particle: 'also/even/still')

• deva-loke: in the world of the gods
• deva-loke: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• tat: that
• tat: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); सर्वनाम (pronoun used adjectivally)

• śata-koṭi-pravistaram: having an extent of a hundred crores (in expansion)
• śata-koṭi-pravistaram: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śata + koṭi + pravistara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); परिमाणवाचक-समास

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); सम्बन्धबोधक (relative pronoun)

• vidyāt: would know
• vidyāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vid (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथम/मध्यम?—प्रयोगानुसार तृतीयपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular); परस्मैपद

• caturo: four
• caturo: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: catur (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• vedān: Vedas
• vedān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: veda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), द्वितीया (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• sa-aṅga-upaniṣadān: together with the limbs and the Upaniṣads
• sa-aṅga-upaniṣadān: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa + aṅga + upaniṣad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), द्वितीया (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural); 'स' उपसर्गार्थक (with)

• dvijaḥ: a twice-born (Brahmin)
• dvijaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pati

Shiva Form: Sadāśiva

Shakti Dimension

Role: teaching

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: Devaloka scale of śāstra: hyperbolic vastness indicating supra-human, cosmic transmission

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in the Shiva Purana?

It emphasizes the immeasurable vastness of sacred Shaiva knowledge: even exalted realms preserve an expansive account, and mere intellectual mastery of the Vedas and Upaniṣads does not fully encompass Shiva-tattva.

How does this verse relate to the worship of the Linga or Saguna Shiva?

By implying the limits of textual scope, it points devotees toward lived worship—approaching Shiva through accessible forms like the Linga (Saguna focus) while recognizing the boundless reality it signifies (Nirguna depth).

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

The takeaway is to balance study with devotion: undertake japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and contemplative listening (śravaṇa) to Shiva-kathā, rather than relying on scholarship alone.