THE SIVA PURANA ParTI MOTILAL BANARSIDASS PUBLISHERS PVT. LTD. DELHIFist Edition: Detha, 1950 Reprint Detht, 1973, 1977, 1981, 1986, 1990, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2002 Also available at: MOTILAL BANARSIDASS 41 U.A. Bungalow Road, Jawahar Nagar, Delhi 110 007 236, 9th Main III Block, Jayanagar, Bangalore 560 011 & Mahalaxmi Chamber, 22 Bhulabhai Desai Road, Mumbai 400 026 120 Royapettah High Road, Mylapore, Chennai 600 004 Sanas Plaza, 1302 Baji Rao Road, Pune 411 002 8 Camac Street, Kolkata 700 017 Ashok Rajpath, Pauia 800 004 Chowk, Varanasi 221 001 Printed in India BY JAINENDRA PRAKASH JAIN AT SHRI JAINENDRA PRESS, A-45 NARAINA, PHASEA, NEW DELHI 110 028 AND PUBLISHED BY NARENDRA PRAKASH JAIN FOR, MOTILAL BANARSIDASS PUBLISHERS PRIVATE 1 IMITED. BUNGALOW ROAD, DELHI 110 007CONTENTS THE GLORY OF SIVAPURANA nro noe rye Greatness of Sivapurana Liberation of Devaraja Caficula’s disillusion and detachment Caficula’s salvation Binduga’s salvation Rules for listening to Sivapurana Injunctions and prohibitions SIVAPURANA : VIDYESVARA SAMHITA Nee Pes Doubt of the sages Answers to the doubts Achievable and the means of achievement Excellence of listening and deliberation Greatness of the phallic emblem of Siva Battle between Brahma and Visnu Siva manifests himself asa column of fire in the battlefield Siva’s forgiveness of Brahma Proclamation of Siva as the great lord Fivefold activities and the Ornkara-mantra Mode of worshipping the phallic form of Siva and making gifts ‘The narrative of Siva’s holy centres and temples Description of good conduct Description of fire-sacrifice Qualification, time and place for Devayajfia Modes of worship of clay idols and their results Pace 14 18 24 29 34 38 44 49 52 54 57 60 67 73 78 oh17, The syllable Om and the five-syllabled mantra 18, Bondage and liberation : The glorification of the phallic emblem of Siva 9, Glorification of the worship of Siva’s Earthen phallic image 20. Mode of worshipping an earthen phallic image by chanting Vedic mantras 21, Number of phallic images of Siva used in worship 22. On the partaking of the Naivedya of Siva and the greatness of Bilva 23. Glorification of Rudraksa and the names of Siva 24, Greatness of the holy ashes 25. Greatness of Rudraksa RUDRA-SAMHITA SECTION I : CREATION 1. Inquiry of the sages 2. Indra sends Kamadeva to disturb the penance of Narada 3. Narada attends the Svayarhnvara of a virgin 4, Narada goes to Vaikuntha and curses Visnu 5. Narada goes to Kasi 6. Description of the nature of Mahiapralaya and the origin of Visnu 7. Dispute between Brahma and Visnu 8. Description of the body of Sabdabrahman 9. Description of Sivatattva 10. Description of supreme Sivatattva 11. Mode of worshipping Siva 12. The essential and the non-essential in the worship 13. Mode of worshipping Siva 14. Direction for the worship of Siva 15. Manifestation of Rudra 16. Description of the creation 17. Story of Gunanidhi 18, Redemption of Gunanidhi 19, Friendship of Siva and Kubera 20. Siva goes to Kailasa 106 118 131 135 142 146 150 154 163 172 175 180 185 191 194 199 205 209 214 217 224 231 237 244 250 255 260 266 269RUDRA-SAMHITA SECTION I : NARRATIVE OF SATI 1. Summary of Sati’s life 2. Appearance of Kiama 3. Kama is first cursed and then blessed 4. Kama’s marriage 5. Story of Sandhya 6. Sandhya granted a boon by Siva 7. Sandhya alias Arundhati marries Vasistha 8. Description of the form and features of Vasanta 9. The power of Kama and the birth of his attendants 10. Brahm4-Visnu dialogue 11, Hymn to Durga. Brahma granted a boon 12. Daksa granted a boon 13. Narada is cursed by Daksa 14. Birth of Sati and her childish sports 15. Sacred rites of Nandi and Hymn to Siva 16. Prayer to Siva offered by Brahma and Visnu 17, Sati granted the boon 18. Marriage of Siva and Sati 19. Description of Siva’s sports 20. Siva’s marriage festival 21. Dalliance of Sati and Siva on the Himalayas 22. » » ” 23. Description of the power of devotion 24, Sati’s test of Rama’s divinity 25. Separation of Sati and Siva 274 278 282 288 291 296 302 304 309 314 319 324 328 331 336 342 347 353 357 364 369 373 379 384 389 26. The cause of estrangement between Daksa and Siva 395 27. The inauguration of Daksa’s sacrifice 28. Sati’s journey 29. Sati’s statement 30. Sati’s casting-off of her body and the subsequent disorder. 31, The celestial voice 32. Birth of Virabhadra and Siva’s advice to him 33. March of Virabhadra 34. Devas see bad omens at Daksa’s sacrifice 35. Visnu’s statement 36. Dialogue between Visnu and Virabhadra 400 405 409 415 417 420 425, 428 430 43437. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. Destruction of Dak§a’s sacrifice Dialogue between Ksuva and Dadhica The fight between Visnu and Dadhica Journey to Kailisa and the vision of Siva Devas eulogise Siva ‘The removal of Daksa’s misery The Arrangement in Daksa’s sacrifice 440 445 451 456 460 465 469SIVAPURANA-MAHATMYAM* CHAPTER ONE (Greatness of Sivapurdna) Saunaka* said :— 1, O Sita of great intellect, O my lord, the knower of all Philosophical principles, please narrate to me the essence of the Puranas in detail. 2. How do good conduct, good devotion and power of discrimination flourish ? How are base feelings dispelled by good men ? 3. In this terrible Kali age all living beings have almost become demoniac in character. What is the effective mode of remedying the same ? 4. Now tell me about the greatest means to achieve the most perfect weal, the holiest of the holy modes. 5. What is that, the practice of which particularly puri- fies the soul ? What is that which enables a man of unsullied mind to attain Siva ? Sita* said :— 6. © foremost among sages, you are blessed indeed as * The Chapters (1-7) on the glory of Sivvpuréna are taken from Skanda- burda. 1. Saunaka was the chief of the sages at the great sacrifice in Naimisa forest to whom the Mahabharata and the Puranas were recited by the Sita in the reign of Adhisimakrsna, the great-grandson of Janamejaya and the sixth in gencration from Arjuna in the Paurava line. —Va 1.12; 90, 2. Padma I. 1. 19. 2. The Sttas (Vd 1. 32-5 Pana 1. 1. 27-28) preserved the genea- logies of Gods, sages, and glorious monarchs as well as the traditions of great men. The Sita here is not a caste that_ is described by Manu (X,11.17) as the offspring of a Ksi.triya father and Brahman mother. He is a vener- able Brahmana who has preserved ballads, songs, gencalogies of Gods, sa sagt and glorious Kings.—Pargiter : Ancint Indian Hivtrical Tradition Ch. 1 also Pusalkar : Studtes in Epics and Purénas g India, Intro. P. 29. He is described as the disciple of Vyasa.—SP. I.2 Sivapurana you are desirous of hearing. Hence I shall ponder over the greatest of the Sacred lore intelligently and tell you. 7. O dear, listen to that divine panacea evolved out of all religious tenets, heightening true devotion and conducive to the pleasure of Siva. 8. It is destructive of the great fear of the Python of Kala (Death). O sage, it is the noble Siva Purana? formerly narrated by Siva Himself. 9. For the bencfit of the people in the age of Kali, the sage Vyasa‘ has abridged it out of great respect for the sage Sanatkuméra® on being instructed by him. 10. O sage, there is nothing other than Siva Purina for the purification of the mind especially of the people of the Kali age.* 11. Itis only the intelligent and the highly fortunate man who has accumulated great merits in his previous birth who will be drawn towards it. 12, This Sivapurana is the greatest and the noblest of the sacred lore. It is the form of Siva and as such is to be served and realised in this world. 13. By reading this and listening to it the good man becomes very pious. By all means he instantly attains Siva’s tegion. 14. Hence every endeavour of men to read this is desir- able. Loving care to listen to it yields all desired results. 15. By listening to this Purana of Siva a man becomes sinless. After enjoying all extensive worldly pleasures he will attain the region of Siva. 3. For the nomenclature and authenticity of this Purina see Intvo- duction. 4. According to the Pauranic tradition, Krsna Dvaipayana Vyasa, the son of Satyavati, composed the eighteen purinas or sup:rintended their compilation. —Mat. 53.70. 5. The purSnas were first, compiled by Brahma (Vd I. 60-61). Sanatkumira, a son of Brahma (SP I. 4.8-9; 1. 5. 17) inherited them from his father and imparted them to Vyasa who in turn abridged them in 18 compendiums. . The beginning of the Kali age has been discussed by Dr. Fleet (JRAS, 1911, PP. 479, 673, 686) and he has pointed out that it began on the day on which Lord Krsna died, which the chronology of the Maha- bhrata places, as he shows, some twenty ycars after the great battle and that it was then that Yudhisthira abdicated and Pariksit began to reij Pargiter : Dynasties of the Kali Age—Iniro. P. X.