Chapter 79 - The mode of worship of Śiva

The sages said:

1-2. O sages of great intellect, how should the great lord, the lord of subjects be worshipped by tardy and dull-witted men who are short-lived, whose strength is trifling and whose virility is insignificant. Even after worshipping lord Śiva by means of penance for thousands of years. Devas do not see him. How then do they worship the lord?

Sūta said:

3. O leading sages, what you have said is quite true. Still with faith the lord can be seen and pleased and even conversed with.

4. O brahmins, if even those who are devoid of devotion incidentally worship the lord, he bestows fruits befitting the emotion.

5. O brahmins, the base brahmin who worships the lord after being defiled by the leavings of food becomes a Piśāca. The man of deluded intellect who worships the lord in a fit of anger shall attain the abode of Rākṣasas.

6. The wicked man who eats forbidden food and worships the lord becomes a Yakṣa. A man. who practises music and worships the lord attains the abode of Gandharvas. A person who practises dance also attains the same state.

7. The base man attached to women and yearning for fame attains the abode of the moon^[1] (by worshipping the lord). A person afflicted by pride and arrogance, worshipping Rudra, shall attain the abode of Soma (moon?)

8. By worshipping the lord by means of Gāyatrī verses one shall attain the world of Prajāpati. By worshipping by means of Praṇava one attains the abode of Brahmā or Viṣṇu.

9. By worshipping the lord with faith even for once, the devotee attains the world of Rudra and rejoices along with the Rudras.

10-22. The splendid Liṅga, worshipped by Devas and Asuras should be cleaned by the holy waters. The lord should be invoked devoutly in the pedestal. After visiting the lord duly and after worshipping him he should be installed in the conceived seat which has the splendid form of perfect knowledge, which is richly endowed with detachment and prosperity, which is bowed to by all the people, which is in the middle of the lotus of Oṃkāra and which has its origin from the moon, sun and fire. After offering Pādya, Ācamana and Arghya to Rudra the devotee shall bathe the deity with pure waters, ghee and milk. He shall bathe Rudra with curds and clean Him. Thereafter he shall bathe the deity with pure water and worship it with sandal-paste. After worshipping with yellow pigment he shall worship it with red flowers, unbroken Bilva leaves, blue and red lotuses, Nandyāvarta flowers, Mallikās, Campakas, Jāti flowers, Bakulas, Karavīras, Śamī and Bṛhat flowers, Unmattas, Agastyas, bunches of Apāmārga flowers and splendid ornaments. After offering incense of five kinds he shall offer milk pudding as Naivedya. Other food offerings shall be rice with curds, rice soaked in honey and ghee, then pure cooked rice

23. O excellent brahmins, those trees which are utilised in the worship of Śiva through their flowers, leaves, etc., and the cows too, attain the supreme goal.

24. He who but once worships Śiva, Rudra, Śarva, the unborn Bhava attains Śiva’s Sāyujya devoid of returning here again.

25. One is liberated from all sins even by seeing but once incidentally Parameśāna, Bhava, Śarva, lord of Umā who was worshipped thus.,

26. There is no doubt in this that a man attains Brahmā’s world by seeing Mahādeva who has been worshipped or is being worshipped.

27-30. He who on hearing about the lord approves of it and rejoices therein attains the greatest goal. He who, for even once, offers a ghee lamp in front of the Liṅga attains that goal which is difficult of access by means of the stages in life and which is steady. By offering a tree of lamps either made of clay or of wood in the temple of Śiva one is honoured in the world of Siva along with hundred members of his family. He who duly and devoutly offers lamps to Śiva made of iron, copper, silver or gold shall go to the city of Śiva in splendid vehicles refulgent like ten thousand suns.

31-34. He who offers a ghee lamp in front of Siva in the month of Kārttika or he who sees the great lord being duly worshipped with faith, O excellent sages, goes to the world of Brahmā.

It is mentioned that the rites of invocation, welcome presence, installation and worship shall he conducted through Rudra Gāyatrī, the Āsana (seat) by means of Praṇava, the ablution by means of five mantras (Sadyojata, etc.), assigned to Rudra. One shall thus perpetually worship Umā’s husband, the lord of Devas. One shall worship Brahmā with Praṇava on his right side.

35-37. To his north, he shall worship Viṣṇu the lord of the chiefs of Devas by means of Gāyatrī, after performing Homa in the fire duly by repeating the five mantras and the Praṇava. By thus worshipping the lord he attains Sāyujya with Śiva. Thus, succinctly the mode of worshipping Śiva has been mentioned. After hearing this directly from Rudra, this was mentioned to me by Vyāsa in former times.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

cāndra [cāndram]—Budhasthāna [budha-sthānam] Śivatoṣiṇī. the house of Mercury. and then Mudgānna (rice cooked green graṃ) of six types. Thereafter he shall offer as Naivedya five types of cooked rice along with ghee, or rice alone wherein he shall cook one Āḍhaka measure of rice. After circumambulation he shall bow down again and again in the end. After eulogising lord Īśāna and after worshipping Śiva he shall adore him by repeating the mantras of Īśāna, Tatpuruṣa, Aghora, Vāmadeva and Sadyojāta. With this mode of worship lord Maheśvara becomes delighted.