Spiritual and Moral Values propagated by the

Ancient Śaiva Religion

Dr. T.GANESAN,
Research Director in Śaiva Āgama & Śaivasiddhānta
French Institute, Pondicherry

“Religion is the

manifestation of divinity in man”. Thus goes the famous saying of Swami

Vivekananda. Religion plays a very important rôle as a promoter of all-

round goodwill and development for each individual that constitute the

society. The śaiva religion which conceives Śiva the highest and the

supreme reality propounds many practical disciplines based on its doctrines

for the manifestation of that divinity by every human being. One of the

chief methods to success in spiritual life for a śaiva is the cultivation of

highest moral and ethical conducts apart from unflinching devotion to Śiva.

Śaivism which is one of the most ancient religions expounds many practical

disciplines—individual and collective—for the upliftment of personal

conduct and social well-being. It has its own part for the development of

many virtues which would promote social welfare and contribute ultimately

for the spiritual liberation of mankind.

1
Three basic categories are common to all the different schools of śaivism.

They are Śiva the supreme reality (pati), the individual self bound by

ignorance and karma (paśu) and the material world which is the product of

matter (pāśa). The individual self after duly undergoing the initiation (dīkṣā)

is supposed to practice regularly all the spiritual practices along with the

cultivation of high moral virtues. Thus in the end it would realize its innate

śivahood which is unlimited knowledge and power.

My study is mainly based on some of the most ancient śaiva texts such as

the Śivadharma, Śivadharmottara 1 , , Śivadharmasaṃgraha,

Umāmaheśvarasaṃvāda of which the first two have contributed immensely

for the spread and propagation of basic virtuous conducts and moral duties.

Interestingly these texts do not speak of any special initiation (dīkṣā) which

we find in the āgama-s. Therefore, the views expressed in them are

applicable to all the followers of śaivism irrespective of their affiliations to

any sub-school.

1
That the Śivadharma and the Śivadharmottara were considered to be of great authority by many
ancient smti writers such as Caṇḍeśvara Ṭhakkura of Mithilā and Devaṇṇabhaṭṭa is attested by
many of their references to these texts.
Further, we come to know from the 12th century inscriptions of the Chola period that they
encouraged the study and propagation of the Śivadharma in some of the Śiva temples.
The Śivadharmottara has been translated into Tamil verse by Maṟaiñāṉacampantar of the 16th
century who was one of the great teachers of the Śaivasiddhānta.
Cf. GANESAN, 2009. Two Saiva teachers of the sixteenth century. Nigamajnana I and his
disciple Nigamajnana II. IFP - Publications Hors série n° 9 for more details on the contribution of
Nigamajñāna (Maṟaiñāṉacampantar) for the propagation and enrichment of śaiva literature and
concepts.

2
An aspirant or the adherent of Śaivism is viewed also as part of the society

for the welfare of which he is obliged to contribute. Accordingly in these

texts there are duties and conducts which he has to regularly practise and his

duties towards the society. In all these texts material and moral advancement

are viewed as contributing to the ultimate spiritual realization.

The very first verse of the Śivadharma prays for the well-being of all:

śivamastu sarvajagatāṃ parahitaniratā bhavantu bhūtagaṇāḥ .

The ten basic virtues called śivadharma which every śaiva should cultivate

are:

kṣamā satyaṃ dayā dānaṃ śaucamindriyanigrahaḥ .

śivapūjāgnihomaśca santoṣo'steyabhāvanā .

“Forebearance, truthfulness, compassion, charity, personal purity,

controle of senses, worship of Śiva, performance of Agnihotra, and

other fire rituals, contentement and non-stealing”.

A person truly devoted to Śiva and the śaiva scriptures should cultivate the

following four virtues 2 : Friendly attitude towards all creatures (maitrī),

compassion towards one and all (karuṇā), happiness towards those who are

virtuous and do good acts (muditā) and ignoring the wicked persons and

shunning their company altogether (upekṣā).

2
It is interesting to note that these very same qualities are very much stressed in the

Yogasūtra (I.33) and Vācaspatimiśra's commentary on it.

An inscription of the Kalachuri-Chedi era assignable to the 10th century describing the

spiritual qualities of a Pāśupatayogī also mentions these four mental dispositions.

3
Basic virtues to be cultivated according to the Śivadharmasaṃgraha

satyaṃ kṣāntirahiṃsā ca śaucaṃ dānamalobhatā .

dayā bhūteṣvapaiśunye . . . .

adrohaścānasūyā ca paraiśvarye ca niḥspṛhā .

amātsaryamamānitvaṃ śivabhaktiracāpalaḥ .

japadhyānaratiḥ sthairyadīnāndhajanapālanī .

....

“Truthfulness, patience, non-injury, personal purity, charity, non-

greedy, compassion, non-slanderous, free from hatred, non-greedy,

not coveting other’s wealth, free from jealousy, free from

boastfulness, possessing devotion to Śiva, mental firmness, inclination

towards japa and meditation, firmness, compassion towards poor and

blind persons . . . ”

The text continues:

ojaḥ praśāntiḥ santoṣaḥ śāṭhyapāpavivarjitāḥ .

parīkṣyakāritā nityaṃ manovākkāyanigrahāḥ .

adambhitvam anāyāsaḥ karṇejapavivarjitāḥ .

....

“Virility, tranquility, contentment, free from villany and sin, working

after due consideration, controlling always the mind, speech and body,

free from hypocrisy, absence of exertion, absence of carrying tales, . .

.”

4
We get a practical instruction on one’s conduct towards one’s neighbour in

the following passage:

parāpavāde maunatvam ātmanyevātmatuṣṭitā .

akrodhitvam amāyitvam iti dharmaḥ prakīrtitaḥ .

“Maintaining silence in other’s calumny, enjoying the bliss in oneself,

freedom from anger, guilelessness are the virtues”.

Certainly, the text assures, that by practicing these virtues one attains to

great satisfaction and mental peace. No only that but there is less conflict in

the society.

ya etān bhajate bhāvān so'mṛtatvāya kalpate .

....

By the practice of such high virtues one brings happiness to all as the

following passage says:

yasya buddhirasammūḍhā sarvabhūteṣvapāpakṛt .

akalkatā supraśānto narakaṃ sa na paśyati .

....

“Whose mind is free from stupidity, free from non-injury towards all

creatures, who is sinless and fully tranquil never sees the hell”.

svakārye parakārye ca yasya buddhiḥ samāgatā .

etadeva hi pāṇḍityaṃ śeṣāḥ pustakavācakāḥ .

“A real man of scholarship behaves in the same way while dealing

with his own affairs as well as with those of others whereas others are

mere readers of the book”.

5
One should fully learn the dharma and imbibe their essential meaning. Then

he should conduct in such a way that he refrains from doing those acts to

others which are adverse to him.

śrūyatāṃ dharmasarvasvaṃ śrutvā caivāvadhāryatām .

ātmanaḥ pratikūlāni pareṣāṃ na samācaret .

The well known verse of the Tirukkuṟa 3

also propounds the same view.

Five personal-restraints (yama) propounded by these texts are:

ahiṃsā satyamasteyaṃ brahmacaryamakalkatā .

ete smṛtā yamāḥ pañca śāstre'smin pārameśvare .

“Non-injury, truthfulness, non-stealing, sense-control, freedom from

sins: These five are the self-restraints propounded in the śaiva

scriptures”.

The Śivadharmasaṃgraha considers truthfulness as the highest virtue and

untruthfulness as the worst sin:

nāsti satyāt paro dharmo nānṛtāt pātakaṃ param .

Even to succeed in worldly pursuits one is advised in modern times to

connect with people and create strong bonds and meaningful relationships.

What to speak of in the sphere of spiritual development where mental

3
Tirukkuṟa, 391: kaṟka kacaṭaṟa kaṟpavai kaṟṟapiṉ
niṟka ataṟkut taka.
“Let a man learn thoroughly whatever he may learn, and let his conduct be worthy of his
learning”.

6
disposition towards the fellow beings and especially with the weaker

sections is one of the most basic virtues !

Further, the text considers that hiṃsā is of 5 types:

māraṇaṃ tāḍanaṃ bandhastrāsanaṃ vṛttināśanam .

hiṃsā pañcaprakāroktā tattyāgāddharmamāpnuyāt .

“Killing, hitting, capturing, intimidating and destroying one’s

livelihood are the five types of injury; one attains to dharma by

avoiding all of them”.

Stealing also is of different kinds:

parasvasyāpaharaṇaṃ rakṣitasyetarasya vā .

balādvā yadi vā pāpaiḥ taccauryaṃ samprakīrtitam .

“Taking away other’s property which is protected by violence or by

sinful acts is called stealing”.

The Umāmaheśvarasaṃvāda, another less known text, states that one should

not boast of one’s birth and status but only do one’s duty which counts

ultimately:

sukṛtairduṣkṛtairvāpi karmabhirdevi nityaśaḥ .

ahaṃkāro na kartavyo brāhmaṇo'smīti jānatā .

It states that only he who has virtuous conduct is respected but not others:

vṛttayukto hi pūjyeta vṛttahīno na pūjyate .

It enumerates the virtues to be cultivated as in the following:

sarvabhūtadayā caiva maitraṃ kāruṇyameva ca .

sthāvaraṃ jaṅgamaṃ vāpi hiṃsā bhāve na cintayet .

7
 “Compassion towards all beings, friendliness, and complete absence

of injurious thought to all beings and even to plants are the virtues”.

Restraint in one’s words is very much stressed:

ātmārthe vā parārthe vā pāruṣyaṃ na ca bhāṣayet .

Purification of one’s speech is effected only by speaking the truth:

nānṛtāṃ vadate vāṇīṃ vākśaucamiti nirdiśet .

Non-violence is highly extolled as the best virtue:

ahiṃsā paramo dharmaḥ ahiṃsā paramo guṇaḥ .

ahiṃsā sarvabhūteṣu yānti brahma sanātanam .

Just as violence is manifold so also non-violence:

paradravyaṃ na sevante adattaṃ na ca gṛhyate .

nyāyopārjitavittāśca . . . . na hiṃsakāḥ .

“Virtuous pesons do not desire other’s wealth nor do they enjoy that

which is not given to them; they feel happy with their wealth earned

through lawful means. They are not causing injury to anybody.”

There are many passages in this text which describe the immense benefit of

speaking the truth always, desisting from causing any injury by mind, word

and deed. Interestingly the text also discusses the occasions that warrant one

to speak untruth if it really saves the life of another.

The importance of charity and how one should give donate to others is also

clearly explained:

pātramuddiśya dātavyaṃ dharmamityeva nityaśaḥ .

8
One should not bother much about the origin and birth or qualifications of

the person to whom one gives in charity:

na pṛcchedgotracaraṇaṃ svādhyāyaṃ deśajanmanī .

For, it is the mental attitude that is the basis of the dharma:

cittamūlo hi bhaveddharmo dharmamūlo bhavecchubham .

tasmāt saumyena cittena dātavyaṃ devi nityaśaḥ .

The earth (bhūmi) is considered to be the highest and the best donor for it

gives to everybody everything without reservation.

Among various things offered as gifts five are very important:

annaṃ vastraṃ hiraṇyaṃ ca bhūmigodānapañcamam .

“Food, cloth, gold, land and cows are the five greatest objects to be

donated”.

From the brief discussion as found above one should not think that these

texts propagate total renunciation and monastic life. For, there are many

number of passages that speak the greatness of the householder. He is the

basis of all dharma and the best of the four stages of life (āśrama):

gṛhāśramasamo devi āśramo naiva vidyate .

“Oh, Goddess! There is none equal to the householder’s stage”.

yathā mātaramāśritya sarve jīvanti jantavaḥ .

evaṃ gṛhasthamāśritya sarve jīvanti cāśramāḥ .

“Just as all creatures live by their mothers so also all other āśrama-s

flourish by the support of ghasthāśrama”.

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It is even higher than doing penance in the hermitage:

āśrame ye ca tapyante tapo mūlaphalāśinaḥ .

gṛhāśramasya te devi kalāṃ nārhanti ṣoḍaśīm .

Interestingly the Umāmaheśvasaṃvāda clearly depicts the degradation in all

spheres in the kali age; we get a very detailed picture of the social and

individual maladies that we face in the modern time. The text characterises

them as the inevitable effects of decline of the age (yugakṣaya).

There are separate chapters that describe in detail various sins that one

commits individually and to the society at large. The results of those sins are

also enumerated so as to make a person desist from commiting them.

Conversely there are separate chapters that deal with various positive results

to encourage a person to cultivate moral conducts and virtues that contribute

for the overall well being.

Among many other passages that extol the various basic virtues to be

cultivated the following ones seem to succinctly explain them:

ahiṃsakāḥ kṛtajñāśca satyavādidṛḍhavratāḥ .

kṣāntā dāntā vinītāśca jitakrodhā jitendriyāḥ .

....

mātāpitṛbhyāṃ śuśrūṣā devatātithipūjakāḥ .

“Those who do not commit any injury to any creature,

grateful,truthful, resolute mind, mentally and physically controlled,

humble, conquering anger and passions, . . . serving mother and

father, honouring the gods and guests are the virtuous people.”

10
Many passages vividly describe the bad effects of consuming liquor and

meat. Refraining from consuming them is highly praised as a fundamental

virtue.

nivṛttā madyamāṃsābhyāṃ parasvaharaṇe tathā .

mādhuryayuktāḥ satataṃ nityaṃ ca priyavādinaḥ .

Compassion to all and the less privileged is the sine qua non of a spiritual

life:

dīnāndhāturasatvānāmanukampādayāparāḥ .

evaṃ śīlasamāyuktā gacchanti paramāṃ gatim .

 Importance of Cows for the society

The great benefits derived by growing cows are al treated well in the

Śivadharmottara and Śivadharmasaṃgraha. The importance, the method and

the value of feeding the cows and serving the in varios ways are very clearly

explained. These texts inculcate the necessity of the cows for the welfare of

humanity and the bad effects of ill-treating them.

The text Śivadharma Uttarottara states that

amṛte mathyamāne tu kṣīrode sāgare śubhe .

tatra gāvaḥ samutpannāḥ kāmikā'mṛtasambhavāḥ .

“When the ocean was churned for nectar, these cows sprang up”.

To own a cow and nourish them are themselves auspicious acts which bring

forth prosperity.

gāvaḥ pavitraṃ māṅgalyaṃ devatānāṃ ca devatā .

sarvadevamayā gāvastasmādgāvaṃ na hiṃsayet .

11
 jātamātrasya lokasya gāvastrātā na saṃśayaḥ .

After describing how the various gods reside in different parts of its body the

text says,

sarvadevasamāyuktā sarvavidyāṅgasambhavāḥ .

sarvapāpaharā nityam etadguṇaśatottamāḥ .

ye spṛśanti padā devi ucchiṣṭaṃ ca dadatyapi .

brahmahatyādikaṃ pāpaṃ labhante te na saṃśayaḥ .

“These cows contain all the gods within themselves, all knowledge is

stored in them, they aremove all sins, they are good many times; those

who touch the cows with their foot andgives them the left-over foods

will surely get the sin of killing a Brahmin”.

The text also praises the greatness of the bull and donating them as charity.

 Duties of the King

He should always strive to follow the dharma and see that his subjects are

also follow the same. He gets one fourth of the merits of his subects if he

strictly follows dharma and rules the country accordingly. For, the

Śivadharmottara says,

dharmaśīle nṛpe yasmāt prajāstaddharmatatparāḥ.

The preceptor or the learned person should also make efforts to set the king

right if he swerves from the righteous path. Only such an adviser is fit to be

called the jagadguru:

evaṃ yaḥ sarvayatnena rājānaṃ bodhyedguruḥ .

jagadguruḥ sa vijñeyaḥ sarvalokānukampakaḥ .

12
One of the important traits of a śaiva ācārya is that he should aim to

inculcate the teachings of the śaiva scriptures in the language that is easily

comprehensible to the students. For that he can use any of the spoken

languages or the regional languages.

The 52nd adhyāya of the Saurapurāṇa deals in detail with different sins and

the expiatory rites to get rid of them. Sins are generally divided into two

kinds, visible (prakaṭa) and secret (rahasya).

 Greatness of a śivabhakta

The 64th adhyāya again extols the greatness of devotion to Śiva and the

devotees of Śiva. Śivabhakti is so great that a person with highest devotion

to Śiva is not affected by greatest sins (mahāpātaka). One gets the fruit of the

vedic sacrifice, atirātra by just seeing a śivabhakta or by merely speaking

with him. 4 The text goes to the extent of saying that one should not look

into the class of a śivabhakta—whether he is a Brahmin or a kṣatriya or a

śūdra or the lowest one. He should be respected in any situation. One should

not question his conduct or birth.

 Man versus Society

As any indian system of religious code and conduct is not devoid of its

social content we take up for study the ancient form of Śaivism that has been

simply but beautifully portrayed in one of the greatest texts called

4
darśanācchivabhaktānāṃ sakṛt sambhāṣaṇādapi .
atirātrasya yajñasya phalaṃ bhavati nārada . (64: 40b-41a)

13
Śivadharma and the Śivadharmottara; these are the two great religious texts

that have quite exerted their influence in the domain of śaiva religion and

code of conduct for a true devotee of Śiva from ancient times as attested by

many references to these texts that the authors of Smti writers make. We

come to know from the 12th century inscriptions of the Chola period that the

they encouraged the study and propagation of the Śivadharma in some of the

temples. Along with devotion and worship of Śiva they preach service to all

living creatures as the easiest and surest means to final liberation. The very

first verse of the (SDhr) prays for welfare of entire universe and seems to

suggest it to be the sole motive and guiding principle of a true devotee of

Śiva.

śivam astu sarvajagatāṃ parahitaniratā bhavantu bhūtagaṇāḥ |

The Śivadharma in its earlier chapters gives elaborate details about Śiva-

worship; but its 11th chapter is exclusively devoted to the conducts and

duties of a śivabhakta. First, he should ‘see’ Śiva in all living beings; he

should serve especially those who are suffering from various diseases. He

should offer food to the hungry, water to the thirsty. What is more, he should

utter sweet and reassuring words such as “Be Fearless!!” that instill

confidence in their minds and give protection to those that are overpowered

by enemies and thieves and hence seek refuge in him. We may notice here

the duties imposed on the words and deeds of a śivabhakta. What is the

mental attitude that motivates him ? The Śivadharma answers that it is love

and sympathy not only towards human beings but also towards animals and

14
birds: The devotee expresses it by giving food to animals such as dogs and

birds and to the low-born. Anything even an insignificant one given with

utmost concern and love becomes so great and significant. For those who do

not possess any wherewithal to do some service to the society Śivadharma

advises them to utter at least sweet words to all; it says the effect of uttering

sweet words to one and all cannot adequately expressed. Not only that; a

true devotee of Śiva should never say any word that affects other’s mind.

 Spiritual Qualities

Apart from these types of service to the society one is advised to cultivate

certain important qualities which have a far-reaching effect on the welfare of

the humanity. Forebearance (Kṣamā), Non-violence (Ahiṃsā), Tranquility

(Śānti), Contentment (Santoṣa), Truthfulness (Satya) are a few of them. Each

one of them is praised and the text of Śivadharma discourses about these

virtues. For example, a king who prohibits cruelty to all animals in his

kingdom definitely enjoys all pleasures and happiness along with his

subjects and thereby makes his kingdom verily a Śivaloka. Contentment

(santoṣa) is defined as that because of which the one does neither brood over

the past nor be anxious of the future but feels happy with whatever that

comes to him by his sincere work and lawful means. The joy that such a

person experiences cannot even be dreamt of by ordinary men. In the same

way truthfulness in all and especially in words is the basic virtue on which

every other thing is placed. As a final statement the text of Śivadharma says

15
that one should see others as himself and conduct in such a way that no harm

is done to anybody either in thought or in speech or in action.

ātmavat arvabhūteṣu

is the maxim.

 Personal qualities

One comes across in Śivadharma four very important personal virtues that

are highly praised. A person truly devoted to Śiva and the scriptures and

controlling his senses should cultivate the following four virtues 5 : Friendly

attitude towards all creatures (maitrī), Sympathy towards one and all

(karuṇā), Happiness towards those who are virtuous and do good acts

(muditā) and Ignoring the wicked persons and shunning their company

altogether (upekṣā).

To conclude the religions of India that developed in ancient times and

contributed to its development of culture and spiritual life were not bereft of

any social value and content; as mentioned above, though very briefly, they

have certainly a central and firm place and play a pivotal rôle in the modern

society for the overall development of humanity.

5
It is interesting to note that these very same qualities are very much stressed in the

Yogasūtra (I.33) and Vācaspatimiśra's commentary on it. Also in an inscription of the

Kalachuri-Chedi era assignable to the 10th century describing the spiritual qualities of a

Pāśupatayogã we find the mention of these four mental dispositions.

16
Thus we find in these ancient texts that inculcate supreme devotion to Śiva

many views for the individual and social well-being that are very much

relevant and feasible in modern times.

The ten Śivadharma-s are :

athāhiṃsākṣamāsatyaṃ hrīśraddhendriyasaṃyamaḥ .

dānamijyātapodhyānaṃ daśakaṃ dharmalakṣaṇam 6 .

Non-violence (ahiṃsā), forebearance (kṣamā), truthfulness (satyam), utter

humility (hrī), firm faith (śraddhā), control of the sense-organs

(indriyasaṃyama), charity (dāna), devotion and worship [of Śiva] (ijyā),

penance (tapas) and meditation (dhyāna) are the ten important virtues that

constitute the religion of Śiva.

We find in the Śivadharmottara such bold views as even if one speaks in

refined and sweet languages it is of no use if it conveys only hatred and lust

while words spoken in the colloquial and unrefined languages are really

beneficial if they remove the ignorance from the minds of the hearers. 7 .

There is brief discussion on different types of sacrifice (yajña) such as

karmayajñā which includes performance of daily duties, worship of Śiva,

etc., dhyānayajñā which is constant meditation on Śiva and jñānayajñā

6
Śivadharmottara, 5th adhyāya.
7
avidyārāgavākyena saṃsārakleśahetunā .
yacchrutvā jāyate puṇyaṃ rāgādīnāṃ ca saṃkṣayaḥ .
virūpamapi tadvākyaṃ vijñeyamatiśobhanam .

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which comprises study, teaching, commentary, hearing and reasoning.

According to the Śivadharmottara the jñānayajñā is the greatest of all yajña-s

and brings forth liberation (vimukti) 8 . We get a clear exposition on the

graded steps by performing which one attains the highest good. The text says

ignorance is the basic cause of transmigration and only supreme knowledge

is capable of removing ignorance. So long as there is ignorance one is under

the control of attachment and aversion which engender righteous and

unrighteous acts (dharma and adharma); due to the latter the self gets a

physical body which in its turn produces happiness and misery. Therefore in

order to get rid of misery one should not desire for the physical bodies.

Having thus stated the fundamental cause of misery, which is ignorance, the

text continues that one should strive for getting the highest knowledge 9

which removes ignorance, attachment aversion, virtue and sin and finally

makes one free from physical embodiment. He who is free from

embodiment is liberated and pure. 10 . By performing various sacrifices one

attains the status of gods; by doing intense penance one gets the status of

8
pañcānāmapi yajñānāṃ jñānayajño vimuktidaḥ
9
mokṣārthī puruṣastasmāt jñānameva sadābhyaset .
10
ajñānavinivṛttau ca rāgādīnāṃ ca saṃkṣayaḥ .
rāgādyupaśamāt puṃsāṃ puṇyapāpaparikṣayaḥ .
tatkṣayācca śarīreṇa na punaḥ samprayujyate .
aśarīraśca saṅkleśaiḥ sarvaireva na bādhyate .
kleśamuktaḥ prasannātmā mukta ityabhidhīyate .

18
Brahmā, by offering dāna he gets various enjoyments and by knowledge he

gets liberation. 11

 Śaivācāra

Śivadharma, true to its name, deals elaborately with the conducts (dharma)

of a śaiva devotee. First and foremost

among them is the attitude and conduct of one towards a śivabhakta: A

śivabhakta is to be treated on par with and equal to Śiva Himself in all

respects. For, whatever is done to a śivabhakta amounts to doing the same to

Śiva 12 . One should go in search of Māheśvara even for long distance 13 . By

venerating śivabhakta (=Māheśvara) one attains to higher worlds.

Social Conducts: A true follower of śivadharma should be sympathetic

(kāruṇya) to all living beings; especially towards those who are afflicted by

diseases, poverty, etc.; people of low birth such as caṇóāla should be cared

by him by giving them food, clothes, etc. He should not find any difference

between people due to their caste and social status. Another important form

of service is uttering sweet always words to all. The word Śiva should

always be in his tongue; in thought and word one should utter sentences like

"Let there always be śivam–good–to all".

Apart from this a follower of śivadharma is advised to possess certain

mental dispositions which are four in number: friendship towards all

11
yajñairdevatvamāpnoti tapobhirbrahmaṇaḥ padam .
dānena vividhān bhogān jñānānmokṣamavāpnuyāt
12
yat ktaṃ śivabhaktānāṃ tatktaṃ ca śive bhavet |
13
sudūram api gantavyaṃ yatra māheśvaro janaḥ |

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(maitrī), compassion for poor and suffering creatures (karuṇā), joy towards

those who do good and holy acts (muditā) and neglect or ignoring the

wicked (upekṣā) 14 . Apart from these virtues others such as forebearance

(kṣamā), non-violence (ahiṃsā), contentment (santoṣa) are all highly praised

and advised. Abstaining from liquor, meat and fish are prescribed for a

śivabhakta 15 as devotion to Śiva and these do not go together.

14
sarvaprāṇiṣu kāruṇyaṃ dãnānātheṣu bhāvayet |
sukhaprāṇiṣu muditā syān muditā puṇyaśãliṣu |
apuṇyavatsu copekṣāṃ sarvaprāṇiṣu vadec chivam ||
15
kva madyaṃ kva śive bhaktiḥ kva māṃsaṃ kva śivārcanam |
madyamāṃsaprasaktānāṃ dūre tiṣñhati śaṃkaraḥ ||

20