Shiva Purana — Kotirudra Samhita, Shloka 51
अवंतीस्थ-ब्राह्मणकथा तथा तृतीय-ज्योतिर्लिङ्गोपाख्यान-प्रस्तावना
Avanti Brahmin Narrative and Prelude to the Third Jyotirliṅga
यंयं काममपेक्ष्यैव तल्लिंगं भजते तु यः । तंतं काममवाप्नोति लभेन्मोक्षं परत्र च
yaṃyaṃ kāmamapekṣyaiva talliṃgaṃ bhajate tu yaḥ | taṃtaṃ kāmamavāpnoti labhenmokṣaṃ paratra ca
من يعبد ذلك اللِّنگا وهو يستحضر رغبةً بعينها ينل تلك الرغبة نفسها؛ وفي الآخرة ينال أيضًا الموكشا، أي التحرّر.
Suta Goswami (narrating Shiva Purana teachings to the sages at Naimisharanya, inferred for Kotirudra Samhita discourse style)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahākāla
Jyotirlinga: Mahākāleśvara
Sthala Purana: The Mahākāla-jyotirliṅga is presented as a wish-fulfilling and mokṣa-bestowing arcā of Śiva: worship with specific intent yields that fruit, yet culminates in liberation by Śiva’s grace.
Significance: Grants both bhoga (desired ends) and apavarga (mokṣa), illustrating the Purāṇic promise that devotion to the Jyotirliṅga ripens into liberation.
Type: stotra
Role: liberating
Offering: pushpa
FAQs
The verse teaches that devotion to Śiva’s Liṅga can yield both worldly results (kāma-siddhi) and the highest end—mokṣa—showing Śiva as both the giver of boons and the liberator (Pati) who releases the bound soul (paśu) from bondage (pāśa).
The Liṅga is a saguna support for devotion through which the devotee approaches the transcendent Śiva. Worship offered with a focused intention bears fruit, yet the same worship—when ripened by grace and purity—leads beyond desire to liberation.
Perform Liṅga-pūjā with steady bhakti and clear sankalpa, ideally with mantra-japa (e.g., the Pañcākṣarī “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”), along with traditional Shaiva observances such as bhasma (tripuṇḍra) and rudrākṣa, directing the mind toward Śiva as both boon-giver and liberator.