Viśveśvara-māhātmya and the Nirguṇa–Saguṇa Emergence of Śiva (Śakti–Puruṣa/Prakṛti Discourse)
तस्यैव कैवल्यरतेर्द्वितीयेच्छा ततोभवत् । स एव सगुणो जातश्शिव इत्यभिधीयते
tasyaiva kaivalyaraterdvitīyecchā tatobhavat | sa eva saguṇo jātaśśiva ityabhidhīyate
Bei eben jenem Einen, der sich am Kaivalya (absoluter Alleinheit) erfreut, entstand sodann ein zweiter Wille. Daraus offenbarte Er selbst sich mit Eigenschaften; so wird Er in seinem saguṇa‑Sein (qualifiziert) „Śiva“ genannt.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Role: creative
Cosmic Event: Cosmogonic self-manifestation: emergence of saguṇa Śiva from the niṣkala kaivalya state via icchā (will).
It teaches that the Supreme Lord, though established in kaivalya (transcendent independence), freely wills manifestation—so devotees can relate to Him as Śiva with knowable qualities, while His transcendence remains intact.
Saguṇa Śiva is the accessible, worship-worthy manifestation of the same Supreme; hence Linga worship is a valid means to approach the transcendent Lord through a compassionate, manifest form.
Meditate on Śiva as both nirguṇa (beyond attributes) and saguṇa (gracefully manifest), and stabilize devotion through japa of the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—as a bridge from form to formless realization.