Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 5
सर्गविभागवर्णनम्
Classification of Creation: the Nine Sargas and the Streams of Beings
तस्मात्ते संवृतात्मानो नगा मुख्याः प्रकीर्तिताः । तं दृष्ट्वाऽसाधकं ब्रह्मा प्रथमं सर्गमीदृशम् । अप्रसन्नमना भूत्वा द्वितीयं सो ऽभ्यमन्यत । तस्याभिधायतः सर्गं तिर्यक्स्रोतो ऽभ्यवर्तत
tasmātte saṃvṛtātmāno nagā mukhyāḥ prakīrtitāḥ | taṃ dṛṣṭvā'sādhakaṃ brahmā prathamaṃ sargamīdṛśam | aprasannamanā bhūtvā dvitīyaṃ so 'bhyamanyata | tasyābhidhāyataḥ sargaṃ tiryaksroto 'bhyavartata
Darum werden sie als die vornehmsten „Nāgas“ verkündet, Wesen von verschlossener, in sich geschlossener Natur. Als Brahmā sah, dass diese erste Schöpfung dem Zweck nicht dienlich war, wurde sein Geist unzufrieden und er sann auf eine zweite Schöpfung. Als er diese Schöpfung zu verkünden begann, trat der Strom der „tiryak-srotas“ hervor—jene, deren Lebensstrom horizontal verläuft (Tiere und niedere Geschöpfe).
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
Role: creative
Cosmic Event: successive sarga: shift from inert first creation to tiryak-srotas (horizontal life-current)
FAQs
It distinguishes grades of embodied life arising in creation and hints that mere production of bodies is not the final aim; without right orientation toward the Supreme Lord (Pati), creation remains ‘asādhaka’—not conducive to liberation—thus pointing toward the need for Shiva-centered knowledge and grace.
By showing that Brahmā’s creations can be limited and purposeless for moksha, the text implicitly directs seekers beyond mere worldly embodiment toward Saguna Shiva worship (such as Linga-upāsanā) as a stabilizing path that purifies the pashu and turns the soul toward Pati.
The takeaway is to avoid remaining ‘saṁvṛtātmā’ (contracted in awareness) by adopting Shiva-oriented sādhana—regular japa of the Panchākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and contemplative self-discipline—so creation becomes ‘sādhaka’ (supportive of liberation).