श्रद्धामाहात्म्यं तथा देवीप्रश्नः
The Greatness of Śraddhā and Devī’s Question to Śiva
विदिते मम याथात्म्ये कर्मयज्ञेन देहिनः । न यजंति हि मां युक्ताः समलोष्टाश्मकांचनाः । नित्ययुक्तो मुनिः श्रेष्ठो मद्भक्तश्च समाहितः । ज्ञानयोगरतो योगी मम सायुज्यमाप्नुयात्
vidite mama yāthātmye karmayajñena dehinaḥ | na yajaṃti hi māṃ yuktāḥ samaloṣṭāśmakāṃcanāḥ | nityayukto muniḥ śreṣṭho madbhaktaśca samāhitaḥ | jñānayogarato yogī mama sāyujyamāpnuyāt
Wenn Meine wahre Wesenheit erkannt ist, verehren Mich verkörperte Wesen, die diszipliniert und gleichmütig sind—die Erdklumpen, Stein und Gold gleich ansehen—nicht mehr allein durch das Opfer der Handlung (karma-yajña). Der beste der Weisen, stets vereint (mit Mir), Mein Bhakta, gesammelt und gefasst, dem Yoga der Erkenntnis hingegeben, erlangt die Vereinigung mit Mir (sāyujya).
Lord Shiva
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
It teaches that once Shiva’s true nature is realized, liberation is not secured by ritual action alone; the mature seeker becomes steady, equal-minded, devoted, and established in jñāna-yoga, thereby attaining sāyujya (union) with Shiva.
It does not reject Saguna worship; it clarifies that outer worship and offerings culminate in inner realization. Linga-worship becomes complete when it produces steadiness, devotion, and knowledge of Shiva’s reality rather than remaining mere external karma.
The implied practice is sustained yoga: cultivating samādhāna (collectedness), equal-mindedness toward gain and loss, and devotion to Shiva while deepening contemplative knowledge—so that worship matures from external yajña into inner absorption in Shiva.