Shloka 19
पञ्चकृत्यलक्षणनिर्णयः
Definition of Śiva’s Five Cosmic Acts—Pañcakṛtya
नादो मध्यमुखादेवं पंचधाऽसौ विजृंभितः । एकीभूतः पुनस्तद्वदोमित्येकाक्षरो भवेत्
nādo madhyamukhādevaṃ paṃcadhā'sau vijṛṃbhitaḥ | ekībhūtaḥ punastadvadomityekākṣaro bhavet
So entfaltet sich der Urklang (nāda), der aus dem mittleren Mund hervorgeht, in fünffacher Gestalt. Wenn er sich wieder vereint, wird er zur einen unvergänglichen Silbe: „Oṃ“.
Suta Goswami (narrating Shiva’s mantra-doctrine to the sages of Naimisharanya, as typical of the Vidyeshvara Samhita’s instructional frame)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Sadashiva
Mantra: oṃ
Type: gayatri
Role: creative
Cosmic Event: Śabda-sṛṣṭi: emergence of praṇava from nāda and its reabsorption into ekākṣara
FAQs
It teaches that all articulated mantra-sound arises from nāda, diversifies into functional forms, and finally resolves into the one seed-syllable Oṃ—pointing to Shiva as the inner source and the unity behind multiplicity.
In Linga-worship, the sound-symbol (Oṃ) and the form-symbol (Liṅga) work together: Oṃ is the subtle presence of Shiva as vibration, while the Liṅga is the accessible saguna focus for devotion and ritual, leading the mind toward the formless (nirguna) reality.
Meditate on Oṃ as nāda: begin japa with Oṃ, let the mind trace sound from expansion to inner stillness, and then proceed into Panchakshara-japa (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) with steady breath and one-pointed attention.