Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 173

Adhyaya 70: आदिसर्गः—महत्-अहङ्कार-तन्मात्रा-भूतसृष्टिः, ब्रह्माण्डावरणम्, प्रजासर्गः, त्रिमूर्ति-शैवाधिष्ठानम्

Devanagari script

तौ वाराहे तु भूर्लोके तेजः संक्षिप्य धिष्ठितौ तावुभौ मोक्षकर्माणाव् आरोप्यात्मानमात्मनि

Transliteration

tau vārāhe tu bhūrloke tejaḥ saṃkṣipya dhiṣṭhitau tāvubhau mokṣakarmāṇāv āropyātmānamātmani

Translation

Then, in the Varāha-form world upon Bhūrloka, the two withdrew and gathered their radiance and became firmly established. Both, intent on the act that leads to liberation, they placed the self in the Self—merging individual consciousness into the inner Ātman—under the Lord (Pati) who grants mokṣa.

Word by Word

• तौ (tau): those two

• वाराहे (vārāhe): in/connected with Varāha (the Boar-incarnation realm/context)

• तु (tu): then/indeed

• भूर्लोके (bhūrloke): in Bhūrloka, the earthly plane

• तेजः (tejaḥ): radiance, spiritual power

• संक्षिप्य (saṃkṣipya): withdrawing, contracting, gathering back

• धिष्ठितौ (dhiṣṭhitau): established, firmly seated/present

• तावुभौ (tāvubhau): those two (both)

• मोक्षकर्माणौ (mokṣakarmāṇau): performers/undertakers of the act leading to liberation

• आरोप्य (āropya): placing, fixing, superimposing/settling

• आत्मानम् (ātmānam): the self (individual soul, pashu in embodied condition)

• आत्मनि (ātmani): in the Ātman (inner Self

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Purana to the sages of Naimisharanya; describing an internal event)

Characters & Entities

• Varaha
• Bhurloka

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames liberation as an inward retraction of tejas and a yogic settling of the pashu (individual self) into the Ātman—an inner aim that Linga-puja supports by turning attention from outward rites to Shiva-centered absorption.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

By emphasizing “placing the self in the Self,” it points to Shiva-tattva as the grounding reality (Pati) in whom the soul’s scattered energies are gathered and stabilized, culminating in moksha through inner establishment rather than mere external action.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

A yogic withdrawal (saṃkṣepa) of tejas—pratyāhāra-like retraction and dhāraṇā/niṣṭhā—where the practitioner fixes the self in the inner Self, aligning with Pāśupata-oriented mokṣa-sādhana.