Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 17
अध्याय 91: अरिष्ट-लक्षण, मृत्यु-संस्कार, पाशुपत-धारणा तथा ओङ्कार-उपासना
छिद्रं वा स्वस्य कण्ठस्य स्वप्ने यो वीक्षते नरः नग्नं वा श्रमणं दृष्ट्वा विद्यान्मृत्युमुपस्थितम्
chidraṃ vā svasya kaṇṭhasya svapne yo vīkṣate naraḥ nagnaṃ vā śramaṇaṃ dṛṣṭvā vidyānmṛtyumupasthitam
If a man, in a dream, sees a hole in his own throat, or if he sees a naked ascetic (śramaṇa), he should understand that Death has drawn near. In such an omen, the bound soul (paśu) is urged to take refuge in Pati—Śiva—through remembrance and worship, for only the Lord loosens the pāśa of fear and mortality.
Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)
FAQs
It treats ominous dreams as a prompt for immediate Śiva-śaraṇāgati (taking refuge in Shiva). In Linga worship, such signs are answered by japa, abhiṣeka, and remembrance of Śiva as Mrityuñjaya—the Lord who cuts the pāśa of fear and impending death.
Though Śiva is not named directly, the implication aligns with Śaiva Siddhānta: the paśu is vulnerable to saṃsāra and mṛtyu, while Pati alone stands beyond decay and grants protection and release. The omen highlights the soul’s dependence on the Lord’s grace to transcend mortality.
The verse itself is an omen-listing, but its Shaiva application is to adopt protective Śiva-sādhana—especially Mrityuñjaya-mantra japa, Linga-abhiṣeka, and Pāśupata-oriented inner turning (smaraṇa and vairāgya) when such dreams arise.