Shloka 12
महाबलमाहात्म्यवर्णनम् (Mahābala Māhātmya-varṇanam) — “Account of the Greatness of Mahābala (and Western Sacred Liṅgas)”
यदा कदाचिद्गोकर्णे यो वा को वापि मानवः । पूजयेच्छिवलिंगं तत्स गच्छेद्ब्रह्मणः पदम्
yadā kadācidgokarṇe yo vā ko vāpi mānavaḥ | pūjayecchivaliṃgaṃ tatsa gacchedbrahmaṇaḥ padam
Whoever—any person at all—worships the Śiva-liṅga at Gokarṇa, even if only once at some time, attains the supreme abode of Brahman, the highest state of liberation.
Suta Goswami (narrating the Gokarṇa Jyotirlinga māhātmya to the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
Sthala Purana: The verse universalizes access: ‘whoever, any human’ worships the Gokarṇa liṅga even once attains ‘brahmaṇaḥ padam’. In Śaiva Siddhānta reading, ‘Brahman’s abode’ is interpreted as the supreme state granted by Śiva’s grace (anugraha), not an impersonal merger by one’s own effort alone.
Significance: Single-act worship (sakṛt) at the kṣetra is said to confer mokṣa/parama-pada; emphasizes inclusivity beyond varṇa/āśrama when bhakti is present.
Role: liberating
Offering: dhupa
FAQs
It declares the extraordinary liberating power of Śiva-bhakti: even a single sincere worship of the Śiva-liṅga at the sacred kṣetra of Gokarṇa can lead the devotee to brahma-pada—final release—by Śiva’s grace.
The liṅga is Saguna Śiva’s accessible form for devotees; by worshipping the liṅga at a Jyotirlinga-kṣetra, the worshipper is led beyond form to the supreme reality (Brahman/Paramashiva), showing how Saguna-upāsanā culminates in Nirguṇa realization.
Perform Śiva-liṅga-pūjā at Gokarṇa—offer water, bilva leaves, and recite the Panchākṣarī mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya” with devotion; the verse emphasizes sincerity and the transformative merit of even a single act of worship.