Shloka 40
शिवशिवयोर्जगत्पितृमातृत्व-प्रतिपादनं तथा मेनायाः विमोहः (Śiva–Śivā as Cosmic Father and Mother; Menā’s Delusion and the Sages’ Intervention)
ब्रह्मा च ब्रह्मलोकस्थो विष्णुः क्षीरोदवासकृत् । हरः कैलासनिलयः सर्वाः शिवविभूतयः
brahmā ca brahmalokastho viṣṇuḥ kṣīrodavāsakṛt | haraḥ kailāsanilayaḥ sarvāḥ śivavibhūtayaḥ
Brahmā abides in Brahma-loka; Viṣṇu dwells upon the Ocean of Milk; and Hara resides on Kailāsa—yet all these abodes and powers are, in truth, manifestations of Śiva’s sovereign glory (vibhūti).
Sūta Gosvāmi (narrating the Shiva Purana account to the sages)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
FAQs
It teaches that even the highest cosmic stations—Brahmā’s Brahma-loka, Viṣṇu’s Kṣīroda, and Śiva’s Kailāsa—are not independent absolutes but expressions of Śiva’s vibhūti, pointing the devotee to the one supreme Lord (Pati) behind all divine functions.
By declaring all divine abodes as Śiva’s vibhūti, the verse supports Saguna worship: the Liṅga becomes the accessible focus through which the devotee honors the one Śiva who pervades and empowers Brahmā and Viṣṇu as well.
A practical takeaway is to meditate on Śiva as the indwelling Lord of all realms while chanting the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), offering bhasma (tripuṇḍra) and water to the Liṅga with the understanding that all worlds rest in His vibhūti.