Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 5
अग्नीषोमात्मकविश्ववर्णनम् / The Universe as Agni–Soma
Fire and Nectar
द्विविधा तेजसो वृत्तिसूर्यात्मा चानलात्मिका । तथैव रसवृत्तिश्च सोमात्मा च जलात्मिका
dvividhā tejaso vṛttisūryātmā cānalātmikā | tathaiva rasavṛttiśca somātmā ca jalātmikā
The function of tejas, the fire-principle, is twofold: one is of solar nature, and the other is of flame. In the same way, the function of rasa, the essence, is also twofold: one is of lunar nature—Soma—and the other is of water.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Īśāna
Shakti Form: Gaurī
Role: creative
FAQs
It frames the cosmos—and the practitioner’s body-mind—as governed by paired operations (solar/fire and lunar/water), implying that liberation in Shaiva thought involves discerning and harmonizing these tattvic functions under the Lord (Pati) rather than being bound by them (pāśa).
The Linga symbolizes the source beyond elemental dualities; contemplating tejas and rasa as dependent functions supports Saguna worship by seeing Surya, Soma, fire, and water as powers sustained by Shiva, while the Linga points to Shiva’s transcendent ground.
A practical takeaway is elemental contemplation in japa/dhyāna—steady the inner ‘solar-fire’ (tejas) and ‘lunar-water’ (rasa) currents while repeating the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), using bhasma/tripuṇḍra as a reminder of purification and detachment.