Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 43
पशु-पाश-पतिविचारः / Inquiry into Paśu, Pāśa, and Pati
क्षरं त्वविद्या ह्यमृतं विद्येति परिगीयते । ते उभे ईशते यस्तु सो ऽन्यः खलु महेश्वरः
kṣaraṃ tvavidyā hyamṛtaṃ vidyeti parigīyate | te ubhe īśate yastu so 'nyaḥ khalu maheśvaraḥ
Avidyā (ignorance) is spoken of as the perishable (kṣara), while vidyā (true knowledge) is praised as the imperishable—indeed, as ‘immortal’ (amṛta). But He who rules over both of them is other than these two—verily, that One is Maheśvara (Lord Śiva), the supreme Lord.
Suta Goswami (narrating the Vāyavīya discourse to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
FAQs
It distinguishes bondage (avidyā, the perishable) from liberating insight (vidyā, the ‘immortal’), and then establishes Śiva as Pati—the Lord who transcends and governs both, granting liberation to the bound soul (paśu) from the fetters (pāśa).
Linga-worship trains the mind to recognize a single supreme Lord beyond changing states of ignorance and knowledge; Saguna Śiva is worshipped as the accessible form of that Maheśvara who ultimately transcends all dualities and bestows jñāna leading to mokṣa.
Meditate on Śiva as the inner ruler of both ignorance and knowledge while japa-ing the Pañcākṣarī (Om Namaḥ Śivāya), letting the mantra lead the mind beyond dualistic grasping into Śiva-centered awareness.