Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 6
लिङ्गप्रतिष्ठा-माहात्म्यम् / The Greatness of Liṅga Installation
श्रीकृष्ण उवाच । किमिदं लिंगमाख्यातं कथं लिंगी महेश्वरः । कथं च लिंगभावो ऽस्य कस्मादस्मिञ्छिवो ऽर्च्यते
śrīkṛṣṇa uvāca | kimidaṃ liṃgamākhyātaṃ kathaṃ liṃgī maheśvaraḥ | kathaṃ ca liṃgabhāvo 'sya kasmādasmiñchivo 'rcyate
Śrī Kṛṣṇa said: “What is this that is spoken of as the Liṅga? How is Maheśvara called ‘the Liṅgī’ (the Lord who bears the Liṅga)? How does this Lord possess the state of ‘Liṅga-hood’? And for what reason is Śiva worshipped in this (Liṅga)?”
Śrī Kṛṣṇa
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Mahādeva
Sthala Purana: A doctrinal inquiry by Kṛṣṇa: what is the liṅga, why is Śiva ‘liṅgī’, what is liṅga-bhāva, and why is Śiva worshipped in the liṅga. This frames the liṅga as a revealed symbol that both conceals and discloses the transcendent—setting up the teaching that follows.
Significance: Encourages reflective understanding (jijñāsā) as part of devotion: correct knowledge of liṅga’s meaning deepens worship and aligns the soul toward grace.
Role: teaching
FAQs
The verse frames the core Shaiva inquiry: the Liṅga is not a mere object but the sacred sign through which the transcendent Pati (Śiva) becomes worship-accessible, inviting a philosophical understanding of how the formless is approached through a form.
Kṛṣṇa asks why Śiva is worshipped ‘in the Liṅga,’ pointing to Saguna-upāsanā: devotees approach the supreme Śiva through the Liṅga as a sanctioned, concentrated support (ālambana) for devotion and contemplation, while recognizing Śiva’s transcendence beyond all marks.
The verse suggests inquiry leading to practice: worship of the Śiva-Liṅga with mantra-japa (especially the Panchākṣarī, “Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and steady dhyāna on Śiva as Pati, using the Liṅga as the meditative support.