Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 24
कालतत्त्वनिर्णयः / Doctrine of Kāla (Time) and Its Subordination to Śiva
कालश्च सर्वस्य भवस्य हेतुः कालेन सस्यानि भवंति नित्यम् । कालेन सस्यानि लयं प्रयांति कालेन संजीवति जीवलोकः
kālaśca sarvasya bhavasya hetuḥ kālena sasyāni bhavaṃti nityam | kālena sasyāni layaṃ prayāṃti kālena saṃjīvati jīvalokaḥ
Le Temps (Kāla) est la cause de tout devenir. Par le Temps, les moissons naissent sans cesse; par le Temps, les moissons vont à la dissolution. Par le Temps, le monde des êtres vivants est soutenu et maintenu en vie.
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Mahākāla
Jyotirlinga: Mahākāleśvara
Sthala Purana: Mahākāla as the Lord who subdues time: Ujjayinī’s Mahākāleśvara is famed as the jyotirliṅga where Śiva is worshiped as Kāla’s master, granting fearlessness from death and time’s terrors.
Significance: Darśana is sought for protection from untimely death, relief from fear, and steadiness amid life’s cycles; emphasizes Śiva as Kāla-niyantā rather than mere impersonal time.
Role: nurturing
Cosmic Event: cyclic becoming and dissolution (bhava–laya)
FAQs
It teaches that all arising and passing away in the world is governed by Kāla, a power under the Supreme Lord (Pati). Recognizing Time’s rule reduces attachment to transient growth and decline and turns the seeker toward Shiva, the timeless Reality beyond change.
The Linga signifies Shiva as the ground of existence, while Kāla signifies the ordered flow of manifestation and dissolution. Worship of Saguna Shiva (as Lord of Kāla) helps the devotee accept cycles of gain and loss and seek refuge in the Linga, which points to Shiva’s transcendence over time.
A practical takeaway is daily japa of the Panchākṣarī mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya” while contemplating impermanence—whatever arises will also dissolve by Time—thereby cultivating vairāgya and steadiness in devotion.