Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 1
लिङ्ग-बेर-प्रतिष्ठाविधिः / The Procedure for Installing the Liṅga and the Bera
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श्रीकृष्ण उवाच । भगवञ्छ्रोतुमिच्छामि प्रतिष्ठाविधिमुत्तमम् । लिंगस्यापि च बेरस्य शिवेन विहितं यथा
śrīkṛṣṇa uvāca | bhagavañchrotumicchāmi pratiṣṭhāvidhimuttamam | liṃgasyāpi ca berasya śivena vihitaṃ yathā
Śrī Kṛṣṇa dit : «Ô vénérable, je souhaite entendre le rite suprême de consécration : comment Śiva l’a prescrit pour le Liṅga comme pour l’image (bera).»
Śrī Kṛṣṇa
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Dakṣiṇāmūrti
Significance: Positions pratiṣṭhā-vidhi as ‘uttama’ (supreme) knowledge to be heard (śravaṇa) from a qualified teacher—mirroring pilgrimage pedagogy where kṣetra-darśana is completed by kṣetra-śravaṇa (hearing the rite and meaning).
Role: teaching
FAQs
This verse establishes that sacred worship is not merely personal preference but is to be aligned with Śiva’s own ordinance—especially the consecration (pratiṣṭhā) that makes the Liṅga or icon a fit locus for devotion, purification, and the descent of Śiva’s grace (anugraha).
By naming both the Liṅga and the bera (icon), the verse affirms Saguna worship in multiple valid forms. In Shaiva Siddhanta terms, the devotee approaches Pati (Śiva) through sanctified forms, and proper installation supports disciplined, scriptural worship that matures into inner realization.
The immediate practice implied is learning and following the prescribed pratiṣṭhā-vidhi and then performing regular, rule-based pūjā to the consecrated Liṅga or icon—typically supported by mantra-japa (such as the Pañcākṣarī ‘Om Namaḥ Śivāya’) as taught in the Purāṇic-Āgamic tradition.