Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 38
सृष्टिक्रमवर्णनम् / Description of the Sequence of Creation
विष्णुस्सत्त्वं रजोऽहं च तमो रुद्र उदाहृतः । लोकाचारत इत्येवं नामतो वस्तुतोऽन्यथा
viṣṇussattvaṃ rajo'haṃ ca tamo rudra udāhṛtaḥ | lokācārata ityevaṃ nāmato vastuto'nyathā
विष्णु को सत्त्व, मुझे (ब्रह्मा को) रज, और रुद्र को तम कहा जाता है—यह लोक-व्यवहार के अनुसार है। पर यह भेद केवल नाम का है; तत्त्वतः तो बात अन्य ही है।
Brahmā
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Sadāśiva
FAQs
It teaches that attributing sattva, rajas, and tamas to Viṣṇu, Brahmā, and Rudra is a practical, worldly classification; the ultimate truth transcends such labels, pointing to the one Reality (Śiva as the supreme principle) beyond guṇas.
Linga-worship trains the mind to see beyond mere names and roles (creator, preserver, dissolver) and to recognize Śiva as the underlying essence; Saguna forms aid devotion, while the verse reminds the seeker that the final truth is beyond guṇa-based distinctions.
Contemplate Śiva as guṇātīta (beyond sattva-rajas-tamas) while doing japa of the Pañcākṣarī—“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”—and apply Tripuṇḍra bhasma as a daily reminder that worldly designations are secondary to the supreme Reality.