Shloka 9

देवदारुवनौकसां प्रति ब्रह्मोपदेशः—लिङ्गलक्षण-प्रतिष्ठा-विधिः, शिवमायारूपदर्शनं, स्तुतिः

Devanagari script

तमो ह्यग्नी रजो ब्रह्मा सत्त्वं विष्णुः प्रकाशकम् मूर्तिरेका स्थिता चास्य मूर्तयः परिकीर्तिताः

Transliteration

tamo hyagnī rajo brahmā sattvaṃ viṣṇuḥ prakāśakam mūrtirekā sthitā cāsya mūrtayaḥ parikīrtitāḥ

Translation

タマスはまことにアグニ、ラジャスはブラフマー、そして光を放つサットヴァはヴィシュヌである。されど御方の真実は唯一にして常住し、この三つは御方の顕現した諸相として宣説される。

Word by Word

• tamaḥ: tamas, the dark/inert guṇa

• hi: indeed

• agnī (agniḥ): Agni (fire-deity)

• rajaḥ: rajas, the active guṇa

• brahmā: Brahmā

• sattvam: sattva, the luminous guṇa

• viṣṇuḥ: Viṣṇu

• prakāśakam: illuminating, making manifest

• mūrtiḥ: form/reality as manifest presence

• ekā: one

• sthitā: established, abiding

• ca: and

• asya: of Him (of the Supreme—Śiva as Pati)

• mūrtayaḥ: forms/manifestations

• parikīrtitāḥ: are declared/proclaimed.

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Linga Purana teaching to the sages; doctrinal voice presenting Śiva as Pati beyond the guṇas)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Agni
• Brahma
• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames Linga-upāsanā as worship of the one Pati (Śiva) who appears through multiple functional forms; the devotee honors the single reality beyond the guṇas rather than mistaking guṇa-based deities as separate absolutes.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

Śiva-tattva is indicated as ekā mūrti—one abiding reality—while Agni, Brahmā, and Viṣṇu are guṇa-linked manifestations within creation; thus Śiva as Pati is ontologically prior and not limited by tamas/rajas/sattva.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The takeaway aligns with Pāśupata orientation: cultivate worship and meditation that rises above guṇa-identification—offering through Agni (ritual), disciplined action (rajas), and purity/illumination (sattva)—and finally resting in the one Śiva beyond all three.