Adhyaya 70: आदिसर्गः—महत्-अहङ्कार-तन्मात्रा-भूतसृष्टिः, ब्रह्माण्डावरणम्, प्रजासर्गः, त्रिमूर्ति-शैवाधिष्ठानम्
स्ंन्द्फ़्लुत् आपो ह्यग्रे समभवन् नष्टे च पृथिवीतले शान्ततारैकनीरे ऽस्मिन् न प्राज्ञायत किंचन
Sṃndflut āpo hyagre samabhavan naṣṭe ca pṛthivītale śāntatāraikanīre 'smin na prājñāyata kiṃcana
Pada permulaan, ketika permukaan bumi telah lenyap, hanya air yang tinggal, melimpah menenggelami segalanya. Dalam hamparan air yang satu dan hening itu, tiada apa pun dapat dikenali.
Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)
It frames the pre-creation (pralaya-like) condition where no forms are perceptible—preparing the doctrine that the Linga signifies Shiva as the formless Pati, the ground from which manifestation arises and into which it resolves.
By depicting an undifferentiated, calm expanse where nothing is known, it points to Shiva-tattva as transcendent to names and forms—Pati who remains when pasha-bound phenomena dissolve, the silent substratum prior to cosmic differentiation.
The verse supports Pashupata-style inward contemplation: withdrawing from sensory distinctions to rest awareness in the undifferentiated source—useful as a dhyāna-bhāva before Linga-puja, emphasizing stillness (śānti) and dissolution of mental vṛttis.