Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 138

ध्यानयज्ञः, संसार-विष-निरूपणम्, पाशुपतयोगः, परा-अपरा विद्या, चतुर्वस्था-विचारः (अध्यायः ८६)

Devanagari script

न जीवः प्रकृतिः सत्त्वं रजश्चाथ तमः पुनः महांस्तथाभिमानश् च तन्मात्राणीन्द्रियाणि च

Transliteration

na jīvaḥ prakṛtiḥ sattvaṃ rajaścātha tamaḥ punaḥ mahāṃstathābhimānaś ca tanmātrāṇīndriyāṇi ca

Translation

Nem a alma individual (paśu), nem Prakṛti, nem os guṇas—sattva, rajas e tamas—; nem Mahat, nem o ahaṅkāra; nem os tanmātras e as faculdades dos sentidos são o Senhor Supremo. Tudo isso pertence ao domínio do pāśa, a servidão; somente Śiva é o Pati transcendente.

Word by Word

• na: not

• jīvaḥ: the individual soul (pashu)

• prakṛtiḥ: primordial nature

• sattvam: sattva-guṇa (luminosity)

• rajaḥ: rajas-guṇa (activity)

• atha: and then

• tamaḥ: tamas-guṇa (inertia)

• punaḥ: again/further

• mahān: Mahat (cosmic intellect)

• tathā: likewise

• abhimānaḥ: ahaṅkāra (I-notion/ego-principle)

• ca: and

• tanmātrāṇi: subtle elements (sound, touch, form, taste, smell)

• indriyāṇi: sense organs and faculties

• ca: and

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the doctrine to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It clarifies that the worshipped reality in the Liṅga is not any created principle—jīva, guṇas, mind-cosmos (Mahat), ego, or senses—but Śiva as Pati, beyond pāśa; Liṅga-pūjā is thus directed to the transcendent Lord who releases the pashu from bondage.

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

By negation (neti-style), it separates Śiva from all evolutes of Prakṛti, presenting Śiva-tattva as supra-cosmic, not reducible to guṇas or inner instruments, and therefore uniquely capable of granting mokṣa.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The takeaway aligns with Pāśupata/Shaiva discipline: practice discrimination (viveka) that the tattvas are pāśa, and stabilize devotion and meditation on Śiva-as-Pati (often through Liṅga-dhyāna and mantra) rather than identifying with guṇas, ego, or senses.