Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 9
कालतत्त्वनिर्णयः / Doctrine of Kāla (Time) and Its Subordination to Śiva
तस्मात्कालवशे विश्वं न स विश्ववशे स्थितः । शिवस्य तु वशे कालो न कालस्य वशे शिवः
tasmātkālavaśe viśvaṃ na sa viśvavaśe sthitaḥ | śivasya tu vaśe kālo na kālasya vaśe śivaḥ
ฉะนั้นจักรวาลอยู่ใต้อำนาจแห่งกาล แต่กาลมิได้อยู่ใต้อำนาจจักรวาล กาลอยู่ในพระอำนาจของพระศิวะ แต่พระศิวะไม่เคยอยู่ใต้อำนาจกาล
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pati
Shiva Form: Mahākāla
Jyotirlinga: Mahākāleśvara
Sthala Purana: Śiva manifests as Mahākāla to protect devotees and establish his supremacy over death/time; the liṅga is famed as self-manifest and as the Lord who subdues kāla.
Significance: Worship of Mahākāla is sought for fearlessness before death, relief from time-bound afflictions, and steadiness in dharma; pradoṣa and mahāśivarātri worship are especially valued.
Type: stotra
FAQs
It establishes Śiva as Pati—the supreme Lord who transcends and governs Kāla (Time). Since worldly bondage operates through time-bound change, recognizing Śiva as beyond Time supports detachment and the pursuit of liberation.
The Liṅga represents Śiva’s timeless, beginningless reality made approachable for worship. By worshipping Saguna Śiva through the Liṅga, the devotee connects to the Nirguna truth implied here: Śiva is not limited by temporal processes.
Meditate on Śiva as Mahākāla (the Lord of Time) while repeating the Pañcākṣarī mantra “Om Namaḥ Śivāya,” contemplating that time governs the world but cannot govern Śiva.