Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 15

उपलेपनादिकथनम्

Vastraputa-jala, Ahimsa, and Conduct in Shiva Worship

Devanagari script

यज्ञार्थं पशुहिंसा च क्षत्रियैर्दुष्टशासनम् विहिताविहितं नास्ति योगिनां ब्रह्मवादिनाम्

Transliteration

yajñārthaṃ paśuhiṃsā ca kṣatriyairduṣṭaśāsanam vihitāvihitaṃ nāsti yogināṃ brahmavādinām

Translation

Para sa yajña, binabanggit maging ang pagpatay ng hayop; at para sa mga Kṣatriya, iniuutos ang pagpaparusa sa masasama. Ngunit para sa mga Yogin, mga tagapagsalita ng Brahman—na nakatatag sa pananaw kay Pati (Śiva)—walang mahigpit na hati ng “iniutos” at “ipinagbawal,” sapagkat kumikilos sila mula sa dalisay na kaalaman na lampas sa pāśa (pagkagapos).

Word by Word

• yajña-artham: for the purpose of sacrifice

• paśu-hiṃsā: injury/killing of an animal

• ca: and

• kṣatriyaiḥ: by/for Kshatriyas

• duṣṭa-śāsanam: disciplining/punishing the wicked

• vihita: prescribed/ordained

• avihitam: not prescribed/forbidden

• nāsti: does not exist

• yoginām: for Yogins

• brahma-vādinām: for those who speak/teach Brahman (Brahman-realized sages)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating Linga Purana teachings to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It frames outer ritual (yajña) and social duty as conditional dharma, while pointing Linga-centered yogic realization toward Pati (Śiva) where bondage-born dualities of “allowed/forbidden” fall away in purified awareness.

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

By implying a Brahman-established yogin’s standpoint, it gestures to Shiva-tattva as the transcendent Pati—beyond moral dualities—while still upholding dharma for embodied pashus bound by pāśa.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

It contrasts Vedic yajña-dharma and kṣatriya duty with the yogin’s higher discipline—Pāśupata-oriented inner purification and Brahman-abidance—where action is guided by jñāna rather than rule-based dualism.