Shiva Purana — Vayaviya Samhita, Shloka 13
कालतत्त्वनिर्णयः / Doctrine of Kāla (Time) and Its Subordination to Śiva
ये निगृह्येंद्रियग्रामं जयंति सकलं जगत् । न जयंत्यपि ते कालं कालो जयति तानपि
ye nigṛhyeṃdriyagrāmaṃ jayaṃti sakalaṃ jagat | na jayaṃtyapi te kālaṃ kālo jayati tānapi
جو حواس کے لشکر کو قابو میں کرکے سارے جہان کو فتح کر لیتے ہیں، وہ بھی زمان (کال) کو فتح نہیں کر سکتے؛ زمان ہی انہیں بھی مغلوب کر دیتا ہے۔
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pasha
Shiva Form: Mahākāla
Jyotirlinga: Mahākāleśvara
Sthala Purana: Mahākāla is the conqueror of conquerors: even the inner victory of indriya-nigraha (sense-restraint) does not ‘defeat’ Kāla; rather, Kāla subdues embodied beings until they take refuge in Mahākāla.
Significance: Pilgrimage and worship cultivate the insight that yogic attainment without Śiva’s grace remains within temporal finitude; surrender to Mahākāla is held to grant fearlessness toward death.
Type: stotra
Role: teaching
FAQs
It teaches that worldly victory and even yogic mastery over the senses are still within the domain of Kāla (Time). In Shaiva Siddhanta terms, liberation is not achieved by mere self-power over prakriti, but by reaching Pati (Shiva), who alone is beyond Time and grants release from bondage.
The Linga signifies Shiva as the timeless Pati—beyond birth, decay, and death. Worship of the Linga (Saguna upasana leading to Nirguna realization) orients the seeker away from temporary conquests toward refuge in Shiva, the only reality not overcome by Kāla.
Practice indriya-nigraha (sense-restraint) with japa of the Panchakshara (Om Namaḥ Śivāya) and steady dhyana on Shiva/Linga, supported by Shaiva disciplines like Tripundra (bhasma) and Rudraksha as aids for vairagya and remembrance of the timeless Lord.