Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 7
Oṅkāra-Liṅga and the Secret Pañcāyatana Liṅgas of Kāśī: Kṛttivāseśvara-Māhātmya
शान्त्यतीता तथा शान्तिर्विद्या चैव परा कला / प्रतिष्ठा च निवृत्तिश्च पञ्चार्थं लिङ्गमैश्वरम्
śāntyatītā tathā śāntirvidyā caiva parā kalā / pratiṣṭhā ca nivṛttiśca pañcārthaṃ liṅgamaiśvaram
超越于寂静，而亦为寂静本身；智（vidyā）与至上显现之力（parā kalā）；又有安住于自性之建立（pratiṣṭhā）与离世退藏之止息（nivṛtti）——此五者构成自在天（Īśvara）之神圣林伽。
Narratorial teaching within the Purva-bhaga (instructional passage attributed to the Purana’s authoritative voice, consistent with Śaiva-theistic doctrine)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
By listing “peace” and “beyond peace,” along with knowledge, supreme power (kalā), establishment, and withdrawal, the verse points to Īśvara/Ātman as both the ground of inner stillness and that which transcends all states—recognized through realized knowledge and stable abidance that culminates in nivṛtti (cessation from worldly compulsions).
The verse implies a yogic trajectory: cultivating śānti (inner tranquility), deepening vidyā (discriminative spiritual insight), stabilizing pratiṣṭhā (steady abidance), and maturing into nivṛtti (renunciative withdrawal). In a Pāśupata-leaning reading, these are marks of successful discipline—inner stillness plus transformative knowledge leading to detachment.
By using “liṅga” as Īśvara’s defining mark while presenting universal spiritual qualities (peace, knowledge, supreme power, withdrawal), the Kurma Purana supports a non-sectarian theism: the supreme Lord is known by realized attributes rather than exclusivist identity—harmonizing Śaiva symbolism (liṅga) with a broader Purāṇic Īśvara concept often shared with Vaiṣṇava theology.