Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 20

Upamanyu’s Tapas, Shiva’s Indra-Form Test, and the Bestowal of Kshiroda and Gaṇapatya

Devanagari script

हिमवत्पर्वतं प्राप्य वायुभक्षः समाहितः तपसा तस्य विप्रस्य विधूपितमभूज्जगत्

Transliteration

himavatparvataṃ prāpya vāyubhakṣaḥ samāhitaḥ tapasā tasya viprasya vidhūpitamabhūjjagat

Translation

抵达喜马瓦特山后，那位婆罗门——以风为食，心神专一——修行苦行（tapas）之力，竟使整个世界震荡翻动。依湿婆悉檀多之义，专注的tapas能令被系缚的宇宙（pāśa-baddha jagat）战栗，而唯有真实的主宰Pati恒常不动。

Word by Word

• हिमवत्पर्वतम्: Mount Himavat (Himalaya)

• प्राप्य: having reached

• वायुभक्षः: subsisting on air (prāṇa alone)

• समाहितः: composed, deeply concentrated

• तपसा: by austerity/penance

• तस्य: of that

• विप्रस्य: Brahmin/ascetic

• विधूपितम्: shaken, agitated, made to tremble

• अभूत्: became

• जगत्: the world/universe

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Himavat

FAQs

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

It highlights that inner discipline (tapas and samādhi) is a core Shaiva means to approach Shiva; Linga worship is not only external ritual but also the yogic “heat” of focused consciousness offered to Pati.

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

By showing the world can be shaken by a jīva’s tapas, it indirectly points to Shiva as Pati—transcendent, steady, and sovereign—while the cosmos remains within change and agitation under pāśa.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Severe asceticism and breath-based restraint (vāyubhakṣa, prāṇa-sustenance) combined with mental one-pointedness (samāhita), aligning with Pāśupata-style tapas as a purifier of bondage.