Shloka 28

Adhyaya 23: श्वेत-लोहित-पीत-कृष्ण-विश्व-कल्पेषु रुद्रस्वरूप-गायत्री-तत्त्ववर्णनम्

Devanagari script

मोक्षो धर्मस्तथार्थश् च कामश्चेति चतुष्टयम् यस्माद्वेदाश् च वेद्यं च चतुर्धा वै भविष्यति

Transliteration

mokṣo dharmastathārthaś ca kāmaśceti catuṣṭayam yasmādvedāś ca vedyaṃ ca caturdhā vai bhaviṣyati

Translation

解脱、法（dharma）、利（artha）与欲（kāma）——此四重之组由此而生；因此，诸吠陀以及由吠陀所应知之义，亦确然成为四分。

Word by Word

• मोक्षः (mokṣaḥ): liberation from paśa (bondage)

• धर्मः (dharmaḥ): righteous order and Shaiva duty

• तथा (tathā): and likewise

• अर्थः (arthaḥ): prosperity, means of life

• च (ca): and

• कामः (kāmaḥ): desire, lawful enjoyment

• च (ca): and

• इति (iti): thus

• चतुष्टयम् (catuṣṭayam): a set of four

• यस्मात् (yasmāt): because of which/from which

• वेदाः (vedāḥ): the Vedas

• च (ca): and

• वेद्यम् (vedyam): that which is knowable/that which is to be known

• च (ca): and

• चतुर्धा (caturdhā): in four divisions

• वै (vai): indeed

• भविष्यति (bhaviṣyati): will become/comes to be.

Speaker

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

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It frames Linga-oriented Shaiva practice as fulfilling all four human aims—dharma, artha, kāma, and ultimately mokṣa—showing Shiva (Pati) as the integrator of worldly order and final release from paśa.

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

By placing mokṣa among the primary ends and linking Vedic knowing to a fourfold structure, the verse implies Shiva-tattva as the highest knowable reality who grants release to the paśu while also sustaining dharma and the cosmic order.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse points to a graded Shaiva path—Vedic-ritual dharma and disciplined enjoyment culminating in Pashupata-oriented renunciation and knowledge, where devotion to Shiva/Linga supports the transition from artha-kāma to mokṣa.