Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 10

जम्बूद्वीपस्य नववर्षविभागः रुद्रस्य अष्टक्षेत्रसन्निधिः नाभि-ऋषभ-भरतकथा

Devanagari script

वर्षं माल्यवतं चापि भद्राश्वस्य न्यवेदयत् गन्धमादनवर्षं तु केतुमालाय दत्तवान्

Transliteration

varṣaṃ mālyavataṃ cāpi bhadrāśvasya nyavedayat gandhamādanavarṣaṃ tu ketumālāya dattavān

Translation

他将“鬘山洲”（Mālyavat）分配给跋陀罗阿湿婆（Bhadrāśva），又把“香醉山洲”（Gandhamādana）赐予计都摩罗（Ketumāla）——如是依主宰“帕提”（Pati）所立的宇宙秩序而分封诸域；当众生之魂（paśu）仍为系缚（pāśa）所缠时，主宰统御诸世界。

Word by Word

• वर्षम्: a region/territory (varṣa)

• माल्यवतम्: Mālyavat (name of a region)

• च अपि: and also

• भद्राश्वस्य: to/for Bhadrāśva

• न्यवेदयत्: assigned/allocated

• गन्धमादनवर्षम्: the Gandhamādana region

• तु: indeed/and

• केतुमालाय: to/for Ketumāla

• दत्तवान्: gave/bestowed

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the cosmological account within the Linga Purana discourse)

Characters & Entities

• Bhadrāśva
• Ketumāla
• Mālyavat
• Gandhamādana

FAQs

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

By describing the orderly apportioning of realms, the verse supports the Shaiva view that all cosmic structures function under the higher sovereignty of Pati (Shiva); Linga worship aligns the devotee with that sustaining order.

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

Though the verse is geographical on the surface, it implies Shiva-tattva as the unseen regulator of cosmic distribution—transcendent yet immanent—within whom the world-order (niyati) is grounded.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

No specific rite is stated; the takeaway is contemplative (dhyāna) alignment—seeing creation as governed by Pati—supporting Pāśupata-style detachment from pāśa while honoring the divine order through worship.