Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 60

भुवनकोशस्वभाववर्णनम् — सप्तद्वीप-पर्वत-लोकविन्यासः तथा यक्ष-उमा-प्रकाशः

Devanagari script

निशम्य तद्यक्षमुमाम्बिकाह त्वगोचरश्चेति सुराः सशक्राः /* प्रणेमुरेनां मृगराजगामिनीमुमामजां लोहितशुक्लकृष्णाम्

Transliteration

niśamya tadyakṣamumāmbikāha tvagocaraśceti surāḥ saśakrāḥ /* praṇemurenāṃ mṛgarājagāminīmumāmajāṃ lohitaśuklakṛṣṇām

Translation

听闻那夜叉正是乌玛·安毗迦，且她超越诸根所及，众神与因陀罗一同向她顶礼：向无生的乌玛致敬——步履如雌狮，身放红、白、黑三色光辉。

Word by Word

• निशम्य: having heard

• तत्: that

• यक्षम्: the Yakṣa (mysterious being)

• उमा-अम्बिकाः: Umā, Ambikā (the Divine Mother)

• त्वक्-अगोचरः: beyond sensory range / not an object of sense-perception

• च इति: and thus

• सुराः: the gods

• स-शक्राः: with Śakra (Indra)

• प्रणेमुः: bowed down, paid obeisance

• एनाम्: to Her

• मृगराज-गामिनीम्: she whose gait is like the king of beasts (lion/lioness), majestically moving

• उमाम्: Umā

• अजाम्: the Unborn

• लोहित-शुक्ल-कृष्णाम्: of red, white, and black hues (tri-colored radiance/signifying Śakti’s modes).

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Uma
• Ambika
• Indra (Shakra)
• Devas
• Yaksha

FAQs

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

It frames true Linga-oriented devotion as recognition of the suprasensory Divine (agocara): the Devas themselves bow to Shakti, affirming that worship is not mere outer rite but reverence to the transcendent Reality that the Linga signifies.

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

By declaring Umā “beyond the senses” and “unborn,” the verse points to the same transcendence central to Shiva-tattva: Pati is not grasped by ordinary perception, and Shakti—inseparable from Shiva—reveals that absolute, beginningless nature.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Praṇāma (prostration) grounded in tattva-jñāna is highlighted: a Pāśupata-aligned humility where the pashu (bound soul) turns from sense-objects toward the agocara Divine through devotion and inner discernment.