Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 10

ग्रहाद्यधिपत्याभिषेकः

Cosmic Consecrations of Lords of Planets and Domains

Devanagari script

वृक्षाणां चैव चाश्वत्थं प्लक्षं च प्रपितामहः

Transliteration

vṛkṣāṇāṃ caiva cāśvatthaṃ plakṣaṃ ca prapitāmahaḥ

Translation

在诸树之中，阿湿婆他（Aśvattha）与普拉叉（Plakṣa）被宣示为最胜；而“至祖父”——梵天（Brahmā），原初的大祖——在宇宙秩序中作为其主宰的原型而立。

Word by Word

• वृक्षाणाम्: among trees

• च एव: and indeed

• च: and

• अश्वत्थम्: the Aśvattha (sacred fig)

• प्लक्षम्: the Plakṣa tree

• च: and

• प्रपितामहः: the Prāpitāmaha, the great-grandfather (Brahmā)

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Purana to the sages of Naimisharanya; internal listing of cosmic correspondences)

Characters & Entities

• Brahma

FAQs

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

It supports the Purāṇic method of sanctifying a Shiva-puja environment by recognizing certain trees as foremost and by linking natural forms to divine archetypes—useful for selecting auspicious places and materials around a Linga.

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

By presenting a hierarchy of manifestations and presiding principles, it implies the Shaiva Siddhanta view that the world’s ordered forms (including sacred trees) operate within a governed cosmos—where Pati (Shiva) is ultimately the transcendent Lord, even when other deities like Brahmā function as cosmic administrators.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

A practical takeaway is sacred-space discernment: honoring auspicious natural supports (like Aśvattha/Plakṣa) for worship and contemplation, aligning the practitioner’s pashu (individual self) toward purity by reducing pasha (bondage) through sattvic surroundings.