Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 164

Adhyaya 70: आदिसर्गः—महत्-अहङ्कार-तन्मात्रा-भूतसृष्टिः, ब्रह्माण्डावरणम्, प्रजासर्गः, त्रिमूर्ति-शैवाधिष्ठानम्

Devanagari script

तन्मात्राणां द्वितीयस्तु भूतसर्गः स उच्यते वैकारिकस्तृतीयस्तु सर्ग ऐन्द्रियकः स्मृतः

Transliteration

tanmātrāṇāṃ dvitīyastu bhūtasargaḥ sa ucyate vaikārikastṛtīyastu sarga aindriyakaḥ smṛtaḥ

Translation

第二种创造称为“部多之生”（bhūta-sarga），即诸细微元素——坦玛特罗（tanmātra）的流出。第三种创造被忆为“变异之生”（vaikārika），亦即“诸根之生”（aindriyaka），其中知觉与行动诸根由此生起。

Word by Word

• tanmātrāṇām: of the subtle elements (sound, touch, form, taste, smell)

• dvitīyaḥ: the second

• tu: indeed

• bhūta-sargaḥ: creation of the gross elements/beings

• saḥ: that

• ucyate: is called

• vaikārikaḥ: arising from vikāra (modification), the rājasa/active phase of creation

• tṛtīyaḥ: the third

• tu: indeed

• sargaḥ: creation

• aindriyakaḥ: pertaining to the indriyas (sense and action faculties)

• smṛtaḥ: is remembered/defined in tradition

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the cosmological teaching within the Linga Purana)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

By classifying creation into tanmātra, bhūta, and indriya stages, the verse frames the manifest world as a produced order (sarga) that the Pashu must transcend through devotion to Pati—often centered on Linga-upāsanā as the stable symbol of the unproduced Shiva-tattva beyond these evolutes.

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

Shiva-tattva is implicitly distinct from the created sequence: tanmātras, bhūtas, and indriyas belong to the field of prakṛtic manifestation and bondage (pāśa), whereas Shiva as Pati is the transcendent ground and the revealer who enables the soul (pashu) to move beyond sensory identification.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse points to sense-origination (aindriyaka sarga), implying the yogic necessity of indriya-nigraha (sense-restraint) and inward turning—core to Pāśupata-oriented discipline—so worship and meditation on the Linga are not diluted by sensory dispersion.