Shloka 34

Adhyaya 75: Nishkala–Sakala Shiva, Twofold Linga, and the Supremacy of Dhyana-Yajna

Devanagari script

यथा शिवस् तथा देवी यथा देवी तथा शिवः तस्मादभेदबुद्ध्यैव सप्तविंशत्प्रभेदतः

Transliteration

yathā śivas tathā devī yathā devī tathā śivaḥ tasmādabhedabuddhyaiva saptaviṃśatprabhedataḥ

Translation

湿婆如何，女神亦如何；女神如何，湿婆亦如何。因此，当持不二之见：二者本无差别——纵然经中以二十七种分类而说。

Word by Word

• yathā: just as

• śivaḥ: Lord Shiva (Pati)

• tathā: so, in the same way

• devī: the Goddess (Shakti)

• tasmāt: therefore

• abheda-buddhyā: with the cognition of non-difference (abheda-jñāna)

• eva: indeed/alone

• saptaviṃśat: twenty-seven

• prabhedataḥ: by way of distinctions/classifications

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Purana’s doctrine to the sages of Naimisharanya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Devi (Shakti/Parvati)

FAQs

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

It establishes that worship of the Linga is worship of the one reality that is simultaneously Shiva (Pati) and Shakti (Devi); the devotee should perform puja with abheda-buddhi, not as two competing deities.

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

Shiva-tattva is presented as inseparable from Shakti—Shiva is not a solitary principle but the same supreme reality expressed with power (Shakti); distinctions are pedagogical, while the truth is non-difference.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The key practice is abheda-buddhi (non-dual contemplation) during puja and Pashupata-oriented meditation—seeing beyond enumerated categories into the unity of Pati with Shakti, which loosens pasha (bondage) for the pashu (soul).