Linga Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 57

मुनिमोहशमनम्

Pāśupata-yoga, Siddhis, Puruṣa-darśana, Saṃsāra, and Prāṇa-Rudra Pañcāhutī

Devanagari script

नवमासात् परिक्लिष्टः संवेष्टितशिरोधरः वेष्टितः सर्वगात्रैश् च अपर्याप्तप्रवेशनः

Transliteration

navamāsāt parikliṣṭaḥ saṃveṣṭitaśirodharaḥ veṣṭitaḥ sarvagātraiś ca aparyāptapraveśanaḥ

Translation

在母胎中九个月受苦，头与颈被紧紧束缚，全身被包裹压迫；被缚的 jīva 无有足够空间可动，亦难以出离。于是它在 pāśa（系缚）之力下受煎熬，直至 Pati（湿婆）之恩典成为通向解脱的真实门径。

Word by Word

• नवमासात्: for nine months

• परिक्लिष्टः: tormented, greatly afflicted

• संवेष्टित-शिरोधरः: with head and neck tightly bound/encircled

• वेष्टितः: wrapped, constricted

• सर्वगात्रैः: in all limbs/throughout the body

• च: and

• अपर्याप्त-प्रवेशनः: having insufficient passage/space for movement or emergence

Speaker

Suta (narrating the Purāṇic account to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It highlights embodied suffering as a sign of pāśa (bondage); Liṅga-worship is presented as turning the pashu (bound soul) toward Pati (Śiva), whose anugraha alone opens the true ‘passage’ beyond saṃsāra.

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

By implication, Śiva-tattva is the liberating principle: while the jīva is constricted by karmic limitation, Pati remains the transcendent Lord whose grace enables release from constraint and rebirth.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse supports the Pāśupata view that liberation requires recognizing bondage and seeking Śiva’s anugraha through Śiva-pūjā (especially Liṅga-arcana) and inner discipline that loosens pāśa.