Shiva Purana — Rudra Samhita, Shloka 23
विष्णु-ब्रह्म-विवाद-वर्णनम्
Description of the Viṣṇu–Brahmā Dispute and Brahmā’s Confusion
ब्रह्मोवाच । कस्त्वं वदेति हस्तेन समुत्थाप्य सनातनम् । तदा हस्तप्रहारेण तीव्रेण सुदृढेन तु
brahmovāca | kastvaṃ vadeti hastena samutthāpya sanātanam | tadā hastaprahāreṇa tīvreṇa sudṛḍhena tu
梵天说道：“你是谁？”说罢便举手指向那永恒者；随即以凶猛而极其坚实的一击，挥掌击下。
Brahma
Tattva Level: pashu
FAQs
It highlights how even exalted cosmic authority (Brahmā) can be veiled by ego and ignorance when confronting the Sanātana Reality; Shaiva Siddhānta reads this as a lesson that true knowledge arises through humility and Shiva’s grace, not mere status.
The “Eternal One” points to the transcendent Lord who later becomes knowable through compassionate forms (Saguna), including the Linga as an accessible focus for devotion—teaching that the Infinite cannot be mastered by force but approached by reverence and worship.
The takeaway is inner restraint and surrender: approach Shiva through japa of the Pañcākṣarī (“Om Namaḥ Śivāya”) and disciplined devotion rather than pride—cultivating humility before the Supreme Pati.