Liṅgārcana: Pūjā of the Śivaliṅga in the Liṅga Purāṇa

Liṅgārcana means the pūjā (worship) of the Śivaliṅga, the sacred form in which Śiva is honoured. The Liṅga Purāṇa teaches it in two forms: the outer (bāhya) pūjā done with physical offerings, and the inner (āntara or mānasika) pūjā done entirely in the mind.

The Liṅga Purāṇa ranks the ways of honouring Śiva, from simple pūjā up to abhisheka (the sacred bathing of the liṅga), which it calls the highest. It declares that the Śivaliṅga is the lasting, eternal home of Parameśvara (the Supreme Ruler, Śiva). Outer pūjā uses the Pañcabrahma mantras, the Śatarudriya, the Namaka-Camaka and a full pūjā of sixteen upacāras (offerings of service). Inner pūjā reaches its peak in the realisation Śivo’haṃ, “I am Śiva”, in which the devotee becomes one with Śiva himself.

The Order of Offerings

The Liṅga Purāṇa sets out the ways of honouring Śiva, each one greater in merit than the last:

Pūjāyā adhiko homaḥ, homāt tarpaṇam uttamam; tarpaṇācca japaḥ śreshṭho, hy abhishekaḥ paro japāt.

Pūjā (ritual worship) is surpassed by homa (offerings into the sacred fire). Homa is surpassed by tarpaṇa (offerings of water). Tarpaṇa is surpassed by japa (repeating a mantra). Japa is surpassed by abhisheka (bathing the liṅga). Of all five ways (pūjā, homa, tarpaṇa, japa and abhisheka), the fifth, abhisheka, done with Śiva-upāsanā (devoted service of Śiva), is the greatest.

In the same way the text says:

Among Vedic texts, the Śatarudriya is the highest
Among devas, Maheśvara is the highest
Among holy places (kshetras), Kāśī is the highest
Among mantras, the Pañcāksharī, Namaḥ Śivāya, is the highest

The Śivaliṅga

The Liṅga Purāṇa teaches that Parameśvara dwells always and for ever in the Śivaliṅga. It describes him as:

Clear like crystal (sphaṭika-varṇa)
Nishkala, without limits or parts
Akshara, imperishable
The origin of all the immortals
Filling all fourteen worlds
Beyond the sight of Brahmā, Indra, Vishṇu and Rudra
Not seen even by those who know the Vedas and Vedānta
Without beginning, middle or end
The healer of the illness of saṃsāra (the cycle of birth and death)

The Liṅga Purāṇa also describes the parts of the liṅga. The piṇḍa (the rounded upper part) stands for the Purusha, Śiva. The vedikā (the platform) stands for Śakti. The whole Śivaliṅga stands for the union of Śiva and Śakti, through which creation is kept going. A Śivaliṅga with a square base, eight corners inside, and the rounded piṇḍa on top is the form of Maheśvara. Any liṅga as small as a thumb (aṅgushṭhamātra), whether made of gold, silver, copper or stone, is worthy of pūjā.

Bāhya Liṅgārcana: The Outer Pūjā

Preparation

Nandikeśvara, the chief attendant of Śiva, taught this vidhi (method) as he received it from Parameśvara himself. The outer pūjā begins by sprinkling śrīgandhodaka (water scented with sandalwood) over the place of pūjā. The vessels for pādya (water for the feet), arghya (water offered in welcome) and ācamanīya (water for sipping) are purified with the Praṇava (Oṃ) and filled with pure water. Camphor, root-tendrils, fragrant powders and flowers are added. All these waters are made sacred with the Praṇava, the Pañcāksharī and the five Pañcabrahma mantras (beginning with Sadyojāta).

The Sixteen Upacāras

First the devotee meditates on Nandikeśvara. He is described as blazing like fire, three-eyed, ruler of the immortals, crowned with the crescent moon, with a face like a young monkey and four hands holding flower garlands, adorned with every ornament, and joined by his wife Suyaśā. The devotee also honours Vināyaka (Gaṇeśa), Kumārasvāmī and Pārvatī Devī at Śiva’s side. Then the devotee:

Removes the nirmālya (old flowers and offerings) from the Śivaliṅga
Washes the liṅga clean
Offers pādya, arghya, ācamanīya and pañcāmṛta (the five nectars)
Offers phala-udaka (fruit-water)
Performs the great abhisheka while chanting the Namaka-Camaka (the Rudrādhyāya) and the Pañcabrahma mantras
Offers vastra and upavastra (garments)
Offers the yajñopavīta (sacred thread)
Offers bhasma (sacred ash), sandalwood, akshata (unbroken rice), flowers and bilva leaves
Offers dhūpa (incense) and dīpa (lamp)
Offers naivedya (food), followed by ācamanīya
Offers a crown (kirīṭa), an umbrella (chatra) and ornaments with the Praṇava and the Pañcāksharī
Offers tāmbūla (betel)
Performs mahānīrājana (waving of lamps) and mantra-pushpa (offering flowers with mantras)
Chants Śiva-stotras (hymns) and bows in namaskāra
Performs pradakshiṇā (walking around the liṅga, keeping it on the right)
Offers arghya again and mantra-pushpas at Śiva’s feet, and then bows fully to the ground (sāshṭāṅga praṇāma)

The Great Abhisheka

For the mahābhisheka (great bathing), the water is strained through cloth and scents are added. While chanting the Pañcabrahma mantras, the Pavamāna sūktas, the Purusha Sūkta and the Namaka-Camaka, the devotee bathes the Śivaliṅga with pure water from a gold, silver or copper vessel in a steady stream (dhārā). Abhisheka done in this way destroys pāpa (the effects of wrongdoing) gathered over many births.

One who performs the full abhisheka and pūjā for one whole maṇḍala (forty days), keeping brahmacarya (self-restraint) and other niyamas (disciplines), is freed from all mahāpātakas (the gravest wrongs) and gains the fruit of a Rājasūya yajña (the great royal fire ritual).

Closing the Outer Pūjā

The last act of the outer pūjā is to install the Śivaliṅga, in the mind, in one’s own heart. This joins the outer pūjā to the inner, so that the Śivaliṅga is present both in the place of pūjā and in the hṛdaya (heart) of the devotee all through the day.

Āntara Liṅgārcana: The Inner Pūjā

The Inner Setting

Nandikeśvara taught the mānasika (mental) pūjā of the Śivaliṅga as the highest practice of Śivadhyāna (meditation on Śiva). It is set up as follows.

In the heart, one pictures four circles (maṇḍalas) placed one above the other:

The Agni-maṇḍala (circle of fire) at the base
The Sūrya-maṇḍala (circle of the sun) above it
The Candra-maṇḍala (circle of the moon) above that
Pradhāna (Prakṛti, nature, made of the three guṇas or qualities: sattva, rajas and tamas) above that

On this Pradhāna, one meditates on Maheśvara with Ādiśakti as half of his body (the Ardhanārīśvara form, half Śiva and half Śakti).

The Twenty-Six Tattvas

The Liṅga Purāṇa lists twenty-four tattvas (basic principles) and two higher principles:

The twenty-four tattvas: Avyakta (Mūla Prakṛti, root nature), Mahat, Ahaṃkāra, the five Tanmātras, the five Karmendriyas (organs of action), the five Jñānendriyas (sense organs), Manas (mind) and the five mixed Mahābhūtas (great elements)
The twenty-fifth: the Jīvātmā, the individual self who is meditating
The twenty-sixth (Shaḍviṃśaka): Maheśvara, who fills and goes beyond all twenty-four

So in meditation the ṛshi sees that the Purusha is Rudra, and that sarvaṃ khalv idaṃ brahma (“all this is indeed Brahman”) is the same as sarvo vai rudraḥ (“all this is indeed Rudra”).

The Mental Pūjā

With this bhāvanā (inner contemplation) in place, the devotee performs the whole series of upacāras in the mind alone: āvāhana (inviting), āsana (offering a seat), pādya, arghya, ācamana, snāna (bathing), bhasma, gandha (sandal paste), akshata, pushpa (flowers), bilva, dhūpa, dīpa, naivedya, tāmbūla, phala (fruit), mahānīrājana and mantra-pushpa. All of these are offered to Śiva installed in the heart, and at the end the devotee bows in the mind.

Why Śivadhyāna Is Highest

Meditating on Indra, Candra, Sūrya, Agni or Vishṇu is surpassed by Śivadhyāna, which grants sadyomukti (immediate liberation).

Dhyāna (meditation) means thinking about Parameśvara’s lakshaṇa (qualities) and mahimā (glory) with complete ekāgratā (one-pointed attention).

The Last Step: Śivo’haṃ

The highest stage of inner liṅgārcana is the advaita bhāvanā, the contemplation of non-duality: the realisation Śivo’haṃ, “I am Śiva”. Through this contemplation, the devotee who has become mukta (liberated) becomes Śiva himself.

Outer Marks of Those Who Practise Inner Pūjā

Even those who practise the inner pūjā must outwardly wear bhasma (sacred ash) and rudrāksha beads. The Liṅga Purāṇa says these outer marks are needed by everyone, whether they practise the inner or the outer pūjā.

Devotees of Śiva should honour those who practise inner liṅgārcana, bow down before them, and give them what they need and a comfortable place to stay. Anyone who insults or looks down on those who practise liṅgārcana, inner or outer, even if they seem strange or unusual, will suffer greatly. This is what happened to the ṛshis of the Dāruvana forest when they at first disrespected Parameśvara in his digambara form (clad only in the directions, that is, unclothed).

Sources

Liṅga Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha (First Part)

Liṅgārcana in the Liṅga Purāṇa