Śivaloka

Śivaloka · śiva-loka, “the world of Śiva”

Śivaloka means “the world of Śiva“, and Śivapura means “the city of Śiva”. Both name the home of Bhagavān Śiva that lies beyond the worlds of the universe. The Śiva Purāṇa maps the tiers of existence that rise to Śivaloka; the Vāyu and Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇas describe Śivapura.

The Vāmana Purāṇa tells who reaches Śivaloka: one who worships Rudra with Daṇḍī at the Kapisthala tīrtha, one who serves Mahādeva at the Naraka kshetra of Kurukshetra, King Vena and the dog that freed him at the Sthāṇu tīrtha, and the dānavas slain by the Devī in battle.

Per Śiva Purāṇa

Śivaloka means “the world of Śiva“. It is the realm beyond all change where Bhagavān Śiva dwells forever. It lies far above the fourteen worlds of Brahmā, and even above the regions where other divine beings live. The Vidyeśvara Saṃhitā of the Śiva Purāṇa gives a detailed map of the universe. It traces the tiers of existence rising from the lowest world, Pātāla, through many middle lokas (worlds), up to Jñāna-Kailāsa. This is a sacred home with five walls, where Śiva sits in his innermost shrine, surrounded by Nandīśvara and his great devotees.

One reaches Śivaloka through sāyujya, union with Śiva. This is the highest moksha, and it is given only by Śiva’s anugraha (grace).

The Rising Tiers of Existence

The Vidyeśvara Saṃhitā (Chapter 18) arranges its map by how far each tier lies from ordinary life and how near it is to Śiva. The tiers are not only places. They are also stages of moksha and of closeness to the divine.

The Fourteen Brahma-Lokas

The first tier is made up of the fourteen worlds of Brahmā, the well-known levels of the universe described in the Purāṇas:

• The seven lower worlds, going down from the earth: Atala, Vitala, Sutala, Talātala, Mahātala, Rasātala and Pātāla
• The seven upper worlds, going up from the earth: Bhū-loka, Bhuvar-loka, Svar-loka, Mahar-loka, Jana-loka, Tapo-loka and Satya-loka (Brahma-loka)

At this tier, Vaikuṇṭha, the realm of Vishṇu, is placed at the level of Kshamā-loka, beside or just above the fourteen Brahma-lokas.

The Twenty-Eight Lokas, Up to Śuci-Loka

Above the fourteen Brahma-lokas the map reaches to twenty-eight lokas. This tier ends at Śuci-loka. Within it lies Kailāsa, the Kailāsa of Rudra, where Śiva in the form of Rudra rules as the one who dissolves the universe. This is not the final Śivaloka. It is the working home of Rudra, from which saṃhāra (dissolution) is carried out.

The Fifty-Six Lokas, Up to Ahiṃsā-Loka

Higher still, the map reaches to fifty-six lokas. This tier ends at Ahiṃsā-loka. Within it lies Jñāna-Kailāsa, the home of Kāryeśvara, Śiva in his role as the one who rules the purpose of the universe. This Kailāsa is higher than the Kailāsa of Rudra, and it is closer to Śiva’s final nature.

The Boundary of the Kāla-Cakra

Beyond the fifty-six lokas stands the Kāla-cakra, the wheel of time. It marks the passage from existence bound by time to the timeless. It divides the realms where Śiva works through his agents (the first fifty-six lokas) from the realms that belong only to Śiva’s direct reality.

Kālātīta-Loka: Beyond Time

Beyond the Kāla-cakra lies Kālātīta-loka, the realm beyond time (kāla-atīta). Here Śiva himself dwells, in a form that stands above the cycles of creation and dissolution that rule all the lower lokas. One who reaches Kālātīta-loka has gone beyond the reach of time.

At the border of Śivaloka stands Dharma-vṛshabha, the bull of dharma, as guardian. This is Nandī in his role as guardian of the universe. He makes sure that only those who have purified themselves through dharma and bhakti (loving devotion) may enter.

The Kāraṇa-Lokas

The map goes on with four tiers of kāraṇa (causal) lokas. These are the realms from which the working lokas below them arise:

• 14 Kāraṇa-Brahma lokas: the causal counterparts of the 14 Brahma-lokas
• 14 Kāraṇa-Vishṇu lokas: the causal counterparts of Vishṇu’s realms
• 28 Kāraṇa-Rudra lokas: the causal counterparts of the Rudra realms
• 56 Kāraṇa-Īśāna lokas: the causal counterparts of the Īśāna or Maheśa realms

These kāraṇa-lokas are the subtle, causal level of each tier. They are what holds up each set of visible lokas from within.

Brahmacarya-Loka

Above the tiers of kāraṇa-lokas lies Brahmacarya-loka. It is linked with those who have kept the highest discipline of brahmacarya (celibacy and self-restraint) and so have purified themselves to come closest to Śiva.

Jñāna-Kailāsa: The Five-Walled Inner Shrine

The Vidyeśvara Saṃhitā’s map reaches its summit in Jñāna-Kailāsa, Śiva’s innermost home. It is a sacred complex with five walls, one inside the other (prākāras), and five pavilions (maṇḍapas). This is the Kailāsa of jñāna (true knowledge). It stands above the working Kailāsa of Rudra and the middle Kailāsa of Kāryeśvara.

The Five Prākāras

The five prākāras (enclosing walls) are named after the five faces of Śiva and the forms that preside over them:

Nandīśvara sits outside the fifth, outermost prākāra. As guardian and devotee he chants the Pañcāksharī mantra, Namaḥ Śivāya, without end.

The Five Maṇḍapas

Inside the prākāras stand five sacred pavilions:

1. Dhyāna-dharma maṇḍapa: the pavilion of the dharma of meditation, where devotees sit in contemplation
2. Balinātha maṇḍapa: the pavilion linked with bali (ritual offering)
3. Somaskanda maṇḍapa: the pavilion where Śiva appears with Umā and Skanda (the Somaskanda form)
4. Nṛtya-maṇḍapa: the dance pavilion, where Śiva’s dance of the universe is seen
5. Mūla-māyā maṇḍapa: the pavilion of the first, original māyā

The Garbha-Gṛha

At the centre of the innermost prākāra is the garbha-gṛha, the innermost shrine. It holds a Śivaliṅga, the first and final liṅga, Śiva’s innermost form in Jñāna-Kailāsa. This liṅga is the source of all liṅgas in all worlds, and its pūjā is the model for all liṅga-pūjā.

Where Nandīśvara Sits

Nandīśvara sits outside the fifth prākāra, always chanting the Pañcāksharī. This detail carries deep meaning for devotees. Even Nandī himself, the greatest devotee and the gatekeeper of Śivaloka, offers his pūjā from outside the outermost wall. This shows both the endless greatness of Śiva’s innermost reality and the full contentment of a devotee who, even at the doorway, is lost in constant Śiva-smaraṇa (remembrance of Śiva).

Reaching Śivaloka and Moksha

The Vidyeśvara Saṃhitā teaches that one reaches Śivaloka in its final form, the garbha-gṛha of Jñāna-Kailāsa, through sāyujya, the highest of the five kinds of moksha (liberation). The five kinds of moksha rise step by step, each one bringing the jīva closer within Śivaloka:

Japa of the Pañcāksharī as the Path to Śivaloka

In its section on the Pañcāksharī, the Vidyeśvara Saṃhitā links the fruit of japa (repetition of the mantra) directly to this rise through the worlds. Five crore (fifty million) repetitions of Namaḥ Śivāya lead to Śivaloka and sāyujya. Each crore carries the devotee through one great tier: Brahmaloka, Vishṇuloka, Rudraloka, Īśvaraloka and at last Śivaloka.

Per Vāyu Purāṇa

The second half (Uttarārdha) of the Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa, in Chapter 6, has two sections called Śivapura-varṇana, “the description of Śivapura”. They give a fuller account of the structure of the worlds, ending with moksha into Brahmā‘s realm. In fact, the Vāyu Purāṇa‘s “Śivapura” section covers the whole range of the fourteen lokas, from the earth’s surface (Bhūtala) up to Brahmaloka.

The Fourteen Lokas

The Vāyu Purāṇa names fourteen lokas: seven kṛta (upper) and seven akṛta (lower, the pātālas). The upper lokas, rising from the earth, are:

1. Bhūloka: the earth
2. Bhuvarloka: the middle space up to the sun
3. Svarloka: svarga, the realm of Indra and the devas
4. Maharloka: where the Manus take shelter between manvantaras (the ages ruled by each Manu); 1 crore yojanas above Dhruva, the pole-star
5. Janaloka: where Brahmā’s sons, Daksha and others, live; 2 crore yojanas above Maharloka
6. Tapoloka: where the Vairāja devas, who have no body-heat, live; four times the distance above Janaloka
7. Satyaloka or Brahmaloka: the highest loka; six times the distance above Tapoloka; reached by those who will not return to birth (apunarmāraka)

Those who have fully worn out saṃsāra (the cycle of birth and death) through tapas (austerity) and brahma-vidyā (knowledge of Brahman) rise step by step through these lokas. At the end of Brahmā’s lifespan they merge with him into the Avyakta, the unmanifest.

Distances Between the Lokas

The Vāyu Purāṇa gives distances in yojanas (an ancient measure of length):

• From the earth to the sun: 1,00,000 yojanas
• From the sun to the moon: 1,000 yojanas
• From the moon to the Nakshatra-maṇḍala (the circle of stars): 1,00,000 yojanas
• The planets, from Budha (Mercury) to Śani (Saturn), lie in rising order above the circle of stars
• The Saptarshi-maṇḍala (the circle of the seven ṛshis): 1,00,000 yojanas above Śani
• Dhruva (the pole-star): 1,00,000 yojanas above the Saptarshis
• Maharloka: 1 crore yojanas above Dhruva

Qualities That Lead to Union with Brahmā

The Vāyu Purāṇa lists the qualities that lead to Brahma-sāyujya, union with Brahmā:

“Those free from passion, who have conquered anger, free from delusion, who speak truth, peaceful, who have placed their ātma in Brahma, compassionate, who have conquered the senses, who have no attachment, pure: these are declared to attain Brahma-sāyujya.”

The Mahāpralaya: How the Elements Dissolve

The second Śivapura section (lines 7154 to 7366) describes the mahāpralaya in detail. This is the dissolving of all creation when Brahmā’s lifespan ends. Each element is swallowed by the one above it:

1. Earth (pṛthivī) is swallowed by water. Water takes in earth’s quality (guṇa) of gandha (smell).
2. Water is swallowed by fire. Fire takes in water’s quality of rasa (taste).
3. Fire (tejas) is swallowed by air. Air takes in fire’s quality of rūpa (form), and the sun stops shining.
4. Air is swallowed by space (ākāśa). Space takes in air’s quality of sparśa (touch), and the air stops moving.
5. Space is swallowed by mahat (the great principle). The whole realm of sound dissolves.
6. Mahat is swallowed by the avyakta (unmanifest Prakṛti, the root of nature).
7. Avyakta: the guṇas return to guṇa-sāmya, perfect balance. All the separate dharmas and adharmas (good and bad deeds) dissolve into it, and only the first darkness remains.

This is the pūrṇa-pralaya, the complete dissolution. In the anu-kalpas (smaller world-ages), only a partial dissolution takes place and the process is not fully completed.

The Twenty-Nine Narakas

The same Śivapura section also lists twenty-nine naraka-lokas, the worlds in Yama‘s domain where the results of wrong deeds are suffered.

Per Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa

Śivapura, “the city of Śiva“, is the divine city of Bhagavān Parameśvara (Śiva, the Supreme). The Brahmāṇḍa Mahā Purāṇa describes it in Chapter 2 of its Upasaṃhāra Pāda, the closing part of the text. There it is a vast divine realm set above the seven lokas (worlds), beyond the usual order of the universe. Eleven crore (110 million) Rudras guard it, and eight Vasus and ten Aṅgirases serve there. Its size is beyond what ordinary beings can grasp.

Śivapura is not the same as Kailāsa. It is the home of Parameśvara that lies beyond the whole universe and remains even through pralaya, the dissolution of the universe. The Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa describes it as part of its teaching on that dissolution.

Chapter 2 of the Upasaṃhāra Pāda describes Śivapura while telling of pralaya. After describing the seven kinds of pralaya and the dissolving of the universe, the text turns to Śivapura as the realm that stands apart from all creation and dissolution.

• Location: Śivapura lies above the seven lokas (Bhūr, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ, Mahas, Janas, Tapas and Satya), beyond the usual structure of the universe. It is in a realm that is not bound, in the ordinary way, by the rhythm of kalpa (world-age) and pralaya.
• Guardians: eleven crore (110 million) Rudras stand guard over Śivapura, each at his post around the city.
• Attendants: eight Vasus serve in the inner parts of Śivapura, together with ten Aṅgirases who wait upon Parameśvara there.
• Size: Śivapura is said to be vast beyond understanding. Its extent cannot be properly described by any ordinary measure of the universe.

Śivapura and Pralaya

The placing of this description matters. It comes right after the account of the Saṃvartaka destruction, when seven suns burn the worlds, and of the Ekārṇava, the single ocean that covers everything once the universe has dissolved. In the mahāpralaya (great dissolution) all the lokas melt into this first ocean, but Śivapura, as the home of Parameśvara, remains. It is the one place that stands beyond the cycle of creation and dissolution. For this reason Śivapura stands for the akshara (imperishable) level that lies beneath everything in the universe that perishes.

Per Vāmana Purāṇa

The Vāmana Purāṇa does not describe Śivaloka itself. It names the holy places and the acts by which beings reach it, and those who reached it.

Kapisthala and the Naraka kshetra

In the Saro Māhātmya, the glory of the sacred lake of Kurukshetra, the narrator leads the brāhmaṇas from tīrtha to tīrtha. Among them is the famous tīrtha called Kapisthala, which removes all pāpa (sin). Vṛddhakedāreśvara Mahādeva is established there, and Rudra is there together with Daṇḍī. One who bathes there and worships Rudra together with Daṇḍī gains the power of antardhāna (becoming invisible at will) and lives happily in Śivaloka. One who offers tarpaṇa there, does ācamana three times and bows to Daṇḍi-deva gains the phala (fruit) of the pilgrimage to Kedāra, and one who performs śrāddha there on the fourteenth day of the bright half of Caitra, for the pleasure of Bhagavān Śiva, attains the supreme state.

Further on lies the Naraka kshetra, rare in the three worlds, which holds three crore tīrthas. In it is a lake, and in the middle of the lake a well where a crore Rudras dwell. One who serves Mahādeva there on kṛshṇa paksha caturdaśī, the fourteenth day of the dark half, has all his wishes fulfilled and attains Śivaloka. One who bathes in that lake and remembers the crore Rudras gains, by their grace, the phala of worshipping a crore Rudras; all his faults are removed and he attains the supreme state.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Saro Māhātmya, Chapter 15

Vena and the dog

Sanatkumāra tells Mārkaṇḍeya Maharshi of King Vena, who reviled the Vedas, was slain by the ṛshis, and was born again among the mlecchas, wasted by disease. His son brought him to the Sthāṇu tīrtha at Kurukshetra, kept him in a hut there, and every day sprinkled him with the waters of the tīrthas. One day a dog came there. In its former birth it had guarded the deva-dravya (the wealth of the deva) of the Sthāṇu maṭha and had become the cause of its loss, and so Yama made it be born as a dog. It left Dvaitavana, came to the Sannihita lake and, by the grace of Sthāṇvīśvara, dipped in the Sarasvatī and was freed of all pāpa. Then, hungry, it entered Vena’s hut; Vena, frightened, plunged into the Sthāṇu tīrtha, the drops from the dog’s wet body fell on him, and he was freed. In great joy he sang a long stotra to Sthāṇu, Bhagavān Śiva.

Bhagavān Śiva was pleased with the stotra and told Vena that he would always dwell near him. He asked Vena to choose a vara. Vena asked nothing for himself: “Prabhu Śaṅkara, by the darśana of the glory of this liṅga and by your divine darśana I have been freed from all pāpas. If you wish to give a vara, then bless also this servant of yours, who was born as a dog because he consumed the deva-dravya. Give this dog mukti.” Bhagavān Śiva answered: “This dog too will surely be freed from pāpa. By my grace it will reach Śivaloka. Because it has heard this stava of mine, all its pāpas will go.” Then Bhagavān Śiva withdrew while all looked on.

At once the dog remembered its former birth and stood before Vena in a divine body. Vena told his son that by the tīrtha water he had sprinkled on him every day, by the grace of the dog, by dwelling on the bank of that tīrtha, and by the grace of Sthāṇudeva, he was freed from pāpa and was going to svarloka and to Śivaloka. He installed Maheśvara there and attained siddhi. The dog too, by the glory of the Sthāṇu tīrtha, was cleansed of all stains and reached the abode of Śiva.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Saro Māhātmya, Chapters 26–27

The dānavas slain by the Devī

In the Devī Ambikā‘s war against the dānava army of Śumbha and Niśumbha, Cāmuṇḍā, at the Devī’s command, slaughtered the enemy army and swallowed all who were left. Slain without remainder by Ambikā, Cāmuṇḍā, the lion and the bhūta-gaṇas, all those foremost sons of Danu reached Śambhu’s loka.

Source: Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 29

Sources

• Śiva Purāṇa, Vidyeśvara Saṃhitā, Chapter 18
• Śiva Purāṇa, Vidyeśvara Saṃhitā, section on the Praṇava and Pañcāksharī
• Vāyu Mahā Purāṇa, Uttarārdha (second half), Chapter 6 (Śivapura-varṇana)
• Brahmāṇḍa Mahā Purāṇa, Upasaṃhāra Pāda, Chapter 2
• Vāmana Purāṇa, Chapter 29
• Vāmana Purāṇa, Saro Māhātmya, Chapters 15, 26–27