Śivaliṅga Philosophy

The Śivaliṅga is the most common sacred form in which Bhagavān Śiva is honoured. The word liṅga means “sign” or “symbol”. The Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā, the last part of the Śiva Mahāpurāṇa, explains that the Śivaliṅga is not only an object for pūjā (worship) but also a deep truth about how the world comes to be.

In this teaching the liṅga is Māyā, also called Prakṛti: the creative womb from which everything that exists takes shape. The liṅgī, “the one who bears the liṅga”, is Śiva, the pure consciousness who fills Māyā and yet stays beyond her. The coming together of liṅga and liṅgī is the first creative act, and the whole universe comes out of it. At the deepest level the Śivaliṅga is Oṃkāra (the sacred sound Oṃ) made visible. As the story of the quarrel between Brahmā and Viṣṇu shows, the Mahāliṅga (the great liṅga) is the endless pillar of Śiva’s presence, with no beginning and no end.

Liṅga as Māyā, Liṅgī as Śiva

The Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā explains the two sides like this:

• Liṅga (the symbol, the form) = Māyā = Mūlaprakṛti (the first, root matter) = the creative power of the universe
• Liṅgī (the bearer of the liṅga) = Śiva as pure consciousness = the Puruṣa of Sāṃkhya philosophy, but going beyond it

In simple words, the visible universe (prakṛti) is Śiva’s liṅga. It is his self-expression, his “signature” in material form. Śiva, as pure consciousness, is the one in whom and through whom this expression arises. The liṅga does not exist apart from Śiva, and Śiva does not show himself without Māyā. Their bond has no beginning. It cannot be broken, and each needs the other. Yet Śiva stands beyond the liṅga, and so the liṅgī (Śiva) is always the higher reality.

Oṃkāra and the Liṅga

The teaching of the pañcākṣara (the five-syllable mantra of Śiva) says that Oṃkāra is Śiva’s form as sound, and the Śivaliṅga is the same reality in visible, material form. In the account of how the Mahāliṅga appeared, the great pillar split open. Oṃkāra came out from inside it and divided into four streams, one for each of the four Vedas:

• A-kāra (the sound “a”) → Ṛgveda
• U-kāra (the sound “u”) → Yajurveda
• M-kāra (the sound “m”) → Sāmaveda
• Nāda/Bindu (the resonance after the sound) → Atharvaveda

So the four Vedas are Oṃkāra unfolded, and Oṃkāra is the inner sound of the Śivaliṅga. To meditate on the Śivaliṅga is to meditate on Oṃkāra in form. To chant Oṃkāra is to call on the Śivaliṅga in sound.

The Mahāliṅga Episode

The account of the quarrel (vivāda) between Brahmā and Viṣṇu is the story on which this teaching about the liṅga rests.

Brahmā and Viṣṇu once argued about which of them was the greatest. Suddenly a blazing pillar of light (jyotir-stambha) appeared between them. It stretched without end, both upward and downward. Brahmā flew upward for ages trying to find its top. Viṣṇu took the form of Varāha (the boar) and dived downward for ages trying to find its base. Neither succeeded. This pillar, the Mahāliṅga, is Śiva’s own endless presence. It shows that:

1. Śiva is not limited by the bounds of creation. He has no top and no bottom.
2. Both Brahmā (the creator) and Viṣṇu (the sustainer) exist fully within Śiva and depend on him.
3. The form of the liṅga is the best way to express this endless, formless reality in our world of forms.

Types of Liṅga

In chapters 29 to 36 the Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā mentions several kinds of Śivaliṅga.

By Material

• Sphaṭika (crystal): for meditation and pūjā at home; the most sāttvika (pure and calm)
• Pārthiva (clay): temporary liṅgas made for a particular ritual and then placed in water
• Stone (granite, marble and so on): for permanent installation in temples
• Metal (gold, silver, copper): for processions and home shrines
• Śālagrāma-type: sacred stones that are found in nature

By Nature

• Svayambhū (self-manifested): liṅgas that arose by themselves, not made by human hands; held to be the most powerful
• Daiva (from the devas): liṅgas that came down from svarga, the realm of the devas
• Mānuṣa (made by people): liṅgas made by human hands and properly installed through the pratiṣṭhā (installation) ritual

By Setting of Pūjā

• Pratiṣṭhita (permanently installed): needs the full pratiṣṭhā ritual and pūjā every day after that
• Cala (movable): smaller liṅgas for pūjā at home, which can be carried on journeys
• Guruliṅga: the liṅga of one’s teacher, which is offered to the guru and received back

The Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā adds that when no properly installed liṅga is available, Śiva may be worshipped in water, in fire, in the sun or in ākāśa (open space), because Śiva is present in all of these.

Pīṭha and Liṅga: The Two Parts

A complete Śivaliṅga installed in a temple has two parts:

• Liṅga (the rounded upper part): stands for Śiva, pure consciousness
• Pīṭha or Yoni (the base, with a groove to drain the water of abhiṣeka, the sacred bathing): stands for Śakti, that is Pārvatī, the creative energy

Joining these two in one installed form shows the union of Śiva and Śakti, which is the source of all creation. The abhiṣeka water flows over the liṅga and drains away through the groove of the pīṭha. It is then collected as tīrtha (holy water), and it carries the grace of Śiva and Śakti together.

The Śivaliṅga Mahāvrata

Chapter 33 of the Uttarakhāṇḍa (second part) describes a vrata (sacred observance) called the Śivaliṅga mahāvrata. In it a devotee offers a perfumed liṅga (gandha-liṅga) to his own guru. All beings, from Brahmā downward, keep this observance. Since the liṅga is the sign of the whole visible universe, offering it to the guru means offering the whole universe to the teacher, who is Śiva in person for the disciple.

The Teaching in Brief

The Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā’s teaching on the liṅga can be summed up like this:

So the Śivaliṅga is at the same time:

• A physical form to meditate on
• A deep truth about consciousness and matter
• A doorway to mokṣa (liberation) through darśana (seeing it with devotion), abhiṣeka (sacred bathing) and dhyāna (meditation)

Sources

• Śiva Mahāpurāṇa, Vāyuvīya Saṃhitā (Book 7)