Understanding the significance and science of Shiva linga at the time of the Gyanvapi masjid controversy
The word linga means “the form”. We are calling it “the form” because when the un-manifest began to manifest itself, or in other words when creation began to happen, the first form that it took was that of an ellipsoid. A perfect ellipsoid is what we call as a linga. Creation always started as an ellipsoid or a linga, and then became many things. And we know from our experience that if you go into deep states of meditativeness, before a point of absolute dissolution comes, once again the energy takes the form of an ellipsoid or a linga. So, the first form is linga and the final form is linga. The in-between space is creation and what is beyond is Shiva.
The word “Shiva” literally means “that which is not”. That means nothing. Nothing is a very negative word. You would understand it better if you put a hyphen in between: no-thing. That which is, is physical manifestation. “That which is not” is that which is beyond the physical. In India, there are thousands of temples which are built for “that which is not.” Most of these Shiva temples don’t have a particular deity of any form. They just have a representative form and generally it is a linga. The form of a linga is a hole in the fabric of creation. So, the temple is a hole through which you enter into a space which is not. It is a hole through which you can fall beyond.
Today, most temples are built like shopping complexes with steel and concrete, and probably for the same purpose because everything has become commerce. When I talk about temples, I am talking about the way ancient temples were created. In this country, in ancient times, temples were built only for Shiva and nobody else. It was only later that the other temples came up because people started focusing on immediate wellbeing.
The very nature of human perception is such that whatever a human being is involved with right now, will be the only truth for him in his experience. Right now, most people are involved with the five sense organs and that seems to be the only truth, nothing else. Sense organs can only perceive that which is physical, and because your perception is limited to the five sense organs, everything that you know as life is only physicality: your body, your mind, your emotion and your life energies are physical. Let’s say, if you see the physical existence as a piece of cloth and you are walking on this cloth. What you are walking on is all that’s real. But when you look up, there seems to be a vast emptiness above, and even there, you only recognize the physical; you look at a star or a sun or a moon — they are all physical. You don’t perceive what is not physical.
What you call a temple is like putting a hole in the fabric, creating a space where the physical becomes thin, and something beyond becomes visible to you. This science of making the physical less manifest is the science of consecration, so that that dimension beyond the physical becomes apparent or visible to you if you are willing.
Twelve things you may not know about Shiva Linga
1. The first and final form: Linga
As we discussed earlier, the word linga means “the form”. We are calling it “the form” because when the un-manifest began to manifest itself, or in other words when creation began to happen, the first form that it took was that of an ellipsoid. Creation always started as an ellipsoid or a linga, and then became many things. And if you go into deep states of meditativeness, before a point of absolute dissolution comes, once again the energy takes the form of an ellipsoid or a linga. So, the first form is linga and the final form is linga.
A giant Shiva Linga located near the Laxmi Narasimha statue at Hampi. Image courtesy Sandip Dey/Wikimedia Commons
You are the firstborn
The first expression of the cosmic emptiness
The wise ones spied you
To be the source of all this lively mischief
You are the source of all pain and pleasure
You are the lowest and the highest
Ah, the games that you play
The multitude of forms for which you are the source
Are neither this nor that
I wormed through creation
To discover you and me
O’ Ishana the most glorious form
Blessed is Isha to be your abode
2. Consecrating a Linga
With the necessary technology, simple space, even a piece of stone can be made into divine exuberance. This is the phenomenon of consecration. Pratishtha means consecration. The most common form of consecration is by using mantras, rituals and other kinds of processes. If you consecrate a form through mantras, it needs constant maintenance and rituals to keep the deity alive. Prana Pratishtha is not like that. Once a form is consecrated through life energies, not with mantras or rituals, it is forever and needs no maintenance. That is the reason why there are no pujas in Dhyanalinga; it does not need that maintenance. It is consecrated through prana pratishtha. It will always be like that. Even if you take away the stone part of the linga, it will still be like that. If the whole world comes to an end, that form will still remain.
3. Linga-Making: A subjective science
The science of linga-making is a huge experiential possibility and has been there for thousands of years. But in the last eight or nine hundred years, especially when the Bhakti movement swept the country, the science of building a temple got washed away. For a devotee, nothing is important except his emotion. His path is emotion. It is only from the strength of his emotion that he does everything. So they just kept the science aside and started building temples whichever way they liked. It is a love affair, you know?
A bhakta can do whatever he wants. Anything is fair with him because the only thing he has is the strength of his emotion. Because of this, the science of making lingas receded. Otherwise, it was a very deep science. This is a very subjective science, and it was never written down because if you write it down, it will be completely misunderstood. Many lingas have been created like this, without any knowledge of the science.
4. Lingas of the Pancha Bhutas Sthalas
The most fundamental sadhana in yoga is bhuta shuddhi. The pancha bhutas are the five elements in nature. If you look at yourself, your physical body is made up of five elements. These are earth, fire, wind, water, and space. They come together in a certain way to become the body. The spiritual process is about going beyond the physical and five elements. These elements have a huge grip on everything that you experience. To transcend them, the fundamental practice of yoga involves what is called bhuta shuddhi. For every element that is involved, there is a certain practice you can do to become free from it.
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In south India, five magnificent temples were built, each with a linga representing one of the pancha bhutas. If you want to do sadhana for the element of water, you go to Thiruvanaikaval. For space, you go to Chidambaram; Air, Kalahashasti; Earth, Kanchipuram and Fire, Thiruvannamalai. These temples were created as places for sadhana, not for worship.
5. Jyotirlingas
Indian culture has been among the few cultures on this planet where for thousands of years, the whole population was focused only on the ultimate wellbeing of the human being. The moment you were born in India, your life was not about your business, your wife, your husband or your family; your life was only about mukti. The whole society was structured like this.
In this context, many kinds of powerful devices were created in this culture. Jyotirlingas were created as very powerful tools in this direction. It is a powerful experience to be in the presence of such forms.
Jyotirlingas have tremendous power because they were consecrated and created in a certain way, not just using human capabilities, but the forces of nature. There are only twelve Jyotirlingas. They are located at certain geographically and astronomically significant points. These points are subject to certain forces in the existence. A long time ago, people with a certain level of perception very carefully calibrated these spaces and fixed those points according to the celestial movement.
Some of the Jyotirlingas are no longer “alive”, but many of them are still very powerful tools.
6. Mahakala: The ultimate time machine
Shi-va literally means “that which is not” or no-thing. The hyphen is important. It is in the lap of vast no-thingness that creation happened. Over 99 percent of the atom and the cosmos is, in fact, emptiness — simply no-thing. The one word, Kala, is used for time and space and one of the personifications of Shiva is Kala Bhairava. Kala Bhairava is a vibrant state of darkness, but when he becomes absolutely still, he turns into Mahakala, the ultimate time machine.
The Mahakala temple in Ujjain is an incredibly consecrated space, this powerful manifestation is definitely not for the faint-hearted. Raw and forceful, it is available for all those seeking ultimate dissolution — the annihilation of time as we know it.
The spiritual process anywhere in the world is always about transcending the physical because form is subject to cycles. Kala Bhairava is seen, therefore, as the Destroyer of Ignorance: He who shatters the compulsive cycles of birth and death, being and non-being.
7. Lingas worldwide
There was no enlightened being who did not talk about Shiva, in the sense of a boundless dimension or something beyond physical nature. The only difference is they may have expressed it in the language and symbolism of their region.
However, because of very aggressive ways of spreading religion around the world in the last 1,500 years, most of the great cultures of the past, like the ancient Mesopotamian civilisation, the Central Asian civilisations, and the North African civilisations, have disappeared. So it is not very visible anymore, but if you look deeper into history, it was everywhere. So, in some way, mystical sciences used to be present in every culture. But in the last 1,500 years, they were largely lost in other parts of the world.
8. Lingas are made of different materials
Lingas that have formed naturally are called the self-created or svayambhu-lingas. There is a cave in Amarnath, in the northern state of Jammu. Inside the cave, a Shiva linga of ice is formed every year. The linga is formed naturally by the stalagmite that drips from the roof of the cave. It is almost magical to see water droplets trickling slowly from the top of the cave and freezing into ice when they fall.
Some lingas are carved out of rock, wood, or gems; others are moulded out of clay, sand or metal. These are pratishtith-lingas. Many lingas are covered by a metal sheath and given a face so that the devotee can relate better. These are mukhalingas. Some even have the entire image of Shiva carved on the surface.
Lingas represent the union of the masculine and the feminine. The feminine base is referred to as Gowripeetam or Avudaiyar. The linga and the base together signify the union of Shiva and Shakti, the masculine and feminine energies.
9. The Linga: A Guru
As the energy states addressed by yoga are not within the purview of the five senses, the guidance of a Guru is usually needed to experience these inner states. Many relationships rely on mental, emotional and physical bonding, but the master-disciple relationship is unique in that it is energy-based.
Modern science, due to its total dependence on the five senses, has privileged an empirical or rational approach to the process of research or seeking, limiting itself to the more pedestrian powers of the human mind. Modern education has echoed this approach, ignoring and neglecting the receptive potential of the individual. In this climate, there is great scepticism about the ability of a Guru to possess insight that goes beyond rationality. Yet, throughout history, the seeker has time and again been intuitively drawn to a Guru. To fulfil this urge for spiritual guidance, some visionary Gurus have created energy centres that replicate the Guru’s presence and energy.
The Dhyanalinga is the prime manifestation of the Guru. It is the instilled essence of the yogic sciences, a manifestation of inner energies at their peak.
10. Shiva Linga as the cosmic pillar
The story goes, Brahma and Vishnu once came across a great pillar of fire. From this unending column of effulgence emanated the sound, Aum. Awed, they decided to investigate. Taking the form of a swan, Brahma rose high into the blue skies in pursuit of its summit. Taking the form of a boar, Vishnu bored his way deep into the universe in pursuit of its base.
Both failed. For this cosmic pillar was none other than Shiva himself. How can one measure the immeasurable? When Vishnu returned, he conceded defeat. However, not wanting to admit failure, Brahma boasted that he had scaled the summit. As proof, he presented a white ketaki flower that he claimed to find on top.
No sooner was the lie uttered, Shiva appeared as Adiyogi (the first yogi). The two gods fell at his feet. For this lie, Shiva declared, Brahma would henceforth be deprived of the privilege of worship. The flower, by becoming accomplice to this subterfuge, fell from grace. Adiyogi refused henceforth to accept it as an offering. However, an exception was made for the holy night of Mahashivratri. To this day, the white ketaki flower is offered for worship only on this darkest night in the year, considered to be the night of profound spiritual possibility.
11. The Dhyanalinga
“Dhyana” in Sanskrit means “meditation” and “linga” means “form”. I use my own life energies through a mystical process called prana-pratishtha to consecrate the linga to its highest peak. In this process, all seven chakras (main energy centres in the body) have been energised to the very peak and locked, making it like the energy body of the highest or most evolved being.
Demanding no worship or prayer, this meditation shrine recognises all religions as expressions of one common source.
You are my Guru’s will
My only obsession
In my dreams and my wakefulness
My only longing was to fulfil you
Willing to do anything
That men should and should not
Willing to offer myself and
Another hundred lives if need be
Here now that you have happened
O’ Glorious one
May your Glory and Grace
Stir the sleeping hordes
Into wakefulness and light
Now that you have happened
And the gift of life still with me
What shall I do with myself
Have lived the peaks for too long
Time to graze the valleys of life.
12. Lingas represent Chakras
Chakras are a meeting point for the energy system, where the pranic nadis meet to create an energy vortex. There are 114 chakras, but generally, when we say “chakras” we are referring to the seven important chakras, which represent seven dimensions of life. They are like seven major traffic junctions.
Right now, most of the lingas in India represent one or two chakras at the most. The uniqueness of the Dhyanalinga at the Isha Yoga Centre is that all the seven chakras are energised and established at their peak. It is the highest possible manifestation, in the sense that if you take energy and push it up to very high levels of intensity, it can hold form only to a certain point. Beyond that, it becomes formless. If it becomes formless, people are incapable of experiencing it.
Pushing the energy to the highest point beyond which there will be no form, and crystallising it at that point – this is how Dhyanalinga has been consecrated.
Ranked amongst the fifty most influential people in India, Sadhguru is a yogi, mystic, visionary and a New York Times bestselling author. He has been conferred the Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India in 2017, the highest annual civilian award, accorded for exceptional and distinguished service.
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