Why is the Shivlinga shaped like that? Why do people have senseless ideas?
Who is Shiva?
Shiva, the nirvikara (formless) is omnipresent, so you can worship Him in any form whether it is statue or Linga form.
But according to Shiva Purana, mostly Shiva is worshipped in the infinite column or Shivalinga, and linga worship is considered to give you more virtue than worshipping Him in the statue form.
Shivlinga means “ the form “, it means the Aadi and Ananth ( which is infinite and existed from times immemorial).
Shiva has neither a start nor end and that is an indication of Linga, the infinite pillar or column. The word Linga is referred as a Symbol. And since the Linga is an infinite column of energy, to make it finite, we have the nature or gravitational force ( the oval shape on the Linga which embeds the pillar into itself) pulling the linga’s energy into it and thus balancing it.
There are many reasons why it mentioned as in oval shape. In Sanskrit, ling means form. So shivling is a symbolic form of Shiva. Some Shivlings are oval and some are not.
The oval shivling is the supreme soul, the form of Shiva. Since it is essentially light hence it is worshipped as a form of eternal light. In the olden days, people would meditate looking at the flame of light. The meditation would get disturbed due to wind. So, a stone was made in an oval shape as the flame was made for meditation.
Shivling’s oval shape comes from the shape of the flame. This flame does not represent shape of any organ. It is not phallus. There are other shapes of Shivling which are not in oval shape.
Kedarnath shivling is not a shape of phallus yet it is still worshipped. People say that Shivling stands on Yoni. But it is not yoni. It is actually a pedestal on which ling stands. It is also referred to as Peeth.
Structure of Shivling is not on a yoni but on a pedestal to uphold and provide drainage of water around it. Calling Shivling as a symbol of creation by union of male-female is senseless, because these rocks , mountains , oceans etc . can not be made by male-female union. So by being human organs, it can’t symbolise universal creation.
Scriptural proof -
Shiv Lingaashtakam is a prayer written specifically for Shivling by Adi Shankaracharya. And if you read it, its last line says-
Sanskrit -’’Paraath Param Paramaatmak Lingam, tat-Parnamaami Sadaa Shivlingam”
Which says that Shivling is representation of Supreme-Soul (Paramatmak) form of Shiva.
And — — —
Shiv Puran (Gita press Hindi) : Book page number- 41–44; speaks about infinitely long bright light pillar called symbol (linga) of Shiva. And it does not say anything related to any human organ.
Mount Kailash is the place of Shiva it is located in Tibet. In languages prevalent in Tibet area’Ling means place example; Darjeeling (orginal word is Dorjeling) meaning Place of Dorje. There is city in Bhutan named Phuntsholing meaning place or land of Phuntsho. Similarly there are several places in Uttarakhand and HP ending with Ling and meaning Place of — — -. So Shiva Ling means Place of Shiv. We all know that the place of Shiva is the Kailash Parvat. This is the aerial view of Kailash Parvat
Jyotirlinga- There are 12 Jyotirlingas. A Jyotirlinga is a shrine where Lord Shiva is worshipped in the form of a Jyotirlingam. It is the radiant sign of The Almighty. A Jyotirlinga is a holy representation of Lord Shiva. The word ‘Jyoti’ means light and ‘linga’ means sign. Jyotirlinga is the light of Lord Shiva.
- Somnath (Gujarat).
2. Malikaarjun (Andhra Pradesh)
3. Mahakal (Ujjain)
4. Onkareshwar (M.P)
5. KedarNath (Uttarakhand)
6. BhimaShankar (Maharashtra)
7. Kashi Vishvanath (Kashi)
8. Trimbakeshwar (Nasik)
9. Baidnath (Bihar)
10. Nageshwar (Gujarat)
11. Rameshwar (TamilNadu)
12. Ghaneswar (Aurangabad)
Shiva is The Creator, The Guardian and The Destroyer. He is the eternal light. This entire universe is an ovum, it includes manifest and unmanifest creation.
References: Mixed writers and Shiv Puran.
