Linga Purana

ततः प्रणम्य तं मायी मायाशास्त्रविशारदः प्रविश्य तत्पुरं तूर्णं मुनिर्मायां तदाकरोत्

Then, having bowed to him, the magician, expert in the illusory scripture, quickly entered that city, and the sage performed his magic there.

मायया तस्य ते दैत्याः पुरत्रयनिवासिनः श्रौतं स्मार्तं च संत्यज्य तस्य शिष्यास्तदाभवन्

By his illusion, those Daityas dwelling in the triple city abandoned both Vedic and traditional duties, and became his disciples at that time.

तत्यजुश् च महादेवं शङ्करं परमेश्वरम् नारदो ऽपि तदा मायी नियोगान्मायिनः प्रभोः

They also abandoned the great god Mahadeva, Shankara, the Supreme Lord; even Narada, by the command of that lord of illusion, acted under delusion.

प्रविश्य तत्पुरं तेन मायिना सह दीक्षितः मुनिः शिष्यैः प्रशिष्यैश् च संवृतः सर्वतः स्वयम्

Entering that city with the magician, the sage was initiated, surrounded on all sides by his disciples and sub-disciples.

स्त्रीधर्मं चाकरोत्स्त्रीणां दुश्चारफलसिद्धिदम् चक्रुस्ताः सर्वदा लब्ध्वा सद्य एव फलं स्त्रियः

He performed the duties of women, which yield the results of difficult acts; those women, having obtained immediate results, always practiced them.

जनासक्ता बभूवुस्ता विनिन्द्य पतिदेवताः अद्यापि गौरवात्तस्य नारदस्य कलौ मुनेः

They became attached to worldly life, reviling the worship of husbands as deities; even today, out of respect for that sage Narada, this persists in the Kali age.

नार्यश्चरन्ति संत्यज्य भर्तॄन् स्वैरं वृथाधमाः स्त्रीणां माता पिता बन्धुः सखा मित्रं च बान्धवः

Women, abandoning their husbands, behave freely and basely; for women, mother, father, relative, friend, companion, and kin—

भर्ता एव न संदेहस् तथाप्य् आसहमायया कृत्वापि सुमहत्पापं या भर्तुः प्रेमसंयुता

—the husband alone is without doubt all these; yet, by the power of illusion, even after committing great sin, if a woman is united with love for her husband—

प्राप्नुयात् परमं स्वर्गं नरकं च विपर्ययात् पुरैका मुनिशार्दूलाः सर्वधर्मान् सदा पतिम्

—she attains the highest heaven, or, by the opposite, hell; in one city, O best of sages, women always regard their husband as all duties.

संत्यज्यापूजयन्साध्व्यो देवानन्याञ्जगद्गुरून् ताः स्वर्गलोकमासाद्य मोदन्ते विगतज्वराः

Abandoning and not worshipping other gods, world-teachers, those chaste women, having attained the heavenly world, rejoice free from suffering.

नरकं च जगामान्या तस्माद्भर्ता परा गतिः तथापि भर्तॄन् स्वांस् त्यक्त्वा बभूवुः स्वैरवृत्तयः

Another went to hell; therefore, the husband is the highest goal; yet, abandoning their own husbands, they became women of independent conduct.

मायया देवदेवस्य विष्णोस्तस्याज्ञया प्रभोः अलक्ष्मीश् च स्वयं तस्य नियोगात्त्रिपुरं गता

By the illusion of the god of gods, Vishnu, and by the command of that lord, Alakshmi herself, by his order, went to Tripura.

या लक्ष्मीस्तपसा तेषां लब्धा देवेश्वरादजात् बहिर्गता परित्यज्य नियोगाद्ब्रह्मणः प्रभोः

That Lakshmi, who was obtained by their austerity from the lord of gods, departed, abandoning them, by the command of Brahma, the lord.

बुद्धिमोहं तथाभूतं विष्णुमायाविनिर्मितम् तेषां दत्त्वा क्षणं देवस् तासां मायी च नारदः

Giving them such delusion of intellect, created by Vishnu's illusion, the god and the illusory Narada bestowed it upon them for a moment.

सुखासीनौ ह्यसंभ्रान्तौ धर्मविघ्नार्थमव्ययौ एवं नष्टे तदा धर्मे श्रौतस्मार्ते सुशोभने

Seated comfortably and unperturbed, unchanging for the obstruction of dharma, thus at that time, the beautiful Vedic and traditional dharma was lost.

पाषण्डे ख्यापिते तेन विष्णुना विश्वयोनिना त्यक्ते महेश्वरे दैत्यैस् त्यक्ते लिङ्गार्चने तथा

When heresy was thus proclaimed by Vishnu, the source of the universe, and the Daityas abandoned Maheshvara and the worship of the Linga—

स्त्रीधर्मे निखिले नष्टे दुराचारे व्यवस्थिते कृतार्थ इव देवेशो देवैः सार्धमुमापतिम्

When all women's dharma was lost and evil conduct prevailed, the lord of gods, as if satisfied, together with the gods, approached the consort of Uma.

तपसा प्राप्य सर्वज्ञं तुष्टाव पुरुषोत्तमः महेश्वराय देवाय नमस्ते परमात्मने

Having attained the all-knowing one through austerity, Purushottama praised him: 'Obeisance to Maheshvara, the god, the supreme self.'

नारायणाय शर्वाय ब्रह्मणे ब्रह्मरूपिणे शाश्वताय ह्यनन्ताय अव्यक्ताय च ते नमः

'Obeisance to Narayana, to Sharva, to Brahma, to the one who is of the form of Brahma, to the eternal, the infinite, the unmanifest—salutations to you.'

एवं स्तुत्वा महादेवं दण्डवत्प्रणिपत्य च जजाप रुद्रं भगवान् कोटिवारं जले स्थितः

Having thus praised the great god, and bowing down in prostration, the blessed one recited the Rudra mantra ten million times while standing in the water.

देवाश् च सर्वे ते देवं तुष्टुवुः परमेश्वरम् सेन्द्राः ससाध्याः सयमाः सरुद्राः समरुद्गणाः

And all the gods, together with Indra, the Sādhyas, Yamas, Rudras, and hosts of Maruts, praised the supreme lord.

नमः सर्वात्मने तुभ्यं शङ्करायार्तिहारिणे रुद्राय नीलरुद्राय कद्रुद्राय प्रचेतसे

Salutations to you, who are the soul of all, to Śaṅkara, the remover of suffering, to Rudra, to Nīlarudra, to Kadrudra, to Pracetas.

गतिर्नः सर्वदास्माभिर् वन्द्यो देवारिमर्दनः त्वमादिस्त्वमनन्तश् च अनन्तश्चाक्षयः प्रभुः

You are always our refuge; you are to be worshipped by us, the destroyer of the enemies of the gods. You are the beginning, you are the endless one, and you are the imperishable lord.

प्रकृतिः पुरुषः साक्षात् स्रष्टा हर्ता जगद्गुरो त्राता नेता जगत्यस्मिन् द्विजानां द्विजवत्सल

You are directly both Prakṛti and Puruṣa, the creator, the destroyer, the teacher of the world, the protector, the leader in this universe, and the one who loves the twice-born like a father.

वरदो वाङ्मयो वाच्यो वाच्यवाचकवर्जितः याज्यो मुक्त्यर्थमीशानो योगिभिर् योगविभ्रमैः

You are the bestower of boons, the essence of speech, the one to be spoken of, and beyond both word and meaning; you are to be worshipped for the sake of liberation, O Lord, by yogis through the wonders of yoga.

हृत्पुण्डरीकसुषिरे योगिनां संस्थितः सदा वदन्ति सूरयः सन्तं परं ब्रह्मस्वरूपिणम्

You are always established in the hollow of the lotus-heart of yogis; the wise declare you to be the true, supreme, and essential form of Brahman.

भवन्तं तत्त्वम् इत्यार्यास् तेजोराशिं परात्परम् परमात्मानमित्याहुर् अस्मिञ्जगति तद्विभो

The noble ones call you the true reality, the mass of radiance, the supreme of the supreme, the supreme self in this world, O Lord.

दृष्टं श्रुतं स्थितं सर्वं जायमानं जगद्गुरो अणोरल्पतरं प्राहुर् महतो ऽपि महत्तरम्

Everything seen, heard, and existing, all that is born, O teacher of the world, is said to be subtler than the subtle and greater than the great.

सर्वतः पाणिपादं त्वां सर्वतो ऽक्षिशिरोमुखम् सर्वतः श्रुतिमल्लोके सर्वमावृत्य तिष्ठसि

You have hands and feet everywhere, faces, heads, and eyes everywhere; you exist in the world with ears everywhere, pervading all things.