Listen to the sacred narrative as revealed in the verses of the Śiva Purāṇa. When the ash, sanctified everywhere through the union of Shiva and Shakti, is bathed with the nectar-rain of Shakti, it removes the binding authority of nature. By continually bathing in this nectar, one becomes a conqueror of death; for having touched the nectar of Shiva and Shakti, how could death ever prevail? The one who knows the secret of burning and bathing as described, and who abandons the dual states of Agni and Soma, is freed from rebirth. Whoever burns the body with the fire of Shiva and bathes it with the nectar of Shakti by the path of yoga, becomes worthy of immortality. Hold in your heart the meaning spoken by the divine, that the entire universe is of the nature of Agni and Soma. Now, hear how the essence of speech and meaning in the world has been established, and the knowledge of the sixfold path, explained briefly. There is no object without sound, nor sound without meaning; thus, at the right time, every sound conveys all meanings. The transformation of nature is twofold: the manifestation of sound and meaning. This is the primal form of Shiva and Shakti, the supreme selves. The power which is of the nature of sound is described by the wise as threefold: gross, subtle, and supreme. The gross is what is heard; the subtle is composed of thought; the supreme is beyond thought. This supreme power rests in the principle of Shiva. United with the power of knowledge and strengthened by will, it encompasses all powers and is known as the principle of power. Becoming the root-nature of all creation, she is called Kuṇḍalinī, Māyā, and the supreme pure path. By her nature of division, she expands as the sixfold path: three paths of sound and three of meaning. For all beings, according to their purity, the authority for dissolution or enjoyment arises from the division of all principles. Through the kalās, these principles are pervaded as they are, at the beginning of the supreme Prakṛti, through their fivefold transformation. The kalās, beginning with Nivṛtti, are considered sufficient; and the paths of mantra, pada, and varṇa are named according to their terms. The paths of bhuvana, tattva, and kalā are established by their meanings, and here the mutual pervasion and non-pervasion of all is explained. Mantras are pervaded by all padas, since sentences are formed from words; words, by letters, for wise ones declare that a group of letters is called a word. Letters are pervaded by bhuvanas, since they are found within them; bhuvanas, in turn, by groups of tattvas, through their arising and expansion. These are pervaded in many ways by the causal tattvas, since they are established from them; and some bhuvanas arise from within. Other bhuvanas, known from the Purāṇas, are to be understood in the Śivāgama; and some tattvas are established in Sāṃkhya and Yoga. Other tattvas, well-known in the scriptures of Śiva, are also to be considered wholly; by means of the kalās, these principles are pervaded as they are. At the beginning of the supreme Prakṛti, through its fivefold transformation, the kalās, beginning with Nivṛtti, pervade the five, each in its proper order. From the standpoint of pervasion, the supreme power is undivided among the six paths, for the existence of the supreme nature is established from the principle of Śiva. From Śakti down to earth, all arising from the Śiva principle, are pervaded by that one alone, just as a pot and so on are pervaded by clay. That supreme abode of Śiva, attainable by the six paths, is pervaded by both pervading and non-pervading power, through the purification of the five tattvas. From Nivṛtti up to Rudra, the purification of the cosmic egg is accomplished by Sthiti; above that, up to the unmanifest domain, by Pratiṣṭhā. Above that, by Vidyā, in the middle, up to Viśveśvara, by Śānti; and above that, at the end of the middle, by Viśuddhi, through Śāntyatītā. This supreme space, united with the supreme nature, comprises the five tattvas by which the entire universe is pervaded. There, all this must be seen by seekers; for one who wishes to perform purification without knowing the pervasion of the paths is deluded and cannot attain the fruit of purification. His effort is in vain and leads only to hell. Without the conjunction of the descent of power, it is not possible to know the tattvas in their true nature, nor their pervasion and increase. The supreme power, the queen of energies, is of the nature of consciousness, sovereign of the heart; by her, who is the cause, Shiva pervades all. This is neither the self nor Māyā, nor, upon reflection, any modification; it is neither bondage nor liberation, though it brings about both. She, reaching the highest peak of all lordship, is the companion of Shiva, sharing his nature, yet distinguished by various states. He is grasped by her alone, and she is ever held by him; their offspring, the world, arises as the effect born of their supreme union. He is the doer, she is the cause—thus their distinction is established; yet Shiva alone, manifestly, stands as both in dual form. Some say their distinction is as female and male; others hold that the supreme power is inherent in Shiva. Like the radiance of the sun, she is of the nature of consciousness, yet distinct—thus it is determined; therefore, Shiva is the supreme cause, and his command is the highest sovereign. Impelled by her alone, the Shaiva primal nature, imperishable, becomes the great Māyā, Māyā itself, and the threefold nature called Prakṛti. Thus, the profound mystery of the union of Shiva and Shakti, of sound and meaning, of power and principle, is revealed for those who seek liberation and the highest knowledge.