Shiva Lingam

Shiva Lingam

Vivek Dutta Mishra
102 Comments

In his popular aspect, Shiva is a member of Triad along with Brahma, the creator and Vishnu, the protector. As a member of triad Shiva takes the role of destructor, so that Brahma can regenerate. In this visible aspect Lord appears with three eyes, matted hair, with the garland of snakes and skulls. He wears tiger and dear skin and holds drums, horns and trishul (Three headed spear) in his hand.

But in his original form, Shiva is the param braham – the supreme creator and he himself is the triad. The supreme Shiva is Rudra (or hollow) and is formless. This supreme Shiva is represented by the Shiva Lingam and is pronounced by the universal word ॐ (Aum). The Shiva Lingam is full of mysteries and tales and myths, some of which are even baseless. Nevertheless, this is one of the most popular form in which the Lord is worshipped.

Shiva Lingam – Meaning and the myths

The Sanskrit word ‘Lingam’ means symbol. Thus the literal meaning of Shiva Lingam is the symbol of Shiva. The Supreme Shiva doesn’t have a form and every form is his form. The Shiva Lingam represents him, the Supreme Shiva¸ who is formless. The way when we see a smoke, we infer the presence of fire, the moment we see Shiva Lingam we immediately visualize the existence of the Supreme Shiva.

It has been a common myth that Shiva Lingam represents male genital organs. This is not only misleading but also base less. Such misinterpretations are done in later Vedic period and popularized much later, when Indian literatures actually came into hands of foreign scholars. It was difficult to interpret the language and a word may have different meaning depending on the context. Some of the easy interpretation may be misleading. And such misinterpretation may actually be welcome, if you want to find the defects in somebody else’s faith. This misunderstanding is can be one of the most glaring examples of such a situation. Misinterpretations of actual Sanskrit literature led to this false belief. Shiva Lingam is a differentiating mark; it is certainly not a sex mark.

The Lingam Purana states:

प्रधानं प्रकृतिर यदाहुर्लिगंउत्तम ।
गंध-वर्ण-रसहिंनं शब्द-स्पर्शादिवर्जितं ॥  

meaning:

 the foremost Lingam which is devoid of colour, taste, hearing, touch etc is spoken of as Prakriti or nature.

The nature itself is a Lingam (or symbol) of Shiva. When we see nature, we infer the presence of its creator – Shiva. Shiva Lingam is the mark of Shiva the creator, Shiva the sustainer and Shiva the destructor. It also dispels another myth in which Shiva is considered only as a destructor.

Another authentic reference comes from Skanda Purana where lingam is clearly indicated as the supreme Shiva from where the whole universe is created and where it finally submerge.

आकाशं लिंगमित्याहु: पृथ्वी तस्य पीठिका।
आलय: सर्व देवानां लयनार्लिंगमुच्यते ॥
(स्कन्द पुराण)

 

The endless sky (that great void which contains the entire universe) is the Linga, the Earth is its base. At the end of time the entire universe and all the Gods finally emerge in the Linga itself.

Now this should clarify the settle the doubts once and forever.

Forms of Shiva Lingam

Shiva Lingam is worshiped in two common forms – Chala (Moveable) Lingam and Achala (Non-Moveable or Fixed) Lingam.

Chala Lingam (Moveable Lingam)

The Chala Lingams may be kept in the shrine of one’s own home for worship or prepared temporarily with materials like sand, clay, dough or rice for worship and dispensed with after the worship. Another form of the Chala Lingams can also be worn on the body as a pendent in the necklace etc. Chala Lingams are often made of quartz, mercury or metals.

Achala Lingam (Fixed Lingam)

Achala Lingams (or fixed Lingams) are installed in temples and are un-moveable once they are installed. There are rigid rules for achala Lingams which must be followed. Achala Lingams must be offered prayers at fixed times and without failed and greater sanctity is maintained. Usually Lingams are made of black stones.

The Appearance and significance of Shiva Lingam

A Shiva Lingam is generally made up of black or white stones, marbles or metals or Quartz. A Shiva Lingam has three distinct parts which are considered as portions of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. The Lower part represents Brahma, the middle Vishnu and the upper and the most prominent represents Shiva. Thus Shiva Lingam represents all the three powers in one- as the Param Braham or Supreme Shiva.

clip_image001[4]

Another interpretation considers Shiva Lingam to be divided in two parts – Shiva and Shakti. Thus Shiva Lingam are symbols to represent the aspects of the Supreme Shiva. From one view Shiva is Shiva and Shakti; from another view point Shiva is Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh (Shiva himself).

clip_image002[4]

Shiva Lingams made up of quartz have special significance. Such Lingams have no colour of its own but it takes the colour of any object that comes in its contact. The ling as such represents the attribute-less and formless supreme Shiva.

There is mysterious and indescribable power in Shiva Lingam to induce the concentration of mind. It is like the crystal glazing, mind easily attains one- pointedness by looking at the Shiva Lingam. This is the reason why ancient scholars and sages advocated the worship of Shiva Lingam and its installations in temples.

Listen to the message of Shiva Lingam and it will say:

“I am one without a second”.

Important Shiva Lingam across India

Shiva Lingam worship is one of the most popular forms of worship offered by Hindus. Every town, cities, villages, blocks will have at least on temple with Shiva Lingam. However, of all the Shiva Lingams, few carry special importance with them and have been referred in Vedas and Puranas. The important of them are:

  1. Jyotir Lingams: There are 12 Jyotir located in various parts of India. They are well documented in Puranas. They are:
Somenath (Somnath, Gujarat) Mallika-Arjun (Shrishailam, AP) Kashi-Vishwanath (Varanashi, UP)
Aumkareshwar (Aumkareshwar, MP) Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain, MP) Trayambakeshwar (Near Nashik, Maharashtra)
Kedarnath (Himalaya) Vaidyanath (Deogarh, Jharkhand) Rameshwar (Tamil Nadu)
Ghrineshwar Nageshwar Bhimshankar
  1. Panchbhut Lingams: The whole world consists of 5 basic elements – air, water, fire, earth and sky. The Panchbhut Lingam of Shiva represents these five elements. These Lingams are:
1. Kalahastisvar 2. Jambukesvar 3.Arujachalesvar
4. Ekambaresvar 5. Natraja

 

 

See Also: Jyotir Lingam, Lingastakam

102 thoughts on “Shiva Lingam”

  1. We have come to know new things about Lord Shiva which is very original and interesting. You appear to have studied deeply about Lord Shiva.Language and expression are very good. Keep writing.

  2. I hav seen one Shivling in temple at jammu which is transparent (looks like a glass made). I would like to know the stone type it is created, being a reason, the w would like to have same stone made shivling to be installed at hanuman temple at Lucknow.

  3. Dear Kamal,

    Thanks for visiting Shivalaya. The Shivaling you saw is most likely made of quartz (स्फटिक). Quartz doesn’t have its own color and it takes the color from the background. This article includes inforamtion about quartz shivaling.

  5. Tnx for d real knowledge of Shiv Lingam.
    Many new things I came to know. Kindly give
    abbridge discription of The 12 Shiv Lingam.It will benifit to millions.

  6. When you say that the lingum does not represent the erect penis,you do not seem to know much about the history of ALL religions. You are putting a Puritanical (judeo-Christian) spin on the facts. The only thing the lingum ever represents IS the erect penis. There is nothing else in that symbol to worship. JUst as the stones and pillars and groves of the Hebrew Old Testament are temples to the penis.

  7. This is precisely the point raised in the discussion above. The comparison of Lingam with an erect penis is a widely circulated misconception. It doesn’t need to know the history of all religion to understand the significance of Lingam. It is quite apparent that the idea may be been mis-interpreted elsewhere too.

    As mentioned the meaning of Lingam in Sanskrit is symbol. The ancient texts clearly consider nature and universe as a lingam.  Skanda Purana clearly refers it as the supreme being from where the universe originates and finally where it submerge.

    Yet because people keep on pointing the shape let us clarify the shape aspect also. The dome shape of shiva lingam doesn’t match in its height and width ratio to Penis. If this is what ancient culture really depicted it is shocking that none of the old sculpture could match the details. Also the pennies theory doesn’t explain the three levels of  the Shiva lingam structure (see the photo above). Sure enough you can’t discard it as a base or decoration. It that way perhaps most of the nuclear plants also seem to depict a penis as they too are dome shaped.

    Finally there are very popular Shiva Lingams which are not even dome shaped. Take for example the ancient Nageshwar Jyotirlingam. The ancient and well documented lingam is a rectangular block.

    Surely there are better explanations and none of them are puritanical spin of facts.

  8. in our house we are worshipping a white coloured marbel shiva linga.but some one told that in house we should worship a black colour shiva linga, not the white one.we rae really confused, whether it is a myth or we should follow the person’s suggesion. please enlight your thought on this topic.

  9. There are several myths prevalent. Some goes to the extent that no Shiva Lingam should be present in the house at all. However, I am yet to come across any authoritative and relevant text that prohibits Lingam worship at Home. Shiva Lingam worship is the most prevalent form of Shiva worship. Great scholars like swami Shivananda have clearly endorsed the worship of Shiva Lingam and have referred them as Chala Lingam.

    I myself worship a white marble Shiva lingam at my home along with another made of mercury. So I would suggest carry on with worship…

     

     

     

     

  10. U have given all the names of Jyotir Lingams, but i would like to know where they are situated. Can u please help?

  11. I have given the location of all the 12 Jyotir Lingam in the article. There are few controversies related to the location of a few of the Jyotir Lingam. However, the given list is the most authentic list. You can look forward for an upcoming dedicated article on this subject. You may also choose to subscribe our news letter to get the update in your mail box.

     

  12. || Om Namah Shivay ||

    Wonderful Explanation

    All Misunderstanding are now clear

    Thank you

    Jignesh Panchal

  13. I AM IN THE PROCESS OF KEEPING A SHIVA LINGAM MADE OF SHEET METAL ,CUSTOM MADE ORDER(MAY BE OF COPPER OR SILVER METAL IN MY HOME .THIS MAKING WOULD BE FOR A TOTAL HEIGHT OF 9″ IN ALL AND NOT MORE.
    I HAVE GONE THROUGH A LOT OF RESEARCH ON FINDING THE PROPORTIONATE DIMENSIONS OF THE BRAHMA PEETH,VISHNU PEETH AND THE LINGAM, BUT HAVENT YET GOT A SATISFACTORY RESULT.CAN ANY BODY SUGGEST ON WHAT SHOULD BE THE PROPER RATIO DIMENSIONS (LENGTH,WIDTH,HEIGHT)OF THE PITH,YONI AND LINGAM .
    REGARDS
    VIKRAM CHOWDHARY
    LUDHIANA(PUNJAB)

  14. There is very little knowledge known to the present generation of the world about lord Shiva.
    But knowing him is knowing ourselves and the universe.I am really glad to see that there are people like you( all above) are trying to give valuable information.

  15. this site seems to be very helpful to make ourself aware about our roots.i have a quwrry,is there any golden colour shiv lingam anywhere in the world?

  17. hi to all,
    i was reading and reading and reading about this god …with all respect…..trust me i have not found yet anything that is worthy of worship then the one and the only god………….. this is what is called islam.

    ———— Editor Note ——————
    It is not courteous or wise to offend someone views un-provoked simply because of our own ignorance. It is at times better to keep your mouth shut and let people wonder that your are a fool than to open you mouth and clear all the doubts.

  18. chiedo gentilmente, la pietre ovali del fiume Narmada,si trovano cosi o sono lavorate? grazie.

    I kindly ask the oval stones of the river Narmada, so there are or shall worked? Thank you.

  19. Hi,

    In our family we have always kept shivalingam at home and worship it by pouring water and sandalwood paste every morning. But we keep it in a separate singhasan (seat) and take it out for pouring water in a brass plate. Now somebody told me it is a wrong practice and shivalingam should be fixed. But then how can I pour water on it without taking it out in a separate plate. Please advice.

  20. in our house we are worshipping a white coloured marbel shiva linga.but some one told that in house we should worship a black colour shiva linga, not the white one.we rae really confused, whether it is a myth or we should follow the person’s suggesion. please enlight your thought on this topic.

  23. Hi God is nameless and formless He has no name or form or no religion.It is ego of people
    who created religion.Ask Mahadev what his caste is ,ask jesus what his caste is,ask vishnu what is caste is,ask allah what his caste.They will say they have no caste.It is Ego of people who created caste like saivam,vaishnavam,christianity etc.Siddhas say god is 1 when are you going to grow up.
    The deity is hindu temple,church,mosque,jain templE is God and the people in temple who pray are also God.Only distance between you and god is I ,I am jane.The very I wich is ego that makes us fail to see GOD.Siva,vishnu,allah,jesus are all 1.Pls give respect to other gods also.As giving to them respect is giving respect to god also.The mantras SIVOHUM,Tatvamasi,AHamBramasmi means I am God.Pls investigate into truth.Dont say blindly siva is supreme god,vishnu is supreme god,jesus is supreme god.All gods are same and you to are also god.Only thing is you dont realise it yet.I have let gone my ego.I hope 1 day Lord siva makes you let go your ego.

  24. Hi,

    Thanks for the great advise. Unfortunately I don’t think we will ever grow up 🙂

    By the way before writing your suggestion I am pretty sure you must have read the article properly. Will you be kind enough to point out which portion of this article (or for that matter, the entire site) seem to be ofending any other God or tends to disrespect them?

    You said Shiva, Vishnu, Jeasus, Allah are one. Accepted. And that one is the supreme God? Will you agree again? Can I call the Supreme God – Shiva? Will it demean the other names of the same Supreme God? Or If we choose to call by one name it becomes an Ego?

    To grow up should I call Shiva Lingam as Vishnu Lingam or Jeasus Lingam? If you are among fortunate ones to have multiple name (an official, a pet name your father or mother calls you and a pet name you got from your friends) then do you friends and relatve call you by all your names everytime? Or when they use one of you name then show disrespect to the other names?

    No I am happy not to grow up to a level where one is not free enough to call the supreme lord with a name of his choice and fear that one reference may hurt others. And Yes you are right; it has got nothing to do with caste and relegion.

    Last, what made you feel that I don’t have the realization that I AM THE GOD?

    May Shiva (or whatever you prefer to call him) bless you.

    Regards,

    Shivalaya Team

  25. I worship My Lord…Lord Shiva .
    Mr Vivek, you and your Shivalaya team is doing a great job. Please do carry it on.
    I just believe that you dont require any rules & regulations to worship your lord. Do dont even need to worship him or please him. Your action is your offering. Anyway you dont require to please your parents….do you?
    Thanks a lot Shivalaya Team

  26. My Lord Shiva Is A Simbel Of Jap Tap Brrat I Will Not See Him But I Feel When I will Do Dhyan Of Shiva Than I found He Is Very Near Sit Infront Of Me & He Will Give Every Things Very Easyle From Some Pray I Love Him He Is My Immortal

  27. There is very little knowledge known to the present generation of the world about lord Shiva.
    But knowing him is knowing ourselves and the universe.I am really glad to see that there are people like you( all above) are trying to give valuable information.

  28. Bhole shankar ki pooja karane se jo sukh prapt hoti usko explain nahi kiya ja sakta hai

  30. For a proposed temple, we are looking to a suitable Lingam (around 12″ height) either Narmadeshwar of ‘spotic’ pathar. Where do we get it? Thanks

  31. Dear Sir, We are going to construct Lord Shiva Temple. Kindly let us know about the procedure to construct Lord Shiva Temple viz. Arulmighu Thiruneelakandeswarar Temple. Thanking you. S. Varadarajan

  33. Shankar Ji Ki Pooja Karnese Apna Manko Bahoth Acha Lagta Hai Aur Shakthi Ati Hai

  34. When un-manifest energy begins to manifest itself, the first form is always the Linga. The word Linga means the form – elliptical form .It means ‘mark’ is sanskrit – MARK OF DIVINITY – hence it is the elliptical form of Divinity and not to be confused with anythig else . Why we are referring to it as the form is: According to Yogic tradition the first form in the existence is always a ellipsoid or Linga. Linga means a perfect ellipsoid. The first form of creation is an ellipsoid. Today modern cosmologists are saying that the core of every galaxy is in the form of an ellipsoid. There are many pictures that show just this. Yoga has always been saying, the first and final form is a Linga. If you become meditative, your energies will naturally take the form of a Linga. The first form is a Linga. The final form before dissolution is also a Linga. So a Linga is held as a doorway to the beyond, whether you go this way or that way. Both ways, before dissolving into nothingness, the final form is always a perfect ellipsoid.
    Shiva is not a sectarian deity but name of the Supreme truth – the eternal consciousness .As for other interpretations of Linga, it has been due to denegration of Veda and Sanskrit during foreign rule and more so by missionaries. Every attempt was made to make Veda look like a book of idiots full of non sense. Westeners have always pointed out some verses in Rig Veda (to prove their point about their interpretation) which has been scientifically & logically refuted by many Vedic scholars like Acharya Ram Sharma of Gayatri Parivar. I ‘m saddened by reading posts by so many educated people about their so called interpretations. Plz treat such issues with more sensitivity. Stories written by westeners and other cults to denigrate others and prove their deity as Supreme need not be treated as truth. If one more generation learns untruth , it will pass it on to future generation and this will be more dangerous than the damage done by invaders and missionaries.

  36. THNAKS FOR THE GREAT ADVISE ME. NAMOHAR SHANKAR, NAMAMI SHANKAR , HAR HAR SHANKAR, SHAMBHO SHANKAR, HAR HAR MAHADEV. ALWAYS CHANT THIS MANTRA. OM NAMAHA SHIVAY.

  38. when i put ghee,milk,honey it remains lime that , iam very confused and i don’t know how any one cleans lingam at home,please help

  39. JAI SHERE RAM! I AM HINDU IN PAKISTAN! AND IN PAKISTAN AT MANSHERA THERE IS A SHIV LINGA WHICH ACTUAL HEIGHT I DO NOT KNOW BUT IT MAY BE 10 TO 15 FEET I REQUEST HINDU IN THE WORLD THAT PLEASE DO SOME THING FOR THIS AND OUR ALL PAKISTAN HINDU COMMUNITY THINK THAT IT MAY BE ONE OF THE 12 JYOTI LINGAN AND RECENTLY WE VISIT THERE FOR THE FSTIVAL OF SHIVRATRI BUT THERE IS NO SOME KIND OF ARRANGEMENT THERE ! NOW PROPER PLACE FOR WORSHIPING ! KINDLY ALL MY HINDU BROS AND SISTERS PLEASE MAKE IT CONFORM THAT IN REAL IT IS ONE OF THE 12 LINGAN?
    YOU CAN SEE THE PIC OF LINGAN ON YOUTUBE BY TYPING SHIV YATRA IN PAKISTAN SOON!

  40. i visited this site because some of my friends misinterpret the ‘shiv pith’ and ‘shakti peth’ as ‘ling’ and ‘yoni’. but as far as i have known ‘shiva linga’ has nothing to do with these manly misbelives (according to vedic puran) and this site also strengthen the same. these misbelives are due to wrong interpretation of vedic script by foreign scholars. if someone wants to explore this point then they can explore all the 18 purans and i am sure that they will not be able to find these type of baseless interpretation of sacred ‘shiva linga’. ‘OM’ is the ultimate truth. everything emerges from and merges in to it. OM NAMAH SHIVAYE…

  41. Last night in our prayers Sai Baba and Shiva came an placed a Colourless Lingham into our solar plexus
    Lord Shiva said it would integrate with our body system and also provide Kavacha protection

    what does this mean please

  42. Great see your blog. Good explanation about Shiva linga. If you all are shiva followers, please go through veersaiav religion where we wear Shiva linga on our body till death.
    One of the oldest and advanced followers Shiva can be found here

  44. i am indian mai sultanpur (u p) hum rahete hai.
    Hum 2 bar amarnath gaye hai, aur 3 kashi

  45. shiv shankar ko jishane poja uska beda par hua.
    Chalo amarnath ji bhakto jo baba dham jayega uska shara dukha dur ho jayega. har har mahadev
    jai baba barfani bukhe ko anya payase ko pani
    jai baba amarnath

  47. Hello sir..am also a great (i dont want to say great to my self but yes when it come lord shivji’s pooja i have to say it…n i feel it too) devotee of lord shiva…every monday i offer panchamrith abhishek to shiv ling at temple…n decorate ling in which i know..but i dont know when to do what and what to do when..but still i do it in my way…n believe it or not the whole day it feels like a heaven to me…i smiles out through out the day..dont get angry on anyone…its been very nice for me…i feel every Monday is a great day for me n am sure all the lord shiv devotees feels the same…lastly i just wanna say one thing that is..god bless all of us n we all should feel thanks for this human being life so that we get to do the shiv ji ki pooja n aarchan…n have some peace for us n for all…
    OM NAMAH SHIVAI….
    NAMO PARVATHI PATHAYE SHRI HARA HARA MAHADEV KI JAI…..

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *