Meanwhile, Maha Vishnu, who had grown tired of reaching the base of the pillar, also arrived there. Seeing Maha Vishnu thus arriving, Brahma danced with great joy. Lord Bramha lied to lord vishnu: O Hari! I saw the top of the pillar. He continued "This Ketaki flower is the witness," the Ketaki flower lied, saying, "Yes, yes." Brahma said, "I saw the top of the pillar." Then Sri Hari, thinking that it was true, bowed down to that Brahma. Then he worshipped him with various auspicious rituals. At this time, to punish the liar Brahma, Lord shiva appeared in a form from a pillar of fire. Seeing Shiva who had appeared unexpectedly, Vishnu held Shiva's feet with trembling hands.
Being ignorant, we, who are inferior to you, went to findout the beginning and the end of this pillar thinking that we are great. Therefore, be pleased with us. O All-Merciful One, forgive our mistake. We, who are not free, would not be able to do this, he said. O son of Hari, even though you have a desire to become a god, you have spoken the truth about the pillar of fire, so from now on you will be respected and worshipped by people just like me. From now on, you will have different ceremonies and festivals in different places, just like me. Here ends the seventh chapter of the first Vidhyveshwara Samhita of the Shiva Purana. Nandikeshwar said - Then Mahadeva created a very wonderful man named Bhairava to hide the glory of Brahma from between his eyebrows. Bhairava, who was thus created, immediately bowed down to the Lord of the Universe and prayed, "What should I do here? Immediately, O Lord, command me."
Then God said this about Bhairava: "O Vatsa! This Brahma standing before you is the first god in the world. Definitely axe him with your sharp sword, that is, cut him." Immediately after saying this, Bhairava grabbed the hair of the fifth head of the one who had spoken the untruth (Brahma), cut off that head of his pride, and then waved his extremely sharp sword to cut off the remaining heads. Then, O Sanatkumar, all the clothes, ornaments, and garlands that your father had adorned himself with became disarrayed. Even his hair was tousled. Trembling like a soft vine caught in a storm, he fell at the lotus feet of Bhairava. Then, seeing this scene, Vishnu, being very compassionate, sprinkled the lotus feet of our Lord Shiva with his tears and, paying homage, spoke thus, just as children speak in a babble manner to their father.
Achyuta says O God! Didn't you yourself grant this Brahma five heads as a sign of the Lord of the world? Therefore, now forgive his mistake. Show him favor. In this way, Ishvara stopped Bhairava from punishing Brahma. Then lord shiva spoke thus about Brahma, who was a liar and had lost his fifth head: You have practiced deceit out of greed and stubbornness, wanting to become God. Therefore, you should not be worshipped in the world, your ceremonies cannot be celebrated. You cannot have a good position either. Then Brahma said: "O Lord, who is endowed with all the divine powers, be pleased with me now. You must know that it was good that what you did was right." O Jagadbandhu, the cause of the entire world, we bow to you. You who forgive all mistakes, you who have Mount Meru as your bow. We bow to you. God said, "If there is no fear of the kings, the whole world will be destroyed. Therefore, O son of the king, you must punish the criminals and save the world." And now I will give you a rare and great boon, take it, especially in daily, sexual, domestic activities and sacrifices, you are the Guru. Moreover, if a homa is carried out without you, even if it is accompanied by Dakshina, it will not bear fruit, meaning that a sacrifice without you is useless. Later, God spoke thus about the Kedage flower, which was a liar and a false witness. You are the flower of all the Ketaki, you are wicked, you are a hypocrite, don't stay here and go away. From now on, you will not be a flower that is dear to me. Go away, not wanting my worship. After God spoke thus, the gods present there carried the kedage flower away from there, to another place. Then the Ketaki flower said. My Lord, I bow to you. Father, forgive me, remove my sins and make my birth worthwhile. All the crimes committed knowingly or unknowingly will be destroyed by your remembrance. So how can I bear the guilt of lying to you while I am having your darshan? Thus, in the assembly of the gods, the Lord, who was praised by the kedage flower, said, "Ketaki, I am truthful, my words can never be false. Therefore, you are not worthy of my affection." But, kedage flower, let my devotees wear you, so that your birth may be fruitful, and you will be above me in the form of a flag. Having thus been blessed and venerated, Shankara also blessed Brahma and Narayana and, being served by the gods in the midst of the assembly, the Supreme Lord ascended. Here ends the eighth chapter of the first Vidyeshwara Samhita in the Sri Shiva Purana. Nandikeshwara said, "At that time, both Brahma and Vishnu bowed down to God shiva and remained silent on his left and right, with their hands in reverence." Then, having seated Shiva and Parvati on a beautiful seat, they worshipped him and his family with the objects used by pious men. All the things they offered were also given separately to the deities who had gathered there to establish a tradition of righteousness by Lord Shiva, the benefactor of all.
Thus, when God gave things and the gods took them, there was a great commotion. Even there, God was worshipped by Brahma and Vishnu as before. After being worshipped in this way, God shiva was pleased and smiled at Brahma and Vishnu, who were standing with their heads bowed, and said: God said, "you both have worshipped me on this day. I am pleased with this. This day will henceforth be a great and auspicious day. Today's tithi (Chaturdashi) will be very dear to me and will be known as 'Shivratri'." On this sacred day of Shivaratri, whoever worships me with devotion, whether in the form of a linga or an idol, that person will create, sustain, and destroy the world. On this auspicious day of Shivaratri, one should worship me according to one's ability, day or night, restraining the senses, and without deceit. This kind of worship is so virtuous that one immediately attains the same merit by worshipping me on the day of Shivaratri as one would obtain by worshipping me continuously throughout the year. Just as the moonrise in the world is the cause of the development of the sea, so this auspicious day will be the cause of the development of my religion. My ceremonies and festivals on this day will be auspicious. On this day, on which I appeared before you in the form of a pillar, that day is the 'Aridra' star of the month of Marga Shersha. In this way, whoever sees Me, along with Parvati, in the sacred month of Margashirsha, in the form of My Linga or idol, will be dearer to Me than Subrahmanya. On this day, just by seeing the deity, you can get such results, but if you worship him especially, you cannot express the results by words. Such great merit will be attained. May this place, where I have borne the form of Linga in this battleground of Brahma and Vishnu, become famous and glorious as the place of Linga. O son, this pillar, which has no beginning or end, will henceforth be of a small form, convenient for people to behold and worship. This Linga, which gives all pleasures, is the means for Bhukti-Mukti. By seeing, touching, and meditating on this Linga, animals are freed from the bondage of samsara and attain liberation. From where did this Linga arise, shining like a mountain of fire? Therefore, this place will be well known by the name 'Arunachala'. Many great pilgrimages will arise in this area. Both those who lived here and those who died here will attain salvation. All auspicious events like chariot festivals will take place here and everywhere. People will live everywhere, and even if they donate or perform a homa here, it will yield crores of times more fruit.
This kshetra is greater than all my kshetras (Shiva kshetras). Only by remembering this kshetras will the body be liberated. Therefore, this kshetra will be considered the most excellent, and the most auspicious. All the good things will settle in this kshetra. Everyone will attain liberation in this kshetra. If you worship Me, the Lord of the linga form, and Me, the lover of the linga, in this realm, you will attain the world, His nearness, His own form, and His equal glory. (1) Salokya, (2) Samipya, (3) Sarupya, (4) Saashtri (5) Saayujya. (1) Salokya means having the Supreme Lord, (2) Samipya means close relationship with Shiva, (3) Sarupya means having the form of Shiva, (4) Saashtri means having the same honors as Shiva, (5) Saayujya means salvation that merges with Shiva. The five types of salvation that can be attained by joining him are available through the service of Shiva in this kshetra. O Brahma, Vishnu and other gods, you too should worship me in this Linga and quickly attain your desires.
