In this way, all of them, including Brahma, prayed to him with humble words and hands clasped in homage. You are the Lord of the entire world, the cause of all causes. He who was before all these principles, the principles of nature, the essence of nature, is the supreme being above all things. Then Brahma says. The Supreme Brahman, who cannot be described by words, who cannot be comprehended even by the mind, from whom all these gods like Brahma, Vishnu, Rudra, Indra, the five great beings, and the senses were produced in the beginning, in the time of creation, such an omniscient and omnipresent God, Mahadeva, can only be seen with the most steadfast devotion, and by nothing else. Rudra, Hari, Hara and all the other deities serve with extraordinary devotion and are always desiring the darshan of the Supreme Lord. What is the use of saying more? Liberation is attained only through devotion to Shiva. Through devotion to God, liberation is attained through His grace. Devotion and liberation are mutually dependent. Just as a seed sprouts from a seed, and then from that sprout comes the seed, so too, through the grace of God, devotion arises. Therefore, for the grace of God, you should go to the earth and perform a great homa that will last for thousands of years, he said. In this way, through sacrifice and the grace of Shankara, one will attain the essence of Vedic knowledge and the achievements possible beyond the Vedas.
The sages say, "O venerable sir, what is the sacred possibility mentioned in the Vedas? What is to be achieved? What is the supreme means of attaining it?" Tell us this in detail. Brahma says The possibility is to attain the world of Shiva, the means is to serve Shiva, the sadhak is the one who, by the grace of God, is detached from impermanent things. One should perform the actions prescribed by the Vedas. Then one should dedicate the fruits of them to God shiva. By such actions, one attains Kailash and then attains the peace. Everyone will attain the world of Shiva according to their devotion. There are many means for that. God Himself has taught it in a practical way. I will collect the essence of what God has said and specifically tell you about the sadhana. One should listen to the name and thoughts of Shiva with one's ears. One should praise the thoughts related to Shiva with one's words. One should ponder the thoughts of such praise in the mind. This is a great achievement. Hearing, praising, and meditating on Shiva are essential. The Vedas are the standard for such meditation, and chanting. One should understand Shiva by analyzing the Vedanta verses well. One should listen to that. One should praise what one has heard. Be able to attain this great means. O best of Brahmins, attain the name of Shiva, which is possible through these means that I have mentioned.
People in the world see what they can see with their eyes, but they understand what they cannot see with their ears. That is how they act in that regard. Therefore, a wise person like this should listen to the thoughts of God from the Guru's mouth and then meditate and chant. If one gradually and consciously achieves this sadhana, one will develop a relationship with Shiva and gradually attain the peace, companionship, and friendship of Shiva. If one worships God in this manner, all diseases and the troubles of this world will be cured, all auspiciousness will be attained, and finally, one will attain the blissful and eternal union with Shiva. Here ends the third chapter in the Sadhya Sadhana Khanda of the first Vidhyeshwara Samhita of the Sri Shiva Purana. The sages ask: What is the nature of meditation? What is the nature of hearing? What is the meaning of the hymn of the Lord? Explain these things to us clearly.
Brahma says that the worship of God, chanting, His qualities, the form of the Supreme Lord, the pastimes of God, the holy names of Shiva, and thinking well in the mind through many methods, is considered meditation. This meditation is the best and most important of all the tools. This kind of meditation is the main tool for the grace of God. Kirtan is the act of praising the glory, qualities, form, pastimes, and names of God, whether lyrically, in the words of the Vedas, or in other languages, in clear words or in melodious hymns. Wherever you hear groups of sounds heard through any medium, you should interpret those groups of sounds as being related to Shiva. Just as a young man who is thinking about a woman knows that whatever thoughts he hears in the world are thoughts of his beloved, similarly, you should understand that whatever sound you hear is related to Shiva. It is the attainment of wisdom through thought. This is what the righteous have called hearing, and it is famous in the world. This kind of hearing first arises from the company of good people. By chanting the Lord well, this hearing becomes strong in the devotee. In the end, it becomes a good meditation. Later, by the grace of Shankara, everything turns out well and by the grace of Shiva, everything is completed. The suta says, "O sages, I will tell you about this incident that happened in the past, listen, listen carefully." He began by saying. Long ago, my guru, the son of sage Parashara, Sri Vyasa, was disillusioned by the sufferings of samsara and performed penance on the banks of the Saraswati River to get rid of them.
At that time, while traveling in a plane, the venerable Sanatkumara, radiant as the sun, saw my guru, Vyasa. Then, Vyasa Maharshi, who was absorbed in meditation, woke up and saw the manasaputra of lord Brahma, Sanat Kumara. Seeing him, he was surprised and bowed down with great joy. Afterwards, Vyasa honored Sanatkumara Muni by offering him an argha and giving him a seat worthy of the gods. Sanatkumara maharshi, looking at vyasa rushi standing respectfully, spoke his words in this way.