Om, The Almighty

मैं ईश्वर को प्रणाम करता हूँ.

ॐ विभुं प्रणमामि ~

The God is the infinite, formless consciousness that pervades all existence, beyond time, space, and duality. The Supreme Lord is the source of all creation, yet remains untouched and unchanging. The God is not separate but resides within, as the essence of one’s own being.

He is the Supreme Soul — Vibhu Ishwar or Shiv — worshipped by Shri Ram, the son of Dasharath. The Supreme Soul cannot be contained in any physical form and is beyond human comprehension.

True worship involves quieting the mind, transcending desires, and aligning one’s understanding with the infinite. Through wisdom, self-inquiry, and detachment from worldly illusions, one comes closer to realizing the divine while being a cog in the wheel of worldly affairs.

The infinite bliss of the formless Ishwar is beyond embodiement and unfathomable. Ishwar, who manifests in all that exists, is symbolized by ॐ and represented physically by the Supreme Soul’s emblem — a smooth, oval, or spherical riverstone depicting the infinity. A stone or any creation of the Almighty sanctified as Ishwar’s Prateek Chinha (प्रतीक चिह्न or symbol) manifests as the physical form of the Ishwar and is as venerable as the Divine himself until it is surrendered back to the Ishwar. This sacred emblem may be called Ish Prateek, Ish Chinha, Vibhu Prateek, Vibhu Chinha, Shiv Prateek, or Shiv Chinha.

Salvation and union with the infinite bliss of the Almighty—Ishwar or Shiv—is achieved by worshipping the true vacuous form, ॐ, or the Shiv Prateek (शिव प्रतीक) as a physical form of the Divine. Select the Ishwar's Prateek Chinha from nature, and place it on a raised pedestal as a mark of reverence. Take refuge in the Almighty with offerings of life-giving pure water and fragrant flowers from the Lord's own creation, symbolizing purity and gratitude. Dedicate your knowledge and actions in sincere and heartfelt devotion.

(विभु — The Supreme, The Almighty)

The God Symbol

शिव प्रतीक ~

The Shiv Prateek, or Ish Prateek, is a sacred symbol representing the infinite, formless nature of God—Ishwar or Shiv.

In its true form, the Shiv Prateek is an oval stone securely seated within a groove on a rock pedestal, elevating it to a reverential height. The oval shape symbolizes the infinite and transcendent nature of the Almighty, representing the boundless and eternal essence of the divine. The pedestal is merely an asan or chair for the Almighty's symbol.

Commonly known as the Shiv Linga, the symbol of the formless Almighty has often been subjected to incorrect and misleading interpretations. The Sanskrit word linga (लिङ्ग) means "sign" or "symbol". The word lingam appears in the Upanishads and epic literature, where it means "mark, sign, emblem, characteristic". Hence, the symbol for the Almighty—Ishwar or Shiv—called Shivling. The Shiv Linga is an abstract representation of the formless Almighty who is beyong human cognition and cannot be personified. It is not linked to any human form, eg. Shankar, or anatomy.