The sage began his narration by extolling its virtues, declaring that this sacred story brings long life, health, fame, heavenly blessings, and happiness through progeny. Listening to his words, the son respectfully acknowledged the wisdom imparted about worshipping Shiva with earthen images, and, moved by compassion, asked his father to explain in detail how the number of earthen Shiva lingas relates to different desires. The sage addressed the assembly of sages, inviting them to hear the procedure for worshipping Shiva with earthen images—a practice so potent that its mere performance fulfills a person’s wishes. He emphasized that if one neglects to make an earthen linga and instead worships some other image, that worship, along with any gifts or acts, is rendered fruitless. He explained that the number of earthen lingas to be made is prescribed according to one’s specific desires, and assured the best of sages that definite results are obtained when the prescribed numbers are followed. The process begins with invocation, followed by separate installation and worship, and the form of the linga must be distinctly known in each case. For those seeking knowledge, the sage advised worshipping a thousand earthen Shiva lingas with devotion, assuring that this practice yields the desired result. For wealth, half that number suffices; for sons, one and a half thousand; for those desiring clothes, one should worship one hundred and five lingas. Those yearning for liberation must worship a crore times as many lingas. For land, a thousand; for compassion, three thousand; for pilgrimage, two thousand. To gain friends, three thousand lingas are recommended; for mastery over others, one hundred and eight; for destruction, seven hundred; for enchantment, one hundred and eight. For expulsion or immobilization, a thousand lingas each are prescribed; for causing enmity, half that number. To be released from shackles, one and a half thousand should be worshipped, and in fear of a great king, five hundred lingas as known by the wise. In danger from thieves and similar threats, two hundred lingas are required; in fear of witches and such beings, five hundred. If afflicted by poverty, five thousand lingas should be worshipped; ten thousand lingas grant all desires. The sage then shared the regular rule: one linga removes sin; two lingas grant success; three lingas are the supreme cause of all desires. Each succeeding number follows as previously stated, but he also explained another view, noting differences among sages. A wise person who makes ten thousand earthen lingas becomes fearless and removes the fear of kingship. For release from prison and similar troubles, ten thousand lingas are needed; to dispel fear from Dakini and the like, seven thousand. To obtain sons, fifty thousand lingas should be made; for daughters, ten thousand. By making ten thousand lingas, one attains the lordship of Vishnu and others; with a hundred thousand lingas, one achieves incomparable prosperity. Whoever makes a crore of lingas on earth becomes Shiva himself—no further deliberation is necessary. The worship of earthen lingas bestows the fruit of a crore sacrifices, grants both enjoyment and liberation, and thus is suited for those who desire worldly aims. If one’s time passes without worshipping the linga, great harm befalls that wicked, evil-minded person. On one side are all gifts, vows, pilgrimages, disciplines, and sacrifices; on the other, the worship of the linga—such is remembered. In the Kali age, the worship of the linga is regarded as the highest in the world, and this is the settled conclusion of the scriptures, whether one believes or not. The linga grants enjoyment and liberation, removes all calamities, and one who worships it always attains union with Shiva. The linga, bearing the very name of Shiva, is always to be worshipped by great sages, and among all lingas, it must be worshipped according to rule. The sage explained that the linga is of three kinds: superior, middling, and inferior. The superior linga is four fingers high, beautiful and furnished with a pedestal, as declared by sages skilled in scripture. Half that height is the middling linga, and half again is the inferior linga—thus the threefold division, each lesser than the previous. Whoever, endowed with devotion and faith, always worships many lingas, easily obtains the desires of his mind. There is no merit in the four Vedas greater than the worship of the linga; this is the settled conclusion of all scriptures. The wise, abandoning all other actions, should worship a single linga with supreme devotion. All that is immobile and mobile in the world is worshipped through the worship of the linga; for those submerged in the ocean of worldly existence, there is no other means of deliverance. For those blinded by the darkness of ignorance and whose minds are attached to sense objects, there is no other raft except the worship of the linga. Hari, Brahma, and other gods, sages, yakshas, rakshasas, gandharvas, charanas, siddhas, daityas, and danavas; nagas beginning with Shesha, Garuda and other birds, other Prajapatis, Manus, kinnaras, and humans—all, having worshipped the linga with great devotion, attained their desired ends, those who dwell in the heart. A brahmana, kshatriya, vaishya, shudra, or one born of mixed castes should always worship the linga with the appropriate mantra and with reverence. Thus, the sage concluded, extolling the supreme efficacy and sanctity of linga worship as the path to fulfillment, liberation, and union with Shiva.