Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 199
Dakṣa’s Progeny, Nṛsiṃha–Varāha Avatāras, and Andhaka’s Defeat
Hari–Hara–Śakti Synthesis
सहस्त्रचन्द्रार्कविलोचनाय नमो ऽस्तु ते सोम सुमध्यमाय / नमो ऽस्तु ते देव हिरण्यबाहो नमो ऽम्बिकायाः पतये मृडाय
sahastracandrārkavilocanāya namo 'stu te soma sumadhyamāya / namo 'stu te deva hiraṇyabāho namo 'mbikāyāḥ pataye mṛḍāya
السلامُ لك، يا سوما، يا من رؤيتُه كأقمارٍ وشموسٍ لا تُحصى، وهيئتُه في غايةِ التناسق. السلامُ لك، أيها الإلهُ ذو الذراعين الذهبيتين. السلامُ لرودرا المبارك، ربِّ أمبيكا.
A devotee/reciter within the Purāṇic narration offering a stuti to Rudra (Śiva) in Adhyaya 15
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shringara
FAQs
By attributing limitless vision (“countless suns and moons”) and auspicious lordship to Rudra, the verse points to an all-pervading, all-knowing Īśvara—an outward devotional form through which the seeker approaches the inner Self as divine consciousness.
The verse functions as a stuti-mantra for japa and dhyāna: concentrating on Rudra as Soma (cool, inwardly luminous) and as Mṛḍa (grace-bestowing) aligns the mind toward śiva-bhāva, a preparatory discipline supportive of Pāśupata-oriented devotion and meditation.
Within the Kurma Purana’s synthesis, such Rudra-praise sits comfortably alongside Vaiṣṇava narration: honoring Rudra as supreme and auspicious is presented as compatible with Purāṇic theism, emphasizing unity of divine reality expressed through multiple names and forms.