Shloka 21
Jambūdvīpa Varṣas, Bhārata as Karmabhūmi, and the Sacred Hydro-Topography of Dharma
नानाहाराश्च जीवन्ति पुण्यपापनिमित्ततः / नवयोजनसाहस्त्रं वर्षमेतत् प्रकीर्तितम् / कर्मभूमिरियं विप्रा नराणामधिकारिणाम्
nānāhārāśca jīvanti puṇyapāpanimittataḥ / navayojanasāhastraṃ varṣametat prakīrtitam / karmabhūmiriyaṃ viprā narāṇāmadhikāriṇām
تعيش الكائنات على أطعمة شتّى بحسب الأسباب الناشئة من البرّ والإثم. ويُعلَن أن امتداد هذه الأرض تسعة آلاف يوجانا، وأن «السنة» هي مقياسها. يا معشر البراهمة، هذه هي كَرْمَبهومي، ميدان العمل للبشر المخوّلين بإقامة الدharma.
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing sages (addressed as viprāḥ)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
Indirectly: it distinguishes the changing conditions of embodied life (diet and livelihood shaped by puṇya–pāpa) from the higher aim of dharma in karmabhūmi, which traditionally supports purification leading toward Self-realization.
No specific technique is named; the verse frames the prerequisite ground for Yoga—human birth in karmabhūmi with adhikāra for dharma—through which discipline, purification, and later yogic practice (as taught elsewhere in the Kurma Purana) become effective.
It does not explicitly mention Śiva; it reflects the Purāṇic synthesis by emphasizing karmic order and dharma as the shared foundation upon which both Vaiṣṇava and Śaiva paths (including Pāśupata-oriented teachings elsewhere) are pursued.