Shloka 46
Commencement of the Upari-bhāga: The Sages Request Brahma-vidyā; Vyāsa Recalls the Badarikā Inquiry and Śiva–Viṣṇu Theophany
अथास्मिन्नन्तरे दिव्यमासनं विमलं शिवम् / किमप्यचिन्त्यं गगनादीश्वरार्हं समुद्बभौ
athāsminnantare divyamāsanaṃ vimalaṃ śivam / kimapyacintyaṃ gaganādīśvarārhaṃ samudbabhau
وفي تلك الأثناء ظهر مقعدٌ إلهيٌّ—طاهرٌ لا دنس فيه، مباركٌ، ذو قداسةٍ شِيفيّة—أمرٌ لا يُتصوَّر، يليق بربّ السماوات، وقد تجلّى في بهاءٍ ساطع.
Narrator (Purāṇic narrator describing the scene)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
By calling the manifestation “acintya” (inconceivable) and “vimala” (stainless), the verse points to the Supreme as beyond ordinary thought yet intrinsically pure—an Ishvara-principle that can be approached through reverence even when it transcends conceptual grasp.
The verse sets a yogic atmosphere rather than prescribing a technique: the appearance of a “divine seat” evokes āsana as the sacred support for contemplation, suggesting inner and outer purity (vimala) and auspicious orientation (śiva) as prerequisites for higher instruction associated with Pāśupata-aligned devotion and meditation.
The seat is described as “śivam” (auspicious/Śiva-toned) while being “worthy of the Lord of the heavens,” signaling the Kurma Purana’s integrative idiom where supreme lordship and auspicious Śiva-character are not opposed but harmonized within a single Ishvara-centered vision.