Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 10

Snātaka and Gṛhastha-Dharma: Conduct, Marriage Norms, Daily Rites, and Liberating Virtues

Devanagari script

अमातृगोत्रप्रभवामसमानर्षिगोत्रजाम् / आहरेद् ब्राह्मणो भार्यां शीलशौचसमन्विताम्

Transliteration

amātṛgotraprabhavāmasamānarṣigotrajām / āhared brāhmaṇo bhāryāṃ śīlaśaucasamanvitām

Translation

على البراهمن أن يتخذ زوجةً لا تنتمي إلى سلالة أمه، ولا إلى الغوترا نفسها، أي خطّ الرِّشي؛ وأن تكون متحلّية بحسن السيرة والطهارة.

Word by Word

• a-mātṛ-gotra-prabhavām: not belonging to the mother’s clan
• a-mātṛ-gotra-prabhavām: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a (नञ्-प्रत्यय/अव्यय) + mātṛ (प्रातिपदिक) + gotra (प्रातिपदिक) + prabhavā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa with negation: ‘not from mother’s gotra’ qualifying bhāryām

• a-samāna-ṛṣi-gotra-jām: not from the same seer-lineage (gotra)
• a-samāna-ṛṣi-gotra-jām: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a (नञ्) + samāna (प्रातिपदिक) + ṛṣi (प्रातिपदिक) + gotra (प्रातिपदिक) + ja (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक from √jan धातु)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa with negation: ‘not born in the same ṛṣi-gotra’

• āharet: should obtain/bring
• āharet: Kriyā (Predicate verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√hṛ (हृ धातु)
• Form: Vidhi-liṅ (Optative), Prathama puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana; parasmaipada

• brāhmaṇaḥ: a Brahmin
• brāhmaṇaḥ: Kartā (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• bhāryām: wife
• bhāryām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāryā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• śīla-śauca-samanvitām: endowed with good conduct and purity
• śīla-śauca-samanvitām: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śīla (प्रातिपदिक) + śauca (प्रातिपदिक) + samanvita (कृदन्त, √anv-i धातु with sam-)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa: śīla-śauca = ‘conduct and purity’; samanvita = ‘endowed with’ (PPP)

Speaker

Traditional narrator (Purāṇic instruction within the Kurma Purana’s dharma-teachings; presented as authoritative śāstric guidance)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: vira

Characters & Entities

• Brahmana
• Gotra
• Rishi-gotra
• Shauca
• Shila

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

Indirectly: it frames dharma as a purifying discipline—through śīla (ethical conduct) and śauca (purity)—that steadies the mind and supports higher realization taught elsewhere in the Kurma Purana.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No specific meditation is taught in this verse; it emphasizes yama-like foundations—purity (śauca) and virtuous conduct (śīla)—which are prerequisites for effective sādhana, including Shaiva-Vaishnava devotional and yogic disciplines in the Purana.

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

It does not explicitly discuss Shiva–Vishnu unity; it contributes to the shared dharmic framework (ethical purity and social order) that underlies the Kurma Purana’s later integrative teachings.