Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 59
Daily Duties of Brāhmaṇas: Snāna, Sandhyā, Sūrya-hṛdaya, Japa, Tarpaṇa, and the Pañca-mahāyajñas
मृदैकया शिरः क्षाल्यं द्वाभ्यां नाभेस्तथोपरि / अधश्च तिसृभिः कायं पादौ षड्भिस्तथैव च
mṛdaikayā śiraḥ kṣālyaṃ dvābhyāṃ nābhestathopari / adhaśca tisṛbhiḥ kāyaṃ pādau ṣaḍbhistathaiva ca
بمرةٍ واحدة من الطين المُطهِّر يُغسَل الرأس؛ وبمرتين تُغسَل المنطقة فوق السُّرّة؛ وبثلاث مرات يُغسَل الجسد تحت السُّرّة؛ وكذلك تُغسَل القدمان بستّ مرات.
Sūta (narrating the Kurma Purana’s dharma-instructions as taught in the tradition)
Primary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
Indirectly: it teaches outer śauca (bodily purity) as a dharmic foundation that steadies the mind for inner śauca—clarity and self-restraint—through which realization of the Atman is approached.
This is a preparatory discipline (aṅga) supporting Yoga: ritual cleanliness and regulated conduct reduce rajas/tamas, making the practitioner fit for mantra-japa, worship, and contemplative practices emphasized in the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis.
It does so by shared dharma: the same śauca standards underpin both Shaiva and Vaishnava worship, reflecting the Purana’s integrative stance that purity and discipline serve devotion to the one Supreme approached through Shiva or Vishnu.