Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 20

Tīrtha-māhātmya and Rudra’s Samanvaya Teaching

Maṅkaṇaka Episode

Devanagari script

सोमेश्वरं तीर्थवरं रुद्रस्य परमेष्ठिनः / सर्वव्याधिहरं पुण्यं रुद्रसालोक्यकारणम्

Transliteration

someśvaraṃ tīrthavaraṃ rudrasya parameṣṭhinaḥ / sarvavyādhiharaṃ puṇyaṃ rudrasālokyakāraṇam

Translation

سوميشڤرا هو أَفْضَلُ المَعابر المقدّسة، وهو لرُدرا، الربّ الأعلى. إنه طاهر يزيل كلّ الأسقام والآلام، ويكون سببًا لنيل «سالوكيا رُدرا»؛ أي السكنى في عالمه الإلهي نفسه.

Word by Word

• सोमेश्वरम्: Someśvara
• सोमेश्वरम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: soma-īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.); समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (सोमस्य ईश्वरः)

• तीर्थवरम्: the excellent tīrtha
• तीर्थवरम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha-vara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.); समासः कर्मधारयः (वरं तीर्थम्)

• रुद्रस्य: of Rudra
• रुद्रस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rudra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी एकवचन (Gen. sg.)

• परमेष्ठिनः: of the Supreme Lord (Parameṣṭhin)
• परमेष्ठिनः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parameṣṭhin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी एकवचन (Gen. sg.), ‘रुद्रस्य’ इति सम्बन्धे विशेषण-रूपेण (appositional genitive)

• सर्वव्याधिहरम्: remover of all diseases
• सर्वव्याधिहरम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva-vyādhi-hara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.), विशेषण (of ‘तीर्थवरम्/सोमेश्वरम्’); समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (सर्वेषां व्याधीनां हरः)

• पुण्यम्: holy; meritorious
• पुण्यम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.), विशेषण

• रुद्रसालोक्यकारणम्: cause of attaining Rudra’s world (sālokya)
• रुद्रसालोक्यकारणम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rudra-sālokya-kāraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc. sg.); समासः तत्पुरुषः (रुद्रस्य सालोक्यस्य कारणम्)

Speaker

Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing sages (Kurma Purana narrative voice) on tīrtha-mahātmya

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Someshvara
• Rudra (Shiva)
• Rudra-salोक्य (sālokya)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly: by presenting Rudra as parameṣṭhin (the Highest Lord), the verse points to a supreme divine reality whose proximity (sālokya) is a liberating goal, aligning devotion and merit (puṇya) with transcendence.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

This specific verse emphasizes tīrtha-sevā (pilgrimage, sacred bathing, worship) as a purificatory discipline; in Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva-Pashupata frame, such purification supports steadiness for mantra, dhyāna, and Rudra-bhakti leading toward sālokya and higher liberation.

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

With Vishnu (as Kurma) praising a Rudra-tīrtha as salvific, the text models Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis: devotion to Rudra is affirmed within a Vaishnava narrative voice, treating both as aligned in dharma and liberation-oriented practice.