Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 19

Tīrtha-Māhātmya and the Discipline of Pilgrimage (Tīrtha-sevā) within Prāyaścitta

Devanagari script

एते प्राधान्यतः प्रोक्ता देशाः पापहरा नृणाम् / गत्वा संक्षालयेत् पापं जन्मान्तरशतैः कृतम्

Transliteration

ete prādhānyataḥ proktā deśāḥ pāpaharā nṛṇām / gatvā saṃkṣālayet pāpaṃ janmāntaraśataiḥ kṛtam

Translation

هذه الأقاليم ذُكرت بإيجاز وبحسب الأهميّة على أنها أسمى البلاد التي تزيل آثام البشر. فمن قصدها استطاع أن يغسل حتى الذنوب المتراكمة عبر مئات الولادات.

Word by Word

• एते: these
• एते: Karta (कर्ता/विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचन (Nom pl), सर्वनाम

• प्राधान्यतः: chiefly; primarily
• प्राधान्यतः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: prādhānyatas (अव्यय; प्राधान्य)
• Form: अव्यय, तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त (ablatival adverb: chiefly)

• प्रोक्ता: declared; stated
• प्रोक्ता: Kriya (क्रिया—भूतकर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग प्रथमा बहुवचन (Nom pl)

• देशाः: places; regions
• देशाः: Karta (कर्ता/विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचन (Nom pl)

• पापहराः: sin-removing
• पापहराः: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pāpa-hara (प्रातिपदिक; पाप + हर)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा बहुवचन (Nom pl), विशेषण

• नृणाम्: of men
• नृणाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी बहुवचन (Gen pl)

• गत्वा: having gone
• गत्वा: Kriya (क्रिया—पूर्वकर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive): having gone

• संक्षालयेत्: should wash away
• संक्षालयेत्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṣāl (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; causative sense with सं- (should wash away)

• पापम्: sin
• पापम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc sg)

• जन्मान्तरशतैः: by hundreds of other births
• जन्मान्तरशतैः: Karana/Hetu (करण/हेतु—measure: by hundreds of other births)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janma-antara-śata (प्रातिपदिक; जन्म + अन्तर + शत)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया बहुवचन (Instr pl)

• कृतम्: done; committed
• कृतम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग द्वितीया एकवचन (Acc sg), पापम् इति विशेषणभावेन

Speaker

Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing Indradyumna and the sages on tirtha-mahima

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Tirtha (sacred regions)
• Pāpa (sin/demerit)
• Kurma (Vishnu)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly: it frames purification as a prerequisite for higher knowledge—by reducing pāpa through dharmic means (like tirtha-yātrā), the mind becomes fit for Atman-realization taught elsewhere in the Kurma Purana.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse highlights external purification through tirtha-yātrā (pilgrimage). In Kurma Purana’s broader yoga-dharma vision, such cleansing supports inner disciplines—japa, dhyāna, and self-restraint—central to Pāśupata-oriented practice.

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

By presenting a universal dharmic mechanism of purification (tirthas that remove sin) without sectarian limitation, it aligns with the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis: sacred geography and dharma serve devotion to the one Supreme expressed as both Hari and Hara.