Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 11
Lineage of Vyāsas, Division of the Veda, and Vāsudeva/Īśāna as the Veda-Known Supreme
आराध्य देवमीशानं दृष्ट्वा साम्बं त्रिलोचनम् / तत्प्रसादादसौ व्यासं वेदानामकरोत् प्रभुः
ārādhya devamīśānaṃ dṛṣṭvā sāmbaṃ trilocanam / tatprasādādasau vyāsaṃ vedānāmakarot prabhuḥ
ঈশান দেবকে আরাধনা করে এবং সাম্ব—ত্রিলোচন শিবকে দর্শন করে, তাঁর কৃপায় সেই মহাপ্রভু বেদসমূহের ব্যাস (বিন্যাসকারী) হলেন।
Purāṇic narrator (Sūta tradition) describing the cause of Vyāsa’s Vedic compilation through Śiva’s grace
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
It implies that higher knowledge and sacred ordering (like the Vedas’ arrangement) arises through īśvara-prasāda—divine grace—suggesting the Atman is realized and expressed most fully when the ego yields to the Lord’s sovereignty (Īśāna).
The verse foregrounds ārādhana (devotional worship/propitiation) culminating in darśana (direct ‘seeing’ of the deity). In Kurma Purana’s spiritual frame, such bhakti anchored in discipline functions as a practical limb of Pāśupata-leaning Shaiva sādhanā, where grace perfects effort.
By presenting Śiva’s grace as the enabling power behind a foundational Vedic act, it reflects the Purāṇa’s non-sectarian synthesis: the supreme divine operates in mutually affirming forms, with Śiva’s prasāda supporting the Vedic dharma upheld across Vaiṣṇava and Śaiva traditions.