Devadāru (Dāruvana) Forest: The Delusion of Ritual Pride, the Liṅga Crisis, and the Teaching of Jñāna–Pāśupata Yoga
भस्मपाण्डुरदिग्धाङ्गो नग्नो विकृतलक्षणः / उल्मुकव्यग्रहस्तश्च रक्तपिङ्गललोचनः
bhasmapāṇḍuradigdhāṅgo nagno vikṛtalakṣaṇaḥ / ulmukavyagrahastaśca raktapiṅgalalocanaḥ
তাঁর অঙ্গ ভস্মলিপ্ত হয়ে ধূসর; তিনি নগ্ন, বাহ্যলক্ষণও বিচিত্র তপস্বীর মতো। হাতে উল্মুক (অগ্নিশলাকা) ধারণ করে, রক্ত-পিঙ্গল নয়নে তিনি ভয়ংকর বৈরাগীর রূপে প্রকাশিত।
Narrator (Purāṇic voice, traditionally Vyāsa/Sūta framing) describing the ascetic’s outward characteristics in the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva-oriented instruction
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Indirectly: it stresses external renunciant marks (ash, nudity, austere appearance), implying that such signs are secondary supports; realization of the Self is not the costume but the inner discipline typically taught alongside Pāśupata practice.
The verse highlights Pāśupata-style ascetic observances (vrata/ācāra) and outward disciplines—use of bhasma and severe comportment—often paired in this tradition with inner yoga: restraint, mantra, and single-pointed devotion to Īśvara.
By presenting a Shaiva ascetic ideal within the Kurma Purana (a Vaiṣṇava-linked Purāṇa through Lord Kūrma), it reflects the text’s synthesis: devotion to Īśvara is taught without sectarian rupture, allowing Shaiva Pāśupata disciplines within a broader Purāṇic unity.