Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 200
Devī-tattva, Śakti–Śaktimān doctrine, Kāla–Māyā cosmology, and Māheśvara Yoga instruction
नित्योदिता स्वयञ्ज्योतिरुत्सुका मृतजीवनी / वज्रदण्डा वज्रजिह्वा वैदेवी वज्रविग्रहा
nityoditā svayañjyotirutsukā mṛtajīvanī / vajradaṇḍā vajrajihvā vaidevī vajravigrahā
Ewig aufgegangen und immerdar offenbar, selbstleuchtend, eifrig zu schützen und zu erheben, die selbst Tote wieder belebt. Sie trägt einen Stab wie ein Vajra, hat eine Zunge wie ein Vajra; die göttliche Herrin, deren Gestalt unzerbrechlich ist wie der Vajra.
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) teaching in the Ishvara Gita section
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
By calling the Divine Power “self-luminous” and “ever-manifest,” the verse points to reality as not dependent on external illumination—an Atman/Brahman-like principle that shines by itself and sustains life even beyond death.
The verse supports Pashupata-style contemplation on the deity’s attributes—self-luminosity (svayañjyotiḥ) for inner absorption, and vajra-like speech/tongue as the power of mantra-japa and truth-speaking that cuts through ignorance.
In the Ishvara Gita’s syncretic frame, Vishnu (as Kurma) praises the same supreme Shakti/Ishvara-tattva revered in Shaiva traditions, implying one non-dual divine reality approached through both Vaishnava and Shaiva vocabularies.