Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 58
Devī-tattva, Śakti–Śaktimān doctrine, Kāla–Māyā cosmology, and Māheśvara Yoga instruction
सो ऽपि दृष्ट्वा ततः पुत्रीं तरुणादित्यसन्निभाम् / कपर्दिनीं चतुर्वक्त्रां त्रिनेत्रामतिलालसाम्
so 'pi dṛṣṭvā tataḥ putrīṃ taruṇādityasannibhām / kapardinīṃ caturvaktrāṃ trinetrāmatilālasām
Dann erblickte auch er die Tochter, strahlend wie die eben aufgegangene Sonne: mit verfilztem Haar, vier Antlitzen, drei Augen und von überaus betörender Anmut.
Vyasa (narrator) describing the vision within the Ishvara Gita context
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
By presenting a theophany with ascetic and cosmic marks (matted hair, four faces, three eyes), the verse signals that the Supreme is both immanent and transcendent—knowable through divine vision yet beyond ordinary embodiment.
The verse supports dhyāna (contemplative visualization) central to Pāśupata-oriented practice: steady attention on the Lord’s defining lakṣaṇas (iconic marks) as a means to concentrate the mind and awaken direct perception (darśana).
The imagery is strongly Shaiva (tri-netra, kapardin), yet placed within the Kurma Purana’s Ishvara Gita framework associated with Vishnu as Kurma—implying a non-sectarian unity where Ishvara’s supreme reality is shared across Shiva-Vishnu expressions.