Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 39

Dakṣa-yajña-bhaṅgaḥ — Dadhīci’s Teaching and the Destruction of Dakṣa’s Sacrifice

Devanagari script

दंष्ट्राकरालं दुष्प्रेक्ष्यं शङ्खचक्रगदाधरम् / दण्डहस्तं महानादं शार्ङ्गिणं भूतिभूषणम्

Transliteration

daṃṣṭrākarālaṃ duṣprekṣyaṃ śaṅkhacakragadādharam / daṇḍahastaṃ mahānādaṃ śārṅgiṇaṃ bhūtibhūṣaṇam

Translation

Er erschien mit furchterregenden Hauern, schwer anzuschauen; die Muschel, den Diskus und die Keule tragend—mit einem Stab in der Hand—donnernd im mächtigen Ruf, den Śārṅga-Bogen führend und mit heiliger Asche (vibhūti) als Schmuck geziert.

Word by Word

• दंष्ट्राकरालम्: terrible with fangs
• दंष्ट्राकरालम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दंष्ट्रा-कराल (प्रातिपदिक; दंष्ट्रा=fang + कराल=terrible)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

• दुष्प्रेक्ष्यम्: hard to behold
• दुष्प्रेक्ष्यम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुष्-प्रेक्ष्य (प्रातिपदिक; दुष्=hard + प्रेक्ष्य=to be looked at)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (दुष्-उपसर्गयुक्त)

• शङ्खचक्रगदाधरम्: bearing conch, discus, and mace
• शङ्खचक्रगदाधरम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शङ्ख-चक्र-गदा-धर (प्रातिपदिक; शङ्ख=conch + चक्र=discus + गदा=mace + धर=holder)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

• दण्डहस्तम्: with a staff in hand
• दण्डहस्तम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दण्ड-हस्त (प्रातिपदिक; दण्ड=staff + हस्त=hand)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

• महानादम्: great-roaring
• महानादम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा-नाद (प्रातिपदिक; महा=great + नाद=roar/sound)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

• शार्ङ्गिणम्: bearing the Śārṅga bow
• शार्ङ्गिणम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शार्ङ्गिन् (प्रातिपदिक; शार्ङ्ग=Viṣṇu's bow; शार्ङ्गी=one who has it)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (इन्-प्रत्ययान्त)

• भूतिभूषणम्: ornamented with splendour; splendidly adorned
• भूतिभूषणम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भूति-भूषण (प्रातिपदिक; भूति=splendour/auspiciousness + भूषण=ornament)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narration, describing the Lord’s manifested form to the audience within the Indradyumna–Kurma dialogue frame)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: raudra

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Narayana
• Vishnu
• Śārṅga
• Śaṅkha
• Cakra
• Gadā
• Bhūti (sacred ash)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

By portraying the Lord as simultaneously awe-inspiring and fully equipped with divine emblems, the verse points to the Supreme as transcendent (duṣprekṣya—beyond ordinary perception) yet immanent through a manifest form that grants darśana and protection.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse supports a dhyāna framework: meditators contemplate the Lord’s form (saguṇa-upāsanā) with specific attributes—emblems and radiance—training the mind toward one-pointedness (ekāgratā), which the Kurma Purana later aligns with disciplined devotion and yogic restraint.

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

Calling the Śārṅgadhara Lord “bhūti-bhūṣaṇa” (adorned with sacred ash) uses a distinctly Śaiva marker for a Vaiṣṇava deity, expressing the Kurma Purana’s non-sectarian theology where Śiva-Viṣṇu unity is affirmed through shared symbols and a single supreme reality.