Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 4
Dakṣa-yajña-bhaṅgaḥ — Dadhīci’s Teaching and the Destruction of Dakṣa’s Sacrifice
स शप्तः शंभुना पूर्वं दक्षः प्राचेतसो नृपः / विनिन्द्य पूर्ववैरेण गङ्गाद्वरे ऽयजद् भवम्
sa śaptaḥ śaṃbhunā pūrvaṃ dakṣaḥ prācetaso nṛpaḥ / vinindya pūrvavaireṇa gaṅgādvare 'yajad bhavam
Jener König Dakṣa, Sohn des Prācetas, der einst von Śambhu (Śiva) verflucht worden war, vollzog später—noch von alter Feindschaft getrieben und in Verachtung redend—die Verehrung Bhavas (Śivas) in Gaṅgādvāra, dem Tor zur Gaṅgā.
Narrator (Purāṇic sage-narration within the Kurma Purana’s discourse framework)
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: karuna
FAQs
Indirectly: it shows that ritual acts and sacred places alone do not purify unless inner hostility is transformed; the Purāṇic teaching points toward inner alignment (śuddhi) as essential for realizing the Self beyond egoic enmity.
No formal yoga technique is stated; the verse highlights tīrtha-sevā and īśvara-pūjā as preparatory disciplines. In Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva teaching, such worship becomes fruitful when joined to restraint, humility, and devotion—foundational attitudes for Pāśupata-oriented sādhanā.
By presenting Śiva (Śambhu/Bhava) as a supreme recipient of worship within the Kurma Purana, it supports the text’s inclusive theology where devotion to Śiva is honored even within a Vaiṣṇava Purāṇa framework, aligning with the Purāṇic vision of harmony among forms of Īśvara.