Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 4

Adhyāya 25 — Liṅga-māhātmya (The Chapter on the Liṅga): Hari’s Śiva-Worship and the Fiery Pillar Theophany

Devanagari script

दीर्घबाहुं विशालाक्षं पीतवाससमच्युतम् / दधानमुरसा मालां वैजयन्तीमनुत्तमाम्

Transliteration

dīrghabāhuṃ viśālākṣaṃ pītavāsasamacyutam / dadhānamurasā mālāṃ vaijayantīmanuttamām

Translation

Er erblickte den unvergänglichen Acyuta—langarmig, großäugig, in gelbe Gewänder gekleidet—und auf seiner Brust die unvergleichliche Vaijayantī-Girlande tragend.

Word by Word

• dīrghabāhum: long-armed
• dīrghabāhum: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dīrgha-bāhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयसमासः—दीर्घौ बाहू यस्य (long-armed)

• viśālākṣam: large-eyed
• viśālākṣam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: viśāla-akṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयसमासः—विशालानि अक्षीणि यस्य (wide-eyed)

• pītavāsasam: clad in yellow garments
• pītavāsasam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pīta-vāsas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयसमासः—पीतम् वासः यस्य (wearing yellow garments)

• acyutam: Acyuta
• acyutam: Karma (कर्म—समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: acyuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन

• dadhānam: bearing
• dadhānam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण—कर्तृवाचक)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dhṛ (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त (present active participle), परस्मैपदी; पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (agreeing with कृष्णम्)

• urasā: with/on (his) chest
• urasā: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: uras (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (instrumental: 'on/with the chest')

• mālām: garland
• mālām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mālā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन

• vaijayantīm: Vaijayantī
• vaijayantīm: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vaijayantī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (name of the garland)

• anuttamām: unsurpassed
• anuttamām: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anuttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुषभाव (unsurpassed)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narration describing the Lord’s form for contemplation)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: shringara

Characters & Entities

• Acyuta (Vishnu/Narayana)
• Vaijayanti (garland)

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

By presenting Acyuta as “unfailing” and “supreme,” the verse points to the changeless Ishvara who is contemplated through form, yet understood as imperishable in essence.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

It supports dhyāna (iconic contemplation): fixing the mind on specific divine attributes—long arms, lotus-like expansive eyes, yellow garments, and the Vaijayantī garland—as an aid to one-pointedness and devotion.

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

Though explicitly Vaishnava in imagery (Acyuta, Vaijayantī), the Kurma Purana commonly uses such dhyāna descriptions within a broader Ishvara-centered framework that accommodates Shaiva-Vaishnava synthesis through shared yogic contemplation of the Supreme.