Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 44
Kali-yuga Doṣas, the Supremacy of Rudra as Refuge, and the Closure of the Manvantara Teaching
नमो ऽस्तु वामदेवाय महादेवाय वेधसे / शंभवे स्थाणवे नित्यं शिवाय परमेष्ठिने / नमः शोमाय रुद्राय महाग्रासाय हेतवे
namo 'stu vāmadevāya mahādevāya vedhase / śaṃbhave sthāṇave nityaṃ śivāya parameṣṭhine / namaḥ śomāya rudrāya mahāgrāsāya hetave
Ehrerbietung Vāmadeva, Mahādeva und Vedhas, dem Ordner. Immerdar Ehrerbietung Śambhu, Sthāṇu dem Unbeweglichen, Śiva, dem höchsten Herrn (Parameṣṭhin). Ehrerbietung Śoma, Rudra, Mahāgrāsa dem Großen Verschlinger, und Hetu, der Ur-Ursache.
A devotee/narratorial voice within the Purva-bhaga’s Śaiva stuti context (hymnic praise addressed to Lord Śiva/Rudra).
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
By praising Śiva as Parameṣṭhin (Supreme Ruler) and Hetu (the primal Cause), the verse points to a single highest principle behind creation and dissolution—an Atman/Brahman-like ground expressed here through Rudra’s names.
The verse functions as mantra-like nāma-smaraṇa (contemplative repetition of divine epithets), a core devotional discipline aligned with Pāśupata-oriented practice: steadiness (Sthāṇu), inner auspiciousness (Śiva), and contemplation of time as Mahāgrāsa to cultivate detachment.
While explicitly a Śaiva salutation, it reflects the Kurma Purana’s broader theistic synthesis by presenting the Supreme as the one Cause (Hetu) known through divine names—supporting the Purana’s non-sectarian tendency to see ultimate lordship as one, approached via Śiva/Rudra here.