Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 8

Kapardeśvara at Piśācamocana — Liberation of a Piśāca and the Brahmapāra Hymn

Devanagari script

त्रिनेत्रा नीलकण्ठा च शशाङ्काङ्कितमूर्धजा / वृषाधिरूढा पुरुषैस्तादृशैरेव संवृता

Transliteration

trinetrā nīlakaṇṭhā ca śaśāṅkāṅkitamūrdhajā / vṛṣādhirūḍhā puruṣaistādṛśaireva saṃvṛtā

Translation

Sie ist dreiaugig, blaukehlig (Nīlakaṇṭha) und trägt den Mond als Zeichen auf ihrem Haupt; auf einem Stier reitend, ist sie von Gefährten gleicher göttlicher Gestalt umgeben.

Word by Word

• त्रिनेत्रा: three-eyed
• त्रिनेत्रा: कर्ता (Karta)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रि-नेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifier of implied देवी/सा)

• नीलकण्ठा: blue-throated
• नीलकण्ठा: कर्ता (Karta)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नील-कण्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunctive)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• शशाङ्काङ्कितमूर्धजा: whose head/hair is marked with the moon
• शशाङ्काङ्कितमूर्धजा: कर्ता (Karta)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शशाङ्क-अङ्कित-मूर्धज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण; ‘मूर्धजा’ = ‘having hair/head’; ‘शशाङ्काङ्कित’ = ‘marked with the moon’

• वृषाधिरूढा: mounted on a bull
• वृषाधिरूढा: कर्ता (Karta)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृष-अधिरूढ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण; ‘mounted on a bull’

• पुरुषैः: by/with men
• पुरुषैः: सह/साकं (Sahakāraka/Association)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

• तादृशैः: such (of that kind)
• तादृशैः: सह/साकं (Sahakāraka/Association)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तादृश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifier of पुरुषैः)

• एव: indeed, just
• एव: अवधारण (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-अव्यय (particle of emphasis)

• संवृता: surrounded, attended
• संवृता: कर्ता (Karta)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-वृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘surrounded/attended’

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic discourse tradition; contextually within the Kūrma Purāṇa’s Śaiva-Vaiṣṇava synthesis, presented under the broader teaching frame attributed to Lord Kūrma)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Three-eyed deity (Śiva-lakṣaṇa)
• Blue-throated (Nīlakaṇṭha)
• Moon-crested (Śaśāṅkāṅkita)
• Bull mount (Vṛṣa/Vṛṣabha)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

By presenting divine marks (three eyes, blue throat, moon crest, bull mount), the verse points to Īśvara as a manifest, knowable focus for contemplation—through form (saguṇa) leading the mind toward the formless Self (nirguṇa) taught elsewhere in the Kūrma Purāṇa.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

This is a dhyāna-aṅga (meditative support): the iconographic features supply a visualization template for īśvara-dhyāna, aligning with Purāṇic and Pāśupata-oriented devotion where concentrated contemplation on divine attributes steadies the mind for higher Yoga.

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

Though the imagery is strongly Śaiva (Nīlakaṇṭha, moon crest, bull), its placement within the Kūrma Purāṇa’s teaching framework supports a synthetic reading: devotion to Śiva’s form functions within a broader Vaiṣṇava narration, reinforcing the Purāṇa’s non-sectarian, unity-oriented theology.