Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 38

Jambūdvīpa Varṣas, Bhārata as Karmabhūmi, and the Sacred Hydro-Topography of Dharma

Devanagari script

आसां नद्युपनद्यश्च शतशो द्विजपुङ्गवाः / सर्वपापहराः पुण्याः स्नानदानादिकर्मसु

Transliteration

āsāṃ nadyupanadyaśca śataśo dvijapuṅgavāḥ / sarvapāpaharāḥ puṇyāḥ snānadānādikarmasu

Translation

O ihr Vorzüglichsten unter den Zweifachgeborenen: Diese Flüsse und ihre Nebenflüsse werden zu Hunderten gezählt; sie sind heilig und nehmen alle Sünde hinweg, besonders bei Handlungen wie rituellem Bad, Almosengabe und verwandten Riten.

Word by Word

• āsām: of these (rivers)
• āsām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam/tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक; एतद्-समूह)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• nadyupanadyaḥ: rivers and tributaries
• nadyupanadyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक) + upanadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; द्वन्द्व-समास (नद्यश्च उपनद्यश्च)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• śataśaḥ: by hundreds
• śataśaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: śataśas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb), प्रकार/परिमाणवाचक (by hundreds; in hundreds)

• dvijapuṅgavāḥ: O bulls among the twice-born (O best Brahmins)
• dvijapuṅgavāḥ: Sambodhana/Address (सम्बोधन; vocative sense in context)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + puṅgava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (द्विजानां पुंगवाः)

• sarvapāpaharāḥ: removing all sins
• sarvapāpaharāḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier of nadyupanadyaḥ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + hara (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √hṛ (धातु))
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास

• puṇyāḥ: holy/meritorious
• puṇyāḥ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier of nadyupanadyaḥ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• snānadānādikarmasu: in acts such as bathing and giving (charity)
• snānadānādikarmasu: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Location-Context)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snāna (प्रातिपदिक) + dāna (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (स्नानं दानं आदिः येषां कर्मणाम् तेषु)

Speaker

Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing sages (addressed as dvijapuṅgava)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Lord Kurma
• rivers (nadī)
• tributaries (upanadī)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly: it frames purification (pāpa-kṣaya) through sacred tirthas and dharmic acts as a preparatory discipline that supports inner clarity for realizing the Self.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

It emphasizes karmayoga-style purificatory disciplines—snāna (ritual bathing), dāna (charity), and allied rites—as external supports for śuddhi (purity), which is foundational for higher yoga and contemplation taught elsewhere in the Kurma Purana.

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

It does not explicitly mention Shiva-Vishnu unity; instead, it presents a shared puranic dharma framework where sacred geography and purificatory rites function as common means to spiritual merit across Shaiva-Vaishnava traditions.