Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 7
Divine Abodes on the Mountains — A Sacred Survey of Jambūdvīpa
Kailāsa to Siddha Realms
अन्याश्च नद्यः शतशः स्वर्णपद्मैरलङ्कृताः / तासां कूलेषु देवस्य स्थानानि परमेष्ठिनः / देवर्षिगणजुष्टानि तथा नारायणस्य च
anyāśca nadyaḥ śataśaḥ svarṇapadmairalaṅkṛtāḥ / tāsāṃ kūleṣu devasya sthānāni parameṣṭhinaḥ / devarṣigaṇajuṣṭāni tathā nārāyaṇasya ca
Und es gibt Hunderte weiterer Flüsse, geschmückt mit goldenen Lotosblüten. An ihren Ufern liegen die heiligen Stätten des Herrn—Parameṣṭhin, des höchsten Schöpfers—von Scharen göttlicher Seher besucht; und ebenso finden sich dort Heiligtümer Nārāyaṇas.
Narratorial voice within the Purāṇic discourse (sage-to-king transmission in the Kūrma Purāṇa’s tīrtha/geography section)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It frames sacred geography as a manifestation of the Supreme Lord’s presence: the riverbanks become “sthānāni” (abodes) where the divine is approached, implying the transcendent is accessible through consecrated places and disciplined pilgrimage rather than being limited to a single form.
The verse points to tīrtha-sevā—going to sanctified riverbanks, honoring divine abodes, and associating with devarṣis—as a supportive sādhana. In the Kūrma Purāṇa’s broader teaching, such purity-of-place and satsanga function as auxiliaries to mantra, dhyāna, and devotion aligned with Dharma.
By presenting revered abodes of Parameṣṭhin and also of Nārāyaṇa along the same sacred rivers, it reflects the Purāṇa’s integrative outlook: multiple divine manifestations are honored within one sacred landscape, supporting a harmonizing (non-sectarian) Shaiva–Vaishnava vision.