Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 5

Lineage of Vyāsas, Division of the Veda, and Vāsudeva/Īśāna as the Veda-Known Supreme

Devanagari script

एकादशे तु त्रिवृषः शततेजास्ततः परः / त्रयोदशे तथा धर्मस्तरक्षुस्तु चतुर्दशे

Transliteration

ekādaśe tu trivṛṣaḥ śatatejāstataḥ paraḥ / trayodaśe tathā dharmastarakṣustu caturdaśe

Translation

Im elften Zyklus ist Trivṛṣa; nach ihm folgt Śata-tejas. Im dreizehnten Zyklus ist Dharma, und im vierzehnten ist Tarakṣu.

Word by Word

• ekādaśe: in the eleventh
• ekādaśe: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ekādaśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, सप्तमी, एकवचन; अधिकरण (elliptic)

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेष (particle: ‘but/indeed’)

• trivṛṣaḥ: Trivṛṣa
• trivṛṣaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tri-vṛṣa (प्रातिपदिक; त्रि+वृष)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्ता/नाम

• śatatejāḥ: Śatatejā (Hundred-splendoured)
• śatatejāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śata-tejas (प्रातिपदिक; शत+तेजस्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्ता/नाम

• tataḥ: thereafter
• tataḥ: Kriya-visheshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय/तद्-प्रातिपदिक-निष्पन्न)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रम/अपादानार्थ (adverb: ‘thereafter/from that’)

• paraḥ: the next
• paraḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; (saḥ) paraḥ = ‘the next’

• trayodaśe: in the thirteenth
• trayodaśe: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: trayodaśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, सप्तमी, एकवचन; अधिकरण (elliptic)

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Kriya-visheshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; ‘likewise’

• dharmaḥ: Dharma
• dharmaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्ता/नाम

• tarakṣuḥ: Tarakṣu
• tarakṣuḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tarakṣu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्ता/नाम

• tu: and/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विशेष/विरोध

• caturdaśe: in the fourteenth
• caturdaśe: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: caturdaśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, सप्तमी, एकवचन; अधिकरण (elliptic)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic voice, traditionally Sūta/Vyāsa lineage) presenting an enumeration

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Trivṛṣa
• Śata-tejas
• Dharma
• Tarakṣu

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

This verse does not directly teach Ātman-doctrine; it functions as a catalog of sacred names/figures within a larger Purāṇic enumeration, supporting remembrance (smaraṇa) and lineage-based cosmology rather than explicit metaphysics.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No specific yoga practice is prescribed in this line; however, such enumerations traditionally serve japa/smaraṇa and contemplative recollection, which in Kurma Purāṇa complements later Pāśupata-oriented disciplines and devotion to Īśvara.

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

The verse itself is neutral and lists names within an ordered sequence; in the Kurma Purāṇa’s broader Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, these enumerations support a shared sacred cosmology where divine manifestations and epithets are harmonized rather than opposed.