Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 23
Cosmic Night, Nārāyaṇa as Brahmā, and the Varāha Raising of the Earth
ततः संस्थानमानीय पृथिवीं पृथिवीपतिः / मुमोच रूपं मनसा धारयित्वा प्रिजापतिः
tataḥ saṃsthānamānīya pṛthivīṃ pṛthivīpatiḥ / mumoca rūpaṃ manasā dhārayitvā prijāpatiḥ
Dann brachte der Herr der Erde, Prajāpati, die Erde in ihre rechte Gestalt und Ordnung; diese Gestalt im Geist tragend, setzte er sie in ihrem gefestigten Zustand nieder.
Narrator (Purāṇic narration, traditionally Sūta/authorial voice within the Kurma Purana’s cosmogonic account)
Primary Rasa: vira
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
By highlighting that form and stability are upheld through “manasā dhārayitvā” (mental sustenance), the verse implies a higher ordering intelligence behind material manifestation—pointing to consciousness as the sustaining principle behind name-and-form.
The phrase “manasā dhārayitvā” echoes dhāraṇā (steadfast holding) in Yoga: the capacity of mind to sustain a form without wavering. In the Kurma Purana’s broader spiritual frame, this models disciplined inner steadiness that supports outer order (dharma).
While Shiva and Vishnu are not explicitly named here, the Kurma Purana’s synthesis treats cosmic stabilization as a function of the one Supreme Lord manifesting through different divine offices (e.g., Prajāpati/creator, sustainer). The verse fits that non-sectarian puranic logic of unified divine governance.