Shloka 59
Prāyaścitta for Mahāpātakas: Liquor, Theft, Sexual Transgression, Contact with the Fallen, and Homicide
हस्तिनां च वधे दृष्टं तप्तकृच्छ्रं विशोधनम् / चान्द्रायणं पराकं वा गां हत्वा तु प्रमादतः / मतिपूर्वं वधे चास्याः प्रायश्चित्तं न विद्यते
hastināṃ ca vadhe dṛṣṭaṃ taptakṛcchraṃ viśodhanam / cāndrāyaṇaṃ parākaṃ vā gāṃ hatvā tu pramādataḥ / matipūrvaṃ vadhe cāsyāḥ prāyaścittaṃ na vidyate
Für das Töten von Elefanten ist als reinigende Sühne die Buße Taptakṛcchra vorgeschrieben. Wird eine Kuh aus Unachtsamkeit getötet, soll man das Gelübde Cāndrāyaṇa oder das Gelübde Parāka vollziehen. Wird sie jedoch vorsätzlich getötet, so wird hier für diese Tat keine Sühne verkündet.
Sūta (narrating dharma teachings to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya, within the Kurma Purana’s dharma discourse tradition)
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: karuna
FAQs
Indirectly: it frames dharma as purification through disciplined vows (prāyaścitta). In the Kurma Purana’s broader synthesis, such ethical restraint supports inner clarity that is prerequisite for Self-knowledge, even when the verse itself focuses on karmic repair.
Not a meditative technique but a yogic discipline of conduct: austerities like Taptakṛcchra, Cāndrāyaṇa, and Parāka function as tapas—self-regulation that steadies the mind and aligns action with dharma, forming a moral base compatible with Pāśupata-oriented purification.
It does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; it presents shared dharma norms. In the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, such dharma is treated as universally binding—supporting devotion and yogic realization regardless of whether one approaches the Supreme as Śiva or as Hari.