Shloka 35
Tīrtha-māhātmya and Rudra’s Samanvaya Teaching
Maṅkaṇaka Episode
समन्ताद् योजनं क्षेत्रं सिद्धर्षिगणवन्दितम् / पुण्यमायतनं विष्णोस्तत्रास्ते पुरुषोत्तमः
samantād yojanaṃ kṣetraṃ siddharṣigaṇavanditam / puṇyamāyatanaṃ viṣṇostatrāste puruṣottamaḥ
Ringsum, über eine Yojana weit, liegt ein heiliger Bezirk, verehrt von Scharen der Siddhas und Ṛṣis. Es ist Viṣṇus heilige Wohnstatt; dort weilt Puruṣottama, die Höchste Person.
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) speaking to sages (contextual narration of a sacred kṣetra)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
By naming Viṣṇu as Puruṣottama who “abides” in the holy kṣetra, the verse points to the Supreme Person as the stable, indwelling reality—accessible through sanctified space and purified awareness rather than mere external travel.
The verse emphasizes tīrtha-sevā and kṣetra-smaraṇa—approaching a sanctified abode with reverence (vandana) and inner purity (puṇya). In the Kurma Purana’s yogic ethos, such pilgrimage supports concentration, devotion, and steady contemplation of the Lord’s presence.
Though Viṣṇu is explicitly named, the Kurma Purana’s broader synthesis treats the Supreme as one reality approached through multiple forms; reverence by Siddhas and Ṛṣis aligns with a shared Purāṇic vision in which sectarian boundaries yield to the single Puruṣa revered in both Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava traditions.