Narmadā-tīrtha-māhātmya — Bhṛgu-tīrtha to Sāgara-saṅgama
Pilgrimage Circuit, Gifts, Fasting, and Imperishable Merit
तत्र तीर्थे तु राजेन्द्र प्राणत्यागं करोति यः / चतुर्भुजस्त्रिनेत्रश्च हरतुल्यबलो भवेत्
tatra tīrthe tu rājendra prāṇatyāgaṃ karoti yaḥ / caturbhujastrinetraśca haratulyabalo bhavet
O König der Könige, wer an diesem Tīrtha sein Leben hingibt, wird vierarmig und dreiaugig und erhält eine Kraft, die der Haras (Śiva) gleicht.
Sage (narrator) addressing a king (rājendra) within a tīrtha-māhātmya discourse of the Kurma Purana
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: vira
By promising Śiva-like marks (three eyes) and divine power through sacred death at a tīrtha, the verse points to transformation toward īśvara-sāmya—nearness/likeness to the Lord—implying that liberation is approached by aligning one’s being with the divine reality honored at the tīrtha.
The verse does not prescribe a technique directly; it emphasizes tīrtha-sevā and the ultimate act of surrender (prāṇa-tyāga) at a sanctified place—an extreme form of tyāga and īśvara-prapatti that resonates with Purāṇic disciplines supporting Pāśupata-leaning devotion and renunciation.
Even within a Vaiṣṇava Purāṇa framework, the fruit described is explicitly Śiva-like (Hara-tulya-bala, tri-netra), reflecting the Kurma Purana’s frequent Shaiva-Vaishnava harmony where devotion and merit can culminate in sharing in Śiva’s divine attributes.