कूर्म उवाच । शांडिल्य इति विख्यातः पुराहमभवं द्विजः । बालभावे मया भूप क्रीडमानेन निर्मितम्
kūrma uvāca | śāṃḍilya iti vikhyātaḥ purāhamabhavaṃ dvijaḥ | bālabhāve mayā bhūpa krīḍamānena nirmitam
Kūrma sprach: Einst war ich ein zweimalgeborener Brahmane, bekannt unter dem Namen Śāṇḍilya. O König, in meiner Kindheit, während ich spielte, formte ich mit eigenen Händen etwas.
Kūrma
Listener: King (nṛpa/bhūpa)
Scene: A narrator (Kūrma) recalls being the brāhmaṇa Śāṇḍilya as a child, playing and shaping a small sacred structure with his hands, while addressing a king.
Even a child’s playful act can become a seed of devotion and destiny when connected to dharma and sacred intent.
No tīrtha is named yet; the narrative is setting up the account of a Śiva-related act performed in childhood.
None explicitly; it introduces a personal purāṇic testimony that will explain a devotional construction.