Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 64
Devī-tattva, Śakti–Śaktimān doctrine, Kāla–Māyā cosmology, and Māheśvara Yoga instruction
अहं वै सर्वभावानात्मा सर्वान्तरा शिवा / शाश्वतैश्वर्यविज्ञानमूर्तिः सर्वप्रवर्तिका
ahaṃ vai sarvabhāvānātmā sarvāntarā śivā / śāśvataiśvaryavijñānamūrtiḥ sarvapravartikā
“I alone am the Self (Ātman) of all beings—Śivā, dwelling within all as the inner presence. I am the embodiment of eternal sovereignty and true knowledge, the one who sets all in motion and impels every activity.”
Lord Shiva (Ishvara) speaking in the Ishvara Gita discourse (as transmitted within the Kurma Purana narrative frame)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
It identifies the Supreme (Śivā/Ishvara) as the very Ātman of all beings—present within everyone as the inner indweller—so the Self is universal, immanent, and not limited to any single body or mind.
The verse supports antaryāmin-dhyāna: meditation on the Lord as the inner Self in all beings. In the Ishvara Gita’s Pāśupata-oriented framework, this undergirds inward contemplation, self-inquiry, and steady devotion (bhakti) to the indwelling Ishvara rather than external ritual alone.
By presenting the Supreme as the single inner Self and universal impeller, it aligns with the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis: the highest reality is one, spoken of as Shiva (Ishvara) within the Ishvara Gita, without denying Vishnu’s supreme status in the broader Purana frame.