Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 1
Prayāga–Gaṅgā Tīrtha-māhātmya and Rules of Pilgrimage
Yātrā-vidhi
इति श्रीकूर्मपुराणे षट्साहस्त्र्यां संहितायां पूर्वविभागे चतुस्त्रिशो ऽध्यायः मार्कण्डेय उवाच कथयिष्यामि ते वत्स तीर्थयात्राविधिक्रमम् / आर्षेण तु विधानेन यथा दृष्टं यथा श्रुतम्
iti śrīkūrmapurāṇe ṣaṭsāhastryāṃ saṃhitāyāṃ pūrvavibhāge catustriśo 'dhyāyaḥ mārkaṇḍeya uvāca kathayiṣyāmi te vatsa tīrthayātrāvidhikramam / ārṣeṇa tu vidhānena yathā dṛṣṭaṃ yathā śrutam
Thus, in the holy Kūrma Purāṇa—within the six-thousand-verse Saṃhitā, in the Pūrvabhāga—begins the thirty-fifth chapter. Mārkaṇḍeya said: “Dear child, I shall explain to you the proper sequence and rule of pilgrimage to the sacred tīrthas, according to the seers’ traditional method—just as it has been seen and as it has been heard.”
Sage Markandeya
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
This verse does not directly define Ātman; it frames the teaching method: sacred practice (tīrtha-yātrā) is to be followed in an āṛṣa (seer-sanctioned) way, implying that realization is supported by disciplined dharma-based conduct and received tradition.
No specific yoga technique is named here; the verse introduces a structured vidhi-krama for tīrtha-yātrā, which in Purāṇic practice functions as a preparatory discipline—purification, restraint, and right observance—often treated as supportive to mantra, worship, and contemplative practices.
It does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; however, by grounding pilgrimage practice in the āṛṣa tradition, it aligns with the Kurma Purana’s broader integrative stance where orthodox dharma and sacred observances serve as a shared foundation across Shaiva and Vaishnava streams.