Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 90
Aśauca-vidhi — Rules of Birth/Death Impurity, Sapinda Circles, and Śrāddha Sequence
मातापित्रोः सुतैः कार्यं पिण्डदानादिकं च यत् / पत्नी कुर्यात् सुताभावे पत्न्य भावे सहोदहः
mātāpitroḥ sutaiḥ kāryaṃ piṇḍadānādikaṃ ca yat / patnī kuryāt sutābhāve patnya bhāve sahodahaḥ
Whatever ancestral duty for one’s mother and father—such as offering the piṇḍa and related rites—should be performed by the sons. If there are no sons, the wife should perform it; and if there is no wife, then a full brother should do so.
Lord Kūrma (Vishnu) instructing on dharma and śrāddha duties
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: karuna
FAQs
This verse is primarily dharma-oriented: it teaches that righteous action (pitṛ-kārya like piṇḍa-dāna) must be properly assigned within the family line. In the Kūrma Purāṇa’s broader synthesis, such dutiful action purifies the mind and supports steadiness for Self-knowledge rather than directly defining Ātman here.
No specific yoga technique is taught in this verse; it emphasizes karma in the form of śrāddha obligations. In the Purāṇic yoga framework, disciplined performance of obligatory rites is part of dharma that prepares the practitioner for higher sādhana (including the Ishvara Gita’s contemplative teachings in the Upari-bhāga).
The verse does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu unity; it presents dharma as taught by Lord Kūrma (Viṣṇu). The Kūrma Purāṇa’s larger Śaiva–Vaiṣṇava synthesis is reflected indirectly: the same Supreme Lord upholds both ritual duty (dharma) and liberation-oriented teaching (yoga/jñāna) across the text.