Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 17

Gṛhastha Livelihood, Āpad-dharma, and Sacrificial Stewardship of Wealth

Devanagari script

न लोकवृतिं वर्तेत वृत्तिहेतोः कथञ्चन / अजिह्मामशठां शुद्धां जीवेद् ब्राह्मणजीविकाम्

Transliteration

na lokavṛtiṃ varteta vṛttihetoḥ kathañcana / ajihmāmaśaṭhāṃ śuddhāṃ jīved brāhmaṇajīvikām

Translation

For the sake of earning a livelihood, he should never adopt the ways of worldly people. Rather, he should live by a brāhmaṇa’s means of support—straightforward, free from deceit, and pure.

Word by Word

• न: not
• न: सम्बन्ध (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात (negation)

• लोकवृतिम्: worldly livelihood
• लोकवृतिम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोकवृत्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd, Accusative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (लोकस्य वृत्तिः)

• वर्तेत: should follow/engage in
• वर्तेत: क्रिया (Kriyā)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √वृत् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• वृत्तिहेतोः: for the sake of livelihood
• वृत्तिहेतोः: हेतु/निमित्त (Cause; genitive of reason)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृत्ति + हेतु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th, Genitive), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (वृत्तेः हेतु:)

• कथञ्चन: in any way at all
• कथञ्चन: सम्बन्ध (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कथञ्चन (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• अजिह्माम्: not crooked/straight
• अजिह्माम्: विशेषण (Adjectival to जीविकाम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ + जिह्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd, Accusative), एकवचन

• अशठाम्: not deceitful
• अशठाम्: विशेषण (Adjectival to जीविकाम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ + शठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd, Accusative), एकवचन

• शुद्धाम्: pure
• शुद्धाम्: विशेषण (Adjectival to जीविकाम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शुद्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd, Accusative), एकवचन

• जीवेत्: should live
• जीवेत्: क्रिया (Kriyā)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जीव् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• ब्राह्मणजीविकाम्: a Brahmin’s livelihood
• ब्राह्मणजीविकाम्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण + जीविका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd, Accusative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (ब्राह्मणस्य जीविका)

Speaker

Traditional Purāṇic narrator (instructional dharma-teaching within the Kurma Purana’s discourse)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇa
• Lokācāra (worldly conduct)
• Vṛtti (livelihood)

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

Indirectly: it emphasizes inner purity (śuddhi), straightforwardness (ārjava), and freedom from deceit as foundational disciplines that steady the mind—preconditions for contemplative insight into the Self taught elsewhere in the Purāṇa.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse highlights yama-like ethical restraints—truthfulness/straightness (ajihma/ārjava), non-deceit (aśaṭha), and purity (śuddha). In Kurma Purana’s broader soteriology, such conduct supports mantra, meditation, and Pāśupata-oriented discipline by reducing rajas and tamas.

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

Not explicitly; it presents dharma as a shared spiritual groundwork. In the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, such ethical purity is treated as universally necessary for devotion and liberation, whether oriented to Śiva, Viṣṇu (Kurma), or the supreme Brahman.