Shloka 27
Prāyaścitta for Theft, Forbidden Foods, Impurity, and Ritual Lapses; Tīrtha–Vrata Remedies; Pativratā Mahātmyam via Sītā and Agni
अभोज्यानां तु सर्वेषां भुक्त्वा चान्नमुपस्कृतम् / अन्तावसायिनां चैव तप्तकृच्छ्रेण शुद्ध्यति
abhojyānāṃ tu sarveṣāṃ bhuktvā cānnamupaskṛtam / antāvasāyināṃ caiva taptakṛcchreṇa śuddhyati
If one has eaten any forbidden food, or food prepared in connection with those called antyāvasāyin (the most excluded), one is purified by the penance known as Taptakṛcchra.
Sūta (narrator) conveying the Kurma Purana’s dharma-śāstra teaching in the sages’ dialogue frame
Primary Rasa: bibhatsa
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It does not directly define Ātman; it teaches dharmic purification (śuddhi) through prāyaścitta, implying that inner and outer discipline supports clarity needed for higher knowledge.
No meditation technique is taught here; the verse emphasizes tapas in the form of Taptakṛcchra—an austere, heat/discipline-based penance—aligning with the Purana’s broader stress on tapas as a support for spiritual practice.
It does not explicitly address Śiva–Viṣṇu unity; it belongs to the dharma/prāyaścitta layer of the text that undergirds the Purana’s later synthetic theology and yoga teachings.