Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 14

Prayāga-māhātmya — The Greatness of Prayāga and the Discipline of Pilgrimage

Devanagari script

येन हिंसासमुद्भूताज्जन्मान्तरकृतादपि / मुच्यते पातकादस्मात् तद् भवान् वक्तुमर्हति

Transliteration

yena hiṃsāsamudbhūtājjanmāntarakṛtādapi / mucyate pātakādasmāt tad bhavān vaktumarhati

Translation

Te ruego que expliques el medio por el cual uno queda libre de este pecado nacido de la violencia, aun si esa violencia fue cometida en otra existencia.

Word by Word

• yena: by which
• yena: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग) relative pronoun; ‘by which/whereby’

• hiṃsā-samudbhūtāt: from (that) arisen from violence
• hiṃsā-samudbhūtāt: Apādāna (अपादान/Source)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hiṃsā (प्रातिपदिक) + samudbhūta (कृदन्त; सम्+उद्+√bhū)
• Form: Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular, Neuter; tatpuruṣa compound; qualifying implied ‘pātakāt’/‘(duḥkhāt)’: ‘from (that) arisen from violence’

• janma-antara-kṛtāt: from (that) done in another birth
• janma-antara-kṛtāt: Apādāna (अपादान/Source)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: janman (प्रातिपदिक) + antara (प्रातिपदिक) + kṛta (कृदन्त; √kṛ)
• Form: Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular, Neuter; tatpuruṣa: ‘done in another birth’; qualifying the same source as above

• api: even
• api: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात); concessive/emphatic ‘even/also’

• mucyate: is freed
• mucyate: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √muc (धातु)
• Form: Present tense (लट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद), Passive sense (कर्मणि प्रयोग): ‘is released’

• pātakāt: from sin
• pātakāt: Apādāna (अपादान/Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular, Neuter

• asmāt: from this
• asmāt: Apādāna (अपादान/Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular, Neuter; deictic ‘from this’

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular, Neuter; demonstrative ‘that (matter)’

• bhavān: you (sir)
• bhavān: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhavat (प्रातिपदिक; honorific pronoun)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; honorific ‘you’

• vaktum: to tell
• vaktum: Prayojana (प्रयोजन/Complement of ‘arhati’)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: Infinitive (तुमुन्/तुम्), ‘to speak’

• arhati: ought (is worthy)
• arhati: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √arh (धातु)
• Form: Present tense (लट्), 3rd person, Singular, Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद): ‘is worthy/should’

Speaker

A disciple/kingly inquirer (contextual interlocutor) addressing a sage/teacher in the Kurma Purana dialogue

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: karuna

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• hiṃsā
• pātaka
• prāyaścitta
• karma
• janmāntara

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly, it assumes the continuity of moral causation across births (karma and rebirth); liberation from sin is sought through a purifying means that restores dharmic alignment, preparing the mind for Self-knowledge.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

This verse itself requests instruction; in the Kurma Purana’s broader framework, such release is commonly linked with prāyaścitta, devotion (bhakti), mantra-japa, and disciplined conduct that purifies the mind—supportive of Yoga and Pāśupata-oriented restraint.

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

While not naming them, the verse fits the Kurma Purana’s integrative approach: purification from sin is taught within a dharmic system where devotion and discipline may be framed in Shaiva or Vaishnava idioms without contradiction.