Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 28
Tāmasa Sarga, the Androgynous Division of Brahmā, and the Lineages of Dharma and Adharma
दुः खोत्तराः स्मृता ह्येते सर्वे चाधर्मलक्षणाः / नैषां भार्यास्ति पुत्रो वा सर्वे ते ह्यूर्ध्वरेतसः
duḥ khottarāḥ smṛtā hyete sarve cādharmalakṣaṇāḥ / naiṣāṃ bhāryāsti putro vā sarve te hyūrdhvaretasaḥ
Se recuerda que todos éstos culminan en sufrimiento, y todos llevan las señales de adharma. No tienen esposa ni hijo; en verdad, todos son “ūrdhvaretas”, aquellos cuya potencia generativa se vuelve hacia lo alto (por condición ascética).
Suta (narrator) recounting the teaching within the Kurma Purana’s dharma discourse
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa
FAQs
Indirectly: it frames adharma as a cause of duḥkha, implying that liberation-oriented life must align conduct with dharma so the mind becomes fit for Self-knowledge rather than bondage-producing action.
The verse points to an ascetic orientation—ūrdhvaretas—often associated with brahmacarya and the sublimation of vital energy, a prerequisite in many Yoga-shastra and Pashupata-leaning disciplines for steadiness and inner purity.
Not explicitly; it contributes to the Kurma Purana’s shared Shaiva–Vaishnava ethic by grounding higher practice (including Pashupata-style restraint) in dharma and warning that adharma culminates in suffering.