Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 41
Invocation, Purāṇa Lakṣaṇas, Kurma at the Samudra-manthana, and Indradyumna’s Liberation Teaching
Iśvara-Gītā Prelude
इत्युक्तो वासुदेवेन मुनयो विष्णुमब्रुवन् / ब्रूहि त्वं पुण्डरीकाक्ष यदि कालत्रये ऽपि च / को वा तरति तां मायां दुर्जयां देवनिर्मिताम्
ityukto vāsudevena munayo viṣṇumabruvan / brūhi tvaṃ puṇḍarīkākṣa yadi kālatraye 'pi ca / ko vā tarati tāṃ māyāṃ durjayāṃ devanirmitām
Ainsi interpellés par Vāsudeva, les sages dirent à Viṣṇu : «Ô Toi aux yeux de lotus, déclare-nous—dans l’un quelconque des trois temps, passé, présent ou futur—qui peut traverser cette Māyā, difficile à vaincre, façonnée par le Seigneur divin ?»
The sages (munis) addressing Lord Vishnu/Vāsudeva
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It frames Māyā as a divine, nearly unassailable power and implies that crossing it is not achieved by ordinary agency; liberation requires recourse to the Supreme Lord/Atman beyond time (kālatraya).
This verse functions as a preparatory question: it points toward the need for a Lord-centered discipline—yoga grounded in devotion, knowledge, and restraint—by asking who can overcome Māyā created by the Divine.
By attributing Māyā to the single Divine source and seeking the means to transcend it, the verse supports the Purana’s non-sectarian tendency: the liberating Lord can be understood through the shared Supreme principle honored in both Shaiva and Vaishnava streams.