Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 152
Dakṣa’s Progeny, Nṛsiṃha–Varāha Avatāras, and Andhaka’s Defeat
Hari–Hara–Śakti Synthesis
अहं नारायणो गौरी जगन्माता सनातनी / विभज्य संस्थितो देवः स्वात्मानं बहुधेश्वरः
ahaṃ nārāyaṇo gaurī jaganmātā sanātanī / vibhajya saṃsthito devaḥ svātmānaṃ bahudheśvaraḥ
Je suis Nārāyaṇa ; je suis aussi Gaurī, la Mère éternelle de l’univers. L’unique Seigneur, se partageant Lui-même, demeure en formes multiples tout en étant l’unique Souverain.
Lord Kurma (as the Supreme Lord teaching non-dual theism)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It presents the Supreme as one Self (svātman) who remains a single Īśvara while manifesting in many divine identities, implying unity behind apparent plurality.
The verse supports īśvara-dhyāna: meditation on the one Lord as the inner Self of all forms, a key contemplative basis for Purāṇic yoga and later Pāśupata-oriented devotion and discipline.
By identifying the one speaker with Nārāyaṇa and also with Gaurī (Śiva’s śakti), it conveys a non-sectarian, integrative theology where the same Supreme reality appears as Vaiṣṇava and Śaiva-Shākta forms.