Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 3

Kṛṣṇa’s Departure, Kali-yuga Dharma, and the Prohibition of Śiva-Nindā

Hari–Hara Samanvaya

Devanagari script

हत्वा च कंसं नरकमन्यांश्च शतशो ऽसुरान् / विजित्य लीलया शक्रं जित्वा बाणं महासुरम्

Transliteration

hatvā ca kaṃsaṃ narakamanyāṃśca śataśo 'surān / vijitya līlayā śakraṃ jitvā bāṇaṃ mahāsuram

Translation

Après avoir terrassé Kaṃsa et Naraka, ainsi que des centaines d’autres asura, et après avoir, par jeu divin, dompté Śakra (Indra), il vainquit aussi Bāṇa, le grand asura.

Word by Word

• हत्वा: having slain
• हत्वा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund/Absolutive), पूर्वकालिक क्रिया; धातु: हन्

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• कंसम्: Kaṃsa
• कंसम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कंस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• नरकम्: Naraka
• नरकम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अन्यान्: other
• अन्यान्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• शतशः: by hundreds
• शतशः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शतशस् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/परिमाणवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: by hundreds, in hundreds)

• असुरान्: demons
• असुरान्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• विजित्य: having conquered
• विजित्य: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जि (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund/Absolutive) उपसर्ग: वि-; धातु: जि

• लीलया: playfully; by sport
• लीलया: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लीला (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), एकवचन

• शक्रम्: Śakra (Indra)
• शक्रम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शक्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• जित्वा: having defeated
• जित्वा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जि (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund/Absolutive); धातु: जि

• बाणम्: Bāṇa
• बाणम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बाण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• महासुरम्: the great demon
• महासुरम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महासुर (प्रातिपदिक: महा + असुर)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (महान् असुरः)

Speaker

Purāṇic narrator (Sūta/Vyāsa tradition), praising Bhagavān’s līlā

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: vira

Secondary Rasa: raudra

Characters & Entities

• Kaṃsa
• Naraka (Narakāsura)
• Asuras
• Śakra (Indra)
• Bāṇa (Bāṇāsura)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

By portraying the Lord’s effortless conquest “as līlā,” the verse implies a transcendent sovereignty: the Supreme is not compelled by karma or struggle, but acts freely to restore dharma—suggesting the Atman/Iśvara as independent (svatantra) and unsurpassed.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

This verse is primarily stuti (praise) rather than a procedural yoga-teaching; however, it supports bhakti-yoga and īśvara-smṛti: contemplation of the Lord’s līlā and dharma-protecting power as an aid to steadiness (dhāraṇā) and surrender (śaraṇāgati), themes that mature into the Kurma Purana’s Pāśupata-oriented discipline elsewhere.

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

While Śiva is not named here, the verse’s theology—one Supreme whose līlā subdues even Indra and great asuras—fits the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva-Vaishnava synthesis: the highest divinity is beyond rivalry, and sectarian forms are harmonized under a single dharma-protecting Lord.