Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 26
Prayāga-māhātmya — The Greatness of Prayāga and the Discipline of Pilgrimage
स्वकर्मणावृतो लोको नैव गच्छति तत्पदम् / स्वल्पं स्वल्पतरं पापं यदा तस्य नराधिप / प्रयागं स्मरमाणस्य सर्वमायाति संक्षयम्
svakarmaṇāvṛto loko naiva gacchati tatpadam / svalpaṃ svalpataraṃ pāpaṃ yadā tasya narādhipa / prayāgaṃ smaramāṇasya sarvamāyāti saṃkṣayam
Le monde, voilé par ses propres actes (karma), n’atteint pas ce séjour suprême. Mais, ô roi, quand même le péché le plus infime et le plus subtil demeure, pour celui qui se souvient de Prayāga, tout s’anéantit entièrement.
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing King Indradyumna on tīrtha-mahātmya and karmic purification
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: karuna
FAQs
It implies the supreme goal (“tatpadam”) is obscured by karma; liberation is not merely geographical but a state attained when karmic coverings (including subtle pāpa) are exhausted—here aided by sacred remembrance of Prayāga.
The verse highlights smaraṇa (sacred recollection) as a purificatory discipline that supports yoga: by reducing pāpa and karmic obstruction, remembrance of a tīrtha becomes an auxiliary practice (aṅga) to steadier dhyāna and higher realization emphasized in Kurma Purana’s yoga-oriented teaching.
Though Vishnu (as Lord Kūrma) speaks, the teaching aligns with the Purana’s synthetic approach: tīrtha-purification and liberation are presented as universal dharmic means rather than sectarian—supporting the shared Shaiva-Vaishnava framework that underlies Kurma Purana’s spiritual program.