Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 31

Dvīpa-Varṣa Vibhāga and the Priyavrata–Agnīdhra Lineage

Cosmic Geography and Royal Succession

Devanagari script

नीलाचलाश्रितं वर्षं रम्याय प्रददौ पिता / श्वेतं यदुत्तरं वर्षं पित्रा दत्तं हिरण्वते

Transliteration

nīlācalāśritaṃ varṣaṃ ramyāya pradadau pitā / śvetaṃ yaduttaraṃ varṣaṃ pitrā dattaṃ hiraṇvate

Translation

Le père attribua à Ramyā la région (varṣa) abritée par le mont Nīlācala ; et la région blanche du nord — Śveta-varṣa — fut donnée par le père à Hiraṇvat.

Word by Word

• नीलाचलाश्रितम्: situated at Nīlācala
• नीलाचलाश्रितम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नील + अचल + आश्रित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कृदन्त—क्तप्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle) ‘आश्रित’; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम्; समासः—तत्पुरुष (nīla-acala-āśrita = situated on/at Nīlācala)

• वर्षम्: region/varṣa
• वर्षम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• रम्याय: to Ramyā
• रम्याय: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रम्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: चतुर्थी (Dative/सम्प्रदान), एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग

• प्रददौ: bestowed
• प्रददौ: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + दा (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• पिता: the father
• पिता: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• श्वेतम्: white
• श्वेतम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्वेत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• यत्: which
• यत्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• उत्तरम्: northern
• उत्तरम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• वर्षम्: region/varṣa
• वर्षम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• पित्रा: by the father
• पित्रा: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया (Instrumental/करण), एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग

• दत्तम्: given
• दत्तम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त—क्तप्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि (given)

• हिरण्वते: to Hiraṇvat
• हिरण्वते: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हिरण्वत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: चतुर्थी (Dative/सम्प्रदान), एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग

Speaker

Sūta (narrator) describing the Purāṇic geography and ancestral allotments

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Nīlācala
• Ramyā
• Śveta-varṣa
• Hiraṇvat

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

This verse is primarily cosmographical, mapping the world into varṣas and allotting them to named figures; it indirectly reflects Purāṇic order (ṛta/dharma) in creation rather than teaching an explicit Atman doctrine.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No specific yoga practice is taught in this verse; it belongs to the geographic-creation narrative layer that, elsewhere in the Kurma Purana, supports dharma by locating sacred regions and lineages within a divinely ordered cosmos.

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

It does not directly discuss Shiva–Vishnu unity; however, as part of the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, such cosmography is presented as a shared sacred framework within which both Vishnu (Kurma) and Shiva-centered teachings (including Pāśupata themes) are situated.