Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 8
Sapta-dvīpa Cosmography and the Vision of Śvetadvīpa–Vaikuṇṭha
क्षुद्रनद्यस्त्वसंख्याताः सरांसि सुबहून्यपि / न चैतेषु युगावस्था पुरुषा वै चिरायुषः
kṣudranadyastvasaṃkhyātāḥ sarāṃsi subahūnyapi / na caiteṣu yugāvasthā puruṣā vai cirāyuṣaḥ
Innombrables sont les rivières secondaires, et très nombreux aussi les lacs ; pourtant, dans ces régions, l’ordre propre des Yugas ne se manifeste pas, et les hommes n’y sont pas de longue vie.
Suta (narrator) conveying the Purāṇic cosmographical account
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
Indirectly: by stressing that geography and worldly conditions (rivers, lakes, regional lifespans) vary and are impermanent, the verse points the seeker away from external supports toward the changeless Self that is not conditioned by place, time, or Yuga.
No specific technique is taught in this verse; it functions as a vairāgya (dispassion) prompt—worldly environments and even “better” regions do not guarantee dharmic stability or longevity, so one should pursue disciplined sādhanā (yoga, japa, dhyāna) taught elsewhere in the Kurma Purana rather than relying on external circumstances.
This verse is descriptive (cosmography) and does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; within the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, such passages set the worldly stage on which devotion and yoga to the one Supreme (honored as both Hari and Hara) become necessary for liberation.