Shloka 42
Dharma of Non-Injury, Non-Stealing, Purity, and Avoidance of Hypocrisy (Ācāra and Saṅkarya-Nivṛtti)
न पापं पापिनां ब्रूयादपापं वा द्विजात्तमाः / सतेनतुल्यदोषः स्यान्मिथ्या द्विर्देषवान् भवेत्
na pāpaṃ pāpināṃ brūyādapāpaṃ vā dvijāttamāḥ / satenatulyadoṣaḥ syānmithyā dvirdeṣavān bhavet
Ô le meilleur des deux-fois-nés ! Qu’on ne proclame pas le péché des pécheurs, ni qu’on ne déclare coupable l’innocent. Agir ainsi entraîne une faute égale au vol ; et si cela se fait par mensonge, le blâme devient double.
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing sages on dharma (contextual attribution within Purva-bhaga teachings)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: raudra
FAQs
Indirectly: it teaches satya and restraint in speech as dharmic disciplines that purify the mind (antaḥkaraṇa), which is a prerequisite for clear knowledge of the Self in the Kurma Purana’s broader soteriology.
The verse supports foundational self-restraints—truthfulness and non-injury through speech—functioning like yamas that stabilize the practitioner for higher disciplines described elsewhere in the Kurma Purana, including Pashupata-oriented inner purification.
It does so implicitly through shared dharma: the moral law governing speech is presented as universal, aligning with the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis where the same dharmic order underlies devotion and liberation.