Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 17
Aśauca-vidhi — Rules of Birth/Death Impurity, Sapinda Circles, and Śrāddha Sequence
अदन्तजातमरणं संभवेद् यदि सत्तमाः / एकरात्रं सपिण्डानां यदि ते ऽत्यन्तनिर्गुणाः
adantajātamaraṇaṃ saṃbhaved yadi sattamāḥ / ekarātraṃ sapiṇḍānāṃ yadi te 'tyantanirguṇāḥ
Ô le meilleur des vertueux : si survient la mort d’un nourrisson qui n’a pas encore percé ses dents, alors pour les parents sapiṇḍa l’aśauca n’est que d’une nuit, pourvu qu’ils soient entièrement dépourvus des qualités ou observances prescrites.
Sūta (narrating Vyāsa’s Purāṇic teaching to the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya)
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
This verse is primarily dharma-śāstra in focus: it regulates external aśauca after an infant’s death. Indirectly, it reflects the Purāṇic view that inner purity and disciplined living support spiritual clarity, even while social rites are observed.
No direct yogic technique is taught in this line; it belongs to the śrāddha/aśauca framework. In the Kurma Purana’s broader synthesis, such ritual restraint and regulated conduct function as preparatory discipline (yama-niyama–like supports) for higher contemplation.
The verse itself is neutral and procedural, not sectarian. In the Kurma Purana’s overall Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, dharma (including śrāddha norms) is upheld as a shared foundation for devotion and liberation, regardless of whether one approaches through Śiva or Nārāyaṇa.