Rudra’s Cosmic Dance and the Recognition of Rudra–Nārāyaṇa Unity (Īśvara-gītā Continuation)
पिनाकिनं विशालाक्षं भेषजं भवरोगिणाम् / कालात्मानं कालकालं देवदेवं महेश्वरम्
pinākinaṃ viśālākṣaṃ bheṣajaṃ bhavarogiṇām / kālātmānaṃ kālakālaṃ devadevaṃ maheśvaram
Je me prosterne devant Mahēśvara—porteur de l’arc Pināka, Seigneur au vaste regard—remède pour ceux que ronge la maladie du devenir mondain; Lui qui est le Temps même, le Vainqueur du Temps (Kālakāla), le Dieu des dieux.
A sage/narrator offering a stuti (hymn) to Śiva within the Purva-bhāga narrative frame
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
By calling Śiva “Time itself” and also “the conqueror of Time,” the verse points to a transcendent reality that both pervades cosmic processes and stands beyond them—suggesting the Supreme as immanent in change yet untouched by it.
The verse frames liberation as healing from “bhava-roga” (the sickness of saṃsāra). In Pāśupata-oriented reading, this implies devotion, contemplation, and surrender to Mahēśvara as the curative discipline that removes bondage and fear of time/death.
In the Kurma Purana’s synthetic theology, such praise of Śiva as supreme medicine and lord of time aligns with the broader Shaiva–Vaishnava unity motif: the highest Lord is approached through different divine forms without denying ultimate oneness.