Shloka 21
Prāyaścitta for Mahāpātakas: Liquor, Theft, Sexual Transgression, Contact with the Fallen, and Homicide
ब्रह्महत्या सुरापानं स्तेयं गुर्वङ्गनागमः / कृत्वा तैश्चापि संसर्गं ब्राह्मणः कामकारतः
brahmahatyā surāpānaṃ steyaṃ gurvaṅganāgamaḥ / kṛtvā taiścāpi saṃsargaṃ brāhmaṇaḥ kāmakārataḥ
कामवश स्वेच्छा से ब्राह्मण यदि ब्रह्महत्या, सुरापान, चोरी, या गुरु-पत्नीगमन करे—और ऐसे अपराधियों से जान-बूझकर संगति भी रखे—तो वह घोर पाप का भागी होता है।
Kurma Purana narrator (Purāṇic discourse on dharma and prāyaścitta; speaker varies by recension, presented as authoritative śāstric instruction)
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: raudra
FAQs
This verse is primarily dharma-śāstra in tone: it does not directly define Ātman, but it implies that desire-driven action (kāma-kārataḥ) veils discernment and leads to heavy karmic bondage, for which purification is required.
No specific meditation is taught here; rather, it sets the ethical floor for spiritual life by condemning mahāpātakas and even “contaminating association” (saṃsarga). Such restraint aligns with yogic yama-niyama and the purity prerequisites emphasized in Kurma Purana’s broader yoga-dharma teaching.
It does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; its contribution to the Purāṇa’s synthesis is indirect—establishing shared dharmic standards (sin, purity, atonement) that undergird both Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava paths in the Kurma Purana.