Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 5
Prāyaścitta for Mahāpātakas: Liquor, Theft, Sexual Transgression, Contact with the Fallen, and Homicide
गृहीत्वा मुसलं राजा सकृद् हन्यात् ततः स्वयम् / वधे तु शुद्ध्यते स्तेनो ब्राह्मणस्तपसैव वा
gṛhītvā musalaṃ rājā sakṛd hanyāt tataḥ svayam / vadhe tu śuddhyate steno brāhmaṇastapasaiva vā
राजा गदा लेकर उसे एक बार प्रहार करे और फिर स्वयं (दण्ड का विधान करे)। वध होने पर चोर शुद्ध होता है; पर ब्राह्मण (का शोधन) केवल तप से होता है।
Sūta (narrator) relaying the Kurma Purana’s dharma-teaching context
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It does not directly define Ātman; it focuses on dharma as a purificatory order where sin is ‘burned’ through appropriate consequences (danda) or tapas, implying moral causality under divine law.
Tapas (austerity) is the key discipline mentioned—especially as a Brāhmaṇa’s means of purification—aligning with yogic self-restraint (yama/niyama) emphasized across the Kurma Purana’s broader spiritual framework.
The verse is primarily juridical (rajadharma) rather than theological; indirectly, it reflects the Purana’s synthesis by grounding social law and purification within a single sacred order upheld across Shaiva-Vaishnava teachings.