Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 34

Madhu–Kaiṭabha, Nārāyaṇa’s Yoga-Nidrā, Rudra’s Manifestation, and the Aṣṭamūrti–Trimūrti Teaching

Devanagari script

जरामरणनिर्मुक्तान् महावृषभवाहनान् / वीतरागांश्च सर्वज्ञान् कोटिकोटिशतान् प्रभुः

Transliteration

jarāmaraṇanirmuktān mahāvṛṣabhavāhanān / vītarāgāṃśca sarvajñān koṭikoṭiśatān prabhuḥ

Translation

主は、幾百のクロールにも及ぶ無量の者たちを御覧になった――老いと死を離れ、大いなる牡牛に乗り、執着を断ち、遍知の智慧に円満なる者たちであった。

Word by Word

• jarā-maraṇa-nirmuktān: freed from old age and death
• jarā-maraṇa-nirmuktān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jarā (प्रातिपदिक) + maraṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + nirmukta (कृदन्त; मुच् धातु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), बहुवचन; कृदन्त-विशेषण: निः + मुच् (धातु) + क्त (PPP) = निर्मुक्त; तत्पुरुषसमासः (जरामरणयोः निर्मुक्ताः)

• mahā-vṛṣabha-vāhanān: having a great bull as mount
• mahā-vṛṣabha-vāhanān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + vṛṣabha (प्रातिपदिक) + vāhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषसमासः (महान् वृषभः यस्य वाहनम्/वाहनः)

• vīta-rāgān: free from attachment
• vīta-rāgān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vīta (कृदन्त; वि + इ धातु) + rāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कृदन्त-विशेषण: वि + इ (धातु) + क्त = वीत; तत्पुरुषः (रागः वीतः येषाम्)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• sarva-jñān: all-knowing
• sarva-jñān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + jña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयसमासः (सर्वे च ते ज्ञाः)

• koṭi-koṭi-śatān: hundreds of crores upon crores
• koṭi-koṭi-śatān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; द्विगुसमासः (संख्यासमासः)

• prabhuḥ: the Lord
• prabhuḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (कर्ता), एकवचन

Speaker

Sūta (narrator) describing the vision within the Kurma Purana narrative frame

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Prabhu (Lord)
• Vṛṣabha (bull-mount motif, Shaiva retinue)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

By portraying liberated beings as beyond old age and death and established in dispassion and complete knowledge, the verse points to realization of the deathless Self—attained through freedom from rāga and the rise of jñāna.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The markers given—vīta-rāga (dispassion) and sarva-jñāna (perfected knowledge)—align with the Kurma Purana’s Yoga-shastra emphasis: inner renunciation, steady contemplation, and knowledge that culminates in moksha, resonant with Pashupata-oriented discipline.

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

The bull-mount imagery evokes Shaiva symbolism within a narrative centered on the Lord, reflecting the Kurma Purana’s synthetic theology where the highest reality is honored through both Shaiva and Vaishnava idioms rather than treated as rival deities.