Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 17

Adhyāya 25 — Liṅga-māhātmya (The Chapter on the Liṅga): Hari’s Śiva-Worship and the Fiery Pillar Theophany

Devanagari script

एवं वै सुचिरं कालं देवदेवपुरे हरिः / रेमे नारायणः श्रीमान् मायया मोहयञ्जगत्

Transliteration

evaṃ vai suciraṃ kālaṃ devadevapure hariḥ / reme nārāyaṇaḥ śrīmān māyayā mohayañjagat

Translation

かくして久遠の時のあいだ、ハリ—栄光あるナーラーヤナ—はデーヴァデーヴァ・プラに住し、リーラーに歓喜しつつ、マーヤーによって世を迷妄へと導かれた。

Word by Word

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: क्रियाविशेषण (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of manner)

• वै: indeed
• वै: सम्बोधन/निपात (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle) बलार्थ/निश्चयार्थ (emphatic)

• सुचिरम्: for a long time
• सुचिरम्: कर्म (Karma—measure/extent)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुचिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन; नपुंसकलिङ्ग; कालम् इति विशेषण (qualifies kālam)

• कालम्: time (duration)
• कालम्: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa—temporal extent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन; पुल्लिङ्ग; कालावधि (extent of time)

• देवदेवपुरे: in the city of the god of gods
• देवदेवपुरे: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव + देव + पुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (devānāṃ devasya puram → devadevapuri); सप्तमी (Locative/सप्तमी), एकवचन; स्त्रीलिङ्ग (पुरी)

• हरिः: Hari
• हरिः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन; पुल्लिङ्ग

• रेमे: sportively enjoyed / dwelt happily
• रेमे: क्रिया (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: रम् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect/लिट्), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• नारायणः: Nārāyaṇa
• नारायणः: कर्ता (Karta—appositive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नारायण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा, एकवचन; पुल्लिङ्ग; हरिः इति समानाधिकरण (apposition)

• श्रीमान्: glorious; endowed with Śrī
• श्रीमान्: कर्ता (Karta—qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्रीमत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा, एकवचन; पुल्लिङ्ग; विशेषण (qualifies Nārāyaṇa/Hari)

• मायया: by (his) māyā
• मायया: करण (Karaṇa/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया (Instrumental), एकवचन; स्त्रीलिङ्ग

• मोहयन्: bewildering
• मोहयन्: क्रियाविशेषण (Adverbial participle—simultaneous action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: मुह् (धातु; णिच्)
• Form: वर्तमान-कृदन्त (Present active participle/शतृ), प्रथमा, एकवचन; पुल्लिङ्ग; परस्मैपद-भाव; णिच् (causative)

• जगत्: the world
• जगत्: कर्म (Karma/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जगत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन; नपुंसकलिङ्ग

Speaker

Purāṇic narrator (Sūta/Vyāsa tradition), describing Nārāyaṇa’s līlā

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Hari
• Narayana
• Maya
• Sri (Lakshmi)
• Devadeva-pura

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

It presents Nārāyaṇa as the sovereign reality who, by māyā, veils true knowledge—implying that bondage is not ultimate but arises from divine veiling, and liberation comes by seeing beyond māyā to the Supreme.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse itself emphasizes māyā as the cause of delusion; in the Kurma Purana’s yogic framework, this points to the need for viveka (discernment), vairāgya (dispassion), and steady dhyāna to pierce māyā and realize the Lord as the inner ruler.

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

By locating Hari in “Devadeva-pura” (a Shaiva-coded epithet) while affirming Nārāyaṇa’s supremacy, it supports the Purana’s synthesis: one supreme Īśvara is praised through both Shaiva and Vaishnava idioms, with māyā as his shared divine power.