Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 9

Kṛṣṇa’s Departure, Kali-yuga Dharma, and the Prohibition of Śiva-Nindā

Hari–Hara Samanvaya

Devanagari script

प्रवर्तयध्वं मज्ज्ञानं ब्राह्मणानां हितावहम् / येनेमे कलिजैः पापैर्मुच्यन्ते हि द्विजोत्तमाः

Transliteration

pravartayadhvaṃ majjñānaṃ brāhmaṇānāṃ hitāvaham / yeneme kalijaiḥ pāpairmucyante hi dvijottamāḥ

Translation

「婆羅門たちの安寧に資する、わが霊的智を起こし、弘めよ。それによって、カリの世に生じた罪より、最勝の二度生まれ（ドヴィジャ）たちはまことに解き放たれる。」

Word by Word

• pravartayadhvam: set in motion / propagate
• pravartayadhvam: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√vṛt (धातु) [णिच् causative: प्रवर्तयति]
• Form: लोट्-लकार (imperative), आत्मनेपद; मध्यमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• mat-jñānam: my knowledge/teaching
• mat-jñānam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + jñāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (mama jñānam)

• brāhmaṇānām: of the Brahmins
• brāhmaṇānām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• hita-āvaham: bringing welfare
• hita-āvaham: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hita (प्रातिपदिक) + ā-√vah (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक (णिनि/अण्-भाव: आवह = bringing); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (hitam āvahati iti)

• yena: by which
• yena: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• ime: these
• ime: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• kali-jaiḥ: born of Kali
• kali-jaiḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kali (प्रातिपदिक) + ja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (kaleḥ jāta = born of Kali)

• pāpaiḥ: from/by sins
• pāpaiḥ: Hetu/Karaṇa (हेतु/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन

• mucyante: are freed
• mucyante: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √muc (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (present), आत्मनेपद; प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive sense: are released)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle)

• dvija-uttamāḥ: excellent Brahmins
• dvija-uttamāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (uttamāḥ dvijāḥ)

Speaker

Lord Kurma (Vishnu as the Kurma incarnation), instructing sages/disciples to disseminate salvific teaching for Kali-yuga

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: vira

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Kali-yuga
• Brahmanas
• Dvija

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

It points to “My knowledge” (mat-jñāna) as the saving means—implying that realization of the Lord’s true nature (Īśvara-tattva) is the purifying knowledge by which the twice-born overcome Kali-yuga’s sin and obscuration.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse emphasizes jñāna as a practical discipline to be “propagated”—in Kurma Purana’s idiom, this aligns with teaching the Lord-centered path that supports Yoga-shastra (inner purification, devotion, and contemplative understanding), a foundation for Pāśupata-oriented and allied yogic sādhanā.

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

While Vishnu (as Lord Kurma) speaks, the verse’s stress on liberating “knowledge of the Lord” matches the Purana’s broader synthesis where one supreme reality is approached through shared yogic-jñāna ideals honored across both Vaiṣṇava and Śaiva streams.