Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 11

Jambūdvīpa Varṣas, Bhārata as Karmabhūmi, and the Sacred Hydro-Topography of Dharma

Devanagari script

तत्र चन्द्रप्रभं शुभ्रं शुद्धस्फटिकनिर्मितम् / विमानं वासुदेवस्य पारिजातवनाश्रितम्

Transliteration

tatra candraprabhaṃ śubhraṃ śuddhasphaṭikanirmitam / vimānaṃ vāsudevasya pārijātavanāśritam

Translation

そこにて彼は、吉祥にして光り輝くヴィマーナを見た。月のごとく白く、清浄なる水晶で造られ、ヴァースデーヴァの御座として、パーリジャータの林に安置されていた。

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण

• चन्द्र-प्रभम्: moon-bright
• चन्द्र-प्रभम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: candra (प्रातिपदिक) + prabhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; समास: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष ‘चन्द्रस्य प्रभा इव/चन्द्रप्रभा’ (moon-lustrous)

• शुभ्रम्: white, radiant
• शुभ्रम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śubhra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; विमानम् इति विशेष्यस्य विशेषण

• शुद्ध-स्फटिक-निर्मितम्: made of pure crystal
• शुद्ध-स्फटिक-निर्मितम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śuddha (प्रातिपदिक) + sphaṭika (प्रातिपदिक) + √mā (मा धातु) → nirmita (कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त ‘निर्मित’; समास: शुद्ध-स्फटिक (कर्मधारय) + निर्मित (तत्पुरुष: ‘made of’)

• विमानम्: a celestial chariot/palace
• विमानम्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vimāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• वासुदेवस्य: of Vāsudeva
• वासुदेवस्य: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāsudeva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी विभक्ति (genitive, 6th), एकवचन

• पारिजात-वन-आश्रितम्: situated in the Pārijāta grove
• पारिजात-वन-आश्रितम्: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pārijāta (प्रातिपदिक) + vana (प्रातिपदिक) + ā-√śri (श्रि धातु) → āśrita (कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (here agreeing with विमानम् as nominative); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त ‘आश्रित’; समास: पारिजात-वन (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष ‘of the pārijāta-grove’) + आश्रित (तत्पुरुष: ‘situated in/depending on’)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narration, traditionally Sūta/Vyāsa’s discourse framework)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Vāsudeva
• Vimāna
• Pārijāta

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

By portraying Vāsudeva’s realm as moon-bright and crystal-pure, the verse points to the Supreme as self-luminous (svayaṃ-prakāśa) and accessible through inner purity—an imagistic teaching that the highest reality is unstained and radiant.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The emphasis on “pure crystal” and “radiance” aligns with yogic śuddhi (purification) and dhyāna (steady contemplation): as the mind becomes clear like sphaṭika, divine vision (darśana) becomes possible—an idea echoed in Kurma Purana’s broader yoga-dharma instructions.

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

Though the verse names Vāsudeva, its symbolism of purity and luminous abode fits the Purāṇa’s synthetic theology: the same transcendent purity and light is affirmed across sectarian forms, supporting a non-competitive Shaiva–Vaishnava sacred horizon.