Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 5
Cosmic Night, Nārāyaṇa as Brahmā, and the Varāha Raising of the Earth
आपो नारा इति प्रोक्ता नाम्ना पूर्वमिति श्रुतिः / अयनं तस्य ता यस्मात् तेन नारायणः स्मृतः
āpo nārā iti proktā nāmnā pūrvamiti śrutiḥ / ayanaṃ tasya tā yasmāt tena nārāyaṇaḥ smṛtaḥ
シュルティ（ヴェーダの啓示）は、諸々の水（アーパḥ）が古く「ナーラー」と呼ばれたと説く。それらの水が御身の安住の処・臥所（アヤナ）であるがゆえに、御方は「ナーラーヤナ」と憶念される。
Narrator (Purāṇic voice, citing śruti as authority)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
By grounding the Lord’s name in śruti and cosmology, the verse presents the Supreme as the all-supporting basis in which the primordial elements rest—an indicator of the Self as the ultimate substratum (āśraya) of creation.
No specific technique is prescribed in this verse; however, it supports contemplative upāsanā by offering a meditative name-definition (nāma-artha-smṛti): one contemplates Nārāyaṇa as the indwelling refuge of the cosmic waters, aligning devotion with metaphysical insight.
While Śiva is not named here, the method is characteristic of the Kurma Purana’s synthesis: the Supreme is taught through śruti-backed metaphysical attributes (abode, support, refuge), a framework later used to harmonize Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava understandings of one ultimate reality.