Daily Duties of Brāhmaṇas: Snāna, Sandhyā, Sūrya-hṛdaya, Japa, Tarpaṇa, and the Pañca-mahāyajñas
नमो ऽस्तु नीलग्रीवाय नमस्तुभ्यं पिनाकिने / विलोहिताय भर्गाय सहस्राक्षाय ते नमः
namo 'stu nīlagrīvāya namastubhyaṃ pinākine / vilohitāya bhargāya sahasrākṣāya te namaḥ
青き喉の御方に敬礼する。ピナーカの弓を携える汝に敬礼する。紅に輝く御方に敬礼する。罪を焼き尽くす光輝のバルガに敬礼する。さらに千眼の主なる汝に敬礼する。
A devotee/reciter within the narrative offering a Shiva-stuti (contextual chorus of praise in Purva-bhaga)
Primary Rasa: bhakti
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
By praising Shiva as all-seeing (sahasrākṣa) and as purifying radiance (bharga), the verse points to the Supreme as the inner light that knows all and burns ignorance—an Atman/Ishvara vision expressed through devotional language.
The verse models bhakti-yoga as a preparatory discipline: repeated namas (salutation) steadies attention (ekāgratā) on divine attributes—an approach compatible with the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva-Pashupata orientation where devotion supports inner purification before higher contemplative practice.
Even when the Kurma Purana presents Vishnu-Kurma as a central teacher elsewhere, this hymn honors Shiva with supreme epithets, reflecting the Purana’s synthetic theology where the one Ishvara is revered through both Shaiva and Vaishnava forms rather than as competing deities.