Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 28

Tīrtha-Māhātmya: Mahālaya, Kedāra, Rivers and Fords, and Devadāru Forest

Akṣaya-Karma Doctrine

Devanagari script

पितॄणां दुहिता देवी गन्धकालीति विश्रुता / तस्यां स्नात्वा दिवं याति मृतो जातिस्मरो भवेत्

Transliteration

pitṝṇāṃ duhitā devī gandhakālīti viśrutā / tasyāṃ snātvā divaṃ yāti mṛto jātismaro bhavet

Translation

ಪಿತೃಗಳ ಪುತ್ರಿಯಾಗಿ ಆ ದೇವಿ ‘ಗಂಧಕಾಳಿ’ ಎಂದು ಪ್ರಸಿದ್ಧಳು. ಅವಳ ಪವಿತ್ರ ಜಲದಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ನಾನ ಮಾಡಿದವನು ಸ್ವರ್ಗವನ್ನು ಪಡೆಯುತ್ತಾನೆ; ಮೃತನೂ (ಅವಳ ಅನುಗ್ರಹದಿಂದ) ಪೂರ್ವಜನ್ಮಸ್ಮರಣ ಹೊಂದುವವನಾಗಬಹುದು.

Word by Word

• पितॄणाम्: of the ancestors/fathers
• पितॄणाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन (Plural), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine)

• दुहिता: daughter
• दुहिता: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुहितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/कर्ता), एकवचन (Singular), स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine)

• देवी: goddess
• देवी: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग

• गन्धकाली: Gandhakālī (name)
• गन्धकाली: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गन्ध + काली (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गन्धस्य काली = Gandha-kālī)

• इति: thus/so called
• इति: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/इत्यर्थक-अव्यय (quotative particle)

• विश्रुता: well-known
• विश्रुता: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि-श्रु (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (Past Passive Participle/क्त), प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग; विशेषणम् (qualifying देवी/गन्धकाली)

• तस्याम्: in her/therein
• तस्याम्: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/अधिकरण), एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग

• स्नात्वा: having bathed
• स्नात्वा: Kriya-viseshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्ना (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund/Absolutive), पूर्वकाले (having done earlier)

• दिवम्: to heaven
• दिवम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिव्/द्यौः (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/कर्म), एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग

• याति: goes
• याति: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• मृतः: dead (person)
• मृतः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृ (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP/क्त), प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग; कर्तृपद-विशेषणम् (qualifies implied ‘person’)

• जातिस्मरः: one who remembers past births
• जातिस्मरः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जाति + स्मर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (जातीनां स्मरः = one who remembers births)

• भवेत्: would become/may become
• भवेत्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

Speaker

Sūta (narrator) recounting the tīrtha-mahātmya within the Kurma Purana’s pilgrimage discourse

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Gandhakālī (Devī)
• Divam (Svarga)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly: it emphasizes purification and karmic uplift through tīrtha-snāna, implying that spiritual clarity (which culminates in Self-knowledge) is supported by dharmic acts that cleanse impediments (mala) and refine memory and awareness.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse foregrounds tīrtha-snāna as a purificatory limb supportive of sādhana—preparing the practitioner for higher disciplines like japa, dhyāna, and Pāśupata-oriented inner purification taught elsewhere in the Kurma Purana.

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

While not naming them, it reflects the Purana’s integrative dharma: Devī-tīrtha veneration and ancestral rites function within a wider framework where Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava paths share purification, merit, and liberation-oriented aims.