Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 13
Madhu–Kaiṭabha, Nārāyaṇa’s Yoga-Nidrā, Rudra’s Manifestation, and the Aṣṭamūrti–Trimūrti Teaching
पुरस्तादसृजद् देवः सनन्दं सनकं तथा / ऋभुं सनत्कुमारं च पुर्वजं तं सनातनम्
purastādasṛjad devaḥ sanandaṃ sanakaṃ tathā / ṛbhuṃ sanatkumāraṃ ca purvajaṃ taṃ sanātanam
ആദിയിൽ ഭഗവാൻ സനന്ദനെയും സനകനെയും, കൂടാതെ ഋഭുവിനെയും സനത്കുമാരനെയും സൃഷ്ടിച്ചു—അവർ ആദിമർ, പുരാതനർ, ആദ്യജന്മർ, സനാതനർ ആയിരുന്നു।
Narrator (Purāṇic narrator, traditionally Sūta conveying the account of creation)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
By presenting creation as proceeding from the Deva (Īśvara), the verse implies a conscious, supreme source from which even the primordial sages arise—pointing to the Atman/Īśvara as the foundational reality behind manifested beings.
This verse itself is cosmogonic, but by naming sages like Sanaka and Sanatkumāra—archetypes of renunciation and jñāna-yoga—it signals the Purāṇa’s broader emphasis on knowledge, detachment, and contemplative discipline that culminates in Śiva-Viṣṇu integrated devotion and yogic steadiness.
It frames the supreme Deva as the source of the highest sages, supporting the Kurma Purana’s tendency to treat ultimate lordship as a unified Īśvara principle—harmonizing Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava theological language rather than setting them in opposition.