Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 22

Dakṣa-yajña-bhaṅgaḥ — Dadhīci’s Teaching and the Destruction of Dakṣa’s Sacrifice

Devanagari script

हिरण्यगर्भो भगवान् ब्रह्मा ब्रह्मविदां वरः / पश्यतामेव सर्वेषां क्षणादन्तरधीयत

Transliteration

hiraṇyagarbho bhagavān brahmā brahmavidāṃ varaḥ / paśyatāmeva sarveṣāṃ kṣaṇādantaradhīyata

Translation

ഹിരണ്യഗർഭനായ ഭഗവാൻ ബ്രഹ്മാ, ബ്രഹ്മവിദ്യയിൽ ശ്രേഷ്ഠൻ—എല്ലാവരും നോക്കിനിൽക്കേ ഒരു ക്ഷണത്തിൽ അപ്രത്യക്ഷനായി.

Word by Word

• hiraṇya-garbhaḥ: Hiraṇyagarbha
• hiraṇya-garbhaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hiraṇya (प्रातिपदिक) + garbha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘hiraṇyasya garbhaḥ’ (golden embryo); Masculine nominative singular (प्रथमा एकवचन)

• bhagavān: the Blessed Lord
• bhagavān: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine nominative singular (प्रथमा एकवचन)

• brahmā: Brahmā
• brahmā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine nominative singular (प्रथमा एकवचन)

• brahma-vidām: of the knowers of Brahman
• brahma-vidām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + vid (विद्, धातु/प्रातिपदिक vid)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘brahma vidanti’ (knowers of Brahman); Masculine genitive plural (षष्ठी बहुवचन)

• varaḥ: the best/excellent one
• varaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine nominative singular (प्रथमा एकवचन); predicate/apposition to brahmā

• paśyatām: while (they were) seeing
• paśyatām: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (दृश्, धातु)
• Form: Present active participle genitive plural (शतृ → paśyat), Genitive plural (षष्ठी बहुवचन) used in genitive absolute sense (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Avadhāraṇa (अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; emphasis particle (अवधारण-निपात)

• sarveṣām: of all (of them)
• sarveṣām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/neuter genitive plural (षष्ठी बहुवचन)

• kṣaṇāt: in a moment/instantly
• kṣaṇāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine ablative singular (पञ्चमी एकवचन) used adverbially (काल-अपादान)

• antaradhīyata: disappeared/vanished
• antaradhīyata: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: antar-√dhā (धा, धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष) singular (एकवचन), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद)

Speaker

Purāṇic narrator (Sūta/primary narrator voice describing the event)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Characters & Entities

• Hiraṇyagarbha
• Brahmā

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

By showing even Brahmā (Hiraṇyagarbha) “disappearing” in an instant, the verse implies that manifest forms are transient and dependent, while the ultimate reality (Brahman/Ātman) is not an object of sight and remains beyond appearance and disappearance.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The key motif is antar-dhāna (withdrawal from perception), which aligns with yogic pratyāhāra and inner absorption: the practitioner turns attention away from external appearances toward the unmanifest ground, a theme compatible with Kurma Purana’s broader Yoga-shāstra orientation.

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

Indirectly, it supports the Purāṇa’s non-sectarian synthesis: Brahmā’s manifested role is shown as contingent within the higher, unmanifest principle that Shaiva and Vaishnava traditions alike identify with the Supreme (Īśvara), emphasizing unity beyond deity-forms.