Adhyāya 25 — Liṅga-māhātmya (The Chapter on the Liṅga): Hari’s Śiva-Worship and the Fiery Pillar Theophany
सुरम्ये मण्डपे शुभ्रे शङ्खाद्यैः परिवारितः / आत्मजैरभितो मुख्यैः स्त्रीसहस्त्रैश्च संवृतः
suramye maṇḍape śubhre śaṅkhādyaiḥ parivāritaḥ / ātmajairabhito mukhyaiḥ strīsahastraiśca saṃvṛtaḥ
സുരമ്യവും ശുഭ്രവുമായ മണ്ഡപത്തിൽ, ശംഖാദി പ്രധാന പരിചാരകരാൽ ചുറ്റപ്പെട്ട്, തന്റെ ശ്രേഷ്ഠ പുത്രന്മാർ എല്ലാടവും വലയമായി നില്ക്കെ, ആയിരക്കണക്കിന് സ്ത്രീകളാലും അദ്ദേഹം നിറഞ്ഞിരുന്നു।
Narrator (Purāṇic narrator continuing the royal/cosmic scene description; traditionally Sūta or Vyāsa in frame narration)
Primary Rasa: shringara
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
This verse is primarily descriptive and does not directly teach Ātman-doctrine; it sets a worldly scene of majesty and prosperity that later Purāṇic teaching often contrasts with inner renunciation and devotion to the Supreme.
No explicit Yoga practice is taught in this line; it functions as narrative atmosphere. In the Kurma Purana, such depictions commonly frame later instructions on dharma, devotion (bhakti), and Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, including Pāśupata-oriented discipline in other sections.
This verse does not mention Śiva or Viṣṇu directly; it is a courtly tableau. The Kurma Purana’s broader method is to embed later non-dual and harmonizing theology (Śiva–Viṣṇu unity) within such narrative settings.