Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 7
Jambūdvīpa Varṣas, Bhārata as Karmabhūmi, and the Sacred Hydro-Topography of Dharma
तथा किंपुरुषे विप्रा मानवा हेमसन्निभाः / दशवर्षहस्त्राणि जीवन्ति प्लक्षभोजनाः
tathā kiṃpuruṣe viprā mānavā hemasannibhāḥ / daśavarṣahastrāṇi jīvanti plakṣabhojanāḥ
അതുപോലെ, ഹേ വിപ്രന്മാരേ, കിംപുരുഷ ദേശത്തിൽ മനുഷ്യർ സ്വർണ്ണസദൃശമായ കാന്തിയോടെ ഇരിക്കുന്നു. അവർ പ്ലക്ഷ (അത്തി) വൃക്ഷാഹാരത്തിൽ ആശ്രയിച്ച് പത്തായിരം വർഷം ജീവിക്കുന്നു.
Traditional narration in the Kurma Purana’s cosmography section (a sage-narrator addressing the gathered Brahmins).
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
This verse does not directly teach Ātman-doctrine; it belongs to the Purāṇic cosmography describing regional human conditions (appearance, diet, lifespan). Indirectly, it reflects how embodied life varies by loka/region while the Self remains unchanged across such conditions.
No explicit yoga practice is taught in this verse. Its value is contextual: the Kurma Purana pairs cosmography with later soteriological instruction (including Pāśupata-oriented devotion and discipline), showing that spiritual liberation is distinct from extraordinary regional longevity or refined diet.
It does not directly address Śiva–Viṣṇu unity; it is a descriptive statement about Kimpuruṣa-varṣa. In the broader Kurma Purana, such cosmographic passages sit alongside teachings that harmonize Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava devotion, but that synthesis is not the focus here.