Shloka 22
Dharma of Non-Injury, Non-Stealing, Purity, and Avoidance of Hypocrisy (Ācāra and Saṅkarya-Nivṛtti)
अश्रोत्रियेषु वै दानाद् वृषलेषु तथैव च / विहिताचारहीनेषु क्षिप्रं नश्यति वै कुलम्
aśrotriyeṣu vai dānād vṛṣaleṣu tathaiva ca / vihitācārahīneṣu kṣipraṃ naśyati vai kulam
അശ്രോത്രിയർ (വേദപഠനമില്ലാത്തവർ), വൃഷലർ (അയോഗ്യർ/നീചർ), വിധിതാചാരമില്ലാത്തവർ—ഇവർക്കു ദാനം ചെയ്താൽ കുലം നിശ്ചയമായും വേഗം നശിക്കുന്നു।
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing on dharma to the interlocutors in the Kurma Purana narrative frame
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
This verse is primarily dharma-śāstra in tone: it stresses ethical discernment in giving (dāna) and the karmic consequences for one’s kula, rather than directly defining Ātman. Indirectly, it assumes a moral order where actions (karma) produce tangible results, aligning with Purāṇic teachings that inner purity and right conduct support spiritual progress.
No specific yoga technique is taught here. The verse supports the yogic foundation of yama-niyama-like discipline by emphasizing vihita-ācāra (prescribed conduct) and discrimination in charity—ethical purity that undergirds higher practices discussed elsewhere in the Kurma Purana (including later Shaiva-Vaishnava synthesis and Pashupata-oriented themes).
The verse does not explicitly mention Shiva. Its harmony with the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva-Vaishnava synthesis lies in shared dharmic principles: right conduct (ācāra) and properly directed religious action (like dāna) are upheld as universally binding, irrespective of whether devotion is framed through Vishnu (Kurma) or Shaiva/Pashupata contexts elsewhere in the text.