Shloka 25
Prāyaścitta for Mahāpātakas: Liquor, Theft, Sexual Transgression, Contact with the Fallen, and Homicide
मातृष्वसां मातुलानीं तथैव च पितृष्वसाम् / भागिनेयीं समारुह्य कुर्यात् कृच्छ्रातिकृच्छ्रकौ
mātṛṣvasāṃ mātulānīṃ tathaiva ca pitṛṣvasām / bhāgineyīṃ samāruhya kuryāt kṛcchrātikṛcchrakau
ആരെങ്കിലും മാതൃസഹോദരി, മാമന്റെ ഭാര്യ, പിതൃസഹോദരി, അല്ലെങ്കിൽ സഹോദരിയുടെ മകൾ എന്നിവരോടു അധർമ്മമായി ചേർന്നാൽ, ‘കൃച്ഛ്ര’യും ‘അതികൃച്ഛ്ര’യും എന്ന കഠിന പ്രായശ്ചിത്തങ്ങൾ അനുഷ്ഠിക്കണം।
Sūta (narrator) relaying the Kurma Purana’s dharma-śāstric injunctions
Primary Rasa: bibhatsa
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
This verse does not directly teach ātma-jñāna; it establishes ethical restraints (dharma) and purification (prāyaścitta), which the Purāṇic tradition treats as foundational supports for inner clarity that later aids Self-knowledge.
No meditative technique is specified; the emphasis is on tapas-based purification through Kṛcchra and Atikṛcchra—disciplines that function as preparatory austerities supporting yogic steadiness and moral restraint.
It does not discuss Śiva–Viṣṇu theology explicitly; it reflects the shared Purāṇic dharma framework upheld across Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava contexts, where ethical order and expiation safeguard spiritual progress.