Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 11
Tīrtha-Māhātmya and the Discipline of Pilgrimage (Tīrtha-sevā) within Prāyaścitta
महाकालमिति ख्यातं तीर्थं त्रैलोक्यविश्रुतम् / गत्वा प्राणान् परित्यज्य गाणपत्यमवाप्नुयात्
mahākālamiti khyātaṃ tīrthaṃ trailokyaviśrutam / gatvā prāṇān parityajya gāṇapatyamavāpnuyāt
‘മഹാകാല’ എന്നു പ്രസിദ്ധവും ത്രൈലോക്യവിഖ്യാതവുമായ ആ തീർത്ഥത്തിൽ ചെന്നു പ്രാണത്യാഗം ചെയ്യുന്നവൻ ഗാണപത്യമായ ഗണപതിപദം പ്രാപിക്കുന്നു.
Lord Kūrma (Vishnu) instructing in a tīrtha-māhātmya context
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
Indirectly: it frames death at a sanctified tīrtha as a spiritually charged transition, implying that the end of prāṇa can become a yogic “departure” aligned with divine order, rather than mere physical cessation.
The verse emphasizes tīrtha-sevā and intentional end-of-life renunciation (prāṇa-parityāga) at a holy place—an ascetic ideal that complements Kurma Purana disciplines (niyama, devotion, and ritual purity), even when not detailing formal āsana/prāṇāyāma.
By venerating “Mahākāla” (a strongly Śaiva epithet) within a Kūrma (Viṣṇu) discourse and promising a Gaṇapatya attainment, it reflects the Purāṇa’s integrative theology—multiple deities and their realms function within one dharmic-cosmic framework.