Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 57
Cosmic Manifestation, Mahāmāyā’s Mandate, Varṇāśrama-Dharma, and the Unity of the Trimūrti
य एवं वेद धर्मार्थकाममोक्षस्य मानवः / माहात्म्यं चानुतिष्ठेत स चानन्त्याय कल्पते
ya evaṃ veda dharmārthakāmamokṣasya mānavaḥ / māhātmyaṃ cānutiṣṭheta sa cānantyāya kalpate
जो मनुष्य धर्म, अर्थ, काम व मोक्ष यांचे हे तत्त्व जाणतो आणि या पवित्र माहात्म्यानुसार आचरण करतो, तो अनंत पदास पात्र होतो।
Suta (narrating the Kurma Purana’s teaching as received from the sages)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: vira
FAQs
By promising “ānantya” (endlessness/imperishability) to the knower-practitioner, the verse points to liberation as entry into the deathless, unbounded reality that transcends finite aims—an Upanishadic marker of the Atman/Brahman state.
The verse emphasizes anutiṣṭhāna—disciplined observance and lived practice—rather than mere study. In Kurma Purana’s idiom this aligns with yoga-sādhana grounded in dharma (ethical restraint), devotion, and regulated conduct that matures into mokṣa.
Though not naming them explicitly, the teaching reflects the Purana’s synthesis: liberation comes from knowing the puruṣārthas and practicing the praised sacred path (māhātmya) endorsed across Shaiva–Vaishnava frameworks, where right observance culminates in the imperishable goal.