Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 15
Saṃnyāsa-dharma — Qualifications, Threefold Renunciation, and the Conduct of the Yati
ग्रामान्ते वृक्षमूले वा वसेद् देवालये ऽपि वा / समः शत्रौ च मित्रे च तथा मानापमानयोः / भैक्ष्येण वर्तयेन्नित्यं नैकान्नादी भवेत् क्वचित्
grāmānte vṛkṣamūle vā vased devālaye 'pi vā / samaḥ śatrau ca mitre ca tathā mānāpamānayoḥ / bhaikṣyeṇa vartayennityaṃ naikānnādī bhavet kvacit
तो गावाच्या टोकास, वृक्षाच्या मुळाशी किंवा देवालयातही वास करो. शत्रू-मित्र आणि मान-अपमान यांत सम राहो. भिक्षेवर नित्य निर्वाह करो आणि कधीही अनेक प्रकारचे अन्न खाणारा होऊ नये।
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing Indradyumna and the sages in the Upari-bhaga’s Shaiva-Vaishnava synthesis
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: vira
FAQs
By prescribing sameness toward friend/enemy and honor/dishonor, it points to Atman-vision (sama-darśana): the Self is steady and unaffected by social opposites, so the practitioner trains the mind to rest in that inner impartiality.
It highlights sādhana through vairāgya and niyama: simple dwelling (village edge/tree root/temple), bhikṣā as livelihood, and restraint from culinary variety—supports meditation by reducing distraction, strengthening contentment, and stabilizing samatva central to Pāśupata-oriented discipline.
In the Kurma Purana’s blended theology, Vishnu as Lord Kurma teaches a renunciate discipline often associated with Shaiva/Pāśupata asceticism, showing a shared yogic ethic and a unified path of liberation across Shaiva–Vaishnava traditions.