Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 52
Adhyāya 25 — Liṅga-māhātmya (The Chapter on the Liṅga): Hari’s Śiva-Worship and the Fiery Pillar Theophany
मार्कण्डेय उवाच कः समाराध्यते देवो भवता कर्मभिः शुभैः / ब्रूहि त्वं कर्मभिः पूज्यो योगिनां ध्येय एव च
mārkaṇḍeya uvāca kaḥ samārādhyate devo bhavatā karmabhiḥ śubhaiḥ / brūhi tvaṃ karmabhiḥ pūjyo yogināṃ dhyeya eva ca
Mārkaṇḍeya berkata: “Dengan perbuatan-perbuatan mulia yang baik itu, dewa manakah yang engkau puja hingga berkenan? Katakanlah—siapakah yang patut disembah melalui upacara dan amal, dan siapakah pula yang menjadi tumpuan meditasi para yogin?”
Markandeya
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It frames the central Kurma Purana question: the one reality sought through outer karma (ritual/merit) should also be the inner dhyeya (object of yogic meditation), implying a single Ishvara/Atman to be approached by both action and contemplation.
The verse explicitly links karmabhiḥ pūjyaḥ (worship through prescribed acts) with yogināṃ dhyeyaḥ (meditative focus), pointing to an integrated path where ritual discipline supports inward dhyāna on Ishvara—typical of Purāṇic Yoga that harmonizes karma, upāsanā, and meditation.
While neither name is stated, the question anticipates the Kurma Purana’s synthetic theology: the deity worshipped by rites and contemplated by yogins is one supreme Ishvara, later articulated in Shaiva-Vaishnava unity themes across the text.