Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 22
Cosmic Realms Above Dhruva, the Pātālas Below, and the Foundation of Pralaya
Ananta–Kāla
नितलं यवनाद्यैश्च तारकाग्निमुखैस्तथा / महान्तकाद्यैर्नागैश्च प्रह्मादेनासुरेण च
nitalaṃ yavanādyaiśca tārakāgnimukhaistathā / mahāntakādyairnāgaiśca prahmādenāsureṇa ca
Di alam bawah bernama Nitala, berdiam kaum Yavana dan yang lain-lain; demikian juga makhluk seperti Tāraka dan Agnimukha. Ia turut dihuni para Nāga bermula dengan Mahāntaka, serta Asura bernama Brahmāde (Brahmāda).
Sūta (narrating Purāṇic cosmology to the sages, in the Kurma Purana’s discourse frame)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
This verse is primarily cosmographical, listing inhabitants of Nitala; indirectly, it reflects the Purāṇic view that all realms and beings—humans, Nāgas, and Asuras—exist within the ordered manifestation governed by the Supreme Lord, who remains transcendent to these strata.
No specific yogic technique is taught in this verse; its function is descriptive (lokas and inhabitants). In Kurma Purana study, such cosmology often supports vairāgya (detachment) by contextualizing worldly and otherworldly domains as impermanent compared to liberation taught in later yoga and īśvara-centered sections.
The verse does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; however, within the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, cosmological descriptions like this are typically framed as part of a single divine order upheld by the same Supreme Reality, revered through both Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava idioms.