Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 14
Rules of Food, Acceptance, and Purity for the Twice-Born
Dvija-Śauca and Anna-Doṣa
पुनर्भुवो विशेषेण तथैव दिधिषूपतेः / अवज्ञातं चावधूतं सरोषं विस्मयान्वितम् / गुरोरपि न भोक्तव्यमन्नं संस्कारवर्जितम्
punarbhuvo viśeṣeṇa tathaiva didhiṣūpateḥ / avajñātaṃ cāvadhūtaṃ saroṣaṃ vismayānvitam / gurorapi na bhoktavyamannaṃ saṃskāravarjitam
Terutama, janganlah dimakan makanan daripada wanita yang berkahwin semula, dan demikian juga daripada suami wanita yang diambil kembali untuk perkahwinan. Makanan yang diberi dengan penghinaan, atau dicampak, atau diberi dalam kemarahan, atau dengan emosi hairan yang tidak wajar—jangan dimakan. Bahkan makanan daripada guru sendiri pun tidak patut dimakan jika tiada upacara penyucian (saṃskāra) yang sewajarnya.
Lord Kūrma (Viṣṇu) instructing in dharma-śāstra mode (purity and conduct)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa
FAQs
Indirectly: it frames spiritual life as grounded in śauca (purity) and saṃskāra (sanctifying discipline). Such regulation steadies the mind and supports inner clarity, which the Purāṇa treats as a prerequisite for realizing the Self beyond ritual and emotion.
This verse emphasizes preparatory yogic discipline rather than a technique: controlling intake (āhāra-śuddhi), avoiding food given in hostile or unstable mental states, and insisting on saṃskāra. In Kurma Purana’s broader teaching, such restraints function like yama/niyama supports for higher meditation and devotion.
By presenting dharma as a shared, non-sectarian foundation: purity, saṃskāra, and right conduct are upheld as universal supports for devotion and yoga, consistent with the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis where the same dharma undergirds worship of both Śiva and Viṣṇu.