Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 23
Kali-yuga Doṣas, the Supremacy of Rudra as Refuge, and the Closure of the Manvantara Teaching
तपोयज्ञफलानां च विक्रेतारो द्विजोत्तमाः / यतयश्च भविष्यन्ति शतशो ऽथ सहस्त्रशः
tapoyajñaphalānāṃ ca vikretāro dvijottamāḥ / yatayaśca bhaviṣyanti śataśo 'tha sahastraśaḥ
Ó melhor dos duas‑vezes‑nascidos, haverá brâmanes que vendam os frutos das austeridades e dos sacrifícios; e também surgirão ascetas (yati), às centenas, até aos milhares.
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing sages on Kali-yuga traits
Primary Rasa: bibhatsa
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
Indirectly: by condemning the commercialization of tapas and yajña, the verse implies that true spiritual realization is inward and cannot be bought or sold; Atman-knowledge is not a marketable “result” but a transformation of being.
The verse highlights tapas (disciplined austerity) and yajña (sacrificial worship) as authentic disciplines, while warning that in Kali-yuga their “fruits” may be treated as commodities; it also cautions against the rise of merely outward, ungrounded renunciant identities.
It supports the Purana’s synthetic stance by emphasizing dharma-based inner discipline over sectarian display—an ethic shared across Shaiva-Pashupata and Vaishnava traditions, where genuine yoga and worship are measured by integrity, not by public branding.