Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 26
Oṅkāra-Liṅga and the Secret Pañcāyatana Liṅgas of Kāśī: Kṛttivāseśvara-Māhātmya
गायन्ति सिद्धाः किल गीतकानि ये वाराणस्यां निवसन्ति विप्राः / तेषामथैकेन भवेन मुक्तिर् ये कृत्तिवासं शरणं प्रपन्नाः
gāyanti siddhāḥ kila gītakāni ye vārāṇasyāṃ nivasanti viprāḥ / teṣāmathaikena bhavena muktir ye kṛttivāsaṃ śaraṇaṃ prapannāḥ
De fato, os Siddhas entoam cânticos sagrados sobre os brâmanes que habitam em Vārāṇasī. Para eles, a libertação vem numa só vida—os que tomaram Kṛttivāsa (Śiva) como refúgio e abrigo.
Suta (traditional Purana narrator) describing the Varanasi-Kashi liberation doctrine within the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva-Vaishnava synthesis
Primary Rasa: bhakti
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
It frames liberation as attainable through śaraṇāgati (taking refuge) in Śiva at Kāśī, implying that realization and release are granted by divine grace to the surrendered, rather than merely by prolonged worldly striving.
The verse emphasizes bhakti-yoga expressed as prapatti (complete surrender) to Kṛttivāsa; in Kurma Purana’s broader teaching, such devotion harmonizes with disciplined conduct and inner purification associated with Pāśupata-oriented spirituality.
By presenting mokṣa through refuge in Śiva within a Vaiṣṇava Purāṇa context, it supports the Kurma Purana’s non-sectarian synthesis: liberation is upheld through devotion to the Supreme as manifest in Śiva, without contradicting Viṣṇu’s overarching divinity.