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Shloka 38

Prākṛta Sṛṣṭi and Pralaya: From Pradhāna to Brahmāṇḍa; Trimūrti Samanvaya

स वै शरीरी प्रथमः स वै पुरुष उच्यते / आदिकर्ता स भूतानां ब्रह्माग्रे समवर्तत

sa vai śarīrī prathamaḥ sa vai puruṣa ucyate / ādikartā sa bhūtānāṃ brahmāgre samavartata

Ele foi, de fato, o primeiro a possuir corpo; é chamado Puruṣa. Como o criador primordial dos seres, manifestou-se antes de Brahmā.

सःhe
सः:
Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
TypeNoun
Rootतद् (प्रातिपदिक)
Formसर्वनाम (pronoun), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन
वैindeed
वै:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Emphasis particle)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootवै (अव्यय)
Formनिपात (particle), अव्यय; निश्चयार्थ/प्रसिद्ध्यर्थ
शरीरीembodied
शरीरी:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
TypeAdjective
Rootशरीरिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
Formपुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; ‘having a body’
प्रथमःfirst
प्रथमः:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
TypeAdjective
Rootप्रथम (प्रातिपदिक)
Formपुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन
सःhe
सः:
Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
TypeNoun
Rootतद् (प्रातिपदिक)
Formसर्वनाम (pronoun), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन
वैindeed
वै:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Emphasis particle)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootवै (अव्यय)
Formनिपात (particle), अव्यय
पुरुषःPuruṣa, person
पुरुषः:
Karta (कर्ता/Subject complement)
TypeNoun
Rootपुरुष (प्रातिपदिक)
Formपुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन
उच्यतेis called
उच्यते:
Kriyā (क्रिया/Verb)
TypeVerb
Rootवच् (धातु)
Formलट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive)
आदिकर्ताthe first creator
आदिकर्ता:
Karta (कर्ता/Subject apposition)
TypeNoun
Rootआदि + कर्तृ (प्रातिपदिक)
Formपुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; समासः—आदौ कर्ता (तत्पुरुष)
सःhe
सः:
Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
TypeNoun
Rootतद् (प्रातिपदिक)
Formसर्वनाम (pronoun), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन
भूतानाम्of beings
भूतानाम्:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive relation)
TypeNoun
Rootभूत (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन
ब्रह्माग्रेat the beginning of Brahmā (creation)
ब्रह्माग्रे:
Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Location/Time)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootब्रह्मन् + अग्र (प्रातिपदिक)
Formअव्ययीभावसमास; ‘ब्रह्मणः अग्रे’ इति (locative sense), अव्ययवत् प्रयोग
समवर्ततcame into being, arose
समवर्तत:
Kriyā (क्रिया/Verb)
TypeVerb
Rootसम् + वृत् (धातु)
Formलङ् (Imperfect), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

Sūta (narrating the Purāṇic account to the sages, describing the primordial Puruṣa prior to Brahmā)

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

P
Puruṣa
B
Brahmā

FAQs

It presents the Supreme as the primordial Puruṣa—first to assume an embodied, manifest aspect—who precedes even Brahmā, indicating a trans-cosmic source that becomes the causal agent of creation.

No direct practice is prescribed in this verse; its yogic import is contemplative—meditating on the Puruṣa as the prior cause of all beings supports īśvara-dhyāna (God-centered meditation) foundational to later Pāśupata-oriented teachings in the Kurma Purāṇa.

By emphasizing one primordial Puruṣa as the source even before Brahmā, the verse supports the Kurma Purāṇa’s integrative theology where the supreme creative principle can be understood through both Vaiṣṇava (Puruṣa/Nārāyaṇa) and Śaiva (Īśvara) lenses without contradiction.