Shloka 20
Tāmasa Sarga, the Androgynous Division of Brahmā, and the Lineages of Dharma and Adharma
श्रद्धाया आत्मजः कामो दर्पो लक्ष्मीसुतः स्मृतः / धृत्यास्तु नियमः पुत्रस्तुष्ट्याः संतोष उच्यते
śraddhāyā ātmajaḥ kāmo darpo lakṣmīsutaḥ smṛtaḥ / dhṛtyāstu niyamaḥ putrastuṣṭyāḥ saṃtoṣa ucyate
Da Fé (Śraddhā) nasce o Desejo (Kāma). O Orgulho (Darpa) é lembrado como filho de Lakṣmī, a Fortuna. Da Constância (Dhṛti) surge, como filho, Niyama, a Observância; e de Tuṣṭi, a Satisfação, declara-se que brota Saṃtoṣa, o Contentamento.
Sūta (narrating the Purāṇic account to the sages; genealogical exposition in the Kurma Purana’s Purva-bhaga)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
Indirectly: it maps the inner psychological-ethical chain (faith, desire, pride, discipline, contentment). Such mapping supports the Kurma Purana’s broader teaching that mastery of the mind through dharma and yoga prepares one for Self-knowledge (ātma-jñāna), even though the verse itself is genealogical.
The verse explicitly names Niyama (regulated observance) and Saṃtoṣa (contentment), key yogic disciplines. In Kurma Purana’s yoga-oriented framework, these stabilize conduct and mind, forming an ethical base for deeper practice (restraint, meditation, and devotion).
It does not directly mention Shiva or Vishnu; however, its emphasis on yogic virtues (niyama, santoṣa) aligns with the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, where disciplined dharma and yoga are shared means to realize the one supreme reality revered through both traditions.