Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 14
Kali-yuga Doṣas, the Supremacy of Rudra as Refuge, and the Closure of the Manvantara Teaching
शस्यचौरा भविष्यन्ति तथा चैलाभिमर्षिणः / चौराश्चौरस्य हर्तारो हर्तुर्हर्ता तथापरः
śasyacaurā bhaviṣyanti tathā cailābhimarṣiṇaḥ / caurāścaurasya hartāro harturhartā tathāparaḥ
நின்ற பயிரைத் திருடும் கள்வர்கள் இருப்பர்; ஆடைகளைப் பறிக்கும்ோர் கூட இருப்பர். கள்வன் கள்வனைத் தானே கொள்ளையிடுவான்; ஒரு கொள்ளையன் மற்றொரு கொள்ளையனால் கொள்ளையடிக்கப்படுவான்—கொள்ளைமேல் கொள்ளை நடக்கும்.
Narrator (Purāṇic discourse describing Kali-yuga conditions, in the flow of the Kurma Purana dialogue tradition)
Primary Rasa: bibhatsa
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
Indirectly: by portraying Kali-yuga as dominance of greed and mutual predation, it implies that forgetting the Atman (inner witness) leads to adharma; remembrance of the Self is the basis for restraint and dharmic conduct.
No specific technique is named in this verse; it functions as a diagnostic of Kali-yuga. In Kurma Purana’s broader teaching, such decline is countered by self-discipline (yama-niyama), devotion to Īśvara, and Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis practices associated with Pāśupata-oriented purification and dharma.
It does not explicitly mention Shiva or Vishnu; however, within the Kurma Purana’s non-sectarian frame, the remedy for Kali-yuga disorder is devotion to the one Īśvara revered as both Hari and Hara, restoring dharma through unified theistic practice.