Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 28
Vānaprastha-Dharma: Forest Discipline, Vaikhānasa Austerities, and Śiva-Āśrama as the Liberative Refuge
ग्रीष्मे पञ्चतपाश्च स्याद् वर्षास्वभ्रावकाशकः / आर्द्रवासास्तु हेमन्ते क्रमशो वर्धयंस्तपः
grīṣme pañcatapāśca syād varṣāsvabhrāvakāśakaḥ / ārdravāsāstu hemante kramaśo vardhayaṃstapaḥ
கோடையில் பஞ்சதபம் மேற்கொள்ள வேண்டும்; மழைக்காலத்தில் மேகங்களின் கீழ் திறந்த வெளியில் இருக்க வேண்டும்; குளிர்காலத்தில் ஈர ஆடைகள் அணிய வேண்டும்—இவ்வாறு பருவம் தோறும் தவத்தை படிப்படியாக உயர்த்த வேண்டும்.
Traditional puranic narrator (instructional voice within the Kurma Purana’s dharma-tapas teaching context)
Primary Rasa: vira
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
Indirectly: it frames tapas as a disciplined means of inner purification, by which the practitioner becomes fit for Self-knowledge—mastery over bodily comfort supports steadiness for realizing the Atman beyond heat, cold, and rain.
It highlights tapas as an aṅga of yogic sādhana: pañcatapa in summer, open-sky exposure in the rains, and damp-cloth endurance in winter—forms of sensory restraint and endurance used to intensify concentration and spiritual resolve in Pashupata-leaning practice.
Not by naming them, but by reflecting a shared puranic ideal: the same yogic-tapas discipline is upheld across Shaiva and Vaishnava streams, aligning with the Kurma Purana’s synthesis where devotion and yoga converge in one dharma.