Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 109
Invocation, Purāṇa Lakṣaṇas, Kurma at the Samudra-manthana, and Indradyumna’s Liberation Teaching
Iśvara-Gītā Prelude
विचिन्तयामास परं शरण्यं सर्वदेहिनाम् / अनादिनिधनं देवं देवदेवं पितामहम्
vicintayāmāsa paraṃ śaraṇyaṃ sarvadehinām / anādinidhanaṃ devaṃ devadevaṃ pitāmaham
అతడు సమస్త దేహధారుల పరమ శరణమైన, ఆద్యంతరహిత దేవుడైన—దేవదేవుడూ, ఆదిపిత అయిన పితామహుని ధ్యానించాడు.
Narrator (Purāṇic narrator describing the seeker’s contemplation)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhakti
FAQs
By calling the Lord “anādi-nidhana” (beginningless and endless), the verse points to the eternal, unconditioned reality that stands as the final refuge behind all embodied existence—echoing the Purāṇic identification of the Supreme with the innermost Self as the ultimate ground of being.
The key practice is contemplative recollection (vicintana/dhyāna): turning the mind toward the “paraṃ śaraṇyam,” the Supreme Refuge. This aligns with Kurma Purana’s broader discipline of God-centered meditation that culminates in surrender (śaraṇāgati) and steady devotion, foundational to later Yoga-shāstra instructions (including Pāśupata-oriented devotion and restraint).
Using universal epithets like “Devadeva” and “Pitāmaha” frames the Supreme as beyond sectarian limitation—language that the Kurma Purana often employs to support a Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, where the highest Lord is approached through shared attributes of sovereignty, eternality, and refuge.