Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 11
Dakṣa-yajña-bhaṅgaḥ — Dadhīci’s Teaching and the Destruction of Dakṣa’s Sacrifice
न ह्यं शङ्करो रुद्रः संहर्ता तामसो हरः / नग्नः कपाली विकृतो विश्वात्मा नोपपद्यते
na hyaṃ śaṅkaro rudraḥ saṃhartā tāmaso haraḥ / nagnaḥ kapālī vikṛto viśvātmā nopapadyate
ఎందుకంటే నేను (కేవలం) సంహారకుడైన రుద్ర-శంకరుడు, తామస ‘హర’ మాత్రమేను కాను. విశ్వాత్మను నగ్నుడు, కపాలధారి, వికృతరూపుడని భావించడం సముచితం కాదు।
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) speaking in a Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis context
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: raudra
FAQs
It distinguishes the Viśvātmā (Universal Self) from limiting, purely anthropomorphic or sectarian images, asserting that the Supreme cannot be reduced to tamasic or grotesque external attributes.
The verse implies an inward, sattvic contemplative approach—meditation on the Universal Self beyond external marks—supporting the Kurma Purana’s broader discipline of knowledge (jñāna) and devotion (bhakti) rather than fixation on outward forms.
By using Rudra/Śaṅkara terminology while speaking from a universal standpoint, it supports a non-dual synthesis: sectarian labels and external iconography are secondary to the one supreme Viśvātmā acknowledged across Shaiva and Vaishnava frameworks.