Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 2

Cosmic Night, Nārāyaṇa as Brahmā, and the Varāha Raising of the Earth

Devanagari script

एकार्णवे तदा तस्मिन् नष्टे स्थावरजङ्गमे / तदा समभवद् ब्रह्मा सहस्त्राक्षः सहस्त्रपात्

Transliteration

ekārṇave tadā tasmin naṣṭe sthāvarajaṅgame / tadā samabhavad brahmā sahastrākṣaḥ sahastrapāt

Translation

ఆ ఏకార్ణవంలో స్థావరజంగమములన్నీ నశించి అది మాత్రమే మిగిలినప్పుడు, సహస్రాక్షుడు సహస్రపాతుడు అయిన బ్రహ్ముడు అవతరించెను।

Word by Word

• ekārṇave: in the single ocean (flood)
• ekārṇave: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka-arṇava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb of time (कालवाचक)

• tasmin: in that (state/place)
• tasmin: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter/Masculine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; pronoun

• naṣṭe: when (it) had perished
• naṣṭe: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)/Sati-saptamī (सति-सप्तमी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: naṣṭa (कृदन्त; √naś धातु)
• Form: Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; past passive participle; agrees with sthāvarajaṅgame; 'when ... had perished' (locative absolute nuance)

• sthāvara-jaṅgame: in the stationary and moving (beings)
• sthāvara-jaṅgame: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)/Sati-saptamī (सति-सप्तमी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sthāvara-jaṅgama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; dvandva 'stationary and moving beings'

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; time adverb

• samabhavat: came into being/arose
• samabhavat: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√bhū (धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd Person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन); parasmaipada

• brahmā: Brahmā
• brahmā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• sahasrākṣaḥ: thousand-eyed
• sahasrākṣaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sahasra-akṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; bahuvrīhi 'having a thousand eyes'; qualifies brahmā

• sahasrapāt: thousand-footed
• sahasrapāt: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sahasra-pād (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; bahuvrīhi 'having a thousand feet'; qualifies brahmā

Speaker

Sūta (narrator), recounting the pralaya context within the Kurma Purana’s creation narrative

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Characters & Entities

• Brahma
• Pralaya
• Ekarṇava (cosmic ocean)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

By depicting creation re-emerging after total dissolution, the verse implies a transcendent continuity beyond perishing forms—an underlying reality that supports cosmic cycles, while Brahmā functions as the manifesting creator within that order.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No specific practice is prescribed in this verse; it provides the cosmological frame used in the Kurma Purana to ground later disciplines (including Pāśupata-oriented restraint, contemplation, and devotion) by emphasizing impermanence of the world and recurrence of creation.

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

Indirectly: it sets a shared Purāṇic cosmology (pralaya and re-creation) within which the Kurma Purana later presents Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis—Vishnu (as Kurma) and Shiva are taught as convergent supreme principles while Brahmā operates as the cosmic creator.