Shloka 84
Kapālamocana: The Cutting of Brahmā’s Fifth Head, Śiva’s Kāpālika Vow, and Purification in Vārāṇasī
विजित्य तं कालवेगं क्रोधसंरक्तलोचनः / रुद्रायाभिमुखं रौद्रं चिक्षेप च सुदर्शनम्
vijitya taṃ kālavegaṃ krodhasaṃraktalocanaḥ / rudrāyābhimukhaṃ raudraṃ cikṣepa ca sudarśanam
కాలవేగుడని పిలువబడిన వానిని జయించి, కోపంతో ఎర్రబడిన కన్నులతో అతడు రుద్రుని అభిముఖంగా భయంకరమైన సుదర్శన చక్రాన్ని విసిరెను।
Suta (narrator) describing the event in the Purana’s battlefield narrative
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: vira
FAQs
Indirectly: by portraying conflict between divine powers, the Purana later frames such opposition as līlā (cosmic play) within one supreme Reality—where the Self is beyond anger, victory, and defeat, even when deities appear to act through them.
No explicit practice is taught in this verse; it functions as narrative setup. In the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva-Vaishnava synthesis, such episodes point the reader toward mastery over krodha (anger) and toward disciplined inner conquest—found later in its yoga-oriented teachings (often discussed under Pashupata-oriented restraint and devotion).
It depicts a dramatic confrontation—Sudarśana being cast toward Rudra—yet within the Kurma Purana’s theological arc this serves to underline their profound equivalence and ultimate unity, with apparent conflict used to reveal non-dual concord between Rudra and Nārāyaṇa.