Kali-yuga Doṣas, the Supremacy of Rudra as Refuge, and the Closure of the Manvantara Teaching
नमो रुद्राय महते देवदेवाय शूलिने / त्र्यम्बकाय त्रिनेत्राय योगिनां गुरवे नमः
namo rudrāya mahate devadevāya śūline / tryambakāya trinetrāya yogināṃ gurave namaḥ
ขอนอบน้อมแด่พระรุทระผู้ยิ่งใหญ่—เทพเหนือเทพ ผู้ทรงตรีศูล; แด่พระตรยมพกะ ผู้มีสามเนตร; ขอนอบน้อมแด่ครูแห่งเหล่าโยคี
A narrator/reciter within the Purāṇic discourse (Rudra-stuti section; voiced as a hymn of praise rather than a direct dialogue line)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
By praising Rudra as “Mahān” and “Devadeva,” the verse points to a single supreme principle revered as the highest Lord—approached through devotion and recognized as the ultimate refuge behind all divine forms.
The verse emphasizes Guru-tattva in yoga: Rudra is named “the Guru of yogins,” implying disciplined practice under higher guidance—inner concentration, mantra-japa, and contemplative absorption oriented to the Lord as the source of yogic realization (a key Pāśupata-Shiva framing within the Kūrma tradition).
In the Kurma Purana’s synthetic theology, such hymns allow devotion to Śiva as supreme without contradicting Vaiṣṇava reverence—presenting a shared, non-dual orientation where the highest reality is honored through multiple divine names and functions.