Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 14
Iśvara on Māyā, the Unmanifest, and the Viśvarūpa of the One Supreme
यस्मात् परं नापरमस्ति किञ्चित् यज्ज्योतिषां ज्योतिरेकं दिविस्थम् / तदेवात्मानं मन्यमानो ऽथ विद्वान् आत्मानन्दी भवति ब्रह्मभूतः
yasmāt paraṃ nāparamasti kiñcit yajjyotiṣāṃ jyotirekaṃ divistham / tadevātmānaṃ manyamāno 'tha vidvān ātmānandī bhavati brahmabhūtaḥ
Higit sa Kanya ay walang mas mataas at wala ring iba—ang iisang Liwanag ng lahat ng liwanag, nananahan sa pinakadakilang langit. Sa pagkakilalang Siya lamang ang Sarili (Atman), ang pantas ay nagiging maligaya sa Sarili at umaabot sa kalagayang Brahman.
Lord Kurma (Vishnu) teaching in the Ishvara Gita context
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
It declares the Supreme as the unsurpassed “Light of lights” and teaches that realizing this Supreme Reality as one’s own Atman results in brahma-bhāva—abidance in Brahman.
The verse points to jñāna-yoga: contemplative discernment and steady meditation culminating in Atman-identification with the Supreme Light, yielding ātmānanda (Self-bliss) and Brahman-abidance—an inner core also compatible with Pāśupata-oriented discipline in the Kurma Purana.
Rather than emphasizing sectarian difference, it centers on the one Supreme Reality (Brahman/Atman) as the ultimate “Light,” a non-dual framing that supports the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis where the highest truth transcends names and forms.