Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 190

Devī-tattva, Śakti–Śaktimān doctrine, Kāla–Māyā cosmology, and Māheśvara Yoga instruction

Devanagari script

मदोत्कटा हंसगतिः प्रचण्डा चण्डविक्रमा / वृषावेशा वियन्माता विन्ध्यपर्वतवासिनी

Transliteration

madotkaṭā haṃsagatiḥ pracaṇḍā caṇḍavikramā / vṛṣāveśā viyanmātā vindhyaparvatavāsinī

Translation

وہ الٰہی سرمستی میں سرشار، ہنس کی سی چال والی؛ نہایت ہیبت ناک، سخت قوتِ بازو والی ہے۔ وہ وृषبھ کے روپ کا لباس دھارنے والی، آسمانوں کی ماں، اور وِندھیا پہاڑ میں بسنے والی ہے۔

Word by Word

• mada-utkaṭā: fierce with exhilaration
• mada-utkaṭā: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mada (प्रातिपदिक) + utkaṭā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः: ‘मदेन उत्कटा’ (intoxication-fierce)

• haṃsa-gatiḥ: having the gait of a swan
• haṃsa-gatiḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: haṃsa (प्रातिपदिक) + gati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः: ‘हंसस्य गतिः’

• pracaṇḍā: very fierce
• pracaṇḍā: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pracaṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• caṇḍa-vikramā: of fierce valor
• caṇḍa-vikramā: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: caṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + vikrama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः: ‘चण्डः विक्रमः यस्याः’

• vṛṣa-āveśā: bull-impetuous; bull-possessed
• vṛṣa-āveśā: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vṛṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + āveśā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः: ‘वृषस्य/वृषवत् आवेशः’ (bull-like impetuosity/possession)

• viyan-mātā: mother of the sky
• viyan-mātā: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viyan (प्रातिपदिक; ‘sky’) + mātṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः: ‘वियनो/वियतः माता’

• vindhya-parvata-vāsinī: dwelling on the Vindhya mountain
• vindhya-parvata-vāsinī: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vindhya (प्रातिपदिक) + parvata (प्रातिपदिक) + vāsinī (प्रातिपदिक; from √vas वस् ‘to dwell’)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः: ‘विन्ध्यपर्वते वसति’ (dweller in the Vindhya mountain)

Speaker

Lord Kurma (Vishnu) speaking as the teacher within the Ishvara Gita context, presenting a Devi-stuti aligned with Shaiva–Vaishnava theology

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: raudra

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Devi (Shakti)
• Vindhya
• Vṛṣa (Bull emblem)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly: by praising Devi as the cosmic Mother and sky-supporting power, it points to the Supreme as the all-pervading source whose śakti manifests as awe-inspiring force and graceful order—attributes that the Atman recognizes as its own ground when seen non-dually.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse functions as mantra-like stuti for bhakti-yukta dhyāna: contemplation of the Divine Power as both gentle (haṃsagati) and terrible (pracaṇḍā), integrating fearlessness and devotion—an affective support aligned with the Kurma Purana’s Pāśupata-oriented interior worship.

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

With Vishnu (as Kurma) voicing a hymn to Shakti using bull-associated imagery (often Shaiva), it reinforces the Purana’s non-sectarian unity: Shiva-tattva, Vishnu-tattva, and Shakti are harmonized as one supreme reality expressed through multiple divine modes.