Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 51

Virocana–Bali, Aditi’s Tapas, and the Vāmana–Trivikrama Episode

Devanagari script

प्रक्षाल्य चरणौ विष्णोर्बलिर्भासमन्वितः / आचामयित्वा भृङ्गारमादाय स्वर्णनिर्मितम्

Transliteration

prakṣālya caraṇau viṣṇorbalirbhāsamanvitaḥ / ācāmayitvā bhṛṅgāramādāya svarṇanirmitam

Translation

حضرتِ وِشنو کے قدم دھو کر، بھکتی کے نور سے منوّر بلی نے آچمن کیا اور سونے کا بنا ہوا بھِرنگار (آب دان) ہاتھ میں لیا۔

Word by Word

• prakṣālya: having washed
• prakṣālya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pra√kṣāl (धातु)
• Form: Absolutive/gerund (क्त्वा/ल्यप्), avyaya usage

• caraṇau: the two feet
• caraṇau: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: caraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā vibhakti, Dvivacana (dual)

• viṣṇoḥ: of Viṣṇu
• viṣṇoḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī vibhakti, Ekavacana

• baliḥ: Bali
• baliḥ: Kartā (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bali (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana

• bhāsam: splendour, radiance
• bhāsam: Sahakārī/Upādhi (सहकारी/उपाधि) with anvitaḥ
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā vibhakti, Ekavacana

• anvitaḥ: endowed with, accompanied by
• anvitaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण) of kartā
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anu√i (धातु)
• Form: Kta (क्त) past participle, Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; agrees with baliḥ

• ācāmayitvā: having caused (him) to sip water / having offered ācamana
• ācāmayitvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ā√cam (धातु) (causative: ācāmaya-)
• Form: Causative absolutive (णिच् + क्त्वा), avyaya usage

• bhṛṅgāram: a water-pot, ewer
• bhṛṅgāram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhṛṅgāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā vibhakti, Ekavacana

• ādāya: having taken
• ādāya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ā√dā (धातु)
• Form: Absolutive/gerund (ल्यप्), avyaya usage

• svarṇa-nirmitam: made of gold
• svarṇa-nirmitam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण) of karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: svarṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + nir√mā (धातु) → nirmita (कृदन्त)
• Form: Napuṃsakalिङ्ग, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; agrees with bhṛṅgāram; samāsa: tatpuruṣa (material)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator recounting Bali’s ritual actions to the listening sages)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: bhakti

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu
• Bali

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly: by portraying Viṣṇu as the supreme recipient of worship, it frames the Highest Reality as worthy of reverent service; the purity-acts (washing the feet, ācamana) signal approaching the Divine as the inner sanctum of consciousness.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

This verse emphasizes ritual-discipline as a preparatory limb—śauca (purity) and saṃskāra-like purification (ācāmana). In the Kurma Purana’s broader spiritual program, such external discipline supports inner steadiness needed for dhyāna and yoga.

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

Though Viṣṇu is the explicit focus, the verse reflects a shared Purāṇic ritual grammar also used in Śaiva worship—purification, respectful approach, and offering—supporting the Kurma Purana’s integrative Shaiva–Vaishnava ethos.