Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 10

Bāṇa’s Śiva-bhakti and the Genealogy of Kaśyapa’s Descendants

Manvantara Lineages

Devanagari script

अरिष्टा जनयामास गन्धर्वाणां सहस्त्रकम् / अनन्ताद्या महानागाः काद्रवेयाः प्रकीर्तिताः

Transliteration

ariṣṭā janayāmāsa gandharvāṇāṃ sahastrakam / anantādyā mahānāgāḥ kādraveyāḥ prakīrtitāḥ

Translation

ارِشٹا نے گندھروؤں کے ایک ہزار کو جنم دیا؛ اور اننت وغیرہ مہانाग کدرو کی اولاد—کادروَیَہ—کے نام سے مشہور ہیں۔

Word by Word

• अरिष्टा: Ariṣṭā (proper name)
• अरिष्टा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ariṣṭā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (f.), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative, 1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• जनयामास: gave birth to / generated
• जनयामास: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद (Parasmaipada)

• गन्धर्वाणाम्: of the Gandharvas
• गन्धर्वाणाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gandharva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (m.), षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive, 6th), बहुवचन (Plural)

• सहस्रकम्: a thousand (group)
• सहस्रकम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sahasraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative, 2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• अनन्ताद्याः: beginning with Ananta
• अनन्ताद्याः: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ananta + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (m.), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative, 1st), बहुवचन (Plural); समासः—तत्पुरुष (ādi = beginning with)

• महानागाः: the great Nāgas (serpents)
• महानागाः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + nāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (m.), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative, 1st), बहुवचन (Plural); समासः—कर्मधारय (great nāgas)

• काद्रवेयाः: the Kādraveyas (sons/descendants of Kadrū)
• काद्रवेयाः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kādraveya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (m.), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative, 1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• प्रकीर्तिताः: are proclaimed / are said
• प्रकीर्तिताः: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + kīrt (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त—क्त (PPP), पुंलिङ्ग (m.), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative, 1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

Speaker

Sūta (narrator) recounting Purāṇic genealogy to the sages

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Ariṣṭā
• Gandharvas
• Ananta
• Mahānāgas
• Kadrū

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

This verse is primarily genealogical, mapping cosmic lineages (Gandharvas and Nāgas); it indirectly supports the Purāṇic view that the manifest universe unfolds in ordered classes of beings within a larger sacred cosmology, rather than giving a direct Atman teaching.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No explicit Yoga practice is taught in this verse; its function is cosmological cataloguing, which later sections of the Kurma Purana use as a backdrop for dharma, devotion, and (in the Upari-bhaga) Pāśupata-oriented spiritual instruction.

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

It does not explicitly discuss Śiva–Viṣṇu unity; however, as part of the Kurma Purana’s broader synthesis, such cosmological genealogies are presented within a single sacred order ultimately governed by the one supreme principle revered through both Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava frames.