Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 14

Adhyāya 25 — Liṅga-māhātmya (The Chapter on the Liṅga): Hari’s Śiva-Worship and the Fiery Pillar Theophany

Devanagari script

काश्चिदागत्य कृष्णस्य समीपं काममोहिताः / चुचुम्बुर्वदनाम्भोजं हरेर्मुग्धमृगेक्षणाः

Transliteration

kāścidāgatya kṛṣṇasya samīpaṃ kāmamohitāḥ / cucumburvadanāmbhojaṃ harermugdhamṛgekṣaṇāḥ

Translation

کچھ عورتیں خواہش کے فریب میں کرشن کے قریب آئیں؛ ہرن چشم معصوم سی مگن ہو کر ہری کے کنول جیسے چہرے کو بوسہ دینے لگیں۔

Word by Word

• kāścit: some (women)
• kāścit: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Sarvanāma (सर्वनाम), Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Plural (बहुवचन)

• āgatya: having come
• āgatya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकाल-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā + gam (धातु)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वान्त), ‘having come’

• kṛṣṇasya: of Kṛṣṇa
• kṛṣṇasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (षष्ठी/6), Singular (एकवचन)

• samīpam: near/into the vicinity
• samīpam: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samīpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Singular (एकवचन); used adverbially ‘near’

• kāma-mohitāḥ: bewildered by desire
• kāma-mohitāḥ: Karta-anvaya (कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक) + mohita (कृदन्त from मुह् धातु)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘kāmena mohitāḥ’; Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Plural (बहुवचन)

• cucumbuḥ: kissed
• cucumbuḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: cumb (धातु)
• Form: Liṭ-lakāra (लिट्, perfect), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Plural (बहुवचन)

• vadana-ambhojam: the lotus-like face
• vadana-ambhojam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vadana (प्रातिपदिक) + ambhoja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘vadanam ambhojam iva’; Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Singular (एकवचन)

• hareḥ: of Hari
• hareḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (षष्ठी/6), Singular (एकवचन)

• mugdha-mṛga-īkṣaṇāḥ: having innocent doe-like eyes
• mugdha-mṛga-īkṣaṇāḥ: Karta-anvaya (कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mugdha (प्रातिपदिक) + mṛga (प्रातिपदिक) + īkṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Bahuvrīhi (बहुव्रीहि) ‘mugdhāni mṛgasadṛśāni īkṣaṇāni yāsām’; Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Plural (बहुवचन)

Speaker

Purāṇic narrator (Sūta-style narration) describing events; not a direct speech by Kurma

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shringara

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Characters & Entities

• Krishna
• Hari

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly, it contrasts the soul’s true purity with kāma-moha (delusion by desire): the Atman is untouched, while embodied beings become captivated by sense-driven attraction, even when the object is the Divine.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse implies the need for indriya-nigraha (sense-restraint) and vairāgya (dispassion). In the Kurma Purana’s broader yogic ethic—also echoed in Pāśupata-oriented discipline—desire (kāma) is treated as a primary veil over steady contemplation.

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

By naming Kṛṣṇa as “Hari,” it places the episode within the Purāṇa’s broader theistic frame where sectarian boundaries soften: Hari (Viṣṇu) is revered while the text elsewhere affirms Shiva–Viṣṇu unity as complementary expressions of the Supreme.