Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 1
Prayāga-māhātmya and Ṛṇa-pramocana-tīrtha — Māgha-snāna, Austerities, and Release from Debts
इति श्रीकूर्मपुराणे षट्साहस्त्र्यां संहितायां पूर्वविभागे पञ्चत्रिंशो ऽध्यायः मार्कण्डेय उवाच षष्टिस्तीर्थसहस्त्राणि षष्टिस्तीर्थशतानि च / माघमासे गमिष्यन्ति गङ्गायमुनसंगमम्
iti śrīkūrmapurāṇe ṣaṭsāhastryāṃ saṃhitāyāṃ pūrvavibhāge pañcatriṃśo 'dhyāyaḥ mārkaṇḍeya uvāca ṣaṣṭistīrthasahastrāṇi ṣaṣṭistīrthaśatāni ca / māghamāse gamiṣyanti gaṅgāyamunasaṃgamam
یوں شری کورم پران کی شٹ ساہستری سنہتا کے پوروَ بھاگ میں پینتیسواں ادھیائے سمাপ্ত۔ مارکنڈےیہ نے کہا—ساٹھ ہزار تیرتھ اور ساٹھ سو تیرتھ استھان ماہِ ماغھ میں گنگا-یَمُنا کے سنگم کی طرف جاتے ہیں۔
Markandeya
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
This verse does not directly define Ātman; it emphasizes tīrtha-mahātmyā—how sacred space and sacred time (Māgha at the Saṅgama) support purification and dhārmic orientation that prepare the mind for Self-knowledge.
The implied practice is tīrtha-sevā such as Māgha observances (especially snāna at a saṅgama), which function as preparatory disciplines (śuddhi and saṃskāra) complementary to later yogic and devotional teachings in the Kūrma Purāṇa tradition.
It does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; however, the Kūrma Purāṇa’s synthesis often frames tīrthas and saṅgamas as universally sanctifying—shared sacred geography that supports both Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava modes of worship.