Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 4

Cosmic Realms Above Dhruva, the Pātālas Below, and the Foundation of Pralaya

Ananta–Kāla

Devanagari script

प्राजापत्यात् सत्यलोकः कोटिषट्केन संयुतः / अपुनर्मारकास्तत्र ब्रह्मलोकस्तु स स्मृतः

Transliteration

prājāpatyāt satyalokaḥ koṭiṣaṭkena saṃyutaḥ / apunarmārakāstatra brahmalokastu sa smṛtaḥ

Translation

پراجاپتی کے لوک کے اوپر ستیہ لوک ہے، جو چھ کروڑ (یوجن) تک پھیلا ہے؛ وہاں نہ دوبارہ لوٹنا ہے نہ موت—اسی کو برہملوک کہا گیا ہے۔

Word by Word

• prājāpatyāt: from Prājāpatya (region)
• prājāpatyāt: Apadana (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prājāpatya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग (usage varies), पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• satya-lokaḥ: Satyaloka
• satya-lokaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: satya (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• koṭi-ṣaṭkena: with/by a set of six koṭis
• koṭi-ṣaṭkena: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + ṣaṭka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (instrumental, 3rd), एकवचन

• saṃyutaḥ: joined/combined (with)
• saṃyutaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-√yuj (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त; भूतकृदन्त/क्त, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (agreeing with ‘satyalokaḥ’)

• apunarmārakāḥ: the Apunarmārakas
• apunarmārakāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a-punar-māraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण

• brahma-lokaḥ: Brahmaloka
• brahma-lokaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेषार्थक निपात (particle: ‘but/indeed’)

• saḥ: that/it
• saḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (pronoun)

• smṛtaḥ: is called/remembered
• smṛtaḥ: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √smṛ (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त; भूतकृदन्त/क्त (past passive participle used predicatively), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भावे/कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive sense: ‘is called/remembered’)

Speaker

Sūta (narrator) relaying the Purāṇic cosmology as taught in the Kurma Purana tradition

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Prajāpati
• Satyaloka
• Brahmaloka
• Brahmā

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly: by describing Satyaloka/Brahmaloka as a realm free from return and death, it frames liberation as transcendence of saṃsāra—an Atman-centered goal later clarified through yoga and knowledge in the Purāṇa’s teachings.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

This verse itself is cosmological, but it supports the Kurma Purana’s yogic aim: practices that overcome punarāvṛtti (return) and mṛtyu (death), i.e., disciplines of jñāna and yoga aligned with īśvara-bhakti and higher realization.

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

Not explicitly; however, by emphasizing a liberation-oriented cosmology, it aligns with the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis where devotion and realization of Īśvara culminate in freedom from return, beyond sectarian boundaries.