Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 17

Bhūrloka-Vyavasthā — The Seven Dvīpas, Seven Oceans, and the Meru-Centered Order of Jambūdvīpa

Devanagari script

महागजप्रमाणानि जम्ब्वास्तस्याः फलानि च / पतन्ति भूभृतः पृष्ठे शीर्यमाणानि सर्वतः

Transliteration

mahāgajapramāṇāni jambvāstasyāḥ phalāni ca / patanti bhūbhṛtaḥ pṛṣṭhe śīryamāṇāni sarvataḥ

Translation

اس جمبو درخت کے پھل عظیم ہاتھی کے برابر بڑے ہیں؛ وہ ہر طرف گرتے ہیں اور پہاڑ کی پشت پر لگ کر ٹوٹ پھوٹ جاتے ہیں۔

Word by Word

• mahā-gaja-pramāṇāni: of the size of great elephants
• mahā-gaja-pramāṇāni: Viseṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + gaja (प्रातिपदिक) + pramāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Plural; 'of the measure of great elephants' qualifying phalāni

• jambvāḥ: from the Jambū tree
• jambvāḥ: Apādāna (अपादान/पञ्चमी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jambū (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular; 'from the Jambū (tree)'

• tasyāḥ: of it/of her
• tasyāḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular; referring to jambū

• phalāni: fruits
• phalāni: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction particle

• patanti: fall
• patanti: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √pat (धातु; 'to fall')
• Form: Present tense (लट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Plural (बहुवचन)

• bhū-bhṛtaḥ: of the mountain
• bhū-bhṛtaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhū (प्रातिपदिक) + bhṛt (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक from √bhṛ 'to bear')
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (षष्ठी), Singular; 'of the earth-bearer' i.e., mountain

• pṛṣṭhe: on the back/surface
• pṛṣṭhe: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pṛṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (सप्तमी), Singular

• śīryamāṇāni: breaking/decaying (as they fall)
• śīryamāṇāni: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/सहभाव)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √śṝ/śīr (धातु; 'to break/decay') (कृदन्त: present passive participle शानच्)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural; present passive participle (शानच्) agreeing with phalāni; 'while breaking/decaying'

• sarvataḥ: on all sides/everywhere
• sarvataḥ: Deśa-avyaya (देशवाचक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvatas (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (सर्वतः—दिगर्थ/परिमाणार्थ-अव्यय)

Speaker

Sūta (narrator) recounting the Purāṇic cosmography to the sages

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: vira

Characters & Entities

• Jambū tree
• Jambūdvīpa
• Bhūbhṛt (mountain)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

This verse is primarily cosmographical, yet it supports a Purāṇic insight: the vastness of creation—symbolized by elephant-sized fruits and mountains—points to an ordered, intelligible cosmos that later chapters relate back to the indwelling Lord/Ātman as its ground.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No direct yogic technique is taught in this verse; it belongs to sacred geography. In the Kurma Purana’s broader arc, such cosmic descriptions function as a contemplative support (dhyāna-upakaraṇa), expanding the mind from the local to the universal before the text’s explicit Yoga-śāstra teachings.

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

The verse itself does not mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; however, within the Kurma Purana’s Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis, cosmography is presented as part of a single divine order ultimately harmonized in the text’s non-sectarian theological vision.