Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 78
Kapālamocana: The Cutting of Brahmā’s Fifth Head, Śiva’s Kāpālika Vow, and Purification in Vārāṇasī
गायन्ति विविधं गीतं नृत्यन्ति पुरतः प्रभोः / सस्मितं प्रेक्ष्य वदनं चक्रुर्भ्रूभङ्गमेव च
gāyanti vividhaṃ gītaṃ nṛtyanti purataḥ prabhoḥ / sasmitaṃ prekṣya vadanaṃ cakrurbhrūbhaṅgameva ca
وہ رب کے سامنے طرح طرح کے گیت گاتیں اور رقص کرتیں؛ اس کے مسکراتے چہرے کو دیکھ کر بھنوؤں کے اشارے بھی کرتیں۔
Purana narrator (Vyasa/Suta-style narration) describing the scene before Lord Kurma (Vishnu)
Primary Rasa: shringara
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
Indirectly, it presents the Supreme as personally accessible through darśana: the Lord’s smiling countenance becomes the focal point for devotion, suggesting that the transcendent Self is also immanent and approachable to the devotee.
The verse foregrounds bhakti-yoga through upacāra (reverential service): singing, dancing, and steady gazing upon the Lord’s face function as concentration (ekāgratā) and devotional absorption, harmonizing with the Kurma Purana’s broader yoga-and-worship synthesis.
While Shiva is not named here, the verse exemplifies the Purana’s non-sectarian devotional mode: the same ritual-aesthetic language of worship (gīta, nṛtya, darśana) is shared across Shaiva and Vaishnava contexts, supporting a reconciliatory, unified approach.