Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 28

Tīrtha-Māhātmya: Mahālaya, Kedāra, Rivers and Fords, and Devadāru Forest

Akṣaya-Karma Doctrine

Devanagari script

पितॄणां दुहिता देवी गन्धकालीति विश्रुता / तस्यां स्नात्वा दिवं याति मृतो जातिस्मरो भवेत्

Transliteration

pitṝṇāṃ duhitā devī gandhakālīti viśrutā / tasyāṃ snātvā divaṃ yāti mṛto jātismaro bhavet

Translation

پِتروں کی بیٹی وہ دیوی ‘گندھکالی’ کے نام سے مشہور ہے۔ اس کے مقدس جل میں اشنان کرنے سے انسان سُوَرگ پاتا ہے؛ اور مُردہ بھی (اس کی کرپا سے) پچھلے جنموں کو یاد کرنے والا ہو سکتا ہے۔

Word by Word

• पितॄणाम्: of the ancestors/fathers
• पितॄणाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन (Plural), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine)

• दुहिता: daughter
• दुहिता: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुहितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/कर्ता), एकवचन (Singular), स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine)

• देवी: goddess
• देवी: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग

• गन्धकाली: Gandhakālī (name)
• गन्धकाली: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गन्ध + काली (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गन्धस्य काली = Gandha-kālī)

• इति: thus/so called
• इति: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/इत्यर्थक-अव्यय (quotative particle)

• विश्रुता: well-known
• विश्रुता: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि-श्रु (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (Past Passive Participle/क्त), प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग; विशेषणम् (qualifying देवी/गन्धकाली)

• तस्याम्: in her/therein
• तस्याम्: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/अधिकरण), एकवचन, स्त्रीलिङ्ग

• स्नात्वा: having bathed
• स्नात्वा: Kriya-viseshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्ना (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund/Absolutive), पूर्वकाले (having done earlier)

• दिवम्: to heaven
• दिवम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिव्/द्यौः (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/कर्म), एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग

• याति: goes
• याति: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• मृतः: dead (person)
• मृतः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृ (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP/क्त), प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग; कर्तृपद-विशेषणम् (qualifies implied ‘person’)

• जातिस्मरः: one who remembers past births
• जातिस्मरः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जाति + स्मर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (जातीनां स्मरः = one who remembers births)

• भवेत्: would become/may become
• भवेत्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

Speaker

Sūta (narrator) recounting the tīrtha-mahātmya within the Kurma Purana’s pilgrimage discourse

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Gandhakālī (Devī)
• Divam (Svarga)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly: it emphasizes purification and karmic uplift through tīrtha-snāna, implying that spiritual clarity (which culminates in Self-knowledge) is supported by dharmic acts that cleanse impediments (mala) and refine memory and awareness.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse foregrounds tīrtha-snāna as a purificatory limb supportive of sādhana—preparing the practitioner for higher disciplines like japa, dhyāna, and Pāśupata-oriented inner purification taught elsewhere in the Kurma Purana.

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

While not naming them, it reflects the Purana’s integrative dharma: Devī-tīrtha veneration and ancestral rites function within a wider framework where Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava paths share purification, merit, and liberation-oriented aims.