Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 72

Prākṛta-pralaya, Pratisarga Doctrine, and the Ishvara-Samanvaya of Yoga and Devotion

Devanagari script

भक्तानां लक्षणं प्रोक्तं समाचारश्च शोभनः / वर्णाश्रमाणां कथितं यथावदिह लक्षणम्

Transliteration

bhaktānāṃ lakṣaṇaṃ proktaṃ samācāraśca śobhanaḥ / varṇāśramāṇāṃ kathitaṃ yathāvadiha lakṣaṇam

Translation

بھکتوں کی نشانیاں بیان کی گئی ہیں اور اُن کا شایانِ شان آچار بھی بتایا گیا ہے؛ نیز یہاں ورنوں اور آشرموں کی علامتیں بھی ترتیب کے ساتھ درست طور پر بیان کی گئی ہیں۔

Word by Word

• bhaktānām: of devotees
• bhaktānām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitival relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (Masculine), Ṣaṣṭhī vibhakti (Genitive, 6th), Bahuvacana (Plural)

• lakṣaṇam: characteristic, definition
• lakṣaṇam: Karma (कर्म/Object; described topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lakṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga (Neuter), Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative, 1st), Ekavacana (Singular)

• proktam: has been stated
• proktam: Kriyā (क्रिया/Predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: prokta (कृदन्त; √vac/वच् with pra-)
• Form: Kta-pratyaya (past passive participle), Napuṃsakaliṅga (Neuter), Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative, 1st), Ekavacana; agrees with lakṣaṇam

• samācāraḥ: proper conduct, practice
• samācāraḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samācāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (Masculine), Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative, 1st), Ekavacana (Singular)

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय/Coordination)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction

• śobhanaḥ: excellent, beautiful
• śobhanaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śobhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (Masculine), Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative, 1st), Ekavacana; qualifies samācāraḥ

• varṇa-āśramāṇām: of the varṇas and āśramas
• varṇa-āśramāṇām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitival relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṇa (प्रातिपदik) + āśrama (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (Masculine), Ṣaṣṭhī vibhakti (Genitive, 6th), Bahuvacana (Plural); itaretara-dvandva

• kathitam: has been told
• kathitam: Kriyā (क्रिया/Predicative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kathita (कृदन्त; √kath/कथ्)
• Form: Kta-pratyaya (past passive participle), Napuṃsakaliṅga (Neuter), Prathamā/Dvitīyā (Nom./Acc.), Ekavacana; predicative with lakṣaṇam (understood/next)

• yathāvat: properly
• yathāvat: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathāvat (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb (manner)

• iha: here (in this text)
• iha: Deśa-adhikaraṇa (देशाधिकरण/Place)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iha (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; deictic adverb (place/text)

• lakṣaṇam: characteristic, definition
• lakṣaṇam: Karma (कर्म/Object; described topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lakṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga (Neuter), Prathamā/Dvitīyā vibhakti (Nom./Acc., 1st/2nd), Ekavacana (Singular)

Speaker

Suta (narrator), summarizing the teaching as transmitted in the Kurma Purana’s discourse

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: vira

Characters & Entities

• Bhakta
• Varnashrama Dharma

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

This verse does not directly define Ātman; it frames the teaching as a dharmic summary—devotion (bhakti) is presented together with disciplined conduct and varṇāśrama order as the practical basis for realizing higher truth taught elsewhere in the Purāṇa.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

No specific technique is named; the verse emphasizes ethical and social-spiritual discipline (samācāra, varṇāśrama-lakṣaṇa) as the preparatory ground that supports Yoga practice—consistent with the Kurma Purana’s stress on regulated life as a foundation for higher sādhanā.

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

It does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; its synthesis is implicit—devotion is validated alongside orthodox dharma (varṇāśrama and right conduct), a hallmark of the Kurma Purana’s integrative Shaiva-Vaishnava teaching style.