Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 19

Iśvara on Māyā, the Unmanifest, and the Viśvarūpa of the One Supreme

Devanagari script

सर्वाननशिरोग्रीवः सर्वभूतगुहाशयः / सर्वव्यापी च भगवान् न तस्मादन्यदिष्यते

Transliteration

sarvānanaśirogrīvaḥ sarvabhūtaguhāśayaḥ / sarvavyāpī ca bhagavān na tasmādanyadiṣyate

Translation

بھگوان کے سب چہرے، سب سر اور سب گردنیں ہیں؛ وہ ہر جاندار کے دل کی غار میں مقیم ہے۔ وہ سراسر محیط بھگوان ہے—اس سے جدا کوئی شے تسلیم نہیں کی جاتی۔

Word by Word

• sarvānanaśirogrīvaḥ: having all faces, heads, and necks
• sarvānanaśirogrīvaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva + ānana + śiras + grīvā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन); bahuvrīhi: ‘he whose faces, heads, and necks are all (i.e., everywhere/all)’

• sarvabhūtaguhāśayaḥ: dwelling in the heart-cave of all beings
• sarvabhūtaguhāśayaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva + bhūta + guhā + āśaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन); bahuvrīhi: ‘he whose abode is the cave (heart) of all beings’

• sarvavyāpī: all-pervading
• sarvavyāpī: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva + vyāpin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), conjunction (समुच्चय)

• bhagavān: the Blessed Lord
• bhagavān: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), negation particle (निषेध-निपात)

• tasmāt: from him/than that
• tasmāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Ablative (पञ्चमी/5), Singular (एकवचन)

• anyat: anything else
• anyat: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• iṣyate: is accepted/considered
• iṣyate: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √iṣ (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra (लट्, present), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन); passive-like sense ‘is considered/accepted’

Speaker

Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing King Indradyumna in the Ishvara Gita portion of the Kurma Purana

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Bhagavan
• Paramatman
• Sarvavyapin (all-pervading Lord)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

It presents the Supreme as the inner indweller (guhāśaya/antaryāmin) of all beings and as all-pervading, implying that no separate ultimate reality exists apart from that one Lord.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse supports inward contemplation: meditation on the Lord as present in the heart-cave of every being and as universally pervading—an orientation that undergirds Ishvara-dhyana and the Kurma Purana’s Pashupata-tinged discipline of fixing the mind on the one Ishvara everywhere.

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

By asserting a single all-pervading Bhagavan beyond any “other,” it aligns with the Kurma Purana’s synthetic theology where sectarian difference is subordinated to one supreme Ishvara, allowing Shaiva-Vaishnava unity in the highest view.