Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 28
Prākṛta Sṛṣṭi and Pralaya: From Pradhāna to Brahmāṇḍa; Trimūrti Samanvaya
आपश्चापि विकुर्वन्त्यो गन्धमात्रं ससर्जिरे / संघातो जायते तस्मात् तस्य गन्धो गुणो मतः
āpaścāpi vikurvantyo gandhamātraṃ sasarjire / saṃghāto jāyate tasmāt tasya gandho guṇo mataḥ
Nước cũng vậy, khi biến hóa, chỉ sinh ra tinh chất vi tế của hương (mùi). Từ đó phát sinh sự kết tụ thành thể rắn; vì thế hương được xem là đặc tính của nó.
Sūta (narrating the cosmological teaching as transmitted in the Kurma Purana’s Purva-bhaga)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
By mapping smell and solidity as effects of elemental transformation, the verse implies the Atman is distinct from changing qualities (guṇas) and material evolutes; the Self is the witness beyond such produced attributes.
This supports tattva-viveka (discernment of principles): a contemplative practice used in Pashupata- and Ishvara-oriented sadhana to disidentify from sensory qualities (like smell) and stabilize awareness in the inner witness.
Though not naming them directly, the teaching aligns with the Kurma Purana’s synthesis: the same Supreme Ishvara—revered as Shiva or Vishnu—presides over the orderly evolution of tattvas, making cosmology a shared theological ground.