Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 2
Kapālamocana: The Cutting of Brahmā’s Fifth Head, Śiva’s Kāpālika Vow, and Purification in Vārāṇasī
सूत उवाच शृणुध्वमृषयः पुण्यां कथां पापप्रणाशनीम् / माहात्म्यं देवदेवस्य महादेवस्य धीमतः
sūta uvāca śṛṇudhvamṛṣayaḥ puṇyāṃ kathāṃ pāpapraṇāśanīm / māhātmyaṃ devadevasya mahādevasya dhīmataḥ
Sūta thưa: “Hãy lắng nghe, hỡi các bậc hiền triết, câu chuyện thánh thiện này—câu chuyện diệt trừ tội lỗi—về đại uy đức của Devadeva Mahādeva, bậc Chúa tể minh triết.”
Sūta
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
FAQs
Indirectly: by presenting Mahādeva as “Lord of lords” and “wise,” the verse frames the teaching as revealing the highest divinity—often read in the Kurma Purana as pointing toward the supreme, inner reality that purifies and uplifts the listener.
No specific technique is stated; the practice implied is śravaṇa (reverent listening) to a purifying sacred narrative, which functions as a preparatory discipline that supports devotion (bhakti), inner clarity, and later yogic instruction in the Purana’s wider teaching arc.
It opens a Shaiva-focused section while remaining within a Vaishnava Purana framework, signaling the Kurma Purana’s characteristic synthesis: honoring Shiva’s supreme greatness without negating the broader unity of the divine taught across the text.