Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 90

Devī-tattva, Śakti–Śaktimān doctrine, Kāla–Māyā cosmology, and Māheśvara Yoga instruction

Devanagari script

भूतान्तरात्मा कूटस्था महापुरुषसंज्ञिता / जन्ममृत्युजरातीता सर्वशक्तिसमन्विता

Transliteration

bhūtāntarātmā kūṭasthā mahāpuruṣasaṃjñitā / janmamṛtyujarātītā sarvaśaktisamanvitā

Translation

她是一切众生之内在自我，亦是库塔斯塔（Kūṭastha）——不变的根基；她被称颂为摩诃补鲁沙（Mahāpuruṣa）。超越生、死与老，她具足一切神力。

Word by Word

• भूत-अन्तर-आत्मा: the inner Self within beings
• भूत-अन्तर-आत्मा: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूत (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक) + आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (भूतानाम् अन्तरे आत्मा) — masculine nominative singular (epithet)

• कूट-स्था: unchanging; abiding like an anvil/peak
• कूट-स्था: विशेषण (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कूट (प्रातिपदिक) + स्थ (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √स्था धातु)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (कूटे स्थिता) — feminine nominative singular adjective

• महā-पुरुष-संज्ञिता: known as the Mahāpuruṣa
• महā-पुरुष-संज्ञिता: विशेषण (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महā (प्रातिपदिक) + पुरुष (प्रातिपदिक) + संज्ञित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √ज्ञा धातु ‘सम्+ज्ञा’)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (महापुरुष इति संज्ञिता) — feminine nominative singular adjective

• जन्म-मृत्यु-जरा-अतीता: beyond birth, death, and old age
• जन्म-मृत्यु-जरा-अतीता: विशेषण (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जन्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + मृत्यु (प्रातिपदिक) + जरा (प्रातिपदिक) + अतीत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √इ धातु ‘अति+इ’)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व (जन्म-मृत्यु-जरा) + तत्पुरुषभावः (तान् अतीता) — feminine nominative singular adjective

• सर्व-शक्ति-समन्विता: endowed with all powers
• सर्व-शक्ति-समन्विता: विशेषण (Adjectival qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + शक्ति (प्रातिपदिक) + समन्वित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √इ धातु ‘सम्+अनु+इ’)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (सर्वशक्तिभिः समन्विता) — feminine nominative singular adjective

Speaker

Lord Kūrma (Vishnu) teaching in the Ishvara Gita context

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Mahapurusha
• Atman
• Shakti
• Ishvara

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

It defines the Supreme as the inner Self of all beings (bhūtāntarātmā), yet changeless and unmoved (kūṭasthā), indicating an immanent presence that remains transcendent to all change.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse supports contemplative Yoga that meditates on the indwelling Self as immutable and deathless—an Ishvara-centered absorption where the yogin steadies awareness on the kūṭastha reality beyond bodily conditions like birth, death, and aging.

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

By describing one Supreme principle as Mahāpuruṣa and as the source endowed with all śaktis, it aligns Shaiva (Śakti/Iśvara emphasis, Pāśupata vocabulary) and Vaishnava (Mahāpuruṣa/Nārāyaṇa theology) viewpoints into a single non-contradictory divinity.