Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 13
Virocana–Bali, Aditi’s Tapas, and the Vāmana–Trivikrama Episode
कृत्वा तेन महद् युद्धं शक्रः सर्वामरैर्वृतः / जगाम निर्जितो विष्णुं देवं शरणमच्युतम्
kṛtvā tena mahad yuddhaṃ śakraḥ sarvāmarairvṛtaḥ / jagāma nirjito viṣṇuṃ devaṃ śaraṇamacyutam
与他大战之后，释迦罗（因陀罗）在众天神簇拥下，败退而去，投奔毗湿奴——不堕者阿周陀——求其庇护。
Suta (narrator) recounting events to the sages
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: vira
FAQs
By showing even Indra turning for shelter to Acyuta (the unfailing Lord), the verse implies a hierarchy where the highest refuge is the imperishable divine reality—beyond the limited, victory-and-defeat bound status of celestial beings.
The verse highlights śaraṇāgati (surrender) and humility—inner disciplines aligned with Purāṇic yoga ethics—where ego is relinquished and the mind turns toward the Lord as the stable support when worldly power proves insufficient.
While Viṣṇu is explicitly named as the refuge here, the Kurma Purana’s broader Shaiva–Vaishnava synthesis frames such refuge as devotion to the one Supreme Lord manifesting through multiple divine forms, emphasizing unity of divine sovereignty rather than sectarian opposition.