Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 24

Durjaya, Urvaśī, and the Expiation at Vārāṇasī

Genealogy and Sin-Removal through Viśveśvara

Devanagari script

अदृष्ट्वाप्सरसं तत्र कामबाणाभिपीडितः / बभ्राम सकलां पृथ्वीं सप्तद्वीपसमन्विताम्

Transliteration

adṛṣṭvāpsarasaṃ tatra kāmabāṇābhipīḍitaḥ / babhrāma sakalāṃ pṛthvīṃ saptadvīpasamanvitām

Translation

在那里未见天女，他被爱神迦摩之箭所折磨，便漂泊遍行整个大地——连同七大洲（sapta-dvīpa）无不踏遍。

Word by Word

• अदृष्ट्वा: not having seen
• अदृष्ट्वा: Kriya-vishesana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: दृश् (धातु) + क्त्वा (कृदन्त)
• Form: नञ्-पूर्वक क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund with negation): न दृष्ट्वा; अव्ययभाव

• अप्सरसम्: the Apsaras
• अप्सरसम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अप्सरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb)

• कामबाणाभिपीडितः: tormented by love’s arrows
• कामबाणाभिपीडितः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: काम + बाण + अभि + पीड् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तृतीया-तत्पुरुष (कामबाणैः अभिपीडितः) + क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त

• बभ्राम: wandered
• बभ्राम: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भ्रम् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• सकलाम्: entire
• सकलाम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सकल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

• पृथ्वीम्: earth
• पृथ्वीम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथ्वी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सप्तद्वीपसमन्विताम्: endowed with seven continents
• सप्तद्वीपसमन्विताम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सप्त + द्वीप + समन्वित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/सम्बन्ध (सप्तद्वीपैः समन्विता)

Speaker

Primary narrator (Purāṇic narration, traditionally Sūta/Vyāsa line) describing the character’s state

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: karuna

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Characters & Entities

• Apsaras
• Kāma
• Sapta-dvīpa
• Pṛthvī

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

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

Indirectly, it contrasts the restless, desire-driven mind with the steadiness implied by Self-knowledge: when consciousness is bound by kāma, one roams externally; when rooted in the Ātman, one becomes inwardly stable and fulfilled.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse highlights the problem Yoga addresses—vikshepa (restless distraction) caused by desire. In Kurma Purana’s broader teaching style, the remedy is vairāgya (dispassion), sense-restraint (indriya-nigraha), and steadiness of mind that supports dhyāna.

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

This specific verse does not explicitly mention Śiva or Viṣṇu; it supports the Purāṇic soteriological theme shared across Shaiva-Vaishnava synthesis: liberation requires mastery over kāma and the mind, a teaching upheld in both Śaiva Yoga and Vaiṣṇava devotion contexts within the Kurma Purana.