Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 1
Sūrya’s Celestial Car: Ādityas, Ṛṣis, Gandharvas, Apsarases, Nāgas, and the Two-Month Cosmic Cycle
इति श्रीकूर्मपुराणे षट्साहस्त्र्यां संहितार्या पूर्वविभागे एकोनचत्वारिंशो ऽध्यायः सूत उवाच स रथो ऽधिष्ठितो देवैरादित्यैर्वसुभिस्तथा / गन्धर्वैरप्सरोभिश्च ग्रामणीसर्पराक्षसैः
iti śrīkūrmapurāṇe ṣaṭsāhastryāṃ saṃhitāryā pūrvavibhāge ekonacatvāriṃśo 'dhyāyaḥ sūta uvāca sa ratho 'dhiṣṭhito devairādityairvasubhistathā / gandharvairapsarobhiśca grāmaṇīsarparākṣasaiḥ
如是，在《圣龟摩往世书》之《六千颂集》（Ṣaṭsāhasrī Saṃhitā）前分（Pūrvabhāga）中，第四十章开端。苏多曰：那乘车为诸神所登——诸阿底提耶与诸婆苏亦在其中——并有乾闼婆与阿普萨罗同乘，又有众军之长、那伽与罗刹同在。
Sūta
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: vira
FAQs
This verse is primarily descriptive, presenting a cosmic assembly around a chariot; it implies the Purāṇic vision that all classes of beings—celestial, semi-divine, and liminal—participate within one ordered reality ultimately governed by the Supreme.
No specific yogic technique is taught in this verse; it sets a narrative stage that later supports Kurma Purana teachings on dharma and (in the Upari-bhāga) disciplined spiritual practice such as Pāśupata-oriented devotion and inner restraint.
The verse does not name Śiva or Viṣṇu directly; however, by gathering diverse divine and non-human orders into one sacred narrative space, it aligns with the Kurma Purana’s broader integrative tone that later articulates harmony between Śaiva and Vaiṣṇava perspectives.