Kurma Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 66

Nine Creations (Sarga), Guṇa-Streams of Beings, and Brahmā’s Progeny in Cyclic Time

Devanagari script

यथर्तावृतुलिङ्गानि नानारूपाणि पर्यये / दृश्यन्ते तानि तान्येव तथा भावा युगादिषु

Transliteration

yathartāvṛtuliṅgāni nānārūpāṇi paryaye / dṛśyante tāni tānyeva tathā bhāvā yugādiṣu

Translation

正如四时的特征之相，随轮回流转而现种种形态——却仍是那同一季节的标记——同样，诸有之境亦在诸劫（yuga）及其他时间分段中反复再现。

Word by Word

• यथा: just as
• यथा: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/तुलना)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमान/यथार्थार्थे (comparative ‘as/just as’)

• ऋतौ: in a season
• ऋतौ: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛtu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• ऋतु-लिङ्गानि: seasonal signs
• ऋतु-लिङ्गानि: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛtu (प्रातिपदिक) + liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (‘ऋतोः लिङ्गानि’ = signs of the season)

• नाना-रूपाणि: of various forms
• नाना-रूपाणि: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nānā (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (‘नानानि रूपाणि’ = various forms)

• पर्यये: in succession/turn
• पर्यये: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paryaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• दृश्यन्ते: are seen/appear
• दृश्यन्ते: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोगार्थकं (passive sense: ‘are seen/appear’)

• तानि: those
• तानि: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• तानि: those (same)
• तानि: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; पुनरुक्ति (emphatic repetition)

• एव: indeed/only
• एव: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक (emphasis/only/indeed)

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/तुलना)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तद्वत्/एवमेव (so, likewise)

• भावाः: states/conditions
• भावाः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• युग-आदिषु: in the yugas and so on
• युग-आदिषु: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuga (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः (‘युगादयः’ = yugas etc.; locative plural)

Speaker

Lord Kurma (Vishnu) instructing the sages/Indradyumna on cyclical time (yuga-parivarta)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Characters & Entities

• Lord Kurma
• Vishnu
• Yuga
• Ritu (Seasons)
• Kala (Time)

More Details (3 sections)

FAQs

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

By stressing the recurrence of changing conditions (bhāvas) across time, the verse implies that what is truly stable is not the transient cycle but the witnessing principle beyond it—Atman—unchanged while phenomena repeat in yuga after yuga.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse supports yogic steadiness (sthiti) and viveka: observe recurring patterns of change like seasons without attachment. In the Kurma Purana’s broader synthesis, such insight undergirds devotion to Īśvara (Shiva-Vishnu unity) and disciplined practice aligned with dharma across shifting yugas.

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

Indirectly: it frames the cosmos as governed by a single sovereign order of time and recurrence, consistent with the Kurma Purana’s non-sectarian stance where the same Supreme Lord (Īśvara) is honored through both Shaiva and Vaishnava idioms.