Kurma Purana — Uttara Bhaga, Shloka 3
Prākṛta-pralaya, Pratisarga Doctrine, and the Ishvara-Samanvaya of Yoga and Devotion
स्वात्मन्यात्मानमावेश्य भूत्वा देवो महेश्वरः / दहेदशेषं ब्रह्माण्डं सदेवासुरमानुषम्
svātmanyātmānamāveśya bhūtvā devo maheśvaraḥ / dahedaśeṣaṃ brahmāṇḍaṃ sadevāsuramānuṣam
当祂将自我摄入自身之大我时，主大自在天（Maheśvara）化为吞噬之力，焚尽整个宇宙——此一梵卵（Brahmāṇḍa）——连同诸天、阿修罗与人类一并烧尽。
Purāṇic narrator (contextual description of Maheshvara’s role in pralaya)
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It frames dissolution as an inward metaphysical act: the Lord “absorbs the self into the Self,” indicating that the ultimate ground is the Self (Ātman) into which all differentiated existence can be withdrawn.
The imagery aligns with laya (withdrawal/absorption) and pratyāhāra-like interiorization: drawing consciousness back into its source. In Kurma Purana’s broader yogic language, this points to mastery over the inner self that culminates in absorption into Īśvara.
By presenting Maheśvara’s cosmic function as supreme and all-consuming, the Purana supports a synthesis where the same ultimate Īśvara is expressed through sectarian names—Śiva as dissolver without denying the wider Vishnu-centric narrative frame of the Kurma Purana.