The scriptures refer to the Kurma avatar of Lord Vishnu as the Turtle avatar. It is said that Lord Vishnu took the form of a turtle and held the Mandar mountain on his back like a shield. After this, Lord Vishnu with the help of a snake named Mandar Parvat and Vasuki, the gods and asuras got fourteen gems by churning the sea. It is said that at this time Lord Vishnu also took the form of Mohini.
What are the rituals of Kurma Jayanti?
- Like other Hindu festivals, taking a holy bath before sunrise on this day is considered sacred.
After taking a bath, devotees wear clean and tidy worship garments. - Devotees offer prayers to Lord Vishnu by offering sandalwood, basil leaves, kumkum, incense sticks, flowers, and sweets.
- Observing the fast of Shri Kurma Jayanti is considered very important. So, devotees keep a silent fast or a harsh
Kurma Jayanti Rituals on this special day
- Devotees who fast, stop themselves from consuming lentils or grains and consume only milk products and fruits.
- During the fast of the Koram Jayanti Vrat, devotees are prohibited from committing any kind of sin or evil and are also prohibited from lying.
- Devotees are not allowed to sleep at night.
- Reciting ‘Vishnu Sahasranama’ is considered highly auspicious.
- Once all the rituals are over, the devotees perform aarti.
- Donating on the eve of Kurma Jayanti is considered highly fruitful. The supervisor should donate food, clothes, and money to the Brahmins.
Kurma Avatar in Vedas and Puranas
- According to Narsingha Purana and Bhagavata Purana, Lord Vishnu is the eleventh avata.
- It is said in the Shatapatha Brahmana, Mahabharata, and Padmapurana that for breeding offspring, Prajapati takes the form of a tortoise and transmits it in water.
- According to the Linga Purana, the earth was going to the abyss, then Vishnu incarnated in the form of a tortoise.
- It is told in the Padma Purana that when the Mandarachal mountain started going to the abyss during the churning of the ocean, Lord Vishnu took the form of a turtle and held it on his back.
- According to the Koram Purana, Lord Vishnu, through his Kachhapavatara, described the four goals of life (Dharma, Artha, Kama, and Moksha) to the sages.
Kurma Avatar Katha
According to mythology, there are visions of the Kachchap form of God in this incarnation. Kurma Avatar was only related to the sponsorship of Samudra Manthan. The legend contained in the religious texts says that the demons and demons became very powerful under the rule of the demon king Bali and he also got the superpower of the demon Guru Shukracharya.
God could not do anything to harm him because once in his pride, Lord Devraj was angry for some reason and was cursed by Maharishi Durvasa, due to which Indra became powerless. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the demon king Bali established his kingdom on all three worlds and all the gods including Indra started wandering.
All the gods go to Brahma Ji and pray that he should get them out of this crisis. Then Brahma Ji, along with the gods, comes before Lord Vishnu for freedom from the crisis and narrates his calamity to Lord Vishnu. Hearing the calamities of the deities, Lord Vishnu advises them to meet the demons and churn the ocean so that the Gods can churn the Ksheer Sagar and remove the nectar from it and drink that nectar and they will become immortal by drinking the nectar and their ability to kill the demons. will come.
According to Lord Vishnu’s order, Indra gets ready to churn the ocean with the demons. Uprooting Mandarachal takes him to the sea and when Mandarachal mountain is put into the sea, it starts sinking. Then Lord Shri Vishnu takes an avatar of a Kachchap, that is, a tortoise, and goes to the sea and puts the Mandarachal mountain on his back. All Lokpal Dikpal are situated in their Kurma shape and Mandarachal started moving fast on Lord Kurma’s huge back and thus the sea churning was completed.
