Matsya Purana — Measures of Time: Caturyuga Computation, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

तत्र संवत्सराः सृष्टा मानुषास्तान्निबोधत नियुतानि दश द्वे च पञ्च चैवात्र संख्यया अष्टाविंशत्सहस्राणि कृतं युगमथोच्यते //

Transliteration

tatra saṃvatsarāḥ sṛṣṭā mānuṣāstānnibodhata niyutāni daśa dve ca pañca caivātra saṃkhyayā aṣṭāviṃśatsahasrāṇi kṛtaṃ yugamathocyate //

Translation

Versteht nun die hier festgesetzten Menschenjahre: Nach dieser Rechnung — zehn Niyuta, dazu zwei und fünf — werden achtundzwanzigtausend (Jahre) als das Kṛta‑Yuga bezeichnet.

Word by Word

• tatra: there/in this context

• saṃvatsarāḥ: years

• sṛṣṭāḥ: set forth/established

• mānuṣāḥ: human (years)

• tān: those

• nibodhata: know/understand

• niyutāni: niyutas (a large numerical unit)

• daśa: ten

• dve: two

• ca: and

• pañca: five

• eva: indeed

• atra: here

• saṃkhyayā: by number/by this count

• aṣṭāviṃśat-sahasrāṇi: twenty-eight thousand

• kṛtam yugam: the Kṛta Yuga

• atha: then/thus

• ucyate: is said/is called.

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu)

Entities Mentioned

• Kṛta Yuga
• Saṃvatsara (human year)

Tags

• Yuga
• Cosmology
• Time-keeping
• Manvantara
• Puranic chronology

FAQs

What does this verse reveal about the creation or dissolution (Pralaya)?

It does not describe Pralaya directly; it establishes a chronological measure—defining the length of the Kṛta Yuga in human years—used in broader cosmological cycles that also frame Pralaya narratives.

How does this verse relate to the duties of a King or Householder?

By fixing the yuga framework, the text indirectly grounds dharma in time: royal and household duties are taught as varying by yuga, and knowing yuga-measures supports proper application of age-appropriate moral and ritual standards.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No Vāstu or iconographic rule is stated in this verse; its ritual relevance is indirect, since many rites, calendars, and Purāṇic prescriptions are organized within yuga-based time-reckoning.