Matsya Purana — War of Devas and Dānavas: Yama and Kubera Defeated; Kālanemi’s Māyā and the A..., Shloka 4

Devanagari script

बाणवृष्टिभिरुग्राभिर् यमो ग्रसनमर्दयत् कृतान्तशरवृष्टिं तां वियति प्रतिसर्पिणीम् //

Transliteration

bāṇavṛṣṭibhirugrābhir yamo grasanamardayat kṛtāntaśaravṛṣṭiṃ tāṃ viyati pratisarpiṇīm //

Translation

Mit einem grimmigen Pfeilregen schlug Yama Grāsana nieder und zermalmte ihn; und er zerschlug jenen „Regen todbringender Geschosse“, als er durch den Himmel zurückwich.

Word by Word

• बाण-वृष्टिभिः: with showers of arrows

• उग्राभिः: fierce, terrible

• यमः: Yama (Lord of Death)

• ग्रसन-मर्दयत्: crushed/overpowered (lit. ‘seized and pressed down’)

• कृतान्त-शर-वृष्टिम्: the arrow-rain of Kṛtānta (Death)/deathly shower of arrows

• ताम्: that

• वियति: in the sky

• प्रतिसर्पिणीम्: moving back, retreating, withdrawing

Speaker

• Suta (Purāṇic narrator)

Entities Mentioned

• Yama
• Kṛtānta

Tags

• Battle
• Yama
• Kṛtānta
• Martial imagery
• Puranic warfare

FAQs

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

It does not describe cosmic dissolution; it uses ‘Kṛtānta’ (Death) as a battlefield epithet, portraying death’s force as something that can be resisted and overcome in combat imagery.

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

Indirectly, it reflects the Purāṇic ideal of steadfast resistance against destructive forces—an image often applied to kṣatriya duty (protecting order and people) through disciplined courage and strategic strength.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

None is explicit in this shloka; the focus is martial metaphor (arrow-showers in the sky), not Vāstu, temple-building, or ritual procedure.