Matsya Purana — Yayāti in Amarāvatī-like Splendor: Devayānī Installed, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

किं प्राप्तं किंच कर्तव्यं कथं कृत्वा सुखं भवेत् देवयानी प्रसूतासौ वृथाहं प्राप्तयौवना //

Transliteration

kiṃ prāptaṃ kiṃca kartavyaṃ kathaṃ kṛtvā sukhaṃ bhavet devayānī prasūtāsau vṛthāhaṃ prāptayauvanā //

Translation

„Was ist erlangt worden, und was ist nun zu tun? Durch welches Handeln kann Glück entstehen? Devayānī hat Kinder geboren, doch ich habe die Jugend vergeblich erreicht.“

Word by Word

• kim: what?

• prāptam: obtained, gained

• kim ca: and what

• kartavyam: to be done, one’s duty/what should be done

• katham: how

• kṛtvā: having done/by doing

• sukham: happiness

• bhavet: would arise, would come to be

• devayānī: Devayānī (name)

• prasūtā: having given birth

• asau: she/that one

• vṛthā: in vain, fruitlessly

• aham: I

• prāpta-yauvanā: having attained youth/young womanhood

Speaker

• Uncertain (context suggests a woman in Devayānī’s circle—likely Śarmiṣṭhā or a rival/attendant—lamenting her own fruitless youth while Devayānī has become a mother).

Entities Mentioned

• Devayānī

Tags

• Yayati
• Devayani
• Genealogy
• Dharma
• Royal narrative

FAQs

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

Nothing directly—this verse belongs to a human, ethical-psychological narrative (ākhyāna) focused on duty, desire, and the pursuit of happiness rather than cosmic pralaya.

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

It frames a classic dharma-question: “What is to be done for true happiness?” In Matsya Purana’s narrative ethics, sukha is not merely youth or sensual opportunity; it is tied to right action (kartavya) and the socially consequential outcomes of life (e.g., marriage, progeny, duty).

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

None is explicit here; the verse is a personal lament within a royal-genealogical storyline, not a Vastu Shastra or ritual-procedure passage.