Shloka 22

Matsya Purana — Code of Conduct and Vow-Procedure for Courtesans

Devanagari script

तस्माद्वरप्रदानं वः शापश्चायमभूत्पुरा शय्याद्वयप्रदानेन मधुमाधवमासयोः //

Transliteration

tasmādvarapradānaṃ vaḥ śāpaścāyamabhūtpurā śayyādvayapradānena madhumādhavamāsayoḥ //

Translation

Therefore a boon was granted to you—and this curse too had arisen earlier—because you bestowed a pair of beds during the months of Madhu and Mādhava.

Word by Word

• तस्मात्: therefore/from that cause

• वर-प्रदानम्: granting of a boon

• वः: to you (plural)

• शापः: a curse

• च: and

• अयम्: this

• अभूत्: came to be/arose

• पुरा: formerly/earlier

• शय्या-द्वय-प्रदानेन: by the act of gifting a pair of beds (two couches)

• मधु-माधव-मासयोः: in the months named Madhu and Mādhava (spring months in the ritual calendar)

Speaker

• Likely Lord Matsya (Vishnu) instructing/clarifying karmic causality to Vaivasvata Manu or interlocutors within the narrative frame

Entities Mentioned

• Madhu (month)
• Mādhava (month)
• śāpa (curse)
• vara (boon)
• śayyā-dāna (gift of a bed)

Tags

• Dharma
• Vrata
• Dāna
• Karmic results
• Ritual calendar

FAQs

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

This verse does not address pralaya; it teaches karmic causality—how specific ritual charity (dāna) can generate both a boon and a curse as consequences within worldly time.

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

It emphasizes dāna as a core duty: even a householder’s or ruler’s gift (here, śayyā-dāna) performed in auspicious months yields defined results, reminding leaders to act with discernment because merits and liabilities can arise together.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

The ritual significance is śayyā-dāna (gifting beds) timed to the Madhu and Mādhava months—indicating month-specific prescriptions in Purāṇic practice rather than temple architecture rules.