Shloka 60

Matsya Purana — Cosmic Architecture of Sun–Moon and the ‘Houses of the Gods’

Devanagari script

तुल्यो भूत्वा तु स्वर्भानुस् तदधस्तात्प्रसर्पति उद्धूत्य पार्थिवीं छायां निर्मितां मण्डलाकृतिम् //

Transliteration

tulyo bhūtvā tu svarbhānus tadadhastātprasarpati uddhūtya pārthivīṃ chāyāṃ nirmitāṃ maṇḍalākṛtim //

Translation

Assuming a like form, Svarbhānu then glides beneath it, sweeping up an earthly, circular shadow fashioned in the shape of a disc.

Word by Word

• तुल्यः (tulyaḥ): similar, of the same kind

• भूत्वा (bhūtvā): having become/assuming

• तु (tu): then/indeed

• स्वर्भानुः (svarbhānuḥ): Svarbhānu (Rāhu, the eclipse-causer)

• तदधस्तात् (tad-adhastāt): beneath that

• प्रसर्पति (prasarpati): creeps/moves/glides

• उद्धूत्य (uddhūtya): having swept up/raised/whirled away

• पार्थिवीम् (pārthivīm): earthly, of the earth

• छायाम् (chāyām): shadow

• निर्मिताम् (nirmitām): made/constructed/formed

• मण्डलाकृतिम् (maṇḍalākṛtim): having the form of a circle/disk.

Speaker

• Sūta (narrator) describing the cosmological account within the Matsya Purana

Entities Mentioned

• Svarbhānu (Rāhu)
• Chāyā (shadow)
• Maṇḍala (disk/orb)

Tags

• Grahaṇa
• Cosmology
• Astronomy-myth
• Rāhu
• Shadow-disc

FAQs

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

This verse is not about pralaya; it explains a cosmological mechanism for eclipses, portraying Svarbhānu (Rāhu) as moving beneath and producing a disk-like shadow.

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

Indirectly, it supports the Purāṇic ideal that rulers and householders should respect calendrical and celestial timings (e.g., eclipses) for vows, gifts, and rites—since such events are treated as ritually significant omens and occasions.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Ritually, eclipses (grahaṇa) are associated with heightened observances—bathing, japa, dāna, and expiatory practices—while the verse’s “maṇḍala” (disk) imagery also resonates with mandala-based sacred geometry used in yantra and ritual layouts, though no direct Vāstu rule is stated here.