Shloka 87

Matsya Purana — Cosmography of Śākadvīpa and Successive Dvīpas: Mountains

Devanagari script

सिद्धचारणसंकीर्णो गौरप्रायः शुचिर्जनः श्रुतास्तत्रैव नद्यस्तु प्रतिवर्षं गताः शुभाः //

Transliteration

siddhacāraṇasaṃkīrṇo gauraprāyaḥ śucirjanaḥ śrutāstatraiva nadyastu prativarṣaṃ gatāḥ śubhāḥ //

Translation

That sacred place is thronged with Siddhas and Cāraṇas; the people there are mostly fair-complexioned and pure. It is also heard that the rivers there become auspicious as they flow on, year after year.

Word by Word

• सिद्ध (siddha): perfected being

• चारण (cāraṇa): celestial bard/sky-wanderer

• संकीर्ण (saṃkīrṇa): filled with, crowded by

• गौरप्राय (gauraprāya): mostly fair/bright in complexion

• शुचि (śuci): pure, clean, ritually pure

• जन (janaḥ): people

• श्रुता (śrutāḥ): it is heard, traditionally reported

• तत्रैव (tatraiva): in that very place

• नद्यः (nadyaḥ): rivers

• तु (tu): and/indeed

• प्रतिवर्षम् (prativarṣam): every year, year after year

• गताः (gatāḥ): having gone/flowed onward

• शुभाः (śubhāḥ): auspicious, beneficent

Speaker

• Suta (Purana narrator) conveying traditional report within the tirtha description

Entities Mentioned

• Siddhas
• Cāraṇas
• Rivers (Nadyaḥ)

Tags

• Tirtha
• Sacred Geography
• Purity
• Pilgrimage
• Auspiciousness

FAQs

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

This verse does not describe Pralaya; it functions as tirtha-mahātmya, praising a holy region’s sanctity, purity, and auspicious rivers.

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

It supports the dharmic ideal of seeking purity through association with holy places and sacred waters—an implied guideline for householders (and rulers) to uphold ritual cleanliness and merit through pilgrimage and reverence for tīrthas.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

The ritual takeaway is the emphasis on śuci (purity) and the auspicious status of rivers at a tīrtha—supporting practices like bathing, offerings, and pilgrimage observances, rather than specific Vāstu or temple-construction rules.