Shloka 47

Matsya Purana — Description of Atri’s Hermitage: Sacred Grove Planning

Devanagari script

तथा कादम्बकान्हंसान् कोयष्टीन् खञ्जरीटकान् कुररान्कालकूटांश्च खट्वाङ्गान् लुब्धकांस् तथा //

Transliteration

tathā kādambakānhaṃsān koyaṣṭīn khañjarīṭakān kurarānkālakūṭāṃśca khaṭvāṅgān lubdhakāṃs tathā //

Translation

Likewise, one should recognize the kādambaka-ducks, the swans, the koyaṣṭi birds, the khañjarīṭaka (wagtails), the kurara (ospreys), the dark kālakūṭa birds, as well as the khaṭvāṅga birds, and also those called “lubdhaka” (bearing the name “hunter”).

Word by Word

• तथा (tathā): likewise, similarly

• कादम्बकान् (kādambakān): kādambaka ducks / geese-like waterfowl

• हंसान् (haṃsān): swans, geese (haṃsa birds)

• कोयष्टीन् (koyaṣṭīn): a class of birds called koyaṣṭi (traditional identification uncertain)

• खञ्जरीटकान् (khañjarīṭakān): wagtails / small tail-wagging birds (traditional bird-name)

• कुररान् (kurarān): ospreys / fish-eating raptors (kurara)

• कालकूटान् (kālakūṭān): dark/black birds named kālakūṭa (traditional identification uncertain)

• च (ca): and

• खट्वाङ्गान् (khaṭvāṅgān): birds called khaṭvāṅga (traditional identification uncertain)

• लुब्धकान् (lubdhakān): birds termed ‘lubdhaka’ (hunter-named

• तथा (tathā): also, likewise

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu, within the running discourse of the Matsya Purana)

Entities Mentioned

• Kādambaka (duck/waterfowl)
• Haṃsa (swan/goose)
• Kurara (osprey)

Tags

• Vastu
• Iconography
• Sacred ecology
• Omina
• Puranic taxonomy

FAQs

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

This verse does not describe Pralaya directly; it functions as a taxonomic/ritual-ecological listing of birds, a type of catalog often used in Puranas to frame dharmic order in the living world rather than cosmic dissolution.

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

By identifying classes of birds, the text supports dharmic regulation—kings and householders were expected to understand living beings relevant to ritual purity, omens, and the management of lands/waters (especially waterfowl and fish-eating birds) in a regulated, non-chaotic social order.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Such bird-lists commonly serve Vastu/ritual ecology: the presence, calls, or nesting of specific birds could be read as indicators for site selection, auspiciousness, and environmental suitability around temples, tanks, and settlements, even when the verse itself is simply enumerative.