Shloka 7

Matsya Purana — Description of Pralaya: Drying

Devanagari script

जिह्वा रसश्च स्नेहश्च संश्रिताः सलिले गुणाः रूपं चक्षुर्विपाकश्च ज्योतिरेवाश्रिता गुणाः //

Transliteration

jihvā rasaśca snehaśca saṃśritāḥ salile guṇāḥ rūpaṃ cakṣurvipākaśca jyotirevāśritā guṇāḥ //

Translation

The tongue, taste, and unctuousness are qualities that abide in water; while form (colour), the eye (as the organ of sight), and ripening/digestion are qualities that abide in fire (light).

Word by Word

• jihvā: tongue

• rasaḥ: taste/flavour

• snehaḥ: unctuousness/oiliness/viscosity

• saṃśritāḥ: resorting to/abiding in

• salile: in water

• guṇāḥ: qualities/attributes

• rūpam: form/colour/visible appearance

• cakṣuḥ: eye/organ of sight

• vipākaḥ: ripening, maturation, digestion (metabolic transformation)

• jyotiḥ: fire/light/tejas

• eva: indeed/only

• āśritāḥ: lodged in/dependent on

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in cosmological instruction to Vaivasvata Manu)

Entities Mentioned

• Salila (Water element)
• Jyotis/Tejas (Fire-Light element)
• Jihvā (tongue)
• Cakṣuḥ (eye)

Tags

• Mahabhuta
• Guna
• Cosmology
• Ayurveda-adjacent
• Sankhya

FAQs

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

It gives a tattva-based map of how elemental qualities (water and fire) support sense-functions; such mappings are used in Purāṇic cosmology to explain how the manifest world is composed and how, in dissolution, qualities withdraw back into their elements.

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

Indirectly, it frames bodily and worldly order as governed by elemental laws—encouraging disciplined living (food, digestion, sensory restraint). A householder or king upholds dharma better when health and perception are balanced through understanding water (taste/fluids) and fire (vision/digestion).

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Ritually, it supports elemental correspondences: water is linked with rasa and offerings involving liquids, while fire/light is linked with form/visibility and transformation (pāka/vipāka) in homa—useful for aligning materials, offerings, and lighting in temple and Vastu-informed rites.