Shloka 8

Matsya Purana — Design and Splendour of Tripura: Maya’s Threefold Moving Fortress

Devanagari script

यत्तु पूर्णेन्दुसंकाशं राजतं निर्मितं पुरम् विद्युन्माली प्रभुस्तत्र विद्युन्माली त्विवाम्बुदः //

Transliteration

yattu pūrṇendusaṃkāśaṃ rājataṃ nirmitaṃ puram vidyunmālī prabhustatra vidyunmālī tvivāmbudaḥ //

Translation

And that city, shining like the full moon—fashioned of silver—there Vidyunmālī was the lord; indeed, Vidyunmālī was like a rain-cloud charged with lightning.

Word by Word

• yat tu: and that indeed

• pūrṇendu-saṃkāśam: resembling the full moon

• rājatam: of silver / silvery

• nirmitam: constructed, fashioned

• puram: city, fortified town

• vidyunmālī: (proper name) Vidyunmālī, ‘garlanded with lightning’

• prabhuḥ: lord, ruler

• tatra: there, in that place

• iva: like, as

• ambudaḥ: cloud, rain-cloud

Speaker

• Sūta (narrator) describing the city and its ruler within the Matsya Purana’s architectural/cosmographic narration

Entities Mentioned

• Vidyunmālī

Tags

• Vastu Shastra
• City Description
• Puranic Cosmography
• Royal Splendour
• Architecture

FAQs

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

This verse is descriptive rather than pralaya-focused; it highlights an idealized, luminous city and its ruler, using cosmic imagery (moon and cloud) rather than flood or dissolution motifs.

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

By portraying Vidyunmālī as “prabhu” (lord) of a splendid, well-made city, it implies the royal duty of establishing and maintaining an ordered, prosperous urban space—an indirect ethical ideal of kingship.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

The verse uses classic Vastu-style praise of materials and radiance: a ‘silver-built’ city with full-moon brilliance, reflecting the Purāṇic aesthetic of auspicious construction and ideal urban grandeur.