Shloka 8

Matsya Purana — Division of Bhārata-varṣa

Devanagari script

इन्द्रद्वीपः कशेरुश्च ताम्रपर्णो गभस्तिमान् नागद्वीपस्तथा सौम्यो गन्धर्वस्त्वथ वारुणः //

Transliteration

indradvīpaḥ kaśeruśca tāmraparṇo gabhastimān nāgadvīpastathā saumyo gandharvastvatha vāruṇaḥ //

Translation

“(These are the divisions:) Indradvīpa and Kaśeru; Tāmraparṇa and Gabhastimān; likewise Nāgadvīpa and Saumya; then Gandharva and also Vāruṇa.”

Word by Word

• इन्द्रद्वीपः (indradvīpaḥ): Indra-dvīpa, the ‘Island/continent named after Indra’

• कशेरुः (kaśeruḥ): Kaśeru, a named dvīpa/region

• च (ca): and

• ताम्रपर्णः (tāmraparṇaḥ): Tāmraparṇa, a named dvīpa/region (lit. ‘copper-leafed’)

• गभस्तिमान् (gabhastimān): Gabhastimān, a named dvīpa/region (lit. ‘radiant, possessing rays’)

• नागद्वीपः (nāgadvīpaḥ): Nāga-dvīpa, the ‘Serpent/Nāga island/region’

• तथा (tathā): likewise/also

• सौम्यः (saumyaḥ): Saumya, a named dvīpa/region (lit. ‘lunar/benign’)

• गन्धर्वः (gandharvaḥ): Gandharva, a named dvīpa/region (associated with Gandharvas)

• तु (tu): then/indeed

• अथ (atha): next/thereafter

• वारुणः (vāruṇaḥ): Vāruṇa, a named dvīpa/region (pertaining to Varuṇa).

Speaker

• Sūta (narrating the Matsya Purana’s cosmography; traditional dialogue frame)

Entities Mentioned

• Indradvīpa
• Kaśeru
• Tāmraparṇa
• Gabhastimān
• Nāgadvīpa
• Saumya
• Gandharva
• Vāruṇa
• Indra
• Varuṇa

Tags

• Cosmography
• Bhū-maṇḍala
• Dvīpa-list
• Puranic geography
• Matsya Purana

FAQs

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

This verse is not describing pralaya; it functions as a cosmographic catalogue, naming dvīpas/regions within the ordered world-structure (bhū-maṇḍala) that persists across cycles.

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

Indirectly: by mapping the world into named regions, the Purana supplies a sacred-geographical framework used in royal ideology (universal sovereignty, pilgrimage networks) and household rites (tīrtha-oriented vows and directional sanctity).

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No explicit Vāstu rule appears here, but such cosmographic enumerations underpin ritual geography—directions, mandala-world correspondences, and the idea that temple space mirrors the ordered cosmos.