Shloka 11

Matsya Purana — Emergence of Brahmā from the Golden Lotus and the Lotus-Form Earth

Devanagari script

यानि पद्मस्य पर्णानि भूरीणि तु नराधिप ते दुर्गमाः शैलचिता म्लेच्छदेशा विकल्पिताः //

Transliteration

yāni padmasya parṇāni bhūrīṇi tu narādhipa te durgamāḥ śailacitā mlecchadeśā vikalpitāḥ //

Translation

O king, just as a lotus has many leaves, so too are there many regions—conceived as difficult to access—mountain-strewn tracts and the lands of the Mlecchas, set apart in this division.

Word by Word

• यानि (yāni): which

• पद्मस्य (padmasya): of the lotus

• पर्णानि (parṇāni): leaves/petals

• भूरीणि (bhūrīṇi): many/abundant

• तु (tu): indeed/and

• नराधिप (narādhipa): O lord of men/king

• ते (te): those

• दुर्गमाः (durgamāḥ): hard to reach/inaccessible

• शैलचिता (śailacitā): filled with mountains/mountain-strewn

• म्लेच्छदेशाः (mlecchadeśāḥ): lands of the Mlecchas (non-Vedic/foreign regions)

• विकल्पिताः (vikalpitāḥ): arranged/divided/assigned as categories

Speaker

• Sūta (narrating the Purāṇic discourse; the verse addresses a king as part of the geographical account)

Entities Mentioned

• Mlecchas
• Padma (lotus as metaphor)

Tags

• Bhugola
• Jambudvipa
• Geography
• Kingship
• Regional Classification

FAQs

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

This verse is not about Pralaya; it belongs to the Matsya Purana’s cosmography, classifying terrestrial regions as numerous and often difficult to traverse (especially mountainous and frontier lands).

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

By addressing the ruler (“narādhipa”), it frames geography as practical knowledge for governance—understanding remote, rugged, and frontier territories (including mleccha regions) relevant to diplomacy, security, and administration.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No direct Vāstu/ritual rule is stated; the main takeaway is spatial classification of lands, which can indirectly inform settlement planning and statecraft in later Vāstu or administrative contexts.