Shloka 5

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

Devanagari script

हिमवन्तं च मेरुं च नीलं निषधमेव च कैलासं मुञ्जवन्तं च तथान्यं गन्धमादनम् //

Transliteration

himavantaṃ ca meruṃ ca nīlaṃ niṣadhameva ca kailāsaṃ muñjavantaṃ ca tathānyaṃ gandhamādanam //

Translation

“(They speak of) Himavān and Meru, Nīla and Niṣadha, likewise Kailāsa and Muñjavat, and also the other (mountain) Gandhamādana.”

Word by Word

• himavantam: Himavān (the Himalaya range)

• ca: and

• merum: Meru (cosmic mountain)

• ca: and

• nīlam: Nīla (mountain)

• niṣadham: Niṣadha (mountain)

• eva: indeed/just so

• ca: and

• kailāsam: Kailāsa (Śiva’s mountain)

• muñjavantam: Muñjavat (mountain)

• ca: and

• tathā: likewise

• anyam: the other/another

• gandhamādanam: Gandhamādana (mountain, ‘fragrance-intoxicating’)

Speaker

• Sūta (narrator) conveying the Matsya Purana’s cosmographic listing (traditional dialogue frame: Sūta to the assembled ṛṣis)

Entities Mentioned

• Himavān (Himalaya)
• Meru
• Nīla (mountain)
• Niṣadha (mountain)
• Kailāsa
• Muñjavat
• Gandhamādana

Tags

• Sacred Geography
• Cosmography
• Mountains
• Jambudvipa
• Puranic Mapping

FAQs

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

This verse does not describe Pralaya; it functions as a cosmographic catalogue, naming major sacred and cosmic mountains used to structure the Purana’s map of the world.

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

Indirectly, such geographic lists ground dharmic life in a sacred landscape—pilgrimage, boundary-knowledge, and reverence for tīrthas and mountains—though no explicit royal or household duty is stated in this line.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No direct Vāstu or ritual rule appears here; however, mountains like Kailāsa and Meru serve as archetypes in temple symbolism (axis-mundi imagery) that later informs Purāṇic temple and maṇḍala conceptions.