Shloka 12

Matsya Purana — Genealogy and Classification of Sacred Fires

Devanagari script

ततः सभ्यावसथ्यौ च संशत्यास् तौ सुतावुभौ ततः षोडश नद्यस्तु चकमे हव्यवाहनः यः खल्वाहवनीयो ऽग्निर् अभिमानी द्विजैः स्मृतः //

Transliteration

tataḥ sabhyāvasathyau ca saṃśatyās tau sutāvubhau tataḥ ṣoḍaśa nadyastu cakame havyavāhanaḥ yaḥ khalvāhavanīyo 'gnir abhimānī dvijaiḥ smṛtaḥ //

Translation

Thereafter, from Saṃśatya were born two sons, Sābhya and Āvasathya. Then Havyavāhana (Agni), taking the sixteen sacred rivers as his consorts, begot offspring; and he is indeed remembered by the twice-born as Abhimānī—the very Āhavanīya fire employed for oblations.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: thereafter

• sabhya-āvasathyau: Sābhya and Āvasathya (two named sons/fires)

• ca: and

• saṃśatyāḥ: from Saṃśatya (a named progenitrix/lineage figure)

• tau: those two

• sutau: sons

• ubhau: both

• tataḥ: then

• ṣoḍaśa: sixteen

• nadyaḥ: rivers

• tu: indeed/then

• cakame: desired/took as consorts (lit. ‘loved’)

• havyavāhanaḥ: Havyavāhana, ‘carrier of oblations’ (Agni)

• yaḥ: who

• khalu: indeed

• āhavanīyaḥ agniḥ: the Āhavanīya sacred fire (for offerings)

• abhimānī: Abhimānī (a name/epithet of Agni)

• dvijaiḥ: by the twice-born (Brahmins/initiated)

• smṛtaḥ: is remembered/known.

Speaker

• Suta/Narrator (Purāṇic narrator describing Agni’s lineage and ritual forms)

Entities Mentioned

• Agni
• Havyavahana
• Abhimani
• Ahavaniya
• Sabhyā
• Avasathya
• Sixteen rivers (Ṣoḍaśa-nadyaḥ)
• Dvijas

Tags

• Vedic ritual
• Sacred fires
• Agni genealogy
• Ahavaniya
• Puranic lineages

FAQs

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

This verse does not describe Pralaya; it focuses on ritual-cosmological genealogy—Agni’s forms and names—linking sacred fire (Āhavanīya) to the epithet Abhimānī.

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

It supports the householder’s Vedic duty of maintaining and honoring the proper sacred fire for offerings—especially the Āhavanīya—by grounding it in Purāṇic lineage and authoritative naming remembered by the dvijas.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Ritually, it identifies the Āhavanīya fire (used to offer havis into the fire) with Agni as Abhimānī/Havyavāhana, reinforcing correct yajña procedure and the sanctity of maintaining the proper fire in sacrificial practice.