Shloka 15

Matsya Purana — Glory of Prayaga: The Fruit of the Anashaka Fast and the Merit of the Yamuna

Devanagari script

विश्रम्भघातकानां तु प्रयागे शृणु यत्फलम् त्रिकालमेव स्नायीत आहारं भैक्ष्यमाचरेत् त्रिभिर्मासैः स मुच्येत प्रयागे तु न संशयः //

Transliteration

viśrambhaghātakānāṃ tu prayāge śṛṇu yatphalam trikālameva snāyīta āhāraṃ bhaikṣyamācaret tribhirmāsaiḥ sa mucyeta prayāge tu na saṃśayaḥ //

Translation

Now hear the spiritual result at Prayāga for those who slay one who trusted them: if one bathes there at the three junctures of the day and lives on alms as one’s food, then within three months one is released from that sin at Prayāga—of this there is no doubt.

Word by Word

• विश्रम्भघातकानाम्: of those who kill a trusting/confiding person (betrayers)

• तु: indeed/now

• प्रयागे: at Prayāga

• शृणु: hear

• यत्-फलम्: what result/fruit

• त्रिकालम्-एव: at the three times (dawn, noon, dusk) only/regularly

• स्नायीत: should bathe

• आहारम्: food, sustenance

• भैक्ष्यम्: obtained by begging, alms

• आचरेत्: should practice/observe

• त्रिभिः मासैः: within three months

• सः: he

• मुच्येत: is freed/released (from sin)

• प्रयागे: at Prayāga

• तु: indeed

• न संशयः: no doubt.

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu, within the Matsya Purana’s dialogue framework)

Entities Mentioned

• Prayaga
• Trikala-snāna
• Bhaikṣya (alms)

Tags

• Prayaga
• Tirtha Mahatmya
• Prayashchitta
• Snana
• Expiation

FAQs

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

This verse does not address pralaya; it focuses on tīrtha-mahātmya and expiation—how Prayāga’s ritual discipline can remove the burden of a grave sin.

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

It frames a concrete prāyaścitta: disciplined bathing (trikāla-snāna) and austerity through living on alms, teaching rulers and householders that even severe wrongdoing requires humility, restraint, and sustained penance rather than mere declaration.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

The ritual significance is trikāla-snāna at Prayāga combined with bhaikṣya-āhāra (subsisting on alms) for three months, presented as a formal expiatory observance tied to the sacred geography of Prayāga.