Shloka 39

Matsya Purana — Inquiry into Yayāti’s Story and the Kacha–Devayānī Episode

Devanagari script

वने पुष्पाणि चिन्वन्तं ददृशुर् दानवाश्च तम् ततो ऽद्वितीयं तं हत्वा दग्धं कृत्वा च चूर्णवत् प्रायच्छन् ब्राह्मणायैव सुरायामसुरास्तदा //

Transliteration

vane puṣpāṇi cinvantaṃ dadṛśur dānavāśca tam tato 'dvitīyaṃ taṃ hatvā dagdhaṃ kṛtvā ca cūrṇavat prāyacchan brāhmaṇāyaiva surāyāmasurāstadā //

Translation

In the forest the Dānavas saw him gathering flowers. Then those Asuras killed that peerless one; having burned him and ground him into powder-like ash, they offered it to a brāhmaṇa mixed in liquor (surā).

Word by Word

• vane: in the forest

• puṣpāṇi: flowers

• cinvantam: gathering/collecting

• dadṛśuḥ: they saw

• dānavāḥ: Dānavas (a class of Asuras)

• ca: and

• tam: him

• tataḥ: then

• advitīyam: unrivalled/peerless

• tam: him

• hatvā: having killed

• dagdham kṛtvā: having burned (him)

• ca: and

• cūrṇavat: like powder

• prāyacchan: they gave/offered

• brāhmaṇāya eva: to a Brāhmaṇa indeed

• surāyām: in liquor/with liquor

• asurāḥ: the Asuras

• tadā: then/at that time

Speaker

• Narrator (contextually within the Matsya Purana’s running narration; commonly framed as Sūta recounting to sages, though this verse itself is third-person narration)

Entities Mentioned

• Dānava
• Asura
• Brāhmaṇa

Tags

• Asura-legend
• Brāhmaṇa
• Adharma
• Violence
• Ritual-impurity

FAQs

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

This verse does not discuss pralaya or cosmology; it depicts an adharma-filled act by Dānavas/Asuras, highlighting moral disorder rather than cosmic dissolution.

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

By showing extreme wrongdoing—killing a blameless person and defiling a Brāhmaṇa with liquor—the verse implicitly underscores the king’s duty to protect the innocent, uphold dharma, and prevent sacrilege and social-religious harm.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

There is no Vāstu or temple-architecture rule here; the ritual takeaway is negative—liquor (surā) and human remains used as an offering represent grave impurity and sacrilegious conduct.