Shloka 12

Matsya Purana — Kārtavīrya Arjuna’s Solar Boon and the Genealogy from Kroṣṭu to the Yādava Lines

Devanagari script

एतस्मिन्नेव काले तु आपवो जलमास्थितः दश वर्षसहस्राणि तत्रास्ते स महानृषिः //

Transliteration

etasminneva kāle tu āpavo jalamāsthitaḥ daśa varṣasahasrāṇi tatrāste sa mahānṛṣiḥ //

Translation

At that very time, the great sage Āpava, having taken refuge in the waters, remained there for ten thousand years.

Word by Word

• etasmin eva kāle: at this very time

• tu: indeed/and

• āpavaḥ: Āpava (name of a great sage)

• jalam: in the water(s)

• āsthitaḥ: having entered/abiding in, having taken refuge

• daśa: ten

• varṣa-sahasrāṇi: thousands of years (i.e., ten thousand years)

• tatra: there

• āste: stayed/remained

• saḥ: he

• mahānṛṣiḥ: the great ṛṣi (sage).

Speaker

• Sūta (narrator) recounting the Matsya Purana’s pralaya account (within the Matsya–Manu narrative frame)

Entities Mentioned

• Āpava

Tags

• Pralaya
• Great Flood
• Sage Lineages
• Matsya Avatara
• Manvantara

FAQs

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

It highlights the prolonged duration and severity of the deluge-era conditions, indicating that exalted sages could endure and remain sustained in the waters for vast spans (ten thousand years), a hallmark of pralaya-time descriptions.

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

Indirectly, it reinforces the Purāṇic ethic of preparedness and steadfastness during cosmic upheaval—an ideal mirrored in royal and household duties: preserving dharma, safeguarding dependents, and maintaining discipline through long trials.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No direct Vāstu or temple-rule detail appears in this verse; its ritual takeaway is the ascetic ideal of sustained tapas and yogic endurance, often treated as the inner ‘support’ that complements outer ritual and sacred construction.