Shloka 17

Matsya Purana — Mahāgaurī’s Entry

Devanagari script

वियति वायुपथे ज्वलनोज्ज्वले ऽवनितले तव देवि च यद्वपुः तदजिते ऽप्रतिमे प्रणमाम्यहं भुवनभाविनि ते भववल्लभे //

Transliteration

viyati vāyupathe jvalanojjvale 'vanitale tava devi ca yadvapuḥ tadajite 'pratime praṇamāmyahaṃ bhuvanabhāvini te bhavavallabhe //

Translation

That form of Yours, O Goddess—present in the sky, along the path of the winds, in the blazing fire, and upon the surface of the earth—before that unconquered, incomparable One I bow. O You who bring forth the worlds, beloved of Bhava (Śiva), I offer my reverence to You.

Word by Word

• वियति (viyati): in the sky/ether

• वायुपथे (vāyupathe): on the path/course of the wind

• ज्वलनोज्ज्वले (jvalanojjvale): in the blazing fire / in what shines with flame

• अवनितले (avanitale): on the surface of the earth

• तव (tava): Your

• देवि (devi): O Goddess

• च (ca): and/also

• यद्वपुः (yad-vapuḥ): whatever form/body (that which is Your form)

• तत् (tat): that

• अजिते (ajite): O Unconquered One

• अप्रतिमे (apratime): O Incomparable One

• प्रणमामि (praṇamāmi): I bow/salute

• अहं (ahaṃ): I

• भुवनभाविनि (bhuvana-bhāvini): O Producer/Sustainer/Manifestor of the worlds

• ते (te): to You

• भववल्लभे (bhava-vallabhe): O Beloved of Bhava (Śiva)

Speaker

• Sūta (narrator) or the text’s stuti-voice addressing Devī (contextual hymn within Matsya Purana)

Entities Mentioned

• Devī
• Bhava (Śiva)
• Vāyu (wind principle)
• Jvalana (Agni/fire principle)
• Avani (earth principle)
• Viyat (sky/ether principle)

Tags

• Devi Stuti
• Pancha-bhuta
• All-pervading Goddess
• Shaiva-Shakta
• Cosmic theology

FAQs

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

It presents Devī as bhuvana-bhāvinī—she who manifests and sustains the worlds—implying a cosmic agency that underlies both emergence and withdrawal of the elements, even though pralaya is not described explicitly here.

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

By affirming the Divine as present in all realms (sky, wind, fire, earth), it supports a dharmic ethic of reverence toward nature, sacred fire, and the earth—core to household rites and to a king’s duty of protecting land, resources, and social order.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Ritually, it foregrounds Agni (fire) and the elemental pervasion of Devī—useful for understanding why consecration, homa, and site-rituals treat space (ākāśa), air (vāyu), fire (agni), and earth (bhūmi) as sacred, though no direct Vāstu rule is stated in this verse.