Shloka 15

Matsya Purana — Marks of Karma-yoga and the Five Great Daily Sacrifices

Devanagari script

पञ्चैते विहिता यज्ञाः पञ्चसूनापनुत्तये कण्डनी पेषणी चुल्ली जलकुम्भी प्रमार्जनी //

Transliteration

pañcaite vihitā yajñāḥ pañcasūnāpanuttaye kaṇḍanī peṣaṇī cullī jalakumbhī pramārjanī //

Translation

These five sacrifices (yajñas) are prescribed to ward off the five “household harms”: the pounding-stone, the grinding-stone, the hearth, the water-pot, and the broom—namely, the acts of pounding, grinding, cooking, drawing water, and sweeping, which unavoidably injure minute beings.

Word by Word

• pañca: five

• ete: these

• vihitāḥ: prescribed/ordained

• yajñāḥ: sacrifices (daily duties)

• pañca-sūnā: the five ‘slaughters’/harm-causing household activities

• apanuttaye: for the removal/warding off

• kaṇḍanī: pounding-stone/mortar (pounding)

• peṣaṇī: grinding-stone/quern (grinding)

• cullī: hearth/oven (cooking fire)

• jalakumbhī: water-jar/pot (drawing/storing water)

• pramārjanī: broom/sweeper (sweeping/cleaning)

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (Vishnu) instructing Vaivasvata Manu on householder dharma

Tags

• Dharma
• Grihastha
• Pañca-yajña
• Ahiṃsā
• Daily rites

FAQs

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

It does not describe pralaya; it focuses on dharma in ordinary life, emphasizing that even routine household acts can unintentionally harm living beings and therefore require daily expiatory-sacrificial discipline.

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

It directly guides the householder: one should perform the prescribed five daily sacrifices as a moral remedy for unavoidable violence involved in cooking, grinding, cleaning, and water-drawing—reinforcing ahiṃsā and responsibility in daily living (a model also upheld by righteous kings).

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

The significance is ritual rather than architectural: it identifies the five domestic sources of unintentional harm (pañca-sūnā) and links them to the need for pañca‑yajña—regular rites that purify daily life and uphold dharmic order.