Shloka 38

Matsya Purana — Maya’s Nectar-Reservoir in Tripura and the Revival of the Slain in the Tripur...

Devanagari script

हेमकुण्डलयुक्तानि किरीटोत्कटवन्ति च शिरांस्युर्व्यां पतन्ति स्म गिरिकूटा इवात्यये //

Transliteration

hemakuṇḍalayuktāni kirīṭotkaṭavanti ca śirāṃsyurvyāṃ patanti sma girikūṭā ivātyaye //

Translation

Heads adorned with golden earrings, made formidable by their towering crowns, fell upon the earth—like mountain peaks collapsing at the time of catastrophe.

Word by Word

• hema: gold

• kuṇḍala: earring

• yuktāni: furnished/adorned with

• kirīṭa: crown/diadem

• utkaṭa-vanti: possessing towering/terrifying grandeur

• ca: and

• śirāṃsi: heads

• urvyām: upon the earth/ground

• patanti sma: were falling (repeatedly/indeed)

• giri-kūṭāḥ: mountain peaks/summits

• iva: like

• atyaye: at the time of calamity/catastrophic end (pralaya-like crisis)

Speaker

• Sūta (narrative voice describing the scene within the Matsya Purana’s discourse tradition)

Tags

• Pralaya
• Battlefield imagery
• Royal insignia
• Kshatriya
• Destruction

FAQs

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

It uses an explicit pralaya-style comparison—mountain peaks collapsing in catastrophe—to convey overwhelming destruction, emphasizing how even the most exalted (crowned) fall in a time of cosmic-scale crisis.

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

By showing crowned heads falling despite royal insignia, it underscores the Matsya Purana’s ethical undertone: power and ornament are transient, so a king’s true duty lies in dharma, protection, and righteous conduct rather than pride in regalia.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No direct Vāstu or ritual rule is stated; the verse instead employs a vivid architectural-natural image (mountain peaks) as a simile to communicate scale and impact, a common Purāṇic technique rather than a technical prescription.