Shloka 50

Matsya Purana — Narasimha’s Victory over Hiraṇyakaśipu and the Catalogue of Apocalyptic Omens

Devanagari script

यदा च सर्वभूतानां छाया न परिवर्तते अपराह्णगते सूर्ये लोकानां युगसंक्षये //

Transliteration

yadā ca sarvabhūtānāṃ chāyā na parivartate aparāhṇagate sūrye lokānāṃ yugasaṃkṣaye //

Translation

And when, for all beings, the shadow no longer shifts—though the sun has moved into the afternoon—then, at the end of the age, the worlds approach dissolution.

Word by Word

• yadā: when

• ca: and

• sarva-bhūtānām: of all beings

• chāyā: shadow

• na: not

• parivartate: turns/changes/moves

• aparāhṇa-gate: having gone into the afternoon (post-noon)

• sūrye: when the sun (is)

• lokānām: of the worlds

• yuga-saṃkṣaye: at the exhaustion/end of the yuga (age).

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu, within the Pralaya discourse)

Entities Mentioned

• Surya (the Sun)

Tags

• Pralaya
• Yuga-kshaya
• Cosmic signs
• Time
• Matsya Purana

FAQs

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

It gives an omen of yuga-ending dissolution: a breakdown of ordinary cosmic order, shown by shadows ceasing to move even as the sun progresses—signaling the worlds’ approach to pralaya.

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

Indirectly, it frames dharma within impermanence: rulers and householders should govern, give, and perform rites with awareness that worldly stability is time-bound and can collapse at yuga’s end.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No direct Vāstu rule is stated; the verse functions as a calendrical-cosmic warning sign, relevant to ritual timing only insofar as it marks abnormality in the sun’s course and worldly order.