Shloka 64

Matsya Purana — Nārāyaṇa as Haṃsa in the Cosmic Ocean: Vedic Yajña-Puruṣa and Mārkaṇḍeya’s Vi...

Devanagari script

व्यक्तमव्यक्तयोगं माम् अवगच्छासुरद्विषम् अहमेकाक्षरो मन्त्रस् त्र्यक्षरश्चैव तारकः //

Transliteration

vyaktamavyaktayogaṃ mām avagacchāsuradviṣam ahamekākṣaro mantras tryakṣaraścaiva tārakaḥ //

Translation

Know Me—the foe of the Asuras—as the One who is the union of the manifest and the unmanifest. I am the one-syllable mantra, and I am also the three-syllabled Tāraka (saving) mantra.

Word by Word

• vyaktam: manifest (with form)

• avyaktayogam: joined with the unmanifest (formless), the union of manifest and unmanifest

• mām: Me

• avagaccha: know, realize

• asura-dviṣam: the hater/foe of the Asuras (protector of dharma)

• aham: I

• ekākṣaraḥ: one-syllabled

• mantraḥ: mantra, sacred formula

• tryakṣaraḥ: three-syllabled

• ca eva: and indeed/also

• tārakaḥ: the savior/transcending mantra (that ferries one across saṃsāra)

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (Vishnu) instructing Vaivasvata Manu

Entities Mentioned

• Lord Matsya
• Vishnu
• Asuras
• Tāraka Mantra

Tags

• Mantra
• Moksha
• Brahmavidya
• Yoga
• Vishnu

FAQs

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

It identifies the Supreme as spanning both the manifest world (vyakta) and the unmanifest principle (avyakta), implying that even through cosmic cycles like pralaya, the Lord remains the underlying reality that transcends and supports both states.

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

By presenting the Lord as the Tāraka mantra and the protector against adharma (asura-dviṣ), it frames rulership and household life as grounded in worship, mantra-discipline, and protection of dharma—inner realization supporting outer ethical governance.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Ritually, it emphasizes mantra-upāsanā: the Lord is invoked as ekākṣara and as the three-syllabled Tāraka mantra, supporting japa and initiation practices that often accompany temple worship and consecration rites described elsewhere in the Matsya Purana.