Shloka 111

Matsya Purana — Navagraha Sacrifice for Planetary Pacification and Prosperity

Devanagari script

अन्नहीनो दहेद्राष्ट्रं मन्त्रहीनस्तु ऋत्विजः यष्टारं दक्षिणाहीनं नास्ति यज्ञसमो रिपुः //

Transliteration

annahīno dahedrāṣṭraṃ mantrahīnastu ṛtvijaḥ yaṣṭāraṃ dakṣiṇāhīnaṃ nāsti yajñasamo ripuḥ //

Translation

A sacrifice lacking proper food-offerings can burn up a kingdom; a sacrifice lacking mantras can ruin the officiating priests (ṛtvij); and one lacking the prescribed dakṣiṇā destroys the sacrificer. There is no enemy equal to a defective yajña.

Word by Word

• anna-hīnaḥ: lacking food/oblations

• dahet: would burn/destroy

• rāṣṭram: the realm/kingdom

• mantra-hīnaḥ: lacking mantras

• tu: indeed/but

• ṛtvijaḥ: the priests/officiants

• yaṣṭāram: the sacrificer/patron of the rite

• dakṣiṇā-hīnam: lacking priestly fee/dakṣiṇā

• nāsti: there is not

• yajña-samaḥ: equal to a yajña (as)

• ripuḥ: enemy

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu on ritual propriety and kingship-linked yajña duties)

Entities Mentioned

• Yajña
• Ṛtvij
• Dakṣiṇā
• Rāṣṭra

Tags

• Yajña
• Ritual Dharma
• Dakṣiṇā
• Mantra
• Kingship

FAQs

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

It does not describe cosmic pralaya; it teaches a ‘micro-destruction’ principle: ritual negligence can cause worldly ruin—state, priests, and patron—like a consuming fire.

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

It frames yajña as a public-ethical duty: a king (as guardian of the rāṣṭra) must ensure sacrifices are properly provisioned (anna), correctly recited (mantra), and fairly compensated (dakṣiṇā), or the rite rebounds as harm to society and the patron.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Ritual significance: it specifies three non-negotiables of sacrifice—offerings (anna), mantra-precision, and dakṣiṇā—warning that omissions make the yajña itself the greatest ‘enemy’.