Shloka 17
Matsya Purana — Omens in Tripura and the Nārada–Maya Dialogue on Dharma
*नारद उवाच शृणु दानव तत्त्वेन भवन्त्यौत्पातिका यथा धर्मेति धारणे धातुर् माहात्म्ये चैव पठ्यते धारणाच्च महत्त्वेन धर्म एष निरुच्यते //
*nārada uvāca śṛṇu dānava tattvena bhavantyautpātikā yathā dharmeti dhāraṇe dhātur māhātmye caiva paṭhyate dhāraṇācca mahattvena dharma eṣa nirucyate //
Nārada said: Listen, O Dānava—how portentous events (autpātika) truly arise in their essential nature. The word “dharma” is read as deriving from the verbal root *dhṛ* in the sense of “supporting/holding,” and it is also taught in the sense of “greatness.” Therefore, because it upholds and because of its greatness, this is what is called “dharma.”
FAQs
This verse does not describe pralaya directly; it defines “dharma” as the sustaining principle (that which upholds), a concept often contrasted with the disorder seen during cosmic upheavals.
By defining dharma as what “upholds,” the verse frames royal and household duties as stabilizing actions—protecting society, maintaining order, and supporting righteous conduct—because such conduct is both sustaining and intrinsically “great.”
No direct Vāstu or ritual procedure is stated; however, the idea that dharma “upholds” can be applied to ritual and temple practice as that which supports cosmic and social order.