Shloka 9

Matsya Purana — Planetary Chariots

Devanagari script

स्वर्भानोस्तु यथाष्टाश्वाः कृष्णा वै वातरंहसः रथं तमोमयं तस्य वहन्ति स्म सुदंशिताः //

Transliteration

svarbhānostu yathāṣṭāśvāḥ kṛṣṇā vai vātaraṃhasaḥ rathaṃ tamomayaṃ tasya vahanti sma sudaṃśitāḥ //

Translation

For Svarbhānu (Rāhu), there are eight black horses, swift as the wind; well-harnessed, they draw his chariot, which is made of darkness.

Word by Word

• svargbhānoḥ (svarbhānoḥ): of Svarbhānu (Rāhu)

• tu: indeed/and

• yathā: as/namely

• aṣṭa-aśvāḥ: eight horses

• kṛṣṇāḥ: black/dark

• vai: indeed

• vāta-raṃhasaḥ: having the speed of the wind

• ratham: chariot

• tamo-mayam: consisting of darkness, made of gloom

• tasya: of him/his

• vahanti sma: they used to carry/they bear

• su-daṃśitāḥ: well-bitted, well-bridled (well-harnessed).

Speaker

• Sūta (Purāṇic narrator) describing celestial entities within the Matsya Purana’s cosmological account

Entities Mentioned

• Svarbhānu (Rāhu)

Tags

• Cosmology
• Rahu
• Grahas
• Chariot imagery
• Puranic astronomy

FAQs

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

Directly, it does not describe Pralaya; it uses cosmic imagery to characterize Rāhu as a being associated with darkness, reinforcing the Purāṇic symbolic mapping of darkness and obstruction in the heavens.

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

Indirectly, it functions as moral-cosmic instruction: just as celestial forces can ‘eclipse’ light, a king or householder must restrain disruptive impulses (tamas) through discipline and right order—an ethical theme that the Matsya Purana frequently applies to governance and conduct.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No explicit Vāstu or ritual rule is stated; however, the verse’s chariot-and-horses iconography is useful for pratīmā-lakṣaṇa (iconographic visualization) when depicting grahas like Rāhu in temple art or ritual diagrams.