Shloka 13
Matsya Purana — Procedure for Going to Prayaga and the Greatness of the Ganga
नष्टचन्द्रार्कभुवनं यदा चैकार्णवं जगत् स्थीयते तत्र वै विष्णुर् यजमानः पुनः पुनः //
naṣṭacandrārkabhuvanaṃ yadā caikārṇavaṃ jagat sthīyate tatra vai viṣṇur yajamānaḥ punaḥ punaḥ //
When the worlds—bereft of moon and sun—remain as a single ocean (ekārṇava), then indeed Viṣṇu abides there again and again as the yajamāna, the presiding patron of the cosmic sacrifice.
FAQs
It describes pralaya as a phase where the cosmic order collapses into a single ocean and even sun and moon are absent, yet Vishnu remains present as the sustaining principle who repeatedly presides over the cosmic sacrificial order.
By portraying Vishnu as the recurring yajamāna, the verse elevates yajña (sacrificial duty, ordered ritual action) as a cosmic model—implying that householders and rulers should maintain dharma through disciplined rites, offerings, and stewardship even amid uncertainty.
Ritually, it emphasizes Vishnu’s identity as yajamāna, underscoring sacrifice as a cosmic archetype; architecturally (vastu/temple context), it indirectly supports the idea that sacred construction and consecration mirror cosmic order, though no specific vastu rule is stated in this verse.