Shloka 19

Matsya Purana — Purūravas Witnesses the Sports of Apsarases and Gandharvas; Attains the Grace...

Devanagari script

काचिद्भुग्ना सखीदत्तजानुदेशे नखक्षता संभ्रान्ता कान्तशरणं मग्ना काचिद्गता चिरम् //

Transliteration

kācidbhugnā sakhīdattajānudeśe nakhakṣatā saṃbhrāntā kāntaśaraṇaṃ magnā kācidgatā ciram //

Translation

One maiden, bending down, bore nail-marks upon the place of her knee where her companion had set it; startled, she sank into her lover’s protection. Another had gone away for a long while.

Word by Word

• kācid: a certain (woman/maiden)

• bhugnā: bent, leaning, bending down

• sakhī: a female friend

• datta: placed, given

• jānu-deśe: on the region of the knee

• nakha-kṣatā: marked/wounded by nails (scratches)

• saṃbhrāntā: startled, agitated, flurried

• kānta: beloved, lover

• śaraṇam: refuge, protection

• magnā: immersed in, sunk into, taken shelter in

• kācid: another (woman)

• gatā: gone away, departed

• ciram: for a long time.

Speaker

• Sūta (narrative voice) describing a scene in poetic, courtly style (śṛṅgāra-varṇana)

Tags

• Śṛṅgāra
• Poetic description
• Courtly culture
• Matsya Purana narrative
• Verse translation

FAQs

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

Nothing directly—this verse is a poetic depiction of lovers’ gestures and emotions, not a cosmological (sṛṣṭi/pralaya) teaching.

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

Indirectly, it reflects refined courtly culture and human emotion; it does not prescribe rājadharma or gṛhastha-dharma rules in this line itself.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

None in this verse; it contains no Vāstu, temple-building, or ritual procedure terminology.