Shloka 23

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

Devanagari script

क्वचिच् च ददृशे राजा लतागृहगताः स्त्रियः मण्डयन्तीः स्वगात्राणि कान्तसंन्यस्तमानसाः //

Transliteration

kvacic ca dadṛśe rājā latāgṛhagatāḥ striyaḥ maṇḍayantīḥ svagātrāṇi kāntasaṃnyastamānasāḥ //

Translation

And in one place the king beheld women within vine-covered bowers, adorning their own bodies, their minds wholly fixed upon their beloved.

Word by Word

• kvacit: somewhere/at one place

• ca: and

• dadṛśe: (he) saw

• rājā: the king

• latāgṛha-gatāḥ: having entered/being inside vine-bowers (arbors covered with creepers)

• striyaḥ: women

• maṇḍayantīḥ: adorning, decorating

• sva-gātrāṇi: their own limbs/bodies

• kānta: beloved, lover/husband

• saṃnyasta: placed, set down, devoted

• mānasāḥ: minds (with minds), mentally

Speaker

• Narrator (Purāṇic narrator describing the scene; likely Sūta’s narration in the broader frame)

Entities Mentioned

• King (rājā)
• Women (striyaḥ)
• Beloved (kānta)

Tags

• Nagaravarṇana
• Royal life
• Pleasure-garden
• Courtly culture
• Social customs

FAQs

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

Nothing directly—this verse is a courtly/narrative description of garden life, not a cosmological (sṛṣṭi/pralaya) teaching.

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

It portrays the king as an observer of social life within the royal domain; implicitly, it reflects ordered civic culture and refined conduct under kingship rather than prescribing a specific dharma-rule.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

The key term is latāgṛha—vine-covered garden pavilions/arbors—pointing to landscaped pleasure-architecture (udyāna design) rather than temple ritual or Vāstu-technical measurements.