Shloka 11

Matsya Purana — Ritual Procedure and Merit of Donating the Ratnācala

Devanagari script

ब्रह्महत्यादिकं किंचिद् यदत्रामुत्र वा कृतम् तत्सर्वं नाशमायाति गिरिर्वज्रहतो यथा //

Transliteration

brahmahatyādikaṃ kiṃcid yadatrāmutra vā kṛtam tatsarvaṃ nāśamāyāti girirvajrahato yathā //

Translation

Whatever sin—beginning with brahmin-slaying—has been committed, whether in this world or in the next, all of it perishes, just as a mountain is shattered when struck by a thunderbolt (vajra).

Word by Word

• ब्रह्महत्या-आदिकम् (brahmahatyā-ādikam): brahmin-slaying and the like (grave sins)

• किंचित् (kiṃcit): any, whatsoever

• यत् (yat): which

• अत्र (atra): here, in this world

• अमुत्र (amutra): there, in the other world/after death

• वा (vā): or

• कृतम् (kṛtam): done, committed

• तत् (tat): that

• सर्वम् (sarvam): all

• नाशम् (nāśam): destruction, annihilation

• आयाति (āyāti): comes to, reaches

• गिरिः (giriḥ): a mountain

• वज्रहतः (vajra-hataḥ): struck by the thunderbolt

• यथा (yathā): just as.

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu, within a dharma/prāyaścitta teaching context)

Entities Mentioned

• Brahmahatya
• Vajra (thunderbolt)

Tags

• Prayascitta
• Dharma
• Sin-removal
• Karma
• Purification

FAQs

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

It uses a cosmic-style simile (a thunderbolt shattering a mountain) to describe moral dissolution: even the heaviest sins can be utterly destroyed through powerful purificatory means; it is about the dissolution of pāpa rather than cosmic pralaya.

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

It supports the dharmic principle that rulers and householders must seek prāyaścitta for wrongdoing—especially grave offenses—so that social order and personal karma are purified rather than carried forward into future consequences.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No Vāstu or temple-architecture rule is stated; the ritual takeaway is the asserted efficacy of prāyaścitta (atonement/purificatory rites) to annihilate even severe sins.