Shloka 41

Matsya Purana — Skanda’s Consecration

Devanagari script

षण्मुख मधुररवमयूररथ सुरमुकुटकोटिघट्टितचरणनखाङ्कुरमहासन । / जय ललितचूडाकलापनवविमलदलकमलकान्त दैत्यवंशदुःसहदावानल ॥

Transliteration

ṣaṇmukha madhuraravamayūraratha suramukuṭakoṭighaṭṭitacaraṇanakhāṅkuramahāsana | jaya lalitacūḍākalāpanavavimaladalakamalakānta daityavaṃśaduḥsahadāvānala ||

Translation

Victory to you, O Six‑faced Lord—riding the peacock whose cry is sweet—seated upon a lofty throne, while the tips of your toenails are struck by the crowns of the gods as they bow. Victory to you, lovely as a lotus of freshly pure petals, adorned with charming crests and clusters of plumes—O unbearable forest‑fire to the lineage of demons!

Word by Word

• ṣaṇmukha: six-faced (Skanda/Kārttikeya)

• madhura-rava: sweet-voiced/sweet-sounding

• mayūra-ratha: whose chariot/vehicle is a peacock

• sura-mukuṭa-koṭi: the points/tips of the gods’ crowns

• ghaṭṭita: struck/pressed against (by bowing)

• caraṇa-nakha-aṅkura: the sprouting tips of the toenails (poetic for nail-points)

• mahā-āsana: great seat/throne

• jaya: victory/hail

• lalita: graceful/charming

• cūḍā-kalāpa: a collection of crests/topknots (ornamental head-adornment)

• nava-vimala-dala: newly pure petals

• kamala-kānta: beloved/beautiful like a lotus

• daitya-vaṃśa: the race/lineage of demons

• duḥsaha: unbearable/irresistible

• dāvānala: forest-fire (metaphor for a destroyer).

Speaker

• Sūta (narrator) presenting a devotional stotra within the Matsya Purana’s flow (hymnic passage; not direct Manu–Matsya dialogue in this verse)

Entities Mentioned

• Śaṇmukha (Skanda/Kārttikeya)
• Mayūra (Peacock vehicle)
• Devas (gods)
• Daityas (demons)

Tags

• Stotra
• Iconography
• Skanda
• Devotional Praise
• Puranic Hymns

FAQs

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

This verse is not about Pralaya; it is a stotra describing Śaṇmukha’s divine status and his role as a destroyer of demonic forces, using imagery like “forest-fire” for moral-cosmic victory rather than cosmic dissolution.

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

By praising the deity as the subduer of destructive, anti-dharmic powers (daitya-vaṃśa), the verse supports the Purāṇic ethic that rulers and householders should uphold dharma, seek divine protection, and honor the gods with humility—symbolized by the devas bowing and touching their crowns to the Lord’s feet.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Ritually, it functions as a praise-verse suitable for recitation in Skanda worship; iconographically, it highlights key markers (peacock vehicle, exalted throne, head-ornaments), which align with pratima-lakṣaṇa style descriptions used when commissioning or installing deity images in a temple setting.