Shloka 73

Matsya Purana — The Attendant Hosts of the Sun and Moon: Monthly Gaṇas

Devanagari script

अमावास्यां तथा तस्य अन्तरा पूर्यते परः वृद्धिक्षयौ वै पक्षादौ षोडश्यां शशिनः मृतौ एवं सूर्यनिमित्ते ते क्षयवृद्धी निशाकरे //

Transliteration

amāvāsyāṃ tathā tasya antarā pūryate paraḥ vṛddhikṣayau vai pakṣādau ṣoḍaśyāṃ śaśinaḥ mṛtau evaṃ sūryanimitte te kṣayavṛddhī niśākare //

Translation

On the day of amāvāsyā, the new moon, that orb is, as it were, filled again in the interval thereafter. Indeed, waxing and waning occur at the beginning of the two fortnights; and on the sixteenth portion the Moon is said to ‘die’, that is, to disappear. Thus, with the Sun as the determining cause, the Moon undergoes decrease and increase.

Word by Word

• अमावास्यां (amāvāsyāṃ): on the new-moon day

• तथा (tathā): likewise/also

• तस्य (tasya): of that (Moon)

• अन्तरा (antarā): in the interval/in-between period

• पूर्यते (pūryate): is filled/is made full

• परः (paraḥ): thereafter/again (in the subsequent phase)

• वृद्धिक्षयौ (vṛddhi-kṣayau): increase and decrease (waxing and waning)

• वै (vai): indeed

• पक्षादौ (pakṣa-ādau): at the beginning of the fortnight(s)

• षोडश्यां (ṣoḍaśyāṃ): on the sixteenth (digit/tithi)

• शशिनः (śaśinaḥ): of the Moon

• मृतौ (mṛtau): in ‘death’/disappearance

• एवं (evaṃ): thus

• सूर्यनिमित्ते (sūrya-nimitte): with the Sun as the causal determinant

• ते (te): those/that process

• क्षयवृद्धी (kṣaya-vṛddhī): decrease and increase

• निशाकरे (niśākare): in the night-maker (the Moon).

Speaker

• Sūta (narrating traditional cosmological/astronomical doctrine within the Matsya Purana’s discourse)

Entities Mentioned

• Sūrya (Sun)
• Niśākara/Śaśin (Moon)

Tags

• Jyotisha
• Tithi
• Paksha
• Amavasya
• Purnima
• Ritual Calendar

FAQs

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

It does not describe Pralaya directly; it explains cyclical cosmic rhythm through lunar waxing and waning, presenting time (tithi/pakṣa) as an ordered, law-governed process.

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

By defining amāvāsyā, pakṣa, and the Moon’s phases as Sun-determined, it supports correct calendrical observance—helping householders and rulers time śrāddha, dāna, vrata, and state rituals according to proper tithi and fortnight.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Its primary significance is ritual timing: amāvāsyā and pakṣa-based reckoning governs when offerings, fasts, ancestral rites, and other ceremonies should be performed in accordance with the Matsya Purana’s dharma-oriented calendar.