Shloka 28

Matsya Purana — The Battle for Tripura: Portents

Devanagari script

उत्पात्य चोत्पाट्य गृहाणि तेषां सशैलमालासमवेदिकानि प्रक्षिप्य प्रक्षिप्य समुद्रमध्ये कालाम्बुदाभाः प्रमथा विनेदुः //

Transliteration

utpātya cotpāṭya gṛhāṇi teṣāṃ saśailamālāsamavedikāni prakṣipya prakṣipya samudramadhye kālāmbudābhāḥ pramathā vineduḥ //

Translation

Tearing up and wrenching out their houses—together with rocky ridges and raised platforms (altars/terraces)—the black-cloud-hued Pramathas repeatedly hurled them into the midst of the ocean, roaring aloud.

Word by Word

• utpātya: having torn up/raised up

• ca: and

• utpāṭya: having uprooted/wrenched out

• gṛhāṇi: houses/dwellings

• teṣām: of them/their

• sa-śaila-mālā: together with chains/rows of rocks or hills

• sama-vedikāni: along with (their) vedikās—raised platforms/altars/terraces

• prakṣipya prakṣipya: having thrown, again and again

• samudra-madhye: in the middle of the ocean

• kālāmbuda-ābhāḥ: having the appearance of dark rain-clouds

• pramathāḥ: pramathas (terrible attendant-hosts/violent beings)

• vineduḥ: roared/cried out loudly.

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (Vishnu) speaking to Vaivasvata Manu (likely narrative voice within the Matsya–Manu dialogue)

Entities Mentioned

• Pramathas
• Samudra (Ocean)

Tags

• Pralaya
• Utpata
• Cataclysm
• Portents
• Matsya Purana narrative

FAQs

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

It depicts dissolution as a violent, supernatural upheaval where even built environments—houses, platforms, and rocky formations—are uprooted and cast into the ocean, signaling the collapse of human order under pralaya-like forces.

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

By portraying how worldly security (homes, settlements, infrastructure) can be overturned by cosmic or ominous forces, it implicitly reinforces the Purāṇic ethic of preparedness, dharmic living, and non-attachment—key ideals for both rulers and householders when facing calamity.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

The term vedikā points to raised platforms used as altars, terraces, or ritual bases; the verse emphasizes that even such constructed and consecrated structures are not immune during cataclysmic upheavals—useful context when reading Matsya Purana Vastu and ritual sections alongside pralaya descriptions.