Shloka 2
Matsya Purana — The Burning of Tripura: Maya’s Triple Fortresses and the Boon that Leads to S...
पृच्छामस्त्वां वयं सर्वे बहुमानात्पुनः पुनः त्रिपुरं तद्यथा दुर्गं मयमायाविनिर्मितम् देवेनैकेषुणा दग्धं तथा नो वद मानद //
pṛcchāmastvāṃ vayaṃ sarve bahumānātpunaḥ punaḥ tripuraṃ tadyathā durgaṃ mayamāyāvinirmitam devenaikeṣuṇā dagdhaṃ tathā no vada mānada //
We all ask you again and again, out of deep reverence: tell us, O bestower of honor, how that fortress called Tripura—fashioned by the magical art of Maya—was burned by the Deva with a single arrow.
FAQs
It does not describe cosmic Pralaya; it highlights decisive divine intervention—an apparently invincible, magically created fortress (Tripura) is destroyed instantly by a god’s single arrow, showing the limits of illusion (māyā) before divine power.
Indirectly, it models dharmic inquiry and humility: the community of sages asks respectfully and repeatedly for accurate tradition. For rulers and householders, it reinforces that arrogance in power (even fortified by technology or “magic”) is unstable, while reverent learning and alignment with dharma is praised.
Architecturally, it references a ‘durgā’ (fortress) engineered by Maya—often treated in Purāṇic thought as extraordinary design/engineering—while ritually it points toward the Tripurāntaka theme where a single, consecrated divine missile (eka-iṣu) becomes the instrument of cosmic justice.