Shloka 10

Matsya Purana — The Episode of Madhu and Kaiṭabha: Gunas

Devanagari script

कस्त्वं पुष्करमध्यस्थः सितोष्णीषश्चतुर्भुजः आधाय नियमं मोहाद् आस्ते त्वं विगतज्वरः //

Transliteration

kastvaṃ puṣkaramadhyasthaḥ sitoṣṇīṣaścaturbhujaḥ ādhāya niyamaṃ mohād āste tvaṃ vigatajvaraḥ //

Translation

Who are you, seated in the midst of Pushkara—wearing a white turban and having four arms—who, having undertaken a vow, remain here as if in delusion, yet free from fever and affliction?

Word by Word

• कः त्वम् (kas tvam): who are you

• पुष्कर-मध्य-स्थः (puṣkara-madhya-sthaḥ): situated in the middle of Pushkara

• सित-उष्णीषः (sita-uṣṇīṣaḥ): wearing a white turban/head-wrap

• चतुर्भुजः (catur-bhujaḥ): four-armed

• आधाय (ādhāya): having undertaken/assumed

• नियमम् (niyamam): a vow, religious observance, restraint

• मोहात् (mohāt): from delusion/confusion (or as if due to enchantment)

• आस्ते (āste): sits/remains

• त्वम् (tvam): you

• विगत-ज्वरः (vigata-jvaraḥ): free from fever, free from distress/heat of suffering

Speaker

• A questioning pilgrim/observer (narrative voice within the Pushkara episode; exact named speaker not explicit in the given single verse)

Entities Mentioned

• Pushkara (tirtha/holy lake)
• Four-armed figure (iconic marker of Vishnu-like divinity)

Tags

• Tirtha
• Pushkara
• Iconography
• Vrata
• Ritual observance

FAQs

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

This verse does not directly discuss Pralaya; it focuses on a sacred-place (tirtha) scene at Pushkara and the presence of a divine-looking, four-armed figure observing a vow.

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

It highlights niyama (disciplined religious observance). For householders and rulers alike, the Matsya Purana repeatedly treats vows at tirthas as a means of purification and merit when performed with clarity rather than “mohā” (confused motivation).

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

Ritually, it emphasizes vrata/niyama undertaken at Pushkara; iconographically, “caturbhuja” and “sita-uṣṇīṣa” provide identifying marks used in Purāṇic deity-description traditions (useful for pratima-lakṣaṇa/identification), though no building rule is stated in this verse.