Shloka 39

Matsya Purana — The Gods Seek Śiva’s Refuge: The Cosmic Chariot Prepared for the Burning of T...

Devanagari script

कालो हि भगवान्रुद्रस् तं च संवत्सरं विदुः तस्मादुमा कालरात्रिर् धनुषो ज्याजराभवत् //

Transliteration

kālo hi bhagavānrudras taṃ ca saṃvatsaraṃ viduḥ tasmādumā kālarātrir dhanuṣo jyājarābhavat //

Translation

Time (Kāla) indeed is the Blessed Lord Rudra; and the wise know that very Time as the year. Therefore Umā—also called Kālārātri—became the bow’s string, arising as its binding cord.

Word by Word

• kālaḥ: Time

• hi: indeed

• bhagavān: the Blessed Lord

• rudraḥ: Rudra (Śiva)

• tam: that (Time)

• ca: and

• saṃvatsaram: the year/cycle of a year

• viduḥ: they know/understand

• tasmāt: therefore/from that

• umā: Umā (Śiva’s Śakti)

• kālarātriḥ: Kālārātri (the ‘Night of Time’, a fierce form of the Goddess)

• dhanuṣaḥ: of the bow

• jyā: bowstring

• jarā: the binding cord/strap (also ‘wearing/aging’ as a pun in some readings)

• abhavat: became/arose.

Speaker

• Likely Lord Matsya (teaching Vaivasvata Manu in the Purāṇic dialogue frame)

Entities Mentioned

• Kāla (Time)
• Rudra (Śiva)
• Saṃvatsara (Year)
• Umā
• Kālārātri
• Dhanu (Bow)
• Jyā (Bowstring)

Tags

• Kāla
• Rudra
• Śakti
• Cosmology
• Symbolism
• Purāṇic Theology

FAQs

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

It frames Kāla (Time)—the force that ripens beings toward decay and dissolution—as Rudra himself, implying that dissolution is not accidental but a divine function of Time embodied by Rudra and measured as the yearly cycle (saṃvatsara).

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

By identifying Time with the sacred yearly cycle, it supports a dharma-based life ordered by seasons and calendrical rites—prompting kings and householders to govern, plan, and perform obligations (vratas, śrāddha, yajña timings) with awareness of Time as a divine power.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

While not a direct Vāstu rule, the bow-and-bowstring imagery functions as ritual-symbolism: Umā/Kālārātri as the binding ‘string’ suggests Śakti as the force that ‘tensions’ and empowers action—useful in understanding iconographic and ritual metaphors used across Matsya Purana’s technical sections.