Shloka 17

Matsya Purana — The Observance of Ananta-Tritiya

Devanagari script

पूर्वेण विन्यसेद्गौरीम् अपर्णां च ततः परम् भवानीं दक्षिणे तद्वद् रुद्राणीं च ततः परम् //

Transliteration

pūrveṇa vinyasedgaurīm aparṇāṃ ca tataḥ param bhavānīṃ dakṣiṇe tadvad rudrāṇīṃ ca tataḥ param //

Translation

On the eastern side one should install Gaurī, and thereafter Aparṇā; on the southern side likewise one should install Bhavānī, and thereafter Rudrāṇī.

Word by Word

• पूर्वेण (pūrveṇa): on the eastern side/in the east

• विन्यसेत् (vinyaset): should place/install (ritually)

• गौरीम् (gaurīm): Gaurī (a form of the Goddess)

• अपर्णाम् (aparṇāṃ): Aparṇā (a form of Pārvatī)

• च (ca): and

• ततः परम् (tataḥ param): thereafter/next

• भवानीम् (bhavānīm): Bhavānī (the Goddess, consort of Bhava/Śiva)

• दक्षिणे (dakṣiṇe): on the southern side/in the south

• तद्वत् (tadvat): in the same manner/likewise

• रुद्राणीम् (rudrāṇīm): Rudrāṇī (consort of Rudra

• च (ca): and

• ततः परम् (tataḥ param): thereafter/next.

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu, within the Matsya Purana’s Vastu/Pratima guidelines)

Entities Mentioned

• Gaurī
• Aparṇā
• Bhavānī
• Rudrāṇī

Tags

• Vastu Shastra
• Pratima Lakshana
• Temple icon placement
• Devi forms
• Directional installation

FAQs

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

This verse is not about pralaya; it gives a Vastu/ritual directive for arranging specific forms of the Goddess in particular directions within a sacred layout.

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

For a king commissioning temples or a householder establishing a shrine, the duty is to follow śāstric order in consecration—placing deities by direction to maintain ritual correctness, auspiciousness, and communal religious harmony.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

It specifies directional placement in the temple/mandala: Gaurī and Aparṇā to the east, and Bhavānī and Rudrāṇī to the south—an iconographic rule used in planning niches, subsidiary shrines, and installation sequences.