Shloka 153

Matsya Purana — The Slaying of Jambha and the Rise of Tāraka: Divine Battle Formations

Devanagari script

किरीटकोटिस्फुटकान्तिसंकटं सुगन्धिनानाकुसुमाधिवासितम् प्रकीर्णधूमज्वलनाभमूर्धजं पपात जम्भस्य शिरः सकुण्डलम् //

Transliteration

kirīṭakoṭisphuṭakāntisaṃkaṭaṃ sugandhinānākusumādhivāsitam prakīrṇadhūmajvalanābhamūrdhajaṃ papāta jambhasya śiraḥ sakuṇḍalam //

Translation

Then Jambha’s head—still wearing its earrings—fell to the ground: crowded with the flashing brilliance of a myriad jeweled diadems, perfumed and wreathed with many kinds of flowers, and with hair that looked like a blaze amid scattered smoke.

Word by Word

• किरीट (kirīṭa): diadem, crown

• कोटि (koṭi): a crore, innumerable/many

• स्फुट (sphuṭa): clear, flashing

• कान्ति (kānti): radiance, luster

• संकटकम्/संकटं (saṃkaṭaṃ): dense, crowded, compacted

• सुगन्धि (sugandhi): fragrant

• नाना (nānā): various, many kinds

• कुसुम (kusuma): flower

• अधिवासितम् (adhivāsitam): perfumed, infused, adorned (lit. ‘scented/steeped’)

• प्रकीर्ण (prakīrṇa): scattered, dispersed

• धूम (dhūma): smoke

• ज्वलनाभ (jvalanābha): like fire/flame, blazing in appearance

• मूर्धज (mūrdhaja): hair (lit. ‘born on the head’)

• पपात (papāta): fell down

• जम्भस्य (jambhasya): of Jambha

• शिरः (śiraḥ): head

• सकुण्डलम् (sakuṇḍalam): with earrings

Speaker

• Sūta (narrator) describing the battle outcome (third-person narration)

Entities Mentioned

• Jambha

Tags

• Deva-Asura War
• Battle Poetry
• Iconography
• Ornamentation
• Purāṇic Narrative

FAQs

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

This verse does not describe Pralaya; it is a martial, narrative image focused on the fall of the asura Jambha’s head, emphasizing poetic radiance, perfume, and ornamentation rather than cosmology.

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

Indirectly, it supports the Purāṇic ethic that adharma and violent oppression (asura conduct) meet decisive defeat; it is not a direct instruction on rājadharma or gṛhastha-dharma, but a narrative reinforcement of the triumph of order over tyranny.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No Vāstu or ritual procedure is taught here; however, the detailed mention of kirīṭa (crown), kuṇḍala (earrings), and floral perfume reflects iconographic vocabulary useful for interpreting Purāṇic descriptions of divine/royal ornamentation in temple imagery.