Shloka 170

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

Devanagari script

स तानचिन्त्य दैत्येन्द्रः सुरबाणान्गतान्हृदि नवभिर्नवभिर्बाणैः सुरान्विव्याध दानवः //

Transliteration

sa tānacintya daityendraḥ surabāṇāngatānhṛdi navabhirnavabhirbāṇaiḥ surānvivyādha dānavaḥ //

Translation

Then that Daitya lord, undaunted though the gods’ arrows had lodged in his heart, the Danava pierced the Devas with nine and nine arrows.

Word by Word

• स (sa): he

• तान् (tān): those (arrows/attacks)

• अचिन्त्य (acintya): unshaken, not giving thought (undaunted)

• दैत्येन्द्रः (daityendraḥ): the lord of the Daityas

• सुरबाणान् (sura-bāṇān): the gods’ arrows

• गतान् (gatān): gone/entered

• हृदि (hṛdi): in (his) heart

• नवभिः नवभिः (navabhiḥ navabhiḥ): by nine and nine (in sets of nine)

• बाणैः (bāṇaiḥ): with arrows

• सुरान् (surān): the gods (Devas)

• विव्याध (vivyādha): pierced/wounded

• दानवः (dānavaḥ): the Danava (demon).

Speaker

• Suta (narrator) describing the battlefield events (third-person narration within the Matsya Purana)

Entities Mentioned

• Daityendra (lord of the Daityas)
• Suras (Devas)
• Danava

Tags

• Deva-Asura war
• Martial valor
• Puranic battle
• Archery
• Daityas

FAQs

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

This verse is not about Pralaya; it is a battlefield description highlighting endurance and retaliation in a Deva–Asura conflict.

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

Indirectly, it mirrors the kṣātra ideal of steadfastness under attack and decisive response—qualities praised in royal duty literature—though the immediate context is mythic warfare, not household ethics.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No Vāstu, temple-building, or ritual procedure is stated here; the verse focuses on archery and combat action.