Shloka 60

Matsya Purana — Vrata-Ṣaṣṭhī: The Sixty Sacred Vows

Devanagari script

सप्तम्यां नक्तभुग्दद्यात् समान्ते गां पयस्विनीम् सूर्यलोकमवाप्नोति भानुव्रतमिदं स्मृतम् //

Transliteration

saptamyāṃ naktabhugdadyāt samānte gāṃ payasvinīm sūryalokamavāpnoti bhānuvratamidaṃ smṛtam //

Translation

On Saptamī (the seventh lunar day), one should eat only at night and, at the completion of the observance, gift a milk-yielding cow. By this one attains the world of the Sun; this is remembered as the Bhānu-vrata (vow of the Sun).

Word by Word

• सप्तम्याम् (saptamyām): on the seventh lunar day (Saptamī)

• नक्तभुक् (naktabhuk): one who eats at night only

• दद्यात् (dadyāt): should give, should donate

• समान्ते (samānte): at the end, upon completion

• गां (gām): a cow

• पयस्विनीम् (payasvinīm): milk-giving, lactating

• सूर्यलोकम् (sūryalokam): the Sun’s world/realm

• अवाप्नोति (avāpnoti): attains, reaches

• भानुव्रतम् (bhānuvratam): vow dedicated to Bhānu (the Sun)

• इदम् (idam): this

• स्मृतम् (smṛtam): is remembered/declared in tradition.

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu, in the vrata-dharma teaching style of the Matsya Purana)

Entities Mentioned

• Surya (Bhanu)
• Saptami
• Go-dana (cow-gift)

Tags

• Vrata
• Surya-upasana
• Dana
• Dharma
• Phala-shruti

FAQs

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

This verse is not about pralaya; it teaches vrata-dharma—how a Sun-focused vow (Bhānu-vrata) yields a specific posthumous result, namely attainment of Sūryaloka.

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

It prescribes a disciplined observance (night-only eating on Saptamī) and a concluding act of generosity (donating a milk-giving cow), reflecting the householder duty of combining self-restraint with dāna for merit.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

The ritual significance is vrata procedure and phala: Saptamī observance with naktabhojana and go-dāna as the concluding gift, oriented to Sūrya-upāsanā rather than Vāstu or temple construction.