Shloka 40

Matsya Purana — War of Devas and Asuras; Birth of Aurva Fire; Countering Tamasī Māyā through ...

Devanagari script

यो निगृह्येन्द्रियग्रामं भूतग्रामं च पञ्चकम् ब्रह्मचर्यं समाधत्ते किमतः परमं तपः //

Transliteration

yo nigṛhyendriyagrāmaṃ bhūtagrāmaṃ ca pañcakam brahmacaryaṃ samādhatte kimataḥ paramaṃ tapaḥ //

Translation

What austerity could be higher than this: that one restrains the host of senses and the fivefold aggregate of elemental nature, and firmly establishes oneself in brahmacarya (disciplined continence and sacred conduct)?

Word by Word

• yaḥ: whoever

• nigṛhya: having restrained, having controlled

• indriya-grāmam: the group/host of the senses

• bhūta-grāmam: the aggregate of the elements/elemental constituents

• ca: and

• pañcakam: fivefold (the five elements)

• brahmacaryam: brahmacarya, disciplined continence and sacred student-like conduct

• samādhatte: establishes, undertakes, sets firmly (in oneself)

• kim: what?

• ataḥ: than this, beyond this

• paramam: higher, supreme

• tapaḥ: austerity, spiritual heat, ascetic discipline

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu, didactic discourse)

Tags

• Dharma
• Tapas
• Brahmacarya
• Indriya-nigraha
• Yoga

FAQs

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

It does not describe cosmic pralaya directly; instead, it frames an “inner discipline” where mastering senses and the five elements is treated as the supreme tapas—an inward conquest rather than a cosmological event.

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

For rulers and householders, it presents ethical self-mastery as the foundation of dharma: governance and family life become stable when desire and sensory impulses are restrained and brahmacarya is upheld as disciplined conduct (not merely abstinence).

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No explicit Vastu or temple-ritual rule is stated; the ritual takeaway is that effective vrata, japa, and worship are empowered by indriya-nigraha and brahmacarya, which the text praises as the highest ascetic force.