Shloka 21
Matsya Purana — Yayāti and the Kings’ Dialogue on Heavenly Worlds
*शौनक उवाच अथाष्टकः पुनरेवान्वपृच्छन् मातामहं कौतुकादिन्द्रकल्पम् पृच्छामि त्वां नृपते ब्रूहि सत्यं कुतश्च कश्चासि कथं त्वमागाः कृतं त्वया यद्धि न तस्य कर्ता लोके त्वदन्यो ब्राह्मणः क्षत्रियो वा //
*śaunaka uvāca athāṣṭakaḥ punarevānvapṛcchan mātāmahaṃ kautukādindrakalpam pṛcchāmi tvāṃ nṛpate brūhi satyaṃ kutaśca kaścāsi kathaṃ tvamāgāḥ kṛtaṃ tvayā yaddhi na tasya kartā loke tvadanyo brāhmaṇaḥ kṣatriyo vā //
Śaunaka said: Then Aṣṭaka, out of curiosity, questioned again his maternal grandfather, Indrakalpa: “I ask you, O king—tell me the truth. From where have you come, who are you, and how did you arrive here? For what has been accomplished by you has no other doer in this world—neither any brāhmaṇa nor any kṣatriya besides you.”
FAQs
This verse does not discuss Pralaya directly; it belongs to an Itihasa-style lineage episode focused on identity, origins, and extraordinary human accomplishment.
By addressing Indrakalpa as “nṛpati” and praising unmatched achievement, the verse frames kingship as a field of exceptional responsibility and merit—where a ruler’s deeds can become exemplary beyond ordinary social roles (brāhmaṇa or kṣatriya).
No Vāstu, temple iconography, or ritual procedure is stated in this verse; it is a narrative inquiry about lineage, arrival, and the uniqueness of a king’s deed.