Shloka 21

Matsya Purana — Yuga Durations

Devanagari script

देवतानां च सर्वासां ब्रह्मादीनां महीपते दैत्यानां दानवानां च यक्षराक्षसपक्षिणाम् //

Transliteration

devatānāṃ ca sarvāsāṃ brahmādīnāṃ mahīpate daityānāṃ dānavānāṃ ca yakṣarākṣasapakṣiṇām //

Translation

O king, (this pertains) to all the gods beginning with Brahmā, and also to the Daityas and Dānavas, and to the Yakṣas, Rākṣasas, and the bird-like beings.

Word by Word

• देवतानाम् (devatānām): of the gods

• च (ca): and

• सर्वासाम् (sarvāsām): of all

• ब्रह्मादीनाम् (brahmādīnām): beginning with Brahmā and the rest

• महीपते (mahīpate): O lord of the earth/king

• दैत्यानाम् (daityānām): of the Daityas (a class of Asuras)

• दानवानाम् (dānavānām): of the Dānavas (a class of Asuras)

• च (ca): and

• यक्षराक्षसपक्षिणाम् (yakṣa-rākṣasa-pakṣiṇām): of Yakṣas, Rākṣasas, and bird(-like) beings

Speaker

• Narrator addressing a king (likely the Matsya Purana’s principal dialogue voice speaking to a royal interlocutor, in the Matsya–Manu discourse frame)

Entities Mentioned

• Brahma
• Devas
• Daityas
• Danavas
• Yakshas
• Rakshasas

Tags

• Divine Hierarchy
• Puranic Cosmology
• Supernatural Beings
• Asuras
• Devas

FAQs

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

This verse does not directly describe Pralaya; it functions as a catalog of cosmic classes of beings, implying an ordered universe in which multiple divine and semi-divine races are acknowledged.

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

By addressing the king and listing beings across the cosmic spectrum, the verse frames rulership as responsibility within a wider moral-cosmic order—kings are reminded that dharma operates amid many powers, not only human society.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No explicit Vāstu or ritual procedure is stated in this line; its primary significance is cosmological—identifying categories of beings that later ritual texts may invoke, propitiate, or acknowledge.