Matsya Purana — Devayānī Meets Yayāti: Courtship, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

कथं तु मे मनस्विन्याः पाणिमन्यः पुमान्स्पृशेत् गृहीतमृषिपुत्रेण स्वयं वाप्यृषिणा त्वया //

Transliteration

kathaṃ tu me manasvinyāḥ pāṇimanyaḥ pumānspṛśet gṛhītamṛṣiputreṇa svayaṃ vāpyṛṣiṇā tvayā //

Translation

志高き我が娘の手は、すでに取られているのに——仙人の子によってであれ、あるいはあなた自身、ああ仙人よ——どうして他の男がその手に触れ得ようか。

Word by Word

• katham: how

• tu: indeed/but

• me: my

• manasvinyāḥ: of the noble-minded woman (daughter)

• pāṇim: the hand (in marriage)

• anyaḥ: another

• pumān: man

• spṛśet: should touch

• gṛhītam: taken/accepted (as in marriage)

• ṛṣiputreṇa: by the son of a sage

• svayam: personally/yourself

• vā api: or even

• ṛṣiṇā: by the sage

• tvayā: by you

Speaker

• A father/guardian of the maiden (a king or householder figure addressing a sage)

Entities Mentioned

• Rishi
• Rishiputra (sage’s son)
• Bride (manasvinī)

Tags

• Vivaha
• Dharma
• Consent
• Honor
• Guardianship

FAQs

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

Nothing directly—this verse is ethical and social in focus, stressing marital propriety rather than cosmology or pralaya.

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

It reflects guardianship-dharma: a father/guardian must protect a maiden’s honor and uphold the legitimacy of pāṇigrahaṇa (accepting the bride’s hand), preventing improper claims once a lawful acceptance has occurred.

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No Vāstu or temple-architecture rule is stated here; the ritual idea is pāṇigrahaṇa—the formal ‘taking of the hand’ as a marker of marriage legitimacy.