Matsya Purana — Description of the Daitya–Dānava War Preparations and Maya’s Divine Chariots, Shloka 31
Devanagari script
एतद्दानवसैन्यं तत् सर्वं युद्धमदोत्कटम् देवानभिमुखे तस्थौ मेघानीकमिवोद्धतम् //
Transliteration
etaddānavasainyaṃ tat sarvaṃ yuddhamadotkaṭam devānabhimukhe tasthau meghānīkamivoddhatam //
Translation
एतत् दानवसैन्यं समग्रं युद्धमदोत्कटं देवान् अभिमुखं स्थितं मेघानीकमिवोन्नतम्॥
Word by Word
etatthis
etat:
dānava-sainyamarmy/host of the Dānavas
dānava-sainyam:
tatthat
tat:
sarvamall/entire
sarvam:
yuddha-mada-utkaṭamexceedingly fierce due to the pride/intoxication of war
yuddha-mada-utkaṭam:
devān-abhimukhefacing toward the Devas
devān-abhimukhe:
tasthaustood/arrayed itself
tasthau:
megha-anīkama mass/column of clouds (cloud-host)
megha-anīkam:
ivalike/as if
iva:
uddhatamrisen up, surging, swelling
uddhatam:
Speaker
Sūta (narrator) describing the battlefield scene
Entities Mentioned
DānavasDevas
TagsDeva-Asura WarBattle ImageryPuranic WarfareMythic ArmiesMatsya Purana Narrative
FAQs
It does not describe Pralaya directly; it uses a storm-cloud simile to convey the swelling, ominous power of the Dānava army in a war narrative.
Indirectly, it illustrates the psychology of conflict—“yuddha-mada” (war-intoxication)—a cautionary motif in Purāṇic ethics that rulers should avoid arrogance and assess threats soberly.
No Vāstu or ritual procedure is stated; the verse is a poetic battlefield description emphasizing formation and intimidation through the cloud-mass comparison.