Shloka 37

Devanagari script

मत्ताक्रीडञ्चाष्टबाणदशकैर्मौ तनौ ननौ / नलौ गुरुश्च विकृतिश्छिन्ना संकृतिरुच्यते

Transliteration

mattākrīḍañcāṣṭabāṇadaśakairmau tanau nanau / nalau guruśca vikṛtiśchinnā saṃkṛtirucyate

Translation

‘మత్తాక్రీడా’, ‘అష్టబాణ’, ‘దశక’ ఛందస్సుల్లో గణాలు ‘మౌ-తనౌ-ననౌ’గా అమర్చబడతాయి; మరో వికల్పంలో ‘నలౌ’ వస్తుంది, అక్కడ గురు అక్షర ప్రభావంతో వికృతి కలుగుతుంది. నియత క్రమం ఛిన్నమై లేదా మారినప్పుడు దానిని ‘సంకృతి’ (మిశ్ర/మార్పు రూపం) అంటారు.

Word by Word

मत्ताक्रीडम्Mattākrīḍa (name of a metre)

चand

अष्टबाणदशकैःby eight-bāṇa tens (a metrical count)

मौin/at ‘mau’ (marker)

तनौin/at ‘tanau’ (marker)

ननौin/at ‘nanau’ (marker)

नलौin/at ‘nalau’ (marker)

गुरुःheavy (guru syllable)

चand

विकृतिःVikṛti (name of a metre)

छिन्नाcut/broken

संकृतिःSaṃkṛti (name of a metre)

उच्यतेis said/called

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (teaching Garuda/Vinata-putra as part of a didactic section)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Vikṛti/saṃkṛti principle: a base metrical pattern can be modified by guru (heavy syllable) or truncation, producing recognized mixed forms.

Vedantic Theme: Prakṛti–vikṛti as an analytic lens (pattern and transformation), mirroring broader Indian systematic thought.

Application: When scanning, account for guru substitutions and truncations; classify a verse as saṃkṛti when it deviates from the canonical gaṇa layout in rule-governed ways.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.209: definitions of prakṛti/vikṛti and named metres (Mattākrīḍā, Aṣṭabāṇa, Daśaka) in the same prosody section

Characters & Entities

Vishnu

Garuda

FAQs

What is the importance of chandas (metre) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse treats chandas as a technical discipline: correct gaṇa-patterns and guru/laghu rules preserve the intended rhythm and accuracy of scriptural recitation.

How does this verse explain variations (vikṛti/saṃkṛti) in metre?

It notes that when a guru syllable changes the expected flow, the pattern becomes a modified or ‘mixed’ form (saṃkṛti), i.e., an accepted variant arising from alteration of the regular scheme.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

When chanting or digitizing Sanskrit, mark guru/laghu and gaṇas carefully; this helps maintain correct pronunciation, rhythm, and reliable text-to-audio alignment for study and ritual use.