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The Stotras in the Matsya Purana: An Analysis and a note on their textual aspect鈥�Shri Anand Swarup Gupta, M. A., Purana Dept., Fort Ramnagar, Varanasi 156-159

[ matsyapurana stotrani bahulyena sivastutiparani visnustutiparani ca, tani ca sarvani bhaktibhavodbodhakani | tesamatra pathasambandhi vicaro'pi fff krtah, kavyadrstya dharmikadrstya ca tesam mahattvam ca pradarsitam ] The Matsya Purana stotras contain about 253 slokas. The Deities praised are Brahma, Siva, Parvati, Skanda, Vishnu, together with the various manifestations or Avataras of Vishnu, such as Narasimha, Vamana and Varaha. The chief Deities, however, are Siva and Vishnu. Siva is praised on seven. occasions in seven separate Adhyayas, and Vishnu together with his above mentioned Avataras is praised on eight occasions in different Adhyayas. Vishnu is praised even by Brahma and Siva, by the former on two occasions in the form of Nrisimha (Adh. 163) and Vamana (Adh. 245), and by the latter in the form of Nrisimha (Adh. 179); but Vishnu nowhere praises Brahma or Siva. The slokas devoted to the stutis of Siva are 99, while those devoted to the stutis of Vishnu (and his Avataras) number 126. The Saiva stotras are interspersed with the stotras of Vishnu. All these stotras are written in an elevated and inspiring language and in an elegant style. Though some of the stotras are written in the usual Puranic Anushtup metre, they are generally written in epic or classical style and in musical tones resonant of inspired devotion. They form so many lyrical pieces of beautiful and sublime poetry, incorporating in them, abundant matter, both spiritual and philosophical. They also provide a useful basis for the study of the religious tendency of the Purana, and contain doctrinal principles of Saivism and Vaishnavism, the two most important and extensive religions of ancient times,

Feb., 1960] THE STOTRAS IN MATSYA PURANA 1577 A list of stotras in the Matsya Purana (Anandasrama edition) is given below :Adhyaya Slokas Stotra 1. sukrakrta sivastutih 47 128-168 2. devaih krta sivastutih 132 21-28 3. devaih krta brahmastutih 154 7-15 4. ratikrta sivastutih 154 260-270 5. saptarsikrta sivastutih 154 397-404 6. virakakrta parvatistutih 158 11-19 7. devaih krta kumarastutih 159 13-18 8. siddhavandijanakrta skandastutih 159 40-43 (Gathas) 9. brahmakrta nrsimhastutih 163 96cd-103 10. matsyakrta narayanastutih 164 19-28 11. samkarakrta nrsimhastutih 179 55-60 12. banasurakrta sivastutih 188 67-72 ( Totakas ) 13. bhrgukrta rudrastutih 193 34-45 14. devasurakrtam sivastotram 250 28-40 15. aditikrta haristutih 244 12-34 16. prahladakrtam visnustotram 245 17-28 17. brahmakrta vamanastutih 245 67-80 18. prthivikrta mahavarahastutih 248 12-56 19. devadanavaih krta janardanastutih 249 37-44 These Matsya Purana stotras have a large number of variant readings found in the various manuscripts which have so far been collated in the Purana Department of the Kashiraj Trust for preparing the critical edition of the Matsya Purana. Almost every pada of a stuti-sloka has some textual variant or variants, many of which are quite important and effect the sense of the text also; e. g. for the An. reading hrasvaya muktakesaya (47. 131a), the Oriya Ms. gives drumnaya muktakesaya, and seven Mss. read hrasvaya vyuptakesaya . Some Mss. (specially the Ujjain Sarada Ms.) add some Anandasrama additional stuti-slokas after some some of the

158 puranam - PURANA [Vol. I, No. 2 slokas; e.g., the Sarada Ms. adds the following sloka after the Anandasrama sl. 19 of Adh. 150 (Parvati-stuti) namo namo danavadaranayai namo jagaddha tisaukhyadayai | namostu lokasya bhayapadayai namostu te devi jagattrayasrayai || and also after the sloka 17 of Adh. 159 (Kumara-stuti): tvam lokapalah paramam havistvam prabha vibhuscapyatha satrujeta | sahasrapattvam gurusaktidhari anantarupo'si sahasrasaktih || A number of the stuti-slokas of the Anandasiama edition are found missing or omitted in some Mss. Out of the 253 stuti-Slokas a total of 40 slokas and the equal number of half- slokas are omitted in different Mss. The order of some of the stuti-slokas, as given in the Anandasrama edition and also in some other printed editions, is found altered in some Mss., sometimes in all the Mss. The most striking case of this alteration is the second half (c-d) of the An. 1. 26 of Adh. 248, which is given after the sl. 20 of this Adh. of the An. ed. in all the Mss. Similarly the first-half (a-b) of the sl. 35 of Adh. 250 comes between the two halves of sl. 40 in most of the Mss. The Anandasrama order of slokas 25, 26, 27 of Adh. 245 is also found changed in most of the Mss. as slokas 25, 27, 26 (which seems to be the correct and more probable order). There are other cases also of such alterations. Some Mss. have given obscure or rather unintelligible (?) readings. But when such readings are uniformly found in all the allied manuscripts, they can not be ignored. As an illustration the following may be given :The Anandasrama reading of sl. 13 (a-b) of Adh. 150 (Parvati-stuti) is as follows: jagati kah pranatabhimatam dadau jhatiti siddhanute bhavati yatha (All the Mss. give '' in place of Anandasrama-reading ':')

Feb., 1960] THE STOTRAS IN MATSYA PURANA 159 In place of the above reading the four Northern Mss. and the one Southern Ms. give the following somewhat obscure reading :- jagatyasvasi gata yada matati siddhimuna bhavati yatha The readings of some stuti-slokas as given in An. ed. of the Matsya Purana also are peculiar and obscure, while the corresponding readings of most of the Mss. are quite clear. The readings of some of the stuti-slokas in the An. ed. are peculiar to it only, and are not supported by manuscript evidence. Such readings of these stotras may be taken as spurious or emended. subhasitani punya phalam suvarnamaniratnadivahanam grhamasanam | striyo'nnapanam putrasca carumalyanulepanam || ete ca vividhah kama gitavadyadikam ca yat | sarvametanmama matam phalam punyavanaspateh || ( marka0 24|20- 21 )