भविष्यत्य् एवम् एवेति तं देवा ऋषयो ऽब्रुवन् गौतम्या उत्तरे पारे तीर्थानां मोक्षदायिनाम्
The gods and seers said to him, 'So it shall indeed be.' On the northern bank of the Gautamī, among the holy places that grant liberation—
देवर्षिसिद्धसेव्यानां सहस्राण्य् अथ सप्त वै तथैव दक्षिणे तीरे तीर्थान्य् एकादशैव तु
There are, indeed, seven thousand holy places served by gods, sages, and perfected beings; likewise, on the southern bank, there are exactly eleven holy places.
अब्जकं हृदयं प्रोक्तं गोदावर्या मुनीश्वरैः विश्रामस्थानम् ईशस्य विष्णोर् ब्रह्मण एव च
The sages have declared that Abjaka is the heart of the Godāvarī, the resting place of the Lord, of Viṣṇu, and of Brahmā as well.
आपस्तम्बम् इति ख्यातं तीर्थं त्रैलोक्यविश्रुतम् स्मरणाद् अप्य् अशेषाघसंघविध्वंसनक्षमम्
The holy place known as Āpastamba, renowned throughout the three worlds, is capable of destroying all heaps of sins even by mere remembrance.
आपस्तम्बो महाप्राज्ञो मुनिर् आसीन् महायशाः तस्य भार्याक्षसूत्रेति पतिधर्मपरायणा
Āpastamba, the great sage of vast wisdom and fame, had a wife named Akṣasūtrā, devoted to her husband's duties.
तस्य पुत्रो महाप्राज्ञः कर्किनामाथ तत्त्ववित् तस्याश्रमम् अनुप्राप्तो ह्य् अगस्त्यो मुनिसत्तमः
He had a son, wise and learned, named Karki; to his hermitage came the eminent sage Agastya.
तम् अगस्त्यं पूजयित्वा आपस्तम्बो मुनीश्वरः शिष्यैर् अनुगतो धीमांस् तं प्रष्टुम् उपचक्रमे
Having worshipped Agastya, the wise lord among sages, Āpastamba, accompanied by his disciples, began to question him.
त्रयाणां को नु पूज्यः स्याद् देवानां मुनिसत्तम भुक्तिर् मुक्तिश् च कस्माद् वा स्याद् अनादिश् च को भवेत्
O best of sages, among the three gods, who is to be worshipped? From whom does enjoyment and liberation arise? And who is without beginning?
अनन्तश् चापि को विप्र देवानाम् अपि दैवतम् यज्ञैः क इज्यते देवः को वेदेष्व् अनुगीयते एतं मे संशयं छेत्तुं वदागस्त्य महामुने
And who, O sage, is the infinite one, the god of the gods? Which deity is worshipped by sacrifices? Who is praised in the Vedas? O great sage Agastya, please resolve this doubt of mine.
धर्मार्थकाममोक्षाणां प्रमाणं शब्द उच्यते तत्रापि वैदिकः शब्दः प्रमाणं परमं मतः
The authority for righteousness, wealth, desire, and liberation is said to be scripture; and among them, Vedic scripture is considered the highest authority.
वेदेन गीयते यस् तु पुरुषः स परात् परः मृतो ऽपरः स विज्ञेयो ह्य् अमृतः पर उच्यते
The person who is sung of in the Veda is the supreme beyond the supreme; the one who dies is called the lower, but the immortal is said to be the higher.
यो ऽमूर्तः स परो ज्ञेयो ह्य् अपरो मूर्त उच्यते गुणाभिव्याप्तिभेदेन मूर्तो ऽसौ त्रिविधो भवेत्
The one who is formless is to be known as the higher; the one with form is called the lower. Due to differences in the manifestation of qualities, the one with form is of three kinds.
ब्रह्मा विष्णुः शिवश् चेति एक एव त्रिधोच्यते त्रयाणाम् अपि देवानां वेद्यम् एकं परं हि तत्
Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Śiva—he alone is spoken of as threefold; for all three gods, the one to be known is indeed that supreme.
एकस्य बहुधा व्याप्तिर् गुणकर्मविभेदतः लोकानाम् उपकारार्थम् आकृतित्रितयं भवेत्
The one, by difference of qualities and actions, pervades in many ways; for the benefit of the worlds, there is a threefold form.
यस् तत्त्वं वेत्ति परमं स च विद्वान् न चेतरः तत्र यो भेदम् आचष्टे लिङ्गभेदी स उच्यते
He who knows that supreme truth is wise, not another; but one who asserts difference there is called a separatist of forms.
प्रायश्चित्तं न तस्यास्ति यश् चैषां व्याहरेद् भिदम् त्रयाणाम् अपि देवानां मूर्तिभेदः पृथक् पृथक्
There is no expiation for one who speaks of division among them; for the three gods, the distinction of forms is entirely separate.
वेदाः प्रमाणं सर्वत्र साकारेषु पृथक् पृथक् निराकारं च यत् त्व् एकं तत् तेभ्यः परमं मतम्
The Vedas are the authority everywhere, in all their various forms; but that one formless reality which is beyond them all is considered the highest.
नानेन निर्णयः कश्चिन् मयात्र विदितो भवेत् तत्राप्य् अत्र रहस्यं यत् तद् विमृश्याशु कीर्त्यताम् निःसंशयं निर्विकल्पं भाजनं सर्वसंपदाम्
By this, no definite conclusion has been reached by me here; yet, even here, there is a secret—let it be quickly and clearly stated, the undoubting, unwavering vessel of all prosperity.
एतद् आकर्ण्य भगवान् अगस्त्यो वाक्यम् अब्रवीत्
Hearing this, the venerable Agastya spoke these words:
यद्यप्य् एषां न भेदो ऽस्ति देवानां तु परस्परम् तथापि सर्वसिद्धिः स्याच् छिवाद् एव सुखात्मनः
Although there is no difference at all among these gods, still, all accomplishments arise from Shiva alone, who is the embodiment of bliss.
प्रपञ्चस्य निमित्तं यत् तज् ज्योतिश् च परं शिवः तम् एव साधय हरं भक्त्या परमया मुने गौतम्यां सकलाघौघसंहर्ता दण्डके वने
That which is the cause of the manifest world, that supreme light is Shiva; strive for him alone, O sage, with supreme devotion. In Gautami, he is the destroyer of all heaps of sin, in the Dandaka forest.
एतच् छ्रुत्वा मुनेर् वाक्यं परां प्रीतिम् उपागतः भुक्तिदो मुक्तिदः पुंसां साकारो ऽथ निराकृतिः
Hearing the sage’s words, he attained supreme delight—he who grants enjoyment and liberation to people, whether with form or formless.
सृष्ट्याकारस् ततः शक्तः पालनाकार एव च दाता च हन्ति सर्वं यो यस्माद् एतत् समाप्यते
He is capable of taking the form of creation, and likewise of preservation; he is the giver, and he destroys all—by whom all this is brought to completion.
ब्रह्माकृतिः कर्तृरूपा वैष्णवी पालनी तथा रुद्राकृतिर् निहन्त्री सा सर्ववेदेषु पठ्यते
The form of Brahma is that of the creator, the form of Vishnu is that of the preserver, and the form of Rudra is that of the destroyer—so it is taught in all the Vedas.
आपस्तम्बस् तदा गङ्गां गत्वा स्नात्वा यतव्रतः तुष्टाव शंकरं देवं स्तोत्रेणानेन नारद
Then Āpastamba, having gone to the Ganga, bathed and observed vows, praised the god Shankara with this hymn, O Narada.
काष्ठेषु वह्निः कुसुमेषु गन्धो बीजेषु वृक्षादि दृषत्सु हेम भूतेषु सर्वेषु तथास्ति यो वै तं सोमनाथं शरणं व्रजामि
As fire is in wood, fragrance in flowers, oil in seeds, gold in all metals—so is he present in all beings. To that Somanatha I take refuge.
यो लीलया विश्वम् इदं चकार धाता विधाता भुवनत्रयस्य यो विश्वरूपः सदसत्परो यः सोमेश्वरं तं शरणं व्रजामि
He who playfully created this universe, the sustainer and creator of the three worlds, who is of universal form, who transcends existence and non-existence—to that Lord of Soma I take refuge.
यं स्मृत्य दारिद्र्यमहाभिशाप रोगादिभिर् न स्पृश्यते शरीरी यम् आश्रिताश् चेप्सितम् आप्नुवन्ति सोमेश्वरं तं शरणं व्रजामि
Remembering whom, one is not touched by great curses of poverty, disease, and the like; those who take refuge in him attain their desired ends—to that Lord of Soma I take refuge.
येन त्रयीधर्मम् अवेक्ष्य पूर्वं ब्रह्मादयस् तत्र समीहिताश् च एवं द्विधा येन कृतं शरीरं सोमेश्वरं तं शरणं व्रजामि
By whom, considering the threefold Vedic law, Brahma and the others were established at first, and by whom the body was made twofold—to that Lord of Soma I take refuge.
यस्मै नमो गच्छति मन्त्रपूतं हुतं हविर् या च कृता च पूजा दत्तं हविर् येन सुरा भजन्ते सोमेश्वरं तं शरणं व्रजामि
To whom oblations purified by mantra, offerings, and worship are directed; by whom the gods partake of the given offering—to that Lord of Soma I take refuge.