जगत् स्थापयते सर्वं स विष्णुः प्रकृतिर्ध्रुवा
That Viṣṇu, the eternal Prakṛti, upholds the entire universe.
राजसी चानिरुद्धाख्या प्रद्युम्नः सृष्टिकारिका
The Rājasic principle, called Aniruddha, and Pradyumna are the agents of creation.
नारायणाख्यो ब्रह्मासौ प्रिजासर्गं करोति सः
That Brahmā, known as Nārāyaṇa, brings about the creation of beings.
तया संमोहयेद् विश्वं सदेवासुरमानुषम्
By her, he deludes the world of gods, asuras, and humans.
वासुदेवो ह्यनन्तात्मा केवलो निर्गुणो हरिः
Vāsudeva, indeed, is the infinite self, the sole, attributeless Hari.
वासुदेवात्मकं नित्यमेतद् विज्ञाय मुच्यते
Knowing this as eternally of the nature of Vāsudeva, one is liberated.
बिभेद वासुदेवो ऽसौ प्रद्युम्नो हरिरव्ययः
That Vāsudeva, the imperishable Hari, became Pradyumna.
अपान्तरतमाः पूर्वं स्वेच्छया ह्यभवद्धरिः
In former times, Hari, by his own will, became Apāntaratamā.
एको ऽयं वेद भगवान् व्यासो नारायणः प्रभुः
This one, the Lord Nārāyaṇa, Vyāsa, is the blessed knower of the Veda.
एतत् सत्यं पुनः सत्यमेवं ज्ञात्वा न मुह्यति
This is truth, again truth; knowing thus, one is not deluded.
द्वापरे प्रथमे व्यासो मनुः स्वायंभुवो मतः
In the first Dvāpara, Vyāsa is regarded as Manu Svāyambhuva.
द्वितीये द्वापरे चैव वेदव्यासः प्रजापतिः
In the second Dvāpara, Vedavyāsa is the lord of creatures.
सविता पञ्चमे व्यासः षष्ठे मृत्युः प्रकीर्तितः
In the fifth, Savitṛ is Vyāsa; in the sixth, Mṛtyu is proclaimed.
सारस्वतश्च नवमे त्रिधामा दशमे स्मृतः
In the ninth, Sārasvata is Vyāsa; in the tenth, he is remembered as Tridhāmā.
त्रयोदशे तथा धर्मस्तरक्षुस्तु चतुर्दशे
In the thirteenth, Dharma; in the fourteenth, Tarakṣu.
कृतञ्जयः सप्तदशे ह्यष्टादशे ऋतञ्जयः
In the seventeenth, Kṛtañjaya; in the eighteenth, Ṛtañjaya.
राजश्रवाश्चैकविंशस्तस्माच्छुष्मायणः परः
In the twenty-first, Rājaśravā; after him, Śuṣmāyaṇa.
पञ्चविशे तथा शक्तिः षड्विंशे तु पराशरः
In the twenty-fifth, Śakti; in the twenty-sixth, Parāśara.
पराशरसुतो व्यासः कृष्णद्वैपायनो ऽभवत्
Vyāsa, the son of Parāśara, became Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana.
पाराशर्यो महायोगी कृष्णद्वैपायनो हरिः
The great yogi, son of Parāśara, Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana, is Hari.
तत्प्रसादादसौ व्यासं वेदानामकरोत् प्रभुः
By his grace, that Lord made Vyāsa the arranger of the Vedas.
पैलं तेषां चतुर्थं च पञ्चमं मां महामुनिः
The great sage appointed Paila as the fourth among them, and me as the fifth.
यजुर्वेदप्रवक्तारं वैशम्पायनमेव च
He made Vaiśampāyana the teacher of the Yajur Veda.
इतिहासपुराणानि प्रवक्तुं मामयोजयत्
He engaged me to recite the Itihāsas and Purāṇas.
चातुर्हेत्रमभूद् यस्मिंस्तेन यज्ञमथाकरोत्
In whom the fourfold sacrificial priesthood arose, by him the sacrifice was performed.
औद्गात्रं सामभिश्चक्रे ब्रह्मत्वं चाप्यथर्वभिः
He established the Udgātṛ priesthood with the Sāma hymns, and the office of Brahman with the Atharva hymns.
यजूंषि च यजुर्वेदं सामवेदं च सामभिः
He assigned the Yajus formulas to the Yajur Veda, and the Sāma hymns to the Sāma Veda.
शाखानां तु शतेनैव यजुर्वेदमथाकरोत्
He divided the Yajur Veda into a hundred branches.
अथर्वाणमथो वेदं बिभेद नवकेन तु
He further split the Atharva Veda into nine parts.
सो ऽयमेकश्चतुष्पादो वेदः पूर्वं पुरातनात्
Thus, this one Veda of four parts existed from ancient times.