आदित्यचन्द्रादिगणैः पूरयन् व्योममण्डलम्
Filling the vault of the sky with hosts of suns, moons, and others.
सहस्रहस्तचरणः सहस्रार्चिर्महाभुजः
With a thousand hands and feet, with a thousand rays, the mighty-armed one.
त्रिशूली कृत्तिवसनो योगमैश्वरमास्थितः
Holding the trident, clad in a tiger skin, established in yogic lordship.
करोति ताण्डवं देवीमालोक्य परमेश्वरः
The supreme lord performs the Tāṇḍava dance, beholding the goddess.
योगमास्थाय देवस्य देहमायाति शूलिनः
Having entered into yoga, he enters the body of the trident-bearer.
ज्योतिः स्वभावं भगवान् दग्ध्वा ब्रह्माण्डमण्डलम्
The blessed one, whose nature is light, having burned up the cosmic sphere.
गुणैरशेषैः पृथिवीविलयं याति वारिषु
With all its qualities, the earth dissolves into the waters.
तेजस्तु गुणसंयुक्तं वायौ संयाति संक्षयम्
Then, endowed with its qualities, fire passes into air and is extinguished.
भूतादौ च तथाकाशं लीयते गुणसंयुतम्
In the primordial element, likewise, space merges, endowed with its qualities.
वैकारिके देवगणाः प्रलंय यान्ति सत्तमाः
The divine hosts, of the purest sattva, dissolve into the vaikārika principle.
त्रिविधो ऽयमहङ्कारो महति प्रलंय व्रजेत्
This threefold ego merges into the great principle at the time of dissolution.
अव्यक्तं जगतो योनिः संहरेदेकमव्ययम्
The unmanifest, the womb of the world, withdraws everything into the one imperishable.
वियोजयति चान्योन्यं प्रधानं पुरुषं परम्
And it separates from each other the primordial nature and the supreme person.
महेश्वरेच्छाजनितो न स्वयं विद्यते लयः
Dissolution does not occur on its own; it arises from the will of the great Lord.
प्रधानं जगतो योनिर्मायातत्त्वमचेतनम्
Primordial nature, the womb of the world, is the principle of illusion, unconscious.
गीयते मुनिभिः साक्षी महानेकः पितामहः
The sages sing of the great, manifold witness, the grandfather of all.
प्रधानाद्यं विशेषान्तं दहेद् रुद्र इति श्रुतिः
From primordial nature to the final particular, Rudra burns all—so declares the scripture.
आत्यन्तिकं चैव लयं विदधातीह शङ्करः
Here, Śaṅkara brings about the ultimate dissolution.
स्थापिका मोहनी शक्तिर्नारायण इति श्रुतिः
The power that establishes and deludes is called Nārāyaṇa, so says the scripture.
सृजेदशेषं प्रकृतेस्तन्मयः पञ्चविंशकः
He creates all from primordial nature, consisting of the twenty-five principles.
शक्तयो ब्रह्मविण्वीशा भुक्तिमुक्तिफलप्रदाः
The powers—Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Īśa—bestow the fruits of enjoyment and liberation.
एकमेवाक्षरं तत्त्वं पुंप्रधानेश्वरात्मकम्
There is only one imperishable reality, the essence of spirit, nature, and Lord.
इज्यन्ते विविधैर्यज्ञैः शक्रादित्यादयो ऽमराः
The immortals, Indra, Āditya, and others, are worshipped with various sacrifices.
कथ्यन्ते चैव माहात्म्याच्छक्तिरेकैव निर्गुणाः
And, due to its greatness, only one power is spoken of as without qualities.
करोति देहान् विविधान् ग्रसते चैव लीलया
It creates various bodies and, by its play, also devours them.
सर्वकामप्रदो रुद्र इत्येषा वैदिकी श्रुतिः
Rudra is the giver of all desires—this is the Vedic revelation.
प्राधान्येन स्मृता देवाः शक्तयः परमात्मनः
The gods are remembered as the foremost powers of the Supreme Self.
गीयते सर्वशक्त्यात्मा शूलपाणिर्महेश्वरः
Maheshvara, the wielder of the trident, is sung as the embodiment of all powers.
इन्द्रमेके परे विश्वान् ब्रह्माणमपरे जगुः
Some declare Indra as supreme, others praise Vishnu, and yet others extol Brahma.
एकस्यैवाथ रुद्रस्य भेदास्ते परिकीर्तिताः
The various forms of Rudra alone have been described.