Linga Purana

सहस्रशीर्षा पुरुषो रुक्मवर्णस् त्वतीन्द्रियः ब्रह्मा नारायणाख्यस्तु सुष्वाप सलिले तदा

The Person with a thousand heads, golden in color and beyond the senses, called Brahmā and also Nārāyaṇa, then slept upon the waters.

सत्त्वोद्रेकात्प्रबुद्धस्तु शून्यं लोकमुदैक्षत इमं चोदाहरन्त्यत्र श्लोकं नारायणं प्रति

Awakening through the predominance of sattva, he beheld the empty world. Here, they recite this verse about Nārāyaṇa.

आपो नाराश् च सूनव इत्यपां नाम शुश्रुमः आपूर्य ताभिर् अयनं कृतवानात्मनो यतः

We have heard that the waters are called 'nārās,' and he is their son; having filled them, he made them his resting place.

अप्सु शेते यतस्तस्मात् ततो नारायणः स्मृतः चतुर्युगसहस्रस्य नैशं कालम् उपास्यतः

Because he lies upon the waters, he is therefore called Nārāyaṇa. He remains in night for a thousand fourfold yugas.

शर्वर्यन्ते प्रकुरुते ब्रह्मत्वं सर्गकारणात् ब्रह्मा तु सलिले तस्मिन् वायुर्भूत्वा समाचरत्

At the end of the night, he assumes the role of Brahmā for the purpose of creation; and as Brahmā, he acts in the waters, becoming the wind.

निशायामिव खद्योतः प्रावृट्काले ततस्तु सः ततस् तु सलिले तस्मिन् विज्ञायान्तर्गतां महीम्

Then, just as a firefly in the night during the rainy season, he perceived the earth submerged within the waters.

अनुमानाद् असंमूढो भूमेरुद्धरणं पुनः अकरोत्स तनूमन्यां कल्पादिषु यथापुरा

By inference, undeluded, he again raised up the earth, just as he had done in previous cycles, assuming a subtle form.

ततो महात्मा भगवान् दिव्यरूपम् अचिन्तयत् सलिलेनाप्लुतां भूमिं दृष्ट्वा स तु समन्ततः

Then the great-souled Lord, seeing the earth immersed in water all around, conceived of a divine form.

किंनु रूपमहं कृत्वा उद्धरेयं महीमिमाम् जलक्रीडानुसदृशं वाराहं रूपमाविशत्

He thought, 'By assuming what form might I lift this earth? Entering the form of a boar, suitable for playing in water, I shall do so.'

अधृष्यं सर्वभूतानां वाङ्मयं ब्रह्मसंज्ञितम् पृथिव्युद्धरणार्थाय प्रविवेश रसातलम्

Unassailable by all beings, composed of speech and known as Brahman, he entered the netherworld for the purpose of raising the earth.

अद्भिः संछादितां भूमिं स तामाशु प्रजापतिः उपगम्योज्जहारैनाम् आपश्चापि समाविशत्

The Lord of creatures swiftly approached the earth, covered by the waters, seized her, and entered the waters as well.

सामुद्रा वै समुद्रेषु नादेयाश् च नदीषु च रसातलतले मग्नां रसातलपुटे गताम्

The rivers were in the oceans, and the gifts in the rivers; the earth had sunk to the bottom of the netherworld, entering its deepest recess.

प्रभुर्लोकहितार्थाय दंष्ट्रयाभ्युज्जहार गाम् ततः स्वस्थानमानीय पृथिवीं पृथिवीधरः

For the welfare of the worlds, the Lord raised the earth with his tusk, then, bringing her to her proper place, the supporter of the earth restored her.

मुमोच पूर्ववद् असौ धारयित्वा धराधरः तस्योपरि जलौघस्य महती नौरिव स्थिता

Having supported the earth, the bearer of the earth released her as before; upon her, a great mass of water stood, like a vast ship.

तत्समा ह्युरुदेहत्वान् न मही याति संप्लवम् तत उत्क्षिप्य तां देवो जगतः स्थापनेच्छया

Because she was supported by his own body, the earth did not sink; then, lifting her up, the god, desiring to establish the world, did so.

पृथिव्याः प्रविभागाय मनश्चक्रे ऽम्बुजेक्षणः पृथिवीं च समां कृत्वा पृथिव्यां सो ऽचिनोद् गिरीन्

For the division of the earth, the lotus-eyed one conceived in his mind, and making the earth level, he placed the mountains upon her.

प्राक्सर्गे दह्यमाने तु तदा संवर्तकाग्निना तेनाग्निना विशीर्णास्ते पर्वता भूरिविस्तराः

At the beginning of creation, when everything was being burned by the fire of dissolution, those vast mountains were shattered by that fire.

शैत्यादेकार्णवे तस्मिन् वायुना तेन संहताः निषिक्ता यत्र यत्रासंस् तत्र तत्राचलाभवन्

By cold, in that single ocean, they were compressed by the wind; wherever they were deposited, there they became immovable mountains.

तदाचलत्वाद् अचलाः पर्वभिः पर्वताः स्मृताः गिरयो हि निगीर्णत्वाच् छयानत्वाच्छिलोच्चयाः

Because they do not move, they are called 'mountains' (acala); and because they are heaped up, they are known as 'heaps of rocks' (śiloccaya).

ततस्तेषु विकीर्णेषु कोटिशो हि गिरिष्वथ विश्वकर्मा विभजते कल्पादिषु पुनः पुनः

Then, when those mountains were scattered in millions, Viśvakarman divides them again and again at the beginning of each cycle.

ससमुद्रामिमां पृथ्वीं सप्तद्वीपां सपर्वताम् भूराद्यांश् चतुरो लोकान् पुनः सो ऽथ व्यकल्पयत्

He then arranged this earth, with its oceans, seven continents, and mountains, and the four worlds beginning with Bhū, once more.

लोकान् प्रकल्पयित्वाथ प्रजासर्गं ससर्ज ह ब्रह्मा स्वयंभूर्भगवान् सिसृक्षुर्विविधाः प्रजाः

Having thus established the worlds, the self-born Lord Brahmā, desiring to create, produced the various beings.

ससर्ज सृष्टिं तद्रूपां कल्पादिषु यथापुरा तस्याभिध्यायतः सर्गं तथा वै बुद्धिपूर्वकम्

He created creation in the same manner as in previous cycles; as he contemplated creation, so it came to be, with deliberate thought.

बुद्ध्याश् च समकाले वै प्रादुर्भूतस् तमोमयः तमोमोहो महामोहस् तामिस्रश्चान्धसंज्ञितः

And at the same time as intellect, there arose that which is composed of darkness: ignorance, great delusion, and what is called tamas and andhas.

अविद्या पञ्चपर्वैषा प्रादुर्भूता महात्मनः पञ्चधावस्थितः सर्गो ध्यायतः सो ऽभिमानिनः

This ignorance, with five aspects, arose from the Great Soul; the creation that abides in fivefold form belongs to the one who meditates with self-conceit.

संवृतस्तमसा चैव बीजाङ्कुरवदावृतः बहिरन्तश्चाप्रकाशस् तब्धो निःसंज्ञ एव च

Enveloped by darkness, covered like a seed by its sprout, without light within or without, it is inert and devoid of awareness.

यस्मात्तेषां वृता बुद्धिर् दुःखानि करणानि च तस्मात्ते संवृतात्मानो नगा मुख्याः प्रकीर्तिताः

Because their intellect is veiled and their instruments are sources of suffering, therefore these beings with veiled selves are called the primary trees.

मुख्यसर्गं तथाभूतं दृष्ट्वा ब्रह्मा ह्यसाधकम् अप्रसन्नमनाः सो ऽथ ततो ऽन्यं सो ह्यमन्यत

Seeing that the primary creation was thus ineffective, Brahmā, with a mind dissatisfied, then conceived of another creation.

तस्याभिध्यायतश्चैव तिर्यक्स्रोता ह्यवर्तत तस्मात् तिर्यक्प्रवृत्तः स तिर्यक्स्रोतास् ततः स्मृतः

As he contemplated, a crosswise stream arose; from that, the crosswise-moving beings came forth, and thus they are known as the crosswise stream.