कस्त्वं वदेति हस्तेन समुत्थाप्य सनातनम् तदा हस्तप्रहारेण तीव्रेण स दृढेन तु
Who are you?—I said, raising the eternal one by the hand; then, with a strong and intense blow of the hand,
प्रबुद्धो ऽहीयशयनात् समासीनः क्षणं वशी ददर्श निद्राविक्लिन्ननीरजामललोचनः
Awakened, he rose from his bed and sat for a moment, controlled; he saw, with eyes unclouded by sleep, pure and clear.
मामग्रे संस्थितं भासाध्यासितो भगवान् हरिः आह चोत्थाय भगवान् हसन्मां मधुरं सकृत्
Before me stood the blessed Hari, radiant and resplendent; rising up, the Lord spoke to me with a single sweet smile.
स्वागतंस्वागतं वत्स पितामह महाद्युते तस्य तद्वचनं श्रुत्वा स्मितपूर्वं सुरर्षभाः
"Welcome, welcome, child, O illustrious Grandfather!" Hearing these words, the foremost of the gods smiled in response.
रजसा बद्धवैरश् च तमवोचं जनार्दनम् भाषसे वत्स वत्सेति सर्गसंहारकारणम्
Bound by passion and enmity, I spoke to Janardana: "Why do you call me 'child, child,' you who are the cause of creation and dissolution?"
माम् इहान्तःस्मितं कृत्वा गुरुः शिष्यमिवानघ कर्तारं जगतां साक्षात् प्रकृतेश् च प्रवर्तकम्
Here, with a slight smile, you address me—faultless one—as a teacher does his disciple, though I am the direct creator of the worlds and the initiator of Nature.
सनातनमजं विष्णुं विरिञ्चिं विश्वसंभवम् विश्वात्मानं विधातारं धातारं पङ्कजेक्षणम्
You call me the eternal, unborn Viṣṇu, the creator, the source of the universe, the soul of all, the maker, the supporter, the lotus-eyed one.
किमर्थं भाषसे मोहाद् वक्तुमर्हसि सत्वरम् सो ऽपि मामाह जगतां कर्ताहमिति लोकय
For what reason, out of delusion, do you speak thus? You should quickly declare the truth. Then he said to me, "I am the creator of the worlds—behold!"
भर्ता हर्ता भवान् अङ्गाद् अवतीर्णो ममाव्ययात् विस्मृतो ऽसि जगन्नाथं नारायणमनामयम्
"You are the sustainer and destroyer, descended from my imperishable body. You have forgotten Nārāyaṇa, the lord of the universe, free from affliction."
पुरुषं परमात्मानं पुरुहूतं पुरुष्टुतम् विष्णुमच्युतमीशानं विश्वस्य प्रभवोद्भवम्
"The supreme person, the supreme soul, the much-invoked, the most praised among men, Viṣṇu, the unchanging lord, the origin and source of the universe."
तवापराधो नास्त्यत्र मम मायाकृतं त्विदम् शृणु सत्यं चतुर्वक्त्र सर्वदेवेश्वरो ह्ययम्
"You have committed no fault here; this is all caused by my māyā. Hear the truth, four-faced one: this is the lord of all the gods."
कर्ता नेता च हर्ता च न मयास्ति समो विभुः अहमेव परं ब्रह्म परं तत्त्वं पितामह
"I alone am the creator, leader, and destroyer; there is no equal to me, O mighty one. I alone am the supreme Brahman, the highest reality, O Grandfather."
अहमेव परं ज्योतिः परमात्मा त्वहं विभुः यद्यद्दृष्टं श्रुतं सर्वं जगत्यस्मिंश्चराचरम्
"I alone am the supreme light, the supreme soul, the all-pervading one. Whatever is seen or heard in this world, moving or unmoving, is all within me."
तत्तद्विद्धि चतुर्वक्त्र सर्वं मन्मयमित्यथ मया सृष्टं पुराव्यक्तं चतुर्विंशतिकं स्वयम्
"Know, O four-faced one, that all this is made of me. Formerly, I created the unmanifest, the group of twenty-four principles, by myself."
नित्यान्ता ह्यणवो बद्धाः सृष्टाः क्रोधोद्भवादयः प्रसादाद्धि भवानण्डान्य् अनेकानीह लीलया
"The eternal atoms, bound together, were created—anger and others arising. By your grace, many eggs are produced here in sport."
सृष्टा बुद्धिर्मया तस्याम् अहङ्कारस्त्रिधा ततः तन्मात्रापञ्चकं तस्मान् मनः षष्ठेन्द्रियाणि च
"Intellect was created by me; from it, the threefold ego arose. From that, the five subtle elements; from them, the mind and the six senses."
आकाशादीनि भूतानि भौतिकानि च लीलया इत्युक्तवति तस्मिंश् च मयि चापि वचस् तथा
"The elements beginning with space, and their gross forms, were created by me in sport." When he had spoken thus, and I too had spoken likewise—
आवयोश्चाभवद्युद्धं सुघोरं रोमहर्षणम् प्रलयार्णवमध्ये तु रजसा बद्धवैरयोः
A fierce and hair-raising battle arose between us, in the midst of the ocean of dissolution, both of us bound by passion and enmity.
एतस्मिन्नन्तरे लिङ्गम् अभवच्चावयोः पुरः विवादशमनार्थं हि प्रबोधार्थं च भास्वरम्
At that moment, before us, a shining liṅga appeared, to end our dispute and to awaken understanding.
ज्वालामालासहस्राढ्यं कालानलशतोपमम् क्षयवृद्धिविनिर्मुक्तम् आदिमध्यान्तवर्जितम्
It was adorned with thousands of garlands of flames, resembling hundreds of fires of destruction, free from growth and decay, without beginning, middle, or end.
अनौपम्यमनिर्देश्यम् अव्यक्तं विश्वसंभवम् तस्य ज्वालासहस्रेण मोहितो भगवान् हरिः
That which is incomparable, indescribable, unmanifest, and the source of the universe—by its thousandfold blaze, the blessed Hari was bewildered.
मोहितं प्राह मामत्र परीक्षावो ऽग्निसंभवम् अधोगमिष्याम्यनलस्तंभस्यानुपमस्य च
Bewildered, he said to me there, 'Let us test this fire-born pillar; I will go downward to the matchless, fiery column.'
भवानूर्ध्वं प्रयत्नेन गन्तुमर्हसि सत्वरम् एवं व्याहृत्य विश्वात्मा स्वरूपमकरोत्तदा
You, with effort, should quickly go upward.' Having spoken thus, the Soul of the Universe then assumed his own form.
वाराहमहमप्याशु हंसत्वं प्राप्तवान्सुराः तदाप्रभृति मामाहुर्ह् अंसं हंसो विराडिति
I swiftly took the form of a boar, and the gods saw Hari take the form of a swan; from that time, they called me 'Hamsa,' the Great Swan.
हंसहंसेति यो ब्रूयान् मां हंसः स भविष्यति सुश्वेतो ह्यनलाक्षश् च विश्वतः पक्षसंयुतः
Whoever says 'Hamsa, Hamsa' to me, he shall become a swan—pure white, fire-eyed, and endowed with wings on all sides.
मनो ऽनिलजवो भूत्वा गतो ऽहं चोर्ध्वतः सुराः नारायणो ऽपि विश्वात्मा नीलाञ्जनचयोपमम्
Becoming as swift as the mind and wind, I went upward, O gods; and Narayana, the Soul of the Universe, dark as a mass of black collyrium,
दशयोजनविस्तीर्णं शतयोजनमायतम् मेरुपर्वतवर्ष्माणं गौरतीक्ष्णाग्रदंष्ट्रिणम्
Assumed a boar's form, ten yojanas wide and a hundred yojanas long, with the stature of Mount Meru, pale, with sharp, prominent fangs.
कालादित्यसमाभासं दीर्घघोणं महास्वरम् ह्रस्वपादं विचित्राङ्गं जैत्रं दृढम् अनौपमम्
Resembling the radiance of the sun at the end of time, with a long snout, a mighty voice, short legs, wondrous limbs, victorious, firm, and incomparable.
वाराहमसितं रूपम् आस्थाय गतवानधः एवं वर्षसहस्रं तु त्वरन्विष्णुरधोगतः
Assuming the boar's dark form, he went downward; thus, for a thousand years, Vishnu hastened below.
नापश्यदल्पमप्यस्य मूलं लिङ्गस्य सूकरः तावत्कालं गतो ह्यूर्ध्वम् अहमप्यरिसूदनः
The boar did not see even a little of the base of the linga; for the same length of time, I, the destroyer of foes, went upward.