मुनीन्प्रजापतींश्चैव सप्तर्षीन्प्रवरानपि। वर्णान्वायुं पुरास्थानं गंधर्वान्यक्षराक्षसान्
And the sages, the progenitors, the eminent seven seers, the castes, the wind, the ancient places, the Gandharvas, Yakṣas, and Rākṣasas?
तीर्थानि सरितो वाथ सूर्यादीन्ग्रहतारकान्। यथा ससर्ज भगवांस्तथा मे त्वं वदस्व ह
The sacred places, rivers, and also the sun, planets, and stars—how did the blessed one create them? Tell me this as it happened.
पुलस्त्य उवाच। परः पराणां परमः परमात्मा पितामहः। रूपवर्णादिरहितो विशेषण विवर्जितः
Pulastya said: The supreme among the supreme, the highest Self, the ancestor, is without form, color, or attributes, devoid of any distinguishing marks.
अपक्षयविनाशाभ्यां परिणामर्द्धिजन्मभिः। गुणैर्विवर्जितः सर्वैः स भातीति हि केवलम्
He is free from decrease, destruction, transformation, growth, and birth; he is devoid of all qualities, and thus he alone shines.
सर्वत्रासौ समश्चापि वसन्ननुपमो मतः। भावयन्ब्रह्मरूपेण विद्वद्भिः परिपठ्यते
He is equal everywhere, dwelling in all, incomparable; contemplating in the form of Brahman, he is expounded by the wise.
तं गुह्यं परमं नित्यमजमक्षयमव्ययम्। तथा पुरुषरूपेण कालरूपेण संस्थितम्
That secret, supreme, eternal, unborn, imperishable, and unchanging one is also established in the form of the person and of time.
तं नत्वाहं प्रवक्ष्यामि यथा सृष्टिं चकार ह। पूर्वं तु पद्मशयनादुत्थाय जगतःप्रभुः
Having bowed to him, I shall speak of how he created the world, rising first from the lotus-seat, the Lord of the universe.
गुणव्यंजनसंभूतः सर्गकाले नराधिप। सात्विको राजसश्चैव तामसश्च त्रिधा महान्
At the time of creation, O king, the great one arose, composed of qualities and distinctions: sattvic, rajasic, and tamasic, in threefold form.
प्रधानतत्वेन समं तथा बीजादिभिर्वृतः। वैकारिकस्तैजसश्च भूतादिश्चैव तामसः
As the chief principle, it is equally enveloped by the seeds and so forth; the sattvic (vaikārika), rajasic (taijasa), and tamasic (bhūtādi) forms arise.
त्रिविधोयमहंकारो महत्तत्त्वादजायत। भूतेंद्रियाणां पंचानां तथा कर्मेन्द्रियैः सह
This threefold ego (ahaṃkāra) was born from the great principle (mahat); along with the five elements, the five organs of action also emerged.
पृथिव्यापस्तथातेजो वायुराकाशमेव च। एकैकशः स्वरूपेण कथयामि यथोत्तरम्
Earth, water, fire, air, and also space—one by one, in their own nature, I will describe them in order.
शब्दमात्रमथाकाशं भूतादिः खं समावृणोत्। अथाकाशं विकुर्वाणं स्पर्शमात्रं ससर्ज ह
Then, the tamasic (bhūtādi) covered space (kha), which is characterized only by sound; and as space transformed, it produced touch alone.
बलवानेष वै वायुस्तस्य स्पर्शो गुणो मतः। आकाशं शब्दमात्रं तु स्पर्शमात्रं समावृणोत्
This powerful one is indeed air, whose quality is considered to be touch; space, having only sound, was enveloped by touch alone.
ततो वायुर्विकुर्वाणो रूपमात्रं ससर्ज ह। ज्योतीरूपन्तु तद्वायुस्तद्रूपगुणमुच्यते
Then, as air transformed, it produced form alone; that form is called light, and air is said to possess the quality of form.
स्पर्शरूपस्तु वै वायू रूपमात्रं समावृणोत्। ज्योतिश्चापि विकुर्वाणं रसमात्रं ससर्ज ह
Air, possessing touch and form, was enveloped by form alone; and as light transformed, it produced taste alone.
संभवंति ततोंभांसि रूपमात्रं समावृणोत्। विकुर्वाणानि चांभांसि गंधमात्रं ससर्जिरे
From that, water came into being, enveloped by form alone; and as water transformed, it produced smell alone.
संघातो जायते तस्मात्तस्य गंधो मतो गुणः। तैजसानीन्द्रियाण्याहुर्देवा वैकारिका दश
From that, a compound arises, whose quality is considered to be smell; the gods declare the senses born of rajas to be ten.
एकादशम्मनश्चात्र देवा वैकारिकाः स्मृताः। त्वक्चक्षुर्नासिका जिह्वा श्रोत्रमत्र च पंचमम्१०० 1.2.
The mind is the eleventh here; the gods born of sattva are remembered thus: skin, eye, nose, tongue, and ear as the fifth.
एतेषां तु मतं कृत्यं शब्दादि ग्रहणं पुनः। वाक्पाणिपादपायूनि चोपस्थं तत्र पञ्चमम्
Their function, it is said, is the perception of sound and so on; speech, hands, feet, anus, and the generative organ are the five organs of action.
विसर्गशिल्पगत्युक्तिर्गुणा एषां विपर्ययात्। आकाश वायु तेजांसि सलिलं पृथिवी तथा
Emission, craftsmanship, movement, and speech are their qualities, in reverse order; space, air, fire, water, and likewise earth.
शब्दादिभिर्गुणैर्वीर युक्तानीत्युत्तरोत्तरैः। शांता घोराश्च मूढाश्च विशेषास्तेन ते स्मृताः
O hero, these are endowed with the qualities of sound and so on, increasingly; thus, they are remembered as calm, fierce, and dull in their distinctions.
नानावीर्याः पृथग्भूतास्ततस्ते संहतिं विना। नाशक्नुवन्प्रजाः स्रष्टुमसमागम्य कृत्स्नशः
Having various powers and existing separately, they, without union, were unable to create beings, not having come together completely.
समेत्यान्योन्यसंयोगात्परस्परसमाश्रयात्। एकसंघातलक्षाश्च संप्राप्यैक्यमशेषतः
But coming together, through mutual combination and support, they attained the mark of a single aggregate and complete unity.
पुरुषाधिष्ठितत्वाच्च व्यक्तानुग्रहणे तथा। महदादयो विशेषांता ह्यंडमुत्पादयंति वै
Because of being presided over by the Purusha and for the benefit of the manifest, the great principle and the rest, ending with the particulars, indeed produced the cosmic egg.
तत्क्रमेण विवृत्तं तु जलबुद्बुदवत्समम्। तत्राव्यक्तस्वरूपोसौ व्यक्तरूपी जनार्दनः
In due order, it expanded, just like a bubble of water; there, the unmanifest essence became manifest as Janārdana.
ब्रह्माब्रह्मस्वरूपेण स्वयमेव व्यवस्थितः। मेरुरुल्बमभूत्तस्य जरायुश्च महीधराः
Brahmā, in the form of Brahman, was himself established; Meru became its umbilical cord, and the great mountains its placenta.
गर्भोदकं समुद्राश्च तस्यासंश्च महात्मनः। तत्र द्वीपास्समुद्राश्च सज्योतिर्लोकसंग्रहः
The cosmic waters and oceans belong to that great soul; within them are islands, oceans, and the luminous worlds gathered together.
तस्मिन्नंडेऽभवन्वीर सदेवासुरमानुषाः। वारि वह्न्यनिलाकाशैर्वृतैर्भूतादिना बहिः
Within that cosmic egg, O hero, arose the gods, asuras, and humans, surrounded outside by water, fire, wind, and space, along with the elements beginning with earth.
वृतं दशगुणैरंडं भूतादिर्महता तथा। अव्यक्तेनावृतो राजंस्तैः सर्वैः सहितो महान्
The egg is enveloped tenfold by the great principle beginning with the elements, and by the unmanifest; O king, the great one is encompassed by all these.
एभिरावरणैः सर्वैः सर्वभूतैश्च संयुतम्। नारिकेलफलं यद्वद्बीजं बाह्यदलैरिव
With all these coverings, united with all beings, it is like a coconut fruit, the seed enclosed by the outer husks.