Shiva Purana (Books 1 & 7)

सत्त्वं रजश्च ब्रह्मा च कालत्वे च तमो रजः विष्णुत्वे केवलं सत्त्वं गुणवृद्धिस्त्रिधा विभौ

Sattva and rajas are Brahma; as Time, tamas and rajas. In the form of Vishnu, only sattva prevails; the increase of the qualities is threefold in the Lord.

ब्रह्मत्वे सृजते लोकान् कालत्वे संक्षिपत्यपि पुरुषत्वे ऽत्युदासीनः कर्म च त्रिविधं विभोः

As Brahma, he creates the worlds; as Time, he also withdraws them. As Purusha, he is utterly indifferent; the Lord's action is threefold.

एवं त्रिधा विभिन्नत्वाद्ब्रह्मा त्रिगुण उच्यते चतुर्धा प्रविभक्तत्वाच्चातुर्व्यूहः प्रकीर्तितः

Thus, because of this threefold division, Brahma is called threefold in qualities; and because of his fourfold distinction, he is known as the Fourfold Manifestation.

आदित्वादादिदेवो ऽसावजातत्वादजः स्मृतः पाति यस्मात्प्रजाः सर्वाः प्रजापतिरिति स्मृतः

Because he is the first, he is the primordial god; because he is unborn, he is called the Unborn. Because he protects all beings, he is remembered as the Lord of Creatures.

हिरण्मयस्तु यो मेरुस्तस्योल्बं सुमहात्मनः गर्भोदकं समुद्राश्च जरायुश्चा ऽपि पर्वताः

The golden Meru is his shell, O greatly souled one; the waters of the womb are the oceans, and the mountains are also his membrane.

तस्मिन्नंडे त्विमे लोका अंतर्विश्वमिदं जगत् चंद्रादित्यौ सनक्षत्रौ सग्रहौ सह वायुना

Within that egg are these worlds, and within is this entire universe: the moon, the sun, the stars, the planets, and the wind.

अद्भिर्दशगुणाभिस्तु बाह्यतोण्डं समावृतम् आपो दशगुणेनैव तेजसा बहिरावृताः

The egg is surrounded externally by waters ten times greater; those waters are encircled by fire, ten times greater still.

तेजो दशगुणेनैव वायुना बहिरावृतम् आकाशेनावृतो वायुः खं च भूतादिनावृतम्

That fire is surrounded externally by air, ten times greater; air is enveloped by space, and space by the primary element.

भूतादिर्महता तद्वदव्यक्तेनावृतो महान् एतैरावरणैरण्डं सप्तभिर्बहिरावृतम्

The primary element is enveloped by the Great Principle, and that by the unmanifest; thus, the egg is surrounded externally by these seven coverings.

एतदावृत्त्य चान्योन्यमष्टौ प्रकृतयः स्थिताः सृष्टिपालनविध्वंसकर्मकर्त्र्यो द्विजोत्तमाः

Thus, eight fundamental principles exist, each performing the acts of creation, preservation, and destruction, O best of twice-born.

एवं परस्परोत्पन्ना धारयंति परस्परम् आधाराधेयभावेन विकारास्तु विकारिषु

In this way, arising from one another, they sustain each other; as substratum and supported, modifications reside in that which is modified.

कूर्मोंगानि यथा पूर्वं प्रसार्य विनियच्छति विकारांश्च तथा ऽव्यक्तं सृष्ट्वा भूयो नियच्छति

Just as a tortoise first extends its limbs and then withdraws them, so too the unmanifest, having produced modifications, again absorbs them.

अव्यक्तप्रभवं सर्वमानुलोम्येन जायते प्राप्ते प्रलयकाले तु प्रतिलोम्येनुलीयते

Everything arises from the unmanifest in accordance with its nature; but when the time of dissolution arrives, it merges back in reverse order.

गुणाः कालवशादेव भवंति विषमाः समाः गुणसाम्ये लयो ज्ञेयो वैषम्ये सृष्टिरुच्यते

The qualities, due to the influence of time, become unequal or equal; when the qualities are balanced, dissolution is to be understood, and when they are unbalanced, creation is said to occur.

तदिदं ब्रह्मणो योनिरेतदंडं घनं महत् ब्रह्मणः क्षेत्रमुद्दिष्टं ब्रह्मा क्षेत्रज्ञ उच्यते

This is the womb of Brahman—this dense cosmic egg, the great field of Brahman; Brahmā is called the knower of the field.

इतीदृशानामण्डानां कोट्यो ज्ञेयाः सहस्रशः सर्वगत्वात्प्रधानस्य तिर्यगूर्ध्वमधः स्थिताः

Of such cosmic eggs, countless millions are to be known, existing everywhere due to the pervasiveness of the primordial matter, situated horizontally, above, and below.

तत्र तत्र चतुर्वक्त्रा ब्रह्माणो हरयो भवाः सृष्टा प्रधानेन तथा लब्ध्वा शंभोस्तु सन्निधिम्

In each place, four-faced Brahmās, Viṣṇus, and Śivas are created by the primordial matter, and thus, having attained the presence of Śambhu.

महेश्वरः परोव्यक्तादंडमव्यक्तसंभवम् अण्डाज्जज्ञे विभुर्ब्रह्मा लोकास्तेन कृतास्त्विमे

The great Lord, transcending the unmanifest, creates the cosmic egg from the unmanifest; from the egg, the mighty Brahmā is born, and by him these worlds are made.

अबुद्धिपूर्वः कथितो मयैष प्रधानसर्गः प्रथमः प्रवृतः आत्यंतिकश्च प्रलयोन्तकाले लीलाकृतः केवलमीश्वरस्य

This creation of primordial matter, which I have described, is the first, initiated without intellect; and at the final dissolution, it is absorbed entirely, being only the play of the Lord.

यत्तत्स्मृतं कारणमप्रमेयं ब्रह्मा प्रधानं प्रकृतेः प्रसूतिः अनादिमध्यान्तमनन्तवीर्यं शुक्लं सुरक्तं पुरुषेण युक्तम्

That which is remembered as the immeasurable cause—Brahmā, the primordial matter, the source of nature—without beginning, middle, or end, of infinite power, pure, deeply red, united with the spirit.

उत्पादकत्वाद्रजसोतिरेकाल्लोकस्य संतानविवृद्धिहेतून् अष्टौ विकारानपि चादिकाले सृष्ट्वा समश्नाति तथांतकाले

Because of its productive nature and the predominance of rajas, it is the cause of the propagation and growth of the world; having produced eight modifications at the beginning, it likewise absorbs them at the end.

प्रकृत्यवस्थापितकारणानां या च स्थितिर्या च पुनः प्रवृत्तिः तत्सर्वमप्राकृतवैभवस्य संकल्पमात्रेण महेश्वरस्य

The existence and renewed activity of the causes established by primordial nature—all this occurs solely by the will of the great Lord, whose glory is beyond nature.

मन्वंतराणि सर्वाणि कल्पभेदांश्च सर्वशः तेष्वेवांतरसर्गं च प्रतिसर्गं च नो वद

Tell me of all the Manus and the various divisions of kalpas, and within them, the intermediate creations and re-creations.

कालसंख्याविवृत्तस्य परार्धो ब्रह्मणस्स्मृतः तावांश्चैवास्य कालोन्यस्तस्यांते प्रतिसृज्यते

The supreme half of Brahman's time is considered to be the measure of its duration; and at its end, another time arises, and then re-creation occurs.

दिवसे दिवसे तस्य ब्रह्मणः पूर्वजन्मनः चतुर्दशमहाभागा मनूनां परिवृत्तयः

Day by day, in each previous birth of Brahmā, fourteen great cycles of Manus revolve.

अनादित्वादनंतत्वादज्ञेयत्वाच्च कृत्स्नशः मन्वंतराणि कल्पाश्च न शक्या वचनात्पृथक्

Because they are without beginning, without end, and unknowable in their entirety, the Manus and kalpas cannot be separately described in words.

उक्तेष्वपि च सर्वेषु शृण्वतां वो वचो मम किमिहास्ति फलं तस्मान्न पृथक् वक्तुमुत्सहे

Even though all have been spoken of, what fruit is there for you who listen to my words? Therefore, I am not able to describe them separately.

य एव खलु कल्पेषु कल्पः संप्रति वर्तते तत्र संक्षिप्य वर्तंते सृष्टयः प्रतिसृष्टयः

Indeed, in the present kalpa that is now unfolding, the cycles of creation and dissolution occur in a condensed manner.

यस्त्वयं वर्तते कल्पो वाराहो नाम नामतः अस्मिन्नपि द्विजश्रेष्ठा मनवस्तु चतुर्दश

The kalpa that is now proceeding is called by name the 'Boar' (Varaha) kalpa; in this too, O best of twice-born, there are fourteen Manus.