Vayu Purana

यदाप्नोति यदादत्ते यच्चास्ति विषयं प्रति। तच्चास्य सततं भावस्तस्मादात्मा निरुच्यते

Whatever he attains, whatever he takes, and whatever exists as an object—such is always his state; therefore, he is called the Self.

ऋषिः सर्वगतत्वाच्च शरीराद्यत्स्वयं प्रभुः। स्वामित्वमस्य तत्सर्वं विष्णुः सर्वप्रवेशनात्

He is called seer because he is all-pervading; he is the master of the body and so on, by his own power. All this is his lordship; he is called Vishnu because he enters into all.

भगवान् भगसद्भावाद्रागो रागस्य शासनात्। परश्च तु प्रकृतत्वादवनादोमितिः स्मृतः

He is called Bhagavan because of the presence of fortune; he is called Raga because he governs attachment; and he is called Parashu because of his primal nature and as Avanada because he is the protector.

सर्वज्ञः सर्वविज्ञानात् सर्वः सर्वं यतस्ततः। नराणामयनं यस्मात्तेन नारायणः स्मृतः

He is called omniscient because of all knowledge; he is called all because everything arises from him; and because he is the resting place of men, he is remembered as Narayana.

त्रिधा विभज्य स्वात्मानं त्रैलोक्यं सम्प्रवर्त्तते। सृजते ग्रसते चैव वीक्षते च त्रिभिस्तु यत्। अग्रे हिरण्यगर्भः स प्रादुर्भूतश्चतुर्मुखः

Dividing himself threefold, he sets the three worlds in motion; by these three, he creates, devours, and observes. In the beginning, he appeared as Hiranyagarbha, the four-faced one.

आदित्वाच्चादितेवोऽसावजातत्वादजः स्मृतः। पाति यस्मात्प्रजाः सर्वाःप्रजापतिरतः स्मृतः

Because he is the first, he is called Aditeya; because he is unborn, he is called Aja. Because he protects all creatures, he is called Prajapati.

देवेषु च महान् देवो महादेवस्ततः स्मृतः। सर्वेशत्वाच्च लोकानामवश्यत्वात्तथेश्वरः

Among the gods, he is the great god; therefore, he is called Mahadeva. Because he is the lord of all worlds and because all are subject to him, he is also called Ishvara.

बृहत्त्वाच्च स्मृतो ब्रह्मा भूतत्वाद्भूत उच्यते। क्षेत्रज्ञः क्षेत्रविज्ञानाद्विभुः सर्वगतो यतः

Because of his greatness, he is called Brahma; because he is the source of beings, he is called Bhuta. He is the knower of the field because of his knowledge of the field, and he is all-pervading because he is present everywhere.

यस्मात् पुर्यनुशेते च तस्मात् पुरुष उच्यते। नोत्पादितत्वात् पूर्वत्वात् स्वयम्भूरिति स स्मृतः

Because he dwells within the city (body), he is called Purusha; because he is not produced and is prior, he is called the self-born.

इज्यत्वादुच्यते यज्ञः कविर्विक्रान्तदर्शनात्। क्रमणः क्रमणीयत्वाद्वर्णकस्याभिपालनात्

Because he is to be worshipped, he is called Yajna; he is called Kavi because he sees all with surpassing vision; he is called Kramana because he advances, and Varṇaka because he protects the castes.

आदित्यसंज्ञः कपिलस्त्वग्रजोऽग्निरिति स्मृतः। हिरण्यमस्य गर्भोऽभूद्धिरण्यस्यापि गर्भजः। तस्माद्धिरण्यगर्भः स पुराणेऽस्मिन्निरुच्यते

He is called Aditya, Kapila, and Agni, the eldest. His womb was golden, and from gold he was born; therefore, in this Purana, he is called Hiranyagarbha.

स्वयम्भुवो निवृत्तस्य कालो वर्षाग्रजस्तु यः। न शक्यः परिसंख्यातुमपि वर्षशतैरपि

The time of the self-born, after dissolution, is the eldest of years; it cannot be measured even by hundreds of years.

कल्पसंख्यानिवृत्तेस्तु पराख्यो ब्रह्मणः स्मृतः। तावच्छेषोऽस्य कालोऽन्यस्तस्यान्ते प्रतिसृज्यते

When the reckoning of aeons ceases, he is called Para Brahma; the remaining time is different, and at its end, it is reabsorbed.

कोटिकोटिसहस्राणि अन्तर्भूतानि यानि वै। समतीतानि कल्पानान्तावच्छेषाः परास्तु ये

The countless hundreds of millions that are included, those kalpas that have passed, and those that remain at the end—

यस्त्वयं वर्त्तते कल्पो वाराहन्तं निबोधत। प्रथमः साम्प्रतस्तेषां कल्पोऽयं वर्त्तते द्विजाः

Now, learn about this present kalpa, the Varaha Kalpa; among those, O twice-born, this is the first and current kalpa.

तस्मिन् स्वायम्भुवाद्यास्तु मनवः स्युश्चतुर्द्दश। अतीता वर्त्तमानाश्च भविष्या ये च वै पुनः

In it, there are fourteen Manus beginning with Svayambhuva—those who have passed, those who are present, and those who will come again.

तैरियं पृथिवी सर्वा सप्तद्वीपा समन्ततः। पूर्णं युगसहस्रं वै परिपाल्या नरेश्वरैः। प्रजाभिस्तपसा चैव तेषां श्रृणुत विस्तरम्

By them, this entire earth with its seven continents is protected for a full thousand yugas by kings and peoples through austerity; hear now the details of these.

मन्वन्तरेण चैकेन सर्वाण्येवान्तराणि वै। भविष्याणि भविष्यैश्च कल्पः कल्पेन चैव ह

With each Manvantara, all the intervening periods indeed occur; and with future kalpas, kalpa follows kalpa.

अतीतानि च कल्पानि सोदकानि सहान्वयैः। अनागतेषु तद्वच्च तर्क्कः कार्यो विजानता

The kalpas that have passed, along with their waters and lineages, and likewise those yet to come—such reasoning should be applied by the wise.

आपो ह्यग्नेः समभवन्नष्टेऽग्नौ पृथिवीतले। सान्तरालैकलीनेऽस्मान्नष्टे स्थावरजङ्गमे

Waters indeed arose from fire when fire was lost from the surface of the earth; when all that is stationary and moving was destroyed in the interval of dissolution.

एकार्णवे तदा तस्मिन् न प्राज्ञायत किञ्चन। तदा स भगवान् ब्रह्मा सहस्राक्षः सहस्रपात्

Then, in that one ocean, nothing at all could be perceived; at that time, the blessed Brahma, thousand-eyed and thousand-footed—

सहस्रशीर्षा पुरुषो रुक्मवर्णोऽह्यतीन्द्रियः। ब्रह्मा नारायणाख्यः स सुष्वाप सलिले तदा

The thousand-headed Purusha, golden in hue, beyond the senses, Brahma known as Narayana, then slept upon the waters.

सत्त्वोद्रेकात् प्रबुद्धस्तु शून्यं लोकमुदीक्ष्य सः। इमं चोदाहरन्त्यत्र श्लोकं नारायणं प्रति

Awakened by the predominance of sattva, he beheld the world as void; and here they recite this verse about Narayana.

आपो नारा वै तनव इत्यपां नाम शुश्रुमः। अप्सु शेते च यत्तस्मात्तेन नारायणः स्मृतः

The waters are indeed called 'nara,' and thus we have heard the name of the waters; because he lies in the waters, therefore he is remembered as Narayana.

तुल्यं युगसहस्रस्य नैशं कालमुपास्य सः। शर्वर्यन्ते प्रकुरुते ब्रह्मत्वं सर्गकारणात्

Having passed a night equal to a thousand yugas in meditation, at the end of the night, he assumes the state of Brahma for the purpose of creation.

ब्रह्मा तु सलिले तस्मिन् वायुर्भूत्वा तदाचरत्। निशायामिव खद्योतः प्रावृट्‌काले ततस्ततः

Then Brahma, in those waters, moved about as Vayu, like a firefly in the night, here and there during the rainy season.

ततस्तु सलिले तस्मिन् विज्ञायान्तर्गतां महीम्। अनुमानादसंमूढो भूमेरुद्धरणं प्रति

Then, in those waters, perceiving the earth submerged within, he, not deluded, inferred the means for the earth's raising.

अकरोत् स तनुं त्वन्यां कल्पादिषु यथा पुरा। ततो महात्मा मनसा दिव्यं रूपमचिन्तयत्

He then assumed another form, as in previous kalpas, and the great-souled one conceived in his mind a divine form.

सलिलेनाप्लुतां भूमिं दृष्ट्वा स तु समन्ततः। किन्नु रूपं महत् कृत्वा उद्धरेयमहं महीम्

Seeing the earth completely submerged in water, he thought, 'By assuming what great form might I raise the earth?'