Desiring to create the world, Brahma, the self-born Lord, assumed a new form and, filled with delight, began his work of creation. From his mouth, he brought forth the gods, beings who are dominated by the quality of sattva—goodness and purity. Having created them, Brahma relinquished that form; it became suffused with sattva and transformed into day itself. Thus, the gods are powerful during the day, while the demons gain strength at night. Next, Brahma took on another body, this one entirely composed of sattva, and regarded it as his fatherly aspect. From this form, the ancestors—pitṛs—were born. After their creation, Brahma released this form as well, and it became Sandhya, the twilight that stands between day and night. Then, assuming yet another body, this time made solely of rajas—the quality of activity and passion—Brahma created human beings from that intense rajas. He quickly abandoned this body too, and it became Jyotsna, the dawn, the earlier twilight. At the time of Jyotsna, both powerful humans and the ancestors are present, sharing the moment of transition. Thus, Jyotsna (dawn), night, day, and twilight are the four bodies of Lord Brahma, each associated with one of the three gunas—sattva, rajas, and tamas. Brahma then assumed another rajas-filled body, and from it arose hunger, and from hunger, desire was born. In the darkness brought on by hunger and thirst, the blessed Lord created beings who were misshapen and bearded. These beings rushed toward their creator. Some cried out, "Do not do this, let him be protected," and these became known as the Rakshasas. Others exclaimed, "Let us eat," and from this act of consuming, they became the Yakshas. Seeing these beings with displeasure, the hair of the Creator fell to the ground, and from that fallen hair, new heads arose on his body. From this shedding, serpents were born, and because they had fallen from him, they were called "fallen ones." Then, angered, the Lord produced fierce, tawny-colored beings who were flesh-eaters. As Brahma continued his meditation, the Gandharvas—celestial musicians—were born from his body, and these Gandharvas were nourished by speech itself. Having created them, Brahma, impelled by his creative power, brought forth other birds at his own will. From his chest, he created birds; from his mouth, strong beings; from his abdomen, cattle; and from his sides, other creatures. From his feet came horses, elephants, donkeys, wild oxen, deer, camels, mules, dwarfs, and many other species. Plants bearing fruit and roots sprang from his hair. At the beginning of the Treta Yuga, at the dawn of the kalpa, Brahma created these plants and properly assigned them to sacrificial rites. The cow-born man, the ram, horses, mules, and donkeys were designated as domestic animals. There are also wild animals: carnivores, cloven-hoofed animals, elephants, monkeys, birds, aquatic animals, and reptiles. From his mouth, Brahma created the Gāyatra and Ṛc verses, the Trivṛt Sāma, the Rathantara Sāma, and the Agniṣṭoma sacrifice. From his right side came the Yajus verses, the Triṣṭubh meter, the Pañcadaśa Stoma, the Bṛhat Sāma, and the Uktha. From his left side, he brought forth the Sāma verses, the Jagatī meter, the Saptadaśa Stoma, the Vairūpa, and the Atirātra. From his back, he created the Ekaviṃśa of the Atharvāṇa, the Āptoryāma, the Anuṣṭubh meter, and the Vairāja. From his limbs, beings of many forms were born. After creating gods, asuras, ancestors, and humans, Prajāpati continued his creative work. At the beginning, the great grandfather created Yakṣas, Piśācas, Gandharvas, and groups of Apsarases. He brought forth Nāgas, Kinnaras, Rākṣasas, birds, animals, cattle, serpents, all that is perishable and imperishable, all that is stationary and moving. At that time, the blessed Brahma, the primordial lord, created all beings. Whatever actions they had previously accumulated before creation, those same actions they took up again, being reborn according to their past karma. Thus, beings are shaped by violence and nonviolence, gentleness and harshness, righteousness and unrighteousness, truth and falsehood. According to these qualities, they attain outcomes that correspond to their nature, and in this way, they find satisfaction. Brahma assigned diversity and roles within the objects of the senses, in all beings, and in their bodies. He established the names and forms of beings, and the manifestations of their actions, drawing from the words of the Vedas, at the very beginning, for gods and others. He made the names of the sages as heard in the Vedas, and likewise assigned appropriate duties to others according to their suitability. Just as the signs of the seasons and their various forms are seen, so too are the states at the beginning of each age. Thus, at the start of each cycle, Brahma creates the world again and again, endowed with the power of desire and impelled by the force of creation. Much later, King Sagara approached the sage and said, “I wish to hear, O sage, the proper conduct for a householder, which, when observed, does not diminish him in this world or the next.” The sage Aurva replied, “Hear, O protector of the earth, the characteristics of proper conduct. One who possesses proper conduct conquers both worlds. Those who are virtuous and whose faults are few are called 'good,' and their way of living is what we call proper conduct. The seven sages, the Manus, and the lords of creatures are the speakers and performers of proper conduct, O king. “At the Brahma-muhurta—just before dawn—a wise householder should rise and contemplate with his mind upon righteousness, and also upon wealth that is not opposed to righteousness. Without harming either, one should also consider desire in both, seeing the three aims of life—dharma, artha, and kāma—equally, for the removal of both seen and unseen faults.