यत् पुरुषं व्य् अदधुः कतिधा व्यकल्पयन् । मुखं किम् अस्य कौ बाहू का ऊरू पादा ऽ उच्येते
When they divided the Purusha, how many portions did they make? What was his mouth? What were his arms? What were his thighs and feet, they ask.
ब्राह्मणो ऽस्य मुखम् आसीद् बाहू राजन्यः कृतः । ऊरू तद् अस्य यद् वैश्यः पद्भ्याꣳ शूद्रो ऽ अजायत
The Brahman was his mouth; the Kshatriya became his arms; the Vaishya was his thighs; from his feet the Shudra was born.
चन्द्रमा मनसो जातश् चक्षोः सूर्यो ऽ अजायत । श्रोत्राद् वायुश् च प्राणश् च मुखाद् अग्निर् अजायत
The moon was born from his mind; from his eyes, the sun arose; from his ears came the wind and breath; from his mouth, fire was born.
नाभ्या ऽ आसीद् अन्तरिक्षꣳ शीर्ष्णो द्यौः सम् अवर्तत । पद्भ्यां भूमिर् दिशः श्रोत्रात् तथा लोकाꣳऽ अकल्पयन्
From his navel came the atmosphere; from his head, the heavens unfolded; from his feet, the earth; from his ears, the directions; thus they arranged the worlds.
यत् पुरुषेण हविषा देवा यज्ञम् अतन्वत । वसन्तो ऽस्यासीद् आज्यं ग्रीष्म ऽ इध्मः शरद् धविः
When the gods performed sacrifice with the Purusha as the offering, spring was its clarified butter, summer its fuel, autumn its oblation.
सप्तास्यासन् परिधयस् त्रिः सप्त समिधः कृताः । देवा यद् यज्ञं तन्वाना ऽ अबध्नन् पुरुषं पशुम्
Seven were its enclosing sticks; thrice seven were the kindling sticks prepared. When the gods performed the sacrifice, they bound the Purusha as the sacrificial animal.
यज्ञेन यज्ञम् अयजन्त देवास् तानि धर्माणि प्रथमान्य् आसन् । ते ह नाकं महिमानः सचन्त यत्र पूर्वे साध्याः सन्ति देवाः
With sacrifice, the gods sacrificed the sacrifice; these were the first duties. They attained the heights of heaven, where the earlier Sadhyas, the gods, reside.
अद्भ्यः सम्भृतः पृथिव्यै रसाच् च विश्वकर्मणः सम् अवर्तताग्रे । तस्य त्वष्टा विदधद् रूपम् एति तन् मर्त्यस्य देवत्वम् आजानम् अग्रे
From the waters was gathered the essence of earth, and from that, the all-creator arose at the beginning. His form was shaped by Tvashtar; that, at the outset, became the divinity of mortals.
वेदाहम् एतं पुरुषं महान्तम् आदित्यवर्णं तमसः परस्तात् । तम् एव विदित्वाति मृत्युम् एति नान्यः पन्था विद्यते ऽयनाय
I have known this great Purusha, radiant like the sun, beyond darkness. Knowing him alone, one transcends death; there is no other path for liberation.
प्रजापतिश् चरति गर्भे ऽअन्तर् अजायमानो बहुधा वि जायते । तस्य योनिं परि पश्यन्ति धीरास् तस्मिन् ह तस्थुर् भुवनानि विश्वा
Prajapati moves within the womb, unborn, yet born in many ways. The wise see his source; in him all worlds stand.
यो देवेभ्य ऽ आतपति यो देवानां पुरोहितः । पूर्वो यो देवेभ्यो जातो नमो रुचाय ब्राह्मये
He who shines among the gods, who is their priest, who was born before the gods, homage to the radiant Brahman.
रुचं ब्राह्म्यं जनयन्तो देवा ऽ अग्रे तद् अब्रुवन् । यस् त्वैवं ब्राह्मणो विद्यात् तस्य देवा ऽ असन् वशे
The gods, generating the Brahman radiance at the beginning, declared: Whoever knows thus as a Brahman, the gods are under his control.
श्रीश् च ते लक्ष्मीश् च पत्न्याव् अहोरात्रे पार्श्वे नक्षत्राणि रूपम् अश्विनौ व्यात्ताम् । इष्णन्न् इषाणामुं म ऽ इषाण सर्वलोकं म ऽ इषाण
Sri and Lakshmi are your wives; day and night are at your sides; the stars are your form; the Ashvins are your mouth. May you grant us nourishment; may you grant us mastery over all worlds.
तद् एवाग्निस् तद् आदित्यस् तद् वायुस् तद् उ चन्द्रमाः । तद् एव शुक्रं तद् ब्रह्म ता ऽ आपः स प्रजापतिः
That is fire, that is the sun, that is the wind, that is the moon; that is the bright one, that is Brahman, those are the waters, that is Prajapati.
सर्वे निमेषा जज्ञिरे विद्युतः पुरुषाद् अधि । नैनमूर्ध्वं न तिर्यञ्चं न मध्ये परि जग्रभत्
All moments were born, flashes of lightning, from the Purusha. No one grasped him above, nor across, nor in the middle.
न तस्य प्रतिमा ऽ अस्ति यस्य नाम महद् यशः । हिरण्यगर्भ ऽ इत्य् एषः । मा मा हिꣳसीद् इत्य् एषा । यस्मान् न जात ऽ इत्य् एष
He has no likeness; his name is great glory. He is called Hiraṇyagarbha. 'Do not harm me,' is his command. He is the one from whom nothing is born.
एषो ह देवः प्रदिशो ऽनु सर्वाः पूर्वो ह जातः स ऽ उ गर्भे ऽ अन्तः । स ऽ एव जातः स जनिष्यमाणः प्रत्यङ् जनास् तिष्ठति सर्वतोमुखः
This god moves along all directions; he was born before all; he is within the womb. He is born, he will be born; he stands facing all, with faces everywhere.
यस्माज् जातं न पुरा किं चनैव य आबभूव भुवनानि विश्वा । प्रजापतिः प्रजया सꣳरराणस् त्रीणि ज्योतीꣳषि सचते स षोडशी
From whom nothing was born before, who became all the worlds, Prajapati, striving with offspring, associates with three lights and the sixteen.
येन द्यौर् उग्रा पृथिवी च दृढा येन स्व स्तभितं येन नाकः । यो ऽ अन्तरिक्षे रजसो विमानः कस्मै देवाय हविषा विधेम
By whom the mighty heaven and the firm earth are supported, by whom the sky is held aloft, by whom the vault of space is established—he who moves in the atmosphere as the sovereign of the shining dust—to which god shall we offer our oblation?
यं क्रन्दसी ऽ अवसा तस्तभाने ऽ अभ्यैक्षेतां मनसा रेजमाने । यत्राधि सूर ऽ उदितो विभाति कस्मै देवाय हविषा विधेम । आपो ह यद् बृहतीः । यश् चिद् आपः
He whom the two crying ones, heaven and earth, upheld by his support, beheld with their minds as they trembled—where the sun rises and shines forth— to which god shall we offer our oblation? The waters indeed are vast. He is the one who is the waters.
वेनस् तत् पश्यन् निहितं गुहा सद् यत्र विश्वं भवत्य् एकनीडम् । तस्मिन्न् इदꣳ सं च वि चैति सर्वꣳ स ऽ ओतः प्रोतश् च विभूः प्रजासु
The seer, beholding that which is hidden in the cave, where all becomes united in a single nest—within him, all this moves together and apart; he is woven and interwoven throughout all beings.
प्र तद् वोचेद् अमृतं नु विद्वान् गन्धर्वो धाम विभृतं गुहा सत् । त्रीणि पदानि निहिता गुहास्य यस् तानि वेद स पितुः पितासत्
Let the wise Gandharva, who knows the immortal, declare that abode concealed in the cave. Three steps of his are set within the cave; whoever knows them becomes the ancestor of his father.
स नो बन्धुर् जनिता स विधाता धामानि वेद भुवनानि विश्वा । यत्र देवा ऽ अमृतम् आनशानास् तृतीये धामन्न् अध्य् ऐरयन्त
He is our kinsman, the creator, the arranger; he knows the abodes and all the worlds. Where the gods, seeking immortality, ascended to the third abode.
परीत्य भूतानि परीत्य लोकान् परीत्य सर्वाः प्रदिशो दिशश् च । उपस्थाय प्रथमजाम् ऋतस्यात्मनात्मानम् अभि सं विवेश
Having encompassed all beings, all worlds, all directions and quarters, he approached the primal birth of truth; by his own self, he entered into his own self.
परि द्यावापृथिवी सद्य ऽ इत्वा परि लोकान् परि दिशः परि स्वः । ऋतस्य तन्तुं विततं विचृत्य तद् अपश्यत् तद् अभवत् तद् आसीत्
Having encompassed heaven and earth together, all worlds, all directions, and the sky, he examined the stretched thread of truth; he saw that, he became that, he was that.
सदसस् पतिम् अद्भुतं प्रियम् इन्द्रस्य काम्यम् । सनिं मेधाम् अयासिषꣳम् स्वाहा
To the wondrous, beloved lord of the seat, dear to Indra, the desired one, I seek union with wisdom. Svāhā.
यां मेधां देवगणाः पितरश् चोपासते । तया माम् अद्य मेधयाग्ने मेधाविनं कुरु स्वाहा
That wisdom which the hosts of gods and the ancestors revere—by that wisdom, O Agni, make me wise today. Svāhā.
मेधां मे वरुणो ददातु मेधाम् अग्निः प्रजापतिः । मेधाम् इन्द्रस् च वायुश् च मेधां धाता ददातु मे स्वाहा
May Varuṇa grant me wisdom, may Agni and Prajāpati grant wisdom; may Indra and Vāyu grant wisdom, may Dhātṛ grant me wisdom. Svāhā.
इदं मे ब्रह्म च क्षत्रं चोभे श्रियम् अश्नुताम् । मयि देवा दधतु[ दधवु ] श्रियम् उत्तमां तस्यै ते स्वाहा
May this Brāhma and Kṣatra both attain prosperity for me; may the gods place the highest prosperity in me. To her, to you, svāhā.
अस्याजरासो दमाम् अरित्रा ऽ अर्चद्धूमासो ऽ अग्नयः पावकाः । श्वितीचयः श्वात्रासो भुरण्यवो वनर्षदो वायवो न सोमाः
Of this one, the ageless, tamed, ruddered, the shining flames are Agnis, pure, white-tipped, roaring, consuming the wood, like winds, like Somas.