ततो ऽभवद् यष्टिसमस् ततḫ प्रादेशमात्रकः । ततẖ काचकणाकारो मया दृष्टस् स तादृशः
Then it became like a staff, then about a span in length; after that, I saw it take the form of a glass bead, just so.
ततस् सो ऽणुर् भवन् दृष्टो मया खाद् दिव्यदृष्टिना । परमाणुर् अथो भूत्वा तत्रैवान्तर्धिम् आययौ
Then I saw it, with my divine vision, become minute—an atom in the sky; and becoming a supreme atom, it vanished right there.
इत्य् असौ शमम् आयातश् शारदाम्बुदखण्डवत् । तादृशो ऽपि महारम्भḫ पुरḫ पश्यत एव मे
Thus, it attained stillness, like a fragment of a cloud in autumn; yet, even so, that great phenomenon unfolded before my very eyes.
इति सावरणे तेन ते ब्रह्माण्डकवाटके । विनिगीर्णे क्षुधार्तेन हरिणेनेव पर्णके
In this way, that Sāvarṇi was swallowed up in that cosmic egg-shell, just as a hungry deer devours a leaf.
अथाभून् निर्मलं व्योम शान्तं ब्रह्मैव केवलम् । अनादिमध्यपर्यन्तसंविदाकाशमात्रकम्
Then, there was only pure, tranquil space—nothing but Brahman—an expanse of consciousness without beginning, middle, or end.
इत्य् अहं दृष्टवांस् तत्र कल्पान्तम् उरुविभ्रमम् । दर्पणप्रतिबिम्बाभं शिलाशकलकोटरे
Thus I witnessed there, until the end of the aeon, that vast marvel—like a reflection in a mirror, or in the hollow of a stone fragment.
अथ ताम् अङ्गनां स्मृत्वा तां शिलां तं च विभ्रमम् । राजद्वारगतो ग्राम्य इवाहं विस्मयं गतः
Then, recalling that woman, that stone, and that marvel, I was left astonished, like a villager at the gates of a royal palace.
ताम् आलोकितवान् भूयẖ कलधौतशिलाम् अहम् । यावत् सर्वत्र सन्त्य् अत्र सर्गाẖ काल्या इवाङ्गके
Again I looked at that moon-washed stone; and everywhere, there were creations here, just as there are marks on a body.
बुद्धिनेत्रेण दृश्यन्ते दिव्याक्ष्णा वा न ते ऽन्यथा । सर्वत्र सर्वदा सर्वं यद् अस्त्य् एव तथा तदा
All that exists is perceived everywhere and always, either through the eye of intelligence or with a divine vision, but not otherwise.
दूरतḫ प्रेक्ष्यते मांसदृशा यदि च सा शिला । दृश्यते तच् छिलैवैका न तु सर्गादि किञ्चन
If, from a distance, one looks at it with the physical eye and it is a stone, then only that single stone is seen, and nothing at all of creation and the rest.
सावस्थिता शिलैवैकरूपा निबिडमण्डला । कलधौतमयी स्फारा सन्ध्याजलदसुन्दरी
That stone remains just as it is—solid, of a single form, dense and round, shining like polished moonstone, beautiful as a raincloud at dusk.
ततो ऽहं विस्मयाविष्टḫ प्रविचारितवान् पुनः । शिलायाम् अपरं भागं तथैव परया दृशा
Then, filled with wonder, I examined another part of the stone again, this time with a higher vision.
यावत् तम् अपि पश्यामि जगदारम्भमन्थरम् । तथैव सुषिराकारम् इव नानार्थसुन्दरम्
As long as I looked at that as well, I saw the slow stirring of the world's origin there, appearing hollow in form, beautiful with various meanings.
पुनर् अन्यं तथैवाहं प्रदेशं परिदृष्टवान् । सर्गसंरम्भवलितं तावन्तम् अपि तादृशम्
Again, in the same way, I observed another region, and there too I saw the same—teeming with the bustle of creation, just like before.
यं यं प्रदेशं पश्यामि शिलायास् तत्र तत्र वै । जगत् पश्याम्य् अविकलम् आदर्श इव बिम्बितम्
Whichever part of the stone I look at, here and there, I see the world reflected there in its entirety, just as in a mirror.
प्रविश्यामि जगच् चेत् तत् पश्यामीदम् इवाखिलम् । दृश्यं न चेद् बहिस्स्थस् तत् पश्याम्य् आदर्शबिम्बितम्
If I enter into the world, I see all this as if it were real; if I do not, and remain outside, I see it as a reflection in a mirror.
मयातिकौतुकेनाथ सर्वास् तस्य गिरेश् शिलाः । अन्विष्टा भूमिभागाश् च तृणगुल्मादयस् तथा
Then, with great curiosity, I examined all the rocks of that mountain, as well as the patches of earth, grasses, shrubs, and the like.
यावत् सर्वत्र तत् तादृग् जगद् अस्ति यथास्थितम् । बुद्ध्यैव दृश्यते नाक्ष्णा परया विविधाकृति
Everywhere, the world exists just as it is; it is perceived only by the intellect, not by the ordinary eye, in its various forms.
क्वचित् प्रथमसर्गात्मजायमानप्रजापति । कल्प्यमानर्क्षचन्द्रार्कदिनरात्र्यर्तुवत्सरम्
In some places, the progenitors born from the first creation are being formed, along with the arrangement of stars, moon, sun, days, nights, seasons, and years.
क्वचित् क्वचिन् महीपीठसम्पन्नजनमण्डलम् । क्वचित् किञ्चिद् अखातोग्रचतुस्सागरखातकम्
In some places, there are populated regions with land and people; in others, there are areas bordered by four ocean trenches.
क्वचित् किञ्चिद् असञ्जातसुरं सञ्जातदानवम् । क्वचित् किञ्चित् कृतयुगाचारसज्जनभूतकम्
In some places, there are no gods but demons have arisen; in others, there are virtuous beings living according to the customs of the Krita Yuga.
क्वचित् किञ्चित् कलियुगाचारदुर्जनभूतकम् । क्वचित् किञ्चित् कल्पकालमध्यसंस्थितिसुस्थितम्
In some places, there are wicked beings following the customs of the Kali Yuga; in others, there is a world well-established in the middle period of a kalpa.
क्वचित् किञ्चित् पुरव्यूहदैत्यसङ्गरदुस्तरम् । क्वचित् किञ्चिन् महाशैलजालनिर्विवरावनि
In some places, there are cities fortified and difficult to penetrate due to battles with demons; in others, there are vast mountain ranges with uninterrupted land.
क्वचित् किञ्चिद् असम्पन्नसर्गम् एकाम्बुजोद्भवम् । क्वचित् किञ्चिज् जरामृत्युमुक्तभूतलमानवम्
In some places, there is an incomplete creation, with only a single lotus-born being; in others, there is a world of humans freed from old age and death.
क्वचित् किञ्चिद् असञ्जातचन्द्रशून्यशिरश्शिवम् । अनिर्मथितदुग्धाब्धिमृत्युमत्सुरपूरितम्
In some places, there is something auspicious: a head devoid of the yet-unborn moon, an ocean of milk not yet churned, and filled with gods untouched by death.
असञ्जातामृताश्वेभवैद्यागकमलाविषम् । शुक्रामरमहाविद्यानाशनोत्कसुरव्रजम्
There, the horses of nectar are not yet born, the poison of the lotus of medicine is absent, and the hosts of gods eager to destroy the great knowledge of Shukra and others are not present.
क्वचित् किञ्चिच् च गर्भाङ्गकर्तनोत्कसुरेश्वरम् । अपरिम्लानधर्मत्वात् स्वप्रकाशाखिलप्रजम्
Elsewhere, there is something: the lord of demons eager to cut the limbs of the unborn, and all beings shining by their own light, due to their unfading righteousness.
क्वचित् किञ्चिच् च पूर्वान्यसन्निवेशक्रमस्थिति । अपूर्ववेदशास्त्रार्थसमाचारविचारणम्
In some places, there is something: the existence of previous and other arrangements of order, and the consideration of the conduct and meaning of unprecedented Vedic scriptures.
क्वचित् किञ्चन कल्पान्तसङ्क्षोभाशिवसंस्थिति । क्वचित् किञ्चिच् च दैत्यौघविलुण्ठितसुरालयम्
Somewhere, there is a certain state of auspiciousness amidst the upheaval at the end of an eon; elsewhere, the abodes of gods are plundered by hosts of demons.
क्वचित् किञ्चित् सुरोद्यानगायद्गन्धर्वकिन्नरम् । क्वचित् किञ्चित् समारब्धगीर्वाणासुरसौहृदम्
In some places, there are Gandharvas and Kinnaras singing in the divine gardens; elsewhere, there is the beginning of friendship between gods and demons.