यावत् पश्यामि गगनं न तमोभिर् न तेजसा । व्याप्तम् अत्यन्तविततं शून्यम् अन्तविवर्जितम्
As I gazed, I saw the sky neither filled with darkness nor with light, but utterly expansive, empty, and without any limit.
सर्गं सङ्कल्पयामीमम् इति निश्चित्य तन् मया । खम् एवेक्षितुम् आरब्धं शुद्धसूक्ष्मेण चेतसा
Having resolved, 'I shall imagine this creation,' I began to observe the sky with a mind that was pure and subtle.
अथाहं दृष्टवांस् तत्र मनसा वितते ऽम्बरे । पृथक्स्थितान् महारम्भान् सर्गान् स्थितिनिरर्गलान्
Then, with my mind spread out in that vast expanse, I saw there great creations, each existing separately, enduring without interruption.
परस्परेण चादृष्टान् ब्रह्मविष्ण्विन्द्रसंयुतान् । ससुरासुरगन्धर्वकिन्नरोरगमानवान्
Unseen by each other, they were accompanied by Brahma, Vishnu, and Indra, together with gods, asuras, gandharvas, kinnaras, serpents, and humans.
मेरुमन्दरकैलासमहेन्द्रमलयाचलान् । साद्रिद्यूर्वीनदीशांश् च सङ्ख्यया दशभासुरान्
There were Meru, Mandara, Kailasa, Mahendra, Malaya, and other mountains, along with continents, islands, rivers, and regions, numbering ten, shining brightly.
तेषु तत्प्रतिबिम्बाभाः पद्मकोशाधिवासिनः । राजहंसरथारूढास् संस्थिता दशपद्मजाः
In those, resembling reflections, were the ten lotus-born ones, dwelling upon lotus stalks, mounted on swan-chariots, each established in their place.
पृथक्स्थितेषु दशसु तेषूद्यद्भूतपङ्क्तिषु । ज्वलज्ज्वालेषु दीर्घेषु जगत्सूज्ज्वलदीप्तिषु
In those ten, each existing separately, arose rows of beings, blazing with flames, long and radiant, illuminating the worlds with their brilliance.
प्रवहन्ति महानद्यः प्रध्वनन्ति तथाब्धयः । प्रतपन्त्य् उष्णरुचयः प्रस्फुरन्त्य् अम्बरे ऽनिलाः
Great rivers flow there, oceans resound, the hot rays shine forth, and winds surge in the sky.
दिवि क्रीडन्ति विबुधा भुवि क्रीडन्ति मानवाः । दानवा भोगिनश् चैव पातालेषु सुखं स्थिताः
In the heavens, the gods play; on earth, humans play; and in the netherworlds, the asuras and serpents dwell happily.
कालचक्रपरिप्रोताष् षट् छुभास् सकलर्तवः । यथाकालं फलपूर्णां भूषयन्त्य् अभितो महीम्
All the seasons, adorned with auspicious qualities, are woven into the wheel of time; as their appointed time arrives, they beautify the earth with fruits in abundance.
प्रौढिं शुभाशुभाचारस्थितयः ककुभां प्रति । नरकस्वर्गफलदास् सर्वत्र समुपागताः
The established ways of auspicious and inauspicious conduct mature toward the horizons, bringing everywhere the fruits of hell and heaven as they come.
भोगमोक्षफलार्थिन्यस् समस्ता भूतजातयः । समीहितं यथाकालं प्रयतन्ते यथाक्रमम्
All living beings, desiring the fruits of enjoyment or liberation, strive according to their wishes and in due order, at the proper time.
सप्तलोकास् तथा द्वीपास् समुद्रा गिरयस् तथा । अवेक्षमाणाः कल्पान्तं स्फुरन्त्य् उरुतरारवम्
The seven worlds, the continents, the oceans, and the mountains likewise, observing the end of the cycle, resound with mighty reverberations.
क्वचिद् रात्रित्वम् आयातं क्वचित् स्थिरतया स्थितम् । स्थितं पर्वतकुञ्जेषु तमस् तेजोलवद्रुतम्
In some places, night has arrived; elsewhere, it remains with steadfastness. In the mountain valleys, darkness stands, swiftly moving like a flash of light.
नभोनीलोत्पलस्यान्तर् भ्रमदभ्रमधुव्रतम् । प्रस्फुरत्तारकाजालं केसरापूरतां गतम्
Within the blue lotus of the sky, the honeybee of the wandering cloud roams; the network of stars shines forth, filling it like a cluster of stamens.
कल्पान्तघननीहारो मेरुकुञ्जेषु संस्थितः । शल्मलेर् अमलं तूलम् अष्ठीलाकोटरेष्व् इव
The dense mist at the end of the cycle rests upon the peaks of Meru; pure cotton lies in the hollows of the silk-cotton trees, as if in bone cavities.
लोकालोकाद्रिरशनां रणदर्णवघुर्घुराम् । तमःखण्डेन्द्रनीलाढ्यां निजरत्नविराजिताम्
The girdle of the Lokāloka mountain, roaring with the tumult of battle-oceans, is adorned with fragments of darkness and sapphire, shining with its own jewels.
दधाना वसुधा भूतरवकाकलिघुङ्घुमाम् । संस्थिता भुवनाभोगे स्वान्तःपुर इवाङ्गना
The earth, bearing the low, humming cries of creatures, stands amidst the expanse of worlds like a woman in the inner chambers of a palace.
गौराहःपङ्क्तिमध्यस्थरजनीराजिराजिताः । पद्मोत्पलस्रज इव लक्ष्यन्ते वत्सरश्रियः
The splendors of the seasons, adorned by the rows of white days and the streaks of night in between, appear like garlands of lotuses and water-lilies.
बहुगर्भविभागस्थभूतलोकाः पृथक् पृथक् । तेजोऽरुणा विलोक्यन्ते दाडिमानीव षण्डके
The many realms of earth, each with its own divisions and inhabitants, shine with a reddish glow, like clusters of pomegranates in a grove.
त्रिप्रवाहा त्रिपथगा कृत्वोर्ध्वाधोगमागमा । जगद्यज्ञोपवीताभा स्फुरन्तीन्दुकलामला
The triple-flowing, triple-path rivers, moving upward and downward, shimmer pure as the crescent moon, resembling the sacred thread of the universe.
इतश् चेतश् च गच्छन्ति शीर्यन्ते प्रोद्भवन्ति च । दिग्लतासु तडित्पुष्पा वातान्ते मेघपल्लवाः
Here and there they go, decaying and arising again—like lightning-flowers on the creepers of the directions, or cloud-shoots at the end of the wind.
गन्धर्वनगरोद्यानविमानावलिमालिता । समुद्रभूमिनभसां पदवी प्रविराजते
The path of the ocean, earth, and sky is adorned with rows of celestial cities, gardens, and flying palaces, shining brilliantly.
लोकान्तरेषु सङ्घेन देवासुरनरोरगाः । उदुम्बरेषु मषका इव घुङ्घुमितास् स्थिताः
In other worlds, gods, demons, humans, and serpents stand together in crowds, humming like gnats on fig trees.
युगकल्पक्षणलवकलाकाष्टाकलङ्कितः । कालो वहत्य् अकलितस् सर्वनाशप्रतीक्षकः
Time, marked by ages, aeons, moments, instants, and fractions, flows on unnoticed, ever awaiting the destruction of all.
एवम् आलोक्य शुद्धेन परेण स्वेन तेजसा । भृशं विस्मयम् आपन्नः किम् एतत् कथम् इत्य् अहम्
Thus, beholding with my own pure and supreme radiance, I became greatly astonished, wondering, 'What is this? How can this be?'
कथं मांसमयेनाक्ष्णा यन् न पश्यामि किञ्चन । तन् मायाजालम् अतुलं पश्यामि मनसाम्बरे
How is it that with these fleshly eyes I see nothing at all, yet in the sky of the mind I perceive this incomparable web of illusion?
अथालोक्य चिरं कालं मनसैवाहम् अम्बरात् । अर्कं तस्माज् जगज्जालाद् एकम् आनीय पृष्टवान्
Then, after observing for a long time with my mind from that sky, I summoned the sun from that net of worlds and questioned him.
आगच्छ देवदेवेश भो भास्कर महाद्युते । स्वागतं ते ऽस्त्व् इति प्रोक्तं मयासौ कथितो ऽप्य् अथ
'Come, Lord of gods, O radiant Sun, of great brilliance! Welcome to you,' I said, and thus addressed him.
कस् त्वं कथम् इदं जातं जगद् एकं जगन्ति वा । यदि जानासि भगवंस् तद् एतत् कथयानघ
'Who are you? How did this one world or these many worlds come into being? If you know, O Blessed One, please tell me this, O faultless one.'