महताम् अपि नो देवः प्रतिपालयति क्षणात् । कालः कवलितानन्तविश्वो विश्वात्मतां गतः
O Lord, even the great ones are not spared for a moment; time, having devoured the endless universe, has become its very soul.
युगवत्सरकल्पाख्यैः किञ्चित् प्रकटतां गतः । रूपैर् अलक्ष्यरूपात्मा सर्वम् आक्रम्य तिष्ठति
With forms known as ages, years, and aeons, it attains some manifestation; yet, its essence is unmanifest, pervading all and abiding everywhere.
ये रम्या ये शुभारम्भास् सुमेरुगुरवो ऽपि ये । कालेन विनिगीर्णास् ते करभेणेव पन्नगाः
Those who are delightful, those who begin auspicious deeds, even those as weighty as Mount Sumeru—all are swallowed by time, like serpents by a young elephant.
निर्दयः कठिनः क्रूरः कर्कशः कृपणो ऽधमः । न तद् अस्ति यद् अद्यापि न कालो निगिरत्य् अयम्
Pitiless, harsh, cruel, relentless, wretched, and base—there is nothing that, even today, this time does not consume.
कालः कवलनैकान्तमतिर् अत्ति गिरीन् अपि । अनन्तैर् अपि भोगौघैर् नायं तृप्तो महाशनः
Time, whose sole intent is to devour, eats even mountains; though it enjoys endless streams of pleasures, this voracious one is never satisfied.
हरत्य् अयं नाशयति करोत्य् अत्ति निहन्ति च । कालस् संसारनृत्ये हि नानारूपैर् यथा नटः
It takes away, destroys, creates, eats, and kills; time, in the dance of worldly existence, acts in various forms like an actor.
भिनत्ति प्रविभागस्थो भूतबीजान्य् अनारतम् । जगत्य् असत्तया चञ्च्वा दाडिमानि यथा शुकः
It breaks apart, standing in division, the seeds of beings ceaselessly; in the world, with its unreal beak, like a parrot splitting pomegranates.
शुभाशुभविषाणाग्रविलूनजनपल्लवः । स्फूर्जति स्फीतजनताजीवराजीविनीगजः
Having plucked the tender shoots of people with the horns of auspicious and inauspicious fate, it shines forth, the mighty elephant among the herds of living beings.
विरिञ्चमज्जब्रह्माण्डबृहद्बिल्वफलद्रुमम् । ब्रह्मकाननम् आभोगि परम् आवृत्य तिष्ठति
Within the vast forest of Brahma, the great tree bearing the fruit of the universe stands, enveloped by the supreme serpent, and remains there.
यामिनीभ्रमरीपूर्णा रचयन् दिनमञ्जरीः । वर्षकल्पकलावल्लीर् न कदाचन खिद्यते
Filled with the bees of night, weaving garlands of daylight, and the vines of the seasons and ages, it never grows weary.
भिद्यते नावभग्नो ऽपि दग्धो ऽपि हि न दह्यते । दृश्यते नातिदृश्यो ऽपि धूर्तचूडामणिर् मुने
It is not broken though struck, nor burned though scorched; it is seen yet not fully visible, O sage, the crown jewel of tricksters.
एकेनैव निमेषेण किञ्चिद् उत्थापयत्य् अलम् । किञ्चिद् विनाशयत्य् उच्चैर् मनोराज्यवद् आततः
In a single blink, it easily raises something up and destroys something else, spreading out like a kingdom of imagination.
दुर्विलासविलासिन्या चेष्टया कष्टपुष्टया । दर्व्येव सूपकृत् सूपं जनम् आवर्तयन् स्थितः
With its difficult and robust play, indulging in harsh pleasures, it stirs people like a cook stirring soup with a ladle.
तृणं पांसुं महेन्द्रं च सुमेरुं पर्णम् अर्णवम् । आत्मस्फारतया सर्वम् आत्मसात्कर्तुम् उद्यतः
Whether grass, dust, the great Indra, Mount Sumeru, a leaf, or the ocean, it is ready to absorb everything into itself by its own expansion.
क्रौर्यम् अत्रैव पर्याप्तं लुब्धतात्रैव संस्थिता । सर्वं दौर्भाग्यम् अत्रैव सर्वम् अत्रैव चापलम्
Here alone is cruelty sufficient, greed established, all misfortune present, and all restlessness found.
प्रेरयंल् लीलयार्केन्दू क्रीडतीह नभस्तले । निक्षिप्तवीटायुगलो निजे बाल इवाङ्गने
Playfully moving the sun and moon in the sky, it sports here as if a child in its own courtyard, tossing its toys.
सर्वभूतास्थिमालाभिर् आपादवलिताकृतिः । विलसत्य् एष कल्पान्ते कालः कल्पितकल्पनः
At the end of the aeon, Time, imagined as the creator of all imaginings, shines forth, its form wrapped in garlands made from the bones of all beings.
अस्योड्डामरनृत्तस्य कल्पान्ते ऽङ्गविनिर्गतैः । प्रस्फुरत्य् अम्बरे मेरुर् भूर्जत्वग् इव वायुभिः
At the end of the aeon, as it dances wildly, Meru mountain quivers in the sky, shaken by the limbs cast off in its fierce dance, like birch bark stirred by the wind.
रुद्रो भूत्वा भवत्य् एष महेन्द्रो ऽथ पितामहः । शुक्रो वैश्रवणश् चापि पुनर् एव न किञ्चन
It becomes Rudra, then Mahendra, then the Grandfather; it is Shukra, it is Vaishravana, and again, it is nothing at all.
धत्ते ऽजस्रोत्थितध्वस्तान् सर्गान् अमितभासुरान् । अन्यान् अन्यान् अप्य् अनन्यान् वीचीन् अब्धिर् इवात्मनि
It bears within itself countless creations, brilliant and destroyed, rising ceaselessly, each distinct yet inseparable, like waves in the ocean.
महाकल्पाभिधानेभ्यो वृक्षेभ्यः परिशातयन् । देवासुरगणान् पक्वान् फलभारान् अवस्थितः
Standing amidst the trees named after great aeons, it shakes down the ripe fruits—gods and demons—gathered in clusters.
आलोलभूतमषकघुङ्घुमानां प्रपातिनाम् । ब्रह्माण्डोडुम्बरौघानां बृहत्पादपतां गतः
It strides with vast feet among swarms of universes, buzzing like restless gnats and falling, tossed about.
सत्तामात्रकुमुद्वत्या चिज्ज्योत्स्नापरिफुल्लया । वपुर् विनोदयत्य् एकः क्रियाप्रियतमान्वितः
With the lotus of pure existence blossoming under the radiance of consciousness, it delights in its own form, accompanied by its beloved actions.
अनन्तापायपर्यन्तं बद्धपीठं निजं वपुः । महाशैलवद् उत्तुङ्गम् अवलम्ब्य व्यवस्थितः
It establishes its own form, boundless from beginning to end, set high like a great mountain, and remains steadfast.
क्वचिच् छ्यामातमश्श्यामं क्वचित् कान्तियुतं ततम् । द्वयेनापि क्रमाद् रिक्तं स्वभावं भावयन् स्थितः
At times, he appears dark as a shadow, at times, he shines with radiance; yet, by turns, he remains empty of both, abiding in his own nature.
संलीनासङ्ख्यसंसारसारया स्वात्मसत्तया । गुर्वीव भारघनया निबद्धपदतां गतः
Merged with the essence of countless worlds through the reality of his own self, he stands fixed, as if bound by a great and weighty mass.
न खिद्यते न म्रियते नायाति न च गच्छति । नास्तम् एति न चोदेति महाकल्पशतैर् अपि
He does not suffer, nor does he die; he neither comes nor goes; he neither sets nor rises, even through hundreds of great aeons.
केवलं जगदारम्भलीलया घनहेलया । यापयत्य् आत्मनात्मानम् अनहङ्कारम् आगतम्
Only for the play of beginning the world, with effortless ease, he passes time within himself, having attained a state free from ego.
यामिनीपङ्ककलिलां दिनकोकनदावलीम् । क्रियाभ्रमरिकां स्वात्मसरस्स्व् आरोपयन् स्थितः
He remains, projecting the night’s muddy darkness and the day’s lotus array, the bee of action, upon the lake of his own self.
गृहीत्वा भीषणः कृष्णां रजनीं जीर्णमार्जनीम् । आलोककनकक्षोदम् आहरत्य् अभितो ऽवनिम्
Seizing the dreadful black night, the worn-out sweeper, he brings forth the golden dust of light all around the earth.