मुने चतुर्युगान्य् अष्टौ विश्वाचीं देवसुन्दरीम् । असेवत महातेजाष् षट्पदः पद्मिनीम् इव
O sage, for eight cycles of four ages, the mighty one served Vishvachi, the divine beauty, like a bee attending a lotus.
तीव्रसंवेगसम्पन्नस् स्वसङ्कल्पोपकल्पिते । अथ पुण्यक्षये जाते नीहार इव शार्वरे
Endowed with intense urgency, in a world fashioned by his own resolve, when the merit was exhausted, he vanished like mist in the night.
प्रम्लानकुसुमोत्तंसस् स्विन्नाङ्गावलयालसः । स पपात तया साकं कालपक्वं फलं यथा
With wilted flowers adorning his head, his limbs weary and adorned with sweat, he fell together with her, like a fruit ripened by time.
वैबुधं तत् परित्यज्य नभस्य् एव शरीरकम् । भूताकाशम् अथासाद्य वसुधायाम् अजायत
Abandoning that celestial form, he entered the sky as a subtle body, then, reaching the elemental space, he was born upon the earth.
आसीद् द्विजो दशार्णेषु कोसलेषु महीपतिः । धीवरो ऽङ्गमहाटव्यां हंसस् त्रिपथगातटे
He became a twice-born in Dasharna, a king in Kosala, a fisherman in the great Anga forest, a swan on the banks of the three rivers.
सूर्यवंशी नृपः पौण्ड्रे सौरस् साल्वेषु दैशिकः । कल्पं विद्याधरश् श्रीमान् धीमान् अथ मुनेस् सुतः
A king of the solar dynasty in Paundra, a devotee in Salva, a learned Vidyadhara for an age, a wise and prosperous son of a sage.
मद्रेष्व् अथ महीपालस् ततस् तापसबालकः । वासुदेव इति ख्यातस् समङ्गायास् तटे स्थितः
A ruler in Madra, then a young ascetic, known as Vasudeva, dwelling on the bank of the Samaṅgā river.
अन्यास्व् अपि विचित्रासु वासनावशतस् स्वयम् । विषमास्व् एष पुत्रस् ते चचारानन्तयोनिषु
In other strange places as well, driven by the force of his own impressions, this son of yours wandered through countless diverse births.
अभूद् विन्ध्यवने गोपः किरतः केकयेषु च । सौवीरेषु च सामन्तस् त्रैगर्तश् चैव दैशिकः
He was a cowherd in the Vindhya forest, a hunter in Kekaya, a vassal in Sauvira, and a regional chief in Trigarta.
वंशगुल्मः किरातेषु हरिणश् चीरजङ्गले । सरीसृपस् तालतले तमाले वनकुक्कुटः
Among the Kirātas is the bamboo thicket, in the wilderness the deer, beneath the palm the creeping reptile, and in the tamāla tree the wild fowl.
अयं स पुत्रो भवतो भूत्वा मन्त्रविदां वरः । प्रजजाप पुरा विद्यां विद्याधरपदप्रदाम्
This son of yours, having become foremost among those skilled in mantras, once recited the knowledge that grants the status of a Vidyādhara.
तेनासौ भगवन् ब्रह्मन् व्योम्नि विद्याधरो महान् । हारकुण्डलकेयूरी लीलानिचयलासकः
By that, O venerable Brahman, he became a great Vidyādhara in the sky, adorned with pearl necklaces and armlets, delighting in playful assemblies.
नायिकानलिनीभानुः पुष्पचाप इवापरः । विद्याधरीणां दयितो गन्धर्वपुरभूषणम्
He was like the sun to the lotus-faced maidens, another Cupid with his flower-bow, beloved of the Vidyādhara women, an ornament of the Gandharva city.
स कल्पावधिम् आसाद्य द्वादशादित्यधामनि । जगाम भस्मशेषत्वं शलभः पावके यथा
Having reached the end of an aeon in the realm of the twelve suns, he was reduced to mere ashes, like a moth in the fire.
जगन्निर्माणरहिते स्फारे नभसि सा ततः । वासना तस्य बभ्राम निर्नीडा विहगी यथा
Then, in the vast sky devoid of the creation of worlds, his latent impression wandered like a bird without a nest.
अथ कालेन सञ्जाते विचित्रारम्भकारिणि । संसाराडम्बरारम्भे ब्राह्मी रात्रिविपर्यये
Then, when time brought about a new and wondrous beginning, at the reversal of the Brahmā night, the tumult of worldly existence commenced.
सा मनोवासना तस्य वातव्यावलिता सती । कृते ब्राह्मणताम् एत्य जाताद्य वसुधातले
That mental impression of his, carried by the wind, assumed the state of a brāhmaṇa at the start of the new creation, being born now upon the earth.
वासुदेवाभिधानो ऽसौ मुने विप्रकुमारकः । जातो मतिमतां मध्ये समधीताखिलश्रुतिः
O sage, that boy, known as Vasudeva, was born among the wise and mastered all the scriptures.
कल्पं विद्याधरो भूत्वा नद्या अद्य महामुने । तपश् चरति ते पुत्रस् समङ्गायास् तटे स्थितः
Having become a Vidyādhara for an age, today, O great sage, your son practices austerity on the bank of the Samaṅgā river.
विविधविषमवासनानुवृत्त्या खदिरकरञ्जकरालकोटरासु । जगति जरढयोनिषु प्रयातो गहनतरासु च काननस्थलीषु
Driven by various difficult tendencies, he wandered into the hollows of acacia and karanja trees, into the wombs of aged beings in the world, and into the densest forest thickets.
जटावान् अक्षवलयी जितसर्वेन्द्रियभ्रमः । तत्र वर्षशतान्य् अष्टौ संस्थितस् तपसि स्थिरे
With matted hair and a rosary, having subdued the confusion of all his senses, he remained there in firm austerity for eight hundred years.
यदीच्छसि मुने द्रष्टुं तं स्वपुत्रमनोभ्रमम् । तत् समुन्मील्य विज्ञाननेत्रम् आशु विलोकय
If you wish, O sage, to see that son whose mind wanders, then quickly open the eye of knowledge and behold him.
इत्य् उक्ते जगदीशेन कालेन समदृष्टिना । मुनिस् सञ्चिन्तयाम् आस ज्ञानाक्ष्णा तनयेहितम्
When the Lord of the universe spoke thus, the sage, with an even gaze, reflected with the eye of knowledge on his son's welfare.
ददर्श च मुहूर्तेन प्रतिभासवशाद् असौ । पुत्रोदन्तम् अशेषेण बुद्धिदर्पणबिम्बितम्
And in a moment, by the power of intuition, he saw the entire story of his son reflected in the mirror of his intellect.
पुनर् मन्दरसानुस्थां काले कालाग्रसंस्थिताम् । समङ्गायास् तटाद् एत्य विवेश स्वतनुं भृगुः
Then Bhṛgu, coming from the bank of the Samaṅgā, entered his own body again, standing on the slope of Mount Mandara at the appointed time.
विस्मयस्मेरया दृष्ट्या कालम् आलोक्य कान्तया । वीतरागम् उवाचेदं वीतरागो मुनिर् वचः
With a gaze, smiling in wonder, the passionless sage looked at Time, and spoke these words to the beloved, who was also free from passion:
भगवन् भूतभव्येश बाला वयम् अनाबिला । त्वादृशाम् एव धीर् देव त्रिकालामलदर्शिनी
O Lord, Master of past and future, we are but children, untainted; only the wise like you, O god, possess a mind that perceives the three times, pure and clear.
नानाकारं विकाराढ्या सत्येवासत्यरूपिणी । विभ्रमं जनयत्य् एषा धीरस्यापि जगद्गतिः
This course of the world, though full of many forms and changes, and appearing real though it is unreal, creates confusion even for the steadfast.
त्वम् एव देव जानासि त्वदभ्यन्तरवर्ति यत् । रूपम् अस्या मनोवृत्तेर् इन्द्रजालविधायकम्
You alone, O god, know what dwells within you—the nature of this mental activity, which produces the illusion, like a magician’s trick.
मत्पुत्रस्यास्य भगवन् मृत्युः किल न विद्यते । तेनेमं मृतम् आलोक्य जातस् सम्भ्रमवान् अहम्
O Lord, it is said that death does not exist for this son of mine; therefore, seeing him dead, I became bewildered.