यथा मषकजालानि वर्षास्व् इक्षुवनालिषु । उत्पत्योत्पत्य नश्यन्ति तथेमा लोकसृष्टयः
Just as swarms of gnats in sugarcane fields arise and perish again and again during the rains, so too do these creations of worlds.
न च विज्ञायते कस्मात् कालात् प्रभृति चागताः । नित्यागमापायपरा एतास् सर्गपरम्पराः
Nor is it known from what time or for what reason these series of creations, ever coming and going, have arisen.
अनादिमत्यो ऽविरतं प्रस्फुरन्ति तरङ्गवत् । पूर्वात् पूर्वं किलाभूवंस् ततः पूर्वतरं तथा
Without beginning, they ceaselessly arise and vanish like waves; what was before is succeeded by what came before that, and so on.
भूत्वा भूत्वा प्रलीयन्ते सुरासुरनरादिकाः । सरित्तरङ्गभङ्ग्यैतास् समस्ता भूतजातयः
The hosts of gods, demons, humans, and others continually arise and dissolve, just like the patterns of waves on a river—such are all the classes of beings.
यथेदम् अण्डं वैरिञ्चं तथा ब्रह्माण्डपङ्क्तयः । सहस्रशः परिक्षीणा नालिका वत्सरेष्व् इव
Just as this cosmic egg of Brahma, so too countless series of universes are exhausted by the thousands, like reeds in a stream over the years.
अन्यास् सम्प्रति विद्यन्ते वर्तमानशरीरकाः । पारे ब्रह्मपुरस्यास्य वितते ब्रह्मणः पदे
Others now exist, possessing bodies in the present, on the far side of this city of Brahma, in the expanse of the realm of the Absolute.
ब्रह्मण्य् अन्या भविष्यन्ति बह्व्यो ब्रह्मपुरश्रियः । पुरस्ताच् च विनङ्क्ष्यन्ति भूत्वा भूत्वा यथा गिरः
In the Absolute, many other glories of the city of Brahma will arise in the future, and in the past, they have perished, appearing and disappearing like spoken words.
ब्रह्मण्य् अन्या भविष्यन्त्यस् स्थितास् सर्गपरम्पराः । घटा इव मृदो राशाव् अङ्कुरे पल्लवा इव
In the Absolute, other lines of creation will arise and remain, just as pots emerge from a mass of clay, or shoots and leaves from a sprout.
यावत्समुद्रं जलधौ यथा जलरयोर्मयः । यावद्ब्रह्म चिदाकाशे तथा त्रिभुवनश्रियः
As long as there is water in the ocean, so are the waves made of water; likewise, as long as there is Brahman in the space of consciousness, so are the glories of the three worlds.
स्फाराकारविकाराढ्याः प्रेक्ष्यमाणा न किञ्चन । उन्मज्जन्त्यो निमज्जन्त्यो न सत्या नाप्य् असच्छ्रियः
Though appearing vast, transformed, and splendid, when observed, they are nothing at all—emerging and submerging, they are neither truly real nor entirely unreal.
जडा रसान्वितास् तन्व्यस् ताश् शेवाललता इव । तरङ्गसमधर्मिण्यो दृष्टनष्टशरीरिकाः
They are inert, endowed with qualities, slender like the stalks of the śevala plant, wave-like in their nature, and their bodies are seen and then lost.
सर्वासां सृष्टिकोटीनां चित्राचारविचेष्टिताः । चित्राकारविकाराश् च चित्ररूपाश् च सृष्टयः
The countless worlds of creation display wondrous movements, transformations of marvelous forms, and creations of varied appearances.
व्यतिरिक्ता न सर्वेशात् समग्रास् सृष्टिदृष्टयः । तत्त्वज्ञविषया राम सलिलाद् इव वृष्टयः
All these visions of creation, O Rama, are not separate from the Supreme Lord; they pertain to the knower of truth, like rains from water.
आयान्ति सृष्टयो देवाज् जलदाद् इव वृष्टयः । तस्माद् एवाखिला जाता आलोकाद् इव दृष्टयः
Creations arise from the Divine, just as rains come from the clouds; all are born from That alone, like visions from light.
व्यतिरिक्ता न सर्वेशात् समस्तास् सृष्टिदृष्टयः । व्यतिरिक्ता इवाभान्ति स्वाष्ठीलाश् शल्मलेर् इव
All these visions of creation are not separate from the Supreme Lord; yet they appear distinct, like spikes on the silk-cotton tree.
इह सृष्टिषु पुष्टासु निकृष्टासु च राघव । परमान् नभसो जाततन्मात्रमलमालितम्
Here, among these creations, O Raghava, some are excellent and some are inferior; yet the Supreme remains, touched only by the subtle impurity of space.
कदाचित् प्रथमं व्योम प्रतिष्ठाम् उपगच्छति । ततः प्रजायते ब्रह्मा व्योमजो ऽसौ प्रजापतिः
Sometimes, space first attains stability; then Brahma is born from it, the progenitor arising from space.
कदाचित् प्रथमं वायुः प्रतिष्ठाम् उपगच्छति । ततः प्रजायते ब्रह्मा वायुजो ऽसौ प्रजापतिः
Sometimes, air first attains stability; then Brahma is born from it, the progenitor arising from air.
कदाचित् प्रथमं वारि स्फारताम् अधिगच्छति । ततः प्रजायते ब्रह्मा जलजो ऽसौ प्रजापतिः
Sometimes, water first attains fullness; then Brahma is born from it, the progenitor arising from water.
कदाचित् प्रथमं पृथ्वी स्फारताम् अधिगच्छति । ततः प्रजायते ब्रह्मा पार्थिवो ऽसौ प्रजापतिः
Sometimes, first the earth attains expansion; then, from it, Brahma is born—he, the lord of creatures, arising from the earth.
इति चत्वारि सम्पीड्य पञ्चमं वर्धते यदा । तदा तज्जतयैवेशः कुरुते जागतीं क्रियाम्
When the four (elements) are compressed and the fifth increases, then, by the force of that, O Lord, the ruler performs the activity of the world.
कदाचिद् अप्सु वायौ वा सुस्फारे वापि तेजसि । स्वयं सम्पद्यते कश्चित् पुमान् प्रकृतिभावतः
Sometimes, in water or in air, or even in the greatly expanded fire, some person arises naturally from the element itself.
तस्याथ पुंसो वदनात् कदाचिज् जायते पदात् । कदाचिद् अंसात् पृष्ठाद् वा कदाचिल् लोचनात् करात्
From the mouth of that person, sometimes a foot is born; sometimes from the shoulder or the back, sometimes from the eye or the hand.
कदाचित् पुरुषस्यास्य नाभेः पद्मः प्रजायते । तस्मिन् सञ्चरते ब्रह्मा पद्मजो ऽसौ प्रकीर्तितः
Sometimes, from the navel of this person, a lotus is born; in that, Brahma moves—he is called the lotus-born.
मायेयं स्वप्नवद् भ्रान्तिर् मिथ्यारचितचक्रिका । मनोराज्यरुचिर् लोला सलिलावृत्तिसुन्दरी
This is illusion, a delusion like a dream, a wheel fashioned falsely, fickle and charming as a kingdom of the mind, lovely as the play of water.
किम् इवास्यां वद ज्ञप्तौ कथं सम्भवतीह नो । न चेद् बालमनोराज्यम् इदं पर्यनुयुज्यते
Tell me, what in this awareness truly exists, and how can it arise here? Otherwise, this is only a child's fantasy being pursued.
कदाचिद् अम्बरे शुद्धे मनस्तत्त्वानुरञ्जनात् । सौवर्णं ब्रह्मगर्भं च स्वयम् अण्डं प्रवर्तते
Sometimes, in the clear sky, through the coloring of the mind-principle, a golden cosmic egg, the womb of Brahma, spontaneously arises.
कदाचिद् एष पुरुषो वीर्यं सृजति वारिणि । तस्मात् प्रजायते पद्मं ब्रह्माण्डम् अथ वा महत्
At times, this person emits his potency into water; from that, a lotus arises, which becomes the cosmic egg or the great principle.
तस्मात् प्रजायते ब्रह्मा कदाचिद् भास्करो ह्य् असौ । कदाचिद् वरुणो ब्रह्मा कदाचिद् वायुर् अब्जजः
From that, Brahma is born; sometimes he is the sun, sometimes Varuna is Brahma, sometimes the wind is born from the lotus.
एवम् अन्तर्विहीनासु विचित्रास्व् इह सृष्टिषु । विचित्रोत्पत्तयो राम ब्रह्मणो विविधा गताः
Thus, in these creations lacking internal unity and full of variety, O Rama, the diverse origins of Brahma have taken many forms.