The Bower Manuscript 1.1

1.1

I. Fol. 1: Bower manuscript
Om. On whose peaks dwell divine seers, hosts of Siddhas, Kinnaras, Nāgas, Yakṣas, and Vidyādharas, endowed with endless gems, / holy, pleasing to the gods, elevated from the surface of heaven, [...] lofty; // 1
Where darkness, scattered in fear in all ten directions by the net of rays of thousands of flashing gems, / does not return even during rainy season nights, as if suspecting the abode of the moon, stars, sun, and fire; // 2
Who is constantly frequented by multitudes of sages accompanied by their pupils, holding twigs of sacrificial wood, kuśa grass, fruits, water, and flowers in their hands; / and in whose bowers the branches of the trees are touched by heavenly maidens desiring blossoms; // 3
Where, through union with the rays of the moon permanently resting on a part of the braided matted crest of the Three-Eyed [Śiva], / the moon-stones pour out copious water resembling ice and crystals of the Himālaya, cool even during the day; // 4
On whose rock-slabs washed by water released from the clouds, in bowers echoing with the calls of various kinds of birds, / charming and crowded with trees bearing flowers and fruits, medicinal herbs blaze at night like fire; // 5
Where lions, bearing thick manes whiter than moonbeams, their limbs sprinkled with blood from the foreheads of maddened elephants, / roaring loudly from the mouths of mountain caves, cannot endure even the thunder of clouds; // 6
On that mountain, which is the ornament of the circle of the earth, like a universal host to the world through its lavish gifts, / whose peaks are lovely with trees bearing flowers and fruits in all seasons, these sages whose darkness had been dispelled were residing: // 7
Ātreya, Hārīta, Parāśara, Bhela, Garga, Śāmbavya, Suśruta, Vasiṣṭha, Karāla, and Kāpya; / desiring to know the taste, quality, appearance, potency, and name of all medicinal herbs, assembled in their hundreds, they wandered forth. // 8
Having seen [a plant] with leaves green and dark-green like sapphires, and with bulbs white like jasmine, crystal, white water-lilies, moonbeams, conch shells, and clouds, becoming full of interest,