Bhagavatapurana 10.40: atha catvāriṃśo'dhyāyaḥ

10.40.1

/0 śrī-akrūra uvāca
nato 'smy ahaṃ tvākhila-hetu-hetuṃ nārāyaṇaṃ pūruṣam ādyam avyayam /
yan-nābhi-jātād aravinda-koṣād brahmāvirāsīd yata eṣa lokaḥ //

Śrī Akrūra said: / I bow to you, the cause of all causes, Nārāyaṇa, the primeval, imperishable Puruṣa, / from the lotus calyx of whose navel Brahmā appeared, and from whom this universe has arisen.

1. Akrura said:— I bow to Thee that art the cause of all Causes, Narayana, the First ancient Person, subject to no change or decay: from Thy navel rose the lotus whence issued the Four-faced Brahma, who creates all this world.

10.40.2

bhūs toyam agniḥ pavanaṃ kham ādir mahān ajādir mana indriyāṇi /
sarvendriyārthā vibudhāś ca sarve ye hetavas te jagato 'ṅga-bhūtāḥ //

Earth, water, fire, wind, space, the source [ego], / the cosmic intellect, the unmanifest nature and its products, mind, the senses, / all sense objects, and all the gods, who are the causes of the world, are parts of your body.

2. Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Ether, Ahankara, Mahat, Maya (Prakriti the cause), the cause thereof (Purusha), the mind, senses, all the objects of the senses, all the gods who are born of Thee, are only Thy instruments.

10.40.3

naite svarūpaṃ vidur ātmanas te hy ajādayo 'nātmatayā gṛhītaḥ /
ajo 'nubaddhaḥ sa guṇair ajāyā guṇāt paraṃ veda na te svarūpam //

These entities, beginning with Brahmā, caught up in that which is not the self, do not know your true nature; / Brahmā, bound by the gunas of your creative power, does not know your true nature beyond the gunas.

3. These, Brahma and others, who are considered Anatma, do not know the essential nature of Thy all-pervading and all-powerful self, Brahma: being conditioned by the gunas of Prakriti, does not realise Thy nature unaffected by the gunas.

10.40.4

tvāṃ yogino yajanty addhā mahā-puruṣam īśvaram /
sādhyātmaṃ sādhibhūtaṃ ca sādhidaivaṃ ca sādhavaḥ //

The yogins worship you directly, the Supreme Person and Lord, / along with the individual self, the elemental world, and the presiding deities, O virtuous devotees.

4. Yogins and the righteous do worship Thee, the supreme Ruler and perfect Person, as being the witness and indwelling ruler of Adhyatma, Adhibhuta and Adhidaiva.

10.40.5

trayyā ca vidyayā kecit tvāṃ vai vaitānikā dvijāḥ /
yajante vitatair yajñair nānā-rūpāmarākhyayā //

And some twice-born versed in Vedic rituals, by means of the threefold knowledge, / truly worship you through elaborate sacrifices under the names of various gods having diverse forms.

5. By means of their Vedic knowledge the twice-born who have taken to the sacrificial course, worship Thee in various forms under the names of the several gods in their extensive sacrifices.

10.40.6

eke tvākhila-karmāṇi sannyasyopaśamaṃ gatāḥ /
jñānino jñāna-yajñena yajanti jñāna-vigraham //

Some, however, having renounced all actions and attained tranquility, / worship you, the embodiment of knowledge, by means of the sacrifice of knowledge, as knowers.

6. Some again renounce all sacrificial activities and having secured the mental strength, become men of light and by means of intellectual sacrifices, worship Thee, the embodiment of wisdom and light.

10.40.7

anye ca saṃskṛtātmāno vidhinābhihitena te /
yajanti tvan-mayās tvāṃ vai bahu-mūrty-eka-mūrtikam //

And others, their selves purified, by the method enjoined by you, / absorbed in you, worship you alone, who possess multiple forms yet one single form.

7. Others again, having purified themselves in the manner taught by Thyself, worship Thee in various forms or in one form with the faith that Thou art the Supreme Lord.

10.40.8

tvām evānye śivoktena mārgeṇa śiva-rūpiṇam /
bahv-ācārya-vibhedena bhagavantarn upāsate //

Others worship you alone in the form of Śiva, by the path spoken by Śiva, / according to the differing traditions of multiple teachers, as the Lord.

8. Only Thee in the form of Siva some others worship, following the course taught by Siva and according to various details taught by many teachers (devoted to Siva), they contemplate Thee, O Lord.

10.40.9

sarva eva yajanti tvāṃ sarva-deva-mayeśvaram /
ye 'py anya-devatā-bhaktā yady apy anya-dhiyaḥ prabho //

All indeed worship you, the Lord who comprises all gods, / even those who are devoted to other deities, although their minds are directed elsewhere, O Lord.

9. Even all those devoted to other deities, and think only of them (the other deities), O Lord, worship only Thee that art the Supreme Lord pervading all the deities.

10.40.10

yathādri-prabhavā nadyaḥ parjanyāpūritāḥ prabho /
viśanti sarvataḥ sindhuṃ tadvat tvāṃ gatayo 'ntataḥ //

Just as rivers originating from mountains and filled by rain, O Lord, / enter the ocean from every side, so all paths ultimately reach you.

10. O Lord, just as rivers, rising from mountains and made full by Indra (rains), enter the one sea in all directions, so do all the courses of worship finally find their goal in Thee.

10.40.11

sattvaṃ rajas tama iti bhavataḥ prakṛter guṇāḥ /
teṣu hi prākṛtāḥ protā ā-brahma-sthāvarādayaḥ //

Purity, passion, and darkness are the qualities of your material nature; / in them indeed all created beings are woven, from Brahmā down to immovable objects.

11. Satva, Rajas and Tamas are the three qualities or gunas of Thy own Prakriti and into them all the products of Prakriti,

from Brahma (the four-faced) to the (smallest) lifeless thing are woven warp and woof.

10.40.11.p1

tubhyaṃ namas te tv aviṣakta-dṛṣṭaye $ sarvātmane sarva-dhiyāṃ ca sākṣiṇe &

Obeisance to you whose vision is unattached, the self of all and witness to all intellects.

12. Salutation to Thee whose thoughts are unaffected by attachments, who art everything, who art the witness of all (others') thoughts! This stream of guṇas produced by Avidyā is operative on the gods, men, and beasts (lower animals).

10.40.12

guṇa-pravāho 'yam avidyayā kṛtaḥ % pravartate deva-nṛ-tiryag-ātmasu //

This flow of the qualities, created by ignorance, proceeds through the bodies of gods, humans, and beasts.

10.40.12.p2

agnir mukhaṃ te 'vanir aṅghrir īkṣaṇaṃ $ sūryo nabho nābhir atho diśaḥ śrutiḥ &

Fire is your mouth, the earth your feet, the sun your eye, the sky your navel, and the directions your ear;

13. Agni is considered Thy face, the earth Thy feet, Surya Thy vision, the sky Thy navel, the cardinal points Thy ears, the heavens Thy head, the great gods Thy arms, the seas Thy stomach and the air Thy vital strength.

10.40.12.p3

agnir mukhaṃ te 'vanir aṅghrir īkṣaṇaṃ $ sūryo nabho nābhir atho diśaḥ śrutiḥ &

Fire is your mouth, the earth your feet, the sun your eye, the sky your navel, and the directions your ear;

10.40.13

dyauḥ kaṃ surendrās tava bāhavo 'rṇavāḥ % kukṣir marut prāṇa-balaṃ prakalpitam //

heaven is your head, the chiefs of gods your arms, the oceans your abdomen, and the wind is conceived as your breath and strength.

10.40.13.p2

romāṇi vṛkṣauṣadhayaḥ śiroruhā $ meghāḥ parasyāsthi-nakhāni te 'drayaḥ &

Trees and plants are your body hair, clouds are the hair on the head of the Supreme, the mountains are your bones and nails;

14. Trees and herbs are considered the hair on Thy body, the clouds the locks on Thy head, mountains the bones and nails of Thy Perfect Self, day and night Thy winkings, Brahma Thy generative organ and rain Thy energy.

10.40.13.p3

romāṇi vṛkṣauṣadhayaḥ śiroruhā $ meghāḥ parasyāsthi-nakhāni te 'drayaḥ &

Trees and plants are your body hair, clouds are the hair on the head of the Supreme, the mountains are your bones and nails;

10.40.14

nimeṣaṇaṃ rātry-ahanī prajāpatir % meḍhras tu vṛṣṭis tava vīryam iṣyate //

night and day are your blinking, Prajāpati is your penis, and rain is considered your virility.

10.40.15

tvayy avyayātman puruṣe prakalpitā lokāḥ sa-pālā bahu-jīva-saṅkulāḥ /
yathā jale sañjihate jalaukaso 'py udumbare vā maśakā mano-maye //

In you, the imperishable Puruṣa, the worlds are fashioned with their protectors, teeming with numerous living beings, / just as aquatic creatures move about in water, or gnats in an udumbara fruit made of mind.

15. O immutable One! On Thee, the perfect Self and director of the mind are projected these worlds with their protectors, crowded with innumerable Jīvas like aquatic animals living and moving about in water or insects abiding in the fruits of the fig tree.

10.40.16

yāni yānīha rūpāṇi krīḍanārthaṃ bibharṣi hi /
tair āmṛṣṭa-śuco lokā mudā gāyanti te yaśaḥ //

Whatever forms you assume here for the purpose of divine play, / through them people, having their grief wiped away, joyfully sing your glory.

16. By the various forms Thou assumest for the purpose of sport all the three worlds are rid of their grief and are rejoiced to sing Thy glory.

10.40.17

namaḥ kāraṇa-matsyāya pralayābdhi-carāya ca /
hayaśīrṣṇe namas tubhyaṃ madhu-kaiṭabha-mṛtyave //

Obeisance to the primal Fish who moved upon the waters of the ocean of dissolution; / obeisance to you with the head of a horse, the death of Madhu and Kaiṭabha.

17. Salutation to the one who on purpose became a fish and roamed through the sea of deluge; salutation to the one that in the form of a horse was the death of Madhu and Kaiṭabha.

10.40.18

akūpārāya bṛhate namo mandara-dhāriṇe /
kṣity-uddhāra-vihārāya namaḥ śūkara-mūrtaye //

Obeisance to the vast Tortoise who bore Mount Mandara; / obeisance to the form of the Boar whose divine play was the lifting of the earth.

18. Salutation to the great Tortoise that bore the mount Mandara, to the One that assumed the form of the Boar for sportfully lifting up the earth.

10.40.19

namas te 'dbhuta-siṃhāya sādhu-loka-bhayāpaha /
vāmanāya namas tubhyaṃ krānta-tribhuvanāya ca //

Obeisance to you, the marvelous Lion, who dispels the fear of virtuous people; / obeisance to you, the Dwarf who stepped across the three worlds.

19. Salutation to Thee that art the wonderful Lion, O One that endest the fear of the righteous world; salutation to Thee, Vāmana, that measuredest all the three worlds (but with one foot).

10.40.20

namo bhṛguṇāṃ pataye dṛpta-kṣatra-vana-cchide /
namas te raghu-varyāya rāvaṇānta-karāya ca //

Obeisance to the lord of the Bhṛgus who cut down the forest of proud warriors; / obeisance to you, the best of the Raghus, who put an end to Rāvaṇa.

20. Salutation to the foremost one of Bhrigus, that cut down the forest of haughty Kshatriyas, salutation to Thee that art the best of Raghus and the destroyer of Ravana.

10.40.21

namas te vāsudevāya namaḥ saṅkarṣaṇāya ca /
pradyumnāyaniruddhāya sātvatāṃ pataye namaḥ //

Obeisance to you, Vāsudeva, and obeisance to Saṅkarṣaṇa; / obeisance to Pradyumna and Aniruddha, the Lord of the Sātvatas.

21. Salutation to Thee that art Vasudeva and Sankarshana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha and the Lord of Satvatas.

10.40.22

namo buddhāya śuddhāya daitya-dānava-mohine /
mleccha-prāya-kṣatra-hantre namas te kalki-rūpiṇe //

Obeisance to Buddha, the pure, who bewilders the Daityas and Dānavas; / obeisance to you in the form of Kalki, the slayer of the warrior-kings who have become like barbarians.

22. Salutation to Buddha, the Pure, that deluded Daityas and Danavas; salutation to Kalki, the destroyer of kshatriyas mostly mlechchas by character.

10.40.23

bhagavan jīva-loko 'yaṃ mohitas tava māyayā /
ahaṃ mamety asad-grāho bhrāmyate karma-vartmasu //

O Lord, this world of living beings is bewildered by your creative power; / holding the false notion of 'I' and 'mine', it wanders on the paths of karma.

23. O Lord, this world of Jivas deluded by Thy Maya and strongly holding to the notions of "I and Mine", is being tossed in the paths of karma.

10.40.24

ahaṃ cātmātmajāgāra- dārārtha-svajanādiṣu /
bhramāmi svapna-kalpeṣu mūḍhaḥ satya-dhiyā vibho //

And I too, deluded, wander among my body, children, home, / wife, wealth, kin, and the like, taking to be real what is like a dream, O all-pervading Lord.

24. O Lord, I am ignorant and wander among dream-like things of self, children, house, wife, property, kith and kin and the like, thinking them to be real.

10.40.25

anityānātma-duḥkheṣu viparyaya-matir hy aham /
dvandvārāmas tamo-viṣṭo na jāne tvātmanaḥ priyam //

Having inverted understanding regarding things that are impermanent, not the self, and painful, / delighting in dualities and enveloped in darkness, I do not know you, the true beloved of the self.

25. I have a mind that takes the contrary view of transient things, the unintelligent body and its miserable belongings; I take delight in the opposite states of pleasure and pain, and steeped in ignorance I do not know Thee most dear to me (self).

10.40.26

yathābudho jalaṃ hitvā praticchannaṃ tad-udbhavaiḥ /
abhyeti mṛga-tṛṣṇāṃ vai tadvat tvāhaṃ parāṅ-mukhaḥ //

Just as a foolish person leaves behind water covered by plants born from it / and runs toward a mirage, so I have turned my back on you.

26. Just as an ignorant man abandons water concealed by its own products (water plants) and runs after mirage, so do I veritably turn away from Thee.

10.40.27

notsahe 'haṃ kṛpaṇa-dhīḥ kāma-karma-hataṃ manaḥ /
roddhuṃ pramāthibhiś cākṣair hriyamāṇam itas tataḥ //

Pitiable in mind, I am unable to restrain my mind ruined by desire and action, / carried hither and thither by the turbulent senses.

27. Being endowed with a poor strength of reason I am not able to curb the mind spoiled by _kama_ and _karma_ and dragged hither and thither by the unruly senses.

10.40.27.p1

so 'haṃ tavāṅghry-upagato 'smy asatāṃ durāpaṃ $ tac cāpy ahaṃ bhavad-anugraha īśa manye &

Thus I have approached your feet, difficult to attain for the wicked; and even that, O Lord, I consider to be your grace.

28. Being thus helpless I have now approached Thy feet which are not accessible to the unrighteous, and that too is Thy own grace, O Lord, I think. Only when one is released from Samsara, O Lord of the Lotus navel, one finds it impossible to practise the right contemplation and gain settled knowledge of Thyself.

10.40.28

puṃso bhaved yarhi saṃsaraṇāpavargas % tvayy abja-nābha sad-upāsanayā matiḥ syāt //

When a person is to attain liberation from the cycle of rebirth, O lotus-navelled Lord, then the mind turns to you through the service of virtuous devotees.

10.40.29

namo vijñāna-mātrāya sarva-pratyaya-hetave /
puruṣeśa-pradhānāya brahmaṇe 'nanta-śaktaye //

Obeisance to the embodiment of pure consciousness, the cause of all perception, / the master of the person and primordial matter, Brahman of boundless power.

29. Salutation to Thee that art the absolute consciousness, the cause of all understanding, the controller of those that govern

the Jiva, viz., kala, karma etc., that art the Perfect Bahman of unlimited powers.

10.40.30

namas te vāsudevāya sarva-bhūta-kṣayāya ca /
hṛṣīkeśa namas tubhyaṃ prapannaṃ pāhi māṃ prabho //

Obeisance to you, Vāsudeva, the abode of all beings; / O Hṛṣīkeśa, obeisance to you; protect me who have surrendered to you, O Lord.

30. Salutation to Thee that art Vasudeva, the abode of all beings, O Hrishikesa, O Lord, I bow to Thee, protect me that have fallen at Thy feet.