Bhagavatapurana 4.18: athāṣṭādaśo'dhyāyaḥ

4.18.1

/0 maitreya uvāca
itthaṃ pṛthum abhiṣṭūya ruṣā prasphuritādharam /
punar āhāvanir bhītā saṃstabhyātmānam ātmanā //

Maitreya said:
Having thus praised Pṛthu, whose lower lip was trembling with wrath, / the frightened earth, having steadied herself by herself, spoke again:

1. Maitreya said. Having thus extolled Prithu whose lips quiver through anger, the terrified Earth again said somehow steadying her heart by force of reason.

4.18.2

sanniyacchābhibho manyuṃ nibodha śrāvitaṃ ca me /
sarvataḥ sāram ādatte yathā madhu-karo budhaḥ //

Restrain Your anger, O Lord, and listen to what I announce to You! / Just as a bee gathers nectar from all sides, a wise person gathers the essence [from everywhere].

2. Control thy anger. O king, restrain thy anger and promise protection, listen to what I tell you; (for) like the bee a wise man takes the essence from everything.

4.18.3

asmin loke 'thavāmuṣmin munibhis tattva-darśibhiḥ /
dṛṣṭā yogāḥ prayuktāś ca puṃsāṃ śreyaḥ-prasiddhaye //

Methods have been seen and applied by sages who perceive the truth / in this world as well as in the next, for the attainment of the welfare of human beings.

3. There have been expedients as known to and employed by sages, seers of truth for men to accomplish their purposes both here and hereafter.

4.18.4

tān ātiṣṭhati yaḥ samyag upāyān pūrva-darśitān /
avaraḥ śraddhayopeta upeyān vindate 'ñjasā //

A lesser person who, endowed with faith, properly adopts those means shown by the ancients, / easily attains the desired goal.

4. Any one of later times who possessed of faith properly adopts the expedients indicated by the ancients, surely attains whatever he seeks after.

4.18.5

tān anādṛtya yo 'vidvān arthān ārabhate svayam /
tasya vyabhicaranty arthā ārabdhāś ca punaḥ punaḥ //

The ignorant person who undertakes pursuits on his own, disregarding those [methods], / sees his undertakings fail again and again.

5. On the other hand, the objects of the ignorant person who neglects them and of his own accord proceeds in his own way (strives to accomplish his purposes), are often frustrated, though frequently sought after.

4.18.6

purā sṛṣṭā hy oṣadhayo brahmaṇā yā viśāmpate /
bhujyamānā mayā dṛṣṭā asadbhir adhṛta-vrataiḥ //

The plants and herbs that were formerly created by Brahmā, O ruler of the people, / were seen by me being consumed by the unrighteous, who did not uphold their vows.

6. O lord of men, the plants and herbs at first produced by Brahma were, it was observed by me, being consumed by wicked creatures who were destitute of pious observances.

4.18.7

apālitānādṛtā ca bhavadbhir loka-pālakaiḥ /
corī-bhūte 'tha loke 'haṃ yajñārthe 'grasam oṣadhīḥ //

Unprotected and neglected by you, the protectors of the world, / when the world had become a den of thieves, I swallowed the plants for the purpose of sacrifice.

7. When the world was infested with robbers and I was unprotected and neglected by you the rulers of the world, I withdrew into my bowels all the plants and herbs, since there was no sacrificial activity.

4.18.8

nūnaṃ tā vīrudhaḥ kṣīṇā mayi kālena bhūyasā /
tatra yogena dṛṣṭena bhavān ādātum arhati //

Those plants have indeed withered within me after a great passage of time. / Therefore, You ought to extract them by the recognized method.

8. Indeed those plants decayed within me through long process of time; and so it is fit that thou triest to recover them by an expedient known to be effective.

4.18.9

vatsaṃ kalpaya me vīra yenāhaṃ vatsalā tava /
dhokṣye kṣīramayān kāmān anurūpaṃ ca dohanam //

Designate a calf for me, O hero, through which, affectionate toward my calf, / I shall yield all desired objects in the form of milk, as well as an appropriate milk-pail,

9. O heroic one, arrange for a calf and a befitting vessel (pail); and then I, full of affection for thee, shall yield thee all the desired things in the form of milk.

4.18.10

dogdhāraṃ ca mahā-bāho bhūtānāṃ bhūta-bhāvana /
annam īpsitam ūrjasvad bhagavān vāñchate yadi //

and a milker, O mighty-armed one, O fosterer of living beings, / if the Lord desires nourishing, desired food for the creatures.

10. O valiant one of long arms and protector of creatures, do thou also find one that can draw the milk if thou seekest for the desired and nutritious food for all creatures.

4.18.11

samāṃ ca kuru māṃ rājan deva-vṛṣṭaṃ yathā payaḥ /
apartāv api bhadraṃ te upāvarteta me vibho //

And make me level, O King, so that the water poured down by the gods / may remain upon me even out of season; may good fortune be Yours, O Lord!

11. O powerful king, turn me into a level plain, so that even after the rainy season the water poured down by the god Indra may stand on me (may not all run off the surface.)

4.18.12

iti priyaṃ hitaṃ vākyaṃ bhuva ādāya bhūpatiḥ /
vatsaṃ kṛtvā manuṃ pāṇāv aduhat sakalauṣadhīḥ //

Accepting these pleasing and beneficial words of the earth, the king / made Manu the calf and milked all the herbs and plants into his hands.

12. Accepting this proposal (_lit._ word) which was welcome and well-meant, he made Swāyambhuva Manu the calf and into his own hand extracted all the plants.

4.18.13

tathāpare ca sarvatra sāram ādadate budhāḥ /
tato 'nye ca yathā-kāmaṃ duduhuḥ pṛthu-bhāvitām //

Likewise, other wise beings gathered the essence everywhere; / and then others milked the [earth] made fertile by Pṛthu according to their desires.

13. Similarly, all other wise men also extracted the essence everywhere, while some others made the earth prepared by Prithu yield all that they (severally) wanted.

4.18.14

ṛṣayo duduhur devīm indriyeṣv atha sattama /
vatsaṃ bṛhaspatiṃ kṛtvā payaś chandomayaṃ śuci //

The sages milked the goddess into the senses, O best of men, / making Bṛhaspati the calf, and obtaining the pure milk in the form of the Vedic hymns.

14. O foremost one among the righteous, Rishis having made Brihaspati the calf extracted the milk of Vedic lore from the divine Earth into their own organs.

4.18.15

kṛtvā vatsaṃ sura-gaṇā indraṃ somam adūduhan /
hiraṇmayena pātreṇa vīryam ojo balaṃ payaḥ //

The hosts of gods, making Indra the calf, milked Soma, / vigor, vitality, and strength as the milk into a golden vessel.

15. The assemblies of celestials made Indrâ their calf and extracted the *soma* in a vessel of gold, the milk of energy, firmness, brilliancy and strength.

4.18.16

daiteyā dānavā vatsaṃ prahlādam asurarṣabham /
vidhāyādūduhan kṣīram ayaḥ-pātre surāsavam //

The Daityas and Dānavas, having made Prahlāda, the foremost among the Asuras, their calf, / milked wine and liquor into an iron vessel.

16. The sons of Diti and Danu made Prahlāda, the best of all the Asuras the calf and drew the milk into an iron vessel, so that it became *Surā* and *Āsava* (intoxicating beverages.)

4.18.17

gandharvāpsaraso 'dhukṣan pātre padmamaye payaḥ /
vatsaṃ viśvāvasuṃ kṛtvā gāndharvaṃ madhu saubhagam //

The Gandharvas and Apsarases milked milk into a lotus vessel, / making Viśvāvasu the calf, obtaining musical art, honey, and charm.

17. The Gandharvas and Apsaras made Visvāvasu the calf and drew the milk into a vessel of lotus (into the cup of lotus-flowers, and it became the Gāndharva honey of sweetness and beauty.

4.18.18

vatsena pitaro 'ryamṇā kavyaṃ kṣīram adhukṣata /
āma-pātre mahā-bhāgāḥ śraddhayā śrāddha-devatāḥ //

With Aryaman as the calf, the fortunate ancestors, deities of the ancestral rites, / milked with faith the food offering to the ancestors as milk into an unbaked clay vessel.

18. The venerable Pitris, the deities presiding over solemnities, with Aryman for the calf, piously drew the milk into an unbaked earthen vessel and it became Kavya *i.e.*, the food of the Pitris.

4.18.19

prakalpya vatsaṃ kapilaṃ siddhāḥ saṅkalpanāmayīm /
siddhiṃ nabhasi vidyāṃ ca ye ca vidyādharādayaḥ //

The Siddhas, having designated Kapila as the calf, milked the yogic perfection consisting of volition, / and those such as Vidyādharas milked magical knowledge in the sky.

19. The Siddhas made Kapila the calf and thereby secured the attainments (of realising their) objects by mere wish and thought *viz.*, the eight powers known as Animan, Mahiman and so on; and the Vidyādharas and others drew the milk of Vidyā into their vessel *viz.*, the sky (with the help of the same Kapila).

4.18.20

anye ca māyino māyām antardhānādbhutātmanām /
mayaṃ prakalpya vatsaṃ te duduhur dhāraṇāmayīm //

Other masters of magic, making Maya their calf, milked the creative illusion / that consists of mental concentration and enables disappearance and wondrous acts.

20. Some others *viz.*, Kimpurushas and others, known as Māyins, made Māyā the calf and derived the Māyā (illusive or magical powers) belonging to the wonderful beings who can become invisible at their will.

4.18.21

yakṣa-rakṣāṃsi bhūtāni piśācāḥ piśitāśanāḥ /
bhūteśa-vatsā duduhuḥ kapāle kṣatajāsavam //

The Yakṣas, Rakṣases, spirits, and flesh-eating Piśācas, / with the Lord of Ghosts as their calf, milked an intoxicating draft of blood into a skull.

21. The Yakshas and Rakshas, and the Bhutas and Pisāchas, that feed upon flesh had Bhutesa (Rudra) for the calf and drew the wine of blood into skulls.

4.18.22

tathāhayo dandaśūkāḥ sarpā nāgāś ca takṣakam /
vidhāya vatsaṃ duduhur bila-pātre viṣaṃ payaḥ //

Likewise, the crawling creatures, biting serpents, and Nāgas, having made Takṣaka their calf, / milked poison as milk into a hole as their vessel.

22. Similarly, serpents, scorpions and the like, and snakes having hoods and the Nāgas made Takshaka their calf and drew poison as their milk into their vessel *viz.*, their holes.

4.18.23

paśavo yavasaṃ kṣīraṃ vatsaṃ kṛtvā ca go-vṛṣam /
araṇya-pātre cādhukṣan mṛgendreṇa ca daṃṣṭriṇaḥ //

The domestic animals milked grass as milk, making the bull their calf, / into the forest as their vessel; and the beasts of prey with fangs did so with the lion [as calf].

23. The quadrupeds made Nandin (the vehicle of the god Siva) and extracted grass as their milk into the vessel called the Forest.

4.18.24

kravyādāḥ prāṇinaḥ kravyaṃ duduhuḥ sve kalevare /
suparṇa-vatsā vihagāś caraṃ cācaram eva ca //

Carnivorous creatures milked raw meat into their own bodies; / birds, with Suparṇa as their calf, milked moving and non-moving creatures.

24. The carnivorous animals (wild beasts having tusks) with the lion for the calf milked flesh into their own body; and the birds with Garuda for the calf had as their milk both the mobile (worms and insects) and the immobile (fruits etc.) *i.e.*, obtained these things as their food.

4.18.25

vaṭa-vatsā vanaspatayaḥ pṛthag rasamayaṃ payaḥ /
girayo himavad-vatsā nānā-dhātūn sva-sānuṣu //

Large trees, with the banyan tree as their calf, milked their distinct sap-like milk; / the mountains, with the Himavat as their calf, milked various minerals upon their slopes.

25. Trees with the banian for the calf severally derived the milk in the form of their juice; mountains had the Himavat for the calf and gathered the various minerals into their heights.

4.18.26

sarve sva-mukhya-vatsena sve sve pātre pṛthak payaḥ /
sarva-kāma-dughāṃ pṛthvīṃ duduhuḥ pṛthu-bhāvitām //

All beings, with the foremost of their kind as the calf, into their respective vessels / milked distinct milk from the earth who yields all desires, made fertile by Pṛthu.

26. Similarly, all others (in creation) had for their calves the excellent ones of their classes and drew severally into their vessels the milk of their own kind from the earth capable of yielding every desired thing and brought by Prithu to such a state.

4.18.27

evaṃ pṛthv-ādayaḥ pṛthvīm annādāḥ svannam ātmanaḥ /
doha-vatsādi-bhedena kṣīra-bhedaṃ kurūdvaha //

Thus, O bearer of the Kuru line, Pṛthu and the other eaters of food extracted their own food from the earth, / with differences of milk according to the differences of milk-pails and calves.

27. O Vidura, in this manner Prithu and others who subsist on food, derived from the earth the milk which forms their desired food and which differs in kind according to the difference in the calf and the vessel.

4.18.28

tato mahīpatiḥ prītaḥ sarva-kāma-dughāṃ pṛthuḥ /
duhitṛtve cakāremāṃ premṇā duhitṛ-vatsalaḥ //

Then King Pṛthu, pleased with her who yields all desires, / accepted her out of love as his daughter, fond of his daughter.

28. Thereupon Prithu, the lord of the earth, was very much pleased with the earth that yielded every desire and through affection regarded her as his daughter, for he is kind to those that yield (*i.e.*, affectionate to his daughters.)

4.18.29

cūrṇayan sva-dhanuṣ-koṭyā giri-kūṭāni rāja-rāṭ /
bhū-maṇḍalam idaṃ vainyaḥ prāyaś cakre samaṃ vibhuḥ //

Crushing the mountain peaks with the tip of his bow, the king of kings, / the son of Vena, the all-powerful, made this terrestrial globe almost level.

29. The powerful king of kings, Prithu the son of Vena broke down the mountain peaks and heights with the ends of his bow and mostly converted this earth into a level surface.

4.18.30

athāsmin bhagavān vainyaḥ prajānāṃ vṛttidaḥ pitā /
nivāsān kalpayāṃ cakre tatra tatra yathārhataḥ //

athāsmin bhagavān vainyaḥ prajānāṃ vṛttidaḥ pitā
nivāsān kalpayāṃ cakre tatra tatra yathārhataḥ

30, & 31. The glorious Prithu, the father of all his subjects as providing them with the means of living, suitably formed their dwellings at suitable places, such as villages, cities, towns and forts of various descriptions; habitations for the herdsman and for cattle, and camping grounds, quarries and agricultural areas, on the plains and at the foot of mountains.

4.18.31

grāmān puraḥ pattanāni durgāṇi vividhāni ca /
ghoṣān vrajān sa-śibirān ākarān kheṭa-kharvaṭān //

grāmān puraḥ pattanāni durgāṇi vividhāni ca
ghoṣān vrajān sa-śibirān ākarān kheṭa-kharvaṭān

4.18.32

prāk pṛthor iha naivaiṣā pura-grāmādi-kalpanā /
yathā-sukhaṃ vasanti sma tatra tatrākutobhayāḥ //

prāk pṛthor iha naivaiṣā pura-grāmādi-kalpanā
yathā-sukhaṃ vasanti sma tatra tatrākutobhayāḥ

32. Before the time of Prithu there were no such arrangements as cities, towns, villages and so on; and during his time people dwelt at different places free from all fear and in perfect comfort.