Skandapurana 7.18.89_96

7.18.89_96

devadeva uvāca
evametajjagaddhātri surāsuranamaskṛte .
śreṣṭhāstapasvino viprā devebhyopi garīyasaḥ4 . .8. .
madīyā yāḥ prajāḥ5 sṛṣṭāḥ6 prathamāḥ prabhavo hyaham .
rudrā dvijātayaḥ pūrvaṃ mayā sṛṣṭā mahaujasaḥ . .9. .
madīyāṃ mṛṣṭimālokya brahmaṇāpi sisṛkṣuṇā .
brāhmaṇā mūrdhataḥ sṛṣṭāḥ pūrvameva mahāprabhāḥ . . 8.173.10 . .
agrabhūto7 hyahaṃ teṣāṃ dvijaśreṣṭhastadābhavam .
tataste8 matsakhāḥ9 sarve babhūvurviprasattamāḥ . . 11 ..

The god of gods said:
"It is even so, O sustainer of the world, O you who are bowed to by gods and asuras! / Ascetic vipras are the foremost; they are weightier even than the gods. // 8
Those creatures which are mine were created first, for I am their source; / the Rudras, the twice-born endowed with great splendour, were created by me long ago. // 9
Having observed my creation, Brahmā too, wishing to create, / created brāhmaṇas of great splendour from his head at the very beginning. // 10
I was their leader then, the foremost of the twice-born; / from then on, all the best of vipras became my companions. // 11