The Religion of the Veda: The Ancient Religion of India (from Rig-Veda to Upanishads) c10.83

c10.83

Unquestionably we have here the idea, frequently expressed in the Brāhmaṇa tales of the creator Prajāpati.¹ According to this the primal being begins to create through the force of devotion (*tapas*). Here an even more primary condition is assumed: the fundamental force is itself put forth by, or is born from, devotion. This devotional fervor marks either another start at a primeval cause, or, paradoxical as this may seem, is the devotional fervor of the yet uncreated sages. Anyhow these sages appear upon the scene as *dei ex machina* in the next stanza, and then, after this gap has been spanned, the work of creation can really proceed.