Description of Creation Continued

Vayu said

He turned his mind to creation, and as he meditated, delusion full of darkness appeared. Five stood before the great-souled one: darkness, delusion, great delusion, blinding darkness and ignorance. While he thought of creation in this way, those five stood there proudly. Everything was wrapped in thick darkness, and the seed in the pot was veiled too. There was no light, inside or out. It was all numb, as if without consciousness, with no intelligence, no face and no organs of action. This creation, wrapped in that way, is said to consist mainly of mountains. Seeing that the first creation was unsuccessful, Brahma was displeased and thought of a second. As he meditated, that creation came into being, made of lower species. They had light inside but were covered on the outside, and born as animals they followed a crooked path. Since this one too failed, he thought of another. It followed an upward course and conduct. This was the creation of the devas, full of sattva, glad and happy and uncovered inside and out, naturally marked by illumination within and without. The maker meditated again, and from the unmanifest a stream flowed sideways. This was the creation of humans. When they were born they were full of misery. They had light inside and out, but had an excess of rajas and an excess of tamas. By the favour of the five, a fourth creation appeared, made of Viparyaya, Shakti, Tushti and Siddhi. They accepted nothing and divided further, and were addicted to eating and drinking. This is called the creation of bhutas and others.

Brahma Parameshthi's first creation was Mahat. The second was of the tanmatras, called the creation of the elements. The third was vaikarika, the creation of the senses. These are creations of nature, and they came about without intelligence. The fourth great creation consists mainly of immobile things. The fifth flowed downward and is the creation of lower species. The sixth flowed upward and is the creation of devas. The seventh flowed sideways and is that of humans. The eighth came from grace and the ninth is called Koumara. The first three concerned nature and arose without intelligence, while the five that followed mostly had intelligence.

At the beginning Prajapati Brahma made four sons like himself by the power of his mind: Sananda, Sanaka, the learned Sanatana and the accomplished Sanatkumara. They were yogis, free of attachment and ill will, with minds fixed on Ishvara, and had no inclination to take up creation. Uninterested in it, Sanaka and the others left. Wanting to create, Brahma again tormented himself in supreme austerity, but nothing came of it. A long time passed and he grew angry and miserable. Tears fell from his eyes, which were full of rage, and from those drops bhutas and pretas were born. Seeing them, Brahma reproached himself. In his great rage and impatience he lost consciousness. Unconscious and furious, Prajapati breathed out. Bhagavan Rudra Nilalohita is lord of prana, and to show his matchless favour he appeared from the lord's mouth. Ishvara divided himself into eleven parts, one great-souled being into eleven, and said to them: "Children, I have made you to show favour to the worlds. So for their welfare, and to establish them and for the sake of beings and offspring, work with care." Addressed so, they wept and ran off in different directions. Because they wept and shrieked, they are said to have gained the name Rudras. The Rudras are prana, and prana is made of these great-souled ones.

The divinity Brahma Parameshthi was as good as dead. Out of compassion Maheshvara, Brahma's son, gave him back his prana. When the lord had his prana again, Rudra's face showed pleasure, and he spoke to Brahma, lord of the universe, in supreme words. "Fortunate one, Virinchi, guru of the world, do not be afraid. You have prana again; I gave it back to you. Be happy and get up, you who are firm in vows." As if in a dream Brahma heard these pleasant words. Slowly he opened his eyes, like petals of an opening lotus, and looked at Hara. With his prana restored, he spoke in a soft, deep voice. Brahma joined his hands and said: "As soon as I saw you my mind filled with bliss. Who are you? In these eleven forms the universe is your form." Hearing him, Maheshvara touched him with happiness-giving hands and said: "Know me as the paramatman. I have come here as your son. These eleven Rudras have come to protect you. By my favour, throw off this terrible loss of consciousness. Wake up. As before, you must create beings."

Addressed so by Bhagavan, Brahma's mind grew glad. He praised Parameshvara, the self of the universe, with his eight names. Brahma said: "Bhagavan, I bow to you. Rudra, as infinite in energy as the sun, divinity Bhava, I bow to you. As water you are taste. Sharva, your form is the earth. Nandi, full of all the gods, I bow to you. Prosperous Isha, you are the form of touch, and I bow to you. Pashupati, as fire you are endless energy. Bhima, whose form is space with the tanmatra of sound, I bow. Ugra, fierce in form, you are in the one who performs a sacrifice, and I bow to you. Mahadeva with Uma, I bow to you whose form is amrita." So Brahma, grandfather of the worlds, praised Mahadeva, bowed to Vishvesha and made a request: "Bhagavan, lord of past and future, Maheshvara, you are my son. Destroyer of Ananga, you came out of my limbs for the sake of creation. Lord of the universe, I will take up this great task, and as I go about creating beings you should help me everywhere." Asked so, the divinity Rudra, destroyer of Tripura, answered with words of assent. At Shankara's words Brahma was delighted and honoured him.

With his permission to create, Brahma made beings. By the power of his mind he made Marichi, Bhrigu, Angiras, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, Daksha, Atri and Vasishtha. Before them Brahma had also made Dharma and Sankalpa. Counting Rudra, these are called Brahma's twelve sons, the ancient householders. Their twelve lineages are called divine and include great numbers of devas. Many offspring did rites, and the lineages were adorned with great sages. He made four classes: devas, asuras, ancestors and humans. So Vidhatri began creating together with Rudra. For the purpose of creation Brahma used his own body. Devas were born from his mouth and ancestors from his sides. All the asuras were born from his loins, humans from his generative organ, and hungry rakshasas from his anus. Strong night-roamers were his sons and mostly full of rajas and tamas. Serpents, yakshas, bhutas and gandharvas were born. Crows came from his sides and other birds from his chest. Goats were born from his mouth and uragas from his sides. Horses, elephants, sharabhas, gavayas, deer, camels, mules and nyankus were born from his feet. Herbs, fruits and roots came from his body hair.

From his first face came the Gayatri, the Riks, trivitsama, rathantara, agnishtoma and other sacrifices. From the face toward the south came the Yajur hymns, the tristubh metre, the fifteen stomas, brihatsama and uktha. From the western face came the Sama hymns, jagati metre, the seventeen stomas, vairupya and atiratra. From the northern mouth came the twenty-one parts of the Atharva Veda, anushtubh and vairaja. Higher and lower beings were born from his body: yakshas, pishachas, gandharvas, hosts of apsaras, men, kinnaras, rakshasas, birds, animals and deer. The imperishable and the perishable, moving and unmoving, were made along with their original karma. They are made again and again: violent and gentle, cruel and mild, devoted to dharma and not, true and false. They receive the feelings that suit them. There were many great beings, some after the objects of the senses and others after liberation. He himself made these beings and gave them natural names and forms. These make up prapancha. At the beginning the grandfather devised the words known as the Vedas and gave the names of rishis to those who follow Vedic conduct. When night ends, Aja gives others birth. When a new season comes, many signs with different names are seen, and the same happens at the start of an era. In this way Svayambhu himself made the worlds, from Mahat to Vishesha, which are Prakriti's transformations. The sun and moon shine, planets and nakshatras are like ornaments, rivers, oceans and mountains like decorations, and there are many cities and prosperous settlements.

In Brahma's forest the omniscient, unmanifest Brahma roams. He was born from an unmanifest seed and rests on Ishvara's favour. The eternal Brahma is like a tree. Its trunk and large branches are intelligence, the senses are its hollows, the great elements its bulk, and Vishesha its tender sprouts. Dharma and adharma are its finest flowers and joy and misery its fruits. All beings live from this tree. Brahmanas say the sky is his head, the space his navel, the sun and moon his eyes, the directions his ears and the earth his feet. His self cannot be conceived, and he made all beings. Brahmanas were born from his mouth, kshatriyas from the front of his chest, vaishyas from his thighs and shudras from his feet. All the varnas came from his body.