by Bibek Debroy
‘While wandering around, on one occasion, the brahmana saw a bit of ground that jutted out. There was a young nyagrodha tree there and it was adorned with fruits and foliage. He saw an infant boy lying down on a branch towards the north-east, within the cup of a leaf. His radiance swallowed up the darkness. His complexion was dark blue, like a giant emerald. His face was as beautiful as a lotus. His neck was like a conch shell. His chest was broad. His nose was excellent and his eyebrows were handsome. Because of his breathing, his radiant locks trembled. His beautiful ears were like conch shells. His lips had the radiance of coral. There was a sweet smile on his reddened lips. The ends of his eyes were red, like the whorls of a lotus. His looks and glances were enchanting. His deep navel was like a leaf, and as he breathed, the lines on his stomach moved. The Indra among brahmanas was amazed to see him pick up one of his lotus feet with the beautiful fingers of his hand, place it in his mouth, and suck it. On seeing this, his exhaustion vanished. He was so delighted that the lotus in his heart and the lotuses in his eyes blossomed. His body hair stood up in joy. Confused about who this extraordinary child in front of him was, he approached and asked. At that moment, along with the breathing, Bhargava was drawn inside the infant’s body, like a mosquito. When he entered, he saw everything laid out exactly as it had been earlier. 1406 He was extremely surprised. He saw the entire universe manifested there, as if it was real—the sky, the heaven, the earth, the large number of stellar bodies, the dvipas, the varshas, the directions, the gods, the asuras, the forests, the countries, the rivers, the cities, the mines, the villages, the settlements of cattle, the ashramas, the varnas, the occupations, the gross elements, the gross manifestations, time, the many yugas, the kalpas, everything that regulates and everything else that can be regarded as a cause. The rishi saw the Himalayas, the River Pushpavaha 1407 and his own hermitage. As he gazed at the universe, the child exhaled him with his breathing and he fell down into the ocean of deluge. He again saw the elevated ground with the banyan tree and the infant lying down, inside the cup of a leaf. The child cast sweet and sidelong glances full of love towards him. As he glanced back, he was extremely agitated and rushed forward to embrace Adhokshaja. But the child entered his heart through his eyes and stationed himself there. The illustrious one is the lord of yoga himself and resides inside hearts. Like the undertakings of a person who is without a lord, 1408 the child vanished from the rishi’s vision. O brahmana! Following him, the banyan tree and the water that deluged the worlds also vanished in an instant. He found himself in his own hermitage, as he had been earlier.’
Chapter 12(10)
Suta said, ‘He thus experienced the powers of the yoga maya created by Narayana and sought refuge with him again. Markandeya said, “O Hari! I have sought shelter at your feet, which grant freedom from fear. Your maya appears in the form of jnana, but confounds even the gods.” He had thus withdrawn himself completely inside his atman. The illustrious Rudra was travelling through the sky on his bull, along with Rudrani, and surrounded by his own companions. He saw him. On seeing the rishi, Uma spoke to Girisha. “O illustrious one! Look at the brahmana. His body, his mind and his heart have been controlled. He is like an ocean, when the schools of fish in the water are still and there is no wind. You are the one who ensures the success of austerities. Please confer success on him.” The illustrious one 1409 said, “This brahmana rishi does not wish for any benedictions, moksha, or anything at all. He has obtained supreme devotion in the illustrious and undecaying Purusha. O Bhavani! However, let us converse with this virtuous person. The greatest gain for men is to be associated with virtuous people.” The illustrious Ishana is the lord of all kinds of knowledge. He is inside all embodied beings and is the destination of the virtuous. Having said this, he approached him. However, he had withdrawn his intelligence and his conduct and was not aware on his own self, or the universe. Therefore, he did not perceive that the two lords and atmans of the universe had themselves arrived. Understanding this, the illustrious Girisha used yoga maya to enter his heart. The lord entered, just as the wind enters through an opening. He perceived that Shiva had entered inside him, like a flash of lightning. His hair was matted. He was three-eyed and possessed ten arms. He was tall and as radiant as the rising sun. His garments were made out of tiger skin. He held a trident, a bow, a sword and a shield. He held a garland of rudrakshas, a drum, a skull and an axe. On seeing this sudden manifestation appear inside his heart, he was amazed. Ceasing his meditation, the sage wondered, “Who is this and where has he come from?” He opened his eyes and saw that Uma and the companions had also arrived. The sage bowed his head down before Rudra, the preceptor of the three worlds. He worshipped him, Uma and the companions with offerings. Having welcomed them, he gave them seats, padya, arghya, fragrances, garlands, incense and lamps. He said, “O lord! All your wishes are satisfied within your own self. O Ishana! You are the one who satisfies this universe. What can I do for you? I bow down to Shiva, the serene one. As the personficatin of sattva, you bestow pleasure. You are the personification of rajas. As the personification of tamas, you are terrible. I bow down before you.” The illustrious one is the destination of the virtuous. Thus praised, the original god was pleased.
‘Delighted, the original god smiled and spoke to him. The illustrious one said, “We three 1410 are the ones who bestow boons. Ask for the boon you wish. Our vision cannot be futile. A mortal person who sees us obtains immortality. I, the illustorius Brahma, the lord Hari himself, the worlds and the guardians of the worlds revere, worship and serve brahmanas who are virtuous, serene, without attachment, affectionate towards beings, without hatred, impartial in outlook and single-minded in devotion towards us. They do not perceive any difference between me, Achyuta and Aja, nor between themselves and others. That is the reason we worship those like you. Places with water are not tirthas. Images without life are not gods. These purify after a long period of time, but the sight of those like you purifies instantly. We bow down before brahmanas. They are our forms and are full of the three. 1411 Meditating on the atman, they control themselves and undertake studying and austerities. Seeing you and hearing you, the perpetrators of great sins are purified, even those who are outcastes. What need be said about those who converse with you?” He is the one who is decorated with the moon and his words were full of the mysteries of dharma. They were like a reservoir of amrita and the rishi was not satisfied at drinking them in with his ears. Because of Vishnu’s maya, he had been whirled around for a long time and had suffered greatly. But Shiva’s amrita-like words dispelled all his piles of hardship. He spoke these words. Markandeya said, “It is impossible for those with bodies to comprehend the lord’s pastimes. The lords of the universe are controlled by him and worship him. To make embodied creatures accept dharma, those who propound it also generally practise it and praise those who perform the approved acts. The conduct of the illustrious one is not affected by his own maya, nor are his powers tainted by this. He is like a conjurer exhibiting tricks. I bow down to the illustrious one. The gunas are in his atman and he uses these gunas to create. He is absolute and without a second. He is the preceptor and the one who is the personified form of the brahman. O supreme lord! Your sight is itself a boon. What superior boon can I ask for? From the mere act of seeing you, a man accomplishes all his wishes and all his desires come true. However, you are capable of showering down all the cherished wishes. Therefore, I do ask for a boon from you. May I have devotion towards the illustrious Achyuta and towards those like you who are devoted to him.” The illustrious Sharva was thus worshipped and praised by the sage in sweet words that were approved of by Sharvaya. 1412 He said, “O maharshi! Since you are devoted to Adhokshaja, all your wishes will be fulfilled. Till the end of the kalpa, you will obtain pious fame and will not suffer from old age or death. O brahmana! You possess the radiance of the brahman. You will have knowledge about the three phases of time, 1413 transcendental knowledge and non-attachment. You will also be a propounder of a Purana.�
� 1414 Having bestowed this boon on the sage, the three-eyed lord left. He told the goddess about his 1415 deeds about what he had experienced earlier. The supreme one from the Bhargava lineage obtained the greatness of the great yoga. He roams around even now, immersing himself single-mindedly in Hari. I have described to you how the intelligent Markandeya experienced the illustrious one’s maya and extraordinary powers. Some ignorant men say this is like the maya of samsara created from his atman, which men have been whirling around in since the beginning. 1416 O noble one from the Bhrigu lineage! What has been described is full of the powers of the one who wields a chakra in his hand. If a person hears this, or makes it heard, he does not have to experience samsara, the result of his past karma.’
Chapter 12(11)
Sounaka said, ‘You are diverse in your learning. You know everything about the conclusions of the sacred texts and the tantras. You are devoted to the illustrious one and know the truth. Therefore, I am asking you about the following. Shri’s consort is pure consciousness. However, those who follow the principles of tantra conceive him and worship him as one with limbs, companions, weapons and accoutrements. O fortunate one! Therefore, describe to us these techinques of kriya yoga. We are eager to know the principles of kriya, whereby mortals become accomplished and achieve immortality.’
Suta replied, ‘Having bowed down to my preceptors, I will tell you about Vishnu’s glory. The one who was born from the lotus and other preceptors of the Vedas and the tantras have spoken about this. His Virat form begins with maya and includes the nine principles and transformations. 1417 When these have been created and infused with consciousness, the three worlds become visible. This is his cosmic or Purusha form. His feet are the earth. Heaven is his head. The sky is his navel. His eyes are the sun. His nostrils are the wind. The directions are the lord’s ears. His genitals are Prajapati. The lord’s anus is death. The guardians of the world are his arms. The moon is his mind. His eyebrows are Yama. Modesty is his upper lip. Greed is his lower lip. Moonlight is his teeth. His smile is delusion. The lord’s body hair is the trees. The clouds are the hair on Purusha’s head. Any person’s dimensions can be gauged by measuring his limbs and their positions. In a similar way, the great Purusha can be gauged from the positions of the worlds. The unborn one wears Koustubha and that is the radiance of the self-luminous atman. The effulgence spreading from this is directly the shrivatsa mark the lord has on his chest. He wears his own maya as the garland of wild flowers, consisting of many different kinds of gunas. The hymns of the Vedas constitute his yellow garments. The three syllables are his sacred thread. 1418 The god wears two earrings shaped like makaras and these are samkhya and yoga. His diadem bestows freedom from fear to all the worlds and is the supreme place for Parameshthi. 1419 The seat on which he lies down is known as Ananta and is the unmanifest. 1420 The lotus throne on which he sits is said to be sattva, consisting of dharma, jnana and the others. 1421 The mace that he wields is the main form of prana, consisting of energy, fortitude and strength. His supreme conch shell is the principle of water, the Sudarshana chakra is the principle of fire, his sparkling sword is like the sky and is the principle of space and the shield is the priniciple of tamas or ignorance. His Sharnga bow is the form of time and the quiver represents the principle of karma. The senses are said to be his arrows and the mind, which can control them, are his chariot. The objects of the senses are the external appearance of the chariot. His mudras are the purpose of activity. 1422 One must consecrate oneself and that destroys all the sins of the atman. The illustrious one can then be worshipped and the solar disc is the place for worshipping the divinity. He is Bhagavan and playfully carries a lotus, signifying the implicit potencies in the word “bhaga”. 1423 The illustrious one is worshipped with two whisks, representing dharma and fame. O brahmanas! The umbrella held over his head signifies his abode of Vaikuntha, with freedom from fear. The one known as Suparna 1424 represents the three Vedas and bears Purusha, the personified form of a sacrifice. The illustrious Shri does not leave him and directly represents Hari’s atman. Vishvaksena, foremost among his attendants, is known as the personified form of the tantras. 1425 Nanda and the others, his eight gatekeepers are Hari’s attributes, anima and the others. O brahmana! Vasudeva, Samkarshana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha are designated as direct manifestations of Purusha himself. The illustrious one is conceived as vishva, guiding external objects; taijasa, guiding the senses; prajna, guiding the mind; and turiya, guiding transcendental consciousness. 1426 The illustrious lord Hari thus manifests himself in four forms, each with separate limbs, attendants, weapons and ornaments, but all four are his own expansions. O bull among brahmanas! He is the source of the Vedas. He is the one who illuminates himself. He is complete in his own glory. It is through his own maya that he creates, preserves and destroys, and is accordingly addressed. He is described as differentiated. However, those who are devoted to him can uncover his transcendental nature and realize him as their own atmans. O Shrikrishna! O Krishna’s friend! 1427 O bull in the lineage of the Vrishnis! O one who scorched the lineages of the kings on earth! O one whose valour does not diminish! O Govinda! O one whose glory is sung by the women of Vraja and by your servants! O one whose fame is like a tirtha! O one whose deeds are auspicious to hear! Save your servants. If a person rises at the right time, controls himself and immerses his mind in these attributes of the great Purusha and meditates, he realizes him within his heart.’
Shounaka said, ‘Vishnurata was listening and the illustrious Shuka spoke to him about the seven different categories that reside in each of the solar months. We are faithful ones who wish to hear. Please tell us about their names, their tasks, about how they are engaged and about the manifestations of Surya, who is nothing but Hari’s manifestation.’
Suta replied, ‘Vishnu is in the atmans of all beings. He is without a beginning and his maya has fashioned Surya, who travels through the worlds and creates these worlds. Hari is the original atman who is one and is the creator of everything. For the worlds, it is he who is Surya. He is the foundation of all the rites of the Vedas and the rishis have designated him by different names. O brahmana! Hari’s maya is without origin and it is this that leads him to be described according to nine categories—the time, the place, the ritual, the agent, the instrument, the task, the sacred text, the objects and the fruits. In his form of time, beginning with Madhu, 1428 the illustrious one travels along twelve months, regulating the worlds and with twelve different sets of associates. In the month of Madhu, the controllers are Dhata, Kritasthali, Heti, Vasuki, Rathakrit, Pulastya as the sage and Tumburu. 1429 In the month of Madhava, 1430 the controllers are Aryama, Punjikasthali, Praheti, Kachchhanira, Athouja, Pulaha and Narada. In the month of Shukramasa, 1431 the controllers are Mitra, Menaka, Pourusheya, Takshaka, Rathasvana, Atri and Haha. In the month of Shuchimasa, 1432 the controllers are Varuna, Rambha, Sahajanya, Shukra, Chitrasvana, Vasishtha and Huhu. In the month of Nabhomasa, 1433 the controllers are Indra, Pramlocha, Varya, Elapatra, Shrota, Angira and Vishvavasu. In the month of Nabhasya, 1434 the controllers are Vivasvan, Anumlocha, Vyaghra, Shankhapala, Asarana, Bhrigu and Ugrasena. In the month of Tapomasa, 1435 the controllers are Pusha, Ghritachi, Vata, Dhananjaya, Suruchi, Goutama and Sushena. In the month of Tapasya, 1436 the controllers are Parjanya, Senajit, Varcha, Airavata, Kratu, Bharadvaja and Vishva. In the month of Sahomasa, 1437 the controllers are Amshu, Urvashi, Vidyuchchhatru, Mahashankha, Tarkshya, Kashyapa and Ritasena. In the month of Pushyamasa, 1438 the controllers are Bhaga, Purvachitti, Sphurja, Karkotaka, Urna, Ayu and Arishtanemi. In the month of Ishambhara, 1439 the controllers are Tvashta, Tilottama, Brahmapeta, Kambala, Shatajit, Jamadagni and Dhritarashtra. In the month of Urjamasa, 1440 the controllers are Vishnu, Rambha, Makhapeta, Ashvatara, Satyajit, Vishvamitra and Suryavarcha. These are the opulences of the illustrious Vishnu, in the form of Aditya. If men remember them at the time of the sandhyas, from one day to another day, their sins are taken away. Through each of the twelve months, the divi
nity travels along with six sets of associates, spreading virtuous intelligence everywhere, for this world and for the next. Rishis chant his glories through hymns from the Sama, Rig and Yajur Vedas. Gandharvas chant his praise and the best of apsaras dance before him. The nagas yoke his chariot and the yakshas drive the chariot from the front. The extremely powerful rakshasas push the chariot from the rear. There are sixty thousand unblemished brahmana rishis known as valakhilyas. They advance in front of him, praising and worshipping the lord. The illustrious lord Hari is without a beginning and without an end. He is without birth. In this way, from one kalpa to another kalpa, he divides his own atman and protects the worlds.’