by Bibek Debroy
‘“Then the best among intelligent ones decided to seek refuge with Jatavedas. 877 He composed his mind and knelt down on the ground on his knees. He joined his hands in salutation and single-mindedly chanted a stotram to the one with the seven flames.
‘“Shanti said, ‘I bow down to the great-souled one who ensures the success of all creatures. He has one, two and five sacrificial hearths. At a rajasuya sacrifice, he has six forms. I bow down to the extremely radiant one who ensures subsistence for all the gods. In the form of a seed, he provides a foundation to the entire universe. You are the mouth of all the gods. O illustrious one! All the oblations are received through your mouth. You provide the breath of life to all the gods. O Anala! You are the one who turns the oblations into the forms of clouds. After that, the result is your assuming the form of water. All the herbs are born from that. O one whose charioteer is Anila! 878 It is because of all the herbs that creatures live happily. Men use the herbs created by you to perform sacrifices. O Pavaka! The gods, the daityas and the rakshasas are welcomed through these sacrifices. O Hutashana! You are the foundation for these sacrifices. O Vahni! Thus, you are the seed of everything and you are in everything. O Pavaka! Gods, danavas, yakshas, daityas, gandharvas, rakshasas, humans, domestic animals, trees, wild animals, birds and reptiles—all of them obtain subsistence and sustenance through you. It is from you that they originate. It is in you that they obtain their destruction. O god! You are the one who creates water. You are the one who again destroys it. You are the one who cooks living beings and ensures their nourishment. You exist in the gods in the form of energy. You exist in the Siddhas in the form of loveliness. You exist in the nagas in the form of poison. You exist in the birds in the form of the wind. You exist in humans in the form of rage. You exist in birds and animals in the form of delusion. You exist in trees in the form of stability. You exist in the earth in the form of hardness. O illustrious one! You exist in water in the form of fluidity. You exist in the wind in the form of speed. O Agni! You are established in the sky in the form of expanse. O Agni! You roam around in all beings and protect them. The wise speak of you as one. But they also speak of you as three in form. 879 When they invoke you at a sacrifice, they think of you as possessing eight forms. The supreme rishis say that the universe has been created by you. O Hutashana! In your absence, the entire universe will instantly be destroyed. The brahmanas worship you, offer havya and kavya and utter “Svaha” and “Svadha”. Having thus performed their own tasks, they obtain their intended ends. Your energy is the essence behind all consequences. You are worshipped by beings and the immortals. You are the source of the flames that emerge and consume all creatures. O Jatavedas! O immensely radiant one! You are the one who has created this universe. The rites of the Vedas are based on you. All beings and the universe have you in them. O Anala! O one with the tawny eyes! I bow down before you. O Hutashana! I bow down before you. O Pavaka! I bow down before you now. O Havyavahana! I bow down before you. You are the one who purifies all beings. 880 You are the one who purifies the universe. O one who cooks the universe! You are the one who cooks everything that is eaten and everything that is drunk. You are the one who cooks the crops. You are the one who nourishes the universe. You are the essence of the cloud. You are the essence of the wind. You are the seed. You are the reason behind crops. You are the one who nourishes all beings—from the past, the present and the future. You are the radiance in all creatures. You are Aditya. You are Vibhavasu. You are day and night. You are both the sandhyas. O Vahni! You are Hiranyareta. You are the cause behind the origin of gold. 881 You are Hiranyagarbha. You are like gold in your complexion. O lord of the universe! Your forms exist as muhurta, kshana, truti, lava, kala, kashtha, nimesha and other things. 882 You are time and all its transformation is your nature. O lord! You follow the dictate of destiny and your tongue is Kali. Use that to save us from all sins and from all the great fears in this world. Your tongue is Karali and is the cause behind the great destruction. Use that to save us from all sins and from all the great fears in this world. Your tongue is Manojava and has the quality of being extremely light. Use that to save us from all sins and from all the great fears in this world. Your tongue is Sulohita and accomplishes desire for beings. Use that to save us from all sins and from all the great fears in this world. Your tongue is Sudhumravarna and brings disease for beings. Use that to save us from all sins and from all the great fears in this world. Your tongue is Sphulingini, handsome in form. Use that to save us from all sins and from all the great fears in this world. Your tongue is Vishvasrija, which provides peace to living beings. Use that to save us from all sins and from all the great fears in this world. 883 O one with the tawny eyes! O one with the red throat! O one with the black trail! O devourer of oblations! 884 Save me from all kinds of sins. Save me from samsara. O Vahni! Show me your favours. O one with the seven flames! O Krishanu! O Havyavahana! 885 O one who is addressed in eight names—Agni, Pavaka, Shukra and the others! O Agni! O one who was created before all beings! O Vibhavasu! Show me your favours. O Havyavahana! O one without decay! You are being praised by me. O Vahni! You are without destruction. Your form cannot be imagined. You are full of prosperity. You are extremely fierce and impossible to behold. You are without decay. You are infinite in your valour. You are terrible and destroy all the worlds. Your nature is excellent. You are full of sattva. You are infinite in your powers and exist in the lotus that is in all hearts. O Hutashana! You are one. But in many forms, you pervade everything in this universe, mobile and immobile. You are without decay. You are the earth, with its mountains, forests and sky. You are the great firmament, with the sun and the moon. You are the great ocean, with the subterranean fire in its stomach. O lord! O Pavaka! You drink up the waters. You are the Hutashana who is always worshipped in the rituals observed by maharshis in great sacrifices. For the sake of prosperity, when you are praised with utterances of vashatkara, you drink the soma offered in sacrifices. For the sake of fruits, the brahmanas always sacrifice to you. All the Vedas and Vedangas chant about you. It is for your sake that the Indras among brahmanas perform sacrifices and study the Vedangas at all times. You are the Brahma who is devoted to sacrifices. You are Vishnu. You the lord of the bhutas. 886 You are the lord of the gods. You are Aryama. You are the lord of the water. You are Surya. You are Indu. 887 All the gods and asuras satisfy you through oblations and obtain their desired fruits. Everything that has been tainted by a great pollutant is purified as soon as it touches your rays. Among all kinds of bathing, bathing with ashes is the best. That is the reason sages do this during sandhya. Having done this, they obtain the world of heaven. Controlled and devoted, they obtain all the destinations filled with joy. O Vahni! Be pleased. You are known as the one who purifies. Show me your favours in your blazing form. Show me your favours in your sparkling form of Vayu. Be pleased. O fire who emerges from lightning! O Havyavahana! Be pleased. Save me. O Vahni! You possess seven auspicious flames. Use those to save us. O god! We are praising you. Save us, like a father saving his son.’”’
Chapter 97
‘Markandeya said, “O sage! The illustrious Havyavahana was praised in this way. Engulfed in a garland of flames, he appeared before him. O brahmana! The god Vibhavasu was delighted with the stotram. Shanti was prostrate before him and he spoke to him in a voice that deeply rumbled like the clouds. Agni said, ‘O brahmana! I am pleased with your devotion and your praise. I will grant you a boon. Ask what you wish for.’ Shanti replied, ‘O illustrious one! Since I have seen your form, everything that I wish for has been accomplished. Nevertheless, I bow down before you with devotion. Listen to my words. O god! My preceptor has left his hermitage to go to his brother’s sacrifice. When he returns to the hermitage, may he see you established on your hearth. O Vibhavasu! Because of a transgression I committed, you have left the hearth. May the brahmana now see you established there, as you used to be. O god! My guru is without a son. If you wish to show me your favours, let him have a distinguished son. Just
as my guru will be friendly towards his son, let his mind become mild towards all beings. O one without decay! You have been satisfied with me. As a favour towards me, if anyone pleases you with this stotram, may you also bestow a boon on him.’ Pavaka heard the words spoken by the one who had worshipped him with the stotram, driven by devotion towards his guru. He spoke to that excellent brahmana. Agni said, ‘O brahmana! You have asked for two boons for your guru. 888 You have not asked for anything for yourself. O great sage! Therefore, I am pleased with you. Everything that you have asked for your guru will happen. He will have a son and he will be friendly towards all beings. His son will be named Bhoutya and he will be the lord of a manvantara. O one who praises his guru! He will be immensely strong, immensely valiant and immensely wise. If a person controls himself and satisfies me with this stotram, he will obtain all the auspicious things he desires. For the sake of dharma, if a person reads this during sacrifices, on auspicious occasions, in tirthas and during rites when oblations are offered, he will obtain supreme nourishment. O brahmana! If a person listens to this, there is no doubt that the sins that he commits during day and night will be destroyed. This brings me supreme pleasure. If one listens to this, all sins caused by offering oblations at the wrong time, the wrong day or by the wrong person who has sinned, will be destroyed immediately. When mortals hear this praise to me on the day of the full moon, the day of the new moon or on special auspicious occasions, all sins will be destroyed.’ Having said this, while the sage looked on, the illustrious Agni instantly vanished, like a lamp that has just gone out.
‘“When Vahni disappeared, Shanti’s mind was content. His body hair stood up and he entered his guru’s hermitage. He saw the fire blazing in his guru’s hearth, just as it used to earlier. On seeing this, he was filled with great delight. Meanwhile, his great-souled guru returned from his younger brother’s sacrifice to his own hermitage. Seeing him in front of him, the disciple prostrated himself at his feet. After he had been worshipped, his guru accepted his seat and spoke to him. ‘O child! I find that I am loving towards you and towards other creatures. I don’t know how this has happened. If you know, quickly tell me.’ O great sage! At this, the brahmana Shanti told his preceptor everything, exactly as it had occurred, beginning with the fire getting extinguished. O great sage! Hearing this, with his eyes wet with tears of affection, the guru embraced his disciple and gave him all the Vedas, the Vedangas and the ancillary texts.
‘“A son was born to Bhuti, the Manu named Bhoutya. I will tell you about the future gods, rishis and kings during his future manvantara. Listen. I will tell you in detail. Listen. Then, the Indra of the gods will be famous for his deeds. The five categories of gods are said to be Chakshushas, Kanishthas, Pavitras, Bhrajiras and Dharavrikas. The Indra of the gods will then be Shuchi. He will be immensely strong and immensely valiant, possessing all the qualities befitting an Indra. The seven saptarshis are said to be Agnidhra, Agnibahu, Shuchi, Mukta, Madhava, Shukra and Ajita. Bhoutya Manu’s sons will be Guru, Gabhira, Bradhna, Bharata, Anugraha, Shrimani, Pratira, Vishnu, Sankrandana, Tejashvi and Subala. I have described the fourteenth manvantara to you. O supreme among sages! If a man hears about these manvantaras in the due order, he obtains all that is auspicious and descendants who do not die out. If a man hears about the first manvantara, he obtains dharma. If he hears about Svarochisha, he obtains all the objects of desire. If he hears about Outtama, he obtains wealth. If he hears about Tamasa, he obtains knowledge. If he hears about Raivata, he obtains intelligence and an extremely beautiful wife. If he hears about Chakshusha, he obtains freedom from disease. If a man hears about Vaivasvata, he obtains strength. If he hears about Surya-Savarnika, he has sons and grandsons who possess qualities. If he hears about Brahma-Savarni, he obtains greatness. If a man hears about Dharma-Savarnika, he obtains auspicious intelligence. If he hears about Rudra-Savarnika, he obtains victory. If he hears about Daksha-Savarnika, he has the best of kin, possessing all the qualities. O best among men! If he hears about Rouchya, the strength of his enemies is destroyed. If he hears about Rouchya manvantara, he obtains the favours of the gods. He also obtains the agnihotra fire and sons with qualities. O supreme among sages! If a person hears about all the manvantaras in the due order, he obtains excellent fruits. O brahmana! If a person hears about the gods, the rishis, the Indras, the Manus and the sons who will be kings and their lineages, he is freed from all sins. The gods, the rishis, the Indras and the lords of the manvantaras are pleased with him. Because they are pleased, they grant him auspicious intelligence. Having obtained auspicious intelligence, he performs auspicious deeds. He obtains an auspicious end for a period that is as long as the tenure of fourteen Indras. For him, all the seasons are pleasant. All the planets are favourable. This is certainly what happens when one listens to the manvantaras in the due order.”’
Chapter 98
‘Kroushtuki said, “O illustrious one! You have properly told me about the manvantaras and I have heard about them from you, in due order. O supreme among brahmanas! Beginning with Brahma, I wish to hear about the lineages of all the kings. O illustrious one! Please tell me.”
‘Markandeya replied, “O child! Hear about the origin and conduct of all the kings, created by Prajapati, the root cause of the universe. In this lineage of kings, there are many who performed sacrifices and triumphed in battles. This lineage is ornamented with hundreds who knew about dharma. If a man listens to the conduct of these great-souled Indras among men and their origins, he is cleansed from all sins. There were Manu, Ikshvaku, Anaranya, Bhagiratha and hundreds of other kings who ruled the earth properly. They knew about dharma. They were brave and knew about the supreme truth. O brahmana! If a man hears about this lineage, he is cleansed of sin. Therefore, hear about this lineage. Like the branches that descend from a banyan tree, there were thousands of Indras among men in this lineage. In the beginning, Brahma Prajapati desired to create many kinds of subjects. O supreme among brahmanas! He created Daksha from his right thumb. The lord who is the creator of the universe created a wife for him, from his left thumb. The illustrious Brahma, the supreme cause behind the universe, created them. A beautiful daughter, Aditi, was born to Daksha. Through her and Kashyapa, the god Martanda was born. He was Brahma’s own form. He 889 is the one who bestows boons on the entire universe. He is the beginning, middle and end of all acts connected with creation, preservation and destruction. O brahmana! Everything that exists is based on him. This universe is his form, with its gods, asuras and humans. He is in all creatures. He is in all atmans. He is the eternal paramatman. Surya was born in Aditi’s womb because she had worshipped him earlier.”
‘Kroushtuki said, “O illustrious one! I wish to hear about Vivasvat’s nature. Why was that original god born as Kashyapa’s son? How was he worshipped by the goddess Aditi and Kashyapa? When he was worshipped, what did the god Surya say? O supreme among sages! When he descended, what were his powers like? Please tell me properly. I wish to hear about everything in detail.”
‘Markandeya replied, “Clearness, supremacy, vidya, light, radiance, eternal existence, diffusion, exclusivity, jnana, manifestation, irresistible will, comprehension, understanding, memory and vijnana—these are the forms of that radiant form. O immensely fortunate one! I will tell you about this in detail. Listen to what you asked me about, how the radiant Ravi originated. This world lacked light and illumination. Everything was enveloped in darkness. From the supreme cause that is without decay, a giant egg manifested itself. When it split open, the illustrious grandfather was inside it. Brahma, the lord who is himself the creator of the universe, was manifested in a lotus. O great sage! A great sound originated from his mouth and this was followed by bhu, bhuva, sva. 890 These three sounds express Vivasvat’s true nature. OUM is his true form, but this is Ravi’s supreme and subtle form. Mahah is a gross form and Jana is a form that is grosser than that. After that come Tapah and Satya. These are the seven forms. 891 But there is also no doubt that these forms exist and simult
aneously do not exist, since their existence or non-existence depends on his inclination and sentiment. At the beginning of creation and after destruction, he is established in a supreme and subtle form. O brahmana! I have referred to it as OUM. That is the supreme brahman and that is his form.”’
Chapter 99
‘Markandeya said, “O sage! The egg split and Brahma, whose origin is not manifest, emerged from inside it. The Rig hymns emerged first, from his first mouth. 892 They had the complexion of japa flowers 893 and they were endowed with energy and form. They were not connected. Instead, they were disparate and had separate forms, based on rajas. Without the slightest bit of obstruction, the Yajur hymns emerged from his mouth facing the south. They had the complexion of gold. Their complexions and forms weren’t identical, but separate. From Brahma Parameshthi’s mouth that faced the west, emerged the Sama hymns. All of them possessed chhanda. 894 All the Atharva hymns manifested themselves from the creator’s mouth facing the north. Their complexion was like that of a mass of black bees or collyrium. Whether they are used for evil purposes, 895 or whether they are used to ensure peace, their forms are terrible. Those used for happiness, possessed sattva, but generally they were full of tamas. Their nature was both amiable and harsh. O sage! The Rig hymns possessed the guna of rajas, while the Yajur hymns possessed the guna of sattva. The Sama hymns possessed the guna of tamas, while the Atharva hymns had both sattva and tamas. They blazed and their energy was unmatched. They blazed, as they had earlier, and each of them occupied a separate position. There is the original energy, which is uttered in the sound of OUM. This energy is the true nature and it was established there, covering everything. O great sage! There is energy in the form of the Yajur hymns and there is energy in the form of the Sama hymns. They come together and lead to a supreme energy. O brahmana! These hymns are used for three purposes—peace, nourishment and abhichara. These three find their destinations in the three, Rig and the others, and thereby have three ends. When the darkness was destroyed, the universe began to sparkle. O brahmana rishi! The directions, up, down and diagonal, manifested themselves. The excellent energy of the metres was in the form of a circle. O brahmana! All of this supreme energy came together and came to be known as Aditya because it was the first. 896 O immensely fortunate one! This is the unmanifest reason behind the creation of the universe. Known by the names of Rig, Yajur or Sama, these scorch at three times of the day. O best among sages! The Rig hymns heat in the forenoon, the Yajur hymns at mid day and the Sama hymns in the afternoon. In the forenoon, the Rig hymns ensure peace. At mid day, the Yajur hymns ensure nourishment. In the afternoon, the Sama hymns are for abhichara rites. The abhichara rites can be equally performed at mid day and in the afternoon. However, all Sama rites for the ancestors must be undertaken in the afternoon. In the course of creation, the Rig hymns are established in Brahma and the Yajur hymns in Vishnu. The Sama hymns are in Rudra and because he brings about destruction, their sound is inauspicious. The Vedas are in the radiant Surya’s atman. The Vedas are established in him. The knowledge of the Vedas exists in his atman and he is spoken of as the supreme being. For the cause of creation, preservation and destruction, he assumes the gunas of sattva, rajas and tamas. This eternal one thus assumes the name of Brahma, Vishnu and the others. He is the embodied form of the Vedas and he is worshipped by the gods. His form is embodied in all mortals. The universe finds a refuge in him. He is the radiance. He is the dharma that is to be known. He is the supreme one who is beyond Vedanta. He is the supreme lord.”’
