Verse 2.9.30

Bengali text, Devanagari and Unicode transliteration of verse 2.9.30:

অদ্বৈত-শ্রীবাস-আদি যতেক প্রধান পডিযা পুরুষ-সূক্ত করাযেন স্নান ॥ ৩০ ॥

अद्वैत-श्रीवास-आदि यतेक प्रधान पडिया पुरुष-सूक्त करायेन स्नान ॥ ३० ॥

advaita-śrīvāsa-ādi yateka pradhāna paḍiyā puruṣa-sūkta karāyena snāna || 30 ||

advaita-srivasa-adi yateka pradhana padiya purusa-sukta karayena snana (30)

English translation:

(30) Exalted devotees headed by Advaita and Śrīvāsa bathed the Lord while reciting the Puruṣa-sūkta mantras.

Commentary: Gauḍīya-bhāṣya by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura:

oṃ sahasra-śīrṣā puruṣaḥ sahasrākṣaḥ sahasra-pāt sa bhūmiṃ viśvato vṛtvāty atiṣṭhad dāsāṅgulam

The Supreme Lord’s universal form has a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, and a thousand feet, for He contains all living entities. Having pervaded the universe completely to give it existence, and being independent, He extended Himself beyond the universe by ten fingers.

oṃ puruṣa evedaṃ sarvaṃ yad bhūtaṃ yac ca bhavyam utāmṛtatvasyeśāno yad annenātirohati

The universes—past, present, and future—are but manifestations of the Supreme Lord’s puruṣa expansion. Though He is the Lord of immortality, he has manifest Himself as the puruṣa in the universe so that the jīvas may enjoy material fruits.

oṃ etāvān asya mahimā ato jyāyaṃś ca puruṣaḥ pādo ‘sya viśvā bhūtāni tri-pādasyāmṛtaṃ dīvī

The past, present, and future universes are manifestations of the Lord’s powers, but the Lord Himself is much greater. All the living beings of the universe are but one-quarter portion, and the eternal nature in the spiritual sky exists in three-quarters portion.

oṃ tri-pād ūrdhva udait pūruṣaḥ pādo ‘syehā bhavāt punaḥtato viśvaṅ vyakrāmat sāśanānaśane abhi

The three-quarters portion of the Lord transcends the material portion. The Lord in the one-quarter portion manifested the universe again, as He had done repeatedly before. The Lord of the one-quarter portion began the work of creation, by going all around, taking the form of all animate and inanimate objects.

oṃ tasmād virād ajāyata virājo adhi pūruṣaḥsa jāto atyaricyata paścad bhūmim atho puraḥ

From the Lord, the universe was born, and in that universe was born the vīrāṭ-puruṣa, the Supersoul of the universe. Then the vīrāṭ-puruṣa grew and produced the earth and the bodies of the jīvas.

oṃ tasmād yajñāt sarva-hūtaḥ sambhṛtaṃ pṛṣad-ājyam paśun tāṃś cakre vāyavyān araṇyān grāmyaś ca ye

From that sacrifice where everything in the universe was sacrificed, yogurt and ghee—and indeed, all nourishing foods—were produced. It created the animals of the air, forest, and village.

oṃ tasmād yajñāt sarva-hūta ṛcaḥ sāmāni jajñīre chandaṃsi jajñīre tasmād yajus tasmād ajāyata

From that ultimate sacrifice, or sarva-huta, were born the ṛk [hymns], sāma [music], and yajus [prose] portions of the Vedas, along with the seven Vedic meters.

oṃ tasmād aśvā ajāyanta ye ke cobhayādataḥ gāvo ha jajñīre tasmāt tasmāj jātā ajāvayaḥ

Horses were born from the sacrifice, along with animals with two sets of teeth, such as donkeys and mules. Cows were also born from the sacrifice, along with goats and sheep.

oṃ taṃ yajñaṃ barhiṣi praukṣān puruṣaṃ jātam agrataḥtena devā ayajanta sādhyāṛṣayaś ca ye

The devatās, sādhyas, and ṛṣis placed the vīrāt-puruṣa, the first being of the universe, on kuśa grass and sprinkled Him with water for purification. In this way they conducted the mental sacrifice using the vīrāṭ-puruṣa.

oṃ yat puruṣaṃ vyādadhuḥ katidhā vyakalpayan mukhaṃ kim asya kau bāhū kāv ūrū pāda ucyete

In the mental sacrifice, when they divided up the vīrāṭ-puruṣa, how many parts did they divide? What is stated about His face, arms, thighs, and feet?

oṃ brāhmaṇo ‘sya mukham āsīd bāhū rājanyaḥ kṛtaḥūru tad asya yad vaiśyaḥ padbhyāṃśūdro ajāyata

The brāhmaṇas arose from the face [of the vīrāṭ-puruṣa], the kṣatriyas from His two arms, the vaiśyas from His thighs, and the śūdras from His feet.

oṃ candramā manaso jātaś cakṣoḥ sūryo ajāyata mukhād indraś cāgniś ca prāṇād vāyur ajāyata

His mind gave rise to the moon; His two eyes, the sun; His breath, Vāyu; and His mouth, Indra and Agni.

oṃ nābhyā āsīd antarikṣaṃśīrṣṇo dyauḥ sāmavartata padbhyāṃ bhūmir diśaḥśrotrāt tathā lokān akalpayan

From His navel arose the space between earth and heaven; from His head, the heavens; from His feet, the earth; and from His ears, the directions. In this way the worlds were created.

oṃ yat puruṣeṇa haviṣā devā yajñam atanvata vasanto ‘syāsīd ājyaṃ grīṣma idhmaḥśarad dhāviḥ

The devatās, the first beings manifested, performed a mental sacrifice to complete the creation. For this sacrifice they used the virāṭ-puruṣa [the raw ingredients of the material world] as the offering. Spring was the ghee, summer the fuel-wood, and autumn the offering.

oṃ saptāsyāsan paridhayaḥ triḥ sapta samidhaḥ kṛtāḥdevā yad yajñaṃ tanvānā abadhnan puruṣaṃ paśum

In this sacrifice the blades of kuśa grass strewn around the fire [for protection from rākṣasas] were seven [the seven Vedic poetic meters], and the fuel sticks were twenty-one [twelve months, five seasons, three worlds, and the sun]. The devatās who performed the mental sacrifice tied the vīrāṭ-puruṣa to offer Him as the sacrificial animal.

oṃ yajñena yajñam ayajanta devās tāni dharmāni prathamāny āsan

te hā nākaṃ mahīmānaḥ sacante

yatra pūrve sādhyāḥ santi devaḥ

In this way the devatās conducted the mental sacrifice using the vīrāṭ- puruṣa to manifest variety in the world. By that sacrifice both the physical laws of nature and the first spiritual codes of conduct arose. The great souls, by similar mental worship, attain the place of immortality where dwell the sādhyas and devatās, the first worshipers.