FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.3.26-27

श्रीहिरण्यकशिपुरुवाच कल्पान्ते कालसृष्टेन योऽन्धेन तमसावृतम् । अभिव्यनग्जगदिदं स्वयञ्‍ज्योति: स्वरोचिषा ॥ २६ ॥ आत्मना त्रिवृता चेदं सृजत्यवति लुम्पति । रज:सत्त्वतमोधाम्ने पराय महते नम: ॥ २७ ॥
śrī-hiraṇyakaśipur uvāca
[shree-hiranyakashipur uvaacha]
kalpānte kāla-sṛṣṭena
[kalpaante kaala-srishtena]
yo ’ndhena tamasāvṛtam
[yo ’ndhena tamasaavritam]
abhivyanag jagad idaṁ
[abhivyanag jagad idam]
svayañjyotiḥ sva-rociṣā
[svayanjyotih sva-rochishaa]
ātmanā tri-vṛtā cedaṁ
[aatmanaa tri-vritaa chedam]
sṛjaty avati lumpati
[srijaty avati lumpati]
rajaḥ-sattva-tamo-dhāmne
[rajah-sattva-tamo-dhaamne]
parāya mahate namaḥ
[paraaya mahate namah]
Word-for-word
śrī-hiraṇyakaśipuḥ uvāca — Hiraṇyakaśipu said kalpa-ante — at the end of every day of Lord Brahmā kāla-sṛṣṭena — created by the time factor yaḥ — he who andhena — by dense darkness tamasā — by ignorance āvṛtam — covered abhivyanak — manifested jagat — cosmic manifestation idam — this svayam-jyotiḥ — self-effulgent sva-rociṣā — by his bodily rays ātmanā — by himself tri-vṛtā — conducted by the three modes of material nature ca — also idam — this material world sṛjati — creates avati — maintains lumpati — annihilates rajaḥ — of the mode of passion sattva — the mode of goodness tamaḥ — and the mode of ignorance dhāmne — unto the supreme lord parāya — unto the supreme mahate — unto the great namaḥ — my respectful obeisances.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
śrī-hiraṇyakaśipur uvāca
śrī-hiraṇyakaśipuḥ uvāca
Hiraṇyakaśipu said
kalpa-ante
at the end of every day of Lord Brahmā
kalpānte kāla-sṛṣṭena
kāla-sṛṣṭena
created by the time factor
yo ’ndhena tamasāvṛtam
abhivyanag jagad idaṁ
yaḥ
he who
andhena
by dense darkness
svayañjyotiḥ sva-rociṣā
ātmanā tri-vṛtā cedaṁ
tamasā
by ignorance
sṛjaty avati lumpati
āvṛtam
covered
abhivyanak
manifested
rajaḥ-sattva-tamo-dhāmne
jagat
cosmic manifestation
idam
this
svayam-jyotiḥ
self-effulgent
sva-rociṣā
by his bodily rays
ātmanā
by himself
tri-vṛtā
conducted by the three modes of material nature
ca
also
idam
this material world
sṛjati
creates
avati
maintains
lumpati
annihilates
parāya mahate namaḥ
rajaḥ
of the mode of passion
sattva
the mode of goodness
tamaḥ
and the mode of ignorance
dhāmne
unto the supreme lord
parāya
unto the supreme
mahate
unto the great
namaḥ
my respectful obeisances.
Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto the supreme lord within this universe. At the end of each day of his life, the universe is fully covered with dense darkness by the influence of time, and then again, during his next day, that self-effulgent lord, by his own effulgence, manifests, maintains and destroys the entire cosmic manifestation through the material energy, which is invested with the three modes of material nature. He, Lord Brahmā, is the shelter of those modes of nature — sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa.
Purport

The words abhivyanag jagad idam refer to he who creates this cosmic manifestation. The original creator is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa ( janmādy asya yataḥ ); Lord Brahmā is the secondary creator. When Lord Brahmā is empowered by Lord Kṛṣṇa as the engineer to create the phenomenal world, he becomes the supremely powerful feature within this universe. The total material energy is created by Kṛṣṇa, and later, taking advantage of all that has necessarily been created, Lord Brahmā engineers the entire phenomenal universe. At the end of Lord Brahmā’s day, everything up to Svargaloka is inundated with water, and the next morning, when there is darkness in the universe, Brahmā again brings the phenomenal manifestation into existence. Therefore he is described here as he who manifests this universe.

Trīn guṇān vṛṇoti: Lord Brahmā takes advantage of the three modes of material nature. Prakṛti, material nature, is described here as tri-vṛtā, the source of the three material modes. Śrīla Madhvācārya comments in this connection that tri-vṛtā means prakṛtyā. Thus Lord Kṛṣṇa is the original creator, and Lord Brahmā is the original engineer.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Hiraṇyakaśipu said: I offer respects to the great, supreme, self-effulgent lord, the shelter of rajas, sattva and tamas, who manifests by his effulgence the universe covered with darkness at the end of his day through the influence of time, and who creates, maintains and destroys this universe by accepting the three guṇas. Abhivyanak means he manifested. He creates and destroys by himself, by accepting the three guṇas (tri-vṛtā).
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Hiraṇyakaśipu praises Brahmā as the lord who creates, maintains, and destroys universes — though Brahmā too acts only as Kṛṣṇa's engineer. Beautiful theology can be spoken by anyone; what matters is whether it lives in the speaker. Words alone do not purify.
Reflection Questions
  • Which beautiful spiritual truths do you speak but not yet inhabit?
  • How can you tell when your theology is becoming actual experience?
📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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