RIG VEDA

Nāsadīyasūkta
HYMN CXXIX

(Creation)

________

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नासदासीन्नो सदासीत्तदानीं नासीद्रजो नो व्योमा परो यत् ।

किमावरीवः कुह कस्य शर्मन्नम्भः किमासीद्गहनं गभीरम् ॥१॥

nasadasinno sadasittadanim | nasidrajo no vyoma paro yat |

kimavarivah kuhakasya sharmann | ambhah kimasidgahanam gabhiram ||1||

THEN was not non-existent nor existent: there was no realm of air, no sky beyond it.
What covered in, and where? and what gave shelter? Was water there, unfathomed depth of water?

 

न मृत्युरासीदमृतं न तर्हि न रात्र्या अह्न आसीत्प्रकेतः ।

आनीदवातं स्वधया तदेकं तस्माद्धान्यन्न परः किं चनास ॥२॥

na mrutyurasidamrutam na tarhi | na ratrya ahna asitpraketah |

anidavatam svadhaya tadekam | tasmaddhanyannaparah ki~jchanasa || 2 ||

Death was not then, nor was there aught immortal: no sign was there, the day's and night's divider.
That One Thing, breathless, breathed by its own nature: apart from it was nothing whatsoever.

 

तम आसीत् तमसा गूळमग्रेऽप्रकेतं सलिलं सर्वमाइदम्

तुच्येनाभ्वपिहितं यदासीत् तपसस्तन्महिनाजायतैकम्

tama asittamasa guhlamagre praketam | salilam sarvamaidam |

tuchchenabhvapihitam yadasit | tamasastanmahina jayataikam || 3 ||

Darkness there was: at first concealed in darkness this All was indiscriminated chaos.
All that existed then was void and form less: by the great power of Warmth was born that Unit.

 

कामस्तदग्रॆ समवर्तताधि मनसॊ रॆत: प्रथमं यदासीत् ।

सतॊबन्धुमसति निरविन्दन्हृदि प्रतीष्या कवयॊ मनीषा ॥४॥

kamastadagre samavartatadhi | manaso retah prathamam yadasit |

sato bandhumasati niravindanna | hrudi pratishya kavayo manisha || 4 ||

Thereafter rose Desire in the beginning, Desire, the primal seed and germ of Spirit.
Sages who searched with their heart's thought discovered the existent's kinship in the non-existent.

 

तिरश्चीनो विततो रश्मिरेषामधः स्विदासी दुपरिस्विदासी

रेतोधाआसन् महिमान आसन् स्वधा अवस्तात् प्रयतिः परस्तात्

tirashchino vitato rashmireshamadhah | svidasi duparisvidasi |

retodha asanmahiman asanna | svadho avastat prayatih parastat || 5 ||

Transversely was their severing line extended: what was above it then, and what below it?
There were begetters, there were mighty forces, free action here and energy up yonder

 

को अद्धा वेद क इह प्र वोचत् कुत आजाता कुत इयंविसृष्टिः

अर्वाग् देवा अस्य विसर्जनेनाथा को वेद यतआबभूव

ko addha veda ka iha pravochat | kut ajata kut iyam visrushtih |

arvagdeva asya visarjanaya | atha ko veda yata ababhuva || 6 ||

Who verily knows and who can here declare it, whence it was born and whence comes this creation?
The Gods are later than this world's production. Who knows then whence it first came into being?

इयं विसृष्टिर्यत आबभूव यदि वा दधे यदि वा न

यो अस्याध्यक्षः परमे व्योमन् सो अङ्ग वेद यदि वा नवेद

iyam visrushtiryata ababhuva | yadi va dadhe yadi va na |

yo asyadhyakshah parame vyomann | so amga veda yadi va na veda || 7 ||

He, the first origin of this creation, whether he formed it all or did not form it,
Whose eye controls this world in highest heaven, he verily knows it, or perhaps he knows not.

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Rig Veda 10:129.1-7  -  tr. by Ralph T.H. Griffith.