युधिष्ठिर उवाच आद्यन्तं सर्वभूतानां ज्ञातुमिच्छामि कौरव। ध्यानं कर्म च कालं च तथैवायुर्युगे युगे॥
I wish, O Kuru hero, to know what origin and what the end is of all creatures; what the nature of their meditation is and what their acts; what the divisions of time are, and what is the spare of human existence in the respective cycles.
लोकतत्त्वं च कात्स्येंन भूतानामागतिं गतिम्। सर्गश्च निधनं चैव कुत एतत् प्रवर्तते॥
I wish also to know fully the truth about the genesis and the conduct of the world; the you. coming of creatures into the world and their exit. Indeed; whence their creation and destruction?
यदि तेऽनुग्रहे बुद्धिरस्मास्विह सतां वर। एतद्भवन्तं पृच्छामि तद् भवान् प्रब्रवीतु मे॥
O best of virtuous persons, if you wish to favour us, do tell this about which I ask
पूर्वं हि कथितं श्रुत्वा भृगुभाषितमुत्तमम्। भरद्वाजस्य विप्रर्षस्ततो मे बुद्धिरुत्तमा॥ जाता परमधर्मिष्ठा दिव्यसंस्थानसंस्थिता। ततो भूयस्तु पृच्छामि तद् भवान् वक्तुमर्हति॥
Having heard before this the excellent discourse of Bhrigu to the twice-born sage Bharadvaja, which you did recite, my understanding, shorn of ignorance, has become greatly attached to yoga, and withdrawn from worldly objects rests upon heavenly purity. I ask you about the subject, therefore, once more. You should describe it to me fully.
भीष्म उवाच अत्र ते वर्तयिष्येऽहमितिहासं पुरातनम्। जगौ यद् भगवान् व्यासः पुत्राय परिपृच्छते॥
Bhishma said Regarding it I shall recite to you an old narrative of what the divine Vyasa said to his son Shuka when the latter had asked the former.
अधीत्य वेदानखिलान् साङ्गोपनिषदस्तथा। अन्विच्छन्नैष्ठिकं कर्म धर्मनैपुणदर्शनात्॥ कृष्णद्वैपायनं व्यासं पुत्रो वैयासकिः शुकः। पप्रच्छ संदेहमिमं छिन्नधर्मार्थसंशयम्॥
Having studied the measureless Vedas with all their branches and the Upanishads, and desirous of leading a life of celibacy on account of his having acquired excellence of religious merit, Shuka put these very questions, about which his doubts had not been removed, to his father Dvipayana, who had removed (by study and contemplation) all doubt regarding true duties.
श्रीशुक उवाच भूतग्रामस्य कर्तारं कालज्ञाने च निश्चयम्। ब्राह्मणस्य च यत् कृत्यं तद् भवान् वक्तुमर्हति॥
Shuka said You should tell me who the Creator is of all beings, as fixed by a knowledge of time, and what the duties are of a Brahmana!
भीष्म उवाच तस्मै प्रोवाच तत् सर्वं पिता पुत्राय पृच्छते। अतीतानागते विद्वान् सर्वज्ञः सर्वधर्मवित्॥
Bhishma said The father, having a knowledge of both the past and the future, conversant with all duties and gifted with omniscience, thus described the subject to his son, who had questioned him.
व्यास उवाच अनाद्यन्तमजं दिव्यमजरं ध्रुवमव्ययम्। अप्रतर्व्यमविज्ञेयं ब्रह्माने सम्प्रवर्तते॥
Vyasa said Only Brahma, who is without beginning without end, unborn, effulgent, above decay, immutable, indestructible, inconceivable and transcending knowledge, exists before the Creation.
काष्ठा निमेषा दश पञ्च चैव त्रिंशत्तु काष्ठा गणयेत् कलां ताम्। त्रिंशत्कलश्चापि भवेन्मुहूर्ता भागः कलाया दशमश्च यः स्यात्॥ त्रिंशन्मुहूर्तं तु भवेदहश्च रात्रिश्च संख्या मुनिभिः प्रणीता। मासः स्मृतो रात्र्यहनी च त्रिंशत् संवत्सरो द्वादशमास उक्तः॥ संवत्सरं द्वे त्वयने वदन्ति संख्याविदो दक्षिणमुत्तरं च॥
The Rishis, measuring time, have given particular names to particular portions. Five and ten winks of the eye make what is called a Kashtha: Thirty Kashthas make what is called a Kala. Thirty Kalas, with the tenth part of a Kala, make a Muhurta. Thirty Muhurtas make up one day and night. Thirty days and nights form a month, and twelve months form a year. Persons well-read in mathematical science say that a year is made up of two solar motions. viz., the northern and the southern.
अहोरात्रे विभजते सूर्यो मानुषलौकिके। रात्रिः स्वमाय भूतानां चेष्टायै कर्मणामहः॥
The sun makes the day and the night for men. The night is for the sleep of all living creatures, and the day is for work.
पित्र्ये रात्र्यहनी मास: प्रविभागस्तयोः पुनः। शुक्लोऽहं कर्मचेष्टायां कृष्णः स्वप्नाय शर्वरी॥
A month of human beings is equal to a day and night of the departed manes. That division consists in this: the light half of the month is their day which is for work; and the dark fortnight is their night for sleep.
दैवे रात्र्यहनी वर्ष प्रविभागस्तयोः पुनः। अहस्तत्रोदगयनं रात्रिः स्याद् दक्षिणायनम्॥
A year (of men) is equal to a day and night to the gods. This division consists in this: the half year for which the sun travels from the vernal to the autumnal equinox is the day of the gods, and the half year for which the sun moves from the latter to the former is their night.
ये ते रात्र्यहनी पूर्व कीर्तिते जीवलौकिके। तयोः संख्याय वर्षाग्रं ब्राह्मे वक्ष्याम्यहःक्षपे॥
Calculating by the days and nights of human beings about which I have told you, I shall speak of the day and night of Brahman and his years also.
पृथक् संवत्सराग्राणि प्रवक्ष्याम्यनुपूर्वशः। कृते त्रेतायुगे चैव द्वापरे च कलौ तथा॥
I shall, in their order, tell you the number of years, that are for different purposes calculated differently, in the Krita, the Treta, the Dvapara, and the Kali Yugas.
चत्वार्याहुः सहस्राणि वर्षाणां तत्कृतं युगम्। तस्य तावच्छती संध्या संध्यांशश्च तथाविधः॥
Four thousand celestial years is the duration of the first or Krita age. The morning of that cycle consists of four hundred years and its evening is of four hundred years.
इतरेषु ससंध्येषु संध्यांशेषु ततस्त्रिषु। एकपादेन हीयन्ते सहस्राणि शतानि च॥
Regarding the other cycles, the duration of each gradually decreases by a quarter in respect of both the principal period with the minor portion and the conjoining portion itself.
एतानि शाश्वताल्लोकान् धारयन्ति सनातनान्। एतद् ब्रह्मविदां तात विदितं ब्रह्म शाश्वतम्॥
These periods always keep up the neverending and eternal worlds. They who know Brahma, O child, regard this as Immutable Brahma.
चतुष्पात् सकलो धर्मः सत्यं चैव कृते युगे। नाधर्मेणागमः कश्चित् परस्तस्य प्रवर्तते॥
In the Krita age all the duties exist in full, along with Truth. Men of that age never acquired knowledge or object through unrighteous or forbidden means.
इतरेष्वागपाद् धर्मः पादशस्त्ववरोप्यते। चौर्यकानृतमायाभिरधर्मश्चोपचीयते॥
In the other cycles duty, as laid down in the Vedas, is seen to gradually decline by a quarter in each. Sinfulness multiplies by theft, untruth, and deception.
अरोगाः सर्वसिद्धार्थाश्चतुर्वर्षशतायुषः। कृते त्रेतायुगे त्वेषां पादशो ह्रसते वयः॥
In the Krita age, all persons are free from disease and achieve their objects, and all live for four hundred years. In the Treta, the period of life decreases by a quarter.
वेदवादाश्चानुयुगं ह्रसन्तीतीह नः श्रुतम्। आयूंषि चाशिषश्चैव वेदस्यैव च यत्फलम्॥
We have heard that, in the succeeding Yugas, the words of the Vedas, the periods of life, the blessings and the fruits of Vedic rites, all decrease gradually.
अन्ये कृतयुगे धर्मास्त्रेतायां द्वापरेऽपरे। अन्ये कलियुगे नृणां युगह्रासानुरूपतः॥
The duties set down for the Krita Yuga are of one kind. Those for the Treta are otherwise. Those for the Dwapara are different. And those for the Kali are otherwise. This is in accordance with the decline which marks every succeeding cycle.
तपः परं कृतयुगे त्रेतायां ज्ञानमुत्तमम्। द्वापरे यज्ञमेवाहुर्दानमेकं कलौ युगे।॥
In the Krita, Penance is the foremost. In the Treta, Knowledge is foremost. In Dvapara, Sacrifice has been said to be the foremost. In the Kali Yuga, only gift is sanctioned.
एता द्वादशसाहस्री युगाख्यां कवयो विदुः। सहस्रपरिवर्तं तद् ब्राह्यं दिवसमुच्यते॥
The learned say that these twelve thousand celestial years from what is celled a cycle. A thousand such cycles form a single day of Brahman.
रात्रिमेतावतीं चैव तदादौ विश्वमीश्वरः। प्रलये ध्यानमाविश्य सुप्त्वा सोऽन्ते विबुद्ध्यते॥
The same is the duration of Brahman's night. With the beginning of Brahman's day the universe begins to come into being. During the period of universal dissolution the Creator sleeps, in Yoga-meditation. When the period of sleep expires, He awakes.
सहस्रयुगपर्यन्तमहर्यब्रह्मणो विदुः। रात्रिं युगसहस्रान्तां तेऽहोरात्रविदो जनाः॥
What is Brahman's day covers a thousand such cycles. His night also covers a thousand similar cycles. They who know this are said to know the day and the night.
प्रतिबुद्धो विकुरुते ब्रह्माक्षय्यं क्षपाक्षये। सृजते च महद्भूतं तस्माद् व्यक्तात्मकं मनः॥
On the expiry of His night, Brahman, waking up modifies the indestructible intelligence by causing it to be overlaid with ignorance. He then causes Consciousness to spring up, whence originates Mind which is at one with the Manifest.