"'"Upamanyu said, 'There was in the Krita age, O sire, a Rishi celebrated under the name of Tandi. With great devotion of heart he adored, with the aid of Yoga-meditation, the great God for ten thousand years. Listen to me as I tell the fruit or reward he reaped of such extraordinary devotion. He succeeded in beholding Mahadeva and praised him by uttering some hymns. Thinking, with the aid of his penances, of Him who is the supreme Soul and who is immutable and undeteriorating, Tandi became filled with wonder, and said these words,--"I seek the protection of Him whom the Sankhyas describe and the Yogins think of as the Supreme, the Foremost, the Purusha, the pervader of all things, and the Master of all existent objects, of him who, the learned say, is the cause of both the creation and the destruction of the universe; of him who is superior to all the celestials, the Asuras, and the Munis, of him who has nothing higher, who is unborn, who is the Lord of all things, who has neither beginning nor end, and who is endued with supreme puissance, who is possessed of the highest felicity, and who is effulgent and sinless."--After he had said these words, Tandi beheld before him that ocean of penances, that great Deity who is immutable and undeteriorating, who is without compare, who is inconceivable, who is eternal, and who is without any change, who is indivisible, who is whole, who is Brahma, who transcends all attributes, and who is endued with attributes, who is the highest delight of Yogins, who is without deterioration, who is called Emancipation, who is the refuge of the Mind, of Indra, of Agni, of the god of wind, of the entire universe, and of the Grandsire Brahma; who is incapable of being conceived by the Mind, who is without mutation of any kind, who is pure, who is capable of being apprehended by understanding only and who is immaterial as the Mind; who is difficult of comprehension, who is incapable of being measured, who is difficult of being attained by persons of uncleansed souls, who is the origin of the universe, and who transcends both the universe and the attribute of darkness; who is ancient, who is Purusha, who is possessed of effulgence, and who is higher than the highest. The Rishi Tandi, desirous of beholding Him who making himself endued with life-breaths, resides in what results from it viz., Jiva, in the form of that effulgence which is called the Mind, passed many years in the practice of the severest austerities, and having succeeded in beholding Him as the reward of those penances, he praised the great God in the following terms.
"'"'Tandi said, "Thou art the holiest of holies[77] and the refuge of all, O foremost of all beings endued with intelligence. Thou art the fiercest energy of all kinds of energy. Thou art the austerest penance of all penances. Thou, O puissant one, art the liberal giver of blessings. Thou art the supreme Truth. Salutations to thee, O thou of a thousand rays, and, O refuge of all felicity. Thou art the giver of that Nirvana which, O puissant one, Yatis, standing in fear of birth and death, strive for so hard. The Grandsire Brahma, he of a hundred sacrifices, (viz., Indra) Vishnu, the Viswadevas, the great Rishis, are incapable of comprehending thee and thy real nature. How then can persons like ourselves hope to comprehend thee? From thee flows everything. Upon thee rests everything. Thou art called Kala, thou art called Purusha, thou art called Brahma. Celestial Rishis conversant with the Puranas, say that thou hast three bodies viz., those pertaining to Kalas, those pertaining to Purusha and those pertaining to Brahma or the three forms namely Brahma, Vishnu and Rudra. Thou art Adhi-Purusha, (occupying the physical frame from head to foot) thou art Adhyatma, thou art Adhibhuta, and Adhi-Daivata, thou art Adhi-loka, Adhi-Vijnanam and Adhi-Yajna.[78] Men of wisdom, when they succeed in knowing thee that residest in themselves and that art incapable of being known by the very gods, become freed from all bonds and pass into a state of existence that transcends all sorrow.[79] They that do not wish to know thee, O thou of great puissance, have to undergo innumerable births and deaths. Thou art the door of heaven and of Emancipation. Thou art he that projectest all beings into existence and withdrawest them again into thyself. Thou art the great giver. Thou art heaven, thou art Emancipation, thou art desire (the seed of action). Thou art wrath that inspires creatures. Thou art Sattwa, thou art Rajas, thou art Tamas, thou art the nether regions, and thou art the upper regions. Thou art the Grandsire Brahma, thou art Bhava, thou art Vishnu, thou art Skanda, thou art Indra, thou art Savitri, thou art Yama, thou art Varuna, Soma, thou art Dhatri, thou art Manu, thou art Vidhatri and thou art Kuvera, the Lord of treasures. Thou art Earth, thou art Wind, thou art Water, thou art Agni, thou art Space, thou art Speech, thou art the Understanding, thou art Steadiness, thou art Intelligence, thou art the acts that creatures do, thou art Truth, thou art Falsehood, thou art existent and thou art non-existent. Thou art the senses, thou art that which transcends Prakriti, thou art immutable. Thou art superior to the universe of existent objects, thou art superior to the universe of non-existent objects, thou art capable of being conceived, thou art incapable of being conceived. That which is supreme Brahman, that which is the highest entity, that which is the end of both the Sankhyas and the Yogins, is, without doubt, identical with thee. Verily, rewarded have I been today by thee in consequence of thy granting me a sight of thy form. I have attained the end which the righteous alone attain to. I have been rewarded with that end which is solicited by persons whose understandings have been cleansed by Knowledge. Alas, so long I was steeped in Ignorance; for this long period I was a senseless fool, since I had no knowledge of thee that art the Supreme Deity, thee that art the only eternal Entity as can be only known by all persons endued with wisdom. In course of innumerable lives have I at last succeeded in acquiring that Devotion towards thee in consequence of which thou hast shown thyself to me. O thou that art ever inclined to extend thy grace to those that are devoted to thee, he that succeeds in knowing thee is enable to enjoy immortality. Thou art that which is ever a mystery with the gods, the Asuras, and the ascetics. Brahman is concealed in the cave of the heart. The very ascetics are unable to behold or know Him.[80] Thou art that puissant deity who is the doer of everything and whose face is turned towards every direction. Thou art the Soul of all things, thou seest all things, thou pervadest all things, and thou knowest all things. Thou makest a body for thyself, and bearest that body. Thou art an embodied Being. Thou enjoyest a body, and thou art the refuge of all embodied creatures. Thou art the creator of the life-breaths, thou possessest the life-breaths, thou art one that is endued with life-breaths, thou art the giver of the life-breaths, and thou art the refuge of all beings endued with life-breaths. Thou art that Adhyatma which is the refuge of all righteous persons that are devoted to Yoga-meditation and conversant with the Soul and that are solicitous of avoiding rebirth. Verily, thou art that Supreme Lord who is identical with that refuge. Thou art the giver unto all creatures of whatever ends become theirs, fraught with happiness or misery. Thou art he that ordains all created beings to birth and death. Thou art the puissant Lord who grants success to Rishis crowned with success in respect of the fruition of their wishes. Having created all the worlds beginning with Bhu, together with all the denizens of heaven, that upholdest and cherishest them all, distributing thyself into thy well-known forms numbering Eight.[81] From thee flows everything. Upon thee rests all things. All things, again, disappear in thee. Thou art the sole object that is Eternal. Thou art that region of Truth which is sought by the righteous and regarded by them as the highest. Thou art that cessation of individual existence which Yogins seek. Thou art that Oneness which is sought by persons conversant with the soul. Brahma and the Siddhas expounding the mantras have concealed thee in a cave for preventing the deities and Asuras and human beings from beholding thee.[82] Although thou residest in the heart, yet thou are concealed. Hence, stupefied by thee, deities and Asuras and human beings are all unable to understand thee, O Bhava, truly and in all thy details. Unto those persons that succeed in attaining to thee after having cleansed themselves by devotion, thou showest thyself of thy own accord, O thou that residest in all hearts.[83] By knowing thee one can avoid both death and rebirth. Thou art the highest object of knowledge. By knowing thee no higher object remains for one to know. Thou art the greatest object of acquisition. The person that is truly wise, by acquiring thee, thinks that there is no higher object to acquire. By attaining to thee that art exceedingly subtile and that art the highest object of acquisition, the man of wisdom becomes immortal and immutable. The followers of the Sankhya system, well conversant with their own philosophy and possessing a knowledge of the attributes (of Sattwa, Rajas and Tamas) and of those called the topics of enquiry,--those learned men who transcend the destructible by attaining to a knowledge of the subtile or indestructible--succeed, by knowing thee, in freeing themselves from all bonds. Persons conversant with the Vedas regard thee as the one object of knowledge, which has been expounded in the Vedantas. These men, devoted to the regulation of the breaths, always meditate on thee and at last enter into thee as their highest end. Riding on the car made of Om, those men enter into Maheswara. Of that which is called the Devayana (the path of the deities) thou art the door called Aditya. Thou art again, the door, called Chandramas, of that which is called the Pitriyana (the path of the Pitris).[84] Thou art Kashtha, thou art the points of the horizon, thou art the year, and thou art the Yugas. Thine is the sovereignty of the heavens, thine is the sovereignty of the Earth, thou art the Northern and the Southern declensions. The Grandsire Brahma in days of yore uttered thy praises, O thou that art called Nilarohita (blue and red), by reciting diverse hymns and urged thee to create living creatures. Brahmanas conversant with Richs praise thee by uttering Richs, regarding thee as unattached to all things and as divested of all forms. Adhyaryus, in sacrifices, pour libations, uttering Yajushes the while, in honour of thee that art the sole object of knowledge, according to the three well-known ways.[85] Persons of cleansed understandings, that are conversant with Samans, sing thee with the aid of Samans. Those regenerate persons, again, that are conversant with the Atharvans, hymn thee as Rita, as Truth, as the Highest, and as Brahma. Thou art the highest cause, whence Sacrifice has flowed. Thou art the Lord, and thou art Supreme. The night and day are thy sense of hearing and sense of sight. The fortnights and months are thy head and arms. The seasons are thy energy, penances are thy patience, and the year is thy anus, thighs and feet. Thou art Mrityu, thou art Yama, thou art Hutasana, thou art Kala, thou art endued with speed in respect of destruction, thou art the original cause of Time, and thou art eternal Time. Thou art Chandramas and Aditya, with all the stars and planets and the atmosphere that fills space. Thou art the pole-star, thou art constellation called the seven Rishis, thou art the seven regions beginning with Bhu. Thou art Pradhana and Mahat, thou art Unmanifest, and thou art this world. Thou art the universe beginning with Brahman and ending with the lowest forms of vegetation. Thou art the beginning or original cause of all creatures. Thou art the eight Prakritis.[86] Thou art, again, above the eight Prakritis. Everything that exists, represents a portion of thy divine Self. Thou art that supreme Felicity which is also Eternal. Thou art the end which is attained to by all things. Thou art that highest existence which is sought for by the Righteous. Thou art that state which is freed from every anxiety. Thou art eternal Brahman! Thou art that highest state which constitutes the meditation of persons learned in the scriptures and the Vedantas. Thou art the highest Kashtha, thou art the highest Kala. Thou art the highest Success, and thou art the highest Refuge. Thou art the highest Tranquillity. Thou art the highest cessation of Existence. By attaining to thee, Yogins think that they attain to the highest success that is open to them. Thou art Contentment, thou art Success, thou art the Sruti, and thou art the Smriti. Thou art that Refuge of the Soul after which Yogins strive, and thou art that indestructible Prapti which men of Knowledge pursue. Thou art, without doubt, that End which those persons have in view that are habituated to sacrifices and that pour sacrificial libations, impelled by specific desires, and that make large presents on such occasions. Thou art that high End which is sought for by persons that waste and scorch their bodies with severe penances, with ceaseless recitations, with those rigid vows and fasts that appertain to their tranquil lives, and with other means of self-affliction. O Eternal one, thou art that End which is theirs that are unattached to all things and that have relinquished all acts. Thou, O Eternal one, art that End which is theirs that are desirous of achieving Emancipation from rebirth, that live in dissociation from all enjoyments, and that desire the annihilation of the Prakriti elements. Thou art that high End, O illustrious one, which is indescribable, which is stainless, which is the immutable one, and which is theirs that are devoted to knowledge and science. These are the five Ends that have been declared in the Vedas and the Scriptures and the Puranas. It is through thy grace that persons attain to those Ends, or, if they fail to attain to them, it is through thy grace being denied to them."--It was thus Tandi, who was a vast heap of penances, praised Isana. And he sang also that high Brahman which in ancient days was sung by the Creator himself (in honour of Mahadeva).'
"'"Upamanyu continued, 'Thus praised by that utterer of Brahma, viz., Tandi, Mahadeva that illustrious and puissant Deity, who was accompanied by his spouse Uma, said these words. Tandi had further said,--"Neither Brahma, nor Indra, nor Vishnu, nor the Viswedevas, nor the great Rishis, know thee." Gratified at this, Siva said the following words.'
"'"'The holy one said, "Thou shalt be indestructible and eternal. Thou shalt be freed from all sorrow. Great fame shall be thine. Thou shalt be endued with energy. Spiritual knowledge shall be thine. All the Rishis shall seek thee, and thy son, through my grace, shall become the author of Sutras, O foremost of regenerate persons. What wishes of thine shall I grant today? Tell me, O son, what those objects are which thou desirest."--At this, Tandi joined his hands and said--"O Lord, let my devotion to thee be steady."'
"'"Upamanyu continued, 'Having given unto Tandi these boons and having received the adorations of both the deities and the Rishis, the great Deity disappeared there and then. When the illustrious deity, O lord of the Yadavas, thus disappeared with all his followers, the Rishi came to my asylum and said unto me all that had happened to him. Do thou hear, O foremost of men, all those celebrated names (of Mahadeva) that Tandi said unto me for thy spiritual success. The Grandsire had at one time recited ten thousand names that apply to Mahadeva. In the scriptures, a thousand names occur of that illustrious deity. These names are not known to all. O thou that transcendest destruction, in days of yore, the Grandsire Brahma uttered these names for adoring the high-souled Deity. Having acquired them through the grace of the Grandsire, Tandi communicated them to me!'"'"[87] SECTION XVII "'Vasudeva said, "Concentrating his mind, O Yudhishthira, the regenerate Rishi Upamanyu, with hands joined together in reverence uttered this abstract of names (applying to Mahadeva), commencing from the beginning.
"'"Upamanyu said, 'I shall adore that great Deity who deserves the adorations of all creatures, by uttering those names that are celebrated over all the worlds,--names some of which were uttered by the Grandsire Brahma, some by the Rishis, and some of which occur in the Vedas and the Vedantas. Those names have been applied (unto the great Deity) by persons that are eminent. Those names of him that are, again, true and fraught with success and are capable of accomplishing all the purposes which the utterer may have in view, have been applied unto Mahadeva by Tandi after calling them from the Vedic lore with the aid of his devotion. Indeed, with those names that have been uttered by many well-known persons of righteousness and by ascetics conversant with all the spiritual principles, I shall adore him who is the foremost, who is the first, who leads to heaven, who is ready to confer benefits upon all creatures, and who is auspicious. Those names have been heard everywhere in the universe, having spread from the region of Brahma (where they were originally invented). All of them are fraught with the element of Truth. With those names I shall adore him who is Supreme Brahman, who has been declared (unto the universe) by the Vedas, and who is Eternal. I shall now tell thee, O chief of Bharata's race those names. Do thou hear them with rapt attention. Thou art a devoted worshipper of the Supreme Deity. Do thou worship the illustrious Bhava, distinguishing him above all the deities. And because thou art devoted to him, I shall therefore, recite those names in thy hearing. Mahadeva is Eternal Brahman. Persons endued with Yoga and Yoga's achievements are unable to know in even a hundred years, the glory and puissance of the great Deity in their entirety. Verily, the beginning, middle or end of Mahadeva cannot be apprehended by the very deities. Indeed, when the case is such, who is there O Madhava, that can recite the attributes of Mahadeva in their entirety? For all that, I shall through the grace of that illustrious and supreme Deity of perfect wisdom, extended to me for my devotion to him, recite his attributes as embodied in an abstract of few words and letters. The Supreme Lord is incapable of being adored by any one if he does not grant his permission to the adorer. As regards myself, it is only when I become fortunate enough to receive his permission that I succeed in adoring him. I shall indicate only a few names of that great Deity who is without birth and without destruction, who is the original cause of the universe, who is endued with the highest Soul, and whose origin is unmanifest. Hear, O Krishna, a few names, that were uttered by Brahma himself, of that giver of boons, that adorable deity, that puissant one who has the universe for his form, and who is possessed of supreme wisdom. These names that I shall recite are extracted from the ten thousand names that the great Grandsire had uttered in days of yore, as ghee is extracted from curds. As gold represents the essence of rocky mountains, as honey represents the essence of flowers, as Manda represents the extract from ghee, even so have these names been extracted from and represent the essence of those ten thousand names that were uttered by Grandsire Brahma. This abstract of names is capable of cleansing every sin, however heinous. It possesses the same merit that is attached to the four Vedas. It should be comprehended with attention by spiritual aspirants and engraved on the memory. These names fraught with auspiciousness, leading to advancement, destructive of Rakshasas,[88] and great cleansers should be imparted to only him that is devoted to the great Lord, to him that has faith, to him that believes. Unto him that has no faith, him that is an unbeliever, him that has not subjugated his soul, it should never be communicated. That creature, O Krishna, who cherishes malice towards the illustrious Mahadeva who is the original cause of everything, who is the Supreme Soul, and who is the great Lord, has certainly to go to hell with all his ancestors before and all his children after him. This abstract of names that I shall recite to thee is looked upon as Yoga.[89] This is looked upon as the highest object of meditation. This is that which one should constantly recite as Japya. This is equivalent to Knowledge. This is the highest Mystery. If one, even during his last moments, recites it or hears it recited unto him, one succeeds in attaining to the highest end. This is holy. This is auspicious, this is fraught with every kind of benefit. This is the best of all things. Brahma, the Grandsire of all the universe, having in days of old composed it, assigned to it the foremost place among all excellent hymns. From that time, this hymn to the greatness and glory of the high-souled Mahadeva, which is held in the highest esteem by all the deities, has come to be regarded as the king of all hymns. This king of all hymns was first conveyed from the region of Brahman to heaven, the region of the celestials. Tandi then obtained it from heaven. Hence is it known as the hymn composed by Tandi. From heaven Tandi brought it down on Earth. It is the most auspicious of all auspicious things, and is capable of cleansing the heart from all sins however heinous. O thou of mighty arms, I shall recite to thee that best of all hymns. "This hymn relates to him who is the Veda of the Vedas, and the most ancient of all ancient objects, to him who is the energy of all energies, and the penance of all penances; to him who is the most tranquil of all creatures endued with tranquillity, and who is the splendour of all splendours; to him who is looked upon as the most restrained of all creatures that are restrained, and him who is the intelligence of all creatures endued with intelligence; to him who is looked upon as the deity of all deities, and the Rishi of all Rishis; to him who is regarded as the sacrifice of all sacrifices and the most auspicious of all things fraught with auspiciousness; to him who is the Rudra of all Rudras and the effulgence of all things endued with effulgence; to him who is the Yogin of all Yogins, and the cause of all causes; to him from whom all the worlds start into existence, and unto whom all the worlds return when they cease to exist; to him who is the Soul of all existent creatures, and who is called Hara of immeasurable energy. Hear me recite those thousand and eight names of the great Sarva. Hearing those names, O foremost of all men, thou shalt be crowned with fruition in respect of all thy wishes,--Om! thou art Immobile, thou art Fixed, thou art Puissant, thou art Terrible, thou art Foremost, thou art boon-giving, and thou art Superior.[90] Thou art the Soul of all creatures, thou art celebrated over all creatures, thou art all things, thou art the Creator of all, and thou art Bhava.[91] Thou art the bearer of matted locks on thy head. Thou wearest animal skins for thy vestments. Thou wearest a crest of matted hair on thy head like the peacock. Thou art he who has the whole universe for thy limbs.[92] Thou art the Creator of all things. Thou art Hara in consequence of thy being the destroyer of all things. Thou art he that has eyes resembling those of the gazelle. Thou art the destroyer of all creatures. Thou art the supreme enjoyer of all things. Thou art that Pravritti whence all actions flow. Thou art that Nivritti or abstention from acts. Thou art observant of fasts and vows, thou art Eternal, thou art Unchangeable. Thou art he that residest in crematoria, thou art the possessor of the six well-known attributes of Lordship and the rest, thou residest in the heart of every creature, thou art he that enjoys all things with the senses, thou art the grinder of all sinful creatures.[93] Thou art he that deserves the salutations of all, thou art of great feats, thou art he that has penances for his wealth, thou createst all the elements at thy will, thou concealest thy real nature by putting on the guise of a lunatic. Thou art the Master of all the worlds and of all living creatures. Thou art of immeasurable form, thou art of vast body, thou art of the form of Righteousness, thou art of great fame, thou art of high Soul, thou art the Soul of all creatures, thou hast the universe for thy form.[94] Thou art of vast jaws (for thou swallowest the universe when the time comes for the dissolution of all things). Thou art the protector of all the lokas (the worlds). Thou art the soul residing in the inner heart and as such devoid of ahamkara originating from ignorance[95] and is one and undivided; Thou art anandam (gladness). Thou art he whose car is borne by mules. Thou art he that protects Jiva from the thunderbolt of rebirth. Thou art adorable. Thou art obtained by purity and self-restraint and vows. Thou art again the refuge of all kinds of vows and observances including purity and self-restraint.[96] Thou art the celestial artificer that is conversant with every art. Thou art Self-create (for no one has created thee). Thou art the beginning of all creatures and things. Thou art Hiranyagarbha, the Creator of all things. Thou art inexhaustible puissance and felicity.[97] Thou hast a hundred eyes, thou hast eyes of vast power. Thou art Soma.[98] Thou art he that causest all righteous creatures assume shapes of glory for shining in the firmament. Thou art Chandramas, thou art Surya, thou art the planet Saturn, thou art the descending node (of the moon), thou art the ascending node, thou art Mangala (Mars), and thou art Vrihaspati (Jupiter) and Sukra (Venus), thou art Vudha (Mercury) thou art the worshipper of Atri's wife, thou art he who shot his shaft in wrath at Sacrifice when Sacrifice fled away from him in the form of a deer. Thou art sinless.[99] Thou art possessed of penances that have conferred upon thee the power of creating the universe. Thou art possessed of penances that have rendered thee capable of destroying the universe. Thou art high minded (in consequence of thy great liberality towards thy devotees). Thou fulfillest the wishes of all who resign themselves to thee. Thou art the maker of the year (for it is thou who settest the wheel of Time revolving, by assuming the form of the sun and the planets). Thou art Mantra (in the form of Pranava and other sacred words and syllables). Thou art the authority for all acts (in the form of the Vedas and the scriptures). Thou art the highest Penance. Thou art devoted to Yoga. Thou art he who merges himself in Brahman (by Yoga-abstraction). Thou art the great seed (being the cause of causes). Thou art the displayer of what is unmanifest in the manifest form in which the universe exists. Thou art possessed of infinite might. Thou art he whose seed is gold.[100] Thou art omniscient, (being as thou art all things and the great knower). Thou art the cause of all things. Thou art he that has the seed of action (viz., ignorance and desire) for the means of sojourning from this world to the other and the other to this.[101] Thou hast ten arms. Thou hast winkless eyes (for thou seest at all times). Thou hast a blue throat (in consequence of thy bearing in thy throat the poison that arose upon churning the ocean and which, if not so borne, was capable of destroying the universe). Thou art the Lord of Uma. Thou art the origin of all the infinite forms that occur in the universe. Thou art he whose superiority is due to thyself. Thou art a hero in might (in consequence of thy having achieved such grand feats as the quick destruction of the triple city of the Asuras). Thou art inert matter (which cannot move unless co-existing with the Soul). Thou art all the tattwas (subjects of enquiry as counted by the Sankhyas). Thou art the ordainer and ruler of the tattwas. Thou art the chief of those beings that wait upon thee and are called Ganas.[102] Thou coverest infinite space.[103] Thou art Kama, the God of Desire. Thou art conversant with Mantras (in the sense of knowledge being thy penance).[104] Thou art the highest Mantra for thou art that philosophy which consists in the ascertainment of the nature and attributes of the soul (and its differences from the Non-soul). Thou art the cause of the universe (since all that exists has sprung from thy Soul). Thou art universal destroyer (for all that ceases to exist becomes merged unto thee who art as the unmanifest Brahman). Thou bearest in one of thy hands the calabash, and in another thou holdest the bow; in another hand thou bearest shafts and in another thou bearest a skull. Thou bearest the thunder-bolt. Thou art armed with the hundred-killer.[105] Thou art armed with the sword. Thou wieldest the battle-axe. Thou art armed with the Sula (trident). Thou art adorable. Thou host the sacrificial ladle in one of thy hands. Thou art of beautiful form. Thou art endued with abundant energy. Thou givest in the most liberal measure all that tends to adorn those that are devoted to thee. Thou wearest a turban on thy head. Thou art of beautiful face. Thou art he who swells with splendour and puissance. Thou art he that is humble and modest. Thou art exceedingly tall. Thou art he who has the senses for thy rays.[106] Thou art the greatest of preceptors. Thou art Supreme Brahman (being a state of pure felicitous existence).[107] Thou art he that took the shape of a jackal (for consoling the Brahmana who, when insulted by a wealthy Vaisya, had resolved to commit suicide). Thou art he whose objects are all crowned with fruition, of themselves and without waiting for the puissance (derivable from penances). Thou art one who bears a bald head (as the sign of the mendicant order). Thou art one who does good to all creatures. Thou art unborn. Thou hast innumerable forms. Thou bearest all kinds of fragrance on thy person. The matted locks on thy head had sucked up the river Ganga when it first fell from heaven (although they again gave out the waters at the earnest solicitations of king Bhagiratha). Thou art the giver of sovereignty and lordship.[108] Thou art a Brahmacharin without having ever fallen away from the rigid vow of continence. Thou art distinguished for thy sexual continence. Thou always liest on thy back. Thou hast thy abode in Puissance.[109] Thou hast three matted locks on thy head. Thou art he that is clad in rags. Thou art Rudra (in consequence of thy fierceness). Thou art the celestial generalissimo, and thou art all pervading. Thou art he that moves about during the day. Thou art he that moves about in the night.[110] Thou art of fierce wrath. Thou art possessed of dazzling effulgence (born of Vedic study and penances). Thou art the slayer of the mighty Asura who had come in the form of an infuriate elephant for destroying thy sacred city of Varanasi. Thou art the slayer of such Daityas as become the oppressors of the universe. Thou art Kala or Time which is the universal destroyer. Thou art the supreme ordainer of the universe. Thou art a mine of excellent accomplishments. Thou art of the form of the lion and the tiger. Thou art he that is clad in the skin of an elephant. Thou art the Yogin who deceives Time by transcending its irresistible influence. Thou art the original sound.[111] Thou art the fruition of all desires. Thou art he that is adored in four ways.[112] Thou art a night-wanderer (like Vetala and others). Thou art he that wanders in the company of spirits. Thou art he that wanders in the company of ghostly beings. Thou art the Supreme Lord of even Indra and the other celestials. Thou art he that hast multiplied himself infinitely in the form of all existent and non-existent things. Thou art the upholder of both Mahat and all the innumerable combinations of the five primal elements. Thou art the primeval Ignorance or Tamas that is known by the name of Rahu. Thou art without measure and hence infinite. Thou art the supreme End that is attained by the Emancipate. Thou art fond of dancing. Thou art he that is always engaged in dancing. Thou art he that causes others to dance. Thou art the friend of the universe. Thou art he whose aspect is calm and mild. Thou art endued with penances puissant enough to create and destroy the universe. Thou art he who binds all creatures with the bonds of thy illusion. Thou art he that transcends destruction. Thou art he who dwells on the mount Kailasa. Thou transcendest all bonds and art unattached in respect of all things, like Space. Thou art possessed of a thousand arms. Thou art victory. Thou art that perseverance which is the cause of success or victory. Thou art without idleness or procrastination that interferes with persevering activity. Thou art dauntless. Thou art fear. Thou art he who put a stop to Vali's sacrifice.[113] Thou fulfillest the desires of all thy devotees. Thou art the destroyer of Daksha's sacrifice. Thou art amiable. Thou art slightly amiable. Thou art exceedingly fierce and robbest all creatures of their energy. Thou art the slayer of the Asura Vala. Thou art always cheerful. Thou art of the form of wealth which is coveted by all. Thou hast never been vanquished.[114] There is none more adorable than thou. Thou art he who utters deep roars (in the form of Ocean). Thou art that which is so deep that no one can measure it (because thou art of the form of space). Thou art he whose puissance and the might of whose companions and of the bull have never been measured by anybody. Thou art the tree of the world (whose roots extend upwards and branches hang downwards). Thou art the banian.[115] Thou art he that sleeps on a human leaf when the universe, after dissolution, becomes one infinite expanse of water. Thou art he that shows compassion to all worshippers assuming as thou listest, the form of Hari or Hara or Ganesa or Arka or Agni or Wind, etc. Thou art possessed of teeth that are exceedingly sharp (since thou art competent to chew innumerable worlds even as one munches nuts and swallows them speedily). Thou art of vast dimensions in respect of thy forms. Thou art possessed of a mouth that is vast enough to swallow the universe at once. Thou art he whose troops are adored everywhere.[116] Thou art he who dispelled all the fears of the deities when the prince of elephants had to be captured. Thou art the seed of the universe. Thou art he who has for his vehicle the same bull that forms again the device on his banner in battle. Thou hast Agni for thy soul. Thou art Surya who has green steeds yoked unto his car. Thou art the friend of Jiva. Thou art he that is conversant with the proper time for the accomplishment of all religious acts. Thou art he unto whom Vishnu paid his adorations (for obtaining his celebrated discus). Thou art the sacrifice being in the form of Vishnu. Thou art the ocean. Thou art the Barabanala Mare's head that ranges within the ocean, ceaselessly vomitting fire and drinking the saline waters as if they were sacrificial butter. Thou art Wind, the friend of Agni. Thou art of tranquil soul like the ocean when at rest and unstirred by the mildest breeze. Thou art Agni that drinks the libations of clarified butter poured in sacrifices with the aid of Mantras. Thou art he whom it is difficult to approach. Thou art he whose effulgence spreads over the infinite universe. Thou art ever skilful in battle. Thou art well conversant with the time when one should engage in battle so that victory may be achieved. Thou art that science