nAsad Asin nosad Asit tadAniM
nAsid rAjo no vyomA paro yat
kim AvarIvaH kuha kasya
SArmanambhaH kim aAsid gahanM gabhIram
na mRtyur Asid aMRtaM na tarhi
na rAtryA ahna Asit praketaH
Anid avAtaM svadhayA tad ekaM tasmAd
hAnyan napataH kiM canAsa
Thus begin the famous nAsadIya sUkta (Creation Hymn) of the Rk Veda (X-129) which consist of seven stanzas. There are many English versions of this. None of them can fully convey the grandeur and majesty of the original. Translations of great works, especially by sages and seers, are like pale imitations in papier mache of magnificent sculptures of the masters in marble and granite. But they are worthwhile efforts to convey the essence of the work to those who don't have the benefit of a knowledge of the original language.
HYMN OF CREATION
Not even nothing existed then
No air yet, and no heaven.
Who encased and kept it where?
Was water in the darkness there?
Neither deathlessness nor decay
Nor the rhythm of night and day:
The self-existent, with breath sans air:
That, and that alone was there.
Darkness was in darkness found
Like light-less water all around.
One emerged, with nothing on
It was from heat that this was born.
In it did Desire, its way did find:
The primordial seed, born of mind.
Sages know deep in the heart:
What exists is kin to what does not.
Across the void the cord was thrown,
The place of every thing was known.
Seed-sowers and powers now came by,
Impulse below and force on high.
Who really knows, and who can swear,
How creation arose, when or where!
Even gods came after creation's day,
Who really knows, who can truly say
When and how did creation start?
Did He do it? Or did He not?
Only He up there knows, maybe;
Or perhaps, not even He.
This is as profound a poetic vision of Creation as any in the lore and legacies of humankind. It is remarkable how the rishi in deep meditation reveals to us the glimpse of cosmogenesis that he derived from his own meditation. Many scholars and philosophers have analyzed and commented upon this marvelous reflection which reveals the penetrating power of the seer. What has impresses us here is the subtle skepticism at the end. The enlightened thinker know that when it comes to ultimate questions, none of us can be very sure. So this reflection could be interpreted as saying that when we as mortals make statements about the origin and the end of the universe, or about God and the hereafter, we can never be absolutely certain.
arvAgdevA asya visarjanenAThA
ko veda yata AbabhUva (verse 6)
Even gods came after creation's day,
Who really knows, who can truly say.
ko veda yata AbabhUva (verse 6)
Even gods came after creation's day,
Who really knows, who can truly say.
2 comments:
There is one beautiful persian translation of the hymn, but as Rumi says, "Everyone become my associate from his assumption and no one find my secrets from the inside", original texts can never be translated completely and loyal.
Ya Haqq!
I find this shloka a very powerful one and it virtually takes me to the time (Rgvedic, in fact, much before it would have been written) when some philosophers would be arguing the existence of Srshti's Karta! It definitely points out towards a highly logical society - I could just wish I were there...
This shloka was also the title song of "Bharat Ek Khoj", composed by Vanaraj Bhatiya.
BTW, seeing the mention of persian translation - recently I have found a remarkable similarity between Sanskrit and language used by the Zoroastrians, e.g. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gathas
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