ॐ रात्री व्यख्यदायती पुरुत्रा देव्यक्षभिः। विश्वा अधि श्रियोऽधित ॥ १ ॥
ōṁ rātrī vyakhyadāyatī purutrā dēvyakṣabhiḥ | viśvā adhi śriyō’dhita || 1 ||
Translation
Om. Night the goddess, as she comes, has looked out in many places with her eyes; she has put on all her splendours.
Word by word
- ōṁ
- sacred syllable
- rātrī
- Night
- vyakhyat
- has looked out, has shone forth
- āyatī
- coming, approaching
- purutrā
- in many places
- dēvī
- the goddess
- akṣabhiḥ
- with her eyes (the stars)
- viśvāḥ
- all
- adhi … adhita
- she has put on
- śriyaḥ
- splendours, glories
Meaning
Night is not an absence but a presence. Her eyes are the stars, watching over every place at once, and the night sky is her array of jewels. The hymn opens by seeing the dark as the Goddess arriving.