श्रीराम उवाच । कथं ब्रह्मन् भगवतो लोके ज्ञानावतारणे । सर्गस्यानन्तरं बुद्धिः प्रवृत्ता परमेष्ठिनः ॥ ३ ॥
śrīrāma uvāca | kathaṁ brahman bhagavatō lōkē jñānāvatāraṇē | sargasyānantaraṁ buddhiḥ pravṛttā paramēṣṭhinaḥ || 3 ||
- Another reading: सर्गादनन्तरं (sargādanantaraṁ) for सर्गस्यानन्तरं
Translation
Śrī Rāma said: Brahmin, after creation, how was the mind of the Blessed One, the Highest, turned to bringing knowledge down to the world?
Word by word
- śrīrāma
- Śrī Rāma
- uvāca
- said
- kathaṁ
- how
- brahman
- Brahmin
- bhagavatō
- (bhagavataḥ) of the Blessed One
- lōkē
- to the world
- jñāna
- knowledge
- avatāraṇē
- to bringing down
- sargasya
- creation
- anantaraṁ
- after
- buddhiḥ
- the mind
- pravṛttā
- turned
- paramēṣṭhinaḥ
- of the Highest
Meaning
Rāma wants more detail. The commentary explains why. He wishes to learn, through the old account at length, how the ripening of merit is recognised and how the teaching of the goal is passed on. His question assumes the creator's concern had a history, and that is what the following verses give.