असत्य एव कचति स्वप्ने स्वोड्डयनं यथा । इत्यनुत्पन्न एवाऽसौ स्वयंभूः स्वयमुत्थितः ॥ ३८ ॥
asatya ēva kacati svapnē svōḍḍayanaṁ yathā | ityanutpanna ēvā’sau svayaṁbhūḥ svayamutthitaḥ || 38 ||
Translation
As flying through the air in a dream shines forth while unreal, so this Self-born one, unborn, rose up of himself:
Word by word
- asatya
- unreal
- ēva
- while
- kacati
- shines forth
- svapnē
- in a dream
- sva
- one’s own
- uḍḍayanaṁ
- flying
- yathā
- as
- iti
- so
- anutpanna
- unborn
- asau
- this
- svayaṁbhūḥ
- Self-born one
- svayam
- of himself
- utthitaḥ
- rose up
Meaning
The commentary: as in a dream flying through the sky is unreal, so the Supreme Self with a body of mind grows, falsely, in the unreal delusion of the world described; thus this lord of creatures, the Self-born (svayambhū, Brahmā), who never arose before, arose of himself. The name svayambhū, "self-born", is taken at its word: born of no one, and so, in truth, not born.