Chapter 2: Prana is the chief of the powers

अथ हैनं भार्गवो वैदर्भिः पप्रच्छ । भगवन् कत्येव
देवाः प्रजां दिधारयन्ते कतर एतत् प्रकशयन्ते कः
पुनरेषां वरिष्ठ इति

atha hainaṃ bhārgavo vaidarbhiḥ papraccha | bhagavan katyeva
devāḥ prajāṃ didhārayante katara etat prakaśayante kaḥ
punareṣāṃ variṣṭha iti

Then Bhargava of Vidarbha asked him: "Revered sir, how many devas uphold a creature? Which of them make it shine? And which among them is the greatest?"

तस्मै स होवाचाकाशो ह वा एष देवो वायुरग्निरापः
पृथिवी वाङ्मनश्चक्षुः श्रोत्रं च । ते प्रकाश्याभिवदन्ति
वयमेतद्बाणमवष्टभ्य विधारयामः

tasmai sa hovācākāśo ha vā eṣa devo vāyuragnirāpaḥ
pṛthivī vāṅmanaścakṣuḥ śrotraṃ ca | te prakāśyābhivadanti
vayametadbāṇamavaṣṭabhya vidhārayāmaḥ

He answered: Space is that deva, and air, fire, water and earth, speech and mind, eye and ear. Having shown their power, they declared, "We hold up this body and support it."

तान् वरिष्ठः प्राण उवाच । मा मोहमापद्यथ अहमेवैतत्
पञ्चधाऽऽत्मानं प्रविभज्यैतद्बाणमवष्टभ्य
विधारयामीति
तेऽश्रद्दधाना बभूवुः

tān variṣṭhaḥ prāṇa uvāca | mā mohamāpadyatha ahamevaitat
pañcadhā''tmānaṃ pravibhajyaitadbāṇamavaṣṭabhya
vidhārayāmīti
te'śraddadhānā babhūvuḥ

Prana, the greatest, said to them: "Do not fall into delusion. It is I who, dividing myself fivefold, hold up this body and support it." They did not believe him.

सोऽभिमानादूर्ध्वमुत्क्रामत इव तस्मिन्नुत्क्रामत्यथेतरे सर्व
एवोत्क्रामन्ते तस्मि/श्च प्रतिष्ठमाने सर्व एव प्रतिष्ठन्ते ।
तद्यथा मक्षिका मधुकरराजानमुत्क्रामन्तं सर्व एवोत्क्रमन्ते
तस्मि/ष्च प्रत्ष्ठमाने सर्व एव प्रतिष्टन्त एवम्
वाङ्मनष्चक्षुः
श्रोत्रं च ते प्रीताः प्राणं स्तुन्वन्ति

so'bhimānādūrdhvamutkrāmata iva tasminnutkrāmatyathetare sarva
evotkrāmante tasmi/śca pratiṣṭhamāne sarva eva pratiṣṭhante |
tadyathā makṣikā madhukararājānamutkrāmantaṃ sarva evotkramante
tasmi/ṣca pratṣṭhamāne sarva eva pratiṣṭanta evam
vāṅmanaṣcakṣuḥ
śrotraṃ ca te prītāḥ prāṇaṃ stunvanti

In pride, prana seemed to rise up to leave. As he rose, all the others had to rise too; as he settled, all settled. As bees all rise when their king rises and all settle when he settles, so did speech, mind, eye and ear. Pleased, they praised prana.

एषोऽग्निस्तपत्येष सूर्य
एष पर्जन्यो मघवानेष वायुः
एष पृथिवी रयिर्देवः
सदसच्चामृतं च यत्

eṣo'gnistapatyeṣa sūrya
eṣa parjanyo maghavāneṣa vāyuḥ
eṣa pṛthivī rayirdevaḥ
sadasaccāmṛtaṃ ca yat

He burns as fire, he is the sun, he is the rain-cloud, he is Indra the bountiful, he is the wind. He is the earth, rayi, the deva; he is what is and what is not, and that which is deathless.

अरा इव रथनाभौ प्राणे सर्वं प्रतिष्ठितम् ।
ऋचो यजूँषि सामानि यज्ञः क्षत्रं ब्रह्म च

arā iva rathanābhau prāṇe sarvaṃ pratiṣṭhitam |
ṛco yajūm̐ṣi sāmāni yajñaḥ kṣatraṃ brahma ca

As spokes in the hub of a wheel, all is fixed in prana: the Rig, Yajur and Sama verses, the sacrifice, the kshatriya and the brahmana.

प्रजापतिश्चरसि गर्भे त्वमेव प्रतिजायसे ।
तुभ्यं प्राण प्रजास्त्विमा बलिं हरन्ति
यः प्रणैः प्रतितिष्ठसि

prajāpatiścarasi garbhe tvameva pratijāyase |
tubhyaṃ prāṇa prajāstvimā baliṃ haranti
yaḥ praṇaiḥ pratitiṣṭhasi

As Prajapati you move in the womb; it is you who are born again. To you, prana, who dwell with the senses, these creatures bring offerings.

देवानामसि वह्नितमः पितृणां प्रथमा स्वधा ।
ऋषीणां चरितं सत्यमथर्वाङ्गिरसामसि

devānāmasi vahnitamaḥ pitṛṇāṃ prathamā svadhā |
ṛṣīṇāṃ caritaṃ satyamatharvāṅgirasāmasi

You are the best bearer of offerings to the devas, the first offering to the ancestors. You are the true conduct of the rishis, of the Atharvans and Angirasas.

इन्द्रस्त्वं प्राण तेजसा रुद्रोऽसि परिरक्षिता ।
त्वमन्तरिक्षे चरसि सूर्यस्त्वं ज्योतिषां पतिः

indrastvaṃ prāṇa tejasā rudro'si parirakṣitā |
tvamantarikṣe carasi sūryastvaṃ jyotiṣāṃ patiḥ

Prana, by your splendour you are Indra; you are Rudra the protector. You move in the middle air; you are the sun, lord of all lights.

यदा त्वमभिवर्षस्यथेमाः प्राण ते प्रजाः ।
आनन्दरूपास्तिष्ठन्ति कामायान्नं भविष्यतीति

yadā tvamabhivarṣasyathemāḥ prāṇa te prajāḥ |
ānandarūpāstiṣṭhanti kāmāyānnaṃ bhaviṣyatīti

Prana, when you pour down as rain, these your creatures stand full of joy, thinking, "There will be food, as much as we wish."

व्रात्यस्त्वं प्राणैकर्षरत्ता विश्वस्य सत्पतिः ।
वयमाद्यस्य दातारः पिता त्वं मातरिश्व नः

vrātyastvaṃ prāṇaikarṣarattā viśvasya satpatiḥ |
vayamādyasya dātāraḥ pitā tvaṃ mātariśva naḥ

Prana, you are the vratya, pure by nature and needing no rite; you are the Ekarshi fire, the eater of all, the true lord of the universe. We are the givers of your food; you, Matarishvan (the wind), are our father.

या ते तनूर्वाचि प्रतिष्ठिता या श्रोत्रे या च चक्षुषि ।
या च मनसि सन्तता शिवां तां कुरू मोत्क्रमीः

yā te tanūrvāci pratiṣṭhitā yā śrotre yā ca cakṣuṣi |
yā ca manasi santatā śivāṃ tāṃ kurū motkramīḥ

That form of yours which dwells in speech, in the ear and in the eye, and which pervades the mind, make it gracious. Do not go out from us.

प्राणस्येदं वशे सर्वं त्रिदिवे यत् प्रतिष्ठितम् ।
मातेव पुत्रान् रक्षस्व श्रीश्च प्रज्ञां च विधेहि न इति

prāṇasyedaṃ vaśe sarvaṃ tridive yat pratiṣṭhitam |
māteva putrān rakṣasva śrīśca prajñāṃ ca vidhehi na iti

All this is under the sway of prana, and whatever is established in the third heaven. Guard us as a mother guards her sons; grant us prosperity and wisdom.