The king asks a question about the creation of the universe and the sage Suka commences his discourse
Hail, hail to You who foster Your devotees, but are far from the reach (elude the grasp) of those that are destitute of Devotion, and who by virtue of Your divine nature, unequalled and unsurpassed, delight in Your own essence which is known by the name of Brahma (the Absolute). Salutations again and again to that Lord of most auspicious renown, by singing whose praises, by thinking of, seeing, greeting and adoring whom and by hearing whose glory men are cleansed of their impurities at once. Hail, hail to that Lord of most blessed renown, by taking refuge in whose feet the wise shake off from their mind the attachment to this as well as to the other world and attain to the state of Brahma without any exertion. Ascetics and those devoted to charity, men of high repute and those who have controlled their mind and senses, the knowers of the Mantras and men of righteous conduct never attain blessedness without dedicating themselves to His feet. To that Lord of most blessed renown we make obeisance again and again. The Kiratas, the Hunas, the Andhras, the Pulindas, the Pulkasas, the Abhiras, the Kankas, the Yavanas, the Khasas and other sinful races no less than others of sinful conduct are purged of their sins even by taking refuge in those who depend on Him. To that all-powerful Lord we offer our greetings. May that Lord be gracious to me, who is the very Self to the wise and the supreme Lord of His devotees, who is Veda itself (to those devoted to ritual acts), nay, who is Dharma (righteousness) personified (to those given to righteous conduct) and austere penance (to men of askesis), and whose reality is looked upon with wonder by sincere devotees like Brahma, Sankara and others. May that Lord of Sri (the goddess of prosperity and beauty), the Lord of sacrifices, the Lord of all created beings, the Ruler of all intellects, the Lord of the earth, the Protector as well as the asylum of the Andhakas, the Vrsnis and the Satvatas and the Lord of the holy ones be gracious to me. The wise realize the truth of the Self with the help of their reason, purified through Samadhi in the form of meditation on His feet, and describe It according to their own predilection. May that Lord Mukunda (the Bestower of Liberation and Divine Love) be gracious to me. Egged on by Him at the dawn of creation to revive in Brahma's heart the memory of the past cycle, Saraswati (the goddess of wisdom) appeared from the tatter's mouth (in the form of the Vedas) with all her limbs (in the form of Siksa or Phonetics, Grammar and so on). May that Lord, the foremost of the disseminators of wisdom, be propitious to me. Having createdthese bodies out of the five gross elements (viz., earth, water, fire, air and ether) that all-pervading Lord indwells them as the Purusa (the individual soul) and, endowed with sixteen instruments (the five senses of perception, the five organs of action, the five vital airs and the mind) enjoys their sixteen objects. May that Lord lend charm to my expression.. Hail to the omniscient Lord Vedavyasa (who is no other than Lord Vasudeva), from whose lotus-like lips the devotees drink the nectar of wisdom. Questioned by the sage Narada, 0 Pariksit ! Brahma (the self-born), the repository of the Vedas, taught to that sage this very gospel, which Sri Hari Himself had imparted to him earlier.
Thus ends the fourth discourse in Book Two of the
great and glorious Bhagavata-Purana, otherwise
known as the Paramahamsa-Samhita.
