Srimad Bhagavatam — Tritiya Skandha, Shloka 33
Brahmā’s Creation: The Kumāras, Rudra, the Prajāpatis, and the Manifestation of Vedic Sound
स इत्थं गृणत: पुत्रान् पुरो दृष्ट्वा प्रजापतीन् । प्रजापतिपतिस्तन्वं तत्याज व्रीडितस्तदा । तां दिशो जगृहुर्घोरां नीहारं यद्विदुस्तम: ॥ ३३ ॥
sa itthaṁ gṛṇataḥ putrān puro dṛṣṭvā prajāpatīn prajāpati-patis tanvaṁ tatyāja vrīḍitas tadā tāṁ diśo jagṛhur ghorāṁ nīhāraṁ yad vidus tamaḥ
The father of all Prajāpatis, Brahmā, thus seeing all his Prajāpati sons speaking in that way, became very much ashamed and at once gave up the body he had accepted. Later that body appeared in all directions as the dangerous fog in darkness.
The best way to compensate for one’s sinful acts is to give up one’s body at once, and Brahmā, the leader of the living entities, showed this by his personal example. Brahmā has a fabulous duration of life, but he was obliged to give up his body due to his grievous sin, even though he had merely contemplated it in his mind without having actually done it.
FAQs
In this verse, darkness (tamas), compared to a spreading mist, is described as arising when Brahmā—ashamed—abandons a particular body, which is then taken up by the fearful directions.
Brahmā became ashamed (vrīḍitaḥ) upon seeing his sons, the Prajāpatis, praising him before him, and therefore he relinquished that body at that time.
It highlights how shame and inner disturbance can produce “darkness” in consciousness; cultivating sattva through devotion, humility, and self-control helps dispel tamas and restore clarity.