Shloka 16
शुकस्य मिथिलागमनम् (Śukasya Mithilāgamanam) — Śuka’s Journey to Mithilā and the Courtly Test
तत: समभवत् सर्वमक्षयाव्ययमत्रणम् । भूतभव्यभविष्याणां स्रष्टारमनघं तथा
tataḥ samabhavat sarvam akṣayāvyayam atraṇam | bhūtabhavyabhaviṣyāṇāṁ sraṣṭāram anaghaṁ tathā ||
Then there remained the all-encompassing Supreme Brahman alone—endless, undecaying, imperishable, and without modification. From that very Reality was brought forth even the sinless Brahmā, the creator who sets in motion the creation of past, present, and future beings.
याज़्वल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The ultimate Reality (Brahman) is changeless, imperishable, and all-inclusive; even the cosmic creator (Brahmā) and the entire flow of time—past, present, and future—depend upon and arise from that Supreme ground.
Yājñavalkya is describing the cosmological hierarchy: after dissolution or beyond manifest change, the Supreme Brahman alone remains, and from it arises Brahmā, who then functions as the creator of beings across time.