Srimad Bhagavatam — Tritiya Skandha, Shloka 15
Brahmā’s Secondary Creation, Kāla (Eternal Time), and the Taxonomy of Species
आद्यस्तु महत: सर्गो गुणवैषम्यमात्मन: । द्वितीयस्त्वहमो यत्र द्रव्यज्ञानक्रियोदय: ॥ १५ ॥
ādyas tu mahataḥ sargo guṇa-vaiṣamyam ātmanaḥ dvitīyas tv ahamo yatra dravya-jñāna-kriyodayaḥ
नौ सृष्टियों में प्रथम महत्तत्त्व की सृष्टि है, जहाँ भगवान् की सन्निधि से गुणों का वैषम्य होता है। दूसरी अहंकार की सृष्टि है, जिससे द्रव्य, ज्ञान और क्रिया का उदय होता है।
The first emanation from the Supreme Lord for material creation is called the mahat-tattva. The interaction of the material modes is the cause of false identification, or the sense that a living being is made of material elements. This false ego is the cause of identifying the body and mind with the soul proper. Material resources and the capacity and knowledge to work are all generated in the second term of creation, after the mahat-tattva. Jñāna indicates the senses which are sources of knowledge, and their controlling deities. Work entails the working organs and their controlling deities. All these are generated in the second creation.
FAQs
In this verse, the Bhagavatam describes mahat-tattva as the first stage of creation, manifesting when the modes of nature become agitated under the Lord’s supervision.
Here, false ego is described as the second creation, and from it arise the foundations for material elements (dravya), the capacity for knowledge (jñāna), and the power of action (kriyā).
It reminds a seeker that material identity and activity arise from ego; by cultivating devotion and self-knowledge, one can detach from ego-based living and align actions with the Supreme.