Shloka 2

दान-धर्म-आश्रमविधानम्

Dana, Dharma, and the Four Āśramas

Devanagari script

भूगुरुवाच प्रजाविसर्ग विविधं मानसो मनसासृजत्‌ | संरक्षणार्थ भूतानां सृष्ट प्रथणतो जलम्‌

Transliteration

bhṛgur uvāca—prajāvisargaṁ vividhaṁ mānaso manasāsṛjat | saṁrakṣaṇārthaṁ bhūtānāṁ sṛṣṭaṁ prathamataḥ jalam ||

Translation

भृगु ने कहा—उस मानस-प्रभु ने मन के संकल्प से ही नाना प्रकार की प्रजासृष्टि की। प्राणियों के संरक्षण हेतु उन्होंने सबसे पहले जल की सृष्टि की।

Word by Word

• {'bhṛguḥ uvāca': 'Bhṛgu said', 'prajā-visargaḥ': 'the emission/creation of creatures

• progeny-creation', 'vividham': 'variegated

• of many kinds', 'mānasaḥ': 'mental

• produced by the mind', 'manasā': 'by the mind (instrumental)', 'asṛjat': 'created

• brought forth', 'saṁrakṣaṇa-artham': 'for the purpose of protection/preservation', 'bhūtānām': 'of beings/creatures', 'sṛṣṭam': 'created

• brought into existence', 'prathamataḥ': 'first

• at the beginning', 'jalam': 'water'}

Speaker

भरद्वाज उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhṛgu
• Prajā (creatures)
• Bhūta (beings)
• Jala (water)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Creation is presented as purposeful and ethical: the first act includes providing a protective, sustaining basis for life—water—highlighting that governance of the world begins with safeguarding beings.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhṛgu describes an early stage of creation: the mind-born creator produces diverse beings through mental resolve, and then establishes water first as a means to preserve and protect living creatures.