Mahabharata · Chapter 12.308
kiṃ tadakṣaramityuktaṃ yasmānnāvartate punaḥ /
kiñca tatkṣaramityuktaṃ yasmādāvartate punaḥ //
akṣaradharayorvyaktiṃ pṛcchāmyariniṣūdana /
upalabdhuṃ mahābāho tattvena kurunandana //
tvaṃ hi jñānanidhirviprairucyase vedapāragaiḥ /
ṛṣibhiśca mahābhāgairyatibhiśca mahātmabhiḥ //
śeṣamatyaṃ dinānāṃ te dakṣiṇāyanabhāskare /
āvṛtte bhagavatyarke gantāsi paramāṃ gatim //
tvayi pratigate śreyaḥ kutaḥ śroṣyāmahe vayam /
kuruvaṃśapradīpastvaṃ jñānadīpena dīpyase //
tadetacchrotumicchāmi tvattaḥ kurukulodvaha /
na tṛṣyāmīha rājendra śṛṇvannamṛtamīdṛśam //
bhīṣma uvāca /
atra te vartayiṣyāmi itihāsaṃ purātanam /
vasiṣṭhasya ca saṃvādaṃ karālajanakasya ca //
vasiṣṭhaṃ śreṣṭhamāsīnamṛṣīṇāṃ bhāskaradyutim /
papraccha janako rājā jñānaṃ naiḥśreyasaṃ param //
paramadhyātmakuśalamadhyātmagatiniścayam /
maitrāvaruṇimāsīnamabhivādya kṛtāñjaliḥ //
svakṣaraṃ praśritaṃ vākyaṃ madhuraṃ cāpyanulvaṇam /
papraccharṣivaraṃ rājā karālajanakaḥ purā //
bhagavañśrotumicchāmi paraṃ brahma sanātanam /
yasmānna punarāvṛttimāpnuvanti manīṣiṇaḥ //
yacca tatkṣaramityuktaṃ yatredaṃ kṣarate jagat /
yaccākṣaramiti proktaṃ śivaṃ kṣemyamanāmayam //
vasiṣṭha uvāca /
śrūyatāṃ pṛthivīpāla kṣaratīdaṃ yathā jagat /
yanna kṣarati pūrveṇa yāvatkālena cāpyatha //
yugaṃ dvādaśasāhasraṃ kalpaṃ viddhi caturyugam /
daśakalpaśatāvṛttamahastadbrāhmamucyate //
rātriścaitāvatī rājanyasyānte pratibudhyate /
sṛjatyanantakarmāṇaṃ mahāntaṃ bhūtamagrajam //
mūrtimantamamūrtātmā viśvaṃ śambhuḥ svayambhuvam /
aṇimā laghimā prāptirīśānaṃ jyotiravyayam //
sarvataḥ pāṇipādaṃ tatsarvatokṣiśiromukham /
sarvataḥ śrutimalloke sarvamāvṛtya tiṣṭhati //
hiraṇyagarbho bhagavāneṣa buddhiriti smṛtaḥ /
mahāniti ca yogeṣu viriñciriti cāpyajaḥ //
sāṅkhye ca paṭhyate śāstre nāmabhirbahudhātmakaḥ /
vicitrarūpo viśvātmā ekākṣara iti smṛtaḥ //
vṛtaṃ naikātmakaṃ yena kṛtaṃ trailokyamātmanā /
tathaiva bahurūpatvādviśvarūpa iti smṛtaḥ //
eṣa vai vikriyāpannaḥ sṛjatyātmānamātmanā /
ahankāraṃ mahātejāḥ prajāpatirankṛtam //
avyaktādvyaktamāpannaṃ vidyāsargaṃ vadanti tam /
mahāntaṃ cāpyahankāramavidyāsargameva ca //
aparaśca paraścaiva samutpannau tathaikataḥ /
vidyāvidyeti vikhyāte śrutiśāstrārthacintakaiḥ //
bhūtasargamahankārāttṛtīyaṃ viddhi pārthiva /
ahankāreṣu sarveṣu caturthaṃ viddhi vaikṛtam //
vāyurjyotirathākāśamāpo'tha pṛthivī tathā /
śabdaḥ sparśaśca rūpaṃ ca raso gandhastathaiva ca //
evaṃ yugapadutpannaṃ daśavargamasaṃśayam /
pañcamaṃ viddhi rājendra bhautikaṃ sargamarthavat //
śrotraṃ tvakcakṣuṣī jihvā ghrāṇameva ca pañcamam /
vākca hastau ca pādau ca pāyurmeḍhraṃ tathaiva ca //
buddhīndriyāṇi caitāni tathā karmendriyāṇi ca /
sambhūtānīha yugapanmanasā saha pārthiva //
eṣā tattvacaturviśatsarvākṛtiṣu vartate /
yāṃ jñātvā nābhiśocanti brāhmaṇāstattvadarśinaḥ //
etaddehaṃ samākhyānaṃ trailokye sarvadehiṣu /
veditavyaṃ naraśreṣṭha sadevanaradānave //
sayakṣabhūtagandharve sakinnaramahorage /
sacāraṇapiśāce vai sadevarṣiniśācare //
sadaṃśakīṭamaśakre sapūtikṛmimūṣike /
śuni śvapāke caiṇeye sacāṇḍāle sapulkase //
hastyaśvakharaśārdūle savṛke gavi caiva ha /
yacca mūrtimayaṃ kicitsarvatraitannidarśanam //
jale bhuvi tathā'kāśe nānyatreti viniścayaḥ /
sthānaṃ dehavatāmasti ityevamanuśuśruma //
kṛtsnametāvatastāta kṣarate vyaktasañjñitam /
ahanyahani bhūtātmā tataḥ kṣara iti smṛtaḥ //
etaddhi kṣaramityuktaṃ kṣaratīdaṃ yathā jagat /
jaganmohātmakaṃ prāhuravyaktaṃ vyaktasañjñakam //
mahāṃścaivāgrajo nityametatkṣaranidarśanam /
kathitaṃ te mahārājanyasmānnāvartate punaḥ //
pañcarviśatimo viṣṇurnistattvastattvasañjñitaḥ /
tattvasaṃśrayaṇādetattatvamāhurmanīṣiṇaḥ //
yanmartyamasṛjadvyaktaṃ tattanmūrtyadhitiṣṭhati /
caturviśatimo'vyakto hyamūrtaḥ pañcaviṃśakaḥ //
sa eva hṛdi sarvāsu mūrtiṣvātmāvatiṣṭhate /
cetayaṃścetanānnityaṃ sarvamūrtiramūrtimān //
sarvapratyayadharmiṇyāṃ sa sargaḥ pratyayātmakaḥ /
gocare vartate nityaṃ nirguṇo guṇasañjñite //
evameṣa mahānātmā sargapralayakovidaḥ /
vikurvāṇaḥ prakṛtimānabhimanyatyabuddhimān //
tamaḥ satvarajoyuktastāsu tāsviha yoniṣu /
līyate pratibuddhatvādabuddhajanasevanāt //
sahavāsanivāsātmā nānyo'hamiti manyate /
yo'haṃ sohamiti hyuktvā guṇānevānuvartate //
tamasā tāmasānbhāvānvividhānpratipadyate /
rajasā rājasāṃścaiva sātvikānsatvasaṃśrayāt //
śuklalohitakṛṣṇāni rūpāṇyetāni trīṇi tu /
sarvāṇyetāni rūpāṇi yānīha prākṛtāni vai //
tāmasā nirayaṃ yānti rājasā mānupānatha /
sātvikā devalokāya gacchanti sukhabhāginaḥ //
niṣkaivalyena pāpena tiryagyonimavāpnuyāt /
puṇyapāpena mānuṣyaṃ puṇyenaikena devatāḥ //
evamavyaktaviṣayaṃ kṣaramāhurmanīṣiṇaḥ /
pañcaviṃśatimo yo'yaṃ jñānādeva pravartate //
Original text: Mahābhārata (southern recension) · Edition: Śrīman Mahābhāratam, ed. T. R. Krishnacharya and T. R. Vyasacharya, Nirnaya Sagar Press, Bombay 1906–1910; e-text by SARIT (Shrinivasa Varakhedi and others) · SARIT: Search and Retrieval of Indic Texts · SARIT (e-text) via Internet Archive · CC BY-SA 3.0