Upanishads · Bṛhadāraṇyaka 1,2.2
॥
Devanāgarī
आपः वा अर्कः तद् यद् अपाम् शरः आसीत् तत् समहन्यत सा पृथिवी अभवत् तस्याम् अश्राम्यत् तस्य श्रान्तस्य तप्तस्य तेजोरसः निरवर्तत अग्निः
Transliteration (IAST)
āpaḥ vā arkaḥ tad yad apām śaraḥ āsīt tat samahanyata sā pṛthivī abhavat tasyām aśrāmyat tasya śrāntasya taptasya tejorasaḥ niravartata agniḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
आपःāpaḥthe waters; the watery element
वाvātruly; surely
अर्कःarkaḥthe arka (arka); the arka; the arka-fire
तद्tadthat; this
यद्yadwhen; that which
अपाम्apāmof the waters; of the water element
शरःśaraḥthe froth (śara — 'cream, film'); the film upon the waters; the froth
आसीत्āsītwas; existed
तत्tatthat; this
समहन्यतsamahanyatait congealed (sam + √han, pass. — 'was churned together'); it curdled; it thickened
साsāshe; that one
पृथिवीpṛthivīthe earth; the earthly world
अभवत्abhavatshe became; arose
तस्याम्tasyāmin it; upon her
अश्राम्यत्aśrāmyathe wore himself out (from √śram); he laboured to weariness; he wearied himself
तस्यtasyait; his
श्रान्तस्यśrāntasyaof the wearied one (śrānta); of the tired one; of the exhausted one
तप्तस्यtaptasyaof the heated one (tapta); of the glowing one; of the heated one
तेजोरसःtejorasaḥthe fiery essence (tejo-rasa — 'the sap of heat'); the sap of heat; the fiery sap
निरवर्ततniravartatait came forth (nir + √vṛt — 'issued out'); it issued; it was given off
अग्निःagniḥfire; Agni
Translation
The waters are the arka. The froth that was upon the waters congealed and became the earth. Upon it he wore himself out; and from him, wearied and heated, his fiery essence came forth — Agni.
Version
bbe1f7698edf · published Jul 27, 2026, 12:37:41 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Creation continues by labour: upon the new-born earth Death "wore himself out" (aśrāmyat) — and out of that tired, heated body the fire came forth like the sweat of the effort. The threefold beat — waters, the congealed froth-earth, the fire pressed out by toil — is familiar from all Vedic cosmogonies, but here the exhaustion is stressed: śrāntasya taptasya, "of the wearied and heated one".
Tapas, the heat of austerity, is written into the foundation of the universe: the world did not simply "turn out"; it was worked out, and every creative labour since repeats that primal gesture: to condense, to wear oneself out, to give off fire. He who labours to the point of heat takes part in the oldest of works; he who puts that heat into sacrifice returns the fire to the place from which it came forth.