Text 22]
The Process of Creation
213
pracoditā —inspired;  yena —by whom;  purā —in the beginning of creation;  sarasvatī —the godless of learning;  vitanvatā —amplified;  ajasya —of Brahmā, the first created living being;  satīm smṛtim —potent memory;  hṛdi —in the heart;  sva —in his own;  lakṣaṇā —aiming at;  prādurabhūt —became generated;  kila —as if:  āsyataḥ —from the mouth;  saḥ —he;  me —unto me;  ṛṣīṇām —of the teachers;  ṛṣabhaḥ —the chief;  prasīdatām —be pleased.
TRANSLATION
May the Lord, who in the beginning of the creation amplified the potent knowledge of Brahmā from within his heart and inspired him with full knowledge of creation and of His own Self, and who appeared to be generated from the mouth of Brahmā, be pleased upon me.
PURPORT
As we have already discussed hereinbefore, the Lord, as the Supersoul of all living beings from Brahmā to the insignificant ant, endows all with the required knowledge potent in every living being. A living being is sufficiently potent to possess knowledge from the Lord in the proportion of 50/64, or 78% of the full knowledge acquirable. The living being, being constitutionally part and parcel of the Lord, is unable to assimilate all the knowledge that the Lord possesses Himself. In the conditioned state, the living being is subject to forget everything after a change of body known as death. This potent knowledge is again inspired by the Lord from within the heart of every living being, and it is known as the awakening of knowledge, for it is comparable to awakening from sleep or unconsciousness. This awakening of knowledge is under full control of the Lord, and therefore we find in the practical world different grades of knowledge in different persons. This awakening of knowledge is neither an automatic nor a material interaction. The supply source is the Lord Himself ( dhiyām patiḥ ), for even Brahmā is also subjected to this regulation of the supreme creator. In the beginning of the creation, Brahmā is born first without any father and mother because before Brahmā there were no other living beings. Brahmā is born from the lotus which grows from the abdomen of the Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, and therefore he is known as  Aja . This Brahmā or Aja is also a living being, part and parcel of the Lord, but being the most pious devotee of the Lord, Brahmā is inspired by the Lord to create, subsequent to the main creation by the Lord, through the agency of material nature. Therefore neither the material nature nor Brahmā is