“Narada said.  ’Listen, O mighty-armed king, to this long history, exactly as I have heard it, O monarch!  In the beginning, the Grandsire Brahma created all creatures.  Endued with mighty energy, he saw that the creation bore no signs of decay.  Thereat, O king, the Creator began to think about the destruction of the universe.  Reflecting on the matter, O monarch, the Creator failed to find any means of destruction.  He then became angry, and in consequence of his anger a fire sprang from the sky.  That fire spread in all directions for consuming everything of the universe.  Then heaven, sky, and earth, all became filled with fire.  And thus the Creator began to consume the whole mobile and immobile universe.  Thereby all creatures, mobile and immobile, were destroyed.  Indeed, the mighty Brahma, frightening everything by the force of his wrath, did all this, Then Hara, otherwise called Sthanu or Siva, with matted locks on his head, that Lord of all wanderers of the night, appealed to the divine Brahma, the Lord of the gods.  When Sthanu fell (at Brahma’s feet) from a desire of doing good to all creatures, the Supreme Deity to that greatest of ascetics, blazing with splendour, said, ’What wish of thine shall we accomplish, O thou that deservest to have all thy wishes fulfilled?  O thou that hast been born of our wish!  We shall do all that may be agreeable to thee!  Tell us, O Sthanu, what is thy wish?’”

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“Sthanu said, ’O lord, thou hadst taken great care for creating diverse creatures.  Indeed, creatures of diverse kinds were created and reared by thee.  Those very creatures, again, are now being consumed through thy fire.  Seeing this, I am filled with compassion.  O illustrious lord, be inclined to grace.’

“Brahma said, ’I had no desire of destroying the universe, I desired good of the earth, and it was for this that wrath possessed me.  The goddess Earth, afflicted with the heavy weight of creatures, always urged me for destroying the creatures on her.  Urged by her, I could not however, find any means for the destruction of the infinite creation.  At this wrath possessed me.’

“Rudra said, ’Be inclined to grace.  O lord of the universe, cherish not the wrath for the destruction of creatures.  No more let creatures, immobile and mobile, be destroyed.  Through thy grace, O illustrious one, let the threefold universe, viz., the Future, the Past, and the Present exist.  Thou, O Lord, hadst blazed up with wrath.  From that wrath of thine, a substance like fire sprang into existence, That fire is even now blasting rocks and trees and rivers, and all kinds of herbs and grass.  Indeed, that fire is exterminating the immobile and the mobile universe.  The mobile and the immobile universe is being reduced to ashes.  Be inclined to grace, O illustrious one!  Do not give way to wrath.  Even this is the boon I solicit, All created things, O divine Being, belonging to thee, are being