Devanagari
तप्यमानं त्रिभुवनं प्राणायामैधसाग्निना ।
निर्गतेन मुनेर्मूर्ध्न: समीक्ष्य प्रभवस्त्रय: ॥ २१ ॥
Verse text
tapyamānaṁ tri-bhuvanaṁ
prāṇāyāmaidhasāgninā
nirgatena muner mūrdhnaḥ
samīkṣya prabhavas trayaḥ
Synonyms
tapyamānam
—
while practicing austerities
;
tri
—
bhuvanam — the three worlds
;
prāṇāyāma
—
practice by breathing exercise
;
edhasā
—
fuel
;
agninā
—
by the fire
;
nirgatena
—
issuing out
;
muneḥ
—
of the great sage
;
mūrdhnaḥ
—
the top of the head
;
samīkṣya
—
looking over
;
prabhavaḥ trayaḥ
—
the three great gods (Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara) .
Translation
While Atri Muni was engaged in these severe austerities, a blazing fire came out of his head by virtue of his breathing exercise, and that fire was seen by the three principal deities of the three worlds.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Śiva, spreading great fame, seeing that the three worlds, like fuel, were burning because of the fire emanating from the sage’s head by the fire of prāṇāyāma, went to his hermitage along with Gandharvas, Siddhas Vidyādharas and the Nāgas.
The three deities saw the three worlds, fuel for his prāṇāyāma, burn up by the fire of penance coming from the sage’s head. It is understood that he stood there doing prāṇāyāma. This is related the description in verse 19: controlling the mind by prāṇāyāma, he stood there. This is a simultaneous action as when saying “Jingling, the anklet fell off,” or “While closing his eyes, he laughed.”
Purport
According to Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, the fire of
prāṇāyāma
is mental satisfaction. That fire was perceived by the Supersoul, Viṣṇu, and thereby Lord Brahmā and Śiva also perceived it. Atri Muni, by his breathing exercise, concentrated on the Supersoul, or the Lord of the universe. As confirmed in
Bhagavad-gītā,
the Lord of the universe is Vāsudeva (
vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti
), and, by the direction of Vāsudeva, Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva work. Therefore, on the direction of Vāsudeva, both Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva perceived the severe penance adopted by Atri Muni, and thus they were pleased to come down, as stated in the next verse.