Devanagari
सृजतो मे क्षितिर्वार्भि:प्लाव्यमाना रसां गता ।
अथात्र किमनुष्ठेयमस्माभि: सर्गयोजितै: ।
यस्याहं हृदयादासं स ईशो विदधातु मे ॥ १७ ॥
Verse text
sṛjato me kṣitir vārbhiḥ
plāvyamānā rasāṁ gatā
athātra kim anuṣṭheyam
asmābhiḥ sarga-yojitaiḥ
yasyāhaṁ hṛdayād āsaṁ
sa īśo vidadhātu me
Synonyms
sṛjataḥ
—
while engaged in creation
;
me
—
of me
;
kṣitiḥ
—
the earth
;
vārbhiḥ
—
by the water
;
plāvyamānā
—
being inundated
;
rasām
—
depth of water
;
gatā
—
gone down
;
atha
—
therefore
;
atra
—
in this matter
;
kim
—
what
;
anuṣṭheyam
—
is right to be attempted
;
asmābhiḥ
—
by us
;
sarga
—
creation
;
yojitaiḥ
—
engaged in
;
yasya
—
the one from whose
;
aham
—
I
;
hṛdayāt
—
from the heart
;
āsam
—
born
;
saḥ
—
He
;
īśaḥ
—
the Lord
;
vidadhātu
—
may direct
;
me
—
unto me .
Translation
Brahmā thought: While I have been engaged in the process of creation, the earth has been inundated by a deluge and has gone down into the depths of the ocean. What can we do who are engaged in this matter of creation? It is best to let the Almighty Lord direct us.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
While I created the living beings, the earth sunk in the Garbhodaka Ocean. Though I have been engaged to create, what should I do now? May the Lord from whose navel I arose perform this task!
Rasām refers to Rasātala. It actually means the general direction of Rasātala, the Garbhodaka Ocean. There would be a contradiction in saying that the earth was situated in Rasātala since it also said elsewhere that the earth was submerged in water. May the Lord perform this task (vidadhātu)!
Purport
The devotees of the Lord, who are all confidential servitors, are sometimes perplexed in the discharge of their respective duties, but they are never discouraged. They have full faith in the Lord, and He paves the way for the smooth progress of the devotee’s duty.