between the substance of Puruṣa and the substance of the universe. In short, Puruṣa is the universe. As important as the various pantheons of Vedic gods are, they emerge after the creation and (in this creation theme) are not in any way the cause of it. In another creation hymn, the Ṛg-Veda declares, Who knows and who can declare it … whence comes this creation? The gods are later than this world’s production. Who knows then when it first came into being? He, the first origin of this creation, whether
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