Bhashya
स होवाच प्रजापतिरित्यनुषज्योत्तरम् ।यस्माच्छब्दोपादानात्स्वमहिम्नेत्यनुषङ्गः ।यस्मात्स्वमहिम्ना यस्य मूलनृसिंहव्यूहस्वरूपं साङ्गं शिखाङ्गयुक्तं मौलिप्रदेशे चान्द्रतेजोराशियुक्तं सामाङ्गयजुर्लक्ष्मीमन्त्रव्याख्यातं भूर्भुवःस्वर्महर्लोकचतुष्टयसंपिण्डिततेजोराशियुक्तम् अप्रधृष्यतेजोमयं रूपं दृष्ट्वा सर्वे देवास्तदङ्गशुनिवासिनो वसुरुद्रादित्याः सर्वाणि भूतानीमानि भीत्या भयेन पलायन्तेपलायनं कुर्वन्ति, स्वयं देवः यस्मात्कस्मादपि न बिभेति निरतिशयाभयगुणविशिष्ट उपास्यः ।एवम् उक्तोपास्ये भीषणपदं व्याख्याय तदेव पदं द्वितीये व्यूहे कृत्वा व्याचष्टे-भीषेत्यादि ।भीषा भीत्या अस्मान्मूलव्यूहात् वातः वायुः पवते वाति ।वातपदोपादानात् पञ्चमहाभूतव्यूहः उपलक्षितः ।भीषोदेति सूर्यः इति सोमसूर्यव्यूहौ उपलक्षितौ ।भीषास्मादग्निश्च इत्याग्नेयो व्यूहः ।इन्द्रश्चेति सर्वव्यूहः ।मृत्युर्धावति पञ्चम इति मृत्युव्यूहः ।तत्र अस्यामृचि यद्यपि पञ्चानां व्यूहानामुपादानम्, तथापि तदादिन्यायेन सर्वसंकलनतया भियो दर्शनात् वातादित्यादीनां स्वस्वरूपेण भयदर्शनमुखेन सर्वेषां ब्रह्मादीनां संग्रहात् भयाभावरूपस्य नृसिंहस्य प्रवेशनेन वा तत्तद्रूपधारणेन वा उभयरूपतेति, द्विरूपत्वमस्ति सर्वेषाम् ।तत्र एकैकस्य देवस्य तत्तद्रूपधारणेन उभयरूपं दर्शयन् भूतानां देवानां च स्वान्तर्भावेन उभयरूपं प्रदर्शयति ।इत्युभयरूपेण सर्वं द्वात्रिंशद्व्यूहं सगृह्णातीयमृगिति तत्त्वार्थः ।यस्मादेवमुभयोपास्ये भीषणपदं व्याख्यातं तस्मादित्युपसंहरति- तस्मादुच्यते भीषणमिति ।
In plain words
'He, Prajāpati, then said' carries forward once more as the answer, and because the word 'since' appears, 'by his own greatness' carries forward with it. Because, by his own greatness — seeing this form, the root shape of Nṛsiṃha entire with all its limbs, crowned with a crest, wearing a mass of moonlight at the top of the head, the very form the Sāma-limb Yajus mantra to Lakṣmī explains, carrying within it the compressed brilliance of all four worlds, a shape blazing with a light nothing can overpower — every god who lives close to him, the Vasus, the Rudras, the Ādityas, every being there is, runs from him in sheer terror. And he himself fears nothing at all — that is exactly why he is worshipped as fearlessness with no equal. Having explained the word terrifying for that first meditation, the text now takes the same word for the second form and opens it with 'out of fear...' Out of fear means simply that: from this root form, the wind blows. Naming the wind quietly brings in the whole array of the five elements alongside it. 'Out of fear the sun rises' brings in the moon and the sun together. 'And out of fear, fire' brings in the fire form. 'And Indra' brings in the whole company of the gods. 'And death, running, fifth' brings in the form of death itself. Only five are named in this verse, but the same rule holds — what is true of the first is true of the rest — because fear is shown running through all of them at once: wind, sun, and the others each display it in their own shape, and through that display every god from Brahmā on down is drawn in. And whether Nṛsiṃha, who is fearlessness itself, has entered into them, or has simply taken their shapes, either way each one now carries two natures at once. By taking on the shape of each single god in turn and showing that double nature, the text shows beings and gods both folded inside him, carrying his double nature too. In this way, through that double nature, one verse holds the entire set of thirty-two forms — that is the heart of it. And because the word terrifying has now been explained for both meditations, the text closes with: 'That is why it says, terrifying.'
Close to the Sanskrit
'He, Prajāpati, then said' — supplied from before — is the answer. Because of the use of the word 'yasmāt' (because), [the phrase] 'by his own greatness' is understood by continuation. Because, by his own greatness, having seen the form of him whose true nature as the root Nṛsiṃha-vyūha, together with its limbs, endowed with a crest-limb, endowed with a mass of lunar radiance in the crown region, explained by the Sāma-limb Yajus Lakṣmī mantra, endowed with a mass of radiance condensed from the four worlds Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ, Svaḥ, and Mahar — a form full of unassailable radiance — all the gods dwelling in [the vicinity of] his limbs, the Vasus, Rudras, and Ādityas, and all these beings, flee in fear, out of terror; [while] the deity himself, since he fears nothing whatsoever, is to be meditated upon as endowed with the quality of unsurpassed fearlessness. Thus, having explained the word 'bhīṣaṇam' in the stated object of meditation, taking that same word with reference to the second vyūha, he explains it beginning with 'bhīṣā,' etc. 'Bhīṣā' means 'out of fear'; from this root vyūha, the wind blows. By the mention of the word 'wind,' the vyūha of the five great elements is indicated by implication. 'Out of fear the sun rises' — thereby the vyūhas of the moon and sun are indicated. 'And out of fear fire [burns] from this one' — thereby the fire-vyūha [is indicated]. 'And Indra [too]' — thereby the vyūha of all [the gods, represented by Indra, is indicated]. 'Death runs, the fifth' — thereby the death-vyūha [is indicated]. There, in this verse, although only five vyūhas are mentioned, nevertheless, by the maxim of the first standing for all, since fear is exhibited by all of them taken together, by way of the display of fear in the respective forms of wind, sun, and so on, all the gods beginning with Brahmā are comprehended; and, whether by the entering-in of Nṛsiṃha — who is of the nature of the absence of fear — or by his assuming those respective forms, either way there is a two-fold nature; all of them possess a two-fold form. There, showing the two-fold form by [Nṛsiṃha's] assuming the respective form of each single deity, [the text] displays the two-fold form of beings and gods by [showing them] included within himself. Thus, by means of the two-fold form, this verse comprehends the entire set of thirty-two vyūhas — this is the essential meaning. Since thus, in [reference to] the object of meditation of both, the word 'bhīṣaṇam' has been explained, therefore he concludes: 'Therefore it is said, "bhīṣaṇam."'