At the bottom of everything there is a magnetic iron, but in the beginning there was nothing, all was emptiness; there was only space. Before there were the heavens, there was no earth, and no sky .....

Through meditation the world serpent Antaboga created the turtle Bedawang, upon whom he coiled two snakes as the foundation of the world. on the world turtle rests a lid, the Black Stone. There is no sun, moon or night in the cave below; this is the underworld, whose gods are the male Batara Kala and the female Setesuyara. There lives also the great serpent Basuki .....

Kala created the light and Mother Earth, over which extends a layer of water. Over this again are consecutive layers or skies, high and low; one of mud (which dried to become the earth and mountains); then the "empty" middle sky (the atmosphere), where Iswara dwells; above this is the floating sky, the clouds, where Semara sits, the god of love. Beyond that follows the "dark"(blue) sky with the sun and the moon, the home of Surya. Next is the perfurned sky, beautiful and full of rare flowers, where dwells the bird Tjak, whose face is like a human face, the serpent Taksaka, who has legs and wings, and the awan snakes, the falling stars. Still higher in the sky is gringseng wayang, the "flaming heaven of the ancestors". And over an the skies live the great gods who keep watch over the heavenly nymphs.

After Siwa had created the insects, Wisnu the trees, Iswara the fruits, and Sambu the flowers, Batara Guru discussed with Brahma the creation of human beings to populate the new world, Brahma admitted that he did not know bow and asked Batara Guru to try first. The latter made four figures, four men out of red earth, and went into meditation so that they would talk, think, walk and work. Brahma remarked that if those were human beings then he could make men, and taking some clay, he proceeded to make a figure that resembled a man. Batara Guru was annoyed, and made the rain, which lasted for three days, destroying the figure Brahma had made. When the rain had stopped, Brahma tried again, this time baking the.figure. On seeing the man baked of clay, Batara Guru boasted that he would eat excrement if Brahma could give it life; but Brahma succeeded in making it live by meditation and demanded that Batara Guru make good his boast. Batara Guru took some clay and made images of dogs that became living dogs, and wished that forever after they should walk, whine, bark and eat excrement. 

After the world, the mountains, and the cardinal directions were created, and there were trees, fruits, flowers and four human beings made out of red earth, provided with utensils to work and houses to live in, Batara Siwa, the Supreme Lord next made four mature girls, wives for the four men. The god of love, Batara Semara, made mating a pleasure so that the women would be fertilized and eventually the four couples had many children 117 boys and 118 girls who grew, became adolescent, married, and had children.

An Excerpt from the Tjatur Yoga,
a Balinese version of legends of the creation of man and the universe.