Two stories of creation of the universe from the Puranas are narrated. The Brahm manifests itself as Brahma, who then proceeds with the work of creation.
The creation of the universe is also described in the Puranas. These descriptions give concrete imagery to the poetry of creation in the Riga Veda and the philosophy of creation in the Upanishads. There are eighteen main Puranas and each one necessarily devotes space to creation. However the description in each of the Puranas is not identical. Two broad themes predominate.
In the beginning the Brahm pervaded the entire universe. When it was time for creation, the Brahm manifested itself as the three supreme gods, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Then water was created and out of the water arose a huge many-headed serpent known as Seshnag. Vishnu took this serpent as his resting place. Vishnu is known as Narayana meaning one who rests on the waters. Next from the waters came a golden egg shining with the brilliance of a thousand suns. Brahma, the Creator, entered the egg and for a thousand years carried on the work of creation within the egg. Brahma is also known as Hiranyagarbha, meaning from the golden womb. After a thousand years the egg hatched into two parts. The upper part was made the heaven and the lower part the earth. The sun emerged from the egg and took its ordained place in the heaven. Since it was the first to emerge it is known as Aditya. The various landforms, rivers, oceans and mountains then followed.
The second version states that in the beginning Vishnu was asleep in an ocean of darkness on Seshnag. At the time of creation the void was filled with the vibrant sound of Om, which caused Vishnu to wake. From Vishnu’s navel grew a magnificent lotus flower on which Brahma was seated. Vishnu commanded Brahma to create the world. Brahma split the lotus flower into three parts. With one he created the heavens, with the second the skies and with the third the earth. He then created the landforms on the earth and populated it with living beings.
There are valid reasons why different versions of narratives exist in the Puranas. For thousands of years these narratives were passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth. At each retelling the narrator made changes either to embellish the tale, or to leave his mark or to give more importance to the deity he favored. This also applied to the creation myths. When the Puranas were compiled in written form instead of reconciling the differences or dropping them, the ancient sages thought it best to preserve the diversity. And that is why Hinduism is a multifaceted religion and this diversity is its strength.
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