Upanishads · Chāndogya 1,2.3
॥
Devanāgarī
अथ ह वाचम् उद्गीथम् उपासाम् चक्रिरे ताम् ह असुराः पाप्मना विविधुः तस्मात् तया उभयम् वदति सत्यम् च अनृतम् च पाप्मना हि एषा विद्धा
Transliteration (IAST)
atha ha vācam udgītham upāsām cakrire tām ha asurāḥ pāpmanā vividhuḥ tasmāt tayā ubhayam vadati satyam ca anṛtam ca pāpmanā hi eṣā viddhā
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
अथathathereupon; then
हhaindeed; surely
वाचम्vācamspeech; the word
उद्गीथम्udgīthamthe udgītha; the exalted chant
उपासाम्upāsāmveneration; the contemplation
चक्रिरेcakrirethey made; they became
ताम्tāmit; that
हhaindeed; surely
असुराःasurāḥthe asuras; the adversaries of the gods
पाप्मनाpāpmanāby sin; by defilement
विविधुःvividhuḥthey pierced; they struck
तस्मात्tasmāttherefore; for that reason
तयाtayāby her; by this
उभयम्ubhayamboth; the double
वदतिvadatisays; utters
सत्यम्satyamtruth; reality
चcaand; as well as
अनृतम्anṛtamfalsehood (an-ṛta); crookedness; untruth
चcaand; as well as
पाप्मनाpāpmanāby sin; by defilement
हिhiindeed; truly
एषाeṣāthis; such is
विद्धाviddhāpierced; stricken through
Translation
Then they began to venerate speech as the udgītha — but the asuras pierced it with evil. Hence with it men speak both truth and falsehood: for it has been pierced with evil.
Version
840814269106 · published Jul 26, 2026, 10:28:09 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The second position is vāc, speech — and the same arrow: tasmāt tayobhayaṁ vadati satyaṁ cānṛtaṁ ca — "hence with it one speaks both truth and falsehood". The capacity to lie is no property of the tongue by design but a battle-wound: speech was made for truth (it is the "ṛc", the sacred verse, of verse 5!), but once pierced it became double-edged.
The Upaniṣad's diagnosis frees us from two false conclusions: speech is not holy of itself (naïve verbalism) nor contemptible (ascetic muteness) — it is wounded, and one deals with it as with a wounded soldier: neither relying on it blindly nor abandoning it. So with every organ: our nature is neither evil nor pure — it is concussed in an ancient war, and the road leads to that one thing in us which the arrow did not reach.