Upanishads · Chāndogya 1,8.2
॥
Devanāgarī
तथा इति ह समुपविविशुः सः ह प्रवाहणः जैवलिः उवाच भगवन्तौ अग्रे वदताम् ब्राह्मणयोः वदतोः वाचम् श्रोष्यामि इति
Transliteration (IAST)
tathā iti ha samupaviviśuḥ saḥ ha pravāhaṇaḥ jaivaliḥ uvāca bhagavantau agre vadatām brāhmaṇayoḥ vadatoḥ vācam śroṣyāmi iti
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
तथाtathāthus; so be it
इतिitithus; how
हhaindeed; surely
समुपविविशुःsamupaviviśuḥthey sat down together (sam-upa-√viś, perfect); they seated themselves; they settled down
सःsaḥhe; that one
हhaindeed; surely
प्रवाहणःpravāhaṇaḥPravāhaṇa; the name of a king
जैवलिःjaivaliḥJaivali; the son of Jīvala
उवाचuvācahe said; He spoke
भगवन्तौbhagavantauyou two venerable ones; esteemed sirs
अग्रेagreat the top; at the end
वदताम्vadatāmlet them speak; let them say
ब्राह्मणयोःbrāhmaṇayoḥof the two brāhmaṇas; of the two Veda-knowers
वदतोःvadatoḥas they speak; as they discourse
वाचम्vācamspeech; the word
श्रोष्यामिśroṣyāmiI shall listen (future of √śru); I will hear; I shall hear them out
इतिitithus; how
Translation
"So be it," [they said], and sat down together. Pravāhaṇa Jaivali said: "Speak first, your honours: I shall listen to the speech of two brāhmaṇas conversing."
Version
7dca9d29c2a6 · published Jul 26, 2026, 10:28:09 PM UTC
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A seating with a subtle sense: pravāhaṇo jaivalir uvāca — the prince yields precedence: bhagavantāv agre vadatām — "speak first, your honours": brāhmaṇayor vadator vācaṁ śroṣyāmi — "I shall listen to the speech of two brāhmaṇas".
Courtesy — and strategy: he who listens last speaks deepest (and so it will prove: Pravāhaṇa will enter when both brāhmaṇas are exhausted). A kṣatriya humbly listening to brāhmaṇas in order then to lift them above their own knowledge is a running theme of the Upaniṣads (and in this very Chāndogya, adhyāya 5, that same Pravāhaṇa will teach the brāhmaṇas the doctrine of the five fires, which "had not till then come to the brāhmaṇas"): the spirit breathes where it will, and the rank of one's hearing outweighs the rank of one's speech.