Upanishads · Chāndogya 2,9.6
॥
Devanāgarī
अथ यत् ऊर्ध्वम् मध्यंदिनात् प्राक् अपराह्णात् सः प्रतिहारः तत् अस्य गर्भाः अन्वायत्ताः तस्मात् ते प्रतिहृताः न अवपद्यन्ते प्रतिहारभाजिनः हि एतस्य साम्नः
Transliteration (IAST)
atha yat ūrdhvam madhyaṃdināt prāk aparāhṇāt saḥ pratihāraḥ tat asya garbhāḥ anvāyattāḥ tasmāt te pratihṛtāḥ na avapadyante pratihārabhājinaḥ hi etasya sāmnaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
अथathathereupon; then
यत्yatwhich; that which
ऊर्ध्वम्ūrdhvamhigher; further
मध्यंदिनात्madhyaṃdinātafter midday; from the middle of the day
प्राक्prākbefore; earlier
अपराह्णात्aparāhṇāttill late afternoon (aparāhṇa — the afternoon); until the afternoon; until the evening hour
सःsaḥhe; that one
प्रतिहारःpratihāraḥpratihāra; the responding part
तत्tatthat; this
अस्यasyaof this; it
गर्भाःgarbhāḥthe embryos (garbha); the fruits of the womb; the conceived
अन्वायत्ताःanvāyattāḥbound up; dependent
तस्मात्tasmāttherefore; for that reason
तेteto you; for you
प्रतिहृताःpratihṛtāḥthey are held fast (prati-√hṛ); they are taken up; they are caught
नnanot; no
अवपद्यन्तेavapadyantethey fall away (ava-√pad); they drop off; they miscarry
प्रतिहारभाजिनःpratihārabhājinaḥsharers in the pratihāra; having a share in the responding part
हिhiindeed; truly
एतस्यetasyaof this; from this
साम्नःsāmnaḥthe samāna; of the chant
Translation
Now what is after midday and before the late afternoon — that is the pratihāra; with it the embryos are bound up; therefore they are held up and do not fall out: for they have a share in the pratihāra of this sāman.
Version
04831cf7bf6b · published Jul 26, 2026, 10:38:01 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The fifth beat: from midday to the late afternoon is the pratihāra, the "taking-up-and-holding"; tad asya garbhā anvāyattāḥ — "with it the embryos are bound up": tasmāt te pratihṛtā nāvapadyante — "therefore they are taken up (prati-hṛta!) and do not fall out": the play of the root √hṛ is perfect: the pratihāra is the part of holding, and the embryos held in the womb are its partakers.
The sense of the hour runs deep: the afternoon is the time of gestation: the light has begun to wane, but everything conceived in the day is held and ripens: the day has its own hour of pregnancy. So the mystery of invisible ripening is written into the song of the day: not everything in a concord sounds — there is a beat of silent holding, and it stands no lower than the udgītha: without the pratihāra, noon would never become fruit.