Upanishads · Chāndogya 4,1.1
॥
Devanāgarī
जानश्रुतिः ह पौत्रायणः श्रद्धादेयः बहुदायी बहुपाक्यः आस सः ह सर्वतः आवसथान् मापयाम् चक्रे सर्वतः एव मे अन्नम् अत्स्यन्ति इति
Transliteration (IAST)
jānaśrutiḥ ha pautrāyaṇaḥ śraddhādeyaḥ bahudāyī bahupākyaḥ āsa saḥ ha sarvataḥ āvasathān māpayām cakre sarvataḥ eva me annam atsyanti iti
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
जानश्रुतिःjānaśrutiḥJānaśruti; King Jānaśruti
हhaindeed; surely
पौत्रायणःpautrāyaṇaḥPautrāyaṇa; a descendant of Putra
श्रद्धादेयःśraddhādeyaḥa giver with faith (śraddhā-deya); one who gives in faith; the believing donor
बहुदायीbahudāyīa lavish giver (bahu-dāyin); generous with gifts; a great bestower
बहुपाक्यःbahupākyaḥone who feeds many (bahu-pākya — 'who cooks much'); feeding abundantly; open-handed with food
आसāsawas; he lived
सःsaḥhe; that one
हhaindeed; surely
सर्वतःsarvataḥeverywhere; from every side
आवसथान्āvasathānthe guest-houses (āvasatha); the shelters; the rest-houses
मापयाम्māpayāmhe had them built; has ordered
चक्रेcakreI have performed; He made
सर्वतःsarvataḥeverywhere; from every side
एवevaindeed; surely
मेmemyself; for me
अन्नम्annamfood; food
अत्स्यन्तिatsyantithey will eat (future of √ad); let them eat; they shall partake
इतिitithus; how
Translation
Jānaśruti Pautrāyaṇa was a giver with faith, a great giver, a great feeder of men. He had rest-houses built everywhere: "Let them eat my food everywhere."
Version
74ef1f61200c · published Jul 26, 2026, 11:10:48 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The fourth adhyāya is the adhyāya of great stories, and the first is of a king and a ragged man. The king's portrait is faultless: śraddhā-deyaḥ — "giving with faith" (not for show!), bahu-dāyī bahu-pākyaḥ — "a great giver, a great feeder": sarvata āvasathān māpayāṁ cakre — "he had rest-houses built everywhere": sarvata eva me 'nnam atsyanti — "let them eat my food everywhere": a benefactor in full flower — sincere, generous, systematic.
The Upaniṣad begins with the best that a man of deeds can be — in order to show the limit of that best: presently the geese of the night will weigh Jānaśruti's glory against the knowledge of a pauper under a cart, and the great feeder will have to learn humility. The story puts the question squarely: what is lacking to a perfect generosity? — and it will lead to the answer through the most humiliating and most fruitful of discoveries: there is someone into whom all my good flows, and I did not know of him.