सः यः अन्नं ब्रह्म इति उपास्ते अन्नवतो वै सः लोकान् पानवतो अभिसिध्यति यावत् अन्नस्य गतम् तत्र अस्य यथाकामचारः भवति यः अन्नं ब्रह्म इति उपास्ते अस्ति भगवः अन्नाद् भूयः इति अन्नाद् वाव भूयः अस्ति इति तत् मे भगवान् ब्रवीतु इति
saḥ yaḥ annaṃ brahma iti upāste annavato vai saḥ lokān pānavato abhisidhyati yāvat annasya gatam tatra asya yathākāmacāraḥ bhavati yaḥ annaṃ brahma iti upāste asti bhagavaḥ annād bhūyaḥ iti annād vāva bhūyaḥ asti iti tat me bhagavān bravītu iti
He who venerates food as Brahman attains worlds rich in food and drink, and is free to move as he wishes everywhere that food reaches." — "Sir, is there anything greater than food?" — "There is something greater than food." — "Tell it to me, sir."
9c489ada1cca · published Jul 26, 2026, 11:45:28 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The ninth rung's reward is filling and simple: worlds where there is no hunger and no thirst. For most of humanity in every age this has been paradise; the Upaniṣad does not look down on such a dream — it includes it in the ladder.
But bread does not grow of itself: behind it stand the waters. Nārada, whose question is by now honed to an ascetic's reflex, climbs further — from the fruit to the moisture that bore it.