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Upanishads · Śāṭyāyanīya 14
॥
Devanāgarī
योगयज्ञः सदैकाग्रभक्त्या सेवा हरेर्गुरोः । अहिंसा तु तपोयज्ञो वाङ्मनःकायकर्मभिः
Transliteration (IAST)
yogayajñaḥ sadaikāgrabhaktyā sevā harerguroḥ | ahiṃsā tu tapoyajño vāṅmanaḥkāyakarmabhiḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
योग-यज्ञः सदाyoga-yajñaḥ sadāthe sacrifice of yoga is the constant
एक-अग्र-भक्त्याeka-agra-bhaktyāone-pointed, devoted
सेवा हरेः गुरोःsevā hareḥ guroḥservice to Hari and the teacher
अ-हिंसा तु तपः-यज्ञःa-hiṃsā tu tapaḥ-yajñaḥharmlessness, however, is the sacrifice of austerity
वाक्-मनः-काय-कर्मभिःvāk-manaḥ-kāya-karmabhiḥby deeds of speech, mind, and body
Translation
"The sacrifice of yoga is constant, one-pointed, devoted service to Hari and the teacher; the sacrifice of austerity is harmlessness — by deeds of speech, mind, and body."
Version
bd21ffcde4ba · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Here is a verse where yoga is defined through service, and it is worth setting this apart. It says: yoga-yajñaḥ sadā ekāgra-bhaktyā sevā hareḥ guroḥ, "the sacrifice of yoga is constant, one-pointed devoted service to Hari and the teacher." That is, the word "yoga" here means not work with the breath and not concentration on emptiness, but service; and its object is named — Hari and the teacher, and moreover both together, in a dual construction.
Let us compare this with the fifth chapter of the Varāha, which we have just read: there yoga was locks, strikes, and the piercing of knots. Here the same word is filled differently; and the difference is not in details but in the very concept. Let us add the word ekāgra, "one-pointed," literally "having a single point."
This is a technical word of yoga and means a state of mind gathered to a single point; and here it is set beside the word bhakti. That is, concentration and devotion are joined into one: the gathering of the mind here is not a technique but a property of the relationship. The Vaiṣṇava side affirms exactly this: the mind is gathered not by effort but by what it has been given to do; and about the dancing girl who remembers her pot not by effort but by habit, it was said when reading the Varāha (2.82).
Let us add that Hari and the teacher are named together and by one service. This position is fundamental in her practice, and it was discussed when reading the Varāha (2.73): the relationship to the teacher is a model for the relationship to the Lord; and so service to them does not split in two.