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Upanishads · Gāruḍa 1.9
॥
Devanāgarī
एवं ध्यायेत्त्रिसन्ध्यासु गरुडं नागभूषणम् । विषं नाशयते शीघ्रं तूलरशिमिवानलः
Transliteration (IAST)
evaṃ dhyāyettrisandhyāsu garuḍaṃ nāgabhūṣaṇam | viṣaṃ nāśayate śīghraṃ tūlaraśimivānalaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
एवं ध्यायेत्evaṃ dhyāyetthus let him contemplate
त्रि-सन्ध्यासुtri-sandhyāsuthree times a day
गरुडं नाग-भूषणम्garuḍaṃ nāga-bhūṣaṇamGaruḍa, adorned with nāgas
विषं नाशयते शीघ्रंviṣaṃ nāśayate śīghraṃthe poison is destroyed swiftly
तूल-रशिम् इव अनलःtūla-raśim iva analaḥlike fire [destroys] a heap of cotton
Translation
«Thus let him contemplate Garuḍa, adorned with nāgas, three times a day; and the poison is destroyed swiftly, like fire [destroys] a heap of cotton».
Version
c572b6f0427b · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The contemplation ends, and a comparison is given: the poison perishes, tūla-rāśim iva analaḥ, “as fire [destroys] a heap of cotton.” The comparison is precise and deserves note: cotton burns instantly and without remainder, and nothing is left of the heap. This image is constant in Indian literature and is usually applied not to poison, but to sin.
The Bhagavad-gītā says: yathaidhāṃsi samiddho'gnir bhasma-sāt kurute'rjuna; jñānāgniḥ sarva-karmāṇi bhasma-sāt kurute tathā (4.37). Translation: “as a kindled fire reduces wood to ashes, so the fire of knowledge reduces all deeds to ashes.” Note that there the comparison is with wood, and here with cotton; and the difference is not empty.
Wood burns long and leaves embers; cotton flares up and leaves nothing. That is, the comparison here is stronger; and it is chosen because, at a snakebite, time is counted in minutes, and slow burning will not do. Let us add what must be repeated, having reached the end of the contemplation: this comparison is beautiful, but not real.
Snake venom does not burn away from contemplation, and one who has been bitten needs antivenom. We said this at the first passage and repeat it here, for this verse promises directly and could easily be taken on faith by one who, at such a moment, has no time to examine it.