Upanishads · Śvetāśvatara 6.16
॥
Devanāgarī
स विश्वकृद् विश्वविद् आत्मयोनिर् ज्ञः कालकालो गुणी सर्वविद्यः ।
प्रधानक्षेत्रज्ञपतिर् गुणेशः संसारमोक्षस्थितिबन्धहेतुः
Transliteration (IAST)
sa viśvakṛd viśvavid ātmayonir jñaḥ kālakālo guṇī sarvavidyaḥ /
pradhānakṣetrajñapatir guṇeśaḥ saṃsāramokṣasthitibandhahetuḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
सः विश्वकृत्saḥ viśvakṛtHe is the maker of all; the creator of the universe
विश्ववित्viśvavitknower of all; who knows everything
आत्मयोनिःātmayoniḥHis own womb; His own source
ज्ञःjñaḥthe Knower; the conscious one
कालकालःkālakālaḥthe Time of time; master of time itself
गुणीguṇīpossessor of qualities; having excellences
सर्वविद्यःsarvavidyaḥall-knowing; knowing every science
प्रधानक्षेत्रज्ञपतिःpradhānakṣetrajñapatiḥlord of pradhāna and of the knower of the field; master of nature and of the soul
गुणेशःguṇeśaḥlord of the guṇas; ruler of the qualities of nature
संसारमोक्षस्थितिबन्धहेतुःsaṃsāramokṣasthitibandhahetuḥthe cause of saṁsāra, liberation, continuance and bondage; the source of the round, of freedom, of standing and of being bound
Translation
He is the maker of all and the knower of all, His own source; the Knower, the Time of time, possessor of qualities, all-knowing; lord of pradhāna and of the knower of the field, lord of the guṇas; the cause of the round, of liberation, of continuance in it and of the bonds themselves.
Version
1c53c5e48482 · published Jul 28, 2026, 2:13:46 PM UTC
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The mantra gathers almost all the names given in this Upaniṣad into one bundle — as a summing up is made.
One stands out: ātma-yoni, "His own womb": everything has a source, and His source is Himself. This answers the question of 1.1 about the cause: the chain does not run off into infinity and does not end in an impersonal principle.
The middle gives the formula of the two subject principles: pradhāna-kṣetrajña-pati — "lord of pradhāna and of the knower of the field", that is, of nature and of the soul. These are the very two of 1.9, and He is the third, standing above both.
But the strongest thing is the last compound, where four things are listed at once: saṁsāra, mokṣa, sthiti and bandha — the round, liberation, continuance and bonds. And for all four one cause is named: He.
This assertion troubles many: how can He who liberates be the cause of the bonds? The Upaniṣad's answer is not a justification but an order of things: only one master can bind and unbind. The same move of thought lies at the foundation of Vedānta, where it is said that from Him come both the soul's bondage and its freedom; and in the prayer at 3.6, where the request was not to take the arrow away but to turn it to good.
The practical conclusion is simple: in trouble, go not to another but to the Same.