Upanishads · Gopāla-tāpanī Uttara 7
॥
Devanāgarī
यं मां स्मृत्वाऽगाधा गाधाभवति
यं मां स्मृत्वाऽपूतः पूतोभवति
यं मां स्मृत्वाऽव्रती व्रतीभवति
यं मां स्मृत्वा सकामो निष्कामो भवति
यं मां स्मृत्वाऽश्रोत्रीयः श्रोत्रीयो भवति
Transliteration (IAST)
yaṁ māṁ smṛtvā'gādhā gādhābhavati
yaṁ māṁ smṛtvā'pūtaḥ pūtobhavati
yaṁ māṁ smṛtvā'vratī vratībhavati
yaṁ māṁ smṛtvā sakāmo niṣkāmo bhavati
yaṁ māṁ smṛtvā'śrotrīyaḥ śrotrīyo bhavati
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
यम् माम् स्मृत्वाyam mām smṛtvāremembering Me; by calling Me to mind
अगाधा गाधा भवतिagādhā gādhā bhavatithe bottomless becomes a ford; the deep becomes shallow
अपूतः पूतः भवतिapūtaḥ pūtaḥ bhavatithe impure becomes pure; the uncleansed becomes clean
अव्रती व्रती भवतिavratī vratī bhavatione without a vow becomes vowed; he who took no vow becomes an observer of it
सकामः निष्कामः भवतिsakāmaḥ niṣkāmaḥ bhavatione full of desires becomes desireless; he who has cravings becomes free of them
अश्रोत्रीयः श्रोत्रीयः भवतिaśrotrīyaḥ śrotrīyaḥ bhavatione ignorant of the Veda becomes learned in it; the unlettered becomes a knower
Translation
"For one has only to remember Me, and the bottomless becomes a ford, the impure pure, the unvowed vowed, the desire-ridden desireless, the ignorant of the Veda learned in it."
Version
ca1b0ecc2057 · published Jul 28, 2026, 2:30:24 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Five transformations, and all are built alike: "remembering Me, such a one becomes such". This is one of the most generous passages in all Upaniṣadic literature.
The first is about the river and therefore comes first: "the bottomless becomes a ford". The word agādha means "having no bottom"; gādha, "a shallow, a ford". So the promise of the previous mantra is explained.
The other four are no longer about water. The impure is made pure — what is sought by ablutions and fasting. The unvowed is made vowed — what years of observance confer. The desire-ridden becomes desireless — what all asceticism aims at. One ignorant of the Veda becomes a śrotriya, a knower — what years of study go into.
In other words: remembrance takes the place of the whole ladder of purification. It does not abolish it but accomplishes the same thing at a stroke.
And note the verb: smṛtvā, "having remembered". Not "having understood", not "having earned" — having remembered. Hence the later teaching of smaraṇa, remembrance, as a means available to anyone at any time; these lines will be cited in explaining why the name is stronger than the rite.