Upanishads · Gopāla-tāpanī Uttara 107
॥
Devanāgarī
ओम् गोपालाय निजरूपाय
ओम् तत्सद् भूर्भुवः
स्वस्तस्मै वै नमो नमः
Transliteration (IAST)
om gopālāya nijarūpāya
om tatsad bhūrbhuvaḥ
svastasmai vai namo namaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
ओं गोपालायoṁ gopālāyaoṁ, to Gopāla; oṁ, to the Cowherd
निजरूपायnijarūpāyain His own form; having His natural shape
ओं तत् सत्oṁ tat satoṁ, that is the truth; oṁ, that is the real
भूः भुवः स्वःbhūḥ bhuvaḥ svaḥearth, air, heaven; the three worlds
तस्मै वै नमः नमःtasmai vai namaḥ namaḥto Him obeisance and obeisance; to him precisely homage again and again
Translation
Oṁ, to Gopāla in His own form. Oṁ, that is the truth; earth, air, heaven. To Him obeisance and obeisance.
Version
bb68c02d8a62 · published Jul 28, 2026, 2:36:50 PM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The second half of the litany begins: eight invocations to Gopāla, each naming Him in a new relation.
The first is nija-rūpa, "in His own form". The word nija means "one's own, innate": not a shape assumed for a manifestation, but the one that belongs to Him by nature.
This links directly to mantra 38 of the first part, where He is called sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha, and to mantra 53 of the second, where He is "the unmanifest, eternal, infinite Gopāla". Gopāla's own form is His very nature.
The order of the eight invocations is built as an ascent: from the own form — to the soul of primal matter, of the senses, of the elements; then "the highest Puruṣa", "the highest Brahman", "the soul of all beings" and, finally, "beyond waking, dream and deep sleep". The litany is itself a compressed summary of the whole book.
And each time the same name is repeated: Gopāla. However high the description rises, it is the Cowherd who is named.