Upanishads · Gopāla-tāpanī Uttara 111
॥
Devanāgarī
ओम् योऽसावुत्तम पुरुषो गोपालः
ओम् तत्सद् भूर्भुवः
स्वस्तस्मै वै नमो नमः
Transliteration (IAST)
om yo'sāvuttama puruṣo gopālaḥ
om tatsad bhūrbhuvaḥ
svastasmai vai namo namaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
ओं यः असौoṁ yaḥ asauoṁ, He who; oṁ, the one who
उत्तम पुरुषः गोपालःuttama puruṣaḥ gopālaḥis Gopāla, the highest Puruṣa; Gopāla, the best Person
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, that Gopāla who is the highest Puruṣa. Oṁ, that is the truth; earth, air, heaven. To Him obeisance and obeisance.
Version
b9759511ad62 · published Jul 28, 2026, 2:36:50 PM UTC
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The fifth invocation names Him uttama-puruṣa — "the highest Puruṣa", the Best Person.
The word is technical in Vedānta. A distinction is drawn between the "perishable person" — the aggregate of beings, the "imperishable" — the liberated souls, and the Puruṣottama, the highest, distinct from both. The Gītā speaks of this outright in its chapter on the Supreme Person.
Here this same name is applied to Gopāla — and it is one of the book's weightiest assertions: the Cowherd of Vṛndāvana is called not one of the persons but the One above whom there is none.
The neighbourhood with the previous invocations is telling. He has just been called the soul of primal matter, of the senses and of the elements — that is, He who is within the world; now He who is above all persons.
The next invocation will call Him the highest Brahman and thereby complete the ascent.