Upanishads Subāla 9.7

Subāla UpaniṣadSubāla 9.7

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Upanishads · Subāla 9.7

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Devanāgarī

हस्तमेवाप्येति यो हस्तमेवास्तमेत्यादातव्यमेवाप्येति य आदातव्यमेवास्तमेतीन्द्रमेवाप्येति य इन्द्रमेवास्तमेत्यमृतामेवाप्येति योऽमृतामेवास्तमेति मुख्यमेवाप्येति यो मुख्यमेवास्तमेति विज्ञानमेवाप्येति तदमृतमभयमशोकमनन्तनिर्बीजमेवाप्येतीति होवाच

Transliteration (IAST)

hastamevāpyeti yo hastamevāstametyādātavyamevāpyeti ya ādātavyamevāstametīndramevāpyeti ya indramevāstametyamṛtāmevāpyeti yo'mṛtāmevāstameti mukhyamevāpyeti yo mukhyamevāstameti vijñānamevāpyeti tadamṛtamabhayamaśokamanantanirbījamevāpyetīti hovāca

Word-by-word

SanskritIASTMeaning

हस्तम् एव अप्येतिhastam eva apyetiinto the hand it enters; to the hand it withdraws

यः हस्तम् एव अस्तम् एतिyaḥ hastam eva astam etithat which sets in the hand; what goes down in the hand

आदातव्यम् एव अप्येतिādātavyam eva apyetiinto the graspable it enters; to what is to be taken it withdraws

यः आदातव्यम् एव अस्तम् एतिyaḥ ādātavyam eva astam etithat which sets in the graspable; what goes down in what is to be taken

इन्द्रम् एव अप्येतिindram eva apyetiinto Indra it enters; to Indra it withdraws

यः इन्द्रम् एव अस्तम् एतिyaḥ indram eva astam etithat which sets in Indra; what goes down in Indra

अमृताम् एव अप्येतिamṛtām eva apyetiinto Amṛtā it enters; to Amṛtā it withdraws

यः अमृताम् एव अस्तम् एतिyaḥ amṛtām eva astam etithat which sets in Amṛtā; what goes down in Amṛtā

मुख्यम् एव अप्येतिmukhyam eva apyetiinto the chief breath it enters; to the chief prāṇa it withdraws

यः मुख्यम् एव अस्तम् एतिyaḥ mukhyam eva astam etithat which sets in the chief breath; what goes down in the chief prāṇa

विज्ञानम् एव अप्येतिvijñānam eva apyetiinto knowledge it enters; to cognition it withdraws

तत् अमृतम् अभयम्tat amṛtam abhayamthat immortal, fearless; it, deathless and unafraid

अशोकम् अनन्तम्aśokam anantamsorrowless, endless; without grief and without limit

निर्बीजम् एव अप्येतिnirbījam eva apyetiinto the seedless it enters; to the seedless it withdraws

इति ह उवाचiti ha uvācaso he said; so he spoke

Translation

Into the hand enters that which sets in the hand; into the graspable enters that which sets in the graspable; into Indra enters that which sets in Indra; into Amṛtā enters that which sets in Amṛtā; into the chief breath enters that which sets in it; into knowledge it enters; and into that immortal, fearless, sorrowless, endless, seedless — into it it enters. So he said.

Commentary

The seventh step: the hand, the graspable, Indra, the channel Amṛtā, the “chief” breath.

Mukhya-prāṇa, “the chief breath”, is the usual name in the Upaniṣads for the prāṇa that presides over the rest; in the third adhyāya of the Kauṣītaki it is this one that raises the lying body. Here it too is named a thing that sets into knowledge.

This is worth keeping. In the Kauṣītaki prāṇa was declared the highest and identified with prajñā: “what is prāṇa, that is prajñā”. Here the order differs: the breath sets into knowledge, and knowledge into the seedless. The two books look from different sides, and both are right: there it was proved that without prāṇa no organ exists; here — that even prāṇa is not the last.

The channel's name is Amṛtā, “the immortal one”. It is joined with Indra and with the hand: with the god of victories and the organ of seizing. The combination is almost ironic — immortality assigned to that with which one grabs.

Version

284976ea0dcd · published Jul 29, 2026, 4:12:03 AM UTC

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