Upanishads · Rāma-tāpanī Pūrva 1.4
॥
Devanāgarī
प्रभाहीनांस्तथा कृत्वा राज्यार्हाणां महीभृताम् । धर्ममार्गं चरित्रेण ज्ञानमार्गं च नामतः
Transliteration (IAST)
prabhāhīnāṃstathā kṛtvā rājyārhāṇāṃ mahībhṛtām | dharmamārgaṃ caritreṇa jñānamārgaṃ ca nāmataḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
प्रभाहीनान् तथा कृत्वाprabhāhīnān tathā kṛtvāhaving thus stripped them of lustre; having made them powerless
राज्यार्हाणाम् महीभृताम्rājyārhāṇām mahībhṛtāmfor the kings worthy of kingship; for the rulers fit to govern
धर्ममार्गम् चरित्रेणdharmamārgam caritreṇathe way of dharma — by his life; the road of the law — by conduct
ज्ञानमार्गम् च नामतःjñānamārgam ca nāmataḥand the way of knowledge — by the name; and the road of knowing — through the name
Translation
Having thus stripped them of lustre, He showed the kings worthy of kingship the way of dharma by his life, and the way of knowledge by his name.
Version
f6e8a8357654 · published Jul 29, 2026, 5:15:19 AM UTC
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The verse speaks of two roads and of that by which Rāma opened each.
The way of dharma — caritreṇa, “by his life, his conduct”. This word has the same root as “Rāmacarita”, “the deeds of Rāma”: He did not expound the law but lived it. Hence tradition calls Him maryādā-puruṣottama — “the highest Person within the bounds”, the one who himself kept the rules he taught.
The way of knowledge — nāmataḥ, “through the name”. And this is different: knowledge is given not by imitation but by the name.
The distinction is exact. A life can be imitated — rise earlier, bear an insult, not bend the truth. Knowledge cannot be imitated: it is either received or not. And therefore for the first a model is given, and for the second — a word.
Notice that both ways are addressed to “the kings worthy of kingship”. The instruction is directed not to hermits: law and knowledge are needed most by those who hold power.
This pair — the life and the name — will define the structure of the whole book. The first half, the pūrva-tāpanī, will be about the name and the mantra; the second, the uttara, — about him who stands behind the name.