Upanishads · Rāma-tāpanī Pūrva 4.1
॥
Devanāgarī
जीववाची नमो नाम चात्मारामेति गीयते । तदात्मिका या चतुर्थी तथा मायेति गीयते
Transliteration (IAST)
jīvavācī namo nāma cātmārāmeti gīyate | tadātmikā yā caturthī tathā māyeti gīyate
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
जीववाची नमः नामjīvavācī namaḥ nāma“namaḥ” is the word denoting the jīva; “namaḥ” points to the living being
च आत्मारामा इति गीयतेca ātmārāmā iti gīyateand is sung as “Ātmārāma”; and is called “he who delights in the self”
तदात्मिका या चतुर्थीtadātmikā yā caturthīthe fourth case, one with that; the dative case, united with that
तथा माया इति गीयतेtathā māyā iti gīyateis likewise sung as “māyā”; and it is named māyā
Translation
“Namaḥ” is the word denoting the jīva, and is sung as “Ātmārāma”; and the fourth case, one with it, is sung as māyā.
Version
cf58986dc727 · published Jul 29, 2026, 5:15:19 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The fourth Upaniṣad is the core of the book's first half, and it opens with the parsing of the mantra by its parts of speech.
The mantra in question has the form “rāmāya namaḥ” — “to Rāma a bow”. The verse takes it and explains what each part means.
“Namaḥ” is named jīva-vācī — “the word denoting the jīva”. This is unexpected: “namaḥ” is usually held a mere sign of reverence. Here it is said that in the bow the one who bows utters himself. And the third Upaniṣad has already prepared this thought, explaining “namaḥ” as “not mine”.
The word ātmārāma — “delighting in the self” — is applied to the same: the soul by its nature finds joy in the Ātman; hence the “rāma” inside the name.
The dative case — “to Rāma”, rāmāya — is named māyā. That is, the ending that directs the bow is referred to the power by which He binds Himself to the world.
It comes out that in the three words of the mantra three are laid: He, the soul, and the power joining them. So too was read the five-word mantra of the Gopāla-tāpanī, where each word opened a separate side of the relation.