Upanishads · Rāma-tāpanī Pūrva 5.9
॥
Devanāgarī
विश्वव्यापी राघवो यस्तदानीमन्तर्दधे श्ङ्खचक्रे गदाब्जे । धृत्वा रमासहितः सानुजश्च सपत्तनः सानुगः सर्वलोकी
Transliteration (IAST)
viśvavyāpī rāghavo yastadānīmantardadhe śṅkhacakre gadābje | dhṛtvā ramāsahitaḥ sānujaśca sapattanaḥ sānugaḥ sarvalokī
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
विश्वव्यापी राघवः यःviśvavyāpī rāghavaḥ yaḥRāghava, who pervades all; Rāghava, who permeates everything
तदानीम् अन्तर्दधेtadānīm antardadhethen hid himself; at that time became unseen
शङ्खचक्रे गदाब्जे धृत्वाśaṅkhacakre gadābje dhṛtvāholding the conch, the disc, the mace and the lotus; bearing śaṅkha, cakra, gadā and padma
रमासहितः सानुजः चramāsahitaḥ sānujaḥ catogether with Ramā the goddess and with the younger brother; with Lakṣmī and with the younger brother
सपत्तनः सानुगः सर्वलोकीsapattanaḥ sānugaḥ sarvalokīwith his city, with his followers, containing all worlds; with the capital, with the retinue, holding all the worlds
Translation
Rāghava, who pervades all, then hid himself — holding the conch, the disc, the mace and the lotus, together with Ramā the goddess, with his younger brother, with his city, with his followers, containing all the worlds.
Version
bcace322ff41 · published Jul 29, 2026, 5:15:19 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The verse of the end of the earthly sojourn: Rāma “hid himself”, antardadhe.
The verb is chosen exactly. Not “died” and not “departed”: antar-dhā means “to hide, to become invisible”. The tradition tells that Rāma entered the waters of the Sarayū, and with Him all Ayodhyā went.
And the book confirms it: sa-pattanaḥ — “with his city”. He went not alone: with Sītā, with his brother, with his followers and with the city.
Here is what deserves looking at. We have seen how the diagram gathered everyone around Him — the wife, the bhakta, the allies, the ministers. Now this whole assembly departs together with Him.
So His surroundings were no temporary furnishing of an earthly life. They went with Him whither He went.
This is the Vaiṣṇava answer to the question of what happens to the Lord's appearance when it ends. It does not end — it hides; and all that was with Him does not scatter but remains with Him.
The verse's first words set this in its right measure: viśva-vyāpin, “pervading all”, and sarva-lokin, “containing all the worlds”. He hid himself who had never been absent.