Upanishads · Rāma-tāpanī Uttara 4.5
॥
Devanāgarī
ओं यो ह वै श्रीरामचन्द्रः स भगवान् यो ब्रह्मा विष्णुर्महेश्वरो यः सर्वदेवात्मा भूर्भुवः सुवस्तस्मै वै नमो नमः
Transliteration (IAST)
oṃ yo ha vai śrīrāmacandraḥ sa bhagavān yo brahmā viṣṇurmaheśvaro yaḥ sarvadevātmā bhūrbhuvaḥ suvastasmai vai namo namaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
ओं यः ह वै श्रीरामचन्द्रःoṃ yaḥ ha vai śrīrāmacandraḥOṁ. He who is Śrī-Rāmacandra; Oṁ. The very one who is Śrī-Rāmacandra
सः भगवान्saḥ bhagavānhe is the Lord; he indeed is Bhagavān
यः ब्रह्मा विष्णुः महेश्वरःyaḥ brahmā viṣṇuḥ maheśvaraḥwho is Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśvara; the one who is Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara
भूर्भुवः सुवःbhūrbhuvaḥ suvaḥearth, mid-air, heaven; bhūḥ, bhuvaḥ, svaḥ
तस्मै वै नमः नमःtasmai vai namaḥ namaḥto him be bow upon bow; to him worship and worship
Translation
Oṁ. He who is Śrī-Rāmacandra — He is the Lord, and He is he who is Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara, the Ātman of all gods. Earth, mid-air, heaven! To him be bow upon bow.
Version
7720510ed314 · published Jul 29, 2026, 5:15:19 AM UTC
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The fifth mantra names three: Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśvara — and adds sarva-devātmā, “the Ātman of all gods”.
This triad — creator, keeper, destroyer — everyone knows. And it is said that all three are He.
This must be understood rightly, for here it is easy to slip. The book does not say the gods are equal and need not be distinguished. It says their subject is one.
The difference is as between “all roads are alike” and “all roads lead to one place”.
Recall the third chapter of the uttara: there Śiva repeated Rāma's name for thousands of manvantaras and asked a boon of Him. So the book holds the difference of persons firmly. And right here it names Rāma Maheśvara.
There is no contradiction, if one remembers that this list is doxology, not a chart of offices. The praiser names the Praised with everything high he knows; and He who is above all contains all.
This is the structure of the whole chapter: forty-seven times one subject and forty-seven different predicates.