Upanishads · Mahā 3.14
॥
Devanāgarī
जातास्त एव जगति जन्तवः साधुजीविताः ये पुनर्नेह जायन्ते शेषा जरठगर्दभाः
Transliteration (IAST)
jātāsta eva jagati jantavaḥ sādhujīvitāḥ ye punarneha jāyante śeṣā jaraṭhagardabhāḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
जाताः ते एव जगतिjātāḥ te eva jagationly those were born into the world; only they have truly come into the world
जन्तवः साधु-जीविताःjantavaḥ sādhu-jīvitāḥthe creatures that lived well; beings whose life was good
ये पुनः न इह जायन्तेye punaḥ na iha jāyantewho are not born here again; who appear here no more
शेषाः जरठ-गर्दभाःśeṣāḥ jaraṭha-gardabhāḥthe rest are decrepit donkeys; the remainder are aged asses
Translation
“Truly born are only those creatures who lived well and are not born here again; the rest are decrepit donkeys.”
Version
b5cd1767341e · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The verse is coarse, and its coarseness is deliberate.
The definition of “born” is given through non-birth: truly born is he who will not have to be born again. The rest, however many times they are born, have begun nothing.
And the verdict: jaraṭha-gardabha — “a decrepit donkey”. The donkey in this literature is the image of a creature that toils all its life, carries another's load and does not understand why.
We are entitled to wince at such sharpness. But it is worth remembering who speaks: a youth who has just resolved not to live like everyone, and he says this first of all about himself — about the lot he wishes to escape.
A sermon addressed to others would sound otherwise. This is not a sermon; it is the report of a pondering.