Upanishads · Mahā 3.19
॥
Devanāgarī
क्रूरेण जडतां याता तृष्णाभार्यानुगामिना वशः कौलेयकेनेव ब्रह्मन्मुक्तोऽस्मि चेतसा
Transliteration (IAST)
krūreṇa jaḍatāṃ yātā tṛṣṇābhāryānugāminā vaśaḥ kauleyakeneva brahmanmukto'smi cetasā
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
क्रूरेण जडताम् याताkrūreṇa jaḍatām yātāby the cruel one brought to stupefaction; by the savage one driven to a daze
तृष्णा-भार्या-अनुगामिनाtṛṣṇā-bhāryā-anugāmināthat follows after its wife — craving; that trails after its consort — thirst
वशः कौलेयकेन इवvaśaḥ kauleyakena ivain its power, as by a dog; at its mercy, as with a cur
ब्रह्मन् मुक्तः अस्मि चेतसाbrahman muktaḥ asmi cetasāO brāhmaṇa, shall I be freed of the mind; O brāhmaṇa, am I to be delivered from consciousness
Translation
“By the cruel mind, which trails after its wife — craving, I am driven to a daze and held in its power, as by a dog. O brāhmaṇa, shall I be delivered from it?”
Version
9729162d4699 · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The image is unfolded: the mind is the dog, and craving is its wife, after whom it runs.
The word tṛṣṇā means “thirst, greed” — not the desire for something definite, but insatiability itself. From this verse it will be the chief theme for nearly a dozen lines.
The order in the harness matters: not the mind leads craving, but craving leads the mind. The mind only runs behind, wherever it is pulled.
That is why it is called krūra, “cruel”: not wicked by nature, but grown savage from the chase.
And the last half-verse is Nidāgha's first direct request to the teacher in the whole chapter. Till now he was setting out observations; here it broke out: “shall I be freed?”
Note that he asks deliverance not from craving, but from the mind itself.