Upanishads · Mahā 4.10
॥
Devanāgarī
नित्यप्रबुद्धचित्तस्त्वं कुर्वन्वापि जगत्क्रियाम् आत्मैकत्वं विदित्वा त्वं तिष्ठाक्षुब्धमहाब्धिवत्
Transliteration (IAST)
nityaprabuddhacittastvaṃ kurvanvāpi jagatkriyām ātmaikatvaṃ viditvā tvaṃ tiṣṭhākṣubdhamahābdhivat
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
नित्य-प्रबुद्ध-चित्तः त्वम्nitya-prabuddha-cittaḥ tvamthou, with a mind ever awakened; thou whose consciousness is always wakeful
कुर्वन् वा अपि जगत्-क्रियाम्kurvan vā api jagat-kriyāmeven while doing the world's work; though even performing worldly action
आत्म-एकत्वम् विदित्वा त्वम्ātma-ekatvam viditvā tvamhaving known the oneness of the Ātman, thou; having understood the singleness of the Self, thou
तिष्ठ अक्षुब्ध-महा-अब्धि-वत्tiṣṭha akṣubdha-mahā-abdhi-vatstand like the unagitated great ocean; abide as the unruffled mighty sea
Translation
“With an ever-wakeful mind, even while doing the world's work, having known the oneness of the Ātman, stand — like the great unagitated ocean.”
Version
354c60dbf249 · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Here a possible alarm at the preceding verses is removed.
It was said: leave design, hope, pursuit; be as one dumb and blind; stand as thou standest. One might think the speech was of a departure from life.
No: kurvan vāpi jagat-kriyām — “even while doing the world's work”.
This repeats how the train of marks ended in the second chapter (2.62): the liberated man conducts affairs as another's. Here the same is said to the pupil as an order.
The image of the ocean is doubly exact. The ocean is not motionless — waves run over it, and they do not agitate it, because the depth takes no part. Akṣubdha means not “waveless” but “unagitated”.
And nitya-prabuddha — “ever awakened”. That very wakefulness spoken of in 2.10: not sleep, but clarity without surmise.