Upanishads · Mahā 4.73
॥
Devanāgarī
त्रिणाचिकादियोगान्ता ईश्वरभ्रान्तिमाश्रिताः लोकायतादिसांख्यान्ता जीवविभ्रान्तिमाश्रिताः
Transliteration (IAST)
triṇācikādiyogāntā īśvarabhrāntimāśritāḥ lokāyatādisāṃkhyāntā jīvavibhrāntimāśritāḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
त्रिणाचिकेत-आदि-योग-अन्ताःtriṇāciketa-ādi-yoga-antāḥfrom Triṇāciketa up to yoga; from the rite of Triṇāciketa as far as yoga
ईश्वर-भ्रान्तिम् आश्रिताःīśvara-bhrāntim āśritāḥthey hold to a delusion about Īśvara; they rest upon an error about the Lord
लोकायत-आदि-साङ्ख्य-अन्ताःlokāyata-ādi-sāṅkhya-antāḥfrom Lokāyata up to Sāṅkhya; from the Cārvākas as far as Sāṅkhya
जीव-विभ्रान्तिम् आश्रिताःjīva-vibhrāntim āśritāḥthey hold to a delusion about the jīva; they rest upon an error about the soul
Translation
“The teachings from Triṇāciketa to yoga hold to a delusion about Īśvara; the teachings from Lokāyata to Sāṅkhya hold to a delusion about the jīva.”
Version
325451d7d0e6 · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
A sharp verse, and it must be understood exactly, or it will seem the book rejects everything at once.
Two rows are listed.
The first — from the Triṇāciketa rite (the sacrifice of the Kaṭha Upaniṣad) to yoga: paths that set the Lord at the centre.
The second — from Lokāyata (the doctrine that nothing exists but matter) to Sāṅkhya: paths that set at the centre the soul and its disjunction.
Both rows are said to hold to bhrānti — “delusion”.
The word does not mean “a lie”. It means “circling, one-sided seeing”. Each row took one side — the Lord without the soul, or the soul without the Lord — and built everything on it.
The next verse will say what follows from this for the seeker. Here let me note that the list is honest: it spares not even “its own”, for yoga and Sāṅkhya are entirely respectable schools.