Upanishads · Mahā 5.13
॥
Devanāgarī
अयं सोऽहमिदं तन्म इति जन्मान्तरोदितः पीवरः प्रत्ययः प्रोक्तो महाजाग्रदिति स्फुटम्
Transliteration (IAST)
ayaṃ so'hamidaṃ tanma iti janmāntaroditaḥ pīvaraḥ pratyayaḥ prokto mahājāgraditi sphuṭam
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
अयम् सः अहम्ayam saḥ aham“here he is”, “I”; “there is that one”, “I”
इदम् तत् मेidam tat me“this is mine”; “there it is, mine”
इति जन्म-अन्तर-उदितःiti janma-antara-uditaḥthus, risen out of other births; in this way, sprung from former lives
पीवरः प्रत्ययः प्रोक्तःpīvaraḥ pratyayaḥ proktaḥthe corpulent notion is declared; the fattened conception is styled
महा-जाग्रत् इति स्फुटम्mahā-jāgrat iti sphuṭamthe great waking — plainly; the great wakefulness — that is clear
Translation
“‘Here he is’, ‘I’, ‘this is mine’ — the notion risen out of former births and grown corpulent is plainly called the great waking.”
Version
9c4c6facea33 · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The third step — and in this one we live.
The difference from the previous lies in a single word: pīvara — “corpulent, fattened, well-fed”.
The same notion of oneself, but carried through a multitude of births and grown heavy with them.
The image is remarkable for its exactness. The “I” does not become cleverer or subtler with births; it becomes fatter — that is, heavier, clumsier, more self-satisfied.
Janma-antara-udita — “risen out of other births”. Our sense of self is not our personal acquisition; it has been brought along.
This, by the way, explains why it is so hard to deal with. It is older than we are.
And the name — mahā-jāgrat, “the great waking”. The mockery is plain: we suppose ourselves the most awake of all, and this is but the third step of the lower ladder.