Upanishads · Mahā 5.86
॥
Devanāgarī
वासनातन्तुबद्धोऽयं लोको विपरिवर्तते सा प्रसिद्धातिदुःखाय सुखायोच्छेदमागता
Transliteration (IAST)
vāsanātantubaddho'yaṃ loko viparivartate sā prasiddhātiduḥkhāya sukhāyocchedamāgatā
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
वासना-तन्तु-बद्धः अयम्vāsanā-tantu-baddhaḥ ayamthis one, bound with the thread of vāsanās; the said one, entangled in the fibre of inclinations
लोकः विपरिवर्ततेlokaḥ viparivartatethe world revolves; the world turns round and round
सा प्रसिद्धा अति-दुःखायsā prasiddhā ati-duḥkhāyashe, grown strong — to great suffering; she, well rooted — toward exceeding pain
सुखाय उच्छेदम् आगताsukhāya ucchedam āgatāto joy — when cut off; toward delight — when severed
Translation
“This world revolves, bound with the thread of vāsanās; grown strong, that thread leads to great suffering; cut off — to joy.”
Version
52e419bbcde8 · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The thread image returns to 4.132, where the mountains were bound with lotus fibres.
Here the thread of the vāsanās binds the world, and from it the world viparivartate — “revolves”.
A good word: not “suffers” and not “falls”, but precisely turns round. The round is a turning on a tether, like an animal at a peg.
Note the pair prasiddhā and uccheda-āgatā: “grown strong” and “cut off”. One and the same thread.
This repeats 4.86 and 5.79–5.82: not two principles, but one in two states.
And further: the world is not called evil. What is evil is that it is tethered.