Upanishads · Mahā 5.146
॥
Devanāgarī
मनः सम्पद्यते लोलं कलनाकलनोन्मुखम् कलयन्ती मनःशक्तिरादौ भावयति क्षणात्
Transliteration (IAST)
manaḥ sampadyate lolaṃ kalanākalanonmukham kalayantī manaḥśaktirādau bhāvayati kṣaṇāt
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
मनः सम्पद्यते लोलम्manaḥ sampadyate lolamthe mind becomes unsteady; consciousness is made wavering
कलना-कलन-उन्मुखम्kalanā-kalana-unmukhambent upon carving and carving again; turned toward devising of devisings
कलयन्ती मनः-शक्तिःkalayantī manaḥ-śaktiḥcarving away, the power of mind; contriving, the might of consciousness
आदौ भावयति क्षणात्ādau bhāvayati kṣaṇātat first contemplates in an instant; at the outset nurtures within a moment
Translation
“…the mind becomes unsteady, bent upon carving; and the power of mind, carving away, at first contemplates in an instant…”
Version
90e61c154ef1 · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The unfolding of the elements begins, and it occupies six verses, to 5.151.
The order will be: space — wind — fire — water — earth. This is the usual order of Sāṅkhya, where each next element is born of the previous and adds a new property to it.
But it is set out here not as a doctrine of matter — as a sequence of contemplations.
Note the words kalanā-kalana-unmukham — “bent upon the carving of carvings”. The doubling is deliberate: the mind does not merely divide; it divides its own division.
And kṣaṇāt — “in an instant”. Each element is contemplated in a single moment.
This agrees with 5.120: all this Goddess-power quivers “for an instant”.