Upanishads · Mahā 6.20
॥
Devanāgarī
सन्त्यज्य हृद्गुहेशानं देवमन्यं प्रयान्ति ये ते रत्नमभिवाञ्छन्ति त्यक्तहस्तस्थकौस्तुभाः
Transliteration (IAST)
santyajya hṛdguheśānaṃ devamanyaṃ prayānti ye te ratnamabhivāñchanti tyaktahastasthakaustubhāḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
सन्त्यज्य हृत्-गुहा-ईशानम्santyajya hṛt-guhā-īśānamhaving left the Lord in the heart's cave; having forsaken the Master in the cavern of the heart
देवम् अन्यम् प्रयान्ति येdevam anyam prayānti yewho go off to another god; those who set out toward a different god
ते रत्नम् अभिवाञ्छन्तिte ratnam abhivāñchantithey desire a jewel; they covet a gem
त्यक्त-हस्त-स्थ-कौस्तुभाःtyakta-hasta-stha-kaustubhāḥhaving dropped the Kaustubha that was in their hand; having thrown away the Kaustubha that lay in their palm
Translation
“Who, leaving the Lord in the cave of the heart, go off to another god — they desire a jewel, having dropped the Kaustubha from their very hand.”
Version
c518430f313a · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
A sharp verse, and in it is named a stone worth recognizing.
The Kaustubha is the gem Viṣṇu wears on his breast; it came forth at the churning of the ocean and has no equal.
And it is said: to seek another god while having Him in the heart is the same as to throw the Kaustubha out of one's hand and go looking for a gem.
Note the expression hṛd-guhā-īśāna — “the Lord in the cave of the heart”. A turn from the Kaṭha and the Śvetāśvatara: He dwells in the secret place of every being's heart.
This is the book's only verse that speaks directly of the choice of deity, and in it is named the Kaustubha — Viṣṇu's stone.
The Vaiṣṇava tradition reads such passages without any strain, for they are its own: the Kaustubha is not named by chance, and the Lord in the heart is the Paramātman.