Upanishads · Mahā 6.77
॥
Devanāgarī
चिच्चैत्यकलितो बन्धस्तन्मुक्तौ मुक्तिरुच्यते चिदचैत्या किलात्मेति सर्वसिद्धान्तसंग्रहः
Transliteration (IAST)
ciccaityakalito bandhastanmuktau muktirucyate cidacaityā kilātmeti sarvasiddhāntasaṃgrahaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
चित्-चैत्य-कलितः बन्धःcit-caitya-kalitaḥ bandhaḥbondage is the carving of consciousness and the cognized; the fetters are the tailoring of awareness and its object
तत्-मुक्तौ मुक्तिः उच्यतेtat-muktau muktiḥ ucyatein freedom from that, freedom is declared; upon release from that, release is proclaimed
चित् अचैत्या किल आत्मा इतिcit acaityā kila ātmā iticonsciousness without the cognized is the Ātman; awareness void of its object is precisely the Self
सर्व-सिद्धान्त-संग्रहःsarva-siddhānta-saṃgrahaḥsuch is the summary of all conclusions; such is the digest of every final doctrine
Translation
“Bondage is the carving-together of consciousness and the cognized; freedom from it is called freedom. Consciousness without the cognized is the Ātman: such is the summary of all conclusions.”
Version
ee72bb4abbc7 · published Jul 29, 2026, 6:29:20 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The book itself names this verse the sum: sarva-siddhānta-saṃgrahaḥ — “the summary of all conclusions”.
And the sum reduces to the pair cit and caitya — “consciousness and the cognized”.
Their kalana, “carving-together”, is bondage. Their unclasping is freedom.
Note that this definition abolishes nothing and annihilates no one. Consciousness remains; the cognized remains; only the seam between them, laid by the mind, is removed.
Recall 2.68 and 4.117: cin-mātraṃ caitya-rahitam — the same, said of Brahman.
Here the same is said of us: cid acaityā kilātmā — “consciousness without the cognized is the Ātman”.
The whole digest of the teaching, then, in one line.