Upanishads · Tripurātāpinī 88
॥
Devanāgarī
स होवाच भगवांस्त्र्यम्बकेनानुष्टुभेन मृत्युंजयमुपासयेत् । पूर्वेणाध्वना व्याप्तमेकाक्षरमिति स्मृतम् । ओं नमः शिवायेति याजुषमन्त्रोपासको रुद्रत्वं प्राप्नोति । कल्याणं प्राप्नोति । य एवं वेद
Transliteration (IAST)
sa hovāca bhagavāṃstryambakenānuṣṭubhena mṛtyuṃjayamupāsayet | pūrveṇādhvanā vyāptamekākṣaramiti smṛtam | oṃ namaḥ śivāyeti yājuṣamantropāsako rudratvaṃ prāpnoti | kalyāṇaṃ prāpnoti | ya evaṃ veda
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
त्र्यम्बकेन अनुष्टुभेन मृत्युं-जयम् उपासयेत्tryambakena anuṣṭubhena mṛtyuṃ-jayam upāsayetlet one worship victory over death by the tryambaka mantra, anuṣṭubh
पूर्वेण अध्वना व्याप्तम्pūrveṇa adhvanā vyāptampervaded by the former path
एक-अक्षरम् इति स्मृतम्eka-akṣaram iti smṛtamit is remembered as one-syllabled
ओं नमः शिवाय इतिoṃ namaḥ śivāya iti«om, bow to Śiva», thus
याजुष-मन्त्र-उपासकः रुद्र-त्वं प्राप्नोतिyājuṣa-mantra-upāsakaḥ rudra-tvaṃ prāpnotithe worshipper of this yajus mantra attains the state of Rudra
Translation
«Said the Lord to them: by the tryambaka mantra, anuṣṭubh, let one worship victory over death. Pervaded by the former path, it is remembered as «one-syllabled». «Om, bow to Śiva» — the worshipper of this yajus mantra attains the state of Rudra, obtains good. Who knows thus».
Version
850909a0f07b · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
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The Śaiva mantra is named: om namaḥ śivāya, «om, bow to Śiva» — the famous pañcākṣara, «five-syllabled» (na-ma-śi-vā-ya), among the most recited mantras of India. It is said of it that it is yājuṣa, «of the yajus»: it truly stands in the Yajur-veda, in the middle of the Śatarudrīya — the long hymn to Rudra still read in Śaiva temples today. That is, this mantra is not of late composition, but Vedic, and worship of Śiva through it is older than any tantra.
This line is short, and it says exactly one thing: the worshipper attains rudratva, «the state of Rudra», and kalyāṇa, «good». No parsing of words, no Vedic testimony, no counting of syllables — simply named and promised. Let us remember this brevity, for one line from now the Vaishnava mantra will begin, and the book will treat it quite differently: it will cite a whole verse of the Ṛgveda, explain it by a likeness, analyze the name Vāsudeva by its roots, and count its syllables. The difference in treatment is striking, and there is no way to account for it save one: the author had something to say.
Worth noting too the word namaḥ, «bow», which is the chief element of this mantra. It is interpreted the same way in both traditions: na mama, «not mine». A bow, then, is a renunciation of claim; and this is the one movement equally fitting before whichever of the disputed figures.