Upanishads · Rudrahṛdaya 25
॥
Devanāgarī
यत्र यत्र भवेत्सार्धमिमं मन्त्रमुदीरयेत् । ब्रह्महा जलमध्ये तु सर्वपापैः प्रमुच्यते
Transliteration (IAST)
yatra yatra bhavetsārdhamimaṃ mantramudīrayet | brahmahā jalamadhye tu sarvapāpaiḥ pramucyate
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
यत्र यत्र भवेत् सार्धम्yatra yatra bhavet sārdhamwherever he may find himself together [with someone]
इमं मन्त्रम् उदीरयेत्imaṃ mantram udīrayetlet him utter this mantra
ब्रह्म-हा जल-मध्ये तुbrahma-hā jala-madhye tuthe slayer of a brahmin, in the midst of the waters
सर्व-पापैः प्रमुच्यतेsarva-pāpaiḥ pramucyateis freed from all sins
Translation
"Wherever he may find himself together [with someone], let him utter this mantra; and the slayer of a brahmin, standing in the midst of the waters, is freed from all sins."
Version
98c3615eb64a · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The promise is strong, and it must be spoken of plainly, for it is of the kind that requires a qualification. Brahma-hā, "the slayer of a brahmin," is in Indian law the gravest of sins, standing first in the list of the five great ones. And it is said that he, standing in water and uttering this mantra, is cleansed of everything.
The first thing to say: promises of this kind are not rare in these books, and Vaiṣṇava collections are no exception here. The Bhāgavatam says of the Name that it removes even what no atonement removes (6.2); and the story of Ajāmila is told for this very purpose. Second, and more important: purification is not the cancellation of what was done. The slain does not come back to life, and the orphan does not cease to be an orphan; what is removed is guilt before the highest, not the consequences before people. Confusing these two things is what makes such promises dangerous.
Third, and this was already discussed when reading the Devī (22). One who reckons on sinning in hope of purification falls under the one thing the Name does not cover, and it is called nāma-aparādha, "offense against the Name." Let us add that "standing in the midst of the waters" is a ritual detail: purification is performed in a river, chest-deep in water, at dawn. This detail, for all its external character, means something: purification is conceived not as a thought, but as a deed one must go and do — and, moreover, at an inconvenient hour and in cold water.