Upanishads · Yogakuṇḍalinī 1.3
॥
Devanāgarī
एतेषां लक्षणं वक्ष्ये शृणु गौतम सादरम् । सुस्निग्धमधुराहारश्चतुर्थांशविवर्जितः
Transliteration (IAST)
eteṣāṃ lakṣaṇaṃ vakṣye śṛṇu gautama sādaram | susnigdhamadhurāhāraścaturthāṃśavivarjitaḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
एतेषां लक्षणं वक्ष्येeteṣāṃ lakṣaṇaṃ vakṣyetheir marks I shall set forth
शृणु गौतम सादरम्śṛṇu gautama sādaramlisten, Gautama, with reverence
सु-स्निग्ध-मधुर-आहारःsu-snigdha-madhura-āhāraḥvery oily, sweet food
चतुर्थ-अंश-विवर्जितःcaturtha-aṃśa-vivarjitaḥdeprived of a fourth part
Translation
"I shall set forth their marks; listen, Gautama, with reverence. Food very oily and sweet, deprived of a fourth part…"
Version
cff96cdc100a · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
It is stated what the food should be: su-snigdha, "very oily," madhura, "sweet," and without a fourth part. The last is explained by a rule known throughout this literature: the stomach is divided into four portions — two are filled with food, one with water, and the fourth is left empty, for the movement of the winds. This rule, for all its antiquity, is the best of all that has been given about eating; and anyone who has tried it knows that after eating "to three-quarters" the head stays clear, but after eating full, it does not.
As for the oily and the sweet, this is a prescription for one engaged in breathwork: such food does not dry or burn. Spicy, sour, and dry food is forbidden to the practitioner in these books. It is also worth noting that fasting is not prescribed here. Moderation in these books is not hunger: hunger is named a hindrance on a level with overeating, and books on yoga insist on this. The Gita says directly: "yoga is not for one who eats too much, nor for one who does not eat at all" (6.16).
The last word of the line — sadaram, "with reverence" — is addressed to the listener. Instruction about food is commanded to be heard with reverence; and this is no trifle: what a man considers a lowly subject he listens to with half an ear, and it is precisely there that he most often stumbles.