Upanishads · Yogakuṇḍalinī 2.3
॥
Devanāgarī
जरामृत्युगदघ्नो यः खेचरीं वेत्ति भूतले । ग्रन्थतश्चार्थतश्चैव तदभ्यासप्रयोगतः
Transliteration (IAST)
jarāmṛtyugadaghno yaḥ khecarīṃ vetti bhūtale | granthataścārthataścaiva tadabhyāsaprayogataḥ
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
जरा-मृत्यु-गद-घ्नः यःjarā-mṛtyu-gada-ghnaḥ yaḥold age, death, and disease he destroys, who
खेचरीं वेत्ति भू-तलेkhecarīṃ vetti bhū-taleknows khechari on earth
ग्रन्थतः च अर्थतः च एवgranthataḥ ca arthataḥ ca evaand by the book, and by the sense, and indeed
तत्-अभ्यास-प्रयोगतःtat-abhyāsa-prayogataḥby the application in practice of it
Translation
"He who on earth knows khechari — both by the book, and by the sense, and by the application of it in practice — destroys old age, death, and disease".
Version
a88b3108694d · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Three kinds of knowledge are named, and this distinction is excellent: granthatah, "by the book"; arthatah, "by the sense"; abhyasa-prayogatah, "by application in practice." That is, one must know threefold: the words, what they mean, and how it is done. This distinction deserves remembering, for it holds true in decidedly every undertaking and explains ordinary failures.
One who knows by the book can retell it; one who knows by the sense can explain it; and only one who knows by application can do it. And anyone who has learned a craft knows that the first two without the third are worth almost nothing, and the third without the first two is shaky. The Vaishnava side holds the same threefold division and calls it in her own words: shastra, siddhanta, and acharana — scripture, its understanding, and conduct. And her firm rule is: a teacher is one in whom all three come together; and one who has only the first two is a scholar, but not a teacher.
It is worth adding that the order here is set correctly: first the book, then the sense, then the application. One who begins with the application, bypassing the book, acts at random; and one who stays with the book alone does not act at all.