Upanishads · Yogakuṇḍalinī 2.17
॥
Devanāgarī
खेचराधिपतिर्भूत्वा खेचरेषु सदा वसेत् । खेचरावसथं वह्निमम्बुमण्डलभूषितम्
Transliteration (IAST)
khecarādhipatirbhūtvā khecareṣu sadā vaset | khecarāvasathaṃ vahnimambumaṇḍalabhūṣitam
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
खेचर-अधिपतिः भूत्वाkhecara-adhipatiḥ bhūtvāhaving become the lord of sky-walkers
खेचरेषु सदा वसेत्khecareṣu sadā vasetamong the sky-walkers, always shall he dwell
खेचर-आवसथं वह्निम्khecara-āvasathaṃ vahnimthe dwelling of the sky-walkers is fire
अम्बु-मण्डल-भूषितम्ambu-maṇḍala-bhūṣitamadorned with a circle of water
Translation
"Having become the lord of sky-walkers, shall he always dwell among them; the dwelling of the sky-walkers is fire, adorned with a circle of water".
Version
3c662964df9c · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
It is promised that one will become khechara-adhipati, "lord of sky-walkers," and live among them. Khechara, in tradition, denotes a class of beings that move through the air: vidyadharas, gandharvas, and the like. That is, it is promised that one will join their number and hold chief place.
This promise deserves note, because it changes register. The first chapter promised health and peace; the start of the second, immortality; and here — power and a place among the celestials. The Vaishnava side treats promises of this kind with a reservation worth repeating, because it applies to all such passages. Attaining a position among beings of a higher class is an attainment within the bounds of the cycle; and the Gita says of all such worlds: "having attained the world of Indra, they enjoy heavenly delights... and, their merit exhausted, return to the world of mortals" (9.20–21).
That is, what is promised here is neither false nor small by human measure; it is simply not an exit. And so in her books a position among the gods is set below the position of a servant: the first ends, the second does not. It is worth adding that "fire adorned with a circle of water" is, it seems, a description of a place in the body — a combination of heat and moisture, discussed when reading the first chapter (1.70–71). Commentators disagree; there is no consensus here.