Upanishads · Yogakuṇḍalinī 2.34
॥
Devanāgarī
अधश्च चुबुकं मूलं प्रयाति क्रमचारिता । पुनः संवत्सराणां तु तृतीयादेव लीलया
Transliteration (IAST)
adhaśca cubukaṃ mūlaṃ prayāti kramacāritā | punaḥ saṃvatsarāṇāṃ tu tṛtīyādeva līlayā
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
अधः च चुबुकं मूलंadhaḥ ca cubukaṃ mūlaṃand downward, to the base of the chin
प्रयाति क्रम-चारिताprayāti krama-cāritāit reaches, led in order
पुनः संवत्सराणां तुpunaḥ saṃvatsarāṇāṃ tuagain, from the years, however
तृतीयात् एव लीलयाtṛtīyāt eva līlayāfrom the third, indeed, playfully
Translation
"And downward it reaches to the base of the chin, led in order; again, from the third year, indeed, playfully".
Version
ae02c1690540 · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Lilaya, "playfully," is said — that is, from the third year the matter goes easily. The word lila is the very word that, in Vaishnava books, means the "play" of the Lord, discussed when reading Tripuratapini (37); and there it was said that creation is described in them as play, not as labor. Here it simply means "without effort"; and this, apart from the subject itself, is a true description of any skill.
Any undertaking pursued for long begins one day to go by itself. First effort, then habit, then ease; and this ease is here called play — the same word by which a child's amusement is named. This observation deserves remembering, for it is comforting and applies to everything. What today is given with difficulty will, in three years, be given playfully — not because the matter will change, but because the one doing it will change.
The Vaishnava side describes the path with the same word. The beginning of service is hard and requires rule; but one who has arrived serves as he breathes, and no effort is required of him. And the word by which this state is named is the same lila: he enters into play — that is, does the same thing, but now no longer as work.