Upanishads · Jābāladarśana 5.12
॥
Devanāgarī
नादाभिव्यक्तिरित्येतच्चिह्नं तत्सिद्धिसूचकम् । यावदेतानि सम्पश्येत्तावदेवं समाचरेत्
Transliteration (IAST)
nādābhivyaktirityetaccihnaṃ tatsiddhisūcakam | yāvadetāni sampaśyettāvadevaṃ samācaret
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
नाद-अभिव्यक्तिः इति एतत्nāda-abhivyaktiḥ iti etatmanifestation of the resonance — this indeed
चिह्नं तत्-सिद्धि-सूचकम्cihnaṃ tat-siddhi-sūcakamis the sign indicating attainment
यावत् एतानि सम्पश्येत्yāvat etāni sampaśyetuntil he sees these
तावत् एवं समाचरेत्tāvat evaṃ samācaretso long let him practice thus
Translation
"…manifestation of the resonance — this indeed is the sign indicating attainment. Until he sees these, so long let him practice thus."
Version
c3a230ff246b · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
A clear rule is set: yavat... tavat, "until you see, until then practice." That is, the duration of practice is set not by time, but by a sign: do it until such-and-such appears.
This arrangement is, in my view, the only correct one for any undertaking of this kind, and it is worth saying why. A time-based term — "practice for a year" — will not do, for people differ and arrive with different starting points. A sign-based term will do, for the person himself serves as the measure.
The Vaishnava side uses measures of this kind constantly, and does not measure its own rungs by years either. In its ladder — faith, company, activity, the falling-away of the unneeded, steadfastness, taste, attachment, feeling, love (Bhakti-rasamrita-sindhu 1.4.15–16) — each rung is defined by a state, not a term. Let us add what follows from this and is often forgotten. Since the rungs are defined by state, one cannot skip ahead, however hard one tries; and one who speaks of the higher states without having passed through the lower ones deceives himself first of all.
Nada, "resonance," spoken of here, is the inner sound heard during concentration; a whole khanda will be devoted to it further on. It is worth noting in advance that it is named here a sign, not a goal; and this relation, unfortunately, the book will forget further down.