Upanishads · Jābāladarśana 8.9
॥
Devanāgarī
सर्वकारणमव्यक्तमनिरूप्यमचेतनम् । साक्षादात्मनि सम्पूर्णे धारयेत्प्रणवेन तु । इन्द्रियाणि समाहृत्य मनसात्मनि योजयेत्
Transliteration (IAST)
sarvakāraṇamavyaktamanirūpyamacetanam | sākṣādātmani sampūrṇe dhārayetpraṇavena tu | indriyāṇi samāhṛtya manasātmani yojayet
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
सर्व-कारणम् अ-व्यक्तम्sarva-kāraṇam a-vyaktamthe universal cause, unmanifest
अ-निरूप्यम् अ-चेतनम्a-nirūpyam a-cetanamundefinable, unconscious
साक्षात् आत्मनि सम्पूर्णेsākṣāt ātmani sampūrṇedirectly, in the full self
धारयेत् प्रणवेन तुdhārayet praṇavena tulet him hold, by the pranava
इन्द्रियाणि समाहृत्यindriyāṇi samāhṛtyahaving drawn back the senses
Translation
"…the universal cause — unmanifest, undefinable, unconscious — let him hold directly in the full self, by the pranava; and, having drawn back the senses, let him join them with the self by the mind."
Version
fe2dce29c6d9 · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The khanda ends, and it names something deserving separate examination: the universal cause is called achetana, "unconscious." This word applies to prakriti, the "nature" of Sankhya: it is unmanifest, undefinable, and devoid of consciousness; consciousness belongs to spirit, not to it. This distinction is fundamental in Sankhya: purusha (spirit) is conscious and does not act; prakriti (nature) acts and is not conscious.
Worth noting is that here it is prescribed to dissolve the unconscious cause in the self: that is, matter is raised to consciousness, not the reverse. The Vaishnava side accepts this elevation, and builds on it its own argument against the teaching of a self-acting nature. This argument deserves citing, for it is simple.
If the cause is unconscious, it can neither arrange nor direct anything; but the world is arranged and directed. So behind the unconscious cause stands a conscious one, who makes use of it. The Gita says this directly: mayadhyakshena prakritih suyate sa-characharam, "under My oversight, nature brings forth the moving and the unmoving" (9.10).