Upanishads · Tārasāra 1.10
॥
Devanāgarī
रकारोऽण्डं विराड् भवति । यकारः पुरुषो भवति । णकारो भगवान्भवति । यकारः परमात्मा भवति
Transliteration (IAST)
rakāro'ṇḍaṃ virāḍ bhavati | yakāraḥ puruṣo bhavati | ṇakāro bhagavānbhavati | yakāraḥ paramātmā bhavati
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
र-कारः अण्डं विराट् भवतिra-kāraḥ aṇḍaṃ virāṭ bhavatithe sound 'ra' is the [cosmic] egg, the universal form
य-कारः पुरुषः भवतिya-kāraḥ puruṣaḥ bhavatithe sound 'ya' is the Puruṣa
ण-कारः भगवान् भवतिṇa-kāraḥ bhagavān bhavatithe sound 'ṇa' is Bhagavān
य-कारः परम-आत्मा भवतिya-kāraḥ parama-ātmā bhavatithe sound 'ya' is Paramātmā
Translation
«The sound 'ra' is the [cosmic] egg, the universal form; the sound 'ya' is the Puruṣa; the sound 'ṇa' is Bhagavān; the sound 'ya' is Paramātmā».
Version
136aae22449b · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
The roster is carried through to the end, and the last two syllables are given to Bhagavān and Paramātmā. These two words deserve examination, for in Vaiṣṇava teaching they are two of the three chief terms, the third — brahman — having been named in the seventh line. The Bhāgavatam, as has been cited more than once, joins all three in a single verse: brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate, "it is spoken of as brahman, as Paramātmā, and as Bhagavān" (1.2.11).
Here they are arranged in ascending order: first the universal form (the world as body), then the Puruṣa (the spirit in the world), then Bhagavān, then Paramātmā. This order differs from the Bhāgavatam's, where Bhagavān stands highest of all; but the presence of three degrees as such is acknowledged here too. It is worth examining also the word bhagavān, for it is not a mere title. Bhaga means "portion, wealth, good"; bhagavān — "possessing bhaga." The Viṣṇu-purāṇa lists six such goods: aiśvarya ("dominion"), vīrya ("might"), yaśas ("fame"), śrī ("beauty"), jñāna ("knowledge"), vairāgya ("dispassion").
A definition through a fullness of qualities deserves noting: it is positive, not negative. Here lies the distinction discussed when reading the Jābāla-darśana (9.3). Brahman is defined by negations — not this, not that. Bhagavān is defined by an enumeration of what is. And so the first definition suits argument, and the second suits relation: one can love someone about whom there is something to say.