Upanishads · Yājñavalkya p3
॥
Devanāgarī
यदि वेतरथा ब्रह्मचर्यादेव प्रव्रजेद्गृहाद्वा वनाद्वा
Transliteration (IAST)
yadi vetarathā brahmacaryādeva pravrajedgṛhādvā vanādvā
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
यदि वा इतरथाyadi vā itarathābut if otherwise
ब्रह्मचर्यात् एव प्रव्रजेत्brahmacaryāt eva pravrajetfrom studenthood itself, let him go forth to wander
गृहात् वा वनात् वाgṛhāt vā vanāt vāor from the household, or from the forest
Translation
But if otherwise — let him go forth to wander directly from studenthood, or from the household, or from the forest.
Version
be89d963ea0f · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
A qualification is added, canceling the obligatoriness of the order just named: one may leave from any step. This qualification deserves attention, for it makes the ladder non-obligatory. We have met such cancellations in every book and noted them each time: "sit however is comfortable" (Jābāla-darśana 3.12), "or else, setting this aside" (ibid. 5.13), "or by another [means]" (Bhasma-jābāla 2.46).
Let us add what is worth saying specifically about this one. It is not original here: the very same words, word for word, stand in the Jābāla-upaniṣad (4), which we read, and there it is its main content. That is, before us is not an innovation but a reference to what is recognized; and the book, citing it, rests on tradition rather than disputing it.
The Vaiṣṇava side accepts this qualification and makes constant use of it, for it removes the chief difficulty of every ladder. The difficulty is this: if all the steps must be passed in order, most will not arrive, for life is short and there are four steps. Her answer is the same as here: one may [begin] from any; and the Gītā says this directly in the list of the four who turn to Him, discussed when reading the Rudrākṣa-jābāla (1p): the afflicted, the curious, the seeker of gain, and the knower — all four are called doing well (7.16).