Upanishads · Varāha 5.23
॥
Devanāgarī
ब्रह्मरन्ध्रं सुषुम्णा या वदनेन पिधाय सा । अलम्बुसा सुषुम्णायाः कुहूर्नाडी वसत्यसौ
Transliteration (IAST)
brahmarandhraṃ suṣumṇā yā vadanena pidhāya sā | alambusā suṣumṇāyāḥ kuhūrnāḍī vasatyasau
Word-by-word
SanskritIASTMeaning
ब्रह्म-रन्ध्रं सुषुम्णा याbrahma-randhraṃ suṣumṇā yāsushumna, which is the aperture of brahman
वदनेन पिधाय साvadanena pidhāya sāhaving covered it with its own mouth
अलम्बुसा सुषुम्णायाःalambusā suṣumṇāyāḥalambusa, of sushumna
कुहूः नाडी वसति असौkuhūḥ nāḍī vasati asauand the passage kuhu, dwell
Translation
"Sushumna, [which leads to] the aperture of brahman, having covered it with its own mouth; [beside] sushumna dwell the passages alambusa and kuhu…"
Version
bbf63cf4adb6 · published Aug 12, 2026, 5:00:00 AM UTC
Available inRUENPage between verses with
Sushumna is named, the chief of the passages, running along the middle; and brahma-randhra, "the aperture of brahman," that is, the crown of the head. Both were discussed when reading the Jabala-darshana (4.28) and the Kaivalya; there is no need to repeat it. Let us add one thing not noted before.
It is said that sushumna covers the aperture with its own mouth; that is, the passage is not open, but locked, and locks itself. This detail is central in this teaching: the path exists, and it is locked from within. The image is good regardless of what one thinks of it: the obstacle is set not from outside, and not by another, but by the very structure of the person.
The Vaishnava side applies its own reading to this passage, and it deserves citing. It speaks of avarana, "the covering," and holds the same image: closed from within, and hence not opened from without. But its key is different: not a technique, but turning; and its verse was cited when reading the Ishavasya (15) — hiranmayena patrena satyasyapihitam mukham; tat tvam pushann apavrinu, "the face of truth is covered by a golden disk; O Pushan, open it."
Worth noting in this verse is the verb: not "I shall open," but "open," in the imperative mood, addressed to a second person. That is, even where the closed entrance is spoken of, the discourse is not of a technique of unlocking, but of a request to the One who holds the key.