Upaniṣads · Aitareya 1,3.6
॥
Devanāgarī
तत् श्रोत्रेण अजिघृक्षत् तत् न अशक्नोत् श्रोत्रेण ग्रहीतुम् सः यत् ह एनत् श्रोत्रेण अग्रहैष्यत् श्रुत्वा हैव अन्नम् अत्रप्स्यत्
Transliteración (IAST)
tat śrotreṇa ajighṛkṣat tat na aśaknot śrotreṇa grahītum saḥ yat ha enat śrotreṇa agrahaiṣyat śrutvā haiva annam atrapsyat
Palabra por palabra
SánscritoIASTSignificado
तत्tatthat; it
श्रोत्रेणśrotreṇawith hearing; with the ear
अजिघृक्षत्ajighṛkṣathe tried to seize; he wished to take
तत्tatthat; it
नnanot; no
अशक्नोत्aśaknothe was able; he had the power
श्रोत्रेणśrotreṇawith hearing; with the ear
ग्रहीतुम्grahītumto seize; to take
सःsaḥhe; that one
यत्yatwhen; that
हhaindeed; surely
एनत्enatthis; it
श्रोत्रेणśrotreṇawith hearing; with the ear
अग्रहैष्यत्agrahaiṣyatwould have seized; would have taken
श्रुत्वाśrutvāhaving heard (from √śru); having listened; hearkening
हैवhaivaprecisely then; verily
अन्नम्annamfood; nourishment
अत्रप्स्यत्atrapsyathe would have been satisfied; he would have mastered the food
Traducción
He wished to seize it with hearing — and could not seize it with hearing. If he had seized it with hearing, one would be satisfied with food merely by hearing [of it].
Versión
98b76f97ed70 · publicado 26 jul 2026, 19:36:16 UTC
Disponible enRUENPasa de verso en verso con
The fourth attempt — śrotreṇa: with the ear. If hearing could seize — śrutvā haiva annam atrapsyat — "one would be full by listening".
The miss of hearing is about listeners: one may listen about bread, about life, about truth — and not taste a crumb. For a spiritual culture in which hearing (śravaṇa) is the first practice, this verse is an inoculation against self-deception: listening begins the path but does not replace the eating; to attend for years to the science of nectar and never lift the spoon to one's lips is a fate familiar to every school (the Upaniṣads call such people those who "hearing, do not understand" — Kaṭha 2.7).
Hearing is a gate, not a dining hall: through it come the call and the recipe, but not the food itself. Three claimants remain — and each nearer to the body: touch, mind, and the generative power.