Upaniṣads · Chāndogya 5,1.8
॥
Devanāgarī
सा ह वाक् उच्चक्राम सा संवत्सरम् प्रोष्य पर्येत्य उवाच कथम् अशकत मज् जीवितुम् इति यथा कलाः अवदन्तः प्राणन्तः प्राणेन पश्यन्तः चक्षुषा शृण्वन्तः श्रोत्रेण ध्यायन्तः मनसा एवम् इति प्रविवेश ह वाक्
Transliteración (IAST)
sā ha vāk uccakrāma sā saṃvatsaram proṣya paryetya uvāca katham aśakata maj jīvitum iti yathā kalāḥ avadantaḥ prāṇantaḥ prāṇena paśyantaḥ cakṣuṣā śṛṇvantaḥ śrotreṇa dhyāyantaḥ manasā evam iti praviveśa ha vāk
Palabra por palabra
SánscritoIASTSignificado
साsāshe; that one
हhaindeed; surely
वाक्vākspeech; the word
उच्चक्रामuccakrāmashe went out (ud + √kram — 'to step forth'); she left [the body]; it went away
साsāshe; that one
संवत्सरम्saṃvatsarama year (saṁvatsara); a whole year; a year's time
प्रोष्यproṣyahaving stayed away (pra + √vas — 'to live abroad'); having lived apart; having been absent
पर्येत्यparyetyahaving come back (pari + √i — 'to go round, to return'); on returning; having come again
उवाचuvācahe said; He spoke
कथम्kathamhow; in what manner
अशकतaśakatayou were able; you had the power
मज्majwithout me; from me
जीवितुम्jīvitumto live; to stay alive
इतिitithus; how
यथाyathāhow; like
कलाःkalāḥdumb (kalla/kalāḥ — 'bereft of speech'); voiceless; unable to speak
अवदन्तःavadantaḥnot speaking; silent
प्राणन्तःprāṇantaḥbreathing; living by prāṇa
प्राणेनprāṇenawith the breath; by the vital breath
पश्यन्तःpaśyantaḥseeing; looking
चक्षुषाcakṣuṣāwith the eye; with sight
शृण्वन्तःśṛṇvantaḥhearing; attending
श्रोत्रेणśrotreṇawith the ear; with hearing
ध्यायन्तःdhyāyantaḥthinking (from √dhyai — 'to reflect'); reflecting; thinking
मनसाmanasāwith the mind; with thought
एवम्evamthus; in this way
इतिitithus; how
प्रविवेशpraviveśashe entered (pra + √viś); she went back in; she returned within
हhaindeed; surely
वाक्vākspeech; the word
Traducción
Speech went out. Having stayed away a year, it came back and asked: "How were you able to live without me?" — "Like the mute: without speaking, but breathing with the breath, seeing with the eye, hearing with the ear, thinking with the mind." And speech entered again.
Versión
c304e26e9286 · publicado 26 jul 2026, 23:25:12 UTC
Disponible enRUENPasa de verso en verso con
The first experiment: a year without speech. The body lives "like the mute" — straitened, but alive: breath, sight, hearing and thought carry on their service. A year is no trifle: the Upaniṣad gives each power a full round of time so that the trial may be honest. And speech, returning and hearing the answer, silently "enters again" — the first humbling in this story.
Incidentally the parable composes a quiet praise of the mute, the blind and the deaf: life is not taken away with the loss of a faculty; a man without speech is still a whole man. The dignity of a living being rests not on the soundness of its instruments but on the presence of life — a truth that a world which measures people by usefulness forgets first.