Upaniṣads · Chāndogya 5,1.11
॥
Devanāgarī
मनः ह उच्चक्राम तत् संवत्सरम् प्रोष्य पर्येत्य उवाच कथम् अशकत मज् जीवितुम् इति यथा बालाः अमनसः प्राणन्तः प्राणेन वदन्तः वाचा पश्यन्तः चक्षुषा शृण्वन्तः श्रोत्रेण एवम् इति प्रविवेश ह मनः
Transliteración (IAST)
manaḥ ha uccakrāma tat saṃvatsaram proṣya paryetya uvāca katham aśakata maj jīvitum iti yathā bālāḥ amanasaḥ prāṇantaḥ prāṇena vadantaḥ vācā paśyantaḥ cakṣuṣā śṛṇvantaḥ śrotreṇa evam iti praviveśa ha manaḥ
Palabra por palabra
SánscritoIASTSignificado
मनःmanaḥthe mind; thinking
हhaindeed; surely
उच्चक्रामuccakrāmashe went out; it went away
तत्tatthat; this
संवत्सरम्saṃvatsarama year; a full year
प्रोष्यproṣyahaving stayed away; having been absent
पर्येत्यparyetyahaving returned; having gone round
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
बालाःbālāḥchildren (bāla — 'an infant, a child'); infants; little children
अमनसःamanasaḥwith mind unripe (a-manas — 'without mind'); not yet thinking; without understanding
प्राणन्तःprāṇantaḥbreathing; living by prāṇa
प्राणेनprāṇenawith the breath; by the vital breath
वदन्तःvadantaḥspeaking; uttering
वाचाvācāwith speech; with the word
पश्यन्तःpaśyantaḥseeing; looking
चक्षुषाcakṣuṣāwith the eye; with sight
शृण्वन्तःśṛṇvantaḥhearing; attending
श्रोत्रेणśrotreṇawith the ear; with hearing
एवम्evamthus; in this way
इतिitithus; how
प्रविवेशpraviveśaentered; he entered again
हhaindeed; surely
मनःmanaḥthe mind; thinking
Traducción
The mind went out. Having stayed away a year, it came back and asked: "How were you able to live without me?" — "Like children whose mind is not yet formed: breathing with the breath, speaking with speech, seeing with the eye, hearing with the ear." And the mind entered again.
Versión
eef881e569b9 · publicado 26 jul 2026, 23:25:12 UTC
Disponible enRUENPasa de verso en verso con
The last of the four is the mind, and the comparison here is the most unexpected: without mind men live "like children" (bālāḥ). An infant breathes, babbles, looks and hears before it thinks — life precedes reason. Reason, proud of the title "abode", is itself only a late guest in a house it did not build.
This verse is a quiet reproach to every intellectualism: thought is neither the foundation of life nor the foundation of faith. A child lives without being able to reason — and the tradition is right to set a child's trustfulness above the mature self-assurance of the intellect: a baby in its mother's arms does not analyse her, yet knows her more surely than all the analysts. The mind is good as life's servant; its master it cannot be — as the next verse will prove.