Upaniṣads · Śvetāśvatara 2.13
॥
Devanāgarī
लघुत्वम् आरोग्यम् अलोलुपत्वं वर्णप्रसादः स्वरसौष्ठवं च ।
गन्धः शुभो मूत्रपुरीषम् अल्पं योगप्रवृत्तिं प्रथमां वदन्ति
Transliteración (IAST)
laghutvam ārogyam alolupatvaṃ varṇaprasādaḥ svarasauṣṭhavaṃ ca /
gandhaḥ śubho mūtrapurīṣam alpaṃ yogapravṛttiṃ prathamāṃ vadanti
Palabra por palabra
SánscritoIASTSignificado
लघुत्वम्laghutvamlightness; bodily lightness
आरोग्यम्ārogyamhealth; absence of ailments
अलोलुपत्वम्alolupatvamfreedom from greed; absence of insatiability
वर्णप्रसादःvarṇaprasādaḥclearness of complexion; brightness of the skin
स्वरसौष्ठवम्svarasauṣṭhavamand beauty of voice; clarity and strength of voice
चcaand; as well as
गन्धः शुभःgandhaḥ śubhaḥa good smell; a wholesome bodily odour
मूत्रपुरीषम् अल्पम्mūtrapurīṣam alpamscantiness of excretions; little urine and faeces
योगप्रवृत्तिम्yogapravṛttimthe onset of yoga; progress in yoga
प्रथमाम्prathamāmthe first; the initial
वदन्तिvadantithey call; they say such are
Traducción
Lightness, health, freedom from greed, a clear complexion, a fine voice, a good bodily smell, scanty excretions — these, they say, are the first signs of yoga begun.
Versión
0080cde42b71 · publicado 28 jul 2026, 14:13:46 UTC
Disponible enRUENPasa de verso en verso con
After visions of light and words about not ageing, the Upaniṣad does what one would least expect of it: it gives a list of marks, every one of which can be checked from outside. Lightness in the body. Absence of illness. Clear skin. A clean voice. A good smell. And even such a detail as scanty excretion.
There is great sober-mindedness in this list. Spiritual work that has begun shows itself first of all in the bodily household, not in extraordinary experiences; and if a man tells of visions but is heavy, sickly and irritable, then it is precisely the first sign that he lacks.
One non-material word stands apart in the list: alolupatva, "freedom from greed", the absence of insatiability. It is set deliberately among the bodily marks — because it too is verifiable: a man either reaches for what is superfluous or he does not. The ceasing of greed is no less bodily than a clear face.
And the word prathamā, "first", matters. Everything listed is called a first sign, not a fruit. The yoga has only begun; these are its morning signs, like a sky lightening before sunrise. Whoever takes them for the sun will stop two steps from the goal, and his sādhana will turn into a health regimen.
The next two mantras return the gaze to the goal and speak of it by two images: a cleaned mirror and a lamp.