Upaniṣads · Mahā 3.19
॥
Devanāgarī
क्रूरेण जडतां याता तृष्णाभार्यानुगामिना वशः कौलेयकेनेव ब्रह्मन्मुक्तोऽस्मि चेतसा
Transliteración (IAST)
krūreṇa jaḍatāṃ yātā tṛṣṇābhāryānugāminā vaśaḥ kauleyakeneva brahmanmukto'smi cetasā
Palabra por palabra
SánscritoIASTSignificado
क्रूरेण जडताम् याताkrūreṇa jaḍatām yātāby the cruel one brought to stupefaction; by the savage one driven to a daze
तृष्णा-भार्या-अनुगामिनाtṛṣṇā-bhāryā-anugāmināthat follows after its wife — craving; that trails after its consort — thirst
वशः कौलेयकेन इवvaśaḥ kauleyakena ivain its power, as by a dog; at its mercy, as with a cur
ब्रह्मन् मुक्तः अस्मि चेतसाbrahman muktaḥ asmi cetasāO brāhmaṇa, shall I be freed of the mind; O brāhmaṇa, am I to be delivered from consciousness
Traducción
“By the cruel mind, which trails after its wife — craving, I am driven to a daze and held in its power, as by a dog. O brāhmaṇa, shall I be delivered from it?”
Versión
9729162d4699 · publicado 29 jul 2026, 6:29:20 UTC
Disponible enRUENPasa de verso en verso con
The image is unfolded: the mind is the dog, and craving is its wife, after whom it runs.
The word tṛṣṇā means “thirst, greed” — not the desire for something definite, but insatiability itself. From this verse it will be the chief theme for nearly a dozen lines.
The order in the harness matters: not the mind leads craving, but craving leads the mind. The mind only runs behind, wherever it is pulled.
That is why it is called krūra, “cruel”: not wicked by nature, but grown savage from the chase.
And the last half-verse is Nidāgha's first direct request to the teacher in the whole chapter. Till now he was setting out observations; here it broke out: “shall I be freed?”
Note that he asks deliverance not from craving, but from the mind itself.