Upaniṣads · Mahā 3.50
॥
Devanāgarī
शुष्यन्त्यपि समुद्राश्च ध्रुवोऽप्यध्रुवजीवनः सिद्धा अपि विनश्यन्ति जीर्यन्ते दानवादयः
Transliteración (IAST)
śuṣyantyapi samudrāśca dhruvo'pyadhruvajīvanaḥ siddhā api vinaśyanti jīryante dānavādayaḥ
Palabra por palabra
SánscritoIASTSignificado
शुष्यन्ति अपि समुद्राः चśuṣyanti api samudrāḥ caand the oceans dry up; the seas too run dry
ध्रुवः अपि अध्रुव-जीवनःdhruvaḥ api adhruva-jīvanaḥand Dhruva's life is unfixed; and Dhruva is impermanent in life
सिद्धाः अपि विनश्यन्तिsiddhāḥ api vinaśyantieven the siddhas perish; the perfected ones too are destroyed
जीर्यन्ते दानव-आदयःjīryante dānava-ādayaḥthe dānavas and their like grow decrepit; the dānavas and such wear out
Traducción
“The oceans too dry up; and Dhruva's life is unfixed; even the siddhas perish; the dānavas and their like grow decrepit.”
Versión
b3076e6dd232 · publicado 29 jul 2026, 6:29:20 UTC
Disponible enRUENPasa de verso en verso con
The list ascends, and in its middle is a name worth pausing on.
Dhruva means “fixed” and is the name of the Pole Star. By tradition this is the boy who received from the Supreme an unshakable station in the sky for his austerity; in the Bhāgavatam his story fills several chapters.
And now it is said: dhruvo'py adhruva-jīvanaḥ — “even the Fixed One lives unfixedly”. The wordplay is merciless: even he whose name means permanence is not permanent.
This, however, is the exact measure. Dhruva's station holds until the end of Brahmā's day — a term unimaginable, and yet a term.
Then the siddhas — attainers of supernatural powers, and the dānavas — mighty adversaries of the gods. Power and longevity change nothing.
The conclusion toward which the list leads: no duration is eternity. The difference between a century and an age of Brahmā is quantitative, and what is needed is qualitative.