उपनिषद् · Śvetāśvatara 1.6
॥
देवनागरी
सर्वाजीवे सर्वसंस्थे बृहन्ते तस्मिन् हंसो भ्राम्यते ब्रह्मचक्रे ।
पृथग् आत्मानं प्रेरितारं च मत्वा जुष्टस् ततस् तेनामृतत्वम् एति
लिप्यंतरण (IAST)
sarvājīve sarvasaṃsthe bṛhante tasmin haṃso bhrāmyate brahmacakre /
pṛthag ātmānaṃ preritāraṃ ca matvā juṣṭas tatas tenāmṛtatvam eti
शब्दशः अर्थ
संस्कृतIASTअर्थ
सर्वाजीवेsarvājīvein that which is all-living; where everything living lives
सर्वसंस्थेsarvasaṃstheall-containing; where everything abides
बृहन्तेbṛhantegreat; immeasurable
तस्मिन्tasminin that; in this very one
हंसःhaṃsaḥthe swan; the soul, called a swan
भ्राम्यतेbhrāmyateis whirled; it is made to turn
ब्रह्मचक्रेbrahmacakrein the wheel of Brahman; in the round that is called the wheel of Brahman
पृथक्pṛthakseparately; as distinct from one another
आत्मानम्ātmānamhimself; his own soul
प्रेरितारम्preritāramthe Impeller; the One who moves
चcaand; as well as
मत्वाmatvāhaving understood; having grasped
जुष्टःjuṣṭaḥfavoured; received, sought out by grace
ततःtataḥthereupon; thereafter
तेनtenaby Him; from Him
अमृतत्वम्amṛtatvamimmortality; imperishability
एतिetiattains; comes to it
अनुवाद
In that great wheel of Brahman, where all lives and where all abides, the swan-soul is whirled about. Having understood himself and the Impeller as distinct, and being favoured by Him, he attains immortality.
संस्करण
67e385a759cf · प्रकाशित 28 जुल॰ 2026, 2:13:46 pm UTC
उपलब्ध भाषाएँRUENश्लोक बदलें इन कुंजियों से
The wheel is named at last: brahma-cakra, "the wheel of Brahman" — that is, not an alien or hostile machine but His own arrangement. It is called all-living and all-containing: there simply is no other place in which life could run its course.
The soul is called a swan, haṁsa. The word is chosen with a double bottom: so the bird is named that flies from lake to lake, and so also the breath sounds — in and out, "haṁ-sa". A living being in the round is a bird of passage, and its whole passage fits inside a breath. And note the verb: bhrāmyate — not "circles" but "is circled", "is made to turn". He is not the master of the movement here.
Next comes the heart of the mantra and, perhaps, of the whole Upaniṣad. Liberation begins with discernment: pṛthak — to think of oneself and the Impeller "separately". Not "I am He", but "I am not He"; the swan and the One who turns the wheel are not the same. The word preritṛ, "Impeller", says exactly this: the movement proceeds from Another.
But the mantra does not end with discernment, and this is the most remarkable thing. After "having understood" comes juṣṭaḥ — a participle from the root meaning "to love, to find pleasing, to welcome". The liberated one has not "figured it out"; he is "favoured", "received", "sought out". Knowledge brought him to the threshold, but across the threshold one is led. And therefore immortality is tena, "by Him", from Him, and not from one's own effort.
This is the first hint in the Upaniṣad of how it will end at 6.23, where bhakti is named outright. And for the same reason discernment here does not impoverish but enriches: if the soul were identical with the Impeller, there would be no one to show it favour and no one for it to be with.