उपनिषद् · Gopāla-tāpanī Uttara 50
॥
देवनागरी
गोपान् जीवान् वै आत्मत्वेनासृष्टिपर्यन्तमालाति
स गोपालो भवति ह्यों तत्सत् ।
सोऽहम् परब्रह्म कृष्णात्मको
नित्यानन्दैकरूपः सोऽहमों तत्
लिप्यंतरण (IAST)
gopān jīvān vai ātmatvenāsṛṣṭiparyantamālāti
sa gopālo bhavati hyoṁ tatsat |
so'ham parabrahma kṛṣṇātmako
nityānandaikarūpaḥ so'hamoṁ tat
शब्दशः अर्थ
संस्कृतIASTअर्थ
गोपान् जीवान् वैgopān jīvān vaithe cowherds — that is, the living beings; the gopas, the living creatures
आत्मत्वेनātmatvenaas His own; as belonging to Him
आ सृष्टि पर्यन्तम् आलातिā sṛṣṭi paryantam ālātiHe takes up to the end of creation; He takes them to Himself until creation's close
सः गोपालः भवतिsaḥ gopālaḥ bhavatiHe it is who is Gopāla; He proves to be the Cowherd
हि ओं तत् सत्hi oṁ tat satoṁ, that is the truth; so: oṁ, that is the real
सः अहम्saḥ ahamthat am I; He is I
परब्रह्म कृष्णात्मकःparabrahma kṛṣṇātmakaḥthe supreme Brahman whose essence is Kṛṣṇa; the Parabrahman consisting of Kṛṣṇa
नित्यानन्दैकरूपःnityānandaikarūpaḥwhose form is unbroken bliss; having the nature of unending joy
सः अहम् ओं तत्saḥ aham oṁ tatthat am I; oṁ, that; He is I; oṁ, that
अनुवाद
The cowherds — that is, the living souls — He takes as His own until creation's close: therefore He is Gopāla. Oṁ, that is the truth. "That am I": the supreme Brahman whose essence is Kṛṣṇa, whose form is unbroken bliss; that am I. Oṁ, that.
संस्करण
6bfab8fbae70 · प्रकाशित 28 जुल॰ 2026, 2:30:24 pm UTC
उपलब्ध भाषाएँRUENश्लोक बदलें इन कुंजियों से
An etymology of the name is given, and it overturns the usual one. Gopāla is not only "the tender of cows": here gopān is read as "souls", jīvān, and the verb ālāti as "He takes, He takes to Himself".
That is, He is called the Cowherd because He takes living beings as His own and holds them so "until creation's close". Herding here means taking into possession and into care.
This is the answer to the perplexity of the previous mantra. If He is a Cowherd in the sense that the souls are His own, then the words "I am Gopāla" are spoken by one who has recognised himself as belonging to Him. Hence the addition in this same mantra: "the supreme Brahman whose essence is Kṛṣṇa" — that with which one identifies is named by His name, not by an impersonal expanse.
Note too the phrase oṁ tat sat, repeated here twice. The Pūrva-tāpanī ended with the same formula; by it truth is sealed.
And one more thing: "until creation's close", not "until the end of this life". The souls' belonging to Him is not interrupted by either birth or death.