The Upaniṣads / Kaṭha / 1.12 No fear there
1.12
स्वर्गे लोके न भयं किंचनास्ति न तत्र त्वं न जरया बिभेति ।
उभे तीर्त्वा अशनायापिपासे शोकातिगो मोदते स्वर्गलोके svarge loke na bhayaṃ kiṃcanāsti na tatra tvaṃ na jarayā bibheti |
ubhe tīrtvā aśanāyāpipāse śokātigo modate svargaloke
The line
In the heavenly world there is no fear at all. You are not there. One does not fear old age. Having crossed both hunger and thirst, gone beyond sorrow, he rejoices in heaven.
नेपालीमा
स्वर्गलोकमा डर पटक्कै छैन। तपाईं त्यहाँ हुनुहुन्न, बुढ्यौलीको डर हुँदैन, र भोक र तिर्खा दुवै तरेर शोक नाघेपछि त्यो स्वर्गमा रमाउँछ।
Where it sits
The boy is setting up the fire that leads there. The request is the next mantra.
Split: svarge (स्वर्गे) + loke (लोके) + na (न) + bhayam (भयम्) + kiṃcana (किंचन) + asti (अस्ति) + na tatra tvam (न तत्र त्वम्) + na jarayā (न जरया) + bibheti (बिभेति) + ubhe (उभे) + tīrtvā (तीर्त्वा) + aśanāyā-pipāse (अशनाया-पिपासे) + śoka-atigaḥ (शोक-अतिगः) + modate (मोदते) + svarga-loke (स्वर्ग-लोके)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| svarge (स्वर्गे) | locative singular, masculine | In heaven. |
| loke (लोके) | locative singular, masculine | In the world. |
| na (न) | indeclinable | Not. |
| bhayam (भयम्) | nominative singular, neuter | Fear. Heard bhayaṃ (भयं). |
| kiṃcana (किंचन) | indeclinable | At all. Joins asti (अस्ति): kiṃcanāsti (किंचनास्ति). |
| asti (अस्ति) | present, third person singular | There is. |
| na tatra tvam (न तत्र त्वम्) | not, there, you | You are not there. Yama (यम) is being told he has no place in that world. |
| na jarayā (न जरया) | not, instrumental | Not by old age. |
| bibheti (बिभेति) | present, third person singular | One fears. |
| ubhe (उभे) | accusative dual, feminine | Both. |
| tīrtvā (तीर्त्वा) | gerund | Having crossed. |
| aśanāyā-pipāse (अशनाया-पिपासे) | accusative dual, feminine | Hunger and thirst. Heard aśanāyāpipāse (अशनायापिपासे). |
| śoka-atigaḥ (शोक-अतिगः) | nominative singular, masculine | One who has gone beyond sorrow. Heard śokātigo (शोकातिगो). |
| modate (मोदते) | present, third person singular, ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद) | He rejoices. |
| svarga-loke (स्वर्ग-लोके) | locative singular, masculine | In the heavenly world. |
The phrases
A description of heaven, aimed at the second boon. Tvaṃ (त्वं) is Death: he is not in that world.
Sanskrit in this line
Kiṃcana (किंचन) plus asti (अस्ति) is kiṃcanāsti (किंचनास्ति). Aśanāyā (अशनाया) plus pipāse (पिपासे) is aśanāyāpipāse (अशनायापिपासे). Śoka (शोक) plus atigaḥ (अतिगः) is śokātigaḥ (शोकातिगः).
Say it back
Name the two that are crossed, and who is said not to be there.