The Upaniṣads / Kaṭha / 4.12 The size of a thumb
4.12
अङ्गुष्ठमात्रः पुरुषो मध्य आत्मनि तिष्ठति ।
ईशानो भूतभव्यस्य न ततो विजुगुप्सते ।
एतद् वै तत् aṅguṣṭhamātraḥ puruṣo madhya ātmani tiṣṭhati |
īśāno bhūtabhavyasya na tato vijugupsate |
etad vai tat
The line
The person, the size of a thumb, stands in the midst, in the self, lord of what was and what will be. From that he does not shrink. This, indeed, is that.
नेपालीमा
अङ्गुष्ठ जत्रो पुरुष बीचमा, आत्मामा उभिन्छ, भएको र हुनेको स्वामी, र त्यसबाट ऊ खुम्चिँदैन। यही नै त्यो हो।
Where it sits
Brahma Sūtra (सूत्र) 1.3.23 says this person is Brahman (ब्रह्मन्), from the wording itself. The size is a measure in the body, not a claim that the self is a small object.
Split: aṅguṣṭha-mātraḥ (अङ्गुष्ठ-मात्रः) + puruṣaḥ (पुरुषः) + madhye ātmani (मध्ये आत्मनि) + tiṣṭhati (तिष्ठति) + īśānaḥ (ईशानः) + bhūta-bhavyasya (भूत-भव्यस्य) + na tataḥ vijugupsate (न ततः विजुगुप्सते) + etat vai tat (एतत् वै तत्)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| aṅguṣṭha-mātraḥ (अङ्गुष्ठ-मात्रः) | nominative | Of the measure of a thumb. |
| puruṣaḥ (पुरुषः) | nominative | The person. Heard puruṣo (पुरुषो). |
| madhye ātmani (मध्ये आत्मनि) | in the middle, in the self | Locative. Heard madhya ātmani (मध्य आत्मनि) in this pāṭha (पाठ). |
| tiṣṭhati (तिष्ठति) | present | He stands. |
| īśānaḥ (ईशानः) | nominative | Lord. Heard īśāno (ईशानो). |
| bhūta-bhavyasya (भूत-भव्यस्य) | genitive | Of past and future. |
| na tataḥ vijugupsate (न ततः विजुगुप्सते) | he does not shrink | Heard na tato (न ततो). |
| etat vai tat (एतत् वै तत्) | the refrain | This is that. |
The phrases
A person the size of a thumb stands in the middle of the self, lord of past and future.
Sanskrit in this line
Aṅguṣṭha-mātraḥ (अङ्गुष्ठ-मात्रः) is a compound: thumb-measure.
Say it back
Say the measure, and where he stands.