The Upaniṣads / Kaṭha / 5.7 Womb, or a stump
5.7
योनिमन्ये प्रपद्यन्ते शरीरत्वाय देहिनः ।
स्थाणुमन्येऽनुसंयन्ति यथाकर्म यथाश्रुतम् yonim anye prapadyante śarīratvāya dehinaḥ |
sthāṇum anye 'nusaṃyanti yathākarma yathāśrutam
The line
Some embodied ones enter a womb, to become a body. Others go on to the motionless. According to action, according to learning.
नेपालीमा
कति देहधारी शरीर बन्न गर्भमा पस्छन्, अरू अचलतिर जान्छन्, कर्मअनुसार र सिकाइअनुसार।
Where it sits
This is one account of what follows death, the thing the boy asked. It is not the whole answer. 5.8 is the one who stays awake in the sleeping.
Split: yonim (योनिम्) + anye prapadyante (अन्ये प्रपद्यन्ते) + śarīratvāya (शरीरत्वाय) + dehinaḥ (देहिनः) + sthāṇum (स्थाणुम्) + anye anusaṃyanti (अन्ये अनुसंयन्ति) + yathā-karma (यथा-कर्म) + yathā-śrutam (यथा-श्रुतम्)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| yonim (योनिम्) | accusative | A womb. Heard yonim (योनिम्). |
| anye prapadyante (अन्ये प्रपद्यन्ते) | some enter | Present, plural. |
| śarīratvāya (शरीरत्वाय) | dative | For becoming a body. |
| dehinaḥ (देहिनः) | nominative plural | Embodied ones. |
| sthāṇum (स्थाणुम्) | accusative | A stump, a motionless state. Heard sthāṇum (स्थाणुम्). |
| anye anusaṃyanti (अन्ये अनुसंयन्ति) | others go along to | Heard anye 'nusaṃyanti (अन्येऽनुसंयन्ति). |
| yathā-karma (यथा-कर्म) | according to action | Indeclinable compound. |
| yathā-śrutam (यथा-श्रुतम्) | according to what was heard | Indeclinable. |
The phrases
Some embodied ones enter a womb to take a body. Others go to a stump. Both according to action and according to what was heard.
Sanskrit in this line
Anye anusaṃyanti (अन्ये अनुसंयन्ति) is anye 'nusaṃyanti (अन्येऽनुसंयन्ति).
Say it back
Name the two destinations.