The Upaniṣads / Māṇḍūkya / 7 The fourth
7
नान्तःप्रज्ञं न बहिःप्रज्ञं नोभयतःप्रज्ञं न प्रज्ञानघनं न प्रज्ञं नाप्रज्ञम् ।
अदृष्टमव्यवहार्यमग्राह्यमलक्षणमचिन्त्यमव्यपदेश्यमेकात्मप्रत्ययसारं प्रपञ्चोपशमं शान्तं शिवमद्वैतं चतुर्थं मन्यन्ते स आत्मा स विज्ञेयः nāntaḥprajñaṃ na bahiḥprajñaṃ nobhayataḥprajñaṃ na prajñānaghanaṃ na prajñaṃ nāprajñam |
adṛṣṭam avyavahāryam agrāhyam alakṣaṇam acintyam avyapadeśyam ekātmapratyayasāraṃ prapañcopaśamaṃ śāntaṃ śivam advaitaṃ caturthaṃ manyante sa ātmā sa vijñeyaḥ
The line
Not inward-knowing, not outward-knowing, not knowing from both sides, not a mass of knowing, not knowing, not not-knowing. Unseen, not for dealing, not to be grasped, without a mark, not to be thought, not to be designated, having the awareness of the one self as its essence, the quieting of the manifold, quiet, auspicious, without a second: they consider that the fourth. That is the self. That is to be known.
नेपालीमा
भित्र नजान्ने, बाहिर नजान्ने, दुवैतिरबाट नजान्ने, ज्ञानको पुञ्ज होइन, जान्ने होइन, नजान्ने पनि होइन, नदेखिने, व्यवहारका लागि होइन, समात्न नसकिने, चिह्न नभएको, सोच्न नसकिने, नाम दिन नसकिने, एक आत्माको बोध सार भएको, अनेकको शान्ति, शान्त, मङ्गल, अद्वितीय, त्यसलाई उनीहरू चौथो मान्छन्। त्यो आत्मा हो र त्यो जान्नुपर्ने हो।
Where it sits
The three feet were vaiśvānara (वैश्वानर), taijasa (तैजस), and prājña (प्राज्ञ). This mantra does not give the fourth a matching name. The word is caturtha (चतुर्थ). Later readers say turīya (तुरीय). Mantra 12 will call the same fourth amātra (अमात्र), without measure. Gauḍapāda (गौडपाद) uses turya (तुर्य) in the kārikā (कारिका), which is not sat here.
Split: na (न) + antaḥ-prajñam (अन्तः-प्रज्ञम्) + na (न) + bahiḥ-prajñam (बहिः-प्रज्ञम्) + na (न) + ubhayataḥ-prajñam (उभयतः-प्रज्ञम्) + na (न) + prajñāna-ghanam (प्रज्ञान-घनम्) + na (न) + prajñam (प्रज्ञम्) + na (न) + aprajñam (अप्रज्ञम्) + adṛṣṭam (अदृष्टम्) + avyavahāryam (अव्यवहार्यम्) + agrāhyam (अग्राह्यम्) + alakṣaṇam (अलक्षणम्) + acintyam (अचिन्त्यम्) + avyapadeśyam (अव्यपदेश्यम्) + ekātma-pratyaya-sāram (एकात्म-प्रत्यय-सारम्) + prapañca-upaśamam (प्रपञ्च-उपशमम्) + śāntam (शान्तम्) + śivam (शिवम्) + advaitam (अद्वैतम्) + caturtham (चतुर्थम्) + manyante (मन्यन्ते) + saḥ (सः) + ātmā (आत्मा) + saḥ (सः) + vijñeyaḥ (विज्ञेयः)
Sanskrit, in depth
The words
| Word | Grammar | Sense |
|---|---|---|
| na (न) | indeclinable | Not. It governs each accusative in the first sentence. |
| antaḥ-prajñam (अन्तः-प्रज्ञम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Inward-knowing. The dream foot, refused. |
| bahiḥ-prajñam (बहिः-प्रज्ञम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Outward-knowing. The waking foot, refused. |
| ubhayataḥ-prajñam (उभयतः-प्रज्ञम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Knowing from both sides. Heard nobhayataḥ (नोभयतः): na (न) plus u (उ) is no (नो). |
| prajñāna-ghanam (प्रज्ञान-घनम्) | accusative singular, neuter | A mass of knowing. The sleep of mantra 5, refused. |
| prajñam (प्रज्ञम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Knowing. A further refusal, after the mass has been refused. |
| aprajñam (अप्रज्ञम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Not-knowing. Heard nāprajñam (नाप्रज्ञम्): na (न) plus a (अ) is nā (ना). The refusal of the opposite as well. |
| adṛṣṭam (अदृष्टम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Unseen. Another printing reads adṛśyam (अदृश्यम्), not to be seen. This pāṭha (पाठ) is adṛṣṭam (अदृष्टम्). |
| avyavahāryam (अव्यवहार्यम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Not for ordinary dealing. vyavahāra (व्यवहार) is the business of the world. |
| agrāhyam (अग्राह्यम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Not to be grasped. |
| alakṣaṇam (अलक्षणम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Without a mark. |
| acintyam (अचिन्त्यम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Not to be thought. |
| avyapadeśyam (अव्यपदेश्यम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Not to be designated. No name sticks as its definition. |
| ekātma-pratyaya-sāram (एकात्म-प्रत्यय-सारम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Whose essence is the awareness of the one self. pratyaya (प्रत्यय), an awareness. sāra (सार), the essence. |
| prapañca-upaśamam (प्रपञ्च-उपशमम्) | accusative singular, neuter | The quieting of the manifold. prapañca (प्रपञ्च), the spread-out world. upaśama (उपशम), the quieting. Heard prapañcopaśamam (प्रपञ्चोपशमम्). |
| śāntam (शान्तम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Quiet. |
| śivam (शिवम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Auspicious, kind. |
| advaitam (अद्वैतम्) | accusative singular, neuter | Without a second. |
| caturtham (चतुर्थम्) | accusative singular, neuter | The fourth. The mantra's own word. Heard caturthaṃ (चतुर्थं). |
| manyante (मन्यन्ते) | present, third person plural, ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद) | They consider. The line names no subject. |
| saḥ (सः) | nominative singular, masculine | That. Heard sa (स) before ātmā (आत्मा), and the vowel joins. |
| ātmā (आत्मा) | nominative singular, masculine | The self. |
| saḥ (सः) | nominative singular, masculine | That, again. Heard sa (स) before vijñeyaḥ (विज्ञेयः). |
| vijñeyaḥ (विज्ञेयः) | nominative singular, masculine | To be known. A future passive participle of vi-jñā (वि-ज्ञा). |
The phrases
The first sentence refuses the three feet, and refuses knowing and not-knowing.
The long accusative is what they consider the fourth. The two short sentences at the end name it: that is the self, that is to be known.
Sanskrit in this line
Na (न) plus antaḥ (अन्तः) joins in the recital as nāntaḥ (नान्तः). Na (न) plus aprajñam (अप्रज्ञम्) is nāprajñam (नाप्रज्ञम्). Short a (अ) plus short a (अ) is ā (आ). Na (न) plus ubhayataḥ (उभयतः) is nobhayataḥ (नोभयतः): a (अ) plus u (उ) is o (ओ).
Prapañca (प्रपञ्च) plus upaśamam (उपशमम्) is prapañcopaśamam (प्रपञ्चोपशमम्). Short a (अ) plus short u (उ) is o (ओ).
Saḥ (सः) plus ātmā (आत्मा) is sa ātmā (स आत्मा), written together when the visarga drops before the vowel. The same sa (स) stands before vijñeyaḥ (विज्ञेयः).
Say it back
Say three refusals, then the mantra's own word for the fourth. Do not substitute turīya (तुरीय).