Excerpts from Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad translation by Śwāmi Tyāgīśānanda
ते ध्यानयोगानुगता अपश्यन्
देवात्मशक्तिं स्वगुणैर्निगूढाम् ।
यः कारणानि निखिलानि तानि
कालात्मयुक्तान्यधितिष्ठत्येकः ॥१-३॥
| Sanskrit Word | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| ते | they |
| ध्यानयोगानुगता | practising the method of meditation |
| स्वगुणैः | by the Guṇas |
| निगूढाम् | hidden or concealed |
| देवात्मशक्तिम् | the self-conscious power in themselves; or the source of intellect, emotions, and will; or, the God of religion, the Self of philosophy, and the Energy of science |
| अपश्यन् | realized or experienced |
| यः | who |
| कालात्मयुक्तानि | beginning with time and ending with self |
| निखिलानि | all |
| तानि | those |
| कारणानि | causes |
| अधितिष्ठति | superintendents or controls |
Practising the method of meditation, they realized that Being who is the God of religion, the Self of philosophy and the Energy of science ; who exists as the self-luminous power in everyone; who is the source of the intellect, emotions and will; who is one without a second; who presides over all the causes enumerated above, beginning with time and ending with the individual soul; and who had been incomprehensible because of the limitations of their own intellect. (1.3)
यथैव बिम्बं मृदयोपलिप्तं तेजोमयं
भ्राजते तत् सुधान्तम् ।
तद्वाऽऽत्मतत्त्वं प्रसमीक्ष्य देही
एकः कृतार्थो भवते वीतशोकः ॥२-१४॥
| Sanskrit Word | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| यथा एव | just as |
| मृदया | by dust |
| उपलिप्तम् | stained |
| तत् | that |
| बिम्बं | metal disc |
| सुधान्तम् (सत्) | when cleaned |
| तेजोमयम् | brightly |
| भ्राजते | shines |
| तद् वा | in like manner |
| देही | the embodied being |
| प्रसमीक्ष्य | seeing |
| वीतशोकः | free from sorrow |
| कृतार्थो भवते | attains the goal |
Just as the same metal disc, which was stained by dust before, shines brilliantly when cleaned, so the embodied being, seeing the truth of Ātman, realizes oneness, attains the goal, and becomes sorrowless. (2.14)
एको हि रुद्रो न द्वितीयाय तस्थुर्य
इमाँल्लोकानीशत ईशनीभिः ।
प्रत्यङ् जनास्तिष्ठति सञ्चुकोचान्तकाले
संसृज्य विश्वा भुवनानि गोपाः ॥३-२॥
| Sanskrit Word | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| इमान् | these |
| लोकान् | worlds |
| ईशनीभिः | by His own powers |
| ईशते | protects and controls |
| हि | indeed |
| द्वितीयाय | as a second being |
| न तस्थुः | did not stand |
| प्रत्यङ् | inside every being |
| तिष्ठति | He stands |
| संसृज्य | projecting |
| गोपाः | protector |
| सम्चुकोच | He withdrew unto Himself |
He who protects and controls the worlds by His own powers, He - Rudra - is indeed one only. There is no one beside Him who can make Him the second. O men, He is present inside the hearts of all beings. After projecting and maintaining all the worlds, He finally withdraws them into Himself. (3.2)
यस्मात् परं नापरमस्ति
किञ्चिद्यस्मान्नणीयो न ज्यायोऽस्ति कश्चित् ।
वृक्ष इव स्तब्धो दिवि
तिष्ठत्येकस्तेनेदं पूर्णं पुरुषेण सर्वम् ॥३-९॥
| Sanskrit Word | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| यस्मात् | than whom |
| परम् | higher |
| अपरम् | different |
| किञ्चित् | anything |
| ज्यायः | greater or older in age |
| कश्चित् | any one |
| दिवि | in His own glory |
| तेन पुरुषेण | by that Being |
There is naught higher than or different from Him; naught greater or more minute than Him. Rooted in His own glory He stands like a tree, one without a second and immovable. By that Being the whole universe is filled. (3.9)
पुरुष एवेदः सर्वं यद्
भूतं यच्च भव्यम् ।
उतामृतत्वस्येशानो
यदन्नेनातिरोहति ॥३-१५॥
| Sanskrit Word | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| यद् भूतं | all that was |
| यद् | even though |
| अतिरोहति | grows beyond His true nature |
| अमृतत्वस्य | of immortality |
| उत | also |
That which is, that which was, and that which is yet to be - all this is nothing but this Infinite Being. Though He grows beyond His own nature into the form of the objective universe, He still remains the lord of immortality. (3.15)
य एकोऽवर्णो बहुधा शक्तियोगाद्
वर्णाननेकान् निहितार्थो दधाति ।
विचैति चान्ते विश्वमादौ च
देवः स नो बुद्धया शुभया संयुनक्तु ॥४-१॥
| Sanskrit Word | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| आदौ | in the beginning |
| अवर्णः | colourless |
| शक्तियोगात् | by virtue of His own power |
| वर्णान् | innumerable colours |
| निहितार्थः | for His inscrutable purpose |
| दधाति | creates |
| शुभया बुद्धया | with good thoughts |
| संयुनक्तु | may endow |
May that Divine Being, who, though Himself colourless, gives rise to various colours in different ways with the help of His own power, for His own inscrutable purpose, and who dissolves the whole world in Himself in the end, may He endow us with good thoughts! (4.1)
यदाऽतमस्तान्न दिवा न रात्रिः न
सन्नचासच्छिव एव केवलः ।
तदक्षरं तत् सवितुर्वरेण्यं प्रज्ञा च
तस्मात् प्रसृता पुराणी ॥४-१८॥
| Sanskrit Word | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| अतमः | absence of darkness |
| तत् | then |
| न दिवा | there is no day |
| न सत् | nor being |
| अक्षरम् | the imperishable |
| वरेण्यम् | adorable |
| तस्मात् | from Him |
| पुराणी | the ancient |
| प्रज्ञा | wisdom |
| प्रसृता | proceeded |
When ignorance is dispelled, there is neither day nor night, neither being nor non-being. There is only that Auspicious One who is imperishable, and who is worthy of being adored by the creator. From Him has proceeded the ancient wisdom. (4.18)
न तत्र सूर्यो भाति न चन्द्रतारकं
नेमा विद्युतो भान्ति कुतोऽयमग्निः ।
तमेव भान्तमनुभाति सर्वं
तस्य भासा सर्वमिदं विभाति ॥६-१४॥
| Sanskrit Word | English Meaning |
|---|---|
| न भाति | does not shine |
| न चन्द्रतारकं | nor the moon, nor the stars |
| इमा | these lightnings |
| कुतः | wherefrom |
| तम् | Him |
| एव | alone |
| भासा | by the light |
The sun does not shine there ; neither the moon, nor the stars. There these lightnings shine not, - how then this fire ? Because He shines, everything shines after Him. By His light all this shines. (6.14)
Note : English meanings from Learnsanskrit.cc
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