Niralamba Upanishad 20: Verse 20

Sanskrit (Devanagari)

कर्तृत्वाद्यहङ्कारसङ्कल्पो बन्धः ॥२०॥

Padapatha (Word Split)

कर्तृत्व-आदि-अहङ्कार-सङ्कल्पः । बन्धः ॥२०॥

Sanskrit recitationNiralamba Upanishad 20

IAST Transliteration

kartṛtvādy-ahaṅkāra-saṅkalpo bandhaḥ ||20||

Translation

Bindung ist der Saṅkalpa des Ahaṅkāra: die willentliche Konstruktion der Ichhaftigkeit, beginnend mit dem Gefühl des Täterseins (kartṛtva) und dergleichen.

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Academic Translation

Bondage is the volitional construction (saṅkalpa) of egoity (ahaṅkāra), beginning with the sense of doership (kartṛtva) and the like.

Verse Context

• Ahaṅkāra and kartṛtva as the root of bandha; saṅkalpa as cognitive construction sustaining avidyā
• Mahavakya: Indirectly prepares for ‘तत्त्वमसि’ (tat tvam asi) and ‘अहं ब्रह्मास्मि’ (ahaṃ brahmāsmi) by negating the doer-ego; emphasizes akartṛtva (non-doership) as a prerequisite insight.
• Atharva
• Chandas: Prose