Prashna Upanishad: Verse 4.2

Sanskrit (Devanagari)

तस्मै स होवाच । यथा गार्ग्य मरीचयोऽर्कस्यास्तं गच्छतः सर्वा एतस्मिंस्तेजोमण्डल एकीभवन्ति । ताः पुनः पुनरुदयतः प्रचरन्त्येवं ह वै तत् सर्वं परे देवे मनस्येकीभवति तेन तर्ह्येष पुरुषो न शृणोति न पश्यति न जिघ्रति न रसयते न स्पृशते नाभिवदते नादत्ते नानन्दयते न विसृजते नेयायते स्वपितीत्याचक्षते ॥२॥

Padapatha (Word Split)

तस्मै सः ह उवाच । यथा गार्ग्य मरीचयः अर्कस्य अस्तम् गच्छतः सर्वाः एतस्मिन् तेजोमण्डले एकीभवन्ति । ताः पुनः पुनः उदयतः प्रचरन्ति एवम् ह वै तत् सर्वम् परे देवे मनसि एकीभवति तेन तर्हि एषः पुरुषः न शृणोति न पश्यति न जिघ्रति न रसयते न स्पृशते न अभिवदते न आदत्ते न आनन्दयते न विसृजते न इयायते स्वपिति इति आचक्षते ॥२॥

Recitation with translationPrashna Upanishad 4.2

IAST Transliteration

tasmai sa hovāca | yathā gārgya marīcayo'rkasyāstaṃ gacchataḥ sarvā etasmiṃstejomūṇḍalekībhavanti | tāḥ punaḥ punarudayataḥ pracarantyevaṃ ha vai tat sarvaṃ pare deve manasyekībhavati tena tarhyeṣa puruṣo na śṛṇoti na paśyati na jighrati na rasayate na spṛśate nābhivadate nādatte nānandayate na visṛjate neyāyate svapītyācakṣate ||2||

Translation

Zu ihm sprach er: 'Wie, o Gargya, die Strahlen der Sonne beim Untergang sich alle in jener Lichtkugel vereinen und beim Aufgang wieder hervorgehen — so wahrlich vereint sich all dieses im höchsten Gotte, dem Geist. Daher hört dann dieser Mensch nicht, sieht nicht, riecht nicht, schmeckt nicht, berührt nicht, spricht nicht, nimmt nicht, genießt nicht, scheidet nicht, bewegt sich nicht — man sagt, er schläft.'

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Academic Translation

To him he said: 'As, O Gargya, the rays of the sun, when it sets, all become unified in that orb of light, and when it rises again they emerge forth—thus indeed all this becomes unified in the supreme deity, the mind. Therefore then this person does not hear, does not see, does not smell, does not taste, does not touch, does not speak, does not take, does not enjoy, does not excrete, does not move—they say he sleeps.'

Verse Context

• Ekībhāva (unification/merging) of senses into mind during sleep; the sun-ray metaphor for sensory withdrawal and re-emergence
• Mahavakya: Indirectly related to Prajnanam Brahma (Consciousness is Brahman) as it describes the mind as the unified field of awareness in the dream state, pointing toward the underlying consciousness that persists across all states
• Atharva Veda
• Pippalada Shakha
• Chandas: Prose (Vedic prose / Brāhmaṇa style)