Nirvana Upanishad 4 - Verse 4

Various Rishis

Nirvana Upanishad: Verse 4

Sanskrit (Devanagari)

अथ निर्वाणोपनिषदं व्याख्यास्यामः । परमहंसः सोऽहम् । परिव्राजकाः पश्चिमलिङ्गाः । मन्मथः क्षेत्रपालः । गगनसिद्धान्तः अमृतकल्लोलनदी । अक्षयं निरञ्जनम् । निःसंशय ऋषिः । निर्वाणो देवता । निष्कुलप्रवृत्तिः । निष्केवलज्ञानम् ॥१-११॥

Padapatha (Word Split)

अथ । निर्वाण-उपनिषदम् । व्याख्यास्यामः । परमहंसः । सः । अहम् । परिव्राजकाः । पश्चिम-लिङ्गाः । मन्मथः । क्षेत्र-पालः । गगन-सिद्धान्तः । अमृत-कल्लोल-नदी । अक्षयम् । निरञ्जनम् । निःसंशयः । ऋषिः । निर्वाणः । देवता । निष्कुल-प्रवृत्तिः । निष्केवल-ज्ञानम् ॥

Recitation with translationNirvana Upanishad 4

IAST Transliteration

atha nirvāṇopaniṣadaṃ vyākhyāsyāmaḥ | paramahaṃsaḥ so’ham | parivrājakāḥ paścimaliṅgāḥ | manmathaḥ kṣetrapālaḥ | gaganasiddhāntaḥ amṛtakallolanadī | akṣayaṃ nirañjanam | niḥsaṃśaya ṛṣiḥ | nirvāṇo devatā | niṣkulapravṛttiḥ | niṣkevalajñānam ||1-11||

Translation

ഇപ്പോൾ നാം നിർവാണോപനിഷത്തിനെ വ്യാഖ്യാനിക്കുന്നു. “ഞാൻ പരമഹംസൻ.” പരിവ്രാജക സന്ന്യാസികൾ ‘പശ്ചിമലിംഗങ്ങൾ’ ആകുന്നു. മന്മഥൻ ക്ഷേത്രപാലൻ. സിദ്ധാന്തം ‘ഗഗനത്തിന്റെ നിഷ്കർഷം’; നദി ‘അമൃതത്തിന്റെ തരംഗനദി’. ലക്ഷ്യം അക്ഷയം, നിരഞ്ജനം. ഋഷി ‘നിഃസംശയം’. ദേവത നിർവാണം. പ്രവൃത്തി ‘നിഷ്കുല’ (കുലബന്ധമില്ലാത്തത്). ജ്ഞാനം ‘നിഷ്കേവലം, അദ്വൈത പരമജ്ഞാനം’.

Academic Translation

Now we shall expound the Nirvāṇa Upaniṣad. “I am the Paramahaṃsa.” The wandering renunciants are the ‘western marks (liṅgas)’. Manmatha is the guardian of the sacred precinct. The doctrine is the ‘conclusion of the sky’; the river is the ‘nectar-river with waves’. (The goal is) the imperishable, the stainless. The seer is ‘Free-from-doubt’. The deity is Nirvāṇa. The activity is ‘without clan/lineage’. The knowledge is ‘non-dual, absolute knowledge’.

Word by Word

athanow; then

nirvāṇa-upaniṣadamthe Nirvāṇa Upaniṣad

vyākhyāsyāmaḥwe shall explain

paramahaṃsaḥthe Paramahaṃsa (supreme renunciate)

saḥhe; that

ahamI

parivrājakāḥwandering mendicants

paścima-liṅgāḥhaving the western/latter marks (of renunciation)

manmathaḥManmatha (Kāma)

kṣetrapālaḥguardian of the field

gagana-siddhāntaḥthe ‘Gagana-siddhānta’ (doctrine of space)

amṛta-kallola-nadīthe river of nectar-waves

akṣayamimperishable

nirañjanamstainless; taintless

niḥsaṃśayaḥfree from doubt

ṛṣiḥseer (ṛṣi)

nirvāṇaḥNirvāṇa (liberation)

devatādeity (presiding divinity)

niṣkula-pravṛttiḥactivity free from family/lineage ties

niṣkevala-jñānampure non-dual knowledge

Sandhi Notes

so’ham resolved as saḥ + aham (visarga sandhi: aḥ + a → o’). Other items are largely compounds written in pada form
nirvāṇopaniṣadam treated as nirvāṇa-upaniṣadam (tatpuruṣa)

Verse Context

Moksha (Nirvāṇa) through non-dual knowledge (Advaita jñāna) and renunciation (saṃnyāsa/paramahaṃsa ideal)Mahavakya: Directly echoes ‘अहं ब्रह्मास्मि’ (Aham Brahmāsmi) via ‘सोऽहम्’ identity; supports Mahāvākya methodology of self-Brahman identityAtharvaChandas: Prose

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