The Mandukya Upanishad

by Swami Krishnananda

Invocation

ॐ भद्रं कर्णेभिः श‍ृणुयाम देवा भद्रं पश्येमाक्षभिर्यजत्राः ।
स्थिरैरङ्गैस्तुष्टुवांसस्तनूभिर्व्यशेम देवहितं यदायुः ॥
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ।

Om! Bhadram karnebhih s'rnuyāma devāh bhadram pasyemākṣabhiryajatrāh,
sthirairangaistushtuvam sastanūbhir vyaśema devahitam yadāyuh.
Om śāntih, śāntih, śāntih.

"Om. Shining Ones! May we hear through our ears what is auspicious; Ye, fit to be worshipped! May we see with our eyes what is auspicious; May we, endowed with body strong with limbs, offering praise, complete the full span of life bestowed upon us by the divine beings; May Indra, of enhanced fame, be auspicious unto us; May Pushan, who is all-knowing, be auspicious unto us; May Tarkshya, who is the destroyer of all evils, be auspicious unto us; May Brihaspati bestow upon us auspiciousness!

Om. Peace! Peace! Peace!

Verses

ॐ इति एतद अक्षरं इदं सर्वम्, तस्योपव्याख्यानम्
भूतं भवद् भविष्यदिति सर्वमोङ्कार एव
यच्चान्यत् त्रिकालातीतं तदप्योङ्कार एव ॥ १॥

aum ity etad akṣaram idam sarvam, tasyopavyākhyānam 
bhūtam bhavad bhaviṣyad iti sarvam auṁkāra eva
yac cānyat trikālātītaṁ tad apy auṁkāra eva. || 1 ||

OM! – This Imperishable Word is the whole of this visible universe. Its explanation is as follows: What has become, what is becoming, what will become, – verily, all of this is OM. And what is beyond these three states of the world of time, – that too, verily, is OM. (1)

सर्वं ह्येतद् ब्रह्मायमात्मा ब्रह्म सोऽयमात्मा चतुष्पात् ॥ २॥

sarvaṁ hy etad brahma, ayam ātmā brahma  so'yam ātmā catuṣ-pāt. || 2 ||

All this, verily, is Brahman. The Self is Brahman. This Self has four quarters. (2)

जागरितस्थानो बहिष्प्रज्ञः सप्ताङ्ग एकोनविंशतिमुखः स्थूलभुग्वैश्वानरः प्रथमः पादः ॥ ३॥

jāgarita sthāno bahiṣ-prajñaḥ saptāṅga ekonaviṁśati-mukhaḥ sthūla-bhug vaiśvānaraḥ prathamaḥ pādah. || 3 ||

The first quarter is Vaiśvānara. Its field is the waking state. Its consciousness is outward-turned. It is seven-limbed and nineteen-mouthed. It enjoys gross objects. (3)

स्वप्नस्थानोऽन्तःप्रज्ञः सप्ताङ्ग एकोनविंशतिमुखः प्रविविक्तभुक्तैजसो द्वितीयः पादः ॥ ४॥

svapna-sthāno'ntaḥ-prajñaḥ saptāṅga ekonavimśati-mukhaḥ pravivikta-bhuk taijaso dvītiyaḥ pādah. || 4 ||

The second quarter is taijasa. Its field is the dream state. Its consciousness is inward-turned. It is seven-limbed and nineteen-mouthed. It enjoys subtle objects. (4)

यत्र सुप्तो न कञ्चन कामं कामयते न कञ्चन स्वप्नं पश्यति तत् सुषुप्तम् ।
सुषुप्तस्थान एकीभूतः प्रज्ञानघन एवानन्दमयो ह्यानन्दभुक् चेतोमुखः प्राज्ञस्तृतीयः पादः ॥ ५॥

yatra supto na kaṁ cana kāmaṁ kāmayate na kaṁ cana svapnam paśyati tat suṣuptam,
suṣupta-sthāna ekī-bhūtaḥ prajñānā-ghana evānanda-mayo hy ānanda-bhuk ceto-mukhaḥ prājñas tṛtīyaḥ pādah. || 5 ||

The third quarter is prājña, where one asleep neither desires anything nor beholds any dream: that is deep sleep. In this field of dreamless sleep, one becomes undivided, an undifferentiated mass of consciousness, consisting of bliss and feeding on bliss. His mouth is consciousness. (5)

एष सर्वेश्वरः एष सर्वज्ञ एषोऽन्तर्याम्येष योनिः सर्वस्य प्रभवाप्ययौ हि भूतानाम् ॥ ६॥

eṣa sarveśvaraḥ eṣa sarvajñaḥ, eṣo'ntāryami, eṣa yoniḥ sarvasya prabhavāpyayau hi bhūtānām. || 6 ||

This is the Lord of All; the Omniscient; the Indwelling Controller; the Source of All. This is the beginning and end of all beings. (6)

नान्तःप्रज्ञं न बहिष्प्रज्ञं नोभयतःप्रज्ञं न प्रज्ञानघनं न प्रज्ञं नाप्रज्ञम् ।
अदृष्टमव्यवहार्यमग्राह्यमलक्षणं अचिन्त्यमव्यपदेश्यमेकात्मप्रत्ययसारं प्रपञ्चोपशमं शान्तं शिवमद्वैतं चतुर्थं मन्यन्ते स आत्मा स विज्ञेयः ॥ ७॥

nāntaḥ-prajñam, na bahiṣ prajñam, nobhayataḥ-prajñam na prajnañā-ghanam, na prajñam, nāprajñam;
adṛṣtam, avyavahārayam, agrāhyam, alakṣaṇam, acintyam, avyapadeśyam, ekātma-pratyaya-sāram, prapañcopaśamam, śāntam, śivam, advaitam, caturtham manyante, sa ātmā, sa vijñeyaḥ. || 7 ||

That is known as the fourth quarter: neither inward-turned nor outward-turned consciousness, nor the two together; not an indifferentiated mass of consciousness; neither knowing, nor unknowing; invisible, ineffable, intangible, devoid of characteristics, inconceivable, indefinable, its sole essence being the consciousness of its own Self; the coming to rest of all relative existence; utterly quiet; peaceful; blissful: without a second: this is the Ātman, the Self; this is to be realised. (7)

सोऽयमात्माध्यक्षरमोङ्कारोऽधिमात्रं पादा मात्रा मात्राश्च पादा अकार उकारो मकार इति ॥ ८॥

so'yam ātmādhyakṣaram auṁkaro'dhimātram pādā mātrā mātrāś ca pādā akāra ukāra makāra iti. || 8 ||

This identical Ātman, or Self, in the realm of sound is the syllable OM, the above described four quarters of the Self being identical with the components of the syllable, and the components of the syllable being identical with the four quarters of the Self. The components of the Syllable are A, U, M. (8)

जागरितस्थानो वैश्वानरोऽकारः प्रथमा मात्राऽऽप्तेरादिमत्त्वाद् वाऽऽप्नोति ह वै सर्वान् कामानादिश्च भवति य एवं वेद ॥ ९॥

jāgarita-sthāno vaiśvānaro'kāraḥ prathamā mātrā'pter ādimattvād vā'pnoti ha vai sarvān kāmān ādiś ca bhavati ya evaṁ veda. || 9 ||

Vaiśvānara, whose field is the waking state, is the first sound, A, because this encompasses all, and because it is the first. He who knows thus, encompasses all desirable objects; he becomes the first. (9)

स्वप्नस्थानस्तैजस उकारो द्वितीया मात्रोत्कर्षात् उभयत्वाद्वोत्कर्षति ह वै ज्ञानसन्ततिं समानश्च भवति नास्याब्रह्मवित्कुले भवति य एवं वेद ॥ १०॥

svapna-sthānas taijasa ukāro dvitīyā mātrotkarṣāt ubhayatvādvotkarṣati ha vai jñāna-saṁtatiṁ samānaś ca bhavati nāsyābrahma-vit-kule bhavati ya evam veda. || 10 ||

Taijasa, whose field is the dream state, is the second sound, U, because this is an excellence, and contains the qualities of the other two. He who knows thus, exalts the flow of knowledge and becomes equalised; in his family there will be born no one ignorant of Brahman. (10)

सुषुप्तस्थानः प्राज्ञो मकारस्तृतीया मात्रा मितेरपीतेर्वा मिनोति ह वा इदं सर्वमपीतिश्च भवति य एवं वेद ॥ ११॥

suṣupta-sthānaḥ prājño makāras tṛtīya mātrā  miter apīter vā minoti ha vā idaṁ sarvam apītiś ca bhavati ya evaṁ veda. || 11 ||

Prājña, whose field is deep sleep, is the third sound, M, because this is the measure, and that into which all enters. He who knows thus, measures all and becomes all. (11)

अमात्रश्चतुर्थोऽव्यवहार्यः प्रपञ्चोपशमः शिवोऽद्वैत
एवमोङ्कार आत्मैव संविशत्यात्मनाऽऽत्मानं य एवं वेद ॥ १२॥

amātraś caturtho'vyavahāryaḥ prapañcopaśamaḥ sivo'dvaita evam auṁkāra ātmaiva, saṁviśaty ātmanā'tmānaṁ ya evaṁ veda ya evaṁ veda. || 12 ||

The fourth is soundless: unutterable, a quieting down of all relative manifestations, blissful, peaceful, non-dual. Thus, OM is the Ātman, verily. He who knows thus, merges his self in the Self; – yea, he who knows thus. (12)

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ।

Om śantih; śantih; śantih

Om Peace! Peace! Peace!