Chāndogya Upaniṣad 4.4

4.4.1

ṛ̂1 satyakāmo ha jābālo jabālāṃ mātaram āmantrayāṃ cakre \
brahmacaryaṃ bhavati vivatsyāmi kiṃgotro nv aham asmīti \\404.1\

1. Once upon a time Satyakāma Jābāla addressed his mother Jabālā: ‘Madam! I desire to live the life of a student of sacred knowledge. Of what family, pray, am I?’

4.4.2

sā hainam uvāca \
nāham etad veda tāta yadgotras tvam asi \
bahv aham carantī paricāriṇī yauvane tvām alabhe \
sāham etan na veda yadgotras tvam asi \
jabālā tu nāmāham asmi \
satyakāmo nāma tvam asi \
sa satyakāmao eva jābālo bruvīthā iti \\404.2\

2. Then she said to him: ‘I do not know this, my dear—of what family you are. In my youth, when I went about a great deal serving as a maid, I got you. So I do not know of what family you are. However, I am Jabālā by name; you are Satyakāma by name. So you may speak of yourself as Satyakāma Jābāla.’

4.4.3

sa ha hāridrumataṃ gautamam etyovāca \
brahmacaryaṃ bhagavati vatsyāmi \
upeyāṃ bhagavantam iti \\404.3\

3. Then he went to Hāridrumata Gautama, and said: ‘I will live the life of a student of sacred knowledge. I will become a pupil of yours, Sir.’

4.4.4

taṃ ha uvāca kiṃgotro nu somya asi iti \
sa ha uvāca \
na aham etad veda bho yadgotro 'ham asmi \
apṛcchaṃ mātaram \
sā mā pratyabravīt bahv aham carantī paricariṇī yauvane tvām alabhe \
sāham etan na veda yadgotras tvam asi \
jabālā tu nāmāham asmi \
satyakāmo nāma tvam asi iti \
so 'haṃ satyakāmo jābālo 'smi bho iti \\404.4\

4. To him he then said: ‘Of what family, pray, are you, my dear?’

Then he said: ‘I do not know this, Sir, of what family I am. I asked my mother. She answered me: “In my youth, when I went about a great deal serving as a maid, I got you. So I do not know this, of what family you are. However, I am Jabālā by name; you are Satyakāma by name.” So I am Satyakāma Jābāla, Sir.’

4.4.5

taṃ ha uvāca \
na etad abrahmaṇo vivaktum arhati \
samidhaṃ somyāhara \
upa tvā neṣye na satyād agā iti \
tam upanīya kṛśānām abalānāṃ catuḥśatā gā nirākṛtya uvāca imāḥ somya anusaṃvrajeti \
tā abhiprasthāpayann uvāca \
na asahasreṇāvarteyeti \
sa ha varṣagaṇaṃ provāsa \
tā yadā sahasraṃ sampeduḥ \\404.5\

5. To him he then said: ‘A non-Brahman (a-brāhmaṇa) would not be able to explain thus. Bring the fuel, my dear. I will receive you as a pupil. You have not deviated from the truth.’

After having received him as a pupil, he separated out four hundred lean, weak cows and said: ‘Follow these, my dear.’

As he was driving them on, he said: ‘I may not return without a thousand.’ So he lived away a number of years. When they came to be a thousand,