Mṛtyu

Death as a cosmic principle, a devouring force that consumes all. In the Upaniṣads, mṛtyu is far more than the biological end: it is the personification of ignorance and finitude. The Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad describes mṛtyu as the universal devourer whose dominion dissolves only through knowledge of Brahman. To conquer mṛtyu is to conquer avidyā — the fundamental ignorance that binds the being to the wheel of [[samsāra]]. See also marana.