ESSENCE OF
PRINCIPAL UPANISHADS
ESSENCE OF
PRINCIPAL UPANISHADS
Sri Swami Sivananda
Published by
THE DIVINE LIFE SOCIETY
P.O. SHIVANANDANAGAR-249 192
Distt. Tehri-Garhwal, Uttarakhand, Himalayas, INDIA
www.sivanandaonline.org, www.dishq.org
First Edition: 1959
Seventh Edition: 2019
[ 1,000 Copies ]
@The Divine Life Trust Society
ISBN 81-7052-202-1
ES 272
PRICE: $ 105/-
Published by Swami Padmanabhananda for The Divine Life Society, Shivanandanagar, and printed by him at the Yoga-Vedanta Forest Academy Press,
7.O. Shivanandanagar, Distt. Tehri-Garhwal, Uttarakhand, Himalayas, India,
for online orders and Catalogue visit: dlsbooks.org
PUBLISHERS' NOTE
The Eternal Wisdom of the Sages of India is stored up in the Upanishads. These Upanishads have been a source of great inspiration to the great philosophers, Acharyas and seekers of Truth, not only in India, but all over the world.
From time to time, the truths of the Upanishads have been re-interpreted by sages and saints, to suit the time and the spiritual evolution of the people of their generation.
Sri Swami Sivanandaji Maharaj has given not only his illuminating commentary on the Principal Upanishads, but also the highly interesting "Upanishad Drama," "Dialogues from the Upanishads," "Upanishads for Busy People" and "Ten Upanishads." This "Essence" is a valuable addition to the others.
-THE DIVINE LIFE SOCIETY
Contents
ESSENCE OF
PRINCIPAL UPANISHADS
CHAPTER ONE
ISAVASYA UPANISHAD
ॐ पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात्पूर्णमुदच्यते ।
पूर्णस्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते ।।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !
The whole is all That. The whole is all this. The whole was born of the whole. Taking the whole from the whole, what remains is the whole.
Om Peace! Peace!! Peace!!!
Glory of the Upanishads
1. Salutations to all Brahma-Vidya Gurus or the preceptors of the knowledge of Brahman.
2. Prostrations to Satchidananda Para Brahman, who is the prop, basis and source for everything.
3. The acme of wisdom of the sages is to be found in the Upanishads.
4. The Upanishads teach the philosophy of absolute unity.
5. The knowledge of the Upanishads destroys ignorance, the seed of Samsara.
6. Behind the names and forms, there dwells the Eternal, Infinite Satchidananda Brahman.
7. This world is indwelt by Para- Brahman or the Absolute.
8. Renounce all desires. Renounce egoism, selfishness and identification of self with the body (Deha-Adhyasa). Then alone will you attain Moksha or release.
9. Desire for liberation will destroy all earthly desires.
10. Perform religious rites and daily duties without expectation of fruits.
11. Do constant selfless service to humanity with Atma-Bhava, you will get purification of heart. Then alone will Atma-Jnana dawn in your heart.
12. Works will not bind you if you perform them without egoism and expectation of fruits. Nature of the Atman
13. This Atman is motionless, but swifter than the mind; because it is all-pervading and all-full.
14. Before the mind reaches a plane, the Atman is already there, as it is all-pervading and infinite.
15. The Atman is distant and it is near. It is within all this, and also outside all this.
16. It is distant for the ignorant. It is very far for those who are immersed in worldliness. It is very near for the enquirer, for him who is equipped with purity of mind and the four means of salvation.
17. The Atman is very subtle. It is Antaratma, the inner self of all beings. It fills and covers everything. It is all-full. Hence it is within and without.
18. The Atman is the substratum or support (Adhishthana) of all beings.
19. The sage sees all beings in the Atman and the Atman in all beings.
20. He who sees the Atman as pervading everything, and everything in the Atman, does not wish to guard himself, because he has no fear from anyone.
21. A sage who has realised the Atman beholds that all objects and all beings are not distant from his own Self and that his Atman is the Atman of all.
22. The Atman is the common consciousness in all beings.
23. The Atman is the same in the king and the peasant, the saint and the sinner, the cobbler and the barber, the ant and the elephant, the tree and the stone.
24. How can that freed soul who rests in his own Atman and who has an exalted cosmic consciousness shrink from any being or object with a feeling of repulsion? How can he dislike anything? How can he hate anything?
25. Mere intellectual assent that the one Self abides in all beings will not do. Actual Self-realisation Or direct perception, Aparoksha-Anubhava is indispensably requisite.
26. The knower of Brahman becomes fearless. The knower of Brahman transcends delusion and sorrow.
27. The three knots of the heart (Hridaya-granthi), -Avidya (ignorance), Kama (desire) and Karma (action) are torn asunder by the knowledge of Brahman. The knower becomes absolutely free.
28. A knower always rejoices in the bliss of the Atman. Even the heaviest sorrow cannot shake him a bit.
29. This Atman is all-pervading, bright bodiless, pure, untouched by sin or evil actions, omniscient, transcendent, self-sprung or self-existent. Itis scatheless and without muscles.
30. This Atman is without the physical body, astral body and causal body.
31. The Atman is independent. It never depends on another.
32. The Atman is beyond the reach of the senses and the mind.
33. The Atman is the Mind of the mind, Ear of the ear.
34. Behind the breath, the senses and the mind, there is the supreme Brahman or the Absolute.
35. By the light of Brahman alone do the mind, the Prana and the senses function.
Bases of Brahma-jnana
36. When Karma is done without expectation of fruits, it purifies the mind and generates in the aspirant a strong desire for the final emancipation.
37. The desire to know Brahman and attain freedom from births and deaths can arise only in the person who is endowed with a pure and calm mind, who is desireless and who is disgusted with the sensual objects of this illusory world.
38. Brahman cannot be attained by mere logical discussion.
39. The Srutis say: "In order to know Brahman, let the aspirant approach, with sacrificial sticks (Samit) in hand, a preceptor who is well-versed in the Vedas and who is centred in Brahman.
40. The Srutis say: "He knows, who has studied under a preceptor."
41. Only that knowledge which is acquired by studying under a preceptor does good.
42. When one attains knowledge of Brahman, Avidya or ignorance which is the seat of bondage and the cause of Karma performed for the attainment of objects of desire, is totally destroyed.
43. The Srutis say: "There is neither sorrow nor delusion for the knower of the Self, who beholds the one Atman everywhere, He who knows the Atman goes beyond sorrow."
44. Moksha cannot be attained by Karma or knowledge combined with Karma. Jana alone can confer Moksha. Karma purifies the mind and helps the aspirant to attain knowledge.
45. The performance of Karma will take one to the world of manes (Pitriloka); but it cannot make one immortal.
46. Brahman, the only real entity, cannot be attained by any other means than the removal of ignorance through knowledge of the Self.
47. When one attains the supreme Brahman which is unborn, unchangeable, birthless, undecaying, immortal, fearless, eternal, self-luminous,
all-blissful, and all-pervading, one is freed from births and deaths.
48. Para-Brahman or the Absolute controls and guides the mind, life (Prana) and the senses.
49. Brahman is the ear of the ear, the mind of the mind, the tongue of the tongue, the speech of speech, the life of life, and the eye of the eye.
50. Having abandoned the sense of I-ness in these, and rising above sense-life, the wise becomes immortal.
CHAPTER TWO
KENOPANISHAD
ॐ आप्यायन्तु ममाङ्गानि वाक्प्राणश्चक्षुः श्रोत्रमथो बलमिन्द्रियाणि च सर्वाणि सर्वं ब्रह्मौपनिषदं माहं ब्रह्म निराकुर्यां मा
मा ब्रह्म निराकरोदनिराकरणमस्त्वनिराकरणं मेऽस्तु तदात्मनि निरते
य उपनिषत्सु धर्मास्ते मयि सन्तु ते मयि सन्तु ||
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !
Hari Om! May my limbs, speech, Prana, eye, ear, strength and all my senses grow vigorous. All (everything) is the Brahman of the Upanishads. May I never deny Brahman.
May Brahman never spurn me. May there be no denial of Brahman. May there be no spurning by the Brahman. Let all the virtues recited by the Upanishads repose in me, delighting in the Atman! May they in me repose!
Om Peace! Peace!! Peace!!!
The Indwelling Power
51. Who is the director of the mind? Who impels the mind to alight on its object? Brahman.
52. At whose command does the Prana proceed to function? The command of Brahman or the Absolute.
53. At whose command do men utter speech? The command of Brahman.
54. What intelligence directs the eyes and the ears towards their respective objects? The Intelligence of Brahman.
55. Behind the Prana and the senses there is Brahman or the supreme Self. He who knows this attains immortality.
56. Ignorant people identify themselves with the body, mind, Prana and senses on account of nescience or Avidya.
57. They mistake these false, perishable limiting adjuncts or vehicles for the pure immortal Atman, and so they are caught in the round of births and deaths.
58. But some wise people abandon this false identification, separate themselves from these limiting discrimination, adjuncts through enquiry, Anvaya-Vyatireka-Yukti, and practice of "Neti, Neti" doctrine_"I am not this body, I am not this Prana, I am not this mind, I am not the senses," identify themselves with the all-pervading, immortal, pure Brahman and obtain knowledge immortality. of Brahman and attain
59. Rise above sense-life and live in the Atman. You will attain immortality and eternal bliss.
60. You will become immortal while living in this body, if you attain knowledge of Brahman. You need not wait till you leave this body.
61. Just as the water in a cup borrows its heat from the sun or the fire, so also the mind. Prana and senses borrow their light and power from the Atman.
62. The ear hears through the light of the Atman, the tongue speaks through the power of the Atman, the mind thinks through the power of the Atman, and the Prana performs its functions through the power of the Atman only.
63. The mind and the organs are inert and non-intelligent. They appear to be intelligent through the light and power of the Atman.
64. The ears, eyes, mind and Prana exist for the use of the Atman, just as a house exists for the use of its owner. The Director is Brahman or Atman.
65. Brahman shines by its own light. By its light all this universe is illumined.
66. The sun, moon, stars, fire and lightning shine by its light.
67. No one can live and breathe if there were not the self-luminous Brahman.
68. Brahman leads Prana up and Apana down.
69. One becomes immortal by renouncing all
desires.
Intuitive Realisation of Truth
70. The Sruti says: "Not by works, not by offerings, not by wealth, but by renunciation alone does one attain immortality."
71. How can the eyes see the sun, the seer of sight? The eye is an object of perception for the mind and Atman. One cannot jump on one's own shoulders.
72. Brahman cannot be an obiect of perception because it is partless, attributeless, extremely subtle and infinite.
73. To define Brahman is to deny Brahman.
74. "Satchidananda" is only a provisional definition of Brahman.
75. The Srutis explain Brahman through the
"Neti-Neti" (not this, not this) doctrine.
76. The disciple should possess a subtle, sharp, pure, and one-pointed intellect.
77. Brahman cannot be known like the objects of the world. It cannot be explained by mere words, just as you explain to others the nature of the objects of the world.
78. Brahman is distinct from the known, from the whole manifested universe and from the unknown, too.
79. Brahman is the only Reality. It is the basis and source for everything.
80. Brahman is not an object. It is all-pervading, mysterious, incomprehensible, Chaitanya or pure consciousness.
81. Brahman must be known through intuition.
82. It is very difficult to understand the nature of Brahman. It is very difficult to explain the nature of Brahman, because there is no means or language by which to do so.
83. Those who are endowed with a pure and subtle intellect can easily grasp the subtle ideas of the Upanishads.
84. As Brahman is beyond the reach of the senses and the mind, the aspirant should at first have a comprehensive understanding of Brahman through the study of the Upanishads and the instructions of an illumined preceptor.
85. The aspirant should equip himself with the four means* and practise constant meditation. Then alone will he attain knowledge of Brahman. He will realise Brahman like an amalaka fruit in his hand. Then all doubts and delusion will vanish.
86. That which is distinct from the known and the unknown is Brahman.
87. The knowledge of Brahman has been traditionally handed down from preceptor to disciple. Gaudapada taught Brahma-Vidya to Govindapada, Govindapada to Sankara, Sankara to Padmapada and others, and so on.
88. Brahman can be known only by instruction from an illumined teacher or realised sage and not by logical discussions or by intelligence, great expositions, austerity or sacrificial rites, etc.
____________
* Viveka (discrimination), Vairagya (dispassion),
Shat-Sampat (sixfold virtue), Mumukshutva (yearning for liberation).
89. The soul of man is the Atman. The soul of the universe is Brahman. The Atman is identical with Brahman.
90. What speech does not enlighten, but what enlightens speech, know that alone to be Brahman.
91. Speech cannot reveal or illumine Brahman. Brahman is beyond the range of speech. Speech expresses itself through the power or light of Brahman.
92. Speech is finite. How can the finite speech reveal the infinite Brahman?
93. Brahman alone illumines speech and its organ, the Vak-Indriya. Brahman is the speech of speech, the tongue of tongue.
94. Brahman is within speech and directs speech.
95. This Atman is Brahman or Bhuma (infinite or the unconditional).
96. Brahman is unsurpassable, big, great, the highest of all, all-pervading. So it is called Brahman.
97. Brahman is eternal, unchangeable, self-luminous, formless, colourless, attributeless,
timeless, spaceless, undecaying immortal. indivisible, unborn,
98. Vedanta is not hostile to devotion. It only deprecates worship with selfish interest.
99. A Vedantin or a Sage is a perfect devotee.
100. Para-Bhakti or supreme devotion and
Jnana or wisdom are one.
101. Vedanta says that Isvara whom people worship is one's own Self. It teaches an expanded form of Bhakti, the highest form of devotion.
The Self and the Mind
102. Brahman is the silent witness of the activities of the mind and all the organs.
103. That which cannot be comprehended by the mind but what causes the mind to think and to apprehend an object, know that alone as Brahman.
104. The mind is connected with all the organs. It is the commander-in-chief of all active forces.
105. Desire, volition, deliberation, faith, negligence, courage, timidity, shame, intelligence, fear- all these are ultimately the mind.
106. Mind is the 'Drik' or the seer, the objects are the Drishya' or the seen. The Atman is the Seer, the mind is the seen.
107. The senses carry the impressions of objects to the mind. The mind presents them to the Atman. The Atman returns them to the mind. Then alone does the comprehension of objects become perfect and complete.
108. What cannot be seen by the eyes, but by which the eyes are able to see - know that alone as Brahman.
109. Brahman cannot be seen by the eyes, as it is not an object of perception.
110. The eye is a finite instrument that carries the impressions of objects, colour, shape, form, size, etc., to the mind.
111. The eye derives its power of seeing from
Brahman only, its source.
112. The eye is made to move towards the objects by the enlightening intelligence of Brahman.
113. Brahman is the real unseen seer of sight. It is the silent witness of the activities of the eye.
114. Brahman is the Lord or the Proprietor of this mind-factory. The eyes, ears, etc. are ordinary clerks. The mind is the head-clerk. The intellect is the managing director.
115. What cannot be heard by the ears, but by which the ears are able to hear know that alone is Brahman.
116. Brahman directs the ears towards sound.
117. The ear is a finite instrument. It carries the impressions of sound to the mind. The activity of the ear is connected with the activity of the mind.
118. The ear derives its power of hearing from Brahman only, its source.
119. The ear is made to move towards sound, music, etc., by the enlightening intelligence of Brahman.
120. Brahman is the real unheard hearer. It is the silent witness of the activity of the ear.
121. What smell does not perceive,but directs smell to its objects, know that alone as Brahman.
122. That which one breathes not with the breath, but by which breath is breathed, know that alone as Brahman.
123. That which is not enlivened by the Prana, but what gives Prana the power of enlivening all beings know that alone as Brahman.
124. Brahman is not an object of perception.
Knowledge of Brahman is intuitive self-awareness.
125. The Prana is made to move towards its objects by the enlightening intelligence of Brahman.
Truth Transcendental
126. There is no objective and subjective consciousness for the sage; subject and object are the same for him. He sees only Brahman everywhere.
127. The Self or Soul of everyone is Brahman.
128. Brahman cannot be made the object of the knowledge of another, because besides it none that knows exists.
129. Brahman is different from what is known. It is also beyond what is not known.
130. He who is endowed with the four means, and who is pure and intelligent, can understand the teachings of the Upanishads.
131. Brahman is always the silent witnessing consciousness. He is the subject, knower and seer.
132. The seer can never be seen.
133. The knower can never be known by the intellect.
134. Anything perceived by the senses and conceived by the mind cannot be Brahman.
135. Only an object of the world can be perceived by the senses and thought by the mind.
136. Brahman is unknown by the mind, intellect and senses.
137. Brahman is certainly knowable through direct intuitive perception in Samadhi, as the Self or Atman, by the pure mind which is Brahman itself.
138. Till you attain the highest Nirvikalpa state, wherein you will feel "All indeed is Brahman," "there is nothing but the self," you will have to practise again and again enquiry, reflection and meditation. You must feel its presence in all names and forms.
139. You cannot know Brahman just as you know an object. Brahman is known or realised not as an object but as pure self-consciousness through intuitive or direct inner experience or illumination. Subject and object are one in spiritual experience.
140. Brahman is the witness of the waking dreaming and deep sleep states.
141. Brahman is intelligence in its essence. It is a homogeneous mass of pure consciousness.
142. Brahman is birthless, deathless, decayless, eternal, pure unconditional, one without a second. It is the Self or Atman of all beings.
143. In Nirvikalpa Samadhi, when all mental modifications merge in Brahman, there is no witness.
144. Brahman is eternal, pure self-luminous, undecaying, existence-absolute, knowledge-absolute and bliss-absolute.
145. The knower of Brahman possesses tremendous spiritual strength.
146. This Atman cannot be attained by one destitute of strength.
147. Real strength comes only through knowledge of the Self.
148. The knower of Brahman becomes absolutely fearless.
149. This Atman is invulnerable and invincible.
150. Immortality is the very nature of Brahman, just as heat is the very nature of fire.
151. Nirvikalpa Samadhi is a sublime soul-stirring experience that cannot be either imagined or described in words. You will have to experience it yourself in Samadhi when the mind, intellect and senses cease functioning. Liberation at Hand
152. Brahma-Jnana destroys ignorance just
as light destroys darkness and reveals one's inherent immortal nature.
153. Ignorance is the root cause of all human suffering.
154. If one does not know Brahman, he is caught in the round of births and deaths.
155. Really thirsty aspirants abandon the erroneous notion of "I" and "Mine" and turn away with disgust from the world, as everything here is perishable, illusory and transitory.
156. They practise meditation on the Atman and behold the one essence of the Atman in all objects. They realise the oneness of the Self or the unity of the Atman in all, and become immortal. They become Brahman.
157. He who knows that highest Brahman becomes Brahman itself.
158. He who lives in Brahman, he who has realised the Atman, really leads the true life.
159. Mundane life or sense-life is untruth. It is illusory.
160. The knower of Brahman attains liberation while living (Jivanmukti).
161. As soon as ignorance which is the cause of bondage is dispelled by the attainment of knowledge of Brahman, one gets liberation at
Moral of the Yaksha-upakhyana
162. There is the real war inside between the good tendencies and the evil tendencies, between Sattva and Rajas and Tamas, between the lower impure mind and the higher pure mind.
163. The senses, the mind and the Prana begin to fight: "We hold together and support this body." Prana gains the victory.
164. Prana, too, is inert. The source for this Prana, also, is Brahman. The senses, the mind and the Prana derive their light and power from Brahman only.
165. Upanishad means knowledge of Brahman or secret doctrine. Disciples sit devotedly round the preceptor for instructions: "Upa"-nearby, "ni" _devotedly and "Sad" -sit. Upanishad means, also the text that treats of Brahman.
166. Austerity, self-control and Sacrifice are aids to the acquisition of the knowledge of Brahman.
167. Knowledge dawns in men by the destruction of evil actions.
168. Knowledge of Brahman arises in those persons who have purified their minds by austerity, self-restraint and works, either in this birth or in several previous births.
169. Those who have not removed the impurities of the mind either disbelieve or misbelieve Brahman when it is explained, as in the case of Virochana.
170. These secrets explained become
illumined to that great soul whose devotion to the Lord is great and whose devotion to his preceptor is as great as that to the Lord.
171. Knowledge of Brahman has a firm basis only in those persons who possess self-restraint and who do Tapas.
172. Truth is the abode of Brahma-Vidya or spiritual knowledge. Austerity, self-restraint, are its support. The Vedas are its limbs.
173. Truth is freedom from deceit, from fraud of speech, mind or deed.
174. Knowledge of Brahman will arise only in a person who is free from conceit and fraud in speech, mind and deed, and who is good-natured.
175. Knowledge of Brahman does not arise in a person who is deceptive and utters falsehood. Therefore it is said that truth is the abode or resting place of knowledge.
176. Truth excels others as an aid to knowledge.
CHAPTER THREE
KATHOPANISHAD
ॐ सहनाववतु । सह नौ भुनक्तु । सह वीर्यं करवावहै । तेजस्वि नावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः
Om. May That protect us both (teacher and pupil). May That cause us both to enjoy the bliss (of Mukti). May we both exert to find out the true meaning of the scripturesMay our learning be brilliant. May we never quarrel with each other!
Om Peace! Peace!! Peace!!!
177. Revelation or direct intuition (Aparoksha-anubhuti) is the source of the knowledge of the Atman or the Supreme Self.
178. This Atman is difficult to be known. It is very subtle. It cannot be obtained by arguing.
179. A Self-realised Guru is necessary to lead the aspirants in the spiritual path.
The Pleasant vs. the Good
180. One is good while another is pleasant. Blessed is he who, between them, chooses the good alone (Sreyas); but who chooses what is pleasant (Preyas) loses the true end.
181. Sreyas is the good, the Supreme Self, the knowledge of which leads to Moksha or the final emancipation.
182. Preyas is that which is pleasant. It is sensual pleasure.
183. The individual soul is essentially identical with Brahman. Through illusion or ignorance he imagines that he is bound, is doing actions and is attempting to get deliverance or emancipation.
184. He who treads the path of truth, who accepts the good, attains immortality and eternal bliss; but he who chooses the pleasant, i.e. sensual pleasures, loses the goal of life, undergoes various sorts of miseries, sorrows and troubles, and is caught in the wheel of births and deaths.
185. Sreyo-Marga is the path of knowledge.
Preyo-Marga is the path of ignorance or the path of pleasure.
186. You will have to abandon sensual pleasures ruthlessly if you wish to attain the everlasting bliss of the soul or Atman.
187. The good and the pleasant take hold of man. The wise man examines and distinguishes them. The wise man prefers the good, but the the body.
Ignorant man chooses the pleasant good suke of
188. The path of knowledge and the path of pleasure are thrown open to a man. He can choose any path he likes.
189. Just as the swan separates the milk from a mixture of milk and water and drinks, milk alone, so also the wise man separates the good in life, and follows the good alone.
190. Wise men know that the Sreyo-Marga leads to the attainment of immortality, freedom and eternal bliss, and the Preyo-Marga to transitory sensual enjoyments and bondage. Therefore they prefer the good to the pleasant.
191. But the foolish or the ignorant who have no intelligence to discriminate between the good and the pleasant, who have no idea of the goal, the means of attaining it and its fruits, choose the pleasant through greed for fattening and preserving the body and for the sake of enjoying pleasures.
192. The two paths are certainly opposing and wide apart. They lead to different results. They are opposite like light and darkness.
193. Avidya or ignorance is the path of the pleasant. It leads to misery, grief and bondage.
194. Vidya or knowledge is the path of the good. It is beneficial. It confers freedom and final emancipation.
Marks of Delusion
195. The ignorant who live in the middle of darkness but fancy themselves as wise and learned go round and round, deluded, in many crooked ways, like the blind led by the blind.
196. Those men who live in Samsara are in the midst of ignorance or thick darkness. They have neither right understanding nor discrimination.
197. They are held and bound by a thousand and one ties of expectations. They are entangled in a thousand and one meshes formed of attachment for children, wife, wealth, property, house, etc.
198. They are ignorant, but regard themselves as intelligent and well-versed in the Sastras.
199. They do not attain salvation. They are caught again and again in the wheel of births and deaths.
200. They undergo the pains and miseries of Samsara, such as birth, old age, disease, sorrow, pain and death.
201. Just as the blind led by the blind on rough and uneven roads suffer, even so the ignorant undergo suffering.
202. The way to the Hereafter is not apparent to the ignorant one who is foolish, deluded by the delusion of wealth. "This is the world," he thinks, "there is no other." Thus he falls again and again into the net of death.
203. Wealth is the most powerful of intoxicants in the world. It generates pride and vanity. It produces turbidity in the mind and clouds the understanding. It veils the intellect.
204. The necessary means for attaining liberation are not apparent to the careless man who is ever thinking of his sons, wife and wealth and who is enveloped by the darkness caused by wealth.
205. Sensual pleasure is the goal of the worldly man. Money is his God and goal. "Eat, drink and be merry,"-this is his supreme philosophy.
206. Many are not even able to hear of the Atman. Many, even, when they hear of the Atman, do not comprehend it, because their minds are not purified.
The Glory of Brahma-vidya
207. Wonderful is the man who is able to expound the Self. Wonderful is he who comprehends the Self, when taught by an able teacher
208. Brahma-Vidya is the most wonderful science. This is the science of sciences.
209. What is that supreme spiritual science which being known all other worldly sciences become known. It is Para-Vidya or Brahman-Vidya, by which the Immortal Atman is known.
210. Wonderful must be the teacher who teaches Brahma-Vidya. Wonderful must be the disciple also.
211. Brahma-Janis and qualified aspirants are very, very rare in this world.
212. He who is equipped with the four means is fit to tread the path of Jnana-Yoga.
213. Of thousands who have heard this Atman, who seek God, some one alone becomes the knower of the Atman.
214. This Atman cannot be easily known when taught by an inferior person who is not a knower.
215. This Atman cannot be realised by arguing or by reasoning, because it is transcendent, beyond the reach of reason and intellect.
216. The intellect is a finite instrument that is conditioned in time, space and causation. We cannot come to a final and definite conclusion by merely arguing.
217. A man of inferior intellect will be defeated by a man of superior intellect.
218. Arguing is mere jugglery of words. It is intellectual gymnastics and lingual warfare.
219. He who spends his life in mere arguing is caught in the thick jungle of darkness and ignorance.
220. Give up arguing and become silent, introspective and meditative.
221. This Atman is realisable through silent meditation only.
222. Brahma-Jnana or knowledge of the Self cannot be obtained by mere reasoning or argument. One has to feel and realise the Brahmic consciousness through spiritual experience or direct intuitiveperception.
223. It is easy to understand and realise Brahman when taught by a teacher who beholds no difference, who has attained Self-realisation.
224. The Eternal is not obtained by things which are not eternal.
225. The Eternal or the supreme treasure of the Atman which is constant, cannot be attained by the inconstant, i.e., by Karma which is impermanent in its nature.
226. The state of Hiranyagarbha, also, is nothing when compared to the eternal life in Para-Brahman.
227. This Atman is very subtle and immanent. It is hidden in the cave of the heart. So it is very difficult to know this Atman.
228. The wise man withdraws the mind from external objects, realises this Atman by means of meditation on the inner self and renounces both joy and grief.
229. This Atman is beyond pleasure and pain, joy and grief. It is an embodiment of bliss. It is Satchidananda-Svarupa.
230. Pleasure and pain, joy and sorrow are modifications of the mind only.
Upanishadic Sadhana
231. The wise sage, by means of meditation on the Atman, realises the Ancient who is difficult to be seen, who is unfathomable, who is hidden in the cave of the heart, who dwells in the abyss, who is lodged in the intelligence, and renounces joy and sorrow, pleasure and pain.
232. The aspirant hears all about this Atman from his able and competent preceptor and comprehends its true nature.
233. He then separates the Atman from the body and mind through discrimination between the real and the unreal, meditates on the Atman and realises it through direct intuitive perception.
234. This world is upheld by Dharma or righteousness. Brahman is the very centre of all Dharmas.
235. Why does a man lead a life of righteousness? Because he wants to attain Brahman or the Self wherein alone he can rejoice really.
236. The Svarupa or essence of Brahman is bliss.
237. Sensual pleasure is a mere fleeting sensation caused by the friction or excitement of nerves. There is reaction here.
238. The Brahmic state is all-full, homogeneous, everlasting. It is an absolute unchanging state.
239. Brahman is other than virtue and vice, other than cause and effect, other than past and future.
240. Virtue and vice, past and future are mental creations only.
241. Time is a mode of the mind. Time also is a mental creation.
242. In Isvara or the Lord, there is simultaneous perception. Everything is "present" only. Everything is "now" only.
243. Brahman is eternity. It is beyond time.
244. The goal which all the Vedas speak of which all penances proclaim, and wishing for which the aspirants lead the life of Brahmacharya, that goal is OM.
245. The practice of Brahmacharya, leads to the
penance and realisation of Brahman.
Pranava
246. OM is also known by the names Pranava, Ekakshara, Omkara.
247. OM is a Pratika or symbol or substitute for Brahman. It is Sabda-Brahman.
248. OM is the basis of all sounds. It is the first manifestation of Brahman.
249. OM is the most appropriate sound or symbol of Brahman. It consists of three letters, A, U, M.
250. Sound, word or name is inseparably connected with thought or idea.
251. OM is verily Brahman. OM is verily the highest. He who knows the word OM obtains, verily. whatever he desires.
252. OM is Brahman itself. OM and Brahman are inseparably associated. OM should be meditated upon as Brahman itself.
253. OM is a symbol for both Saguna and
Nirguna Brahman.
254. If one meditates on OM with Saguna-Bhava, one will attain the Sauna or the manifested Brahman.
255. If one meditates on OM with Nirguna-Bhava, one will attain the Nirguna Brahman.
256. The manifested Brahman should be reached. The unmanifested should be known.
257. OM is the best prop or support. It is the best means to attain the manifested or Saguna Brahman and the highest or Nirguna Brahman.
258. He who meditates on Brahman becomes identical with Brahman and becomes fit to be worshipped like Brahman.
259. The knower of Brahman becomes Brahman.
260. OM is the highest support. He who knows this support is worshipped in this world as Brahman. He is worshipped like Brahman.
The Nature of the Supreme Self
261. The Atman is birthless and deathless. It did not spring from anything. It is eternal, everlasting and ancient. It is not slain, though the body is slain
262. Brahman is not produced like a pot out of clay. It is causeless. It is free from all modifications which are incidental to things which are formed.
263. Brahman is undecaying and unchang ing. Brahman never decays as it is everlasting.
264. Changes and developments do not take place in Brahman as it is unchanging and everlasting. Therefore it is ancient (Purana).
265. Just as the ether in the pot is not affected even though the pot is broken, so also this Atman is not destroyed or affected though the body is slain.
266. This Atman is extremely subtle. It cannot be slain by the sword.
267. Ignorant people think that the body is the Atman, and identify the soul with the body.
268. If the slayer thinks: "I slay," mistaking the body for the soul; if the slain thinks: "I am slain," then both of them do not know the Atman. Both of them are ignorant. The soul does not slay, nor is it slain.
269. The Atman, subtler than the subtle, greater than the great, is seated in the heart of each living being. He who is free from desire, with his mind and the senses composed, beholds the majesty of the Self, and becomes free from pain and sorrow.
270. The soul of an ant is the same as the soul of an elephant. There is only one Common Consciousness in all beings.
271. The basis or support for all objects of this world is the Atman.
272. The whole world is superimposed on the Atman, Just as the snake is superimposed on the rope.
273. This world has no independent existence apart from the Atman or Brahman.
274. Sitting, the Atman goes far; lying it goes everywhere, because it is all-pervading and infinite.
275. The Atman rejoices and does not rejoice.
It enjoys the world in its relative aspect, but it is the silent witness in its absolute nature, and so it does not rejoice.
276. Able aspirants who are endowed with a subtle, sharp and pure intellect, with learning and the four means, can know the Atman.
277. The wise sage who knows the Atman as bodiless, seated firmly in this perishable body, great and all-pervading, does never grieve.
278. The Atman is bodiless within the bodies; it is unchanging among changing things.
279. The sages who have attained Self-realisation, i.e., who have known the Atman through direct intuitive perception (Aparokshanubhuti), do not grieve.
Who Gets Atma-jnana
280. This Atman cannot be attained by studies of the Vedas, nor by intelligence, nor by much hearing. He whom the Self chooses, by him the Self can be attained. To him this Atman reveals its true nature.
281. This Atman can be attained only by him who is free from desires and who seeks to know it.
The Atman reveals its real form or true nature to
him.
282. The Self of him who is desirous of knowing it, reveals its own truth.
283. The Atman is attainable by that aspirant alone who seeks the Atman.
284. The Atman is attained by him alone whom God chooses, i.e, on whom God shows His grace, with whom He is pleased.
285. But he who has not turned away from bad conduct, whose senses are not subdued, whose mind is not concentrated, whose mind is not purified, can never obtain this Atman by mere knowledge.
Metaphysics of Man
286. There are the two, the Paramatman (the supreme soul) and the Jivatman (the individual soul). The former is the light and the latter is the shadow.
287. The Paramatman has no concern with works and their fruits. He is always the silent
witness.
288. The opposite shore of Samsara is
Moksha or release.
289. The body is a chariot, the Atman is the Lord of the chariot, the intellect is the charioteer; the mind is the reins, the senses are the horses; their objects are the roads. The Atman, united with the senses and the mind, is the enjoyer.
290. The pure Atman is actionless (Nishkriya). It is a non-doer (Akarta).
291. The Atman appears as the agent or enjoyer when it is united with the mind, the senses and the body, through Avidya or ignorance.
292. The mind acts and enjoys through the senses and the body.
293. The attributes of the mind, senses, Prana and body are transferred to the pure Atman and the attributes of the Atman are transferred to the mind and the body. This is called mutual superimposition (Anyonya-Adhyasa).
294. Through the superimposition, the insentient mind seems to be intelligent, and the impure and insentient body is mistaken for the pure and sentient Atman
295. The pure Atman puts on the appearance of the Jiva on account of this superimposition created by
Avidya, and undergoes, apparently the pains of Samsara, birth and death.
296. The Jiva, in essence, is Satchidananda-svarupa.
297. When Avidya is destroyed through the knowledge of the Self, one becomes identical with Brahman or Paramatman.
Importance of Self-control
298. He who has no discrimination and whose mind is always uncontrolled; his senses are not controllable like the vicious horses by a
driver.
299. If anyone is not endowed with the power of discrimination between the real and the unreal, if he is not able to discriminate what is to be done and what is not to be done, if his mind is not controlled properly, he becomes an incompetent driver of the body-chariot.
300. But he who has understanding, and whose mind is always controlled, his senses are under control, like the good horses of a driver.
301. Just as a competent charioteer controls the horses of a chariot by skilful manipulation of the reins, so also a competent driver of this body-chariot keeps the senses under proper restraint, through right understanding, discrimination and will-power.
302. The senses can be controlled through the control of the mind.
303. Control of the senses is an indirect means to attaining the goal or Moksha.
304. But he who has no discrimination, whose mind is not under control, and who is always impure, does not reach that goal, but enters into the round of births and deaths.
305. But he who has understanding, who has his mind always under control, and who is pure, reaches that Goal, whence he is not born again.
306. But he who has a discerning intelligence as the driver and a well-controlled mind as the reins reaches the end of his journey, that highest state of Vishnu.
307. Just as a man can reach his destination, the end of his journey, when the driver of his chariot is clever and when he drives the chariot carefully, by controlling the horses by means of the reins, so also the Jiva can reach its end by the road of Samsara, i.e., can attain the highest place of Vishnu or the nature of the all-pervading immortal Brahman, only when the discerning intelligence or discrimination controls and guides the mind and the senses.
The Inner Order of Priority
308. Here is given the ascending degree of the subtlety of things. Beyond the senses are the rudiments of objects, beyond rudiments is the mind, beyond the mind is the intellect; beyond the intellect is the Cosmic intellect.
309. Beyond the cosmic intellect is the unmanifested
(Avyaktam). Beyond the unmanifested is the Purusha; beyond the Purusha there is nothing; that is the end; that is the highest goal.
310. Superiority is graded in accordance with the subtle nature of things. A subtle thing is superior to a gross thing. A subtler thing is superior to a subtle thing.
311. The Atman is the most subtle Vastu (substance). It is superior to all.
312. The cause is subtler and more pervasive than the effect.
313. The five rudiments of matter are superior to the senses, because the senses are formed out of the rudiments of matter.
314. The mind is superior to the rudiments, because it is subtler and is formed out of the subtle Tanmatras or Sukshma-Bhutas in their finest states.
315. The five great elements are the effects of the Tanmatras or Sukshma-Bhutas.
316. The mind is the perceiver (Drik), the objects are the perceived (Drishya).
317. The mind is more internal than the senses. Therefore mind is superior to the objects.
318. The intellect is superior to the mind, because the intellect is subtler, greater and more internal than the mind.
319. The mind passes on the concept to the intellect. The intellect determines, decides and comes to a definite conclusion.
320. The intellect is the prime minister to the Atman. It acts as the chief justice of the supreme court. It is very near to the Atman.
321. The mind is only an instrument. It works through the intelligence reflected in it.
322. Hiranyagarbha is the Mahat-Atman. He is cosmic intelligence. He is universal life. He is the sum total of all individual souls. He is the first born of the Avyakta or the unmanifested.
323. The Avyakta or Mulaprakriti is the seed of all the worlds.
324. Just as a tree exists in a potential state in the seed, so also, the world exists in a seed state in the Avyakta.
325. The three Gunas are in a state of equilibrium in the Avyakta.
326. Matter, energy and sound are in an undifferentiated or potential state in the Avyakta.
327. In the state of Pralaya the whole world gets itself involved in the Avyakta.
328. The Avyakta enters into Para-Brahman as warp and woof. It is the combined state of the potentialities of all causes and effects.
329. The Purusha is the cause of all causes. He fills all. Hence he is called Purusha.
330. The Atman is the end or the supreme Goal of life or summum bonum. Here is the end of subtlety and greatness.
331. He who attains the Purusha is not born again in this Samsara. He attains Moksha or the final emancipation.
332. This Atman is hidden in all beings and does not shine forth, but it is seen by seers through their sharp and subtle intellect.
333. On account of influence of Avidya or ignorance, man, though in essence he is Brahman, is not able to grasp the truth: " I am Brahman” although he is instructed.
334. But he thinks he is the son of such and such a person, although he is not instructed.
335. Mula-Prakriti, Pradhana, Avyakta, Avyakriti, Maya, are synonymous terms.
The Inward Path of Yoga
336. The ignorant worldly man mistakes the body for the pure Atman and walks deluded in this Samsara. How mysterious is Avidya! How deep and unfathomable is Maya! How marvellous and inscrutable is Moha!
337. This Atman does not shine for those who have an impure, dense or gross intellect, but it is seen i.e., felt or realised, by those who have a pure. sharp and subtle intellect.
338. This intellect is rendered pure and sharp by constant hearing, reflection and meditation on Brahman.
339. Let the wise one sink his senses into the mind, the mind into the intelligence, the intellect into the cosmic intellect and the cosmic intellect into the peaceful Atman.
340. Withdraw speech and the other organs into the mind through the process of abstraction (Pratyahara) and self-restraint (Dama).
341. Merge the mind into the intellect, into the cosmic intelligence or Hiranyagarbha.
342. Merge Hiranyagarbha into peaceful
Atman (Santa-Atman) i.e., the pure unconditioned Para-Brahman, the substratum or support for everything, which is changeless, which is the inner Self of all and which is the witness of all the modifications of the intellect. This is the process of involution. This is the method of Self-realisation through Laya-Chintana method.
343. Practise introspection and self-analysis.
Control the lower mind by the higher. Stop all the activities of the senses and focus the consciousness on the mind. Afterwards withdraw the consciousness from the mind and fix it on the intellect. Withdraw the consciousness from the intellect and fix it on the cosmic intelligence. Finally withdraw the consciousness from the cosmic intelligence and fix it on the Absolute Consciousness or Brahman or the Absolute.
344. Just as the limbs of the tortoise are withdrawn into its body, so also all the senses are withdrawn into the mind.
345. The intellect is called the Mahat-Atman because it pervades the mind and the senses. It is their internal principle.
346. Merge the intellect into the Mahat-Atman, i.e., Hiranyagarbha. Make your intellect as clear and pure in its nature as that of Hiranyagarbha.
347. Arise, awake; having reached the great teachers, learn, realise the Atman. Like the sharp edge of a razor is that path difficult to cross and hard to tread thus the wise say.
348. Having thus merged the senses, mind and intellect and the Mahat-Atman in the Supreme Self or Para-Brahman, one enjoys eternal bliss and everlasting peace and attains Moksha or minal emancipation. One gets true knowledge of the Self.
349. Just as the water in a mirage, the serpent in a rope and the blue colour of the sky vanish by one's seeing the real nature of the mirage, the rope and the sky, so also the illusory world of names, forms and actions, which is produced by false knowledge and which is of the nature of action, agent and fruits, disappears when one attains knowledge of the Atman.
350. Arise, O, man, from the quagmire of Samsara, turn towards the acquisition of spiritual knowledge or knowledge of the Atman or the Supreme Self. Give up thinking about worldly objects.
351. Awake from the slumber of ignorance.
Destroy the sleep of ignorance, the seed of all miseries.
352. Approach the excellent teachers, Brahma-Nishtha, Brahma-Srotriya Gurus, who have realised the Atman. Realise this Atman taught by them. Feel "I am He," Soham.
353. He who has known that which is without sound, without touch, without form, without decay, without taste, eternal, without smell, without beginning, without end, beyond the intellect, and unchanging, is freed from the jaws of death.
354. This Atman is transcendental, i.e., beyond all sense-perceptions. It is beyond matter. It is pure Spirit. It is absolute consciousness.
355. The Atman is beyond the reach of mind and speech. It does not possess the properties of matter, such as sound, touch, taste and smell.
356. The Atman is of the nature of pure bliss and knowledge.
357. This earth is gross. This body is gross.
But the Atman is subtler than the subtle.
358. The attributes of matter such as sound, etc. do not exist in the Atman or Brahman. Therefore it does not decay. It can neither increase nor decrease.
359. A thing that decays is ephemeral. Therefore the Atman is eternal.
360. That which has a beginning is an effect.
It is absorbed into its cause. Therefore it is not eternal.
361. But the Atman has no cause into which it could be absorbed. As it is the cause of all, it is not an effect. As it is not an effect, it is eternal.
362. Decaying objects like trees, flowers, body, etc., have a beginning and an end but the Atman is beginningless and endless, as it is eternal.
363. Do not neglect this. This is your foremost duty. This is your primary duty.
364. As the Atman is very subtle, the path of knowledge that leads to it is difficult to travel.
365. The aspirant who treads the razor-path must be very cautious, vigilant, diligent and intelligent.
366. It is quite clear that a Guru is absolutely necessary.
367. The Upanishads are records of the intuitive experiences of the great sages and seers.
368. The Atman is distinct in nature from the intellect, because it is the silent witness of all, Knowledge-Absolute and the inner-Soul of all objects.
369. Only That which is changeless can be said to be eternal.
370. Having realised the Atman, one is released from the jaws of death. He is liberated from the bondage of birth and death. He is freed from the bondage of ignorance, desire and action.
The three knots or Granthis, viz., ignorance, desire and action are rent asunder. He attains Immortality.
Philosophy of Sense-hankering
371. The self-existent (Brahman) created the senses with outgoing tendencies. Therefore, man beholds the external universe and not the internal Self (Atman). But some wise man with eyes averted from sensual objects, with his senses turned away from
objects, desirous of immortality, sees the Atman within.
372. It is not possible to have light and darkness at the same time and at the same place.
Even so it is not possible to enjoy sensual pleasures and bliss of the soul at the same time or to revel in sensual objects and behold the inner self at the same time, or to worship God and mammon simultaneously.
373. The ignorant run after external objects of desire and fall into the snares of the wide-spread death. But wise men, knowing the nature of immortality, do not covet the fleeting unstable objects here.
374. The two obstacles that stand in the way of attaining Self-realisation are the natural tendency of the senses to run towards external objects and the desire for enjoyments of this world and the next.
375. The senses run towards the external objects on account of Vikshepa-Sakti or Rajas.
376. Not only the eyes but all the organs have to be withdrawn from their respective objects.
377. The cause of desire is ignorance. Desire is born of Avidya.
378. If the Rajas in the senses is squeezed out by increasing the Sattva, the senses will be absorbed in the mind. They will not run outwards.
379. Man has forgotten his essential divine nature on account of ignorance, and so his mind runs after sensual pleasures.
380. Ignorant men who have no right understanding and discrimination run after external objects and so they fall into the meshes of the wide-spread death.
381. The Atman neither increases nor decreases. It is constant and is immortal.
382. The wise who enjoy the eternal bliss of the Atman do not care for these little sensual pleasures.
383. The sum total of the pleasures of this world is a mere drop when compared to the bliss of the Atman. The Atman is the ocean of bliss.
384. Desire for sensual objects is opposed to Self-knowledge. It is opposed to Self-realisation.
385. Will any man attempt to eat black sugar and beer-fruit when sugar-candy and mangoes are abundant?
386. To the Self by which one knows form, taste, smell, sound, touch and the pleasures, nothing remains unknown. This verily is That (Brahman).
387. The Atman Or Brahman is Knowledge-Absolute. It is Absolute-Consciousness.
388. What is there unknowable to the Atman in this world? Everything is certainly knowable by the Atman.
389. The mind and the intellect, also are insentient. They borrow their light or intelligence from the Atman only, just as the moon borrows light from the sun.
390. The mind, intellect and senses perform their functions through the light of Atman.
391. The Atman is at the back of all sense-perception, mind and intellect.
392. Just as iron filings move in front of a magnet, so also the mind, intellect and senses move or do their functions in the presence of the Atman.
Beyond Fear and Grief
393. This verily is the Atman which is distinct from virtue and vice, cause and effect, which is the highest place of Vishnu, and beyond which there is nothing.
394. The wise man, when he knows that by which he perceives all objects in dream or in waking is the great omnipresent Atman, grieves no more.
395. The state of Turiya Or superconsciousness transcends the waking, dreaming and deep sleep states.
396. The Atman is the silent witness of the three states. Hence it is called Turiya.
397. Through the intelligence of the Atman alone one is conscious of the dreaming and waking states.
398. He who knows the eternal Atman becomes absolutely fearless.
399. Fear manifests itself only when one is attached to one's body, when one identifies oneself with the physical body.
400. He who identifies himself with the physical body attempts to protect his body.
401. Wherever there is attachment, fear and anger co-exist.
402. When one knows the Atman which is one without a second and eternal, through Self-realisation, then, who would wish to protect what and from whom?
403. The sage beholds the Self alone everywhere.
404. The sage is above body-consciousness.
He becomes absolutely fearless.
405. To know the Atman is to realise the
Atman.
406. To know the Atman is to become the
Atman.
Unity of Brahman, Man and World
407. Brahman appears as the Jiva through
Upadhi or a limiting adjunct, viz., Avidya.
408. Brahman appears as Hiranyagarbha through the Upadhi or limiting adjunct of Maya.
409. The sum total or aggregate of Jivas (Samashti) is Hiranyagarbha.
410. The Jiva is a microcosmic aspect of
Brahman.
411. When the limiting adjunct drops, Hiranyagarbha and Jiva become identical with the transcendent Brahman.
412. Hiranyagarbha is the first manifestation of Brahman through Tapas or penance or meditation.
413. Brahman called, Hiranyagarbha came
into being.
414. Hiranyagarbha is cosmic Prana or cosmic intelligence.
415. All the Devas are fixed in Brahman like the spokes of a wheel in its nave. All the Devas depend on Brahman.
416. Just as a wave is not essentially different from the ocean, just as a golden ornament is not essentially different from gold, so also this manifested world is not essentially different from Brahman.
417. The difference is in name only. Just as a rope appears as the snake, so also Brahman appears as this world of names, forms and actions (Nama, Rupa, Kriya) through Avidya (ignorance) or Maya (illusion).
418. He who thinks: "I am different from
Brahman, " is again born and dies; but he who
feels; "I am verily the all-pervading immortal Satchidananda Brahman," attains immortality.
419. Brahman is an embodiment of dense, eternal knowledge (Nitya-Vijnanaghana-
Svabhava).
420. Brahman is free from the attributes of all Samsara (Sarva-Samsara-Dharma-varjitam).
421. The supreme Soul is identical with the individual and with all creation.
422. Failure to comprehend and realise the essential unity of being is the cause of rebirth.
Mind-culture for Self-knowledge
423. By the mind alone could this Brahman be obtained; there is no difference here at all. He goes from death to death, who sees any difference here.
424. The mind is of two kinds, Suddha-Manas
viz., or the pure mind, and Asuddha-Manas or the impure mind which is filled with Vasanas, egoism, greed, etc.
425. Brahman can be attained only by the mind purified by the study of scriptures by the instructions of the preceptor, by the practice of the fourfold means and constant meditation on the inner Self.
426. When one attains Self-realisation, Avidya or ignorance is totally removed.
427. The knower or Sage realises that there is Brahman alone, and nothing else exists, and this world is only the manifestation of Brahman, and is not essentially different from it.
428. But he who sees difference, with eyes dark with ignorance, proceeds from death to death.
429. The person (Purusha) of the size of a thumb, resides in the middle of the body, as the Lord of the past and the future, and henceforward, after knowing Him, the sage fears no more. This, indeed, is That.
430. The Purusha or Atman dwells in one's own heart. One Atman is called Purusha, because it abides in the city (Puri) of the body, or because all is pervaded by it, the whole world is filled by it.
431. The Atman is limitless, but the size of the thumb is given for the faculty of meditation only for the beginners.
432. To begin with, aspirants meditate on the Atman as a Jyoti or light of the size of a thumb, in the cavity of the heart.
433. After knowing the fearless, immortal
Atman, one fears no more, and does not wish to protect himself afterwards.
434. Brahman is the perfect Purusha. It is the inner soul which always abides in the heart of every man. It is the ruler of knowledge. It is concealed in the heart and mind. He who knows it becomes immortal.
435. Brahman is like a flame without smoke.
It is the Lord of the past and the future. It alone is even today, and will be, verily, tomorrow. This verily, is That.
436. Brahman is eternal, immortal (Kutastha) and constant.
437. Brahman exists in all living beings now, and it will certainly exist tomorrow also.
438. Just as rain water that falls on the top of a mountain quickly runs down and becomes dispersed in the valleys and is lost, so also the ignorant man, who beholds differences in life, who thinks that there are different selves in the different bodies, who thinks that the world is different from Brahman and the individual is distinct from the Supreme Soul and other souls, who sees things as different from the soul, who has not realised the substratum of all, who has not cognised the non-dual Brahman, the one real, eternal, immortal, immutable underlying unity, runs down quickly to darkness, i.e., is caught in the round of births and deaths.
439. Just as pure water poured into pure ater becomes of the same quality, so also the individual soul who has been purged of impurities and who has cognised the supreme Self through direct intuitive perception, who has destroyed the perception of differences by knowledge of the Atman, who beholds the unity of Self or oneness of the Atman everywhere, becomes identical with the Supreme Soul.
440. The aspirant should have an unshakable faith in the teachings of the Srutis. If there is no faith there is no prospect of attaining Self-realisation.
The Inner Ruler
441. The city of the unborn (Brahman), whose knowledge is eternal, has eleven gates or openings. Adoring Him, one does not grieve and liberated from all bonds of ignorance, one becomes free. This, verily, is That.
442. The two eyes, two ears, two nostrils and the mouth make up the seven openings. The navel and the two lower openings make up ten. The eleventh is the Brahmarandhra at the crown of
the head.
443. Just as a city belongs to a king who is independent of the city and who is not mixed with it, so also the city of the body belongs to a king (Atman) who is independent and not mixed with
the body.
444. He who meditates on Brahman and has attained Self-realisation does not grieve. He is liberated from all bonds of ignorance and becomes free from the round of births and deaths!
445. A sage is freed from all desires and ties of Karma produced by ignorance. He becomes absolutely fearless. He does not take a body again.
He merges himself in Brahman.
446. Brahman sends up the Prana and throws the Apana downwards. That adorable one, seated in the centre, all Devas worship.
447. There are five principal kinds of vital energy known as Prana, Apana, Vyana, Udana and Samana. There are five minor Pranas, sub-Pranas
or Upa-pranas. The one Mukhya-prana or chief Prana or vital energy assumes the ten forms according to the function done by each Prana (Vritti-bheda).
448. Prana does the work of respiration;
Apana the function of excretion; Vyana the function of circulation of blood; Udana the function of voice, deglutition, etc. Samana the work of digestion.
449. Prana is not breath. Prana is vital energy. Breath is only one of the various manifestations of Prana. The function of Prana is connected with breath.
450. The senses and the mind adore their
Lord, the Atman, by discharging their allotted duties properly.
451. They propitiate their Lord the Atman, by bringing in the different sensations of forms, colour, sound, smell, taste, touch, just as the subjects please and serve the king by giving him offerings.
452. The senses, mind and Prana are ever active in serving and pleasing the Atman.
453. Atman alone directs the mind, senses and Pranas to do their respective duties.
454. The five organs of knowledge gather experiences from the external world and present them to the Atman. This is their true worship.
455. As soon as the Atman leaves the body, the whole body decays and disintegrates, as in the case of the inhabitants of a city, when the king of the city is driven out of it.
456. Not by Prana, not by Apana does any mortal live, but it is by some other on which these two depend for their life.
457. The real source of life is the Atman. The Prana, Apana, etc. cannot be the source of life.
Their work conjointly for the benefit of the Atman only, which is distinct from them.
458. The body is destroyed by the exit of Prana and Apana, and the withdrawal of the consciousness of the Atman within.
459. A house exists for the benefit of the owner who is distinct from the house and who is the director. Even so the Prana and Apana etc., and the senses and the mind, exist for the benefit of the Atman which is distinct from them and which directs them.
460. The Prana and Apana depend on the
Atman for their life.
461. They perform their allotted duties in harmony for the benefit of the Atman, their
Director.
462. The highest and the principal support of all beings, of Prana, the senses and the mind, is the Atman. It is absolutely independent.
463. Like corn the mortal decays and like corn he is born again.
464. Some Jivas enter the womb in order to have a body; others go into inorganic matter, according to their Karmas and knowledge.
465. The Jiva takes a body according to his
Karma performed previously and in accordance with the nature of knowledge acquired by him.
466. He may become Indra or even
Hiranyagarbha. He may hold any office in the cosmic hierarchy. He may take his final birth as a man and become a Jivanmukta or a liberated sage.
467. He may become a Muni, a Tapasvin or a Yogi, if he has very good spiritual Samskaras.
468. He may also become a tree or some inorganic matter, according to his Karmas.
469. Brahman is the silent witness of the three states viz. waking state, dreaming state and deep sleep state.
470. The Purusha or Brahman is awake and does not sleep when all, i.e., Prana, senses and the mind are asleep, as He is the witness (Sakshi) of everything.
471. Brahman is ever pure, immortal.
472. It is the cause of all worlds. All the worlds depend on it alone. It is the prop and support for all the worlds. In it all worlds are contained.
473. In deep sleep you rest in Brahman. You actually come in contact with Brahman then, but there is the veil of ignorance. Therefore you are not able to be actually conscious of Brahman.
474. In Samadhi this veil is rent asunder. There is perfect awareness and you are one with the Absolute Consciousness.
475. When the mind and all the senses are at rest during deep sleep, you do experience the true bliss of Brahman.
476. That is the reason why you say, when you come back to waking consciousness; "I slept happily," "I did not know anything."
477. This memory of bliss goes to prove that Brahman exists, that it is non-dual and it is of the nature of bliss.
Omnipresence of Self Clarified
478. As the one fire, after it has entered the world, though one, takes different forms according to whatever it burns, so does the eternal Atman of all living beings, though one, takes a form according to whatever it enters and is outside all forms.
479. Many argue in order to exhibit their vast learning or erudition and to get victory over others. They do not argue in order to arrive at Truth.
480. Honest and sincere discussion with great souls in order to remove doubts and to get light and clarity is highly desirable.
481. Sincere aspirants may discuss amongst themselves knotty and abstruse problems. This is very helpful for their growth and right understanding.
482. The knowledge of the oneness of the Atman, though supported by authority and even after reiteration, is not firmly grasped by the aspirants. Therefore the Srutis explain the Truth of the Atman in a variety of ways, with diverse illustrations, similes and analogies.
483. The Atman is ever pure and separate from the forms. It is not in the least affected by the forms, because it is without attributes and extremely subtle, is pure consciousness or soul or spirit.
484. How can there be any connection between matter and spirit?
485. The Atman puts on diverse forms through the Upadhis or vehicles or limiting adjuncts viz., the mind, the senses, the Pranas and the body, and is at the same time beyond all names and forms.
486. This Atman is a mysterious Vastu or
Tattva or Principle or Being.
487. As the one air, after it has entered the world, though one, takes different forms according, to whatever it enters, so the internal Atman of all beings, though one assumes forms according to whatever it enters, and is outside all forms. It is transcendent, and beyond all names and forms.
488. As the Sun, the eye of the whole world, is not contaminated by the defects of the eye of external things, so the one internal Atman of all beings is not contaminated by the misery of the world arising from desire and Karma, it being external to everything.
489. Just as the snake is superimposed on the rope when seen in dim light, just as silver is superimposed on the mother-of-pearl, so also this world and body are superimposed on the Atman or Brahman, on account of Avidya or ignorance.
490. Just as the rope is not affected by the snake seen in its place, so also the pure transcendent Atman is not in the least affected by the superimposition.
491. Action, agency and fruits (Kriya, Karta, Phala) are falsely attributed or superimposed on Atman, on account of ignorance. These are all false notions only, like the erroneous notion of snake in the rope.
492. The Atman is non-doer
(Akarta) non-enjoyer (Abhokta). It is unattached (Asanga, Nirlipta).
493.. Brahman is one. It is the Ruler, the internal Atman of all living beings. It is not contaminated by the misery of the world, being external to it.
494. Brahman is the Lord of all, all-pervading, independent. There is none other equal to or greater than it.
495. It makes itself, though one, being manifest by the differences of impure conditions of name, form etc.
496. The wise who behold it within their Self enjoy eternal bliss.
497. The worldly-minded persons who are engrossed in external objects, who are not endowed with discrimination, cannot enjoy this eternal bliss of the Atman. This Atman is concealed for them by ignorance.
498. The wise who behold the Self as the eternal among the transient, as conscious amongst the conscious, who, though one, grants the desires of many, as dwelling in their selves, to them belongs eternal peace, not to others.
499. The Atman is eternal, permanent and unchanging. This world of names and forms is non-eternal, impermanent and changing.
500. Body, mind, senses and Prana are all included in the term world.
501. This world is like a fleeting shadow.
502. The very idea of change implies that there is a basic substratum which is ever unchanging and permanent.
503. Changes or phenomena can take place only in an unchanging being or noumenon.
504. The screen in the cinema show never changes but the pictures come and go on the screen. Brahman represents the screen and this universe of fleeting forms the pictures.
505. Just as hot water borrows its heat from the fire, so also the intellect borrows its intelligence from the Atman, the source of everything.
506. He who beholds the Atman seated in his heart, enjoys eternal peace. Others who are ignorant are subject to the miseries of Samsara.
507. The sages who are absolutely desireless perceive that indescribable highest bliss as "This is That."
508. The sun does not shine there, nor do the moon and the stars, nor do lightnings shine and much less this fire. When He shines, everything shines after Him: by His light all these shine.
509. The Atman is self-luminous. It shines by itself.
510. A self-luminous thing is that which is not in need (Nirapeksha) of any extraneous light for its own shining or effulgence.
511. If you say that the Atman receives its light from some other light, then that light should have another light for its illumination. This will land in Anavasthadosha or regress ad infinitum. So the Atman must be self-luminous.
The Tree of Samsara
512. There is that ancient Asvattha tree, whose root is upward and branches are down. That indeed is pure. That is Brahman and that alone is called immortal. Upon that all the worlds depend and no one goes beyond that. This, verily, is That.
513. You can know the nature of Brahman, the source of the tree of Samsara (Maya-Vriksha) by finding out the nature of the effect, the tree of Samsara.
514. This world has its root in Brahman.
From Brahman only the whole universe proceeds.
515. Just as the tree is cut down by the axe, so also the tree of Samsara can be cut down by the axe of non-attachment or the sword of Atma-Jnana or knowledge of the Self.
516. This tree of Samsara receives its sap from its source, Para Brahman or the supreme Self, and grows from the seed of ignorance.
517. Hiranyagarbha or the Karya-Brahman is its sprout. The subtle bodies of all living beings represent its trunk.
518. This whole universe evolved from Brahman moves in the Prana (the highest Brahman). That Brahman is a great terror, like an uplifted thunder-bolt. Those who know this become immortal.
519. Prana means here Brahman. Brahman is the source of this world. He is the Lord of creation. Man becomes immortal by attaining knowledge of Brahman.
520. The statement that the world has come out of nothing is quite absurd. It has come out of Brahman. It moves or vibrates in Brahman. It rests in Brahman. It dissolves in Brahman.
521. Brahman is the bed-rock or substratum for this changing world.
522. Brahman is ever changeless and motionless.
523. Motion or vibration can take place only in something that is motionless. That immovable something is Brahman.
524. Just as servants obey commands at the sight of their master with the thunderbolt raised in his hand, so also this world obeys the universal law.
525. Nothing can escape that law which is unrelenting and inexorable. No one can transgress it.
526. Everything is under its strict control. Creation, preservation and dissolution are governed by an unalterable divine law which no one can violate or break. Therefore, Brahman, working as this Law, is called a great terror like the uplifted thunderbolt.
527. Those who know this highest Brahman, the witness of all our mental activities or modifications or Vrittis, who know that Brahman is the cause of the origin etc. of the universe, and that it guides the world from within, through definite laws, attain immortality.
528. From fear of Brahman the fire burns, from fear the Sun shines, from fear Indra and Vayu and Death do their duty.
529. If Brahman does not exist as the controller or Governor or the Protector of the world, as one with the thunderbolt raised in His hand, this world will not run smoothly and harmoniously in a perfect orderly manner, and a well regulated activity of the Jivas or guardians of the world (Loka-Palas) will not be possible.
Realise the Self Now
530. If here, in this life, one is able to comprehend Brahman before the death of the body, he will be liberated from the bondages, of the world. If one is not able to comprehend it, then, he has to take a body again in this world, of creation.
531. Therefore a sincere attempt should be made to realise this immortal, eternal, self-luminous Brahman, before the falling of the body.
532. Just as one perceives his own image in a mirror very distinctly, so also Brahman can be seen very distinctly in one's own intellect.
533. The perception becomes indistinct in the world of forefathers, they being engrossed in the enjoyments of the fruits of Karma, just as the perception is indistinct in dreams.
534. Just as the image of oneself reflected in water is indistinct, so also the perception of the Atman in the world of Gandharvas is indistinct.
535. But in Brahmaloka the Atman is realised as distinctly as light from shadow.
536. But it is hard to reach Brahmaloka. Special Karma or worship is needed to attain it.
537. Therefore one should attempt to realise the Atman in the intellect itself while here (in this world).
538. A wise man, having understood that the senses separately produced are distinct from the Atman, and also having known their rising and setting, grieves no more.
539. The senses such as the ears, eyes, etc. originate separately from their causes, like Akasa, etc., for perceiving their respective objects.
540. The Atman is pure, stainless, self-luminous, and independent. The nature of the senses is absolutely dissimilar to the nature of Brahman.
541. The senses function during the waking state. This is the rising of the senses. They are absorbed during deep sleep. This is the setting of the senses.
542. There is neither rising nor setting for the Atman.
543. The Atman has neither a beginning nor an end.
544. The senses and the mind which are Changing can be clearly distinguished and separated from the Atman which is pure, changeless, eternal, all-pervading, indivisible, beginningless and endless.
545. Having understood the senses as distinct from the Atman, and also their rising and setting, their waking and sleeping, as belonging to them and not to the Atman, a wise man does not grieve.
546. The knower of the Atman crosses grief and is established in bliss.
The Supreme State
547. Higher than the senses is the mind, higher than the mind is the intellect, higher than the intellect is the cosmic intellect. Higher than that is Avyakta, the unmanifested.
548. Beyond the Avyakta is the Purusha the all-pervading devoid of linga (indicative sign). He who knows Him is liberated, and attains immortality.
549. As the senses are distinct from the Atman, the latter cannot be perceived externally by the senses, for it is the most internal of all things.
550. The knowledge of this gradation is necessary for attaining immortality or the final emancipation.
551. During Pralaya the whole world is withdrawn into the Avyakta. Beyond Avyakta is the all-pervading Purusha, the cause of Akasa etc.
552. That by which a thing is reached, known or understood is called linga, such as intellect, mind, etc. He who has not these is alinga.
553. He who knows Him both from the preceptor and the Sastras, and through direct intuitive perception in his own intellect, attains immortality or the final emancipation. He is freed from the knots of the heart, such as desire, ignorance and action.
554. His form is not to be seen. No one beholds Him with the eyes. By controlling the mind with the intellect and by incessant meditation, He is revealed. Those who know this Brahman become immortal.
555. The Atman cannot be seen by the physical eye, because it is transcendental, i.e., beyond the reach of the senses and mind.
Scriptures and Guru
556. He who knows that dwelling in the ether of the heart, by the pure intellect, becomes immortal.
557. When the five organs of knowledge are at rest, together with the mind, and when the intellect ceases functioning, that they call the highest state.
558. Man acquires the knowledge of the world through the five senses of perception.
559. The senses gather the experiences of this world and present them to the Atman through the mind and the intellect.
560. When the five organs are withdrawn from the external objects and merged in the mind, when the mind is centred or fixed in the Atman, when the intellect characterised by determination is not active or does not function, that state they call the highest.
561. When the senses are quietened, when the emotions are controlled, when the intellect ceases to function, that is the supreme state. This is called Yoga.
562. Yoga is the highest path and goal, because it leads to Moksha or the final emancipation.
563. The firm control of the senses, they regard as Yoga. At that time one should be careful, for Yoga is acquired and lost.
564. The senses are restrained and the mind
is fixed in the Atman through steady concentration and meditation.
565. At this time the Yogi becomes careful or watchful. He becomes vigilant, for Yoga comes and goes.
566. Yoga comes and goes, if the mind is not rendered quite steady, if the senses are not properly controlled, if dispassion wanes. if there is slackness or irregularity in meditation.
567. Perfect vigilance is necessary when one has started Yoga practice.
The Two Eyes of a Sadhaka
568. The Atman cannot be reached by speech by mind or the eye.
569. Any amount of argument or metaphysical
ratiocination will not help the aspirant to attain Brahman.
570. Maharshi Vyasa and Sri Sankara dispensed with mere argument and ratiocination and established their doctrine mainly on Sabda-Pramana which is quite infallible.
571. Place implicit faith in the words of the Srutis and the seers who have actually realised the Atman through direct intuitive perception and who positively assert that the Atman exists.
572. Sabda-Pramana, the Srutis, Apta-Vakya, or the words of the seers is of utmost importance.
573. If you wish to attain the Atman, have faith in the words of the Guru who has actually realised the Self, and follow his instructions.
574. The Atman has to be known from the Guru who knows that the Atman exists.
575. If the Atman cannot be known by speech, mind or the eye, how is he to be known? It is known only through the instruction imparted by a Guru, who knows directly that it exists.
576. It should be known to exist and, also as it really is. Of these two, to him who knows it to exist its true nature becomes manifest.
577. To him who meditates on the pure Brahman, after equipping himself with the four means, the real nature of Brahman becomes revealed.
Renunciation: The Prerequisite
578. When all the desires that dwell in the heart cease, then the mortal becomes immortal, and here one attains Brahman.
579. The condition for immortality is the renunciation of all desires and attachment.
580. The worldly desires are renounced only when the fetters of false knowledge are cut asunder.
581. Mind is the seat of desire. There is no desire in the Atman; it is ever pure and taintless.
582. Desire is the cause of pain and bondage.
583. When all desires are destroyed by the attainment of the knowledge of the Self, one who was mortal before, becomes immortal subsequent to the attainment of this knowledge. He becomes Brahman even here, while living in the body. He is freed from the bondage of Karma.
584. When all the knots of the heart are severed here on earth, then the mortal becomes immortal.
585. Ignorance, desire and action are the three important knots. Egoism, hatred, lust, jealousy, pride born of ignorance are smaller knots.
586. The beliefs, "I am this body," "This is my property," "I am Brahmana," "I am the minister" are also knots.
587. These are destroyed by the rise of the contrary belief in the identity of the Atman with Brahman, in the form "I am certainly Brahman."
Knowledge of Nadis
588. There are hundred and one nerve-currents (Nadis) of the heart. One of them, Sushumna, penetrates the crown of the head. Moving upwards by it one, at the time of death, attains immortality. The other nerves lead to various other courses.
589. The Jivanmukta who has attained Self realisation goes nowhere. His Pranas do not go out anywhere. Being Brahman, he attains Brahman.
He attains Kaivalya-Mukti.
590. Those who have not attained Kaivalya-Mukti, who have not realised the absolute Brahman but who have realised the lower Brahman or Saguna Brahman with attributes, go by the Sushumna-Nadi for the solar place and thence through several other planes to Brahmaloka where they dwell till the end of the cycles of creation. In Brahmaloka they enjoy incomparable happiness. When the cycle terminates they merge in Brahman along with Brahma (Creator). This is known as Krama-Mukti or progressive emancipation.
591. The other Nadis are of various courses.
They, at the time of one's death, lead to different ways. If the soul passes through these nerves, it is born again in Samsara. It assumes various bodies according to its Karma and desire.
592. The Sushumna-Nadi is also known by the name Brahma-Nadi.
593. The Purusha of the size of the thumb,the inner Self, is always seated in the heart of all living beings. One should draw Him out of one's own body with steadiness, as one draws the pith (stalk) from a reed. One should know Him as pure and immortal.
594. You will have to draw or take out the essence i.e., the Atman from the five Kosas or sheaths, patiently and boldly through Vichara or discrimination and meditation. You will have to separate the Atman from the body.
595. Nachiketas, having acquired this knowledge imparted by Yama, and also the whole teaching about Yoga, attained Brahman, having become free from all impurities and from death. Thus it will be with others also who thus know the nature of Brahman.
CHAPTER FOUR
PRASNOPANISHAD
ॐ भद्रं कर्णेभिः शृणुयाम देवाः । भद्रं पश्येमाक्षभिर्यजत्राः । स्थिरैरङ्गैस्तुष्टुवा ँ सस्तनूभिर्व्यशेम देवहितं यदायुः स्वस्ति न इन्द्रो वृद्धश्रवाः । स्वस्ति नः पूषा विश्ववेदाः । स्वस्ति नस्तार्क्ष्योऽ रिष्टनेमिः। स्वस्ति नो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु ।।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !
Om. O gods! may we, with our ears, hear, what is auspicious; O ye, fit to be worshipped ! may we, with our eyes, see what is auspicious. May we enjoy the life allotted to us by the gods, offering our praise with our bodies strong of limb. May Indra, the powerful, the ancient of fame, vouchsafe us prosperity. May He, the nourisher and the possessor of all wealth, give us what is well for us. May the Lord of swift motion be propitious to us, and may the protector of the great ones protect us, too.
Om Peace! Peace!! Peace!!!
Introduction
596. Six seekers of Brahman go to a sage called Pippalada and put him six questionsThese questions and answers form the substance of this Upanishad.
597. Prana or the life principle, and Rayi or matter, were first created by the Lord.
598. Prana acts on Rayi. Various forms are manifested.
599. It is the intermingling of these two that gives rise to the world of diverse forms.
600. The one is active, positive and is the male principle; the other is passive, negative and is the female principle.
601. Prana belongs to the conscious side of creation, while Ray or matter belongs to the form side of creation.
602. Matter is the universal form. Prana is life or consumer.
603. The body is upheld by the Prana or life principle.
604. Prajapati was desirous of offspring. From this desire a pair sprang forth, viz., matter or the universal form and Prana, life, or consumer.
605. As life and matter, Prajapati is, gradually, the sun and the moon, the year in its two halves, day and night.
606. Prana, Aditya (sun), day, Amurta (formless), life, spirit, northern path, invisibility, belong to the life side.
607. Rayi, the moon, the night, Murta (with form), matter, southern path, visibility, belong to the matter side.
608. The second question refers to the Devas who support man and enlighten the senses and the constituents of the body.
609. The third question refers to the nature and origin the Prana.
610. The fourth question refers to sleep and dream.
611. The fifth question refers to Prana and
OM.
612. The sixth question refers to the Purusha of sixteen Kalas or parts.
613. Sukesa, Satyakama, Gargya, Kausalya, Bhargava, Kabandhi, all these devoted to Brahman and centered in Brahman, seeking the highest Brahman, approached the revered Pippalada with offering (Samit) in their hands, thinking that he would explain all to them.
614. Knowledge of Brahman can be acquired by men who have observed celibacy, performed Tapas and lived with the preceptor.
615. Then Pippalada said to the aspirant: "Stay here for one year with austerity, celibacy and faith. Then you may ask questions as you please, and if I know them I will surely explain all to you."
Preparation of the Vessel
616. The subtle truths of Vedanta cannot be grasped by the gross and impure mind. The mind should be rendered pure, subtle and sharp. Then alone will it be fit to practise concentration and meditation and comprehend the subtle truths of the Upanishads.
617. Service to the Guru or preceptor with faith and devotion purifies the mind quickly. This is the most powerful purifying agent.
618. The spiritual teacher knows through his inner vision the mental state of the aspirants, the degree of their evolution, their defects and weaknesses, etc.
619. Tapas and celibacy contribute to the purification of the mind.
620. The teacher actually sees their astral and causal bodies through the inner eye of wisdom.
621. The seer Pippalada found out through his inner vision that there were still impurities in their minds and so he asked them to stay with him for one year practising Tapas, celibacy and faith.
Life and Matter
622. Life has no beginning. The world is not created. It is simply projected by God.
623. Then Katyayana Kabandi approached Pippalada and asked; "Venerable master, whence are these creatures born?"
624. He replied: Prajapati (the Lord of creatures) was desirous of offspring. He performed penance (thought) and having performed he created a pair-matter (Rayi) and life (Prana), food and eater, thinking that these together would produce creatures for him in many ways.
625. Tapas is penance. Here it means reflection as to how and what are to be created.
626. Prana is energy. Ray is matter. Prana and Ray are male and female. Prana and matter are the couple.
627. Prajapati created a couple necessary for creation: the moon that is food and Prana (fire, sun) i.e., the eater.
628. He thought that Agni (sun) and the moon (i.e., the eater and the food) would create various creatures, and so he created the sun and . the moon.
629. Through the influence of the moon only the delicious Soma or the Rasa of the earth which nourishes plants and herbs is produced. The Sun is the fire that consumes the Rasa.
630. This life is sustained by food (Annam) and air (Prana).
631. The sun is verily life and the moon the matter; all this having form and without form is found. Therefore form is indeed food.
632. Murtam means with form; gross (solid, liquid and fiery objects).
633. Amurta means without form; subtle, (air, ether).
634. The sun is energy. The moon is matter.
635. All this that has body (form) and that has no body formless, subtle) is matter. Therefore body (form) indeed is matter.
636. The sun is Prana, the eater, the fire; the moon is the food. The eater and the food are really one. They are aspects of the Lord of creatures.
The Glorious Sun
637. The sun is the centre of energy. It is therefore identical with the Prana.
638. Now, the sun rising goes towards the east. By that he bathes in his rays all Pranas in the east. When he lights up the southern, the western, the northern quarters, the nadir, the zenith, the intermediate quarters, and all, by that takes up into his rays all creatures.
639. The sun bathes all living beings with his light, makes them one with his own self.
640. Wherever there is life, wherever there is energy, it is due to the influence of the sun.
641. The sun is the greatest inexhaustible powerhouse on earth. He supports by his rays all life in all directions.
642. This is the (Vaisvanara) the sum-total of all living beings, assuming all forms, life and fire, who rises every day.
643. The sun illumines the whole world. He is the centre of force and energy. He is the source of life and activity. Therefore he is the Lord of creatures. He is connected with the activities of all men. He is indeed the life of the world.
644. Assuming all forms, resplendent, omniscient, the highest goal, the one light, the heat-giver, with thousand rays, existing in hundred forms, life of all creatures, this sun rises.
645. The year is indeed Prajapati, the Lord of he creation. There are two paths, southern and northern. Those who follow the path of Karma alone, by the performance of sacrificial and pious acts, obtain only the world of the moon and certainly return again.
646. Ishta is the daily performance of Agnihotra, penance, feeding of the guests.
647. Purta is digging of wells, tanks etc for the Public, building temples, hospitals, chaultries, giving food to the poor and the hungry, laying out public gardens, etc.
648. But those who have sought the Atman by penance, faith, and knowledge, gain by the northern route the sun (Brahma-loka). This is the home of all lives, the immortal, fearless, the highest goal.
649. They go along the path of Devayana, the path of the gods, to the world of the sun and from there go to Brahma-loka. They merge in Brahman at the end of the cycle. This is Krama-Mukti or gradual liberation.
650. Those who have attained Brahmaloka do not return to this world. They do not take rebirth as followers of mere Karma do.
651. Having five feet (the five seasons), the father, having twelve forms (twelve months)the giver of rain, they (sages) say, he is seated in a plane higher than heaven. Others call him all-wise, upon whom, like a chariot (drawn by seven horses), with seven wheels and seven spokes, the whole world is founded.
652. The sun is nothing but the year or time.
The sun is the maker or measurer of time.
653. The sun by pervading all beings with his light, makes them one with his own self.
654. The sun is called father, because he is the creator of all, he sustains all life, and all life proceed from him only.
655. The seven rays or colours of the sun are the seven horses of the sun. Half years, seasons, months, half-months, days, nights and Muhurtas are also the seven horses of the sun.
656. The six spokes are the seasons.
657. The month is Prajapati (the Lord of creation), its dark half is indeed the food, its bright half the Prana. Therefore these Rishis perform sacrifices in the bright half, the others in the dark halt.
658. The month also is in nature of a pair.one portion, that is the dark half is food, i.e., matter or moon. The other halt, i.e., the bright fortnight, is the sun, the earth, the fire or Prana.
659. Night is dally Pralaya.
660. Day and night are Prajapati. The day 15 the Prana and the night indeed is food. Those who unite in love by day waste their Prana, those who unite in love by night are considered verily as Brahmacharins.
661.. Food indeed is Prajapati; from that indeed proceeds semen, from these all creatures are born.
662. Thus therefore those who observed this rule of Prajapati produce a pair. To them alone is this Brahmaloka in whom penance, celibacy and truth abide.
663. That pure Brahmaloka belongs to them only in whom there is no deceit, falsehood or dissimulation.
664. Fraud, crookedness, falsehood and dissimulation taint the heart. They are obstacles in the spiritual path. They should be eradicated by cultivating the opposite, positive virtues, such as honesty, straightforwardness and truth.
Prana: Greater Than Senses
665. Then Bhargava, son of Vidarbha questioned Pippalada.: "O Bhagavan, how many Devas support the creation? Which of them enlighten that? Who, again, is, amongst them, the greatest?"
666. The second question deals with the powers, glory and splendour of Prana. It is the Prana that supports the microcosm and is, thus, the best of all.
667. He replied: Those Devas verily are the ether, wind, fire, water, speech, mind, eye and the ear. They, manifesting their glory, disputed among each other and said, "We hold together and support this body.
668. Prana, the greatest, said to them: "Be not lost in delusion. Do not entertain this foolish pride. I alone, dividing myself fivefold, support this body and keep it.
669. Breathing and thought are expressions of Prana only. Prana is the most important fundamental principle in the body and Nature.
Therefor Prana is called Brahma. The individual Prana is a part of the universal Prana or cosmic energy.
670. They did not believe. The principle Prana, from indignation, seemed to go out of the body, as it were, from above. When the Prana ascended, all the others (senses) immediately ascended, too; and when it remained all others remained, too; just as the bees go out when their queen goes out and return when she returns; so mind, speech, eye, ear, and the rest, being pleased, praised Prana.
Prana: The Prime Mover
671. Thus life, as fire, burns; as the sun it shines; as Parjanya it rains; as Maghavan (Indra) it rules; it is the wind; it is the earth, moon, Deva, what has form, what is formless and what is immortal.
672. Prana is the Amrita which is the basis or stay of all Devas.
673. Like spokes in the nave of a wheel, so all is centred in Prana, the verses of the Rigveda, Samaveda, sacrifices, Kshatriyas and the Brahmins.
Prayer to Prana
674. As Prajapati, Lord of creatures, thou (Prana) movest about in the womb; Thou indeed art born afterwards. To thee, O Prana, who dwelleth together with the other Pranas (senses), these creatures offer oblation.
675. Prana moves in the womb. In the womb it causes the quickening of the foetus. It expels the child from the womb, when grown.
676. Prana is born as a child. Prana is both father and mother. It is Prajapati, universal life.
677. The senses carry the impressions of their respective objects for nourishing and sustaining the life in the body. These are the offerings to Prana, the Lord of the senses.
678. Prana is the eater. All is food for Prana.
679. O, Prana, thou art the best carrier to the gods, the first oblation to the forefathers. Thou are the active principle of the senses which are the essence of the body.
680. This life, as fire, burns. Prana burns as fire.
681. Prana is the active principle that supports the senses and the body. The limbs and organs will be emaciated and dried up if there is no Prana. So Prana is the essence or sap of all the senses and the body.
682. O, Prana, thou art Indra, thou art Rudra by prowess, thou art the protector, thou movest in the sky, thou art the sun, the Lord of all lights.
683. When thou showerest down rain, then, O Prana, these creatures of thine sit delighted, hoping there will be food as they desire.
684. O, Prana, thou art a Vratya (eternally pure); thou art the fire Ekarshi, the consumer of everything, the good Lord of the world. We are the givers of oblations, O, Matarisvan, thou art our father.
685. Make propitious that body of thine which abides in speech, in the ear, in the eye and also which pervades the mind; do not go out.
686. All this is within the control of Prana, as also all that is in the third heaven. Protect us like a mother. Give us prosperity and wisdom.
The Mystery of Life
687. Then Kausalya, sOn of Asvala, questioned Pippalada:
"O, Bhagavan, where is this Prana born? How does it come into the body? How does it abide after it has divided itself? How does it go out? How does it support what is without, and all within the body?"
688. Pippalada replied: You ask questions about transcendental matters. I will explain to thee, because you are a great enquirer of Brahman.
689. This Prana is born of the Atman. As is this shadow in the man, so is this Prana in the Atman. By the action of the mind this enters into the body.
690. The act of the mind is the thought-power willing or wishing. By the act of the mind means, by the good or evil deeds, which are the work of the mind.
Functions of Prana
691. As a king commands his officers, saying to them, "Reside in and govern these or those villages," so does this Prana dispose the other Pranas each for their separate work.
692. The Apana dwells in the organs of excretion and generation; the Prana itself abides in the eye, ear, mouth, and nose. In the middle is Samana. It distributes the food supplied equally and the seven flames proceed from it.
693. Apana dwells in the anus and the generative organs. It does excretion. Prana does the sensory life function. It dwells in the eye, the ears, etc. Samana dwells in the navel. It does the digestive function. Vyana does the circulation of blood. It is all-pervading. Udana helps swallowing of food and drink. It takes the Jiva to Brahman during deep sleep. It takes the Jiva out of the body during death and conducts him to the other world. It abides in the throat.
694. This Atman is in the heart. There are a hundred and one nerve-currents (Nadis). Each of these has a hundred branches; again each of these has seventy-two thousand sub-branches. In these the Vyana moves.
695. Again, through one nerve, the Udana, ascending, leads us upwards to the virtuous worlds by good work, to the sinful world by sin and to the world of men by virtue and sin combined.
696. The sun verily is the external Prana. He rises favouring the Prana in the eyes. The goddess of the earth attracts (controls) the Apana downwards. The Akasa (ether) between the sun and the earth is Samana. The wind is Vyana.
697. The external fire indeed is Udana. Therefore, he whose fire has gone out enters another body with his senses absorbed in the mind.
698. Whatever his thought at the time of death, with that he attains Prana and the Prana, united with Udana, together with the Jivatma, leads on to the world thought of.
699. The learned man who knows thus his offspring does not perish, and he becomes immortal.
700. He who knows the origin, the entry, the seat, the fivefold distribution of Prana and its internal state in the body, obtains immortality, yes, attains immortality.
Dream and Deep Sleep
701. Then Gargya, the grandson of Surya, questioned Pippalada: "O Bhagavan, what are they that sleep in man; what again are they that awake in him. Which is the Deva who sees dreams? Whose is this happiness? On what do all these depend?
702. "What organs sleep in the body or cease functioning when man is sleeping? What are awake therein, i.e., perform their functions?"
703. Pippalada replied: O Gargya, just as the rays of the sun, when setting, become one in that disc of light and come forth again when the sun rises again, so also all these become one in the highest Deva, the mind. Therefore, at that time, one does not hear, see, smell, taste or feel; does not speak, or take, or enjoy, or evacuate, or move. They say, "He sleeps."
704. All the organs (or senses) are dormant in the mind during deep sleep. They become one with the mind.
705. The fire of Prana alone is awake in the city (body). The Apana is the Garhapatya fire. The Vyana is the Ahavaniya fire, because it is taken out of the Garhapatya fire.
706. Because the Samana distributes equally the oblations (the respiration), he is the priest (Hotri). The mind is the sacrifice, the Udana is the reward of the sacrifices; he leads the sacrificer everyday, in deep sleep, to Brahman.
707. In this state, this Deva (mind) enjoys in dream his greatness. Whatever has been seen, he sees again; what has been heard, he hears again; what has been enjoyed in different countries and quarters, he enjoys again; what has been seen and not seen, heard and not heard, experienced and not experienced, real and unreal, he sees; he being all, he sees all.
708. In dream the mind creates a world of its own out of the impressions received in the waking state and enjoys the vision. The mind itself is the perceiver (subject) and the perceived (object). The mind itself assumes the forms of mountains, rivers, trees, flowers etc. then.
709. In dream the mind dives deep sometimes into the impressions of past lives also and revives them.
710. When he is overpowered by light, then that god (mind) sees no dreams, and at that time bliss arises in this body.
711. The causal body is active in deep sleep. The causal body is the organ through which the happiness of deep sleep is enjoyed.
712. The Jiva rests in Brahman, in deep sleep. There is only the thin layer of ignorance between him and the supreme Self. In Samadhi or the superconscious state, this veil of ignorance is rent asunder and the Jiva merges himself in Brahman and attains the highest knowledge. This is the difference between deep sleep and Samadhi.
713. Just as, O beloved one, birds repair to a tree to roost (dwell), so indeed all these rest in the supreme Atman.
714. The earth and the subtle elements, the water and its subtle elements, the fire and its subtle elements, the air and its subtle elements, ether and its subtle elements, the eye and perceivable objects, the ear and what can be heard, the nose and what can be smelt, taste and its objects, the hands and what can be grasped, the feet and what can be walked, the organ of generation and what is to be enjoyed, the organ of excretion and what must be excreted, the mind and what must be thought of, the intellect and what must be determined, egoism and its objects, Chitta and its objects, light and its objects, the Prana and what must be supported by it all rest in the supreme Atman in deep sleep.
The Transcendent Experience
715. Manas or mind is that faculty which cogitates: "Should I do this or not." The Buddhi or the intellect is the faculty that determines: "I must do this." Egoism or Ahamkara is the
self-arrogating principle. It feels: "I did this. I enjoyed this." Chitta is the faculty of memory.
716. It is he who sees, feels, heals, smells, tastes, thinks, knows. He is the doer, the intelligent Soul, the Purusha. He dwells in the highest indestructible place.
717. Just as the image of the sun is reflected in water, so the image of Brahman is reflected in the mind. The reflected image is the Jiva. This is only apparent, but not real.
718. The Jivanmukta enters into the supreme, immortal, undecaying Atman, just as the reflected image of the sun in water enters into the sun.
719. The supreme indestructible Being he surely obtains. Whoever, O beloved one, knows this Being, which is without shadow, without body, without colour, which is pure and indestructible, becomes omniscient and becomes all.
720. Brahman is free from the Gunas and so it is ever pure. It is bodyless and so undecaying.
721. The Jiva was enveloped by ignorance and so he was not omniscient before. He becomes all by the destruction of ignorance, by attaining knowledge.
722. Brahman is eternal, incomprehensible, unborn. It is all bliss in nature, free from all miseries and troubles. It exists without and within all.
723. O beloved one, he who knows the imperishable Atman, in whom rise the knowing self with all the Devas, the Prana and five elements, becomes omniscient, and, indeed, enters into all.
724. "Enters into all," i.e., realises he is the Self or Atman in beings and feels that he himself exists in all.
Glory of Meditation on Om
725. Then Satyakama, son of Sibi questioned Pippalada; "O Bhagavan, what world does he who, among men, meditates on Om until death, attain by that."
726. Om is the Pratika or substitute for Brahman. It is the symbol of Brahman.
727. Meditation on Om with Bhava (feeling) and its meaning is really meditation on Brahman.
728. Meditation on Om is the keeping up of the continuous flow of the one idea of the supreme Self, like the flow of oil from one vessel to another (Tailadharavat).
729. The mind should be steady like the flame of a lamp in a windless place.
730. Meditation can be practised only by that aspirant whose senses are turned away from external objects, who has a calm mind, who is endowed with discrimination, self-restraint, purity, faith, endurance and a strong yearning for final emancipation.
731. Pippalada replied: O Satyakama, the syllable Om is indeed the higher and the lower Brahman. Therefore, he who knows it by this means, surely attains either of them.
732. Om primarily signifies Para-Brahman and secondarily denotes Hiranyagarbha.
733. If he meditates on one Matra of it-"A," then he, being enlightened by that comes quickly to earth. The Rik-verses lead to the world of men, and having been endowed there with austerity, celibacy and faith, attains greatness.
734. But if he meditates on its second Matra- "U" only, he becomes one with the mind. He is led up by the Yajus-verses to the sky--the world of moon. Having enjoyed greatness there, he returns to earth.
735. But if, again, he meditates on the highest Purusha with this syllable Om of three Matras, he becomes united with the sun. As a snake is freed from its skin, so is he freed from sin.
He is led up by the Sama-hymn to the world of Brahma, and from him, full of life, he beholds the Supreme Purusha residing in the heart.
736. The three Matras, when employed separately, are mortal, but when they are connected with one another, they are not wrongly employed. When they are properly employed in all the internal, external and middle functions the knower trembles not. He is not shaken from his Brahmic consciousness. He is ever fixed in his consciousness: "I am Brahman.
737. Through the Rik-verses he arrives at this world, through the Yajus-verses at the sky, through the Saman-verses at that which the seers know (Brahmaloka) by means of the letter Om. The wise one reaches these and also that which is quiet, undecaying, deathless fearless and supreme.
The Indwelling Presence
738. Then Sukesa, son of Bharadvaja questioned Pippalada: "O Bhagavan, Hiranya-nabha, a prince of Kosa, came once to me and asked this question: 'O Bharadvaja, knowest thou the Purusha of sixteen Kalas (parts)?' I said to the youth: I do not know him. If i knew why should I not tell thee. He who tells that is not true is dried Up, verily, root and all. Therefore I dare not utter untruth.' Having ascended his car, he went away in silence. That I ask you, what is that Purusha?”
739. Pippalada replied: O gentle youth, that Purusha in whom these sixteen Kalas are born is even here within the body.
740. One need not go far to seek Him, He is in the lotus of the heart. He is quite close to you, closer than your breath.
741. The Atman is said to dwell in the heart in order to make the aspirant realise that the Atman is his very own self. This will help him to practise concentration, and the Purusha is realised as if within the body, by the process of thinking, reflection and meditation.
742. The Purusha has really no parts. He is indivisible, homogeneous and partless. On account of ignorance, He is seen as one having parts.
743. The Kalas are conditions which are superimposed on the Purusha on account of ignorance. When one attains knowledge, all the conditions drop away. He beholds the one homogeneous, unconditional supreme Purusha alone.
744. Intelligence is not an attribute of the Atman. The Atman is an embodiment of intelligence (Prainana-Ghana or Vijnana-Ghana), dense mass of intelligence.
745. You will have to eliminate the sixteen
Kalas by the practice of the Neti-Neti (not this, not this) doctrine.
746. He (Purusha) reflected, "What is that by whose departure I shall depart, and by whose stay I shall stay?"
Fundamentals of Sankhya Philosophy
747. According to the Sankhya philosophy, Prakriti or Pradhana is the creator and Purusha is the enjoyer.
748. Prakriti transforms itself into Mahat (intellect), mind, egoism, Tanmatras, elements, etc., for the benefit or enjoyment of the Purusha.
749. He created Prana, from Prana faith, ether, air, fire, water, earth, senses, mind and food; and from food, strength, penance, Mantras, Karma and the world, and in the world, name (i.e., the individual).
750. Akasa, ether, has the attribute of sound.
751. Air is born of Akasa. It has two attributes, its own, touch, and that of its cause, sound.
752. Fire is born of air. It has three attributes, its own, form, and the two attributes of previous elements, sound and touch.
753. Water is born of fire. It has four attributes- its own, taste, and the three attributes of the elements previously named.
754. Earth is born of water. It has four attributes-its own, smell, and the attributes of the four previously named.
755. Just as these rivers flowing towards the sea, when they have reached the sea, disappear, their names and forms perish, and are called sea, so also, these sixteen parts of the witness that go towards the Purusha, disappear, their names and forms are destroyed, and all is called the Purusha alone. He becomes without parts and immortal.
756. Know that Purusha who ought to be known, in whom the Kalas are centred like spokes in the nave of a wheel, in order that death may not harm you.
757. Then Pippalada said to them: "This much alone I know of this highest Purusha; there is nothing higher than this."
758. They, worshipping him, said: "Thou art our father who helps to cross over the ocean, of ignorance." Salutations to the highest Rishis! Salutations to the highest Rishis!
CHAPTER FIVE
MUNDAKOPANISHAD
Introduction
759. The knowledge which is a means to the attainment of the highest Brahman can be attained only by the grace of the preceptor, after one's having renounced all desire and egoism, and having acquired the four means of salvation.
760. Brahman is not grasped by the senses as it is subtle and infinite, but is realised by the intellect purified through knowledge and meditation.
761. The individual soul attains liberation through the knowledge of Brahman.
762. Just as rivers, when flowing into the ocean, become one and the same with it, so also he who knows Brahman becomes identical with Brahman.
763. The fruits of sacrifice are but perishable and transitory.
764. Cultivate discrimination, dispassion, austerity, faith, concentration, love for solitude, for the attainment of immortality and eternal bliss.
765. Seek the knowledge of Brahman from a qualified teacher who is versed in the Vedas (Brahma Shrotriya) and is established in Brahman (Brahma-Nishtha).
766. There are two kinds of Vidya Apara (the lower) and the Para (the higher). The former is founded on the four Vedas and the six Vedangas. The latter refers to Brahman which is all-pervading, immortal, indivisible and self-luminous.
767. Just as a spider projects the web out of its body and then again withdraws it into itself, so also Brahman projects this world and then withdraws it into itself.
768. Brahman is a target to be penetrated by meditation on Om.
769. Brahman is the immortal Soul, the one warp of the world and the individual souls, the self-luminous light of the worlds, full of bliss, omnipresent. It is in front, behind, above, below, to the right and to the left, and shines with all splendour in the heart of all.
770. Spiritual discipline, ethical duties and spiritual practices enable the aspirants to attain the knowledge of the Supreme Self.
771. Meditation will help the aspirants to develop dispassion, discrimination, faith, purity, and attain immortality and eternal bliss.
772. Chapter 1. Section 1:
Knowledge of the Divine Ground
ॐ भद्रं कर्णेभिः शृणुयाम देवाः । भद्रं पश्येमाक्षभिर्यजत्राः । स्थिरैरङ्गैस्तुष्टुवा ँ सस्तनूभिर्व्यशेम देवहितं यदायुः । स्वस्ति न इन्द्रो वृद्धश्रवाः । स्वस्ति नः पूषा विश्ववेदाः । स्वस्ति नस्तार्क्ष्योऽ रिष्टनेमिः। स्वस्ति नो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु||
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !
O, Gods! may we, with our ears, hear what is auspicious. O ye, fit to be worshipped! may we, with our eyes see what is auspicious. May we enjoy the life allotted to us by the Gods, offering our praise with our body strong of limb. May Indra, the powerful, the ancient of fame, vouchsafe us prosperity. May he, the nourisher and possessor of all wealth, give us what is well for us. May the lord of swift motion be propitious to us, and may the protector of the great ones protect us, too.
Om Peace! Peace !! Peace !!!
773. Brahma, the creator and protector of this universe, arose as the first among Gods. He expounded the science of the knowledge of Brahman (Brahma-Vidya), the foundation of all knowledge (all sciences) to Atharvan, his eldest son.
774. Whatever Brahma told Atharvan, that knowledge Atharvan gave to Angir. Angir taught it to Satyavaha of the family of Bharadvaja, and Satyavaha taught to Angiras the knowledge traditionally obtained by the succession of teachers.
775. Saunaka, the great householder, approached Angiras in the manner laid down by the scriptures and questioned; "What is that, O Bhagavan, which being known, all this becomes
known?"
776. Brahman is the cause of this world. By attaining the knowledge of Brahman, the effect, the world, is comprehended.
777. To him (Saunaka), Angiras replied:
There are two kinds of knowledge to be acquired.
So those who know Brahman (or the Vedas) say,-Para and Apara, i.e., the higher and the lower.
778. Para is the knowledge of Brahman.
779. Apara is that which treats of the means and fruits of good and bad actions. The object of the lower science is to show the cause of virtue and vice and their consequences. Apara Vidya is ignorance. It teaches nothing ultimately real. It must therefore be rejected in the end.
780. The lower knowledge is the Rig-veda, the Samaveda, Yajurveda, Atharvaveda, Siksha (phonetics), Kalpa (code of rituals), Vyakarana (grammar), Nirukta (etymology), Chhandas (metre) and Jyotisha (astrology). But the higher knowledge is that by which the immortal is known.
781. Brahman can be obtained only by the removal of ignorance.
782. Brahma-Vidya is called Para-Vidya, because it is a help to salvation, it leads to the attainment of the summum bonum.
783. Para-Vidya is the knowledge of the immortal which can be known through the Upanishads.
784. That which cannot be seen or seized, which has no origin, which has no properties, which has neither ear nor eye, which has neither hands nor feet, which is eternal, diversely manifested, all-pervading, extremely subtle and imperishable, the wise regard as the source of all beings.
785. Brahman sees without eyes and hears without ears.
786. Decay is not possible in Brahman, as it is ever full and self-contained.
787. That knowledge by which the immortal Brahman is known is what is called Para-Vidya.
788. The wise are those who are endowed with discrimination.
The Origin of Things
789. As a spider sends forth and draws in its web, as herbs grow from the earth, as hair grows from living man, so this universe proceeds from the immortal (Brahman).
790. Creation is not a real transformation (Parinama) but only a projection of a certain inscrutable, illusory power of Brahman.
791. Just as seeds remain latent underground in winter and burst forth into herbs and plants in the rainy season, so also the Jivas remain latent in Pralaya with their different Karmas as their seeds, and come out at the time of creation as trees of different kinds, but with their roots always in Brahman.
792. By Tapas Brahman swells with the joy of creation, as it were, and from it food is produced; from food the Prana, the mind, the elements, the worlds, Karmas, and also their fruits.
793. The Tapas of Brahman is knowledge as to the manner of creation.
794. This is knowledge of the whole of creation in the ideal form, before it assumes a distinct concrete shape.
795. Tapas denotes reflection on the shape and character of the world which Brahman is about to project.
796. Food is the primal matter.
797. Hiranyagarbha is the common thread-soul of this universe.
798. Karma, with its fruits is an endless chain. As soon as one gets knowledge of Brahman, this chain is broken and all Karmas are burnt by the fire of wisdom.
799. From Brahman who knows all in general and also knows everything in detail, whose penance has the nature of knowledge, is produced this manifestation, - name, form and food.
800. Brahman is Sarvajna, i.e., one who knows all things generally, or as a class, all-wise.
801. Brahman is Sarvavit, i.e., one who knows every thing of all, specially or in detail, omniscient.
Chapter 1, Section 2:
An Insight into Karma
802. The sacrificial works which the wise found in the Mantras of the Vedas are true and were much performed in the Treta age. Practise them always diligently and regularly, ye, lovers of Truth. This is your path that leads to the world of good works.
803. One entertains the sublime idea of renunciation, dispassion, discrimination, self-restraint, longing for liberation, etc. only when he has clearly understood the hollow and transitory nature of worldly and heavenly pleasures.
804. When the fire is kindled and the flame begins to move, let the sacrificer offer his oblations with faith, on the two portions of the fire where the ghee should be poured.
805. If a man's Agnihotra sacrifice is not accompanied by the new moon and full moon sacrifices (Darsa and Purnamasa), by the four month's sacrifices (Chaturmasya) and by the sacrifice in the autumnal season (Agrayana), if it is unattended by guests, if it is not done in the proper time or is performed without the rite to the Visvedevas or is not performed according to rule, -then it destroys his worlds till the seventh.
806. The seven flickering tongues of the fire are Kali (black one), Karali (terrific one), Manoiava (swift as the mind), Sulohita (the deep red), Sudhumravarna (the smoke-coloured), Sphuligini (sparkling) and the Visva-Rupi or the Visvaruchi (having all forms).
807. The seven flames are the seven tongues of the fire.
808. Whoever performs his Karmas (Agnihotra etc.), when these flames are shining and in proper time, then these oblations lead him through the rays of the sun to where the one lord of the Deva dwells.
809. "Come hither, come hither," the brilliant oblations say unto him and carry him through the rays of the sun addressing him with the pleasant words of praise; "this is the holy world of Brahma gained by thy good works."
810. Perishable and transient, indeed, are the eighteen supporters of the sacrifice, on whom these lower ceremonial depends. Those ignorant persons who delight in this as the highest goal are subject, again and again, to old age and death.
811. The ignorant beings, in the midst of ignorance, but fancying themselves wise and learned, go round and round oppressed and miserable, as blind people led by the blind.
812. Living in various ways, in ignorance, the ignorant imagine that they have obtained their end. Because the performers of work are not wise owing to their passions, they become miserable and, after the fruits of their Karmas are finished, fall from heaven.
813. Knowledge can dawn only when one annihilates desires and attachments.
814. Life in heaven is also impermanent.
When the merits of one's deeds are exhausted, he is reborn on earth.
815. One can attain that final liberation or the immortal state only by attaining knowledge of Brahman.
816. These ignorant persons fancying sacrifice and charitable gifts as their highest object, do not know any higher good. Having enjoyed the fruits of their work on the high place of heaven which they gained by their good work, they enter again this world or a lower one.
817. But those who practice penance and faith in the forest, with subdued senses, learning and living the life of a mendicant, living on alms, go, freed from sin, through the sun, to where the immortal and imperishable Purusha dwells.
To the Imperishable
818. Those who worship Saguna-Brahman or the personal God attain gradual emancipation (Krama Mukti). They go to Satya-loka and are finally emancipated at the end of the cycle. Along with Brahma, they merge in the Nirguna-Brahman or the imperishable Absolute, at the end of the cycle.
819. But sages who have attained the knowledge of the Self attain Kaivalya Mukti. They do not go to any Loka or world. Their Pranas, etc. are directly absorbed in Brahman. They become one with the supreme Self. They attain liberation in this very life.
820. Let a Brahmana (an aspirant), after he has examined the worlds gained by Karma, acquire freedom from all desires, reflecting that nothing that is eternal can be gained by Karma. Let him, in order to obtain the knowledge of the eternal take sacrificial fuel (Samit) in his hands and approach that preceptor who is versed in the Vedas and is established in Brahman.
821. To that pupil who has approached him respectfully, whose mind is at rest, and whose senses are subdued, let the wise teacher truly teach that Brahma-Vidya (science of Brahman) through which the one immortal Brahman is known.
822. He who is thoroughly disgusted with this Samsara is alone fit to attain the knowledge of Brahman or Para-Vidya.
Chapter 2. Section 1:
The One Becomes Many
823. This is the truth. As from a blazing fire, sparks, like unto fire, issue forth by thousands, so various Jivas are produced from the Indestructible (Brahman), O beloved youth, and also they return to it,
824. He is very luminous, without form. He is both without and within; unborn, without Prana, without mind, pure and greater than the great, the indestructible one.
825. From Him are born the Prana (life), the mind, the organs, Akasa, the wind, the fire water and the earth which supports all.
826. Fire is His head, His eyes the sun and the moon, the four quarters (or directions) His ears; His speech Vedas disclosed, the wind is His breath. His heart the universe; from His feet comes the earth; He is indeed the inner Self of all beings.
827. The above is a description of the Virat-Purusha who is born of Hiranyagarbha, or the first born.
828. The world is the body of the Lord. From Him is produced the heaven-world which is the first fire, where the fuel is the sun; from moon Parianya (clouds) as the second fire; from the clouds the herbs that grow on the earth, the third fire; from these man, the fourth fire, sheds semen into woman who is the fifth fire. Thus many living beings are produced from the Purusha.
829. From Him came the Rig, the Sama, the Yayus, the Diksha (initiatory rites), all sacrifices and offerings of animals (Kratus), the fees given 10 the priests, the year, the sacrificer, and the world in which the moon purities and the sun shines brightly.
830. From Him also were produced the gods of various orders (celestials), the Sadhyas, men, cattle, birds the Prana and the Apana, rice and barley, truth, penance, devotion, celibacy and law.
831. Tapas or austerity is an indispensable adjunct to Karma. A man with pure heart will perform the Karma very efficiently. Tapas purifies the heart.
832. From Him proceed the seven Pranas (senses), the seven flames, the seven kinds of fuel, the seven oblations, the seven Lokas (worlds) where the Pranas move, resting in the cave of the heart and placed there seven and seven.
833. From Him proceed the oceans and all the mountains and the rivers of every kind; from Him also emanate the annual herbs and the juice by which the inner self (subtle body) exists encircled by the gross elements (Bhutas).
834. The Purusha alone is all this universe, Karma (sacrifice) penance, Brahma, the highest immortal; he who knows this hidden in the cave of the heart, breaks the knot of ignorance even here (on earth), O gentle youth!
835. He who knows that he himself is this Brahman, the highest and the immortal placed in the hearts of all beings, destroys ignorance, attains knowledge of the Self and becomes immortal.
Chapter 2. Section 2:
The Spiritual Hero's Target
836. Bright, near, moving in the cave of the heart, is the great Being, the support of all. In it is centred all that moves, breathes and winks; know this as what is all that has form (gross), and all that is formless (subtle), which is to be adored by all, which is beyond the reach of man's knowledge, and is the highest of all.
837. Knowledge of Brahman is not mere intellectual knowledge. To know Brahman is to become Brahman.
838. Know this Brahman which is beyond the reach of the intellect and senses, through intuition or direct spiritual experience in deep meditation.
839. That which is brilliant, smaller than the small, that on which all the worlds are founded with their inhabitants, is the immortal Brahman. That is the Prana, speech and mind. That is true and immortal. That is to be aimed at, O gentle youth!
840. Having taken the bow supplied by the Upanishads, the great weapon, and fixed in it the arrow sharpened by incessant meditation, and having drawn it with the mind fixed on Brahman, hit, O gentle youth, at that mark, the immortal Brahman.
841. The arrow is the mind which is sharpened or rendered pointed by constant meditation.
842. Fix the arrow in the bow and draw the mind and the senses from their external objects.
Then bend it with concentration on Brahman; hit the mark or target, i.e., merge in Brahman through deep meditation.
843. Pranava (Om) is the bow, the self is the arrow, and Brahman is called its aim. It is to be hit by a man who is self-collected (with concentration), and then, as the arrow becomes one with the target, he will become one with Brahman.
844. Just as the bow helps the arrow to enter into the target or marks, so also the repetition or Japa of Om and meditation on Om helps the mind to get itself fixed in Brahman. Therefore Pranava is like a bow.
845. In Him the heaven, the earth, the sky, the mind with the Pranas (senses) are centred.
Know Him alone as the Atman of all, and leave off all other speech. This is the bridge to Immortality.
846. He moves about, becoming manifold, within the heart, where the nerves meet like spokes fastened to the nave of a wheel. Meditate on Om as the Self. Blessedness be to you that you may go to the other side beyond darkness.
Realisation and After
847. This Atman which is omniscient, which knows everything in detail, whose glory is manifested in this world, is placed in the ether, in the bright city of Brahman. It is of the nature of the mind and becomes the guide of the life and the body. It subsists in food, in close proximity to the heart. The wise behold with the aid of their supreme knowledge the Atman which shines forth full of bliss and is immortal.
848. The knot of the heart is broken, all doubts are solved, and all Karmas perish, when he who is both high and low is beheld.
849. There are three kinds of Karmas, viz., Sanchita (accumulated works) Prarabdha and Agami or Kriyamana (current works done in this present life, which will bear fruit in future lives).
850. Prarabdha is the name given to the effects of one's works which brought about this birth which have already begun to germinate and bear fruit in this life.
851. This world itself is the manifestation of the Lord's Glory.
852. Only when one attains Self-realisation are the Sanchita and Agami destroyed. Prarabdha still remains. It must be worked out or enjoyed. It must be exhausted by actual knowledge of the Atman.
853. Only on account of Prarabdha does this body continue to exist even after the attainment of the knowledge of the Atman.
854. The body will fall only when the Prarabdha is completely exhausted.
855. The potter stops rotating the wheel but the wheel will continue to revolve on account of the momentum of the force previously given by the potter. Even so, this body continues to function on account of the force of Prarabdha which has already begun to operate.
856. You cannot withdraw the arrow that has already been discharged. It must work on. Even so is this Prarabdha.
857. When Brahman is reailsed as "I am He" one attains liberation, ignorance, the cause of Samsara being destroyed.
858. In the inner most golden sheath there is the Brahman without stains and without parts.
That is pure. That is the Light of lights. That is what the knowers of the Atman know.
859. Just as the sheath envelops the sword, so also the five sheaths envelop the soul. So man is not able to behold the Atman. These sheaths stand as veils between man and the soul.
860. The light of the Atman is the highest light which is not illumined by other lights. The Atman or Brahman is self-luminous.
861. Those persons whose minds are impure, whose vision is of an objective nature, cannot know or realise this Atman.
862. The sun does not shine there, nor do the moon and the stars, nor these lightnings, and much less this fire. When He shines, everything shines after Him. By His light all this is illumined.
863. That immortal Brahman is before, that Brahman is behind, to the right and to the left, below and above, all-pervading. Brahman alone is all this. It is the highest.
Chapter 3, Section 3:
Jiva and Isvara
864. Two birds, inseparable companions, dwell upon one and the same tree. One of them eats the sweet fruit, the other one looks on without eating.
865. The two birds are Jiva (the individual soul) and Isvara (the Lord).
866. Having known Truth thus, one goes beyond death. There is no other road to salvation.
867. The Jivatman is limited by Avidya or ignorance. Therefore, he is bound by body, mind and work.
868. The Lord is conditioned by Maya, but Maya is under His control. Therefore, He is free, omnipotent and omniscient.
869. Tree here means the body. A tree can be cut or destroyed. The body also can be cut or destroyed. So the body is compared to a tree.
870. The reflection of the Parmatman in the mind-mirror is the Jivatman or the individual soul.
871. The Jiva tastes, from ignorance, the fruits of his Karmas, viz. happiness and misery.
872. The Atman is always the silent witness. It is non-doer or non-enjoyer. Enjoyment and agentship are superimposed on the Jiva by the mind.
873. When ignorance is destroyed, when the heart is purified, when knowledge of the Self dawns, the knots of the heart are rent asunder, all Karmas perish, the ideas of doer and enjoyer are annihilated. One becomes identified with the supreme Self and attains liberation.
874. Being seated on the same tree, the Jiva immersed in ignorance, and deluded, grieves, on account of helplessness. But when he sees the other, the Lord who is adored by all, and His glory, then he becomes free from grief.
875. When the seer beholds the golden coloured (self-effulgent) creator of the world, the Lord, the Purusha, the source of Brahma, then that wise one shakes off good and evil, becomes stainless and attains supreme equality.
876. This is verily, Prana, i.e., the Lord shining forth in all living beings. The wise one who thus knows does not talk of anything else. He sports in the Self, he delights in the Self, and performing his works, he is the greatest among the knowers of Brahman.
Auxiliaries to Wisdom
877. The realisation of Brahman as the one common consciousness in all beings, the knowledge of the Atman alone, is real wisdom.
878. This Atman is to be verily obtained by the constant practice of truth, penance, perfect knowledge and by abstinence. He whom the sinless behold, is the pure and effulgent, within the body.
879. Tapas is concentration. Concentration of the mind is the highest Tapas, because withdrawing the mind and the senses from the external objects and concentrating it on the Atman is the most difficult form of austerity.
880. Aparoksha Jana or Anubhava is direct perception of the Atman through intuition. This is the highest spiritual experience.
881. Truthfulness, penance, continence are accessories to meditation. Meditation leads to direct or intuitive knowledge.
882. This Atman cannot be attained by an occasional practice of truth. Tapas, constant practice, is necessary.
883. Truth alone triumphs, and not falsehood. By truth is opened Devayana or the path of the Devas, by which the sages satisfied in their desires proceed to where there is that highest place of the True One.
884. Brahman is Truth. Brahman is to be attained or known by speaking truth.
885. Truth is the most important discipline in the spiritual path. It widens and opens the divine path.
886. That (true Brahman) shines forth, vast, divine, inconceivable, subtler than the subtle. It is tar and yet near here, and seen, fixed in the cave of the heart, by the wise.
887. As Brahman is all-pervading, it is both far and near.
888. Brahman is not grasped by the eye, nor by the speech, nor by the other senses, nor by penance, nor by good works. When a man's mind is purified by the serene light of knowledge, then alone he beholds the invisible Brahman, by meditation.
889. Brahman cannot be seen by the physical eyes, because it is formless and exceedingly subtle.
890. This subtle Atman is to be known by the mind as being in the body, wherein Prana, fivefold divided, entered. The mind of every creature is pervaded by Pranas. When the mind is purified, then the Atman shines by itself.
891. A man of purified mind gains that world and those desires which he imagines in his mind.
Therefore, let a man who is desirous of prosperity (happiness) worship him who knows the Atman.
892. The Jivanmukta who identifies himself with the all-pervading Atman obtains whatever worlds or objects he longs for, either for himself or for others, because he is the Atman of all.
Chapter 3, Section 4:
The Final Freedom
893. One should know this Supreme Brahman, the place where all this universe rests and which shines brightly. The wise, who, free from desires, worship that Person, transcend this seed (are not born again).
894. He who forms desires in his mind is born, again, through his desires, here and there. But to him, whose desires are fulfilled, and who has realised the Atman, all desires vanish, even here on earth.
895. He who wishes to attain the final emancipation must renounce all desires. This is the first step in the spiritual path.
896. Aparoksha Brahma-Jnana or direct
Self-realisation is the only means for the entire annihilation of all desires. When desires are destroyed, one is freed from future births.
897. The desires goad a man to do good and bad deeds. He is caught in the wheel of Karma or the net of Maya. He has to take births after births to enjoy the fruits of his actions.
898. He who has attained Self-realisation is absolutely free from all desires, because the Atman is all-full, and self-contained. He enjoys eternal bliss, everlasting peace and supreme satisfaction. How can desires enter the mind of such an exalted person who is ever drinking the nectar of immortality?
899. All the desires that prompt him to perform good and bad actions are totally destroyed, even while his body lasts. Desires cannot spring up in him, because the cause of their rising, viz, ignorance, is annihilated in toto.
900. This Atman cannot be obtained by much study of the Vedas or by intelligence or by much learning. He whom the Self chooses, by him the Self can be gained. To him this Atman reveals its true nature.
901. There is no gain greater than the attainment of Self-realisation.
902. Self-realisation is the highest object of human desire.
903. One should thirst for final emancipa-tion. One should have a burning yearning for attaining Brahman. He should long for Self-realisation whole-heartedly. He should earnestly seek to know that, after renouncing everything else. Then alone can he attain Brahman.
904. Just as a pot reveals its form in the presence of light, so also this Atman, which is concealed by ignorance, reveals its true nature when one attains knowledge.
905. When ignorance is dispelled, the Atman which is already shining in the heart reveals itself.
906. Moksha is not a thing to be achieved. It is not something produced. It is already there. One has to know Brahman, by. dispelling ignorance, as his own inner Self.
907. Brahman is not a thing to be brought from some place. It is the life of life. He ever dwells in the heart of all beings. It is the soul of all beings. The only effort is to remove the veil of ignorance. When the veil is removed, the self-luminous Brahman shines forth by itself.
908. The Atman cannot be attained by one who is destitute of strength or is without earnestness or by mere penance without significance. But if a wise man strives after it, by those means, then his Self enters into Brahman.
909. Mere physical strength alone is not sufficient. Physical, mental and moral strength is necessary.
910. The aspirant should have power of endurance, fortitude, faith, self-reliance, courage, mental vigour, patience, etc. Then alone will he be able to bear the difficulties on the path and conquer obstacles. Then alone will he not be affected by failures.
911. When the sages have attained the Atman, they become satisfied with their knowledge, their purpose is fulfilled, become free from desires, and are tranquil. Having attained the all-pervading Atman on all sides, they, devoid of it enter into everything.
912. Having, without doubt, well ascertained the import of the knowledge of Vedanta, and having purified their minds by the Yoga of renunciation, the anchorites attain the world of Brahman, and at the time of death become fully liberated.
913. Just as the footmarks of birds in the air, and of aquatic animals in water, are not visible, so the track of the Jivanmukta is not seen.
914. He does not go by any road. His Prana is directly absorbed in Brahman.
915. Their (of the liberated ones) fifteen Kalas (parts) enter into their elements, their Devas into their corresponding Devas. Their deeds, and their Self full of knowledge, become all one in the highest and imperishable Brahman,
916. Just as flowing rivers disappear in the sea, losing their names and forms, so also a seer freed from names and forms, goes to the Divine Person who is greater than the great.
917. He who knows the highest Brahman becomes even Brahman. In his line no one who does not know Brahman will be born. He overcomes grief, good and evil, and being freed from the fetters of the heart, becomes Immortal.
918. Let one teach this knowledge of Brahman to those only who perform the Karma enjoined, who are versed in the Vedas, and firmly established in the Brahman (lower), who, endowed with full faith, offer oblations, themselves, to the fire called Ekarshi, and who perform the vow called Sirovrata (who carry fire on the head) according to the rule (of the Atharvanas).
919. No one who has not observed the vow should study this. This is the truth. Rishi Angirasa declared thus to Saunaka and other disciples in ancient times. Prostrations to the great Rishis; prostrations to the great Rishis.
CHAPTER SIX
MANDUKYOPANISHAD
ॐ भद्रं कर्णेभिः शृणुयाम देवाः भद्रं पश्येमाक्षभिर्यजत्राः स्थिरैरङ्गैस्तुष्टुवा ँ सस्तनूभिर्व्यशेम देवहितं यदायुः स्वस्ति न इन्द्रो वृद्धश्रवाःस्वस्ति नः पूषा विश्ववेदाः स्वस्ति नस्तार्क्ष्योऽ रिष्टनेमिःस्वस्ति नो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु ।।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ।।
Om. O gods! may we, with our ears, hear, what is auspicious; O ye, fit to be worshipped! may we, with our eyes, see what is auspicious. May we enjoy the life allotted to us by the gods, offering our praise with our bodies strong of limb. May Indra, the powerful, the ancient of fame, vouchsafe us prosperity. May He, the nourisher and the possessor of all wealth, give us what is well for us. May the Lord of swift motion be propitious to us, and may the protector of the great ones protect us, too.
Om Peace! Peace!! Peace!!!
What Is Om?
920. Om-this word is all this.
921. Its further explanation is this: All that is past, present and future is, verily, OmThat which is beyond the triple conception of time 1s, also, verly, Om.
922. Om or Pranava is the only symbol ot
Brahman or the Absolute.
923. Brahman 15 nameless, but in the relative plane a name is necessary for giving instructions to the aspirants.
924. Om is Brahman. Om is the support. Om is the Akshara or the immortal. Om is the Atman. Om is pure Chaitanya. Om is consciousness. Om is all.
925. All the names in this manifestation are not different from Om, because it is the basis and matrix for all sounds, words or names.
926. The original vibration or sound-symbol is Om.
927. Om is the most universal, all-inclusive sound.
Four Aspects of the Self
928. All this is, verily, Brahman. This Atman (the supreme Self) is Brahman. This Atman has four quarters (four free portions or aspects or conditions).
929. This Atman has four feet, not like those of a cow, but like the fractions of a single coin.
930. The word Atman means that which pervades all.
931. The waking state, the dreaming state, the deep sleep state and the superconscious state are the four feet or four conditions of the Atman.
932. Visva or Vaisvanara is the individual soul who experiences gross objects in the waking state.
933. Taijasa is the individual soul who experiences subtle objects in the dreaming state,
934. Prajna is the individual soul who experiences bliss in the deep sleep state.
935. Visva, Taijasa and Prajna are really one.
The experience of Prajna in deep sleep is expressed by Visva in the waking state. It is Visva who says: "I enjoyed sound sleep last night. I did not know anything then."
936. The first quarter of the Atman is Vaisvanara whose sphere is the state of waking, who is conscious of external objects, who has seven limbs and nineteen mouths, and who enjoys gross objects.
937. The seven limbs or members of
Vaisvanara are these:
1. Heaven is the head of Vaisvanara or Visva.
2. The sun and the moon are His eyes.
3. Air is His breath.
4. Fire is His mouth.
5. Akasa or sky is His middle of body.
6. Water is His urinary organs (kidney and bladder).
7. Earth is His feet.
938. The nineteen mouths are: The five organs of knowledge; the five organs of action; the five Pranas; the fourfold Antahkarana, viz., the Manas, Buddhi, Chitta and Ahamkara.
939. These are called mouths because through these the Jivatma enjoys the external gross objects of this objective universe. These are the avenues of knowledge and experience.
Macrocosm and Microcosm
940. The Virat is the universal or macrocosmic aspect of the manifested Brahman.
941. Visva is the individual or microcosmic aspect (Pinda). The sum total of Visva is Virat.
942. Whatever exists in one's own body, also, exists in the universe.
943. The whole world is the body of the Virat-Purusha.
944. The physical body of the Jiva is included in the body of the Virat.
945. The sum total of all the physical bodies is the Virat. The totality of the gross universe is the Virat.
946. The sum total of all the subtle bodies is
Hiranyagarbha.
947. The sum total of all the causal bodies is
Isvara.
948. The Jiva is not separate from the Virat, Hiranyagarbha and Isvara.
949. The astral body of the Jiva is included in the body of Hiranyagarbha.
950. The causal body of the Jiva is included in the body of Isvara.
951. Jagrat is that state in which the individual soul enjoys the gross objects of the senses such as sound. etc.
952. Vaisvanara is one with Virat or the physical plane.
953. Taijasa is one with Hiranyagarbha or the astral plane.
954. Prajna is one with Isvara or the causal plane.
The Dreamer
955. The second quarter of the Atman is the Taijasa whose sphere or field or plane is dream, who is conscious of internal objects, who has seven limbs and nineteen mouths, and who enjoys subtle objects.
956. During dream, the mind creates various kinds of objects out of the impressions produced by the experiences of the waking state.
957. The mind is the perceiver, and the mind itself is also the perceived in dream.
958. The desires that are not satisfied during the waking state are gratified in dream.
959. The mind itself projects all sorts of subtle objects from its store through the potentiality of the impressions of the waking state (Vasanas), and enjoys these objects.
960. The experiencer of the dream state is called Taijasa, because he is entirely of the essence of light.
961. Just as the Virat is one with Visva in the waking state, so also Taijasa is one with Hiranyagarbha in the dreaming state.
962. That is the state of deep sleep, the third quarter, wherein the sleeper does not desire any objects, nor does he see any dream. This third quarter or condition is the Prajna whose sphere is deep sleep, in whom all experiences become one, who enjoys bliss, and who is the way leading to the knowledge of the two other states.
963. In this state, the mind does not function. Egoism also, is absent. But there is Avidya, i.e., the veil of ignorance.
964. Prajna is the experiencer of bliss in deep sleep. He is one with Isvara in the causal plane.
965. In deep sleep, the mind is involved into its cause, Avidya or Moola-Ajnana.
966. There is the veil of ignorance between the individual soul and Brahman. The Jiva cannot attain knowledge of Brahman, as long as this veil is not pierced through.
967. But, in Turiya, the state of Transcendent Consciousness, the individual attains knowledge of Brahman. He is liberated from birth and death. He becomes Immortal. This Turiya or the pure Atman, is said to be the fourth state of consciousness, is neither external consciousness, nor internal consciousness nor a mass of consciousness, nor absence of consciousness. It is that which is, the unseen, the ungraspable, the indefinable, the unthinkable, the ineffable, the Self of everything, the peaceful, blissful, non-dual.
CHAPTER SEVEN
TAITTIRIYA UPANISHAD
Introduction
968. This Upanishad belongs to the Krishna-Yajurveda.
969. The great sage Yajnavalkya quarrelled with his preceptor. He was asked by Vaishampayana, his Guru, to return the Veda which he had studied under him. Yajnavalkya vomited the Yajurveda he had learnt. The other Rishis, the pupils of Vaishampayana, assumed the forms of Tittiris (birds, partridges) and swallowed the Veda thus thrown out or vomited. Therefore it came to be known as Taittiriya-Samhita.
970. This Upanishad is divided into sections called vallis, viz., (1) Siksha-valli or the section on instruction. (2) Brahmananda-valli or the section on Brahma-bliss. (3) Bhrigu-valli or the section on Bhrigu.
971. In the first section the preceptor gives clear instructions to the aspirants on character building. He imparts to them rules of right conduct or right living in order to prepare themselves for the attainment of Brahma-Jnana or the knowledge of the Self
972. The second section deals with bliss of Brahman. The order of creation is described in this Valli.
973. The third section deals with the story of Bhrigu, son of Varuna, who, under instructions from his father, understood Bliss or Brahman, after undergoing the required penance. In this section the description of the five Kosas or sheaths is clearly given.
SIKSHA-VALLI
ॐ शं नो मित्रः शं वरुणः शं नो भवत्वर्यमा शं न इन्द्रो बृहस्पतिः । शं नो विष्णुरुरुक्रमः । नमो ब्रह्मणे । नमस्ते वायो । त्वमेव प्रत्यक्षं ब्रह्मासित्वामेव प्रत्यक्षं ब्रह्म वदिष्यामि ऋतं वदिष्यामि । सत्यं वदिष्यामि । तन्मामवतु । तद्वक्तारमवतु । अवतु माम् अवतु वक्तारम् ।
।। ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ।।
May the sun (Mitra) be good to us. May Varuna be good to us. May the sun (Aryama) be good to us. May Indra and Brihaspati be good to us. May Vishnu of great strides be good to us. Prostrations to Brahman. Prostrations to thee, O Vayu! Thou, indeed, art the visible Brahman. I shall proclaim Thee visible Brahman. I shall call Thee just. I shall call Thee true. May That protect me. May That protect the teacher. May That protect me. May That protect the teacher.
Om Peace, Peace, Peace!
974. Anuvaka means a sub-division of the Vedas, a section or chapter.
975. The utterance of the peace chant propitiates the Devatas. The spiritual path is rendered smooth through their grace. All obstacles are removed. You will not forget what you have learnt. You will possess good health. You will have good meditation.
976. Vayu is Hiranyagarbha or Cosmic Prana.
977. The repetition of Om-Santi' thrice is to remove the three kinds of obstacles, viz. Adhyatmika (from our self), Adhidaivika (from the heavens) and Adhibhautika (from living beings).
978. Mitra is the presiding deity of the activity of the Prana and the day. Varuna is the presiding deity of the activity of Apana and of the night. Aryama (the sun) is the presiding deity of the eye and of the sun. Indra is the presiding deity of strength and of the hands. Brihaspati is the presiding deity of speech and intellect. Vishnu is the presiding deity of the feet.
The Exhortation
979. Now comes the final instruction which the students in those days received when they completed their studies under the preceptor. Having taught the Vedas the preceptor exhorts the disciple.
980. "Speak the truth. Do your duty (righteousness)Never swerve from the study of the Vedas. Do not cut off the thread of the offspring after giving the preceptor the fee he desires. Never swerve away from truth. Never swerve from duty (righteousness). Never neglect your welfare. Never neglect your prosperity. Never neglect the study and the teachings of the Vedas.
981. Never swerve from your duties to the gods and to men. May the mother be thy god (Matrudevo bhava). May the father be thy god (Pitrudevo bhava). May the preceptor be thy god (Acharyadevo bhava). May the guest be thy god (Atithidevo bhava). Let only those actions that are free from blemish be done, and not others. Only those that are good acts to us should be performed by thee, and not others.
982. You should remove the fatigue of Brahmins who are superior, by serving them with seats, etc.
983. Gift should be given with faith; it should never be given without faith. It should be given in plenty, with modesty, with reverence, with sympathy.
984. Now, if there should arise in thee any doubt as regards any action or conduct, thou shouldst act in those matters as do those Brahmins there, who are thoughtful, religious, not cruel, and devoted to Dharma.
985. Now as regards persons accused of sin, do thou deal with them as do the Brahmins there, who are thoughtful, religious, not cruel, and devoted to Dharma.
986. This is the injunctionThis is the teaching. This is the secret of the Vedas. This is the word of command. This should be observed. Thus is this to be meditated upon.
BRAHMAANDA-VALLI
ॐ सह नाववतु सह नौ भुनक्तु सह वीर्यं करवावहै तेजस्विनावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !
Om. May That protect us both (teacher and pupil)May That cause us both to enjoy the bliss (of Mukti). May we both exert to find out the true meaning of the scripturesMay our learning be brilliant. May we never quarrel with each other!
Om Peace, Peace, Peace!
987. The knower of Brahman attains the Supreme.
988. Brahman is Truth, Knowledge and Infinity. He who knows it as existing hidden in the heart, realises all his desires instantaneously and without succession, as the omniscient Brahman.
989. From this Atman is Akasa (ether) born; from Akasa, air; from air, fire; from fire, water; from water, earth; from earth, the herbs, plants and vegetables; from herbs, etc., food; from food, man. Thus man is made of the essence of food.
The physical embodiment has its parts, such as the head, the right and left parts, the trunk, the support, etc.
990. Brahman is your own very Self or Soul.
It cannot be an object of knowledge. It is always the witnessing Subject.
991. To know Brahman is to become identical with Absolute-Consciousness through meditation and Nirvikalpa- Samadhi
The Human Being's Five Sheaths
992. All beings that exist on earth are born of food. Then they live by food: then, again, to food (earth) they go in the end. So, verily food is the eldest of all creatures. Therefore it is called a medicament to all. All those who worship food as Brahman obtain all food. From food all beings are born; having been born, they, grow by food. Food is eaten by beings and also it eats them. Therefore, it is called Anna (food). Other than that (soul) made of the essence of food, there is another self within, formed of Prana. By that this is filled. This Pranamaya is exactly of the form of man (Purusha). Its human form is according to the human form of the former. Of that Prana is the head; Vyana the right wing (side); Apana the left wing (side); the Akasa the trunk (body); the earth, the tail, the support.
993. The Annamaya Kosa is permeated by four Kosas, the Pranamaya and the rest. The Pranamaya Kosa is permeated by three Kosas, the Manomaya by two Kosas and the Vijnanamaya by one Kosa.
994. Through Prana the gods live, and also do men and beasts. Prana is, verily, the life of beings. Therefore it is called the universal life or the life of all. Those who worship Prana attain the whole life duration or the full span of life.
995. Of that former (Annamayatma) this (Prana- mayatma) is the soul. Different from the Pranamaya self made of Prana, there is another self made of mind. With that self made of mind, this (the Pranamaya) is filled. This is also the form of man. Its human form is according to that of the former. Of it Yajus is the head. Rik is the right side (wing). Saman is the left side (wing), injunction (Adesha) is the trunk (body). Atharvangiras is the tail, the support.
996. The Manomaya self is the inner self of the Pranamaya. It permeates the Pranamaya Kosa.
997. Whence all speech turn back with the mind, without reaching, he who knows that, the bliss of Brahman, fears not at any time. This mind is the embodied soul of the former. Of the Pranamaya, this one, namely the Manomaya is the self, having the Pranamaya for its body.
998. Different from that made of mind is another inner soul made of knowledge (Vijnana).
By that, this is filled. It also has the shape of man. According to the human shape of that, is the human form of this. Faith is its head. Righteousness (Ritam) is the right side or wing. Truth (Satyam) is the left side or wing. Yoga (concentration, meditation) is the trunk (self). Might (Mahas) is the tail, the support.
999. The Manomaya-Kosa is made up of Vrittis or thoughts. It is subtler than the Pranamaya-Kosa. It controls the Pranamaya-Kosa. So it is the inner self of the Pranamaya-Kosa.
1000. Knowledge performs the sacrifice as well as Karma. All the gods worship knowledge as Brahman, the eldest. If a man knows knowledge as Brahman, and if he does not swerve from it, he attains all desires, having abandoned his sins in the body.
1001. Of that (the former), this one, verily, is the self. Different from this self, made of knowledge (Vijnanamaya) is another self within, formed of bliss. By that this is filled. It also has the shape of man. According to the human shape of that, is the human form of this. Of it love (Priya) is the head. Joy (Moda) is the right side (wing). Delight (Pramoda) is the left side (wing). Bliss (Ananda) is the trunk (self. Brahman is the tail, the support.
1002. Priya is love in looking at a pleasant object. Moda is joy, satisfaction after possessing the object. Pramoda is delight, great satisfaction, the same joy intensified that arises from gratified desires.
1003. Birth and death are the attributes of the Annamaya-Kosa.
1004. Hunger and thirst are the attributes of Pranamaya-Kosa.
1005. Moha (delusion) and Soka (grief) are the attributes of the Manomaya Kosa.
1006. The Atman is ever pure and unattached. It is absolutely free from the Shad-Urmis or the six waves of the ocean of Samsara, viz. birth, death, hunger, thirst, delusion and grief.
1007. The Annamaya-Kosa constitutes the gross physical body. The Pranamaya, the Manomaya and the Vijnanamaya-Kosas constitute the subtle body or astral body (Linga-Sarira). The Anandamaya-Kosa constitutes the causal body (Karana-Sarira).
1008. The three bodies operate during the waking state. The subtle body and the causal body function during the dreaming state. During deep sleep it is the thin veil of Anandamaya-Kosa that separates the individual soul from the Supreme Soul or Brahman. The operates during deep sleep. Anandamaya-Kosa
Origin of Creation
1009. If one knows Brahman as non-existent he becomes himself non-existent. If he knows Brahman as existent, then they know him to be existent.
1010. Therefore arise the following questions of the pupil: "Does he, who knows not, after having departed this world, go there? Or does he, who knows after leaving the world, obtain that?"
1011. He desired: "May I be many, may I be born." He performed Tapas. Having performed Tapas he brought forth all this -whatever there is. Having brought forth, he entered it; having entered it, he became what is manifest and what is not manifest, defined and undefined, the abode and non-abode, knowledge and ignorance, truth and falsehood, and all this whatsoever is existing. Therefore it is called existence.
1012. In the beginning, this was verily, non-existent. From that the existent was born. That created itself by itself. Therefore, it is called self-made. This which was self-made -that is the essence. Having obtained this essence, man becomes blessed, who would have lived and breathed had not the bliss in the cavity of heart existed! This Brahman bestows bliss. When one attains oneness with the Brahman who is invisible, incorporeal, undefined, abodeless, then he becomes free from fear. When, however, one makes even the slightest distinction in Brahman, then there is fear for him. That Brahman itself becomes the source of fear for him who makes a difference. and does not reflect.
Gradation of Bliss
1013. Through fear of Him, blows the wind.
Through fear of Him rises the sun. Through fear of Him again Indra, fire and Death proceed to their respective duties.
1014. Suppose there is a youth, a good youth, well-versed in the scriptures, well disciplined, resolute and very strong. Suppose his is all this earth, full of wealth. This is one unit of human bliss. This is the measure of human bliss.
1015. A hundredfold of the human bliss is the unit-measure of the bliss of the human Gandharvas and also is the bliss of one versed in the Vedas, who is free from desires.
1016. A hundredfold of the bliss of the human Gandharvas is the unit-measure of the bliss of celestial Gandharvas, and also is the bliss of one versed in the Vedas, who is free from desires.
1017. A hundredfold of the bliss of celestial
Gandharvas is the unit of the bliss of the manes who dwell in the long enduring world, and also is the bliss of one versed in the Vedas, who is free from desires.
1018. A hundredfold of the bliss of the manes who dwell in the long-enduring world, is the unit-measure of the bliss of the Devas born in heaven, and also is the bliss of one versed in the Vedas, who is free from desires.
1019. A hundredfold of the bliss of the Devas born in heaven is the unit-measure of the bliss of the Devas known as Karma-Devas, those who have become Devas by their sacrificial deeds, and also is the bliss of one versed in the Vedas, who is free from desires.
1020. A hundredfold of the bliss of the Devas known as Karma-Devas is the unit-measure of the bliss of the Devas, and also is the bliss of one versed in Vedas, who is free from desires. A hundredfold of the bliss of the Devas is the unit-measure of the bliss of Indra, and also the bliss of one versed in the Vedas, who is free from desires.
1021. A hundredfold of the bliss of Indra is the unit-measure of the bliss of Brihaspati, and also is the bliss of one versed in Vedas, who is free from desires.
1022. A hundredfold of the bliss of Brihaspati is the unit-measure of the bliss of Prajapati, and also is the bliss of one versed in Vedas, who is free from desires.
1023. A hundredfold of the bliss of Prajapati is the unit-measure of the bliss of Brahman, and also is the bliss of one versed in Vedas, who is free from desires.
1024. He who is in man (Purusha), and he who is in the sun, are one. He who knows this, having departed from this world, first attains this Atman made of food, next attains this Atman made of Prana, next attains this Atman made of mind, next attains this Atman made of Buddhi, and lastly attains the Atman made of Bliss.
1025. He who knows the Bliss of Brahman, from which all words return without reaching it, together with the mind, is not afraid of anything.
1026. Such thoughts as these certainly never distress him; "Why have I not done what is good? Why have I committed sin?"
1027. He who knows thus regards both these as the Atman. Verily, both these he regards as the Atman, who knows this.
1028. A sage beholds his own Self everywhere. He feels that everything that exists is nothing but his own Self. Therefore, he feels no fear from anything.
1029. A knower of Brahman regards that good and bad are but different manifestations of the same Atman. Virtue and vice do not afflict him. They cannot generate subsequent births. He realises that he is non-doer and non-enjoyer. He knows that the Atman is actionless, and that the mind alone is the doer of all actions. He has neither wants, nor egoism, nor desires.
BHRIGU-VALLI
1030. Bhrigu, the son of Varuna, approached his father, and said: "O revered Sir, teach me Brahman."
1031. He (Varuna) said this to him (Bhrigu): "Food, Prana, the eyes, the ears, the mind and the speech are Brahman."
1032. To him he further said: "That from which these beings are born; that by which, being born, these beings live; that which, when departing, they enter into that seek thou to know that is Brahman."
1033. He (Bhrigu) performed penance.
1034. Having performed penance, he learnt that food is Brahman; because it is from food that all these beings are born; by food, when born, do they live; and, having departed into food, again, they enter.
1035. Having known that, he again approached his father Varuna and said; "O revered Sir, teach me Brahman."
1036. He (Varuna) told him; "By penance (Tapas) seek thou to know Brahman. Penance is Brahman."
1037. He. performed penance.
1038. Having performed penance, (Bhrigu) understood that Prana is Brahman; because it is from Prana that all these living beings are born; having been born, they live by Prana; and having departed, into Prana, again, they enter.
1039. Having known that, he again approached his father Varuna to know further and said; "O revered Sir, teach me Brahman."
1040. He (Varuna) told him; "By penance (Tapas) seek thou to know Brahman. Penance is
Brahman."
1041. Bhrigu performed penance, and having performed penance, he came to the conclusion after analysis and deliberation, that Prana (life) is Brahman. But he was not at all satisfied with this conclusion. He thought that this Prana could not be Brahman, because it is non-intelligent, it is an effect, it has a cause, it has a beginning and an end. So he again approached his father to get further light. And his father, again, asked him to know it by penance.
1042. Then Bhrigu understood by penance that the mind is Brahman, because it is from mind that all these living beings are born; having been born, they live by the mind; and having departed, into the mind, again, they enter.
1043. Having known that, He again approached his father Varuna to know further and said; "O revered Sir, teach me Brahman."
1044. He (Varuna) told him; "By penance seek thou to know Brahman. Penance is Brahman."
1045. He performed penance,.
1046. Bhrigu thought that mind is only an organ or instrument of cognition, that it has no self-luminosity, has a beginning and end, and therefore it could not be Brahman, the uncaused. So he approached again his father for further enlightenment. Having been asked to do penance, he does it, again.
1047. Then he understood that knowledge is Brahman; because it is by knowledge that all these living beings are born; having been born, by knowledge they live; and, having departed, into knowledge, again, they enter.
1048. Having known that, he approached his father Varuna to know it further and said; "O revered Sir, teach me Brahman."
1049. He (Varuna) told him: "By penance seek thou to know Brahman. Penance is Brahman."
1050. He performed penance, again.
1051. Bhrigu found out that his finding could not give him entire satisfaction and that knowledge could not be Brahman. He thought that knowledge is the agent of all the actions of the Jiva and also the enjoyer of the fruits of actions. So he again went to his father for getting further light. And the advice he received was, again, to perform penance.
1052. He, then, understood by penance that bliss is Brahman; because from bliss all beings are born; having been born, by bliss they live; and, having departed, into bliss, again, they enter.
1053. This is the knowledge learnt by Bhrigu and taught by Varuna. This is established in the supreme ether (heart). He who knows thus becomes one with Brahman. He becomes the possessor of food, and the eater of food. He becomes great in progeny, in cattle and in spiritual lustre. He becomes great in fame.
INJUNCTIONS REGARDING FOOD
1054. Do not speak ill of food. That shall be your vow.
1055. Prana (life is food. The body is the eater of food. The body is fixed in Prana. Prana is fixed in the body. So thus food is fixed in food. He who knows that food is fixed in food becomes well established. He becomes the possessor of food, and the eater of food. He becomes great in progeny, in cattle and in spiritual lustre. He becomes great in fame.
Eighth Anuvaka
1056. Do not despise food. That is the vow. Water is food. Fire is the food-eater. Fire is fixed in water. Water is fixed in fire. So food is fixed in food. He who knows that food is fixed in food is well established. He becomes rich in food, and becomes eater of food. He becomes great in progeny, in cattle and in spiritual lustre. He becomes great in fame.
1057. Accumulate plenty of food for distribution to the poor and the travellers). That is the vow. The earth is the food. Akasa (ether) is the eater of food. In the earth is fixed Akasa. In Akasa is fixed the earth. So food is fixed in food. He who knows that food thus rests in food is well established. He becomes rich in food, and becomes eater of food. He becomes great in progeny, in cattle and in spiritual lustre. He becomes great in fame.
1058. The earth abides in the ether which is above and below it. The earth is enveloped by ether on all sides. So the earth is food and the ether is the food-eater. The ether is the basis or the container.
1059. Without food no meditation possible. Food should be meditated upon as God Or Brahman. It should be adored and glorified.
1060. Do not turn away anybody who seeks shelter. This is the vow. Therefore let one acquire much food by any means whatsoever. They say: "food is ready." If food is prepared in the best manner, food is given to him (the guest) also in the best manner. If food is prepared in the medium manner, food is given to him also in the medium manner. If food is prepared in the lowest manner, food is also given to him in the lowest manner.
1061. He who knows thus obtains similar results.
Meditation on Brahman
1062. Brahman resides in speech as preserver, as acquirer and preserver in Prana and Apana, as action in the hands, as motion in the feet, as discharge in the anus. Thus is the meditation of Brahman in respect of man.
1063. Now comes the contemplation in reference to the heavens as satisfaction in the rain, as power in the lightning, as fame in cattle, as light in the stars, as offspring, immortality and joy in the generative organ, as all in the Akasa.
1064. Let him meditate upon that (Brahman) as support. He becomes well-supported. He will possess all means of living such as food and clothing. Let him meditate upon that as the great. He becomes great. Let him meditate upon that as mind. He becomes thoughtful. Let him meditate upon that as adoration. To him all desires pay homage. Let him meditate upon that as the supreme. He becomes the presence of supremacy. Let him contemplate upon that as the destructive aspect. All those enemies who hate him and the rivals whom he does not like die around him.
1065. He who is in man and he who is in the sun--both are the same. He who knows thus, departing from this world, and attaining the Annamaya self, then attaining the Pranamaya self, then attaining the Manomaya self, then attaining the Vijnanamaya self, then attaining the Anandamaya self, eating what he likes and assuming forms according to his wishes, travels through the world, and sits singing the following Sama song:
1066. O wonderful! I am the food, I am the food, I am the food; I am the eater of food, I am the eater of food, I am the eater of food. I am the author of fame, I am the author of fame. I am the author of fame. I am the first born of the True. Prior to the gods, I am the centre of all immortality. Whoever gives me, he surely does save. I, the food, eats him who eats food. I have conquered all this world. I am luminous like the sun. He who knows thus attains the aforesaid results. This is the Upanishad.
1067. This is the Jivanmukta's song of unity with all. The sage expresses his experience of oneness.
CHAPTER EIGHT
AITAREYOPANISHAD
Introduction
1068. The Aitareya Upanishad forms part of the Aitareya-Aranyaka of the Rig-Veda. It is divided into five sections (Khandas). The Upanishad derives its name from its author Mahidasa Aitareya, the son of Itara.
1069. It describes in symbolic knowledge the creation of the universe. It deals with the Atman as the only Reality. It contains the saying of the Rishi Vamadeva who attained immortality through knowledge of the Self.
1070. The central teaching of this Upanishad is the unity of the Atman with the Paramatman.
ॐ वाङ् मे मनसि प्रतिष्ठितामनो मे वाचि प्रतिष्ठितम् । आविरावीर्म एधिवेदस्य म आणीस्थः श्रुतं मे मा प्रहासीरनेना- धीतेनाहोरात्रान्संदधाम्यृतं वदिष्यामि । सत्यं वदिष्यामि । तन्मामवतु तद्वक्तारमवतु अवतु माम् । अवतु वक्तारम् । अवतु वक्तारम् ।
।। ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ।।
Hari Om. My speech is rooted in my mind. My mind is rooted in speech, Brahman, reveal thyself to me. Ye, mind and speech enable me to grasp the truth that the scriptures teach. Let what I have learnt slip not from me. I join day with night in study. I speak the truth. I speak the real. May that protect me. May that protect the teacher. May it protect me.
May it protect the teacher. May it protect the teacher.
Om Peace, Peace, Peace!
The Story of Creation
1071. In the beginning, all this was, verly, the Atman alone. There was nothing else living.
Nothing else, whatsoever, living, existed. There was no other thing that winked at all.
1072. He thought: "Now, verily, I shall create the worlds."
1073. The word Atman is derived from the root which means "to obtain, to eat, to enjoy or to pervade all."
1074. He created these worlds, viz. water, light-rays, death, waters. The water is above the heavens, its support. The rays are from the sky. The region of death is the earth, and what are below the earth are waters.
1075. He reflected, "These indeed are the worlds I have created. I shall create the protectors or rulers of the world." Then he raised a Purusha from water and gave him form.
1076. Then the Atman brooded over that i.e., the lump. He wished to give it the shape of Man. A hole in the shape of a mouth manifested itself in that man, which was brooded over by him, just as a bird's egg bursts when hatched. From the mouth came out speech and from speech fire.
Then his nostrils came forth, from the nostrils the breath, from breath wind.
1077. His eyes came forth; from his eyes sight, from sight the sun. His ears came forth; from his ears hearing, and from hearing the quarters. His skin came forth; from the skin the hair, from the hair the herbs and big trees. His heart came forth; from the heart the mind, from the mind, the moon. The navel came forth; from the navel the Apana, and from Apana death. His generative organs came forth; from the generative organs semen, and from semen water.
1078. Those gods, thus created, fell into the great ocean of Samsara (world). Then He subjected them to hunger and thirst. They said to Him (the creator), "Ordain for us a place in which, being established, we may eat food."
1079. He brought a bull to them. They said;
"It is indeed not sufficient for us. He brought a horse for them." They said: "This is not enough for us."
1080. He brought a man to them. They said: "Well done, indeed; hurrah! Man alone is the master-piece. Man alone is the abode of all good actions." He said to them, "Enter now with your respective bodies."
1081. Fire, becoming speech, entered the mouth; air, becoming Prana, entered the nostrils; the sun, becoming sight, entered the eyes; the deity of the quarters, becoming sound, entered the ears; the herbs and trees, becoming hairs, entered the skin; the moon, becoming mind, entered the heart; death, becoming Apana, entered the navel; water, becoming semen, entered the generative organ.
1082. Hunger and thirst said to Him; "Assign a place for us." He told them: "I assign you a place in these gods, and make you sharers with them." Therefore, when oblations are offered to any god, hunger and thirst become sharers therein.
1083. He (the Lord) thought again: "The worlds and the protectors of the worlds have been created. Now let me create food for them."
1084. Then He (the Lord) brooded over the water, and from the waters so brooded over, issued a form. The form thus created is, verily, food.
1085. Then this food so created wished to run away. He tried to catch it by speech; but he could not catch it by speech. If he had caught it by speech, then one would be satisfied by merely talking of food.
1086. He wished to catch it by breath, He could not catch it by breath. If he had caught it by breath, then one would be satisfied by merely smelling food.
1087. He wished to catch it by the eye. He could not catch it by the eye. If he had caught it by the eye, then one would be satisfied by merely seeing food.
1088. He wished to catch it by the ears. He could not catch it by the ears. If he had caught it by the ears, then one would be satisfied by merely hearing of food.
1089. He wished to catch it by touch. He could not catch it by touch. If he had caught it by touch, then one would be satisfied by merely touching food.
1090. He wished to catch it by the mind. He could not catch it by the mind. If he had caught it by the mind, then one would be satisfied by merely thinking of food.
1091. He wished to catch it by the generative organ. He could not catch it by the generative organ. If he had caught it by the generative organ, then one could be satisfied by mere emission.
1092. Then he tried to catch it by Apana, and he caught it. It is this Apana which catches food.
This Apana is the giver of life, by food.
1093. He (the Lord) thought: "How can all these live without me?" So He pondered; "By which way shall I enter it?" He again thought; "If speaking be done by speech, smelling by nose, seeing by the eyes, hearing by the ear, touching by the skin, thinking by the mind, eating by Apana and discharge by the generative organ, then who am I?"
1094. Then He opened the suture of the skull and entered by that door. That door is called the Vidriti or the cleft. It is, verily, the Nandana (the place of bliss). He has three dwelling places in the body and three sleeping states. This is his dwelling place, this is his dwelling place, this is his dwelling place.
1095. The right eye is his first abode. The mind is the second. The cavity of the heart or the heart-ether is the third.
1096. When born (in the form of the Jivas, i.e., when the highest Self had entered the body), he reflected with reference to all beings. He gazed round upon the creatures, and thought. "How should anyone speak of any other? What else besides Me is there for Me to name? There is none." How could He desire to declare any other thing different from Him? He found nothing else but the reality of Himself, as the Purusha, the Brahman, all-pervading. He said to himself: "O I have seen this."
1097. Therefore, he is called Indandra. Idandram is verily His name. Though He is called Idandram, He is indirectly called "Indra." The gods are fond of being called by indirect names, as it were.
The Story of Birth
1098. First indeed is the germ in man. That which is the semen is the essence of strength or vigour, drawn from all his limbs. He bears himself within his self alone. When he deposits it in the woman, he causes it to be born. This is its first birth.
1099. That seed becomes one with the woman as her own limb, as a part of her own body. Therefore it does not produce any suffering to her. She nourishes his (the husband's) self thus within her.
1100. As she becomes the nourisher of his self within her, so also she should be nourished. The woman bears the son in her womb. He (the father) nourishes the child before and also after its birth. In nourishing the child before and after its birth, he really nourishes himself for the continuation of these worlds. Thus are these worlds of progeny perpetuated. This is his second birth.
1101. That son who is his very self is made his substitute for the performance of virtuous deeds. This, his other self (the father's self, having discharged his duties, attains old age, and departs from this world. He, while departing hence, is born again. This is his third birth.
Rishi Vamadeva
1102. It was declared by the Rishi Vamadeva: "While in the womb i knew all the births of the gods. A hundred iron-holds held me down. But I burst through them with speed, like a hawk." Thus spoke Vamadeva even while lying in the womb.
1103. Bodies which are like impenetrable iron-houses guard the Jiva from extricating himself from the fetters of Samsara. The bodies are compared to the strong iron-holds as they imprison the Jiva within their folds.
1104. He (Rishi Vamadeva) became the knower of the Atman, and became identical with it. He betook himself to his upward path, and after the destruction of the body, attained all desires in the heavenly world, and became immortal.
Consciousness Is Brahman
1105. Who is this Atman whom we worship? Which of the two is He, that Atman, the real or the phenomenal, the Nirupadhika or Sopadhika? Whether He by whom one sees, or He by whom one hears, or He by whom one smells the scents, or He by whom one utters the speech, or He by whom one knows what is tasteful and what is not tasteful?
1106. This which is known as the heart, this mind, consciousness, mastering knowledge of arts, comprehension, power of retaining import of books, perception, fortitude, reflection, independent power of thinking, distress of mind caused by diseases, etc., memory, volition, application, any pursuit for maintenance of life, desire for the company of women, all these are, indeed, names of Consciousness.
1107. This Brahman; this Indra; this creator; all these gods; these five great elements, viz., earth, water, fire, air, ether; all these small creatures; these others; the seeds of creation, these egg-born, the womb-born, sweat-born, sprout-born, horses, cows, men, elephants, whatever else which breathes and moves and flies, or is immovable all these are guided by Consciousness and are supported by Conscious-ness. The universe has Consciousness for its guide. Consciousness is the basis or stay of all. Verily, consciousness (Prajnanam) is Brahman.
1108. Prajnanam Brahma: Pure Consciousness is Brahman. This is one of the Maha-Vakyas or great sentences of the Upanishads.
1109. This is called the Lakshana-Vakya, because it gives a description of the nature of Brahman.
1110. He (Vamadeva, or any other sage) was exalted to the state of Brahmanhood on account of his knowledge of the Atman. He left this world and obtained all that he desired in that world of supreme bliss, and attained immortality.
1111. A liberated sage does not move to any world. He gets absorbed in the all-pervading Brahman. He realises that the individual soul is identical with Para Brahman.
CHAPTER NINE
CHHANDOGYA UPANISHAD
ॐ आप्यायन्तु ममाङ्गानि वाक् प्राणश्चक्षुः श्रोत्रमथो बलमिन्द्रियाणि च सर्वाणि सर्वं ब्रह्मौपनिषदं माहं ब्रह्म निराकुर्यां मा मा ब्रह्म निराकरोदनिराकरणमस्त्वनिराकरणं मेऽअस्तु । तदात्मनि निरते य उपनिषत्सु धर्मास्ते मयि सन्तु ते मयि सन्तु ।।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !
Hari Om! May my limbs, speech, Prana, eye, ear, strength and all my senses grow vigorous. All (everything) is the Brahman of the Upanishads. May I never deny Brahman. May Brahman never spurn me. May there be no denial of Brahman. May there be no spurning by the Brahman. Let all the virtues recited by the Upanishads repose in me, delighting in the Atman! May they in me repose!
Om Peace! Peace!! Peace!!!
Unitary Origin of Phenomena
1112. Just as by a single clod of clay all that is made of clay is known, all modification being only a name, but the truth being that all is clay;
1113. Just as by a single nugget of gold, all that is made of gold is known, the difference being only a name arising from speech, but the truth being that all is gold;
1114. Just as by the knowledge of a single pair of scissors, all that is made of iron is known, all modifications being only a name based upon words, but the truth being that all is iron;
1115. Thus is that instruction by which we hear what cannot be heard, by which perceive what cannot be perceived, by which we know what cannot be known.
1116. In the beginning, all this was Pure Being, One without a second.
1117. It thought: May I be many, may I grow forth.' It created fire.
1118. The fire thought: May I be many, may I grow forth.' It created water. Therefore, whenever anybody is hot, he perspires and water is produced on him from fire alone.
1119. The water willed: May I be many, may I grow forth.' It created food. Therefore, whenever it rains anywhere, food is then produced. From water alone eatable food is produced.
1120. The being thought: Well, may I enter into all these three things with this living self (Jivatma). Let me appear under different names and forms.'
1121. He made each of these tripartite.
The Tri-colour Analysis
1122. The red colour of the sun is the colour of fire. The white colour of water. The black of the earth. Thus vanishes what we call the sun, being only a modification which is a mere name based upon words, the only truth being that there are three elements. So are moon, lightning, fire, etc., mere combinations of these elements.
1123. Knowing this the ancient knowers of the Vedas, knew all. For everything is just these three things alone.
1124. Whatever appeared red, they knew it to be the colour of fire. Whatever appeared white, they knew it to be the colour of water. Whatever appeared black, they knew it to be the colour of earth.
1125. Whatever appeared to be unknown, they knew it to be a combination of these three.
1126. Now learn from me how those three
Devatas, when they reach man, become each of them tripartite.
1127. Food, when eaten, becomes threefold:
the grossest part becomes faces; the middle part flesh and its subtlest part mind.
• 1128. Water, when drunk, becomes threefold: Its grossest part becomes urine, its middle part blood and its subtlest part Prana.
1129. Fire (i.e., in oil, butter, etc.) when eaten becomes threefold: its grossest part becomes bone, its middle part marrow and its subtlest part speech. When food that is eaten is led away by water, there is hunger. When water that is drunk is led away by fire, there is thirst.
Tat Tvam Asi
1130. Learn from me, the true nature of sleep.
1131. When a man sleeps here, he becomes united with pure being; he is gone to his own Self.
1132. Therefore people say he sleeps (Svapiti), because he is gone (Apiti) to his own (Sva).
1133. All these creatures have their root in
Being. They dwell in Being. They rest in Being.
1134. When a man departs from hence, his speech is merged in the mind, his mind in Prana his Prana in fire, and fire in the Highest Being.
1135. That which is the subtle essence (the root of all), in that all that exists has its Self; that is the Truth. That is the self, that thou art, O Svetaketu!
1136. Just as bees make honey by collecting the juices of distant trees and then reduce the juice to one uniform fluid, and as these juices have no discrimination so that they might say; "I am the juice of this tree, or that tree." In the same manner, all these creatures, when they have reached the Being, do not know that they have reached the Being. That which is the subtle essence of all, in that all exists. That is the truth. That is the Self. That thou art.
1137. Some rivers flow to the east; others to the west. They become one with the sea. They become the sea. And, just as these rivers, when they are in the sea, do not know: "I am this river or that," in the same manner, these creatures, when they have come from the Being, do not know that they have come from the Truth. That which is the subtle essence, in that all that exists has its Being. That is the truth. That is the self that thou art.
1138. If someone cuts a branch of a tree, it would bleed, but it would live. Pervaded by the living self, the tree stands firm, drinking in nourishment and rejoicing. But if the life (the living Self) leaves one of its branches that branch withers; and if it leaves the whole tree, the whole tree withers. Similarly, this body dies when the living Self has left it, the living Self dies not. That which is the subtle essence of all, in that all that exists has its Being. That is the Truth. That is the self that thou art.
1139. That subtle essence which you do not perceive in a tiny Nyagrodha (banyan) seed grows into the great Nyagrodha tree. Similarly, That which is the subtle essence of all, in That all that exists has its Being. That is the Truth. That is the Self. That Thou art.
1140. Just as when you add salt to a tumbler of water, you do not perceive it; but it is there, all the same; even so, in this body, though you do not perceive the Sat or Pure Being, it exists. That which is the subtle essence of all, in That all that exists has its Being. That is the Truth. That is the Self. That Thou art.
1141. Suppose a person is brought away blind-folded from his native land and left in a foreign country. He realises that he has been so brought, and is told by a kind-hearted man that his native land lay in a particular direction. He proceeds in that direction and enquiring from village to village, reaches his home. Even so, the seeker, with the help of the Guru, understands his destination and arrives at the Truth. That which is the subtle essence in all, in That all that exists has its Being. That is the Truth. That is the Self. That Thou Art.
1142. When a man is dying, his relatives surround him and ask: "Do you recognise me?" He does. But when his speech is merged in his mind, his mind in breath, breath in fire, and fire in the Highest Being, then he knows them not. That which is the subtle essence of all, in That all that exists has its being. That is the Truth. That is the Self. That Thou Art.
1143. Suppose a man is charged with committing theft and is brought before the Magistrate. The heated axe is held before him. He holds it. If he has committed the theft and denies it, his hand is burnt. But if he is truthful, he is not burnt. As that (truthful) man is not burnt, thus has all that exists has that as its Self. That is the Truth. That is the Self. That Thou Art.
1144. Thus instructed? Svetaketu understood the Truth.
Steps to Infinite Bliss
1145. Narada approached Sanatkumara and said: "Teach me, Sir."
1146. Sanatkumara said: "Please tell me first what you already know."
1147. Narada replied: "O Lord! I know the four Vedas. I know the Itihasa-Purana, grammar, all Sastras, all sciences and all the arts. But, sir, I am only like one who knows many words. I am not a knower of the Self. I have heard from great ones like you that he who knows the Self overcomes grief. And I am in grief. Do help me over this grief of mine."
1148. Sanatkumara said to him: Whatever you have studied is only a name. Meditate on the Name. He who meditates on the Name as Brahman, becomes independent as far as the Name reaches.
1149. Speech is greater than Name. Speech makes us understand the Vedas, etc.
1150. If there were no speech, neither right nor wrong could be known; neither the true nor the false, neither the good nor the bad, neither the pleasant nor the unpleasant. Meditate on Speech.
1151. He who meditates on Speech as Brahman becomes independent as far as speech reaches.
1152. Mind is greater than speech. Mind holds within it both Name and speech.
1153. When one wishes in his mind to read the Veda, he reads it. When he wishes in his mind to perform actions, he performs them.
1154. Mind is the world. Mind is the Self indeed. Mind is Brahman. Meditate on the Mind.
1155. He who meditates on the Mind as Brahman becomes independent as far as the Mind reaches.
1156. Will is greater than the Mind. For, when a man wills, he thinks in his mind, then he sends forth speech, and then he utters it in name. All these are therefore centred in will, consist of will and abide in will. Meditate on Will.
1157. He who meditates on Will as Brahman, he being himself permanent, firm and undistressed, obtains the permanent, renowned and undistressed worlds appointed for him. He is independent as far as Will reaches.
1158. Intelligence is greater than will. For, when a man understands, then he wills, then he thinks in his mind, then he sends forth speech, and then he sends it forth in a name.
1159. All these centre in intelligence, consist of intelligence, and abide in intelligence.
1160. Therefore, if a man is unintelligent, even if he possesses much learning, people say of him, he is nothing.
1161. If a man is intelligent, even though he knows but little, to him indeed do people listen gladly.
1162. Intelligence is the centre of all these. Intelligence is their Self. Intelligence is their support. Meditate on Intelligence.
1163. He who meditates on Intelligence as Brahman, is independent as far as intelligence reaches.
1164. Meditation is greater than Intelligence.
1165. The earth meditates, as it were: and thus do the sky, the heaven, water, the mountains, gods and men. Therefore, those who among men obtain greatness here on earth, appear to have obtained a share of meditation.
1166. While small and vulgar people are always quarrelling, abusing and slandering, great men seem to have obtained a share of meditation.
1167. Meditate on meditation. He who meditates on meditation as Brahman, becomes independent as far as meditation reaches.
1168. Knowledge is greater than meditation.
1169. Through knowledge you know the Vedas and Sastras, arts and sciences.
1170. Meditate on Knowledge. He who meditates on Knowledge as Brahman, obtains the worlds of the knowing and the wise; he becomes independent as far as knowledge reaches.
1171. Power is greater than knowledge.
1172. One powerful man shakes a hundred men of knowledge. If a man is powerful, he rises. If he rises, he visits wise people and by following them, he sees, hears, reflects, understands, acts and knows.
1173. By power the earth stands. By power stand the sky, the heaven, the mountains, gods and men, cattle and animals down to ants, and worms. By power the world stands firm.
1174. Meditate on power. He who meditates on Power as Brahman, becomes independent, as far as power reaches.
1175. Food is greater than power. If a man abstains from food for ten days, though he lives, he is unable to see, hear, reflect, understand, act and know.
1176. Meditate on Food. He who meditates on food as Brahman, obtains the worlds rich in food and drink. He is independent as far as the food reaches.
1177. Water is greater than food. If there is no sufficient rain, the vital spirits are troubled and then there will be less food.
1178. It is only water that has assumed different forms- earth, sky, heaven, mountains, gods, men and beasts, down to ants and worms.
1179. Meditate on water. He who meditates on water as Brahman obtains all wishes and gets satisfaction. He becomes independent as far as water reaches.
1180. Fire is greater than water.
1181. Through the medium of air, it warms the ether. Then people say: "It is hot, it burns, it will rain." Thus does fire, after exhibiting this sign itself first, create water.
1182. Thus again, thunderings come with lightning, flashing upward and across the sky. Then people say: "There is lightning and thunder; it will rain." Then also does fire, after showing this sign first, create water.
1183. Meditate on fire. He who meditates on fire as Brahman, being resplendent himself, obtains resplendent worlds, full of light and free from darkness; he becomes independent as far as fire reaches.
1184. Ether (Akasa) is greater than fire. For, in the Akasa exists both sun and moon, the lightning, stars and fire. Through the Akasa we call, through the Akasa we hear, through the Akasa we answer.
1185. In the Akasa all things are born; and towards Akasa all things grow.
1186. Meditate on Akasa. He who meditates on Akasa as Brahman, obtains extensive worlds, full of light, free from the troubles of overgrowing, wide, and spacious; he becomes independent as far as Akasa reaches.
1187. Memory is greater than Akasa. Where many are assembled together, if they have no memory, they would not hear anyone, they would not think, they would not know.
1188. Meditate on memory. He who meditates on memory as Brahman, becomes independent so far as his memory reaches.
1189. Hope is greater than memory. Fried by hope does memory read the Mantras, perform sacrifices, desires sons and cattle, desire this world and the next.
1190. Meditate on hope. He who meditates on hope as Brahman, all his desires are fulfilled by Hope. His prayers are never vain. He becomes independent so far as hope reaches.
1191. Prana is greater than hope. Just as the spokes of the wheel are fastened to the nave, so is everything fastened to the Prana.
1192. Prana is the father. Prana is the Mother. Prana is the brother. Prana is the sister. Prana is the teacher. Prana is Brahman.
1193. If one says anything harsh to his father, mother etc. then people say: "Shame on thee! Thou has offended thy father," etc. But if after the Prana has departed from them, even if one were to burn them together, by a poker, they would not say: "Thou hast killed thy father, mother," etc.
1194. Prana is verily all these. He who sees thus, thinks thus and knows thus, becomes an Ativadin.
1195. But verily he is an Ativadin who declares the Highest Being to be the Truth.
1196. One should desire to know the Truth.
1197. When one understands the Truth, then only one desires the Truth.
1198. When one thinks, then he understands.
1199. When one has faith, then he thinks.
1200. When one attends on his teacher, then one has faith.
1201. When one performs all sacred duties (control of the senses and concentration of the mind), then only one attends really on a teacher.
1202. When one obtains Bliss then he does his duties.
1203. The Infinite is Bliss. There is no bliss in anything finite.
1204. Where one sees nothing else, hears nothing else, understands nothing else that is the Infinite.
1205. Where, however, one sees something else, hears something else, understands something else that is the finite.
1206. That which is Infinite is Immortal.
That which is finite is mortal.
1207. The Infinite is indeed below, above, behind, before, to the right, and to the left. It is indeed all this.
1208. He who sees thus, thinks thus, and understands thus, loves the Self, delights in the Self, enjoys the company of the Self. and rejoices in the Self; he becomes the Svarat (Self-king); he becomes independent in all the worlds.
1209. But those who know otherwise, are ruled by others and live in perishable worlds; and they become dependent in all the worlds.
1210. For one who sees thus, thinks thus and understands thus, Prana springs from the Self; hope springs from the Self; memory springs from the Self; so do Akasa, fire, water, etc. Everything springs from the Self for him.
1211. He who sees thus, sees not death, nor disease nor pain; he who sees thus, sees everything, and obtains everything, everywhere.
1212. When food is pure, the inner nature becomes purified. When the inner nature has been purified, the memory becomes firm. And when the memory of the Highest Self remains firm, then all the ties which bind man to belief in anything (but the Atman) are loosened.
The Three States and Beyond
1213. Prajapati said: "The Self or Atman which is free from sin, free from old age, free from death, free from grief, free from hunger and thirst, with true desires (Satyakama) and true will (Satya Sankalpa), that it is which we must search out, that it is which we must try to understand."
1214. He who has sought after this Self and understands It, obtains all worlds and all desires.
1215. Indra, chief of Devas, and Virochana, chief among Asuras, went to Prajapatji, with fuel in hands, as was the custom for pupils approaching their Guru.
1216. They dwelt there as religious students observing the vow of celibacy for a period of thirty-two years.
1217. When questioned by Prajapati, they said: "It is with the purpose of knowing the Self that we have dwelt here."
1218. Prajapati said: "The person that is seen in the eye, that is the Self. This is the Immortal, the Fearless. This is Brahman.
1219. They asked: "Sir, He that is perceived in the water, and He that is seen in the mirror-_-which of these is That?"
1220. He said: "He himself indeed is seen in all these."
1221. They went away satisfied. Virochana with a satisfied heart went to the Asura and preached this doctrine to them. "The body alone is to be worshipped (as the Self."
1222. Therefore, they call even now a man who does not give alms here, who has no faith, and offers no sacrifices, an Asura, for this is the doctrine of the Asura.
1223. But Indra, before he had returned to the Devas, experienced this difficulty: "As this body (seen in the water) is well adorned when the body is well dressed, well cleaned when the body is well-cleaned, that Self will also be blind, if the body is blind, and will perish in fact as soon as the body perishes. Therefore, I see no good in this doctrine."
1224. He returned to Prajapati who asked him to remain with him for another thirty-two years.
1225. At the end of this period, Prajapati said to Indra: "He moves about happy in dreams, He is the Self, the Immortal, the Fearless, this is Brahman."
1226. Once again, Indra went away, but found this difficulty: "Thou the dream self is not blind when the body is blind, not one-eyed, when this body is one eyed, nor is it destroyed by the destruction of the body, yet they kill it, as it were. It becomes even conscious of pain and sheds tears, Therefore, I see no good in this."
1227. Again he returned to Prajapati and remained with him for another period of thirty-two years.
1228. At the end of this period, Prajapati said to Indra: "When a man, being asleep, reposing, and at perfect rest, sees no dreams, that is the Self, that is the Immortal, the Fearless, that is Brahman."
1229. Once again Indra went away, but returned with this difficulty: "In truth he does not rightly know himself as 'This is I' nor does he know these beings. He is gone to utter annihilation. I see no good in this.
1230. At Prajapati's command, Indra remained with him for a further period of five years.
1231. Then Prajapati said to Indra: "Indra!
This body is mortal. It is subject to death. It is the abode of that Self which is Immortal and bodyless."
1232. The embodied self is subject to pleasure and pain. But Self without the body is not troubled by pleasure and pain.
1233. The wind is without body; the cloud, lightning and thunder are without body. Now, as these, rising above, appear in their own form, as soon as they have approached the highest light.
1234. Thus does this Being, rising above this body, and having reached the Highest Light, appear in Its own form.
1235. This is the Uttama-Purusha, the Supreme Person.
1236. He moves about there laughing, playing and rejoicing, never minding that body in which he was born.
1237. Just as a horse is attached to the cart, so also the Prana is attached to this body.
1238. Now where the eye has entered into Akasa, (in the act of seeing), that is the person in the eye, the eye itself is the instrument of seeing.
1239. He who knows: "May I smell this," he is the Self, the nose is the instrument of smelling.
1240. He who knows: "May I think," he is the Self, the mind is his divine eye. And it is by means of his divine eye of the mind that he sees desires and rejoices.
1241. The Devas who are in the world of Brahman meditate upon this Self (as taught by Prajapati to Indra, and by Indra to the Devas):
CHAPTER TEN
BRIHADARANYAKA UPANISHAD
ॐ पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात्पूर्णमुदच्यते ।
पूर्णस्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते ।।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !
The whole is all That. The whole is all this. The whole was born of the whole. Taking the whole from the whole, what remains is the whole.
Om Peace, Peace, Peace!
Yajnavalkya-Maitreyi Samvada
1242. "Maitreyi," said Yajnavalkya, "Verily, I am going away from this house into the forest, to enter another order of life; therefore, let me divide my property between you and Katyayani."
1243. Maitreyi asked: "My venerable Lord, if this whole world, with all its wealth, belonged to me, tell me, could I become immortal?"
1244. "No," replied Yajnavalkya, "Like the life of rich people will be your life. But there is no hope of obtaining immortality by wealth."
1245. Maitreyi said: "Of what use, then, would wealth be to me, if I did not become, thereby, immortal? Tell me, O venerable Lord, any means of attaining immortality, of which thou knowest."
1246. Yajnavalkya replied: Thou art dear to me; thou speakest dear words. Come, sit down; I will explain it to thee.
1247. Verily, not for the sake of the husband, is the husband dear; but for the sake of the Self is the husband dear.
1248. Verily, not for the sake of the universe, the universe is dear; but for the sake of the Self is the universe dear.
1249. Verily, the Self (Atman) is to be seen, heard, reflected and meditated upon. When one sees, hears, reflects and knows the Self, all this is known.
1250. The Brahmin would abandon a person who regards the Brahmin-class as something different from the Self; the world would abandon a person who regards the world as something different from the Self. The Brahmin-class, Kshatriya-class, these worlds, these gods, these elements, everything is that Self alone.
1251. When a drum is beaten, you cannot distinguish its various particular notes, but they are included in the general note of the drum or in the general sound produced by different kinds of strokes. The notes of the drum have no existence apart from the general note of the drum. Even so, nothing particular is cognised apart from the Pure, Intelligent, Self. The Supreme Self is the essence. There is inherence of Pure Intelligence ineverything. Hence everything is the Self only. Everything should be regarded as non-existent apart from the Self or Pure Intelligence.
1252. When a conch is blown or when a lute is played, you cannot distinguish its various particular notes, but they are included in the general note of the conch or the lute, or any kind of musical instrument. The notes of the conch or lute have no existence apart from the general note of the conch or the lute. Even so, nothing particular is perceived apart from the Pure, Intelligent Self. A drum, a conch, or a lute have distinct general and particular notes of their own, which are included in the sound in general. Similarly, all objects are unified in the Absolute or Brahman as the varieties of genus and particulars are not different from It.
1253. As a lump of salt, when thrown into water, becomes dissolved into mere water, and could not be taken out again (or perceived), but wherever we taste the water, it would have the taste of salt; thus, verily, does this great Being, Infinite, Independent, consisting of nothing but Consciousness, rise from out of these elements and vanish again in them. After death, no knowledge remains. (There is no objective consciousness when there is no individuality.)
1254. Maitreyi said: "Thou hast bewildered me by saying: After death, no knowledge remains.' " Yajnavalkya replied: I say nothing that is bewildering. For where there is, as it were, duality, the one sees the other, one smells the other, one tastes the other, one salutes the other, one speaks to the other, one hears the other, one thinks of the other, one knows the other.
1255. But, when the Self alone is all this, how should one see another, how should one smell another, how should one taste another, how should one salute another, how should one speak to another, how should one hear another, how should one know another?
1256. How should one know Him, by whom one knows all this?
1257. That Self is to be described as "Not this, not this."
1258. He is incomprehensible, imperishable, unattached, free, and not subject to pain or destruction.
1259. How should one know the Knower?
The Inner Ruler
1260. Gautama asked: "O Yajnavalkya, tell me who is the Inner Ruler?"
1261. Yajnavalkya said: "He who dwells in the earth, and within the earth, whom the earth does not know, whose body is the earth, who from within rules the earth, is thy Self, the Inner Ruler, the Immortal.
1262. He who dwells in water, fire, sky, air, heaven, sun, the quarters, the moon and stars, the ether, darkness, and the light; whose body are these; and who from within rules them, but whom they do not know-that is thy Self, the Inner Ruler, Immortal.
1263. He who dwells in all beings and within all beings, whom all beings do not know, whose body are all beings, and who from within rules all beings, is thy Self, the Inner Ruler, Immortal.
1264. He who dwells in the breath, speech, eye, ear, mind, skin, Knowledge, and the seed; whom they do not know; whose body they are; who from within rules them is thy Self, the Inner Ruler, the Immortal.
1265. Unseen He sees; unheard He hears; unthought, He thinks; unknown He knows.
1266. There is no other seer but He; there is no other hearer but He; there is no other knower but He.
1267. That is thy Self, the Inner Ruler, the Immortal.
1268. Whatever is different from Him is perishable.
The Indestructible Being
1269. Gargi said: "O Yajnavalkya, that of which they say it is above the heavens, beneath the earth, embracing heaven and earth, past, present and future, tell me in what is it woven like warp and woof?"
1270. Yajnavalkya replied: In ether (Akasa).
1271. Gargi said: "In what then is the ether woven, like warp and woof?"
1272. Yajnavalkya said: "O Gargi, the Brahmanas call this the Akshara (the imperishable)."
1273. It is neither coarse nor subtle, neither short nor long, neither red nor white; it is not shadow, not darkness, not air, not ether, without adhesion, without smell, without eyes, without ears, without speech, without mind, without light, without breath, without a mouth or door, without measure, having no within and no without. It does not consume anything, nor does anyone consume it.
1274. By the command of that Indestructible
Being, the sun and the moon stand apart.
1275. By the command of that Being, heaven and earth stand upheld in their places.
1276. By the command of that Being, minutes, hours, days, and nights, half-months, months, seasons, years, all stand apart.
1277. By the command of that Being, some rivers flow to the East from the snowy mountains, others to the West, and others to the quarters ordained for them.
1278. By the command of that Being, men praise those who give, the gods follow the sacrifices, and forefathers the oblation.
1279. Whosoever, Indestructible Being, ignorant of this offers oblations in this world, sacrifices, adores the gods and practises austerities even for a thousand years, his work will have an end.
1280. Whosoever, without knowing this Indestructible, departs from this world, becomes wretched.
1281. But he who departs from this world, knowing this Indestructible Being, is a true Brahmana.
The Guiding Light
7282. Janaka said: "Yajnavalkya, what is the light of this Purusha?"
1283. Yajnavalkya replied: "The sun, O king; for by the light of the sun man sits down, moves about and does his work and returns home."
1284. When the sun has set, what, then, is the light of a man?
1285. The moon indeed is the light; for by the light of the moon man sits down, moves about, does his work and returns home.
1286. When the sun has set and the moon has set, what is the light of man?
1287. Fire indeed is his light; for by the light of fire man sits down, moves about, does his work and returns home.
1288. When the sun has set, and the moon has set, and the fire is gone out, what is then the light of man?
1289. Sound (speech) indeed is his light; for by the light of speech he sits down, moves about, does his work and returns home. Therefore, when one cannot see even one's own hand, yet he resorts there, whence sound proceeds.
1290. When the sun has set and the moon has set, and the fire has gone out and sound is hushed, what is then the light of man?
1291. The Self indeed is his light; for by the light of the Self he sits down, walks about, does his work and returns home.
1292. What is that Self?
1293. He who is within the heart, surrounded by the Pranas, the Purusha who is light, who is of the nature of Knowledge.
1294. He, remaining the same, wanders in the two worlds.
1295. He, as it were, thinks; he, as it were, moves; in dream he quits this world and the forms of death; i.e., all that is perishable.
1296. This Purusha, when born, takes a body, gets united with all evils; when he departs and dies, he leaves all evils behind.
Waking and Dreaming
1297. There are two states for that person; the one here in this world, the other in the other world, and as a third, an intermediate state, the state of dreaming.
1298. When he sleeps, then, after taking with him the material from his world, destroying and building it up again, by his own light, he dreams. In that state, this Purusha is self-illuminated.
1299. No chariots are there, nor horses, no roads, but he himself creates chariots, horses and roads. He indeed is the creator.
1300. His pleasure-grounds can be seen; but he is visible to none. Therefore it is said: "Let no one wake a man suddenly; for it is difficult to cure, if he does not get back rightly to his body."
1301. That person, having enjoyed himself in that state of bliss (Samprasada, deep sleep), having wandered about and seen what is holy and what is sinful, hastens back again, as he came, to the place from which he started. Whatever he may have seen there, he is not affected by it, because that person is not attached to anything.
1302. That person, having enjoyed bliss in the waking state, wandered about and seen what is good and evil, hastens back again, as he came, to the state of dream.
1303. As a large fish moves along the two banks of a river, the right and the left, so does that person moves along these two states, the state of sleeping and the state of waking.
Deep Sleep
1304. As an eagle, after it has roamed about in the sky, gets fatigued, folds its wings, and is drawn to its nest, so does that person hasten to that state where, when asleep, he desires not any desire, and dreams no more dreams.
1305. There are in his body the veins called Hita, which are as small as a hair divided a thousandfold, full of white, blue, yellow, green and red juice.
1306. This is his true nature, which is free from desire, sin and fear. When embraced by the intelligent Self (Prajna), he knows nothing that is without or within. This is his true nature, in which all desires are satisfied, in which the Self is his only desire, in which there is no desire, no grief.
1307. Then the father is no father, the mother is no mother, the worlds no worlds.
1308. He is not followed by good or evil; for he is beyond all sorrows of the heart.or .1309. When in deep sleep he does not know, yet he is knowing, because knowing is inseparable from the Knower, because it is indestructible. But there is, then, no second thing, nothing else different from him that he could know.
1310. Like an ocean is that one Seer, without any duality. This is the Brahma-world.
1311. This is his highest goal, his highest success, his highest world, his highest happiness.
Of this happiness, all other beings enjoy only a part.
1312. When the body becomes weak on account of old age or illness, at that time that person, after separating himself from his members, hastens back again, as he came, to the place from which he started, to new life (for obtaining a new body).
The Phenomenon of Death
1313. When the soul, having come to a state of weakness, sinks into a state of unconscious-ness, as it were, then the organs go to meet him.
1314. Having fully seized those organs which are resplendent with light, the soul descends into the heart.
1315. When the Purusha in the eye altogether returns, then the soul is unconscious of colour (any form). "He has become one," they say, "he does not see." (Similarly with the other senses.)
1316. The entrance to the heart becomes luminous; and by that light the Self departs, either through the eye or through the skull or through other places of the body.
1317. When he thus departs, life departs after him, and when life thus departs, all the organs depart after it.
1318. He is conscious, and being conscious, he follows and departs. Then both his knowledge and work, and the knowledge of his former life take hold of him.
1319. As a caterpillar, after having gained another blade, draws itself together towards it, thus does this self, after having thrown off this body, and after obtaining another body, draw himself together towards it.
1320. As a goldsmith, taking a piece of gold, turns it into another, newer and more beautiful shape, so does this self, after having thrown off this body and obtaining that state of Knowledge, make for himself another, newer and more beautiful shape, either suited to the world of the forefathers, or of the Gandharvas, or of the Devas, or of Prajapati, or of Brahma or of other beings.
1321. That Self is indeed Brahman, consisting of knowledge, mind, life, eye, ear, earth, water, air, ether, light and no-light, desire and no-desire, anger and no-anger, virtue and no-virtue, and all things.
1322. Now as a man is, like this or like that, in accordance with his acts or behaviour, so will he be; a man of good works will become good, a man of evil works will become evil.
1323. As is his desire, so is his resolve; as his will, so his action; as his action, so is his reward.
1324. He whose mind is attached to worldly objects, obtains by actions the objects to which his mind is attached. And having obtained the results, whatever deed he does here on earth he comes back again from that world to this world of action.
1325. Thus he who desires wanders from world to world. But as regards the man who does not desire, who has no desires, who is beyond desires, whose desires are satisfied, or who desires the Self only, his vital spirits do not depart elsewhere. Being Brahman, he goes to Brahman.
1326. As the slough of a snake, as something dead, is abandoned on an ant-hill, so lies the body; but that disembodied, immortal spirit is even Brahman, is only light.
1327. If one understands the Supreme Self and knows It as his own Self, then for what desire or for whose sake should he undergo the sufferings of the body?
1328. He, who has found and understood the Self that has entered this body, is verily the creator, for he is the Lord of all, his is the world, nay, he is the world itself.
1329. While we are here we must know
Brahman. If we do not know Him, then there is great loss. Those who know Him become immortal, but all others verily undergo pain.
1330. When a person clearly beholds his own
Self as God, as the true Lord of all that is and will be then he is no more afraid.
1331. In Him there is no diversity. Whoever sees diversity in Him, goes from death to death.
1332. Let the wise Brahmana, after he has discovered Him, practise wisdom. Let him not seek after many words, for words are embarrassing.
1333. One who thus knows, who has subdued his senses, who is calm, free from all desires, enduring, and composed in mind, beholds the Self in the Self, sees all as the Self.
1334. Sin does not overcome Him; he overcomes all sin. Free from sin, free from impurity, free from doubt, he becomes a true Brahmana.
1335. This Self is great, unborn, the strong, the river of wealth. He who knows this obtains wealth.
1336. Brahman is verily fearless, and he who knows this becomes verily the fearless Brahman.
DA, DA, DA
1337. The threefold offspring of Prajapati-Devas, Men and Asuras- -dwelt as Brahmacharins with their father, Prajapati.
1338. The Devas, having finished their studentship, said to Prajapati: "Tell us our duty." Prajapati told them the syllable Da. Then he said: "Did you understand?" They replied: "We do understand: You told us: Damyata be self-controlled."
1339. Then the men said to Him: "Tell us our duty." Prajapati told them the syllable 'Da'. Then he said: "Did you understand?" They replied: "We do understand. You told us Datta give."
1340. Then the Asuras said to him: "Tell us our duty." Prajapati told them the syllable "Da. Then he said: "Did you understand?" They replied: "We do understand. You told us Dayadhvam be merciful."
DEEP SLEEP
1341. The same is repeated by a divine voice with the force of thunder, viz., the syllables Da, Da, Da, meaning be self-controlled, give, be merciful.
1342. Therefore, let one learn the triad of restraint, liberality and mercy.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
SVETASVATARA UPANISHAD
1343. This Upanishad belongs to Krishna- Yajurveda. It gets its name from Rishi Svetasvatara who taught the truth contained in it to his disciples. It presents a mixture of Vedanta, Sankhya and Yoga tenets.
1344. In this Upanishad Siva or Rudra is declared to be the creator, preserver and destroyer of the world. He is the material and efficient cause of this world. He is identified with the Supreme Brahman.
ॐ सह नाववतु सह नौ भुनक्तु सह वीर्यं करवावहै । तेजस्विनावधीतमस्तु मा विद्विषावहै ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः !
Om. May That protect us both (teacher and pupil). May That cause us both to enjoy the bliss (of Mukti). May we both exert to find out the true meaning of the scriptures. May our learning be brilliant. May we never quarrel with each other!
Om Peace, Peace, Peace!
ADHYAYA ONE
The Ultimate Cause
1345. The enquirers of Brahman converse with one another, "What is the cause? Is it Brahman? Whence are we born? By whom do we live? Where do we ultimately abide? By whom governed, in pains and pleasures, do we live over various conditions, O ye, knowers of Brahman!"
1346. Time, inherent nature, law Or necessity or chance or the elements or matter or a womb or a male are to be considered as a cause. It is not a combination of these, because of the existence of the soul (Atman). The soul (the individual soul) also is not free, as it is under the sway of pleasure and pain.
1347. They who practised meditation realised or saw as the cause of creation the power of God (Devatma-Sakti), hidden in His own qualities (Gunas), which alone rules over all these causes enumerated above, beginning with time and ending with the individual soul.
The Divine Wheel
1348. We understood Him as a wheel which has one felly with a triple tyre with sixteen end-parts, fifty spokes, twenty counter-spokes, with six sets of eights, which has one rope of various forms, which has three different roads or paths and which has one revolution for two causes.
1349. God is meditated upon as the wheel of this universe, and circumference of this wheel is Maya.
1350. The three tyres are the three qualities of Sattva, Rajas and Tamas or time, space and causation.
1351. The sixteen end-parts are sixteen modifications or Vikritis, viz. the five organs of knowledge, the five organs of action and mind and the five gross elements.
1352. The fifty spokes are (a) the five classes of ignorance viz., Tamas, Moha, Maha-Moha, Timira (darkness) and Andha-Timira (utter darkness); (b) The 28 disabilities; (c) the nine Tushtis or satisfactions; (d) the eight Siddhis or perfections viz., Tara, Sutara, Tarayanti, Pramoda, Pramodita, Pramodamana, Ramyaka and Satpramodita.
1353. The twenty counter-spokes are the ten senses and their ten objects.
1354. Six sets of eight: (1) the eight producers of the Sankhya eightfold Prakriti viz. the five elements, mind, intellect and egoism. (2) the eight constituent parts of the body or Dhatus viz. external skin, internal skin, blood, flesh, fat, bone, marrow and semen. (3) Ashtasiddhis or eight superhuman
powers viz., Anima, Mahima etc. (4) Eight mental states (Bhava) viz., virtue, unrighteousness, knowledge, ignorance, dispassion, attachment, super-human power and want of superhuman power. (5) The eight deities Viz., Brahma, Prajapati, Devas, Gandharvas, Yakshas, Rakshasas, Pitris and Pisachas. (6) The eight virtues of the soul, viz. compassion, forbearance, absence of jealousy, purity, freedom from fatigue, auspiciousness, freedom from poverty, and desirelessness. (7) Three different roads are virtue, vice and knowledge. (8) The rope is desire.
1355. We understand Him as a river of five sources, impetuous and crooked, whose waves are the five Pranas or vital breaths, whose original source is the fivefold perception, which has five whirlpools, which is impelled by the velocity of the fivefold misery or pain, which is divided by the five kinds of misery, and which has five turnings or branches.
1356. The five senses represent the five streams.
The five Pranas represent the waves. The five objects of the senses viz., sound, touch etc. are called whirlpools, because the individual souls get drowned in them. The five kinds of pain are the pain arising from existence in the womb, from birth, old age, disease and death.
1357. In the infinite wheel of Brahman in which everything lives and rests, the pilgrim-soul, or the reincarnating self is whirled about when it thinks that it and the supreme Ruler are different or separate. It attains immortality when it is blessed or favoured by Him.
1358. This is verily declared as the supreme support. It is the indestructible. By knowing what is therein, the knowers of Brahman become devoted to Brahman, merge themselves in it and are liberated from birth.
1359. The triad are the world, the individual soul and the supreme Soul. The triad are the enjoyer, the objects of enjoyment and the supreme Soul. It may mean also the waking state, dream and deep sleep.
God, World, Man
1360. The Lord supports this universe which consists of a combination of the perishable and the imperishable, the manifest and the unmanifest. As long as the individual soul does not know the Lord, it is attached to sensual pleasures. It becomes the enjoyer and is bound. When it knows the Lord, it is released from all fetters.
1361. The knowing Lord and the unknowing individual soul, the Omnipotent and the impotent, are both unborn. She (Prakriti), too, who is connected with the enjoyed and objects of enjoyment, who causes the realisation of the enjoyer and enjoyed, is unborn. When all these three are realised as Brahman, the Self becomes infinite, universal and inactive (free from the sense of agency and actor).
1362. Matter is perishable, but God is immortal and imperishable. He, the only God, rules over the perishable matter and the individual souls. By meditating upon Him, by union with Him, finally there is cessation of all illusion.
1363. By knowledge of God all the bonds of ignorance are destroyed; there is a cessation of birth and death with distress destroyed. By meditating on Him one attains the third state, viz., universal Lordship at the dissolution of the body.
All his desires are gratified and he becomes one without a second.
1364. This is to be known as eternally existing in one's own Self. Truly there is nothing higher than that to be known. When one recognises the enjoyed, the object of enjoyment and the dispenser or the supreme Ruler, all has been said. This is threefold Brahman.
1365. Realisation is not achieving something. It is only knowing one's own infinite nature by tearing the veils, by annihilating the ignorance, by cutting asunder the three knots, viz., ignorance, desire and action.
1366. As fire is not perceived when it is latent in its cause, the firewood, and yet there is no destruction of its subtle form, because it is again perceived in its cause, the firewood, by rubbing, so also the Atman is perceived in the body by meditating on the sacred syllable Om.
1367. By making one's own body the lower piece of wood or friction-stick, and the syllable Om the upper friction-stick, and by practising the friction or churning of meditation, one will realise
God who is hidden, as it were.
1368. As oil in sesamum seeds, as butter in curd, as water in river-beds and as fire in wood, even so is Atman perceived within his own self by a person who beholds Him by truth, austerity (by controlling his senses and the mind).
1369. The Atman which pervades all things like butter in milk, is rooted in Self-knowledge and austerity. This is the mystic doctrine concerning Brahman. This is the mystic doctrine concerning Brahman.
ADHYAYA TWO
The Process of Meditation
1370. Concentrating first the mind and the senses upon Brahman for realising the Truth, may Savitri, having seen the illuminating fire (of wisdom), bring it out of the earth (matter in general).
1371. By the grace of the divine Savitri, let us, with concentrated mind, strive vigorously for the attainment of supreme bliss.
1372. Having controlled the senses, through which the heaven is attained, with the mind and the intellect let Savitri cause them to manifest the divine infinite Light.
1373. Great is the glory of Savitri who is all-pervading, infinite, all-knowing, the one alone who knows the Ruler, has arranged the sacrificial rites by the Brahmana. He will control their mind and intellect and practise meditation.
1374. I worship your ancient Brahman with reverence. My verses go forth like the sun on their course. May the sons of the Immortal listen, even those who inhabit celestial regions.
1375. Where fire is kindled or churned out, where air is controlled, where the Soma juice overflows, there the mind is born.
1376. Fire stands for the knowledge of the
Self.
1377. One experiences joy during meditation. This is drinking Soma juice.
1378. Let us live the ancient Brahman by the grace of Savitri. If there thou attainest thy source (Brahman), thy former work will no longer bind
thee.
1379. Without Bhakti you cannot attain the grace which is essential for attaining the knowledge of Brahman.
1380. Keeping his body in a straight posture, holding the chest, neck and the head erect, and drawing the senses and the mind into the heart, the wise should cross over the fearful currents of the world by means of the raft (or boat) of Brahman.
1381. The fearful currents are the currents of Raga, Dvesha (likes and dislikes), Vasanas or subtle desires and Trishna (craving) which hurl down man into the ocean of births and deaths.
1382. The raft of Brahman is Om. Silent Japa of Om with meditation on its meaning will help one to cross the ocean of Samsara, i.e., to free oneself from the rounds of births and deaths.
1383. Controlling the senses, repressing and regulating the breathing, checking the movements of the body, gently breathing through the nostrils, the wise should undistractedly restrain his mind, that chariot yoked with vicious horses.
1384. One should perform his exercises in concentration on a level plane, free from pebbles, fire, wind, dust, dampness and disturbing noises, where the scenery is charming and pleasing to the eyes and where there are bowers, caves, water places which help the concentration.
1385. When Yoga is being performed, forms like snow or frost, smoke, the sun, fire, wind, fire-fly, lightning, crystal and the moon appear. They precede the manifestation of Brahman.
1386. When the fivefold quality of Yoga arising from earth, water, fire, air and ether has been produced, then the Yogi is endowed with body made strong by the fire of Yoga, and so he will not be affected by disease, old age or death.
1387. When the body is light and healthy, when his mind is free from desire, when he has a shining complexion, sweet voice and pleasant odour, when the excretions become scanty, they say that he has attained the first degree of concentration.
1388. Just as a metal disc or mirror which was stained by dust before, shines brilliantly when it has been cleansed, so also the embodied being realises oneness, attains the end or goal, and is freed from sorrow, when he realises the true nature of the Atman.
1389. When by the means of the real nature of his Self the Yogi sees as a lamp, the real nature of Brahman, then having known the unborn, Eternal God, who is free from all the modifications of Prakriti, he is freed from all fetters or sins.
1390. He indeed is the God who pervades all regions. He is the first born (Hiranyagarbha). He has entered into the womb. He is inside all persons as the indwelling Self, looking everywhere (having His face in all directions).
1391. Salutations, salutations to the God who is in the fire, who is in water, who is in plants, who is in trees, and who has pervaded the whole universe.
ADHYAYA THREE
The Realisation
1392. He who rules alone by His powers, who rules all the worlds by His powers, who is one and the same at the time of creation and dissolution of the world they who know Him become immortal.
1393. There is one Ruler only who rules all the worlds by His powers. There is no one besides Him who can make Him the second. He is present inside the hearts of all beings. He creates all the worlds and maintains and finally withdraws them into Himself.
1394. Rudra represents here Para-Brahman or the Supreme Self, the infinite or the Absolute.
1395. That one God, having His eyes, His face, His arms and His feet in every place, when producing heaven and earth, forges them together with His arms and His wings.
1396. May Rudra, the creator and supporter of the gods, the great seer, the Lord of all, who created at first Hiranyagarbha, endow us with good thoughts (pure intellect).
1397. O Rudra, with thy form which is auspicious, which is not dreadful, and which manifests what is holy, with that all-blessed form, appear to us, O dweller among the mountains!
1398. O Lord of the mountains; make propitious the arrow which thou holdest in thy hands to shoot. Do not hurt man or the world, O mountain-protector!
1399. Higher than the personal God is the supreme Brahman, who is infinite, who is concealed within all beings according to their bodies and who is the only pervader of the whole universe. By knowing Him as the Lord, one becomes immortal.
1400. I know this mighty Being (Purusha)
who shines effulgent like the sun beyond darkness. One passes beyond death, only by knowing Him. There is no other road for attaining liberation.
1401. There is nothing higher than or different from Him, nothing greater or more minute than He. He alone stands in the heaven like a tree, one without a second, and immovable. The whole world is filled by that Being.
1402. That which is beyond this world is without form and without suffering. Those who know It become Immortal; but others, instead, suffer pain only.
1403. He (the Lord) has His face, head and neck everywhere (in everything). He dwells in the heart of all beings. He pervades all. Therefore, He is Omnipresent and propitious.
1404. That person (Purusha) is indeed the great Lord. He controls everything. He is Light. He is everlasting. He guides the intellect of all beings in order to enable them to attain that extremely pure state (Moksha) .
1405. The Purusha of the size of a thumb, who is concealed by the heart, intellect and mind, always dwells in the hearts of creatures as their inner Self. Those who know Him become immortal.
1406. It is very difficult for a neophyte to fix the mind on the infinite. Therefore he is asked to meditate on a being of the size of a thumb, in his heart, to begin with.
1407. The person (Purusha) has a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, and a thousand feet. He envelopes the whole world on all sides and extends beyond it by ten fingers' breadth.
1408. 'Ten fingers' means endless. Brahman envelopes the whole world on all sides and extends beyond it to infinity. He transcends the world.
1409. Thousand heads: This indicates that the Lord (Virat-Purusha) possesses countless heads. All heads, all eyes, all hands, all feet belong to the Lord. It is He who works through all hands, eats through all mouths, sees through all eyes, hears through all ears, walks through all feet and thinks through all minds. If you remember this verse constantly, egoism will vanish. You will have an expanded heart. You will experience cosmic consciousness. You will identify yourself with the Virat-Purusha. or 1410. That Person alone (Purusha)is all this, what has been and what is visible. He is also the Lord of Immortality. He is whatever grows by food.
1411. With hands and feet everywhere, with eyes, heads and mouths everywhere, with ears everywhere, that exists encompassing everything in the world.
or 1412. He shines forth with the qualities of all the senses, yet He is devoid of all senses. He is the Lord of all, the Ruler of all, the refuge of all, and the friend of all.
1413. He dwells in the body, the city of nine gates. He is the soul (Hamsa) who sports in the outside world. He is the controller of the whole world, both stationary and moving.
1414. Without hands and feet He goes fast and grasps; without eyes He sees; without ears He hears. He knows all that is to be known. Yet there is none who knows Him. They call Him the first, the great person.
1415. Subtler than even the subtlest and greater than the greatest, the Atman, is hidden in the heart of all creatures. One becomes free from all grief and desire by the grace of desireless creator, and realises Him as the great.
1416. Bhakti is not contradictory to knowledge. On the contrary, it is a help to knowledge.
1417. The grace of the Lord is necessary for the realisation of Advaitic oneness.
1418. The same soul is in the ant and the elephant also. The same soul pervades the whole universe also. It is infinite. Therefore the Atman is subtler than even the subtlest, and greater than the greatest.
1419. I know this undecaying, the ancient, the soul of all, who is omnipresent on account of His all-pervading nature and whom the knowers of Brahman declare to be free from birth, whom the knowers of Brahman proclaim to be eternal.
ADHYAYA FOUR
Prayer
1420. May that divine being, the one who Himself colourless, creates various colours in different ways by means of His own power, with a set purpose, and who dissolves the whole world in Himself in the end may He endow us with a pure intellect.
1421. Just as a ray of light which is itself colourless assumes different colours when it passes through a prism, so also the formless Brahman assumes various forms for His own Lila or sporting.
1422. That itself is Agni (fire). That is Aditya (the sun). That is Vayu (air). That is Chandramas (the moon). That is also the starry firmament.
That is the Brahman (Hiranyagarbha). That is water. That is Prajapati.
1423. Thou art woman, Thou art man, Thou art the youth. Thou art the maiden, too. Thou art the old man who totters along, leaning on the staff. Thou art born with Thy face turned everywhere.
1424. Thou art the dark blue fly. Thou art the green parrot with red eyes. Thou art the thunder-cloud, the seasons and the oceans. Thou art without beginning. Thou art the Infinite. Thou art He from whom all the worlds are born.
1425. There is one unborn being, a female of red, white, and black colours, who produces many offsprings like herself. There is one unborn being, male who loves her and lies by her. There is another unborn male who leaves her after having enjoyed her.
Parable of the Two Birds
1426. Two birds of beautiful plumage, who are inseparable friends, dwell upon one and the same tree. Of these two the one eats the sweet fruit, while the other looks on without eating.
1427. The two birds are the individual soul (Jiva) and the supreme Soul (Paramatman). The Jiva is only a reflection of the supreme Soul. Hence they are inseparable.
1428. The tree is this body. The fruit of the tree are pleasure and pain, the result of one's past actions.
1429. Dwelling on the same tree, the individual soul gets entangled and feels miserable. He is deluded and grieves for his impotence. When he sees the other, contented and knows His glory, he becomes free from sorrow.
1430. Of what use are the Vedas to him who does not know that indestructible, highest ethereal Being in whom all the Vedas reside? Only those who know that rest contented.
1431. The Lord of Maya protects or creates the Vedas, the sacrifices, the ceremonies, religious observances, what has been what has to be, all that the Vedas declare and this whole world, including ourselves. The other is bound by Maya in this.
1432. Know then that Prakriti (nature) is
Maya, and the great God is the Lord of Maya. This whole world is pervaded by beings who are His parts.
The Avenue of Peace
1433. One attains infinite peace when he realises the Lord, the adorable God, the bestower of blessings, who, though one, presides over the various aspects of Prakriti, and in whom this universe dissolves, and in whom it appears in various forms.
1434. May Rudra the creator and supporter of the Gods, the great seer, the Lord of all, who saw Hiranyagarbha being born, endow us with pure or auspicious intellect.
1435. Let us give reverence with oblations to that blissful God, who is the Lord of the Devas, who rules the bipeds and the quadrupeds, and in whom all the worlds rest.
1436. He who realises Him, who is subtler than the subtlest, who creates the world in the midst of chaos, who assumes many forms, who is the only one that envelopes the world, the blissful one (Siva), attains infinite peace.
1437. He alone is the protector of the world at the proper time. He is the Lord of the world hidden in all beings. In Him Brahma-Rishis and the deities merge themselves. He who knows Him thus, cuts asunder the fetters of death.
1438. He who knows Siva, the blissful one, who is hidden in all beings in an extremely subtle form, finer than the essence of ghee, who alone envelops the universe, is freed from all fetters.
1439. That God, the creator of the universe, the supreme soul, always dwells in the heart of all beings, being limited by the heart, intellect and mind. Those who know this become immortal.
1440. When ignorance has disappeared, when there is neither day nor night, neither existence nor non-existence, then there is only Siva, the all-blessed one, who is imperishable, the adorable light of Savita (the deity of the sun). From Him the ancient wisdom has proceeded.
1441. No one can grasp Him above or across, or in the middle. There is no likeness or equal of Him whose name is great glory.
1442. His form cannot be seen. No one perceives Him with the eye. Those who know Him through intuition, thus abiding in the heart, become immortal.
1443. Someone thinking that Thou art the unborn, approaches Thee in fear. Deign to protect me for ever with Thy benevolent face.
1444. O Rudra, injure not our children, nor our grandchildren, nor our lives, cows or horses, nor slay in thy wrath our valiant men. We invoke Thee always with offering.
ADHYAYA FIVE
The Hidden Truth
1445. Ignorance verily is mortal, knowledge verily is immortal. In the imperishable and infinite highest Brahman, knowledge and ignorance are hidden. Entirely different from these is Brahman who controls both ignorance and knowledge.
1446. It is He who, being one only, presides over every source of production and every form.
He sees the birth of the first-born seer of golden colour and endows him with every kind of knowledge at the commencement of creation.
1447. This God spreads out one net after another in various ways and withdraws it together in that field. Thus again having created the rulers, the great soul holds His Lordship over all.
1448. Just as the sun shines lightening up all quarters above, below, and across, so also does that one adorable God, the blessed one, rule over whatever creatures are born from the womb.
1449. He, who is the one source of the world, brings the maturity of the nature of all and leads creatures who can be brought to maturity, to perfection, and endows each being with its distinguishing qualities, and rules this whole universe.
1450. He is concealed in the Upanishads that are concealed in the Vedas. Hiranyagarbha knows Him as the source of himself (or as the source of the Vedas). Those gods and seers who realised Him in days of yore, became identified with Him, and verily became immortal.
1451. He (the individual soul) who is attached with the qualities, performs actions for the sake of fruits and enjoys the fruits of his own actions. Though He is really the Lord of life, He becomes bound by the three Gunas, assumes various forms, and wanders about through the three paths on account of his own actions.
1452. Subtle as the point of a needle, brilliant like the sun, He alone is perceived even as another (different from the universal Soul) of the size of a thumb, endowed with egoism and will, on account of the limitation of the intellect and heart.
1453. That individual soul is as subtle as the hundredth part of the point of a hair divided a hundred times. Yet He is in essence infinite. He has to be known.
1454. He is neither female, nor male, nor neutral. Whatever body He takes, with that he becomes identified or joined or connected.
1455. By means of thoughts, contact, sight and delusion, the embodied soul assumes successively various forms in various places, in accordance with its actions, just as the body grows by the use of food and drink.
1456. The individual soul chooses or assumes many forms, gross and subtle, according to its own qualities, the qualities of its actions and the qualities of its mind. The cause of union with those forms is found to be still another.
1457. The cause of one's union with the body is the Lord.
1458. He who knows Him who has no beginning and no end, who creates the world in the midst of chaos, who assumes many forms and who envelopes the universe, is freed from all fetters.
1459. Those who know the God who is to be realised by direct intuitive perception, who is incorporeal or immortal, who is the cause of existence and non-existence, who is all-blessed and the cause of the origin of the sixteen parts, are freed from further embodiment.
ADHYAYA SIX
The Path to Liberation
1460. Some deluded thinkers speak of
Nature, and others speak of time, as the cause of the universe. But it is the glory of God by which the Brahma-wheel revolves. shit
1461. It is at the command of Him, who always envelopes the world, who is all-knowing, the Lord of time, possessor of qualities, Omniscient, that this work (creation) unfolds itself, which is called or thought as earth, water, fire, air and ether.
1462. He creates his work and rests again, having entered into union with principle after principle, with one, with two, with three, or with eight, with time, too, and with the subtle qualities of the mind.
1463. The eight principles are the eight producers of the Samkhyas, viz., Avyakta which is the root of all, intellect, egoism and the five subtle elements of matter (Tanmatras), or the five elements, mind, intellect and egoism. The one principle to which the soul is joined is Avyakta or Prakriti. The two are Avyakta and intellect; and the three are Avyakta, intellect and egoism.
1464. There is another interpretation. The one principle is Avidya or ignorance; two are Dharma and Adharma (right and wrong), or Raga-Dvesha (likes and dislikes); the three are the three bodies, physical, subtle and causal, or the three Gunas, Sattva, Rajas and Tamas; or the three Avasthas,-the waking, dreaming and deep sleep states; or time, space and causation.
1465. He gives the start to creation associated with the three Gunas, and orders all things. He causes destruction of the work in the absence of the Gunas, and remains apart in His essence after destruction.
1466. He is the beginning, the origin of the causes by which (the body) is united (with the soul). He is beyond the three divisions of time (past, present and future). He is without parts, also. The adorable Lord, who appears as the world, who is the true source of all creatures abides in His own heart, is perceived by him who meditates or worships in his heart previously.
1467. Higher and other than the world-tree, time and forms is He, from whom this universe proceeds, the source of all virtues, the destroyer of all sins, the Lord of all good qualities know Him as in one's self, as the immortal abode of all the universe.
1468. May we know Him, the transcendent and adorable Master of the world, who is the great supreme Lord of all lords, the supreme Deity of all deities, and the supreme Ruler of all rulers.
1469. No action (or effort) or organ (Karanam) of His is found. There is not seen His equal, nor a superior. His great power is declared in the Vedas to be of various kinds. His knowledge, strength and action are described as inherent in Him.
1470. There is no master of His in this world, no ruler of His, not even a sign of Him (by which He can be inferred). He is the cause, the Lord of the lords of the organs. He has no progenitor, nor is there anyone who is His lord.
1471. May that only God, who spontaneously covers Himself with the products of Prakriti or Nature, just as a spider does with the threads (drawn from its own navel), grant us identity with Brahman.
1472. The one God is hidden in all beings. He pervades all and He is the Inner Soul of all beings.
He presides over all actions, and all beings dwell in Him. He is the witness, and He is the pure consciousness. He is alone, or single, and is devoid of all qualities.
1473. He is the one controller of the inactive many. He makes the one seed manifold. The wise, who perceive Him within their self, to them belongs eternal happiness; not to others.
1474. He is the eternal among the eternals, and the intelligent among all that are intelligent. Though one, He grants the desires of many. He who has known Him, the cause of all, who is to be comprehended by Sankhya (philosophy) and Yoga (religious discipline), is freed from all fetters.
1475. The sun does not shine there, neither the moon, nor the stars. There these lightnings do not shine, how then this fire? When He shines, everything shines after Him. By His light all this shines.
1476. He who is the one soul (Hamsa) destroyer of ignorance in the midst of the world, He alone is the fire which is seated in water. Knowing Him truly one overcomes death. There is no other path for liberation.
1477. He creates the universe and knows the universe. He is His own source. He is all-knowing, and He is the Time of time (destroyer of time). He is endowed with all qualities of perfection. He knows everything in detail. He is the master of nature and men and the Lord of the Gunas. He is the cause of the bondage, the existence and the liberation of the world.
1478. He is like Himself, immortal and abides in the form of the Ruler. He is the all-knowing, all-pervading, Protector of the world, the eternal Ruler. No one is able to rule over it.
1479. I, desirous of liberation, resort to the God for refuge, whose light turns the intellect towards the Atman, who at the commencement of creation created Brahma and gave the Vedas to Him.
1480. Who is without parts, without action, who is tranquil, blameless, spotless, the supreme bridge of immortality and who is like the fire that has consumed its fuel (to Him I go for refuge).
1481. Only when man shall roll up sky like a skin, will there be an end of misery, unless God has first been known.
1482. Only when the impossible becomes possible, such as the sky being rolled up by men, will misery cease, unless God has been realised in the heart. Miseries and sorrows will come to an end only when one realises God. If anybody strives to free himself from miseries, without realising God, all his efforts shall be as useless as the attempt to roll up the sky. This is the drift of this verse.
1483. Having realised Brahman through the power of his penance and through the grace of God, the wise Svetasvatara expounded well to the highest order of Sannyasins the truth of that supremely holy Brahman resorted to by all the seers.
1484. This highest secret or mystery in the Vedanta, expounded in a former age, should not be given to one whose passions have not been subdued, nor to anyone who is not a worthy son, nor to an unworthy disciple.
1485. If these truths have been told to a high-souled one, who has supreme devotion to God, and as much devotion to his Guru or preceptor as to God, then alone they will shine forth, then alone they will shine forth, indeed.