Difference between revisions of "Upanishad" - New World Encyclopedia

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{{Hindu scriptures}}  
 
{{Hindu scriptures}}  
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The '''Upanishads''' ([[Devanagari]]: उपनिषद्, [[IAST]]: upaniṣad) have been regarded as the crown of the [[Vedas]]<ref> [http://www.vedah.com/org2/literature/pdf_docs/Upanishads.pdf Upanishad]</ref> and form the [[Hindu scriptures]] which primarily discuss [[philosophy]], [[meditation]], and the nature of [[God]]; they form the core spiritual thought of [[Vedanta|Vedantic Hinduism]]. Considered as [[mystic]] or [[spiritual]] contemplations of the [[Veda]]s, their putative end and essence, the Upanishads are known as ''[[Vedanta|Vedānta]]'' ("the end/culmination of the Vedas").  
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The '''Upanishads''' ([[Devanagari]]: उपनिषद्, [[IAST]]: upaniṣad), often regarded as the “crown” or the “cream” of the [[Vedas]]<ref> [http://www.vedah.com/org2/literature/pdf_docs/Upanishads.pdf Upanishad]</ref> are the [[Hindu scriptures]] which primarily discuss [[philosophy]], [[meditation]], and the nature of [[God]]; they form the core spiritual thought of [[Vedanta|Vedantic Hinduism]]. They are an unsystematized compilation of dialogs, monologues and anecdotes composed by multiple authors, which contain the foundations for most of the later philosophies and religions of India.  Vedic texts are traditionally categorized into four classes: the {{IAST|Samhitās}} (mantras), [[Brahmana]]s, [[Aranyaka]]s, and [[Upanishad]]s.<ref>{{Harvnb|Michaels|2004|p=51}}.</ref> Each Upanishad is associated with one of the Samhitas. [[Vedanta]], “the culmination of the Vedas,” is chiefly composed of ''[[Aranyaka|Āranyaka]]s'' and Upanishads. The oldest, such as the [[Brhadaranyaka]] and [[Chandogya]] Upanishads, have been dated to around the eighth century B.C.E.; later ones were still being composed at the time when Islamic influence was spreading through India. According to tradition, there were over two hundred ''Upanishads'', but the philosopher and commentator [[Adi Sankara|Shankara]] (who lived sometime between 509 and 820 C.E.) only composed commentaries to eleven of them, generally regarded as the oldest and most important ones. The [[Muktika Upanishad]] lists 108 Upanishads.  
  
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The Upanishads were composed over several centuries. The oldest, such as the [[Brhadaranyaka]] and [[Chandogya]] Upanishads, have been dated to around the eighth century B.C.E.
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Because the Upanishads were regarded as revealed truth (sruti) , most of the subsequent systems of philosophy attempted to reconcile themselves to at least some of the doctrines of the Upanishads, and to represent themselves as further developments of those doctrines.  The fundamental idea which runs through the early Upanishads is that underlying the exterior, changing world, there is an unchangeable reality (Brahman) which is identical with that which underlies the essence in man (Atman). <ref> Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I., p. 42</ref> The essence of the universe can only be known through the Atman, the inmost essence of man, the individual self, soul, and mind. The Upanishads were a revival of spiritualism, a reaction to the complicated ritualism, ceremonialism and formalism of the Brahmanas. They  declared that perfection was inward and spiritual, rather than outward and mechanical, and that God was to be honored by spiritual worship, not external ceremony.
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==Etymology==
 
==Etymology==
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The [[Sanskrit]] term ''{{IAST|upaniṣad}}'' literally means "sitting down beside".<ref>Arthur Anthony Macdonell. A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary. p. 53.</ref>  
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The [[Sanskrit]] term ''{{IAST|upaniṣad}}'' literally means "sitting down beside".<ref>Arthur Anthony Macdonell. A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary. p. 53.</ref> The word derives from “upa” (near), “ni” (down), and “sad” (to sit), and refers to "sitting down near" a spiritual teacher ([[guru]]) in order to receive instruction in the [[Guru-shishya tradition]].
  
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Monier-Williams notes that "according to some the sitting down at the feet of another to listen to his words (and hence, secret knowledge given in this manner; but according to native authorities ''upanishad'' means  'setting at rest ignorance by revealing the knowledge of the supreme spirit..."<ref>Monier-Williams. ''A Sanskrit-English Dictionary''. p. 201. [http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia/ebooks/mw/0200/mw__0234.html] Web version accessed 1 April 2007.</ref> It derives from  ''upa-'' (near), ''ni-'' (down) and ''sad'' (to sit), i.e. referring to the  "sitting down near" a spiritual teacher ([[guru]]) in order to receive instruction in the [[Guru-shishya tradition]].
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Monier-Williams notes that "according to some the sitting down at the feet of another to listen to his words (and hence, secret knowledge given in this manner; but according to native authorities ''upanishad'' means  'setting at rest ignorance by revealing the knowledge of the supreme spirit...)"<ref>Monier-Williams. ''A Sanskrit-English Dictionary''. p. 201. [http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia/ebooks/mw/0200/mw__0234.html] Web version accessed 1 April 2007.</ref>  
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Other dictionary meanings include "esoteric doctrine" and "secret doctrine."  
  
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Other dictionary meanings include "esoteric doctrine" and "secret doctrine."  
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A gloss of the term ''upaniṣad'' based on [[Shankara]]'s commentary on the [[Katha Upanishad|Kaṭha]] and  [[Brhadaranyaka Upanishad|Bṛhadāraṇyaka]] Upanishads equates it with ''Ātmavidyā'', that is "knowledge of the [[Atman|Self]]," or ''Brahmavidyā'' "knowledge of Brahma." Shankara derived the word from the root “sad” (to destroy, loosen) and equated its meaning with the destruction of ignorance. 
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==Origins==
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The first Upanishads, Aitareya, Kauśītāki, Chāndogya, Kena, Taittirīya, Bṛhadāraṇyaka, Īṣa, and Kaṭha, were composed as early as the eighth and seventh centuries B.C.E. and predate Buddha.  <ref>Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli and Moore, Charles A., editors. A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy. 1973. Princeton, N.J., Princeton University Press ISBN 0-691-01958-4  p. 37</ref>The accepted dates for the early Upanishads are 1000 to 300 B.C.E.. <ref> Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I. 1998. Manzar Khan, Oxford University Press. New Delhi. ISBN 019-563819 0, p.142</ref>  Though the first Upanishads were compiled by 500 B.C.E., later ones were still being composed at the time when Islamic  influence was spreading through India. <ref> Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I. 1973. Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi. ISBN 81-208-0412-0  81-208-0408-2, p. 39</ref> The language of the Upanishads is [[Sanskrit]], the oldest among them still classifying as late [[Vedic Sanskrit]]. The Upanishads were transmitted orally by the Vedic schools [[sakhas]] long before they were committed to writing. The oldest and longest Upanishads, the [[Brihadaranyaka|{{IAST|Bṛhadāraṇyaka}}]] and the [[Chandogya|{{IAST|Chāndogya}}]] were composed in prose. Later Upanishads such as the Īśa, Māṇḍukya, Katha, and Śvetāśvatara Upanishads, were composed in verse.
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The authorship of the Upanishads is unknown, but some of their chief doctrines are associated with the names of particular sages such as Aruni, Yajnavalkya, Bâlâki, Svetaketu, and Sândilya. <ref> A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy, p. 37</ref>  The Upanishads belong to the class of sruti, or revealed literature, uttered by sages in the fullness of an illumined understanding of truth.
  
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A gloss of the term ''upaniṣad'' based on [[Shankara]]'s commentary on the [[Katha Upanishad|Kaṭha]] and  [[Brhadaranyaka Upanishad|Bṛhadāraṇyaka]] Upanishads equates it with ''Ātmavidyā'', that is "knowledge of the [[Atman|Self]]," or ''Brahmavidyā'' "knowledge of Brahma".{{Fact|date=April 2007}}
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According to tradition, there were over two hundred ''Upanishads'', but the philosopher and commentator [[Adi Sankara|Shankara]] (who lived sometime between 509 and 820 C.E.) only composed commentaries to eleven of them, generally regarded as the oldest ones. The [[Muktika Upanishad]] lists 108 Upanishads. According to [[Panini]]'s [[Ashtadhyayi]] (also known as Panineeyam), the total number of Upanishads was 900, and  [[Patanjali]] also puts the number at 900; it appears that most of them are lost forever. The Nigeernopanishad, of apocryphal nature, names 187 Upanishads. However, many of the interpolations of Nigeerna are as late as the fourteenth century.<ref>Upanishads in Sankara's Own Words, Panoli, Mathrubhumi Books, India</ref>
  
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== Major Upanishads ==
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==Introduction to Europe==
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Different Upanishads are affiliated with the four Vedas ([[Rigveda]], [[Yajurveda]], [[Samaveda]] and [[Atharvaveda]]). The Upanishads were transmitted orally by the Vedic schools [[sakhas]]. The longest and oldest Upanishad are the [[Brihadaranyaka|{{IAST|Bṛhadāraṇyaka}}]] and the [[Chandogya|{{IAST|Chāndogya}}]] respectively.  
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In 1640, [[Dara Shikoh]], eldest son of the Emperor Shāh Jahān, heard about the Upanishads while staying in Kashmir, and recognized elements of [[monotheism]] that might pave the way for a common [[mystical]] bond between [[Islam]] and [[Hinduism]]. He invited several Pandits to come to Delhi and translate them from [[Sanskrit]] into [[Persian language|Persian]], a task that was completed in 1656. In 1775, [[Abraham-Hyacinthe Anquetil Du Perron]], the discoverer of the Zend-Avesta, was presented with a copy by his friend Le Gentil, who was then French resident  at the court of Shuja-uddaulah in Faizabad. From 1802 to 1804, Anquetil  published a two-volume Latin translation from the Persian Oupnek'hat, or Upanishada. It was a curious mixture of Latin, Greek, Persian, Arabic, and Sanskrit.
  
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The language of the Upanishads is [[Sanskrit]], the oldest among them still classifying as late [[Vedic Sanskrit]]. The oldest Upanishads, the [[Brihadaranyaka|{{IAST|Bṛhadāraṇyaka}}]] and the [[Chandogya|{{IAST|Chāndogya}}]] are composed in prose. These early texts may date back to the 8th-7th centuries B.C.E. Later followed a series of Upanishads composed in verse, such as the Īśa, Māṇḍukya, Katha, and Śvetāśvatara Upanishads.  
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This translation was read by Schopenhauer (1788 – 1860), whose philosophy was profoundly influenced by it. In the Preface to Welt als Wille und Vorstellung, he wrote:
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<blockquote>” And if, indeed, in addition to this he is a partaker of the benefit conferred by the Vedas, the access to which, opened to us through the Upanishads, is in my eyes the greatest advantage which this still young century enjoys over previous ones…then he is best of all prepared to hear what I have to say to him…I might express the opinion that each one of the individual and disconnected aphorisms which make up the Upanishads may be deduced as a consequence from the thought that I am going to impart, though the converse, that my thought is to be found in the Upanishads, is by no means the case….In the whole world there is no study, except that of the originals, so beneficial and so elevating as that of the Oupnek'hat. It has been the solace of my life; it will be the solace of my death!”</blockquote>
  
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According to tradition, there were over two hundred ''Upanishads'', but the philosopher and commentator [[Adi Sankara|Shankara]] only composed commentaries to eleven of them. The Upanishads commented on by Shankara are generally regarded as the oldest ones.  The [[Muktika Upanishad]] lists 108 Upanishads. According to [[Panini]]'s [[Ashtadhyayi]] (also known as Panineeyam), the number of upansishads are 900. [[Patanjali]] also puts the number at 900. It appears that most of them are lost forever. Nigeernopanishad of apocryphal nature names 187 upanishads. However, many of the interpolations of Nigeerna are as late as 14th century.<ref>Upanshads in Sankara's Own Words, Panoli, Mathrubhumi Books, India</ref> In 1656, at the order of [[Dara Shikoh]], the Upanishads were translated from [[Sanskrit]] into [[Persian language|Persian]]. From 1802 to 1804 [[Abraham-Hyacinthe Anquetil Du Perron]] published a Latin translation (2 vols.) from the Persian of the Oupnek'hat or Upanishada. It is a curious mixture of Latin, Greek, Persian, Arabic, and Sanskrit
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==Place in the Hindu Canon==
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Vedic texts are traditionally categorized into four classes: the {{IAST|Samhitās}} (mantras), [[Brahmana]]s, [[Aranyaka]]s, and [[Upanishad]]s.<ref>{{Harvnb|Michaels|2004|p=51}}.</ref> Scholars of the Vedic books consider the four ''[[samhita|samhitā]]'' (collectively called “mantra”), Rig Veda, Samaveda, Yajurveda, and Atharvaveda, as poetic [[liturgy]],  adoration and supplication to the deities of [[Historical Vedic religion|vedic religion]], in parts already melded with [[monist]] and [[henotheist]] notions, and an overarching order ([[Rta]]) that transcended even the gods. Each samhitā is followed by ''[[Brahmana|Brāhmana]],'' which came after the Mantra, and were a collection of ritual instructions and books detailing the priestly functions. The Aranyakas ("of the forest"), detailing meditative yogic practices, contemplations of the mystic one and the manifold manifested principles, were an outgrowth of the Brahmanas, and were followed and fulfilled by the Upanishads, the philosophical and meditative tracts that form the backbone of Hindu thought. [[Vedanta]], “the culmination of the Vedas,” is chiefly composed of ''[[Aranyaka|Āranyaka]]s'' and Upanishads.  
  
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These philosophical and meditative tracts form the backbone of Hindu thought. Of the early Upanishads, the Aitareya and Kauṣītāki belong to the [[Rig Veda]], Kena and Chāndogya to the [[Samaveda]], Īṣa and Taittirīya and Bṛhadāraṇyaka to the [[Yajurveda]], and Praṣna and Muṇḍaka to the [[Atharvaveda]].<ref>Associated Upanishad and Vedic book information taken from Radhakrishnan Indian Philosophy, Vol. 1.</ref> In addition, the Māṇḍukya, Kathā, Śvetāśvatara are very important. Others also include Mahānārāyaṇa and Maitreyi Upanishads as key.
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Of the early Upanishads, the Aitareya and Kauṣītāki belong to the [[Rig Veda]], Kena and Chāndogya to the [[Samaveda]], Īṣa and Taittirīya and Bṛhadāraṇyaka to the [[Yajurveda]], and Praṣna and Muṇḍaka to the [[Atharvaveda]].<ref> Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I. </ref> In addition, the Māṇḍukya, Kathā, Śvetāśvatara are very important, and some scholars also include Mahānārāyaṇa and Maitreyi Upanishads among the most important Upanishads.
  
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==Place in the Hindu canon==
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The Upanishads were a revival of spiritualism, a reaction to the complicated ritualism, ceremonialism and formalism of the Brahmanas.  Instructions for horse sacrifices, for example, were replaced with directions for inner meditations on the nature of the horse. The Upanishads declared that the soul would not obtain salvation by the performance of sacrifices and rituals, but only by living a truly religious life, based on insight into the heart of the universe. Perfection was inward and spiritual, rather than outward and mechanical, and God was to be honored by spiritual worship, not external ceremony. <ref> Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I., p.148</ref>
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Scholars of the Vedic books consider the four Vedas as poetic [[liturgy]], collectively called ''[[mantra]]'' or ''[[samhita|samhitā-]]'', adoration and supplication to the deities of [[Historical Vedic religion|vedic religion]], in parts already melded with [[monist]] and [[henotheist]] notions, and an overarching order ([[Rta]]) that transcended even the gods.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
 
  
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The ''[[Brahmana|Brāhmana]]'' were a collection of ritual instructions, books detailing the priestly functions (which first were available to all men, and so concretized into strictly Brahmin privilege). These came after the Mantra.
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The Upanishads distinguish between a higher and lower knowledge of the truth. While considering that the Vedas are of divine origin, they recognize that Vedic knowledge will not liberate the soul. <ref> Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I. , p. 149</ref>.The sage Nārada tells Sanatkumāra , “I know the Rgveda, sir, the Yajih, the Sāma, with all these I know only the Mantras and the sacred books, I do not know the Self…I have heard from person like you that only he who knows the Self goes beyond sorrow.” (Bṛhadāraṇyaka 2.4.10)  The Mundaka says, “Two kinds of knowledge must be known, the higher and the lower. The lower knowledge is that which the Rk, Sama, Athtarva, Ceremonial, Grammar give…but the higher knowledge is that by which the immortal Brahman is known.” (Mundaka I.1. 4-5.)
  
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[[Vedanta]], is chiefly composed of ''[[Aranyaka|Āranyaka]]s'' and Upanishads. The Aranyakas ("of the forest") detail meditative yogic practices, contemplations of the mystic one and the manifold manifested principles. The Upanishad basically realized all the monist and universal mystical ideas that started in earlier Vedic hymns, and have exerted an influence unprecedented on the rest of [[Hindu Philosophy|Hindu]] and [[Indian philosophy]]. However, by adherents they are not considered philosophy alone, and form meditations and practical teachings for those advanced enough to benefit from their wisdom.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}
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The Upanishads contain injunctions to secrecy in the communication of their doctrines, and emphasize that they should only be taught to students who show themselves worthy by their moral restraint and sincere desire for truth. To see the Self, one must become  “Calm, controlled, quiet, patiently enduring and contented.” (Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upanishad IV.iv.23.)
  
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==Contents==
 
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The ''[[Taittiriya Upanishad]]'' says this in the Ninth Chapter:
 
  
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{{Quotation|He who knows the Bliss of [[Brahman]], whence words together with the mind turn away, unable to reach It? He is not afraid of anything whatsoever. He does not distress himself with the thought: "Why did I not do what is good? Why did I do what is evil?." Whosoever knows this regards both these as Atman; indeed he cherishes both these as Atman. Such, indeed, is the Upanishad, the secret knowledge of Brahman.|Taittiriya Upanishad Chpt 9 (II-9-1)}}
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{{quotation|Get up! Wake up! Seek the guidance of an<br/>Illumined teacher and realize the Self.<br/>Sharp like a razor's edge is the path,<br/>The sages say, difficult to traverse.|Death Instructing Nachiketa in the ''Katha (Word) Upanishad''}}
  
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The Upanishads hold information on basic Hindu beliefs, including belief in a world soul, a universal spirit, Brahman, and an individual soul, Atman (Smith 10). In Sanskrit, the word Brahman has two genders (masculine, Brahmâ, the creator-god or Brahman, neuter, the Absolute). A variety of lesser gods are seen as aspects of this one divine ground, Brahman (different from [[Brahma]]). Brahman is the ultimate, both transcendent and immanent, the absolute infinite existence, the sum total of all that ever is, was, or ever shall be. [[Shankara]]'s exegesis of the Upanishads describes Brahman not as God in the monotheistic sense; he ascribes to it no limiting characteristics, not even those of being and non-being.{{Fact|date=April 2007}} Thus, Shankara's philosophy is named [[advaita]], "not two." [[Dvaita]] philosophy is a very different interpretation. Founded by [[Madhvacharya]], this school holds that Brahman is ultimately a personal God, [[Vishnu]], or [[Krishna]] (''brahmano hi pratisthaham'', ''I am the Foundation of Brahman'' [[Bhagavad Gita]] 14.27). [[Vishishtadvaita]] is the third major school of Vedanta, and it has some aspects in common with the other two.
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“The Self is not to be attained by one without fortitude, not through slacknes nor without distinctive marks of discipline. (“Mundaka Upanishad III ii 4.) X
  
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{{Quotation|Who is the Knower?<br/>What makes my mind think?<br/>Does life have a purpose, or is it governed by chance?<br/>What is the cause of the Cosmos?|Upanishads}}
 
  
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The sages of the Upanishad try to solve these mysteries and seek knowledge of a Reality beyond ordinary knowing. They also show a preoccupation with states of consciousness, and observed and analysed dreams as well as dreamless sleep.
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==Philosophy==
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The Upanishads contain the essence of the Vedic teaching, and the foundations for most of the later philosophies and religions of India. <ref>Rhadakrishnan, Indian Philosophy, Vol. I, p.138</ref> Because the Upanishads were regarded as revealed truth, most of the subsequent systems of philosophy attempted to reconcile themselves to at least some of the doctrines of the Upanishads, and to represent themselves as further developments of those doctrines.  Reason was regarded as subservient to revelation; the highest truths could be found in the revelation of the Vedas, and the role of reason was to find the real meaning in the conflicting ideas of the Vedas. The highest knowledge of the truth is declared in the Upanishads<ref> Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I., p.41</ref>
  
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===Philosophy===
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The Upanishads are an unsystematized compilation of dialogs, monologues and anecdotes composed by multiple authors.  They are characterized by a unity of purpose and a consistency of intuition, rather than by consistency of logic, and contain certain fundamental ideas that provide the first sketch of a philosophical system. <ref> Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I. ,  p139</ref> The Upanishads emphasize the difference between an ignorant, narrow, selfish way, which leads to transitory satisfaction, and the way of wisdom which leads to eternal life.  The supreme goal is self-realization, release from the cosmic law of karma and union with the Supreme Being.
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Due to their mystical nature and intense philosophical bent that does away with all ritual and completely embraces principals of One Brahman and the inner Atman (Self), the Upanishads have a universal feel that has led to their explication in numerous manners, giving birth to the three schools of [[Vedanta]].
 
  
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The Upanishads  are summed up in one phrase तत् त्वं असि "[[Tat Tvam Asi]]" (That thou art) by the [[Advaita Vedanta]] and they believe that in the end, the ultimate, formless, inconceivable Brahman is the same as our soul, Atman. We only have to realize it through discrimination. 
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{{Quotation|He who knows the Bliss of [[Brahman]], whence words together with the mind turn away, unable to reach It? He is not afraid of anything whatsoever. He does not distress himself with the thought: "Why did I not do what is good? Why did I do what is evil?." Whosoever knows this regards both these as Atman; indeed he cherishes both these as Atman. Such, indeed, is the Upanishad, the secret knowledge of Brahman.|Taittiriya Upanishad Chapter 9 (II-9-1)}}
  
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A distinctive quotation that is indicative of the call to self-realization, one that inspired [[Somerset Maugham]] in titling a book he wrote about a young American who travels from Europe to India and returns somewhat enlightened ([[The Razor's Edge]]; another editor says it was about [[Christopher Isherwood]]), is as follows:
 
  
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{{quotation|Get up! Wake up! Seek the guidance of an<br/>Illumined teacher and realize the Self.<br/>Sharp like a razor's edge is the path,<br/>The sages say, difficult to traverse.|Death Instructing Nachiketa in the ''Katha (Word) Upanishad''}}
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Traditionally it has been believed that, as revealed texts, all the Upanishads teach the same truths. In fact, there have been numerous and widely varying interpretations of the Upanishads, and all of their teachings are not equally developed.  However, they display a unity of purpose and all emphasize the same fundamental doctrine, which can be considered as a monistic idealism, or idealistic monism, and.<ref>Sharma, Chandrahar. A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy. 2003. Motilal Banarsidass. New Delhi. ISBN: 881-208-0364-7  81-208-0365-5 pp. 17-18</ref>
  
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The Upanishads also contain the first and most definitive explications of [[aum]] as the divine word, the cosmic vibration that underlies all existence and contains multiple trinities of being and principles subsumed into its One Self.
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The Upanishads contain the first and most definitive explications of [[aum]] as the divine word, the cosmic vibration that underlies all existence and contains multiple trinities of being and principles subsumed into its One Self.
 
The ''Isha'' says of the Self (Verses 6, 7 & 8 of [[Isha Upanishad]]):
 
The ''Isha'' says of the Self (Verses 6, 7 & 8 of [[Isha Upanishad]]):
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===Brahman and Atman===
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The fundamental idea which runs through the early Upanishads is that underlying the exterior, changing world, there is an unchangeable reality which is identical with that which underlies the essence in man.<ref> Bṛhadāraṇyaka iv. 4. 5.22</ref> <ref> Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I., p. 42</ref> The Upanishads are preoccupied with the search for the nature of this unchanging reality, identified as Brahman, the ultimate essence of the universe.
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The essence of the universe can only be known through the Atman, the inmost essence of man, the individual self, soul, and mind. The substance of Upanishad teaching is that Brahman and Atman, the cosmic and psychical principles, are one and the same.
  
 
{{Quotation|Whoever sees all beings in the soul<br/>and the soul in all beings<br/>does not shrink away from this.<br/>In whom all beings have become one with the knowing soul<br/>what delusion or sorrow is there for the one who sees unity?<br/>It has filled all.<br/>It is radiant, incorporeal, invulnerable,<br/>without tendons, pure, untouched by evil.<br/>Wise, intelligent, encompassing, self-existent,<br/>it organizes objects throughout eternity.|Isha Upanishad Verses 6, 7, & 8}}
 
{{Quotation|Whoever sees all beings in the soul<br/>and the soul in all beings<br/>does not shrink away from this.<br/>In whom all beings have become one with the knowing soul<br/>what delusion or sorrow is there for the one who sees unity?<br/>It has filled all.<br/>It is radiant, incorporeal, invulnerable,<br/>without tendons, pure, untouched by evil.<br/>Wise, intelligent, encompassing, self-existent,<br/>it organizes objects throughout eternity.|Isha Upanishad Verses 6, 7, & 8}}
  
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"''Aum Shanti Shanti Shanti''" This, too, is found first in the Upanishads, the call for tranquility, for divine stillness, for Peace everlasting.
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===Intellect===
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The ideal of intellect is to discover this unity of Brahman and Atman.  However, intellect and reason, which are limited by time, space and cause, are inadequate to achieve this understanding.  According to the Upanishads, man has a faculty of divine insight or intuitive realization which transcends the intellect in order to grasp the fullness of reality.  Intellect and intuition must support each other in order to arrive at true understanding.<ref>Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I., pp. 173 – 179</ref>
  
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[[Dara Shikoh]], the [[Muslim]] [[sufi]], and son of [[Mughal]] emperor [[Shah Jahan]], translated the Upanishads in [[Persian language|Persian]] in order to find in it elements of [[monotheism]] that might pave the way for a common [[mystical]] bond between [[Islam]] and [[Hinduism]]..
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===World and Creation===
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The Upanishads reconcile the unchanging essence of Brahman with the reality of the external world by holding that the universe has come out of Brahman, has its essence in Brahman and will return to Brahman. <ref>Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I. , p. 51</ref> The world is sometimes spoken of as having a twofold aspect, organic and inorganic.  All organic things, whether plants, animals, or men, have souls (Chāndogya VI.ii.)  Brahman, desiring to be many, created fire (tejas), water (ap) and earth (ksiti), then entered into these three, and by their combinations all other physical bodies were formed. (Chāndogya VI. 2,3, 4.) The  Taittirīya, II. I, speaks of ether (ākāśa) as proceeding from Brahman, and the other elements, air, fire, water and earth each proceeding directly from the one which preceded it. <ref> Ibid., p. 51</ref>
  
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==List of Upanishads==
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===Transmigration===
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{{wikisourcelang|oldwikisource|उपनिषद्|उपनिषद्}}
+
The Upanishads develop the concept that a human being is recompensed for his good deeds not only in an afterlife, but by rebirth in another body in the physical world.  Those who cultivate faith and asceticism may enter directly into Brahman at the death of their physical bodies.  The desires of the self are the cause and motivation for the progression of a person’s development.  When the self continues to desire and to act, it is reborn into this physical world in order to continue desiring and acting.  A person acts according to his desires, and those good and bad actions shape his soul and determine his future course. <ref>Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I. , p. 53 - 57</ref> 
 +
 
 +
===Emanciaption (mukti)===
 +
In the Upanishads, mukti or Emancipation means the state of infiniteness attained when a person knows himself. The wise man who has divested himself of all desire and knows he is Brahman at once becomes Brahman, and is no longer restricted by bondages of any kind.  All sufferings and limitations are true only because man does not know himself. Emancipation is the natural goal of man, because it represents the essence and true nature of man.<ref> Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I., p. 58</ref>
 +
==List of Upanishads उपनिषद्, उपनिषद् ==
  
 
==="Principal" Upanishads===
 
==="Principal" Upanishads===
Line 214: Line 227:
  
 
==References==
 
==References==
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* Edmonds, I.G.  Hinduism. New York:  Franklin Watts, 1979.
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* Dasgupta, Surendranath. (1973)  A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I. Delhi, Motilal Banarsidass.  ISBN: 8120804120  8120804082
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* [[Eknath Easwaran]], The Upanishads. Nilgiri Press, 1987.
+
*Embree, A. T. (1972). The Hindu tradition. New York, Modern Library. ISBN: 0394717023 : 9780394717029
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* Embree, Ainslie T., ed. The Hindu Tradition. New York: Random House, 1966.  
+
*Hay, Jeff. 2006. Hinduism. Religions and religious movements. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press. ISBN: 0737725699 9780737725698
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* Merrett, Frances, ed. The Hindu World. London: MacDonald and Co, 1985.
+
*Mittal, Sushil, and Gene R. Thursby. 2004. The Hindu world. The Routledge worlds. New York: Routledge. ISBN: 0415215277 9780415215275
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* Pandit, Bansi. The Hindu Mind.  Glen Ellyn, IL:  B&V Enterprises, 1998.
+
*Müller, F. Max. 1962. The Upaniṣads. New York: Dover Publications.
−
* Smith, Huston. The Illustrated World’s Religions: A Guide to Our Wisdom Traditions. New York: Labrynth Publishing, 1995.
+
* Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli. (1998) Indian Philosophy, Volume I. New Delhi, Manzar Khan, Oxford University Press. ISBN: 0195638190
−
* Wangu, Madhu Bazaz. Hinduism:  World Religions. New York: Facts on File, 1991.
+
* Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli and Moore, Charles A., editors. (1973) A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy. Princeton, N.J., Princeton University Press ISBN: 0691019584
 +
*Sharma, Chandrahar. (2003 ) A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy.Delhi, Motilal Banarsidass.  ISBN: 8120803647 8120803655
 +
*Smith, Huston. 1994. The illustrated world's religions: a guide to our wisdom traditions. [San Francisco]: HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN: 0060674539 : 9780060674533
 +
*The Upanishads. 2007. Nilgiri Pr. ISBN: 9781586380212 1586380214
  
 
==See also==
 
==See also==
−
{{IndicText}}
+
 
 
* [[Advaita Vedanta]]
 
* [[Advaita Vedanta]]
 
* [[Bhagavad Gita]]
 
* [[Bhagavad Gita]]

Revision as of 15:10, 7 August 2007


Part of a series on
Hindu scriptures
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Vedas
Rigveda · Yajurveda
Samaveda · Atharvaveda
Vedic divisions
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Aranyaka  · Upanishad
Upanishad
Aitareya · Brihadaranyaka
Isha · Taittiriya · Chandogya
Kena · Mundaka
Mandukya · Prashna
Shvetashvatara
Vedanga
Shiksha · Chandas
Vyakarana · Nirukta
Jyotisha · Kalpa
Itihasa
Mahabharata · Ramayana
Other scriptures
Smriti · Śruti
Bhagavad Gita · Purana
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Bibliography

The Upanishads (Devanagari: उपनिषद्, IAST: upaniṣad), often regarded as the “crown” or the “cream” of the Vedas[1] are the Hindu scriptures which primarily discuss philosophy, meditation, and the nature of God; they form the core spiritual thought of Vedantic Hinduism. They are an unsystematized compilation of dialogs, monologues and anecdotes composed by multiple authors, which contain the foundations for most of the later philosophies and religions of India. Vedic texts are traditionally categorized into four classes: the Samhitās (mantras), Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and Upanishads.[2] Each Upanishad is associated with one of the Samhitas. Vedanta, “the culmination of the Vedas,” is chiefly composed of Āranyakas and Upanishads. The oldest, such as the Brhadaranyaka and Chandogya Upanishads, have been dated to around the eighth century B.C.E.; later ones were still being composed at the time when Islamic influence was spreading through India. According to tradition, there were over two hundred Upanishads, but the philosopher and commentator Shankara (who lived sometime between 509 and 820 C.E.) only composed commentaries to eleven of them, generally regarded as the oldest and most important ones. The Muktika Upanishad lists 108 Upanishads.

Because the Upanishads were regarded as revealed truth (sruti) , most of the subsequent systems of philosophy attempted to reconcile themselves to at least some of the doctrines of the Upanishads, and to represent themselves as further developments of those doctrines. The fundamental idea which runs through the early Upanishads is that underlying the exterior, changing world, there is an unchangeable reality (Brahman) which is identical with that which underlies the essence in man (Atman). [3] The essence of the universe can only be known through the Atman, the inmost essence of man, the individual self, soul, and mind. The Upanishads were a revival of spiritualism, a reaction to the complicated ritualism, ceremonialism and formalism of the Brahmanas. They declared that perfection was inward and spiritual, rather than outward and mechanical, and that God was to be honored by spiritual worship, not external ceremony.

Etymology

The Sanskrit term upaniṣad literally means "sitting down beside".[4] The word derives from “upa” (near), “ni” (down), and “sad” (to sit), and refers to "sitting down near" a spiritual teacher (guru) in order to receive instruction in the Guru-shishya tradition.

Monier-Williams notes that "according to some the sitting down at the feet of another to listen to his words (and hence, secret knowledge given in this manner; but according to native authorities upanishad means 'setting at rest ignorance by revealing the knowledge of the supreme spirit...)"[5] Other dictionary meanings include "esoteric doctrine" and "secret doctrine."

A gloss of the term upaniṣad based on Shankara's commentary on the Kaṭha and Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upanishads equates it with Ātmavidyā, that is "knowledge of the Self," or Brahmavidyā "knowledge of Brahma." Shankara derived the word from the root “sad” (to destroy, loosen) and equated its meaning with the destruction of ignorance.

Origins

The first Upanishads, Aitareya, Kauśītāki, Chāndogya, Kena, Taittirīya, Bṛhadāraṇyaka, Īṣa, and Kaṭha, were composed as early as the eighth and seventh centuries B.C.E. and predate Buddha. [6]The accepted dates for the early Upanishads are 1000 to 300 B.C.E.. [7] Though the first Upanishads were compiled by 500 B.C.E., later ones were still being composed at the time when Islamic influence was spreading through India. [8] The language of the Upanishads is Sanskrit, the oldest among them still classifying as late Vedic Sanskrit. The Upanishads were transmitted orally by the Vedic schools sakhas long before they were committed to writing. The oldest and longest Upanishads, the Bṛhadāraṇyaka and the Chāndogya were composed in prose. Later Upanishads such as the Īśa, Māṇḍukya, Katha, and Śvetāśvatara Upanishads, were composed in verse.

The authorship of the Upanishads is unknown, but some of their chief doctrines are associated with the names of particular sages such as Aruni, Yajnavalkya, Bâlâki, Svetaketu, and Sândilya. [9] The Upanishads belong to the class of sruti, or revealed literature, uttered by sages in the fullness of an illumined understanding of truth.

According to tradition, there were over two hundred Upanishads, but the philosopher and commentator Shankara (who lived sometime between 509 and 820 C.E.) only composed commentaries to eleven of them, generally regarded as the oldest ones. The Muktika Upanishad lists 108 Upanishads. According to Panini's Ashtadhyayi (also known as Panineeyam), the total number of Upanishads was 900, and Patanjali also puts the number at 900; it appears that most of them are lost forever. The Nigeernopanishad, of apocryphal nature, names 187 Upanishads. However, many of the interpolations of Nigeerna are as late as the fourteenth century.[10]

Introduction to Europe

In 1640, Dara Shikoh, eldest son of the Emperor Shāh Jahān, heard about the Upanishads while staying in Kashmir, and recognized elements of monotheism that might pave the way for a common mystical bond between Islam and Hinduism. He invited several Pandits to come to Delhi and translate them from Sanskrit into Persian, a task that was completed in 1656. In 1775, Abraham-Hyacinthe Anquetil Du Perron, the discoverer of the Zend-Avesta, was presented with a copy by his friend Le Gentil, who was then French resident at the court of Shuja-uddaulah in Faizabad. From 1802 to 1804, Anquetil published a two-volume Latin translation from the Persian Oupnek'hat, or Upanishada. It was a curious mixture of Latin, Greek, Persian, Arabic, and Sanskrit.

This translation was read by Schopenhauer (1788 – 1860), whose philosophy was profoundly influenced by it. In the Preface to Welt als Wille und Vorstellung, he wrote:

” And if, indeed, in addition to this he is a partaker of the benefit conferred by the Vedas, the access to which, opened to us through the Upanishads, is in my eyes the greatest advantage which this still young century enjoys over previous ones…then he is best of all prepared to hear what I have to say to him…I might express the opinion that each one of the individual and disconnected aphorisms which make up the Upanishads may be deduced as a consequence from the thought that I am going to impart, though the converse, that my thought is to be found in the Upanishads, is by no means the case….In the whole world there is no study, except that of the originals, so beneficial and so elevating as that of the Oupnek'hat. It has been the solace of my life; it will be the solace of my death!”

Place in the Hindu Canon

Vedic texts are traditionally categorized into four classes: the Samhitās (mantras), Brahmanas, Aranyakas, and Upanishads.[11] Scholars of the Vedic books consider the four samhitā (collectively called “mantra”), Rig Veda, Samaveda, Yajurveda, and Atharvaveda, as poetic liturgy, adoration and supplication to the deities of vedic religion, in parts already melded with monist and henotheist notions, and an overarching order (Rta) that transcended even the gods. Each samhitā is followed by Brāhmana, which came after the Mantra, and were a collection of ritual instructions and books detailing the priestly functions. The Aranyakas ("of the forest"), detailing meditative yogic practices, contemplations of the mystic one and the manifold manifested principles, were an outgrowth of the Brahmanas, and were followed and fulfilled by the Upanishads, the philosophical and meditative tracts that form the backbone of Hindu thought. Vedanta, “the culmination of the Vedas,” is chiefly composed of Āranyakas and Upanishads.

Of the early Upanishads, the Aitareya and Kauṣītāki belong to the Rig Veda, Kena and Chāndogya to the Samaveda, Īṣa and Taittirīya and Bṛhadāraṇyaka to the Yajurveda, and Praṣna and Muṇḍaka to the Atharvaveda.[12] In addition, the Māṇḍukya, Kathā, Śvetāśvatara are very important, and some scholars also include Mahānārāyaṇa and Maitreyi Upanishads among the most important Upanishads.

The Upanishads were a revival of spiritualism, a reaction to the complicated ritualism, ceremonialism and formalism of the Brahmanas. Instructions for horse sacrifices, for example, were replaced with directions for inner meditations on the nature of the horse. The Upanishads declared that the soul would not obtain salvation by the performance of sacrifices and rituals, but only by living a truly religious life, based on insight into the heart of the universe. Perfection was inward and spiritual, rather than outward and mechanical, and God was to be honored by spiritual worship, not external ceremony. [13]

The Upanishads distinguish between a higher and lower knowledge of the truth. While considering that the Vedas are of divine origin, they recognize that Vedic knowledge will not liberate the soul. [14].The sage Nārada tells Sanatkumāra , “I know the Rgveda, sir, the Yajih, the Sāma, with all these I know only the Mantras and the sacred books, I do not know the Self…I have heard from person like you that only he who knows the Self goes beyond sorrow.” (Bṛhadāraṇyaka 2.4.10) The Mundaka says, “Two kinds of knowledge must be known, the higher and the lower. The lower knowledge is that which the Rk, Sama, Athtarva, Ceremonial, Grammar give…but the higher knowledge is that by which the immortal Brahman is known.” (Mundaka I.1. 4-5.)

The Upanishads contain injunctions to secrecy in the communication of their doctrines, and emphasize that they should only be taught to students who show themselves worthy by their moral restraint and sincere desire for truth. To see the Self, one must become “Calm, controlled, quiet, patiently enduring and contented.” (Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upanishad IV.iv.23.)


Get up! Wake up! Seek the guidance of an
Illumined teacher and realize the Self.
Sharp like a razor's edge is the path,
The sages say, difficult to traverse.

Death Instructing Nachiketa in the Katha (Word) Upanishad

“The Self is not to be attained by one without fortitude, not through slacknes nor without distinctive marks of discipline. (“Mundaka Upanishad III ii 4.) X


Philosophy

The Upanishads contain the essence of the Vedic teaching, and the foundations for most of the later philosophies and religions of India. [15] Because the Upanishads were regarded as revealed truth, most of the subsequent systems of philosophy attempted to reconcile themselves to at least some of the doctrines of the Upanishads, and to represent themselves as further developments of those doctrines. Reason was regarded as subservient to revelation; the highest truths could be found in the revelation of the Vedas, and the role of reason was to find the real meaning in the conflicting ideas of the Vedas. The highest knowledge of the truth is declared in the Upanishads[16]

The Upanishads are an unsystematized compilation of dialogs, monologues and anecdotes composed by multiple authors. They are characterized by a unity of purpose and a consistency of intuition, rather than by consistency of logic, and contain certain fundamental ideas that provide the first sketch of a philosophical system. [17] The Upanishads emphasize the difference between an ignorant, narrow, selfish way, which leads to transitory satisfaction, and the way of wisdom which leads to eternal life. The supreme goal is self-realization, release from the cosmic law of karma and union with the Supreme Being.

He who knows the Bliss of Brahman, whence words together with the mind turn away, unable to reach It? He is not afraid of anything whatsoever. He does not distress himself with the thought: "Why did I not do what is good? Why did I do what is evil?." Whosoever knows this regards both these as Atman; indeed he cherishes both these as Atman. Such, indeed, is the Upanishad, the secret knowledge of Brahman.

Taittiriya Upanishad Chapter 9 (II-9-1)


Traditionally it has been believed that, as revealed texts, all the Upanishads teach the same truths. In fact, there have been numerous and widely varying interpretations of the Upanishads, and all of their teachings are not equally developed. However, they display a unity of purpose and all emphasize the same fundamental doctrine, which can be considered as a monistic idealism, or idealistic monism, and.[18]

The Upanishads contain the first and most definitive explications of aum as the divine word, the cosmic vibration that underlies all existence and contains multiple trinities of being and principles subsumed into its One Self. The Isha says of the Self (Verses 6, 7 & 8 of Isha Upanishad):

Brahman and Atman

The fundamental idea which runs through the early Upanishads is that underlying the exterior, changing world, there is an unchangeable reality which is identical with that which underlies the essence in man.[19] [20] The Upanishads are preoccupied with the search for the nature of this unchanging reality, identified as Brahman, the ultimate essence of the universe.

The essence of the universe can only be known through the Atman, the inmost essence of man, the individual self, soul, and mind. The substance of Upanishad teaching is that Brahman and Atman, the cosmic and psychical principles, are one and the same.

Whoever sees all beings in the soul
and the soul in all beings
does not shrink away from this.
In whom all beings have become one with the knowing soul
what delusion or sorrow is there for the one who sees unity?
It has filled all.
It is radiant, incorporeal, invulnerable,
without tendons, pure, untouched by evil.
Wise, intelligent, encompassing, self-existent,
it organizes objects throughout eternity.

Isha Upanishad Verses 6, 7, & 8

Intellect

The ideal of intellect is to discover this unity of Brahman and Atman. However, intellect and reason, which are limited by time, space and cause, are inadequate to achieve this understanding. According to the Upanishads, man has a faculty of divine insight or intuitive realization which transcends the intellect in order to grasp the fullness of reality. Intellect and intuition must support each other in order to arrive at true understanding.[21]

World and Creation

The Upanishads reconcile the unchanging essence of Brahman with the reality of the external world by holding that the universe has come out of Brahman, has its essence in Brahman and will return to Brahman. [22] The world is sometimes spoken of as having a twofold aspect, organic and inorganic. All organic things, whether plants, animals, or men, have souls (Chāndogya VI.ii.) Brahman, desiring to be many, created fire (tejas), water (ap) and earth (ksiti), then entered into these three, and by their combinations all other physical bodies were formed. (Chāndogya VI. 2,3, 4.) The Taittirīya, II. I, speaks of ether (ākāśa) as proceeding from Brahman, and the other elements, air, fire, water and earth each proceeding directly from the one which preceded it. [23]

Transmigration

The Upanishads develop the concept that a human being is recompensed for his good deeds not only in an afterlife, but by rebirth in another body in the physical world. Those who cultivate faith and asceticism may enter directly into Brahman at the death of their physical bodies. The desires of the self are the cause and motivation for the progression of a person’s development. When the self continues to desire and to act, it is reborn into this physical world in order to continue desiring and acting. A person acts according to his desires, and those good and bad actions shape his soul and determine his future course. [24]

Emanciaption (mukti)

In the Upanishads, mukti or Emancipation means the state of infiniteness attained when a person knows himself. The wise man who has divested himself of all desire and knows he is Brahman at once becomes Brahman, and is no longer restricted by bondages of any kind. All sufferings and limitations are true only because man does not know himself. Emancipation is the natural goal of man, because it represents the essence and true nature of man.[25]

List of Upanishads उपनिषद्, उपनिषद्

"Principal" Upanishads

The following is a list of the eleven "principal" (mukhya) Upanishads that were commented upon[2] by Shankara, and that are accepted as shruti by all Hindus. They are listed with their associated Veda (Rigveda (ṚV), Samaveda (SV), White Yajurveda (ŚYV), Black Yajurveda (KYV), Atharvaveda (AV)).

  1. Aitareya (ṚV)
  2. Bṛhadāraṇyaka (ŚYV)
  3. Īṣa (ŚYV)
  4. Taittirīya (KYV)
  5. Kaṭha (KYV)
  6. Chāndogya (SV)
  7. Kena (SV)
  8. Muṇḍaka (AV)
  9. Māṇḍūkya (AV)
  10. Praśna (AV)
  11. Śvetāśvatara(KYV)

The Kauśītāki and Maitrāyaṇi Upanishads are sometimes added to extend the canon to 13. They are also the oldest Upanishads, likely all of them dating to before the Common Era. From linguistic evidence, the oldest among them are likely the Bṛhadāraṇyaka and Chāndogya Upanishads, belonging to the late Vedic Sanskrit period; the remaining ones are at the transition from Vedic to Classical Sanskrit.

Canon by Vedic Shakha

The older Upanishads are associated with Vedic Charanas (Shakhas or schools). The Aitareya Upanishad with the Shakala shakha, the Kauśītāki Upanishad with the Bashakala shakha; the Chāndogya Upanishad with the Kauthuma shakha, the Kena Upanishad, and the Jaiminiya Upanishad Brahmana, with the Jaiminiya shakha; the Kaṭha Upanishad with the Caraka-Katha shakha, the Taittirīya and Śvetāśvatara with the Taittiriya shakha; the Maitrāyaṇi Upanishad with the Maitrayani shakha; the Bṛhadāraṇyaka and Īṣa Upanishads with the Vajasaneyi Madhyandina shakha, and the Māṇḍūkya and Muṇḍaka Upanishads with the Shaunaka shakha. Additionally, parts of earlier texts, of Brahmanas or passages of the Vedas themselves, are sometimes considered Upanishads.

The Muktika canon

The following is a list of the 108 canonical Upanishads of the Advaita school, according to the Muktika Upanishad (number 108), 1:30-39 (which does not list the associated Veda). In this canon,

  • 10 Upanishads are associated with the Rigveda and have the Shānti beginning vaṇme-manasi.
  • 16 Upanishads are associated with the Samaveda and have the Shānti beginning āpyāyantu.
  • 19 Upanishads are associated with the White Yajurveda and have the Shānti beginning pūrṇamada.
  • 32 Upanishads are associated with the Black Yajurveda and have the Shānti beginning sahanāvavatu.
  • 31 Upanishads are associated with the Atharvaveda and have the Shānti beginning bhadram-karṇebhiḥ.

The first 10 are grouped as mukhya "principal," and are identical to those listed above. 21 are grouped as Sāmānya Vedānta "common Vedanta," 23 as Sannyāsa, 9 as Shākta, 13 as Vaishnava, 14 as Shaiva and 17 as Yoga Upanishads.[citation needed]

  1. Īṣa, (ŚYV, Mukhya) "The Inner Ruler"
  2. Kena (SV, Mukhya) "Who moves the world?"
  3. Kaṭha (KYV, Mukhya) "Death as Teacher"
  4. Praśna, (AV, Mukhya) "The Breath of Life"
  5. Muṇḍaka (AV, Mukhya) "Two modes of Knowing"
  6. Māṇḍūkya (AV, Mukhya) "Consciousness and its phases"
  7. Taittirīya (KYV, Mukhya) "From Food to Joy"
  8. Aitareya, (ṚV Mukhya) "The Microcosm of Man"
  9. Chāndogya (SV, Mukhya) "Song and Sacrifice"
  10. Bṛhadāraṇyaka (ŚYV, Mukhya)
  11. Brahma (KYV, Sannyasa)
  12. Kaivalya (KYV, Shaiva)[3]
  13. Jābāla (ŚYV, Sannyasa)
  14. Śvetāśvatara (KYV, Sannyasa) "The Faces of God"
  15. Haṃsa (ŚYV, Yoga)
  16. Āruṇeya (SV, Sannyasa)
  17. Garbha (KYV, Sannyasa)
  18. Nārāyaṇa (KYV, Vaishnava)
  19. Paramahaṃsa (ŚYV, Sannyasa)
  20. Amṛtabindu (KYV, Yoga)
  21. Amṛtanāda (KYV, Yoga)
  22. Śira (AV, Shaiva)
  23. Atharvaśikha (AV, Shaiva)
  24. Maitrāyaṇi (SV, Sannyasa)
  25. Kauśītāki (ṚV, Samanya)
  26. Bṛhajjābāla (AV, Shaiva)
  27. Nṛsiṃhatāpanī (AV, Vaishnava)
  28. Kālāgnirudra (KYV, Shaiva)
  29. Maitreyi (SV, Sannyasa)
  30. Subāla (ŚYV, Samanya)
  31. Kṣurika (KYV, Yoga)
  32. Mantrika (ŚYV, Samanya)
  33. Sarvasāra (KYV, Samanya)
  34. Nirālamba (ŚYV, Samanya)
  35. Śukarahasya (KYV, Samanya)
  36. Vajrasūchi (SV, Samanya)
  37. Tejobindu (KYV, Sannyasa)
  38. Nādabindu (ṚV, Yoga) [4]
  39. Dhyānabindu (KYV, Yoga)
  40. Brahmavidyā (KYV, Yoga)
  41. Yogatattva (KYV, Yoga)
  42. Ātmabodha (ṚV, Samanya)
  43. Parivrāt (Nāradaparivrājaka) (AV, Sannyasa)
  44. Triśikhi (ŚYV, Yoga)
  45. Sītā (AV, Shakta)
  46. Yogachūḍāmaṇi (SV, Yoga)
  47. Nirvāṇa (ṚV, Sannyasa)
  48. Maṇḍalabrāhmaṇa (ŚYV, Yoga)
  49. Dakṣiṇāmūrti (KYV, Shaiva)
  50. Śarabha (AV, Shaiva)
  51. Skanda (Tripāḍvibhūṭi) (KYV, Samanya)
  52. Mahānārāyaṇa (AV, Vaishnava)
  53. Advayatāraka (ŚYV, Sannyasa)
  54. Rāmarahasya (AV, Vaishnava)
  55. Rāmatāpaṇi (AV, Vaishnava)
  56. Vāsudeva (SV, Vaishnava)
  57. Mudgala (ṚV, Samanya)
  58. Śāṇḍilya (AV, Yoga)
  59. Paiṅgala (ŚYV, Samanya)
  60. Bhikṣu (ŚYV, Sannyasa)
  61. Mahad (SV, Samanya)
  62. Śārīraka (KYV, Samanya)
  63. Yogaśikhā (KYV Yoga)
  64. Turīyātīta (ŚYV, Sannyasa)
  65. Sannyāsa (SV, Sannyasa)
  66. Paramahaṃsaparivrājaka (AV, Sannyasa)
  67. Akṣamālika (Mālika) (ṚV, Shaiva)
  68. Avyakta (SV, Vaishnava)
  69. Ekākṣara (KYV, Samanya)
  70. Annapūrṇa (AV, Shakta)
  71. Sūrya (AV, Samanya)
  72. Akṣi (KYV, Samanya)
  73. Adhyātmā (ŚYV, Samanya)
  74. Kuṇḍika (SV, Sannyasa)
  75. Sāvitrī (SV, Samanya)
  76. Ātmā (AV, Samanya)
  77. Pāśupata (AV, Yoga)
  78. Parabrahma (AV, Sannyasa)
  79. Avadhūta (KYV, Sannyasa)
  80. Devī (AV, Shakta)
  81. Tripurātapani (AV, Shakta)
  82. Tripura (ṚV, Shakta)
  83. Kaṭharudra (KYV, Sannyasa)
  84. Bhāvana (AV, Shakta)
  85. Rudrahṛdaya (KYV, Shaiva)
  86. Yogakuṇḍalini (KYV, Yoga)
  87. Bhasma (AV, Shaiva)
  88. Rudrākṣa (SV, Shaiva)
  89. Gaṇapati (AV, Shaiva)
  90. Darśana (SV, Yoga)
  91. Tārasāra (ŚYV, Vaishnava)
  92. Mahāvākya (AV, Yoga)
  93. Pañcabrahma (KYV, Shaiva)
  94. Prāṇāgnihotra (KYV, Samanya)
  95. Gopālatāpani (AV, Vaishnava)
  96. Kṛṣṇa (AV, Vaishnava)
  97. Yājñavalkya (ŚYV, Sannyasa)
  98. Varāha (KYV, Sannyasa)
  99. Śāṭyāyani (ŚYV, Sannyasa)
  100. Hayagrīva (AV, Vaishnava)
  101. Dattātreya (AV, Vaishnava)
  102. Gāruḍa (AV, Vaishnava)
  103. Kali-Saṇṭāraṇa (Kali) (KYV, Vaishnava)
  104. Jābāla (SV, Shaiva)
  105. Saubhāgya (ṚV, Shakta)
  106. Sarasvatīrahasya (KYV, Shakta)
  107. Bahvṛca (ṚV, Shakta)
  108. Muktika (ŚYV, Samanya)

Criticism

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The Upanishads were denounced by Lala Hardayal, the founder of the Ghadar Party, as "full of absurd conceits, quaint fancies and chaotic speculations". He also was critical of Hindu religious figures for allegedly dogmatizing the texts without "learning that they are worthless". [26][citation needed]

Dalit activist Bhimrao Ambedkar, contended that the Upanishads were the "true source of Hindu philosophy", but questioned whether the philosophy had any influence on Hinduism as a social and political system. According to his analysis, philosophy of Upanishads "turned out to be most ineffective and inconsequential piece of speculation with no effect on the moral and social order of the Hindus." [27]

Notes

  1. ↑ Upanishad
  2. ↑ Michaels 2004, p. 51.
  3. ↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I., p. 42
  4. ↑ Arthur Anthony Macdonell. A Practical Sanskrit Dictionary. p. 53.
  5. ↑ Monier-Williams. A Sanskrit-English Dictionary. p. 201. [1] Web version accessed 1 April 2007.
  6. ↑ Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli and Moore, Charles A., editors. A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy. 1973. Princeton, N.J., Princeton University Press ISBN 0-691-01958-4 p. 37
  7. ↑ Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I. 1998. Manzar Khan, Oxford University Press. New Delhi. ISBN 019-563819 0, p.142
  8. ↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I. 1973. Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi. ISBN 81-208-0412-0 81-208-0408-2, p. 39
  9. ↑ A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy, p. 37
  10. ↑ Upanishads in Sankara's Own Words, Panoli, Mathrubhumi Books, India
  11. ↑ Michaels 2004, p. 51.
  12. ↑ Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I.
  13. ↑ Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I., p.148
  14. ↑ Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I. , p. 149
  15. ↑ Rhadakrishnan, Indian Philosophy, Vol. I, p.138
  16. ↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I., p.41
  17. ↑ Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I. , p139
  18. ↑ Sharma, Chandrahar. A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy. 2003. Motilal Banarsidass. New Delhi. ISBN: 881-208-0364-7 81-208-0365-5 pp. 17-18
  19. ↑ Bṛhadāraṇyaka iv. 4. 5.22
  20. ↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I., p. 42
  21. ↑ Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli.Indian Philosophy, Volume I., pp. 173 – 179
  22. ↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I. , p. 51
  23. ↑ Ibid., p. 51
  24. ↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I. , p. 53 - 57
  25. ↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath. A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I., p. 58
  26. ↑ Modern View, July 1912
  27. ↑ B.R. Ambedkar Philosophy of Hinduism, in "Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Writings and Speeches, vol. 3," Government of Maharashtra, Bombay, 1987

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Dasgupta, Surendranath. (1973) A History of Indian Philosophy, Vol. I. Delhi, Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN: 8120804120 8120804082
  • Embree, A. T. (1972). The Hindu tradition. New York, Modern Library. ISBN: 0394717023 : 9780394717029
  • Hay, Jeff. 2006. Hinduism. Religions and religious movements. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press. ISBN: 0737725699 9780737725698
  • Mittal, Sushil, and Gene R. Thursby. 2004. The Hindu world. The Routledge worlds. New York: Routledge. ISBN: 0415215277 9780415215275
  • Müller, F. Max. 1962. The Upaniṣads. New York: Dover Publications.
  • Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli. (1998) Indian Philosophy, Volume I. New Delhi, Manzar Khan, Oxford University Press. ISBN: 0195638190
  • Radhakrishnan, Sarvepalli and Moore, Charles A., editors. (1973) A Sourcebook in Indian Philosophy. Princeton, N.J., Princeton University Press ISBN: 0691019584
  • Sharma, Chandrahar. (2003 ) A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy.Delhi, Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN: 8120803647 8120803655
  • Smith, Huston. 1994. The illustrated world's religions: a guide to our wisdom traditions. [San Francisco]: HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN: 0060674539 : 9780060674533
  • The Upanishads. 2007. Nilgiri Pr. ISBN: 9781586380212 1586380214

See also

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