TAITTIRIYA UPANISHAD – 21. Rishi Yajnavalkya.

Chinmaya Mission :

CORD - Chinmaya Organisation for Rural Development :

Empowering minds and shaping the future has been the motto of CORD, a leading non-profit organization working towards rural development in India. Their collaboration with Teach For India (TFI) has proven to be successful, benefiting over 500 people.

CORD organized a retreat for the members, where they were trained on various aspects of CORD's rural development model and had the opportunity to interact with Dr. Kshama Metre, the National Director of CORD. The immersive experience allowed participants to share their insights and experiences with the community members, leading to positive transformation in their daily lives. CORD's collaborations with organizations, corporates, and academics aim to bring about positive change in rural India.

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PART 1:  Chapters : 12.    

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Friday, February 10, 2023. 07:30.

SAGUNA-BRAHMAN UPASANAS :

Part-1.

Chapter-6.

Meditations on Form 

Post-21.

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THIS CHAPTER IS CONNECTED with the previous one. The Upasanas begun in the 

last Anuvaka, continue along the same lines of Vyaahrityas but take the student deeper into 

the experience of subtlety towards Brahman within himself. 

In Chapter 5, Upasanas began with the Worlds (gross body), then moved on to the 

Devatas (the subtle body), then to the Vedas (into the realm of knowledge or the intellect) 

and Pranas (the forces of Life). All these take the student up to Hiranyagarbha, the Total 

Mind, which is at the subtle body level. 

Now we go into the next phase of spiritual development. The focus shifts mostly into 

the realm of Mahah which represents the Supreme Brahman. Mahah includes Bhuh, Bhuvah 

and Suvah, but also transcends them. Ten Upasanas on the attributes of Brahman are taught 

here. They are called Upasanas because they only direct our attention to Brahman. As 

knowledge of the Self has not been received yet, the true nature of Brahman is not known. 

The Upasanas train the mind to become more sharp and intensely concentrated. The 

qualities or attributes meditated upon point to the Infinite nature of Brahman. However, 

because the Upasanas focus on attributes, they are classified under the category of Saguna 

Brahman, i.e. Brahman with attributes. These Upasanas prepare the way for the 

attributeless or Nirguna forms of meditation that follow later in this Upanishad.

In the four mantras of Chapter 6, the topics discussed are fivefold:

i) Where should we contemplate? mantram - 1.6.1 -1 centre of focus

1 sah yah eshah antah hridaya aakaashah;  = i) Here, in this space within the heart;

2 tasmin ayam purushah manomayah; amritah, hiranmayah. = resides He who is full of intelligence;  the Immortal, the Self-effulgent entity.

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ii) Three “Mystic Centres” to Brahman; mantram- 1.6.1-3 centres of focus

iii) The Dissolution of Ego; mantram - 1.6.2

iv) Lordship & Sovereignty; mantram - 1.6.3

v) More Upasanas of the Self (6 no). mantram- 1.6.4 -6 attributes of focus

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Mantram- 1.6.1: The Centre for Meditation – the Heart

With Translation :

1 sah yah eshah antah hridaya aakaashah;   =  i) Here, in this space within the heart;

2 tasmin ayam purushah manomayah; amritah, hiranmayah.  =  resides He who is full of intelligence; the Immortal, the Self-effulgent entity.

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Bhashyam (Vyakyanam) :

1 The object of concentration is i) the heart centre, symbolising the Supreme 

Brahman, and located in the very core of our being. This is purely for the purposes of the 

Upasana, since we know that Brahman is all-pervading. However, by directing our minds to 

the heart centre, the Upasanas succeed in focusing our attention to a remarkable degree.

The Bhashya describes this as “The heart is a lump of flesh in the shape of a lotus, 

which is the seat of the vital force which opens out through many nerves. It is like a stalk 

with a drooping flower facing down.”

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2 i) Manomayah – “controller (the Self) of the mind stuff; or, the Supreme Being who 

is “full of intelligence”. The acquisition of knowledge of the Self is not present but is hinted 

at. In the absence of detailed knowledge, some attribute is necessary to fix the mind.

ii) Amritam – the Self is “Immortal”; it is deathless.

iii) Hiranmayah – “full of Light”; the Self is also self-effulgent or self-revealing.

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Next
Mantram - 1.6.2: Three More “Mystic” Centres 
To be continued

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