Upanishads : "The cream of Vedas"

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram-11. Vidyam  cavidyam  ca  yastad  vedo-bhayagm  saha, avidyaya  mrtyum  tirtva  vidyaya-mrtam-asnute. vidyam  =  vidya; ca  =  and; avidyam  =  avidya; yah  =  who; tat  =  that; veda  =  known; ubhayagm  =  both; saha  =  together; avidyaya  =  by  avidya; mrtyum  =  death; tirtva  =  crossing; vidyaya  =  by  vidya; amrtam  =  immortality; asnute  =  enjoys,  obtains. (11). "He  who  knows  at  the  same  time  both  " Vidya  and  Avidya,"    overcomes  death  by  'Avidya'  and  obtains  immortality  by 'Vidya.' " Discussion-1 In  explaining  ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 10. Discussion -  3. "Knowledge  itself  is  a  painful  limitation  upon  the  Absolute" ... Bharatham/ Bharatheeya  ( Hindus/ Hinduism ),  thus,  is  not  the  product  of  a  single  Prophet,  but  is  the  "WISDOM-DECLARATIONS  RISING  FROM  THE  EXPERIENCED  BOSOMS  OF  REALISED  MASTERS,( MAHARISHIS)"   which  have  been  relived  by  generations  of  Guru-Sishya  at Gurukulams  classes. A  truth  that  has  been  tested  and  found  fit  upon  the  touch-stone  of  life  by  repeated  generations  alone  is  accepted  by  the  Rishis. Both  ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 10. Discussion - 2. "heard  ( Sruti )  from  the  wise  who  explained  that  to  us"....... Having  stated  this  much,  the  Rishi  muni  immediately   adds  that  this  opinion  is  not  a  product  of  his  own  intellect,  spun  out  by  his  own  individual  mind,  but  that  this  is  what  Muni has  "heard ( Sruti )  from  the  wise  who  explained  that  to  us." This  is  a  very  significant  statement  in  as  much  as  "Hinduism  ( / Bharatham / Bharatheeya )" does  not  accept  any  purely  intellectual  idea  as  a...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 10. Anyad-evahur-vidyaya   anya-dahur-avidyaya, iti  susruma  dhiranam  ye  nastad  vica-caksire. anyat  =  different; eva  =  definitely; ahuh  =  ( they)  say; vidyaya  =  by  vidya; anyat  =  different; ahuh  =  (they)  say; avidyaya  =  by  avidya; iti  =  thus; susruma  =  (we)  have  heard; dhiranam  =  of  the  wise; ye  =  who; nah  =  to  us; tat  =  that; vicacaksire  =  explained. (10). "One  thing,  they  say,  is  verily  obtained  from  'Vidya'  another  thing  they  say  from  'Avidya';  thus,  we  have  heard  from  ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 9.  Discussion - 4. Summation  .... However,  the  context  here  would  demand  that  we  take  'Vidya'  to  be  the  'higher  meditation,' and  'Avidya'  to  be  'all  sadhanas'  that  prepare  one,  by  exhausting  one's  existing  vasanas,  to  have  a  peaceful  mind  that  can  readily  be  brought  to  the  seat  of  meditation. This,  we bare  not  doing  to  suit  our  purpose  here. The  negative  prefix  'A'  in  Samskrtam  can  mean  either  a  mere  'negation' and  'assertion,' ***1. emphasising  something  similar  to ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 9. Discussion-3. "Swami Sri Sankara  Bhagavatpada" ( Sri Adi Sankaracharya swamikal )  and  "devata-Jnanam" ..... According  to  Sri Sankara   Bhagavatpada,  Vidya  means  Devata-Jnanam,  leading  to  the  abode  of  the  Devata  so  propitiated,  and  Avidya  is  ritualistic  Karmam. To  Aharya  Swamikal  karmam  means  desire-prompted  rituals  which  lead  one  to  the  joys  of  the  Heaven  ( Pitrulokam). As  we  admit  Avidya  to  be  karmam,  it  would  be  more  natural  to  accept  it  as  'all  sadhana-s  that  lead  to  the  seekers  nearer  to  ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 9. Discussion-2. "Avidya  and  Vidya " ..... The  terms  used  by  the  Rishi-s  in  defining  this  problem  of  outward  activity  versus  inward  contemplation  are  'Avidya'  and  'Vidya.' These  two  terms  have  been  so  much  loosely  used  in  the  time  of  the  Rishi-s  themselves  that,  perhaps,  the  students  of  that  age  needed  a  correct  restatement  of  their  philosophical  implications. 'Vidya' and  'Avidya'  have  been  used  also  to  connote  'Upasana'  ( Vidya )  and  'Krmam'   (Avidya). In  that  general  sense ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 9. Andham  tamah  pravisanti  yevidyam  -upasate, tato  bhuya  iva  te  tamo  ya  u  vidyayagm  ratah. andham  =  blinding; tamah  =  darkness; pravisanti  =  ener; ye  =  who; avidyam  =  avidya; ( details  in  discussion ) upasate  =  worship; tatah  =  than  that; bhuyah  =  greater; eva  =  as  though; te  =  they; tamah  =  darkness; ye  =  who; u  =  verily; vidyayam  =  in  vidya; : ( details  in  discussion ) ratah  =  devoted, engaged  in. (9)  " They  who  worship  Avidya  ( rites )  alone  enter  into  blinding  darkness,  and ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8. Discussion-8.Terms in  the  mantram ..."Sukram, ..A-kayam, .. ..A-vranam ,  ... A--snaviragm,  ...Suddham,  ... and  A-papaviddham"  ........ After  indicating  thus  the  Supreme  Reality  with  terms  negating  that  which  It  is  not,  and  with  terms  positively  directing  our  gaze  to  Its  manifested  glories,  the  Rishi  still  feels  dissatisfied  and  restless,  and  so  continues  the  mantram  'even  though  the  mantram  ended.' The Rishi muni  seems  to  draw  the  mantram  into  an  ugly  length  because  muni  feels,  as  it  were,  a ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8. Discussion-7. continued ... out of   "a  something" ... "self-born"  .... It  is  not  born  out  of  'a  something,'   but  it  is  ' Self-born.' In  fact,  philosophically,  the  idea  expressed  in  this  simple-looking  phrase  is  that  the  'Self  is  the  first  cause'  which  is  untouched  by  any  effect  and  that  It  is  not  in  Itself  the  effect  of  'any  cause.' All  effects  are  perishable,  since  they  are  born. The  'Self' is  imperishable,'  and  so,  It  must  be  unborn. And  if  the  intellect  shoul...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8.  Discussion-7.....  continued..... Thus,  philosophically  we  have  to  accept  that  there  was  a  first  'cause,'  which  in  the  never  ending  flow  of  changes,  has  brought  about  the  entire  world  of  plurality  as  it  is  seen  today. But  the  'Ultimate Cause'  must,  in  itself,  be  'Uncaused  by  any  other  cause  than  itself'. This  is  the  idea  that  is  expressed  here  when  the  Self  is  discussed  as  'Svayambhu,'  meaning  self-sprung, i.e.  "Self-Existing". Next : Discussion-7. continued ... "out of   "a  somethi...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8.  Discussion-7. "Self-existing  ( Svayambhu )"  ..................... We,  the  finite  creatures,  as  human  beings,  can  struggle  and  strive  to  understand  the  Reality  behind  the  world  of  perceived  plurality  only  through  the  intervention  of  our  instruments  of  thinking  and  feeling. Our  intellect  can  function  only  in  three  definite  fields  of  activity  called  time,  space,  and  causality. Cause - hunting  is  the  great  avocation  of  the  intellect. Whenever   we  a  thing  in  this  world,  over  which  we ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8. Discussion-6. "Omniscient" .....'manisi'  ..... If  the  'Self '   be  thus  the  knowing  Principle  in  the  individual,  then  it,  being  the  same  'Life-Principle'  in  all  living  beings,  is  also  the  one  Knowing  Principle  in  all  beings. Thus,  the  'Self '   is  considered  as  "Omniscient,"  "Manisi"   ( All-Knowing  ). Every  little  bit  of  knowledge  that  is  gained  in  the  world  and  every  one  of  its  transactions  are  but  "Known"  by  the  same "Self ,"     and  hence  the  "Self, or Atma, or Jivatma,  or ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8. Discussion-5.  "The  Self  is  the  Seer"  ..... It  is  a  declaration  that  the  Lfe-spark  in  us  is  the  real  vitality  behind  the  eyes  that  see,  the  ears  that  hear,  the  nose  that  smells,  the  tongue  that  tastes,  and  the  skin  that  feels. In  fact,  if  the  Life-principle  is  removed  from  the  sense-organs,  they,  in  themselves  are  impotent  to  register  any  impressions  of  their  objects.   To  experience  the  world-of-objects,  we  need,  not  only  the  sense-organs, ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8.  Discussion-4. "Self"  ..."Not  this,  not  this"  ...'Post  and  ghost' ..... So  far  Self  has  been  indicated  by  the  Rishi-s  in  the  language  of  negation  :   "Not  this,  not  this." There  are  two  methods  by  which  we  can  explain  the  "Post"   to  a  deluded  man,  who  is  suffering  under  his  own  delusions,  caused  by  the  vision  of  the  "ghost." He  can  be  shown  that  the  'ghost '  is  a  delusion,  and  he  can  also  positively  guided  to  the  recognition  of ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8. Discussion-3. "Scatheless " and  without  muscles"  ..... The  expressions  "scatheless  and  without  muscles"  clearly  point  out   that  it  has  no  physical  body  at  all. Ulcers  can  come  only  on  physical  body. Where  there  in  no  body,  no  disease  can  come  there. The  same  idea  is  being  more  forcefully  emphasised  when  the  Self  is  described  as  that  which  has  no  muscles. The  term  "suddha" ( pure)  indicates  that  the  Atma  has  no  casual  body  since  it  is  untouched  by  sin. The  ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8. Discussion-2. "the  significance  of  Samskrtam  language ...."the term  paryagat".... "Akayam"... In  Samskrtam  when  adjectives  are  used,  unlike  other  languages  in  the  world,  it  is  done  with  a  particular  eye  on  giving  us  a  deep  significance  in  the  very  order  in  which  the  wualifications  are  grouped. Here  also,  we  have  the  same  technique  used  by  the  Rishi-s. The  word  "paryagat"  means  'gone  abroard  or  went  round.' Thus,  the  Mantram  opens  with  an  idea  that  the  Self  ( Atma ) ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 8. Sa  paryagac - chukram - akayam - avranam asna - viragm  suddam - apapa - viddham, kavir - manisi  paribhuh  svayam - bhuh  yatha - tathyatah arthan - vyadadhac - chasva - tibhyah  samabhyah. sah  =  he; paryagat  =  all-pervading; sukram  =  bright; akayam  =  bodiless; avranam  =  scatheless,  without  wound; asnaviragm  =  without  muscles; suddham  =  pure; apapa - viddham  =  unpierced  by  evils; kavih  =  wise; manisi  =  omniscient; paribhuh  =  transcendent; svayambhuh  =  self-existing; yatha - tathyatah  =  respectively; arthan  =  functions,  duties; vyadadhat  =  allotted; sasvatibhyah  =  eternal; samabhy...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 7. Discussion - 3. "relief  from  grief" ....'mokasham' ... To  get  away  from  the  grief  is  the  goal  of  life  that  is  sought  by  every  living  creature,  whether  man  or  animal. Moksham  or  liberation  is  the  transcendence  of  the  individual  beyond  the  frontiers  of  sorrow. Here,  the  Mantram  indicates  that  beyond  the  shores  of  sighs  and  sobs,  lies  the  land  of  realisation  where  the  knower  experiences  in  his  own  Self,  the  entire  universe  to  be  one,  which  is  nothing  but  ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 7. Discussion-2. "Moha  and  Soka" .... Not  only  that  a  man   of  Self-realisation  has  understood  in  his  own  vital  experience  that  he  is not  a  separate  individual  living  as  opposed  to  others,  but,  in  his  essential  nature,  he  is nothing  but  the  harmony  or  unity  that  underlies  all  seeming  discord   or  plurality,  which  are perceived  as  a  scum  upon  the  reality. He,  who   has  thus  realised  his  oneness  with  the  entire,  can  no  longer  have  the  ordinary  tossings  of  the...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 7. Yasmin  sarvani  bhutani  atmaiva - bhud - vijanatah, tatra  ko  mohah  kah  soka  ekatva - manu - pasyatah. yasmin  =  in  whom; sarvani  =  all; bhutani  =  beings; atma  -  Self; eva  =  alone; abhut  =  have  become; vijanatah  =  knowing; tatra  =  these; kah  =  what; mohah  =  delusion; kah  =  what; sokah  =  grief; ekatvam  =  oneness; anupasyatah  =  while  constantly  seeing. ( 7 ) "  When,  to  the  knower,  all  beings  have  become  one  in  his  own  Self  ( Atma ),  how  shall  he  feel  deluded  thereafter? What  grief ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 6.  Final Discussion-5. 'Summation'...... Repulsion,  hatred,  shrinking,  dislike,  and  fear  etc,.. can  come  not  with  oneself,  but  with  another. The  intellectual - 'I'  may  dislike  or  fear  or  hate  the  mental - 'I'  at  a  given  time  and  place;  but  here,  also  there  is  pluralistic  concept. 'The  other'  is  always  necessary  for  one  to enertain  'jugupsa'  but  when  we  have  realised  and  are  experiencing  the  Oneness  of  the  Self,  and  when  we  have  got  more  and  more  established  in  that  ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 6.  Discussion-4. "Samatva" ...Repulsion  and  attraction  ..... The  same  state  of  mind  has  been  described  in  the  'Gita' also  by  the  term  "Samatvam." 'Sri Arobindo'  in  his  commentary  on  "Isavasyopanishad,"   in  a  footnote,  explains  this  idea  very  vividly. He  says  :  "Jugupsa" is  the  feeling  of  repulsion  caused  by  a  sense  of  want  of  harmony,  between  one's  own  limited  self-formation,  and  the  contacts  of  the  external,  with  consequent  recoil  of  grief,  fear,  hatred,  discomfort  and    ...

ISAVASYA UPANISHAD : or VAJASANEYI    SAMHITA    UPANISHAD Mantram : 6. Discussion-3. "Jugupsa" ( hatred )  has  dried  away ..... In  realising  thus,  the  individual  gets  permanently  divorced  from  all  his  mental  ideas  of  repulsion,  shrinking,  dislike,  fear,  hatred,  and  such  other  perversions  of  feelings. These  arise  from  the  sense   of  division  and  plurality,  and  the  consequent  personal  sense  of  opposition  to  other  beings  or  objects  around  us. When  all  the  hatred  ( jugupsa )  has  dried  away  from  the  mind,  the  individual  experiences  an  unbroken  state  of  ...