TAITTIRIYA UPANISHAD – 67. Rishi Yajnavalkya.

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Valmiki, after hearing the captivating story of Sri Rama from Sage Narada, became deeply absorbed in it. One day, while at the Tamasa river with his disciple, he saw a pair of Krauncha birds happily playing together. Suddenly, a hunter shot the male bird, killing it. The female bird’s heart-wrenching cries deeply moved Valmiki, and in his grief, he spontaneously cursed the hunter, saying, “May you never find peace for killing one of the birds in the midst of its joy.”

What surprised Valmiki was that this curse had come out in the form of a perfect metrical verse, with four lines, each containing eight syllables. Brahma then appeared to Valmiki and praised the verse, revealing that the poetic inspiration had a divine purpose. He instructed Valmiki to compose an epic about the life and glory of Shri Rama in this same verse form. Brahma promised that the story would endure in all the worlds as long as mountains and rivers existed. 

Valmiki, inspired and guided by this divine command, set out to compose the Ramayana, narrating the soul-stirring tale of Shri Rama, culminating in the defeat of Ravana. His disciples found his verses delightful, and thus the Ramayana became a timeless and beautifully structured epic, celebrated for its insight and poetic brilliance.

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Saturday  19, October 2024, 06:15.
Taittiriya Upanishad
Part-2.
BRAHMANANDA VALLI
PART 2: 9 No. Anuvakas (Chapters)
THE BLISS THAT IS BRAHMAN
Mantram- 2.4.4:  Human Form Characteristics of Vijnanamaya Kosha 
Post - 67.

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Mantram- 2.4.4:  Human Form Characteristics of Vijnanamaya Kosha: 

7 

tasya shraddhaa eva sheerah; = Of this Intelligence form, Faith  is verily the head; 

ritam dakshinah pakshah; = Righteousness is the right side; 

satyam uttara pakshah; = Truth is the left side; 

yogah aatmaa; = Concentration is the trunk; 

mahah pucchham pratishthaa = Total Intelligence is the tail that stabilizes. 

8 

tat api eshah shlokah bhavati. = Pertaining to this also is the following mantram: 

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7

Once again, the “human form” is used to symbolise the five aspects of the Vijnanamaya Kosha: 

a.  Shraddhaa or faith  is the head; 

b. Ritam or the Dharmic principle of righteousness  is the right side;  

c. Satyam or the absolute principle of Truth is the left side;  

d. Yoga or power of enquiry is the trunk;  

e. Mahat or Total Intelligence  is the supporting tail.  

The Upasana: the Intellect Symbolised as a “Human Form”

 The intellect is far superior to the mind in controlling human behaviour. Even as we 

dug deep into the meaning of the corresponding verse in the Manomaya Kosha, here, too, 

we explore the meaning of comparing the intellect to the “human form”.  

The human form is a structure, and the symbolism is also structural in that the form 

is split into its five parts. The suggestion is that the intellect may also be divided into five 

functions to correspong with these five parts of the human form. What are the primary 

functions of the intellect? 

i) Faith: The head is the most important part of the human form. Correspondingly, it 

has to represent the most important aspect of the Intellect. The Bhagavad Geeta, in Chapter 

17, clearly lays out the importance of Faith as the key characteristic of the intellect. Upon 

the type of faith we have, rests our entire vision of life. “As is one’s faith, so is one’s life.”  

ii) Righteousness: This is the aspect by which we decide what is right and what is 

wrong. Our Faith is the key input in determining the answer that comes up in our intellect. 

To a pure man whose faith is of the divine type, all that upholds righteousness will appear to 

be right. To a man of Rajasic faith, all that appears to be to his advantage will appear to be 

right. And to a man of Tamasic faith, everything will appear in reverse to the Sattwic view! 

iii) Truth: Here, too, one’s Faith is the key in determining what we take to be the 

Truth or Reality of this universe. A Sattwic man will have no problem in accepting one, 

unified view of Reality for the whole world. This makes him see the Truth in everything 

without any personal bias. The man of Rajasic faith will see Truth in relation to his own 

existence only. Everything is seen according to his own individual viewpoint. And the 

Tamasic intellect will see Truth as falsity and falsity as Truth; he reverses every value.  

Righteousness and Truth form the two “hands”of the intellect. They determine how 

an intellect will function in the world.

 

iv) Power of Enquiry: This is represented by the body or trunk, the central processing 

unit of the “human form”. The central processing function of the intellect is to differentiate 

the Real from the Unreal. Here again, the Sattwic person can do so without any difficulty or 

complication. The Rajasic man will bring in his own judgement and bias into his enquiry. And 

the Tamasic intellect will see Unreality as Reality and vice versa.    

v) Total Intelligence: Finally, we come to the “supporting tail” of the intellect. This is 

the foundation or the field of the intellect’s operations. It is the realm over which the 

intellect takes responsibility in all its functions. The Sattwic intellect sees the ‘Whole Picture’ 

before deciding how to act. He has a universal vision, a total vision. The Rajasic man sees 

only to his own selfish interest. He has a very narrow vision, and acts from that perspective.  

The Tamasic intellect: behaves in a very interesting manner. He cannot tell the 

difference. Whatever he puts his intellect on, he considers it to be the whole, as though 

nothing else exists. He neither does good to the world nor good to himself, but causes harm 

in all that he does! 

 8.The next Anuvaka quotes the Shruti describing the Vijnanamaya Kosha. 

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Next

Anuvaka 2.5 

From Vijnanamaya to Anandamaya 

Mantram -  2.5.1:   Shruti Quotation on Vijnana  

Continued

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