The Upanishads: Katha - Prashna - Mundaka 9789382585213

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Forthcoming title from Magenta Press The Journey Continues: A sequel to Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master: A Yogi’s Autobiography by Sri M. Other titles by Sri M from Magenta Press The Little Guide to Greater Glory and a Happier Life Wisdom of the Rishis: The Three Upanishads: Ishavasya, Kena, Mandukya Jewel in the Lotus: Deeper Aspects of Hinduism How to Levitate and other Great Secrets of Magic by James Talbot (Sri M) Translations available of Sri M’s autobiography: • Hindi • Marathi • Tamil • Kannada • Telugu • Malayalam

• Oriya • Gujarati • German • Bengali • Russian

Forthcoming translations: Spanish French To buy books by Sri M online visit srim.in or www.magentapress.in

To buy discourses by Sri M in audio and video online visit srim.in or www.himacom.in

© The Author 2017 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, by any means, electronic, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of the copyright holders. eISBN: 978-93-82585-21-3 Book Design: J. Menon. www.grantha.com Typeset: PKS Published by Magenta Press and Publication Pvt. Ltd., Cauvery Towers, College Road-Madikeri, Kodagu, Karnataka 571 201. Tel: +91 98458 31683. srim.in / www.magentapress.in

Contents Title Page Other titles by Sri M from Magenta Press Copyright & Permissions Preface A Profile of ‘M’ Foreword 1. Katha Upanishad Part 1: CHAPTER 1 CHAPTER 2 CHAPTER 3 Part 2: CHAPTER 4 CHAPTER 5 CHAPTER 6 2. Prashna Upanishad QUESTION ONE QUESTION TWO QUESTION THREE QUESTION FOUR QUESTION FIVE

QUESTION SIX 3. Mundaka Upanishad Part 1: SECTION 1 Part 1: SECTION 2 Part 2: SECTION 1 Part 2: SECTION 2 Part 3: SECTION 1 Part 3: SECTION 2 About the Author Backcover

Preface

The contents of this book are the edited transcriptions of the discourses on the Upanishads by Sri M. Minimum editing has been done to retain the style of the talks. The editor acknowledges the contribution of Ms. Uma Singh in transcribing the discourses with care and attention. The introductory portions might sound repetitious at times, but that could not be avoided, considering that the talks were given at different times to different people. It is suggested that these portions be re-read for a thorough comprehension of each Upanishad. – Editor

Foreword

The Upanishads represent the high watermark not only of Hindu Philosophy but of spiritual literature anywhere in the world. These marvellous discourses and dialogues between self-realized seers, known as Rishis, and one or more disciples, contain powerful and eloquent statements regarding the ultimate reality in its multifarious facets. They have been well described as providing an ‘ecstatic slide show of reality, a privileged glimpse of the unitive vision in which all thing are one in a world aflame with God’. They contain some of the most eloquent passages such as – ‘I have seen that Great Being shining like a thousand suns beyond the darkness; it is only by knowing that being that we can achieve immortality’ and again, ‘Hear O children of immortal bliss, you are born to be united with the Divine; follow the path of the illumined ones and be united with the Supreme Being’. The universal truths articulated in the Upanishads have formed the basis for numerous commentaries down through the centuries, beginning with the luminous insights of Adi Shankaracharya. In our own times Sri Aurobindo, Sri Krishnaprem, Dr Radhakrishnan, Swami Ranganathananda, Eknath Ishwaran and other great seers and sages have produced commentaries and interpretations on various Upanishads. The Upanishads are enduring and unfailing sources of inspiration, and their impact grows with each successive reading. One of my favourites is the Mundaka which I have translated and upon which I have attempted a short commentary. The author of this book, Sri Mumtaz Ali, popularly known as ‘M’, has spoken extensively upon the Upanishads, based on his personal experience. The fact that a person born a Muslim should have such a deep insight into

the Hindu tradition proves once again that the spiritual path accepts no boundaries. In these talks M has expounded in a clear and cogent fashion various aspects of these three great texts. I have pleasure in commending this book to spiritual seekers and students of Hinduism around the world. – Dr. Karan Singh

A Profile of ‘M’

The boy was a little more than 9 years old when he saw the strange being. He was the son of a Deccani Muslim family, settled in Trivandrum, the beautiful capital of Kerala. Having heard stories of angels coming down to bless Mohammed and other prophets and saints from his devout grandmother, he thought at first that it was an angel. One evening, the boy was wandering around the courtyard of his house in Vanchiyoor, doing nothing in particular. At the far end of the courtyard, he saw someone standing under the jackfruit tree. The stranger gestured to the boy to come forward. The boy felt no fear whatsoever, and was eager to go closer to the stranger. The stranger was tall, fair and well-built and was bare-bodied except for a piece of loin cloth worn around his waist. He put his right hand on the boy’s head and asked with kindness, “Do you remember anything?” in Hindi. To the boy’s answer that he didn’t, the stranger said in Deccani, “You will understand later. You will not meet me for many years after this, but you will have to finish the studies that you have left incomplete. You will not be allowed to tell anyone about me until the time is ripe. Go home now.” With that he vanished. That was the first initiation. Two years later, while playing hide and seek, the boy experienced what may be described in yogic terms as Keval Kumbhak – the suspension of inhalation and exhalation. Bliss filled his heart. The breathing resumed in a few minutes. Soon he could get into it at will with a deep sigh. The bliss that he experienced convinced him that a greater world existed within his being – a world of spiritual bliss.

In his outward appearance he was just like any other boy except that he loved religious scriptures and philosophy – no matter of which religion, devotional songs and discussions on God, saints and sages. When he was eleven, he used to go in the evenings to a certain house which belonged to one Mr. Pillai, whose nephew and son-in-law tutored him in mathematics. One evening he entered Pillai’s house as usual and found himself face to face with a venerable, sturdy man of about sixty, clean shaven and with closely cropped silver grey hair, wearing a half sleeved shirt and loin cloth, sitting cross-legged on a bench. The room smelled of incense. “Hello!” said the old man in Malayalam, “Come, come. Don’t be afraid.” ‘M’ walked up to him. The man patted his back and caressed his neck and head and said, “Umm. Good! Everything will be all right in good time.” Again the breathless condition and greater bliss. ‘M’ stood up and went straight home. The guidance had begun. He was the first of the great souls ‘M’ was to meet in the course of his spiritual journey. Much later ‘M’ came to know that the man was a great self-realised soul who lived in ‘Atma Bhava’ and was simply called Pujapura Swami since he lived in Pujapura. He was unmarried but not a formal monk. In his youth he had been initiated into yogic practices by a great teacher and ever since had lived a model life, his heart absorbed in the blissful, Supreme Brahman while he performed his duties like an ordinary mortal. ‘M’ also learnt that the Swami used to hold midnight Satsangs on certain days, which a great sanyasin, who had renounced even his loincloth, would sometimes attend. Pujapura Swami was not known outside a small circle because he forbade propaganda. When ‘M’ was seventeen, the sanyasin was no more, but a friend handed over a compilation of his teachings to ‘M’ which was privately circulated. It contained the essence of Vedanta in very simple language. By then, the knowledge that ‘M’ needed from time to time as he progressed on the path began to come to him automatically. His father had borrowed B. K. S. Iyengar’s Light on Yoga from a friend of his (his father

was never an orthodox Muslim). ‘M’ read it through. A yoga teacher, Sri Sharma, gave him his initial lessons on yogasanas and Surya Namaskaras. ‘M’ met Swami Tapasyananda of the Ramakrishna Mission, a direct disciple of Sarada Devi. He was then the head of Ramakrishna Mission at Trivandrum. The librarian at the Trivandrum Public Library kept ‘M’ well supplied with the works of Vivekananda. He chanced to read Swami Chinmayananda’s Japa Yoga and Gayatri and he began to chant the Gayatri Mantra. A Tantric instructed him in certain mantras and lent him Sir John Woodroffe’s Serpent Power. He read many other books – the Upanishads, the Gita, Yogic texts and Vedanta included. He discovered that Sanskrit was not too difficult to understand. Side by side with gaining theoretical knowledge, he meditated for long hours, especially at midnight. He had merely to shut his eyes and concentrate on the lotus of the heart to enter into Keval Kumbhak and experience tremendous bliss and extraordinary visions of divine lights and voices. Sometimes terrifying visions would flit across his mind but they would pass and he would once again be filled with ecstasy. Then he met a great person known as Chempazanthi Swami. The Jesuits had started their first Loyola Junior College at Sreekaryam in Trivandrum and ‘M’ was among the first batch of pre degree students. A few kilometers away was the remote village of Chempazanthi which is the birth place of Sri Narayana Guru, the great reformer-saint. Close to Chempazanthi is Chenkotkonam where the Swami lived. He was a tea-shop owner turned saint. A great bhakta of Rama, he was known to have lived like Hanuman for a long time, eating nuts and climbing trees. He was fond of bhajans and kirtans. When ‘M’ met him in his hut, he was thin and frail and very delicate looking. Crowning his eversmiling face was a great chunk of wound-up matted hair and he smelled of Vibhuti. Taking a pinch of ash, he touched M’s forehead with it, popped a couple of grapes into his mouth and said, ‘Umm, needs to ripen, will ripen. Do bhajans.’ ‘M’ meditated for a few minutes, prostrated and left the place. Those days ‘M’ had a close Brahmin friend whose father worshipped Sai Baba of Shirdi. The moment ‘M’ saw Baba’s picture , an irresistible desire to know about Baba’s life rose in him. The next day Mr. Subramanya

Iyer, an advocate, who was his friend’s landlord, gave him a copy of the Life of Sai Baba of Shirdi by Narasimha Swamiji.” Then he lent ‘M’ Sai Sat Charita. He fell in love with the great Faqir. At this time ‘M’ heard from a friend of his who was a medical student (he is now a neuro-surgeon) about a lady Avadhuta called Mai Ma, who lived on the Kanyakumari beach. She was reputed to be over a hundred years old and no one could say where she came from or what language she spoke. The few words she said sounded very much like Bengali. ‘M’ went to see her alone. Kanyakumari is close to Trivandrum. He reached Kanyakumari a little before noon. He walked from the bus stand and came to the entrance of the Devi Temple. He casually walked across the rocky beach and there she was. A woman who looked to be in her sixties, she wore absolutely no clothes, her face a typically Bengali face, glowing, ageless eyes, smiling. She sat on one of the rocks with a circle of street dogs around her forming a security ring. The dogs snarled when they saw ‘M.’ Mai Ma scolded the dogs using peculiar sounds and they dispersed and sat at a distance. She motioned to ‘M’ to sit down. He sat down on a rock. She pointed to the dosas that he had with him and said something. He gave her the dosas. She fed the dogs some, ate two herself and returned a few to him. He closed his eyes and tried to tune in with her vibrations. After a long time he opened his eyes. She was still there. Giving a broad smile she said, “Jao, jao, thik…” The last word could not be made out. When Paramahamsas say “Go”, one has no business to stay. ‘M’ prostrated and came away. After visiting the Vivekananda Rock, ‘M’ returned to Trivandrum. He was made aware of the significance of Mai Ma’s darshan the following morning. Tired after meditating for a long time in the night, he could not bring himself to be up at dawn. As he slept deeply he had a wonderful and vivid dream. In the dream he was a mendicant with matted hair and wearing only a ‘kaupin,’ sitting in padmasana and meditating under a Banyan tree which stood in the middle of a junction where four paths crossed each other. The jungle all around was thick. A faint sound made him open his eyes, and from one of the paths he saw Mai approaching with a stick in her hand. She was huge, much larger

than life-size. Reaching the place where he sat she touched his chin and said, “Give me something to eat.” He told her, “Mai Ma, I have only two grains of parched rice hidden in my matted hair.” She said, “Give me.” Without hesitation he gave the rice to her. She said to him, “Are you hungry?” He said “Yes, but you eat it Ma.” She ate with great relish and turning to him said, “Your hunger is for a different thing. Close your eyes.” He closed his eyes. She pressed the middle of his forehead hard with what seemed to be her thumb. An ocean of bliss filled his whole being with its centre in the forehead. Every cell of his being was suffused with it. He lost his body consciousness. Only the other existed. Then he woke up. The dream vanished, but O! How fortunate! The bliss remained. He was like a drunken man who had had his fill. Slowly he sat up and stretched his legs and carefully went to the bathroom, afraid that he would fall. In a few minutes he got full control over his body and mind but the stream of bliss continued in the core of his being. It has since remained with him. At times low, at times high, but always there. Already acquainted with the teachings of the Sufis by attending meetings of local Sufi groups and meeting some of the Amirs of the different Tariqats, he went at last to a gem among Sufis. That was Kaladi Mastan who lived naked on the beach near Bimapalli in Trivandrum. He was drinking a cup of tea given by a follower when ‘M’ first saw him. He smiled and gave ‘M’ the rest of the tea. Then he said, “Big thief came to steal the treasure. Take it legitimately.” Then he lit a cigarette and said, “Smoke.” ‘M’ smoked. Then he took it back. ‘M’ sat and meditated before him. He covered M’s head with sand and further cleared the conduits. He behaved like a mad man and many even thought he was mad, but he was a priceless gem and the few who were serious, knew. He is physically no more now. Many visit his tomb. Not very far from there lived Poontharasami, another God-intoxicated person with matted hair, who too was mistaken by many to be a madman. When ‘M’ visited him, he suddenly stood up and kicked ‘M’ on his chest.

That was a timely kick. It cleared the passage through which the mighty energy travels. When ‘M’ went to thank him a month later, he had vanished, nobody knew where. An impressive looking fraud, who claimed to have been his closest disciple, tried to influence ‘M.’ The poor chap did not realize that ‘M’ could read him like an open book. When he was nineteen, ‘M’ made up his mind to go to the Himalayas. First he went to Madras by train, spent sometime in the Theosophical Society, then took a train to Delhi. From Delhi he went to Hardwar. From Hardwar he decided to walk. All the money was finished. He had no intention of writing back home for help or even to let them know where he was. He knew he would be looked after, that the minimum needs of the body would be taken care of by the great powers that run the universe, and he was right. Of course, at certain times, he was tested thoroughly but in the end everything was fine. On foot he covered the entire journey from Rishikesh to Uttarkashi, to Gangotri, Yamunotri, from Batwari to Kedar via Buda Kedar, then to Badrinath. At Rishikesh, he decided to stay in the Divine Life Society and continue his studies and meditation. It is a lovely place for sadhaks. The Ganges flows nearby. Yoga is taught in the Ashram. The senior swamis are a great help and when one has time, one can wander around and meet sadhus of various sects. Satsang is most important for a sadhak. That pilgrim-season found ‘M’ walking again to Badrinath – sometimes on the common pilgrim routes, sometimes through forests, staying in roadside dharmashalas and chattis and many a time in forest hermitages beside the river. On his way to Badrinath, he visited Vasishta Guha and Arundhati Cave. He gathered much food for the soul. Reaching Badrinath after many days’ journey, he first slept in the choultry. It was quite cold and his single blanket was insufficient, but he was in no mood to seek help. Those were the days when the fire of spirituality burned so bright that everything else, even the bare necessities – food, clothes and shelter – melted into insignificance. A highly intoxicating,

ecstatic mood came over him in the great Himalayas. He attributed this, as also his intense sadhana to the presence of highly evolved beings in these regions. He hoped to meet some of them. His physical difficulties were solved by the arrival of a Brahmachari whom he had met earlier in the Divine Life Society. He was an experienced pilgrim who had travelled many times. Quickly he found ‘M’ an independent kutir and persuaded him to stay there. He also got ‘M’ a couple of blankets and a wooden plank to sleep on; he also arranged with the Nepali Dharmashala for his food. He introduced ‘M’ to the Rawalji, the chief priest of Badrinath, and took him on a sort of conducted tour on most evenings. In Badrinath as in other pilgrim centres, there were beggars wearing saffron, others wearing the holy robes to make a living, even sadhus who stole kamandalus and blankets from each other. Genuine yogis and paramahamsas also existed side by side, mingling with the common crowd and often deliberately pretending to be one of them. Eager to see more of such souls and learning that they lived beyond Badrinath and on the other side of Narayan Parvat, ‘M’ decided to travel further. Without informing anyone, one morning he started off with his kamandalu, staff and blanket. He had earlier explored about a kilometer of that road on his previous visit to Badrinath but beyond that the territory was unknown. After about six or seven kilometres of not easy climbing, he reached the confluence of the Saraswati and the Alakananda, called Keshav Prayag. Close to this was the cave, which, an old sanyasin had once told him, was the Vyasa Guha. ‘M’ walked beyond the Vyasa Guha to explore the other caves in the vicinity. He had walked through the rocky terrain for a long time when he realized that it would soon grow dark. Filled with doubt, fear and hunger, and disappointed about not finding any mahatmas, ‘M’ began to walk down towards the Mana village. On the way back, when he reached the Vyasa Guha, he found that a dhuni was brightly burning at the mouth of the cave. A strange force seemed to make his feet heavy. His heart overflowed with bliss but his legs would not move away from the cave. He took this as a

signal and walked towards the cave. From inside the cave came a voice calling him by the name “Madhu”. Seeing this young man, the long-haired, bare-bodied, tall man patted on his left shoulder with great affection and asked him to sit. At that instant, ‘M’ recognised the person whom he had once met in the backyard of his house under the jackfruit tree. He had found his guru, his father, his mother, all in one. ‘M’ spent three and a half years with his Master travelling all over the Himalayas. The Master advised him to go back to the plains and lead a normal life and begin teaching when commanded to do so. The Master promised to keep in touch. The Master had thoroughly overhauled his thought-process and brought about a lasting change in his consciousness.* According to the Master’s advice, ‘M’ went back to the plains, met many spiritual teachers and godmen, travelled all over India, took up difficult jobs to earn a living and to “see the world at close quarters,” as the Master put it. He also lived for a short while like a very materialisticminded person, and found that compared to the spiritual life and its greater vistas, the life of the worldly man is almost nothing. The joys of the spirit are much superior and it is the worldly man who renounces real happiness that springs from the heart. But all that experience was necessary to tackle the worldly-wise who would say, “Oh! what do you know of the bliss of sensory experiences. You have not had any.” Now ‘M’ feels that he can say with confidence, “Friend, I know, and there is nothing to go ga ga about.” Off and on he had attended the talks of J. Krishnamurti in Madras and elsewhere and read most of his literature. Finally he met him and had a private discussion for forty-minutes after which he decided to stay on in the Krishnamurti Foundation for sometime. The Master had said that Krishnamurti would be the last of the important persons that ‘M’ would meet as part of his education and had instructed him to pay particular attention to everything that ‘K’ did and how the organisation would function when he lived and after his death. ‘M’ had close contact with J. Krishnamurti during the last two years of his life and was made a Trustee of the Krishnamurti Foundation, which position he resigned after five years.

After K’s death ‘M’ married Sunanda whom he had met in Vasant Vihar, the headquarters of the Krishnamurti Foundation, and became a householder. He now feels that no one can say to him, “Well, brother, it is alright for you to say, ‘lead a spiritual life and live in the world etc.’, because you are unmarried…” and so on. ‘M’ lives with his wife and two children. “In fact, it is the best thing to do in this period of the earth’s existence, for Sanyasa is only for the rarest of the rare,” says ‘M.’ With the blessings of his Himalayan Master and by strenuous sadhana ‘M’ has transcended theories and scholarship and is established in higher consciousness. The Master had said to ‘M,’ “Do not advise people if you cannot follow the same advice. Do not talk on something if you have no personal experience.” Wonderful teaching indeed! If only teachers follow this teaching what a lovely world this would be! – Gp. Capt. (Retd.) Ratnakar Sanadi

(For a detailed account of Sri M’s life, please read his autobiography Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master – A Yogi’s Autobiography and The Journey Continues, a sequel to the autobiography)

1 Katha Upanishad

T

he Katha Upanishad, or Kathopanishad, is a part of the Yajur Veda. This beautiful Upanishad is found in the Taittiriya section of the Yajur Veda. Although the philosophical knowledge and understanding is given in clear detail in the Kathopanishad through the story of Nachiketas, it is not the first time that this particular story appears in the scriptures. The earliest occurrence of the story of the boy Nachiketas, is in the Rig Veda, though not in detail. One can find the detailed version in the Taittiriya Brahmana. In fact, in the Anushasan Parva of the Mahabharat, there is a brief reference to it. Nachiketas questions his father, the great rishi Vaajashravasa, about a certain idea that occurs to him and then the entire Upanishad is about what happens subsequently. It is a very old story, or katha, which has been utilized by this Upanishad so that one may understand the deeper aspects of “being”. In the Upanishads, what is important is not the person who is talking or the person who is listening, but the teaching. Anyone can talk to anybody, but whether the one who is talking has knowledge, and whether the one who is listening is open to it – that is the main concern of the Upanishads. As we go along, sometimes you will find some names interchanged. You will suddenly come across someone in this Upanishad being called by a name that is someone else’s in some other Upanishad. So it is not the name that is important but the actual substance. Let us first get an idea of what an Upanishad is and then come to the Kathopanishad. To sum up briefly, an Upanishad is what is known as the “Wisdom Section”, the jnaanakaanda of the Vedas. Vedas include the Samhitas, the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas and the Upanishads. The Upanishad appears at the end of the Vedas, as the last part. Since it comes at the end of the Vedas, it is also called veda-antah, which means “the end of the Vedas”. Some people have given a different meaning to this. It is said veda means “to study”, “to read”, “to understand” and Vedanta means “once

this is understood, there is nothing more to be studied”. Thus again, it means “end of the Vedas.” Apart from that, the word “Upanishad” is formed by the three syllables, upa, ni and shad. Upa means “to move closer” and shad means “to sit down”. Upa – to move closer; not just the physical proximity but also to go closer and closer to the understanding of what is being said by the rishis. It also means moving closer to the Truth. Besides, the Upanishad is not something to be read – unfortunately, that is what we are doing now – but heard. The Upanishad is part of the literature which is known as the shruthi – “that which is heard.” It is not something which we hear and then take with us, store it in the brain, go home, think about it and decide whether we want to understand it or not. Then it is not shruthi any more. If the mind is kept open, the moment it is said, it is understood. This is the shruthi. The word shad means “to sit”. When you sit down, you are settled and you want to listen to something. When you stand up, it means you are unsettled, you may want to walk out. So when you sit down, it means that physically, you have sat down to listen. It also means that the mind has settled down. Sometimes, physically one can sit here but the mind can wander. “Sit down” means the mind has to also sit down and listen. The ni that connects upa and shad is the syllable that indicates the attitude with which one is sitting. Ni indicates that the person who is listening is sitting at a lower level. However, it means that the person who is listening is sitting, not physically, but with the attitude of “I have to understand.” If I say, “I know,” then I cannot understand. If I say, “I know,” before examining something, then there is no examination. One cannot look into it. So I sit down saying, “For the time being, let me put aside the things that I know and let me listen to what is being said.” When you want to pour liquid from one vessel to another, you have to keep the other vessel below. What it means is to have an open mind and the humility to say, “I don’t know. Let me listen.” If the teacher has gone deep into the subject, he or she will also have the humility to say, “This is what I have understood: listen, and find out for yourself if it is true.” The entire Upanishadic teaching is a dialogue. It is not as if somebody says, “You hear this and you believe it.” No! It says, “Look

into this. Follow instructions and find out for yourself and then decide what you want.” This is how the Upanishad teaches. The Katha Upanishad is one of the ten principal Upanishads. The great Adi Shankaracharya has also written a commentary on it. It is called katha because it is a story; it begins with a story. This Upanishad comes from the Yajur Veda and is one of the earlier Upanishads. Most of the Upanishads begin with an invocation. There is a meaningful invocation in this Upanishad, which is a very popular one, chanted in many schools and religious institutions. It is: Aum saha naav avatu saha nau bhunaktu saha veeryam karavaavahai tejasvi nav adheetam astu maa vidvishaavahai Aum shantih shantih shantih “May that Supreme Being protect both of us; May that Supreme Being be pleased with both of us; May we both work together with vigour; May our study make us both illumined; Let there be no misunderstanding between us. Aum peace! Peace! Peace!” During the Upanishadic teaching, when the teacher and student sit down together, neither is more important than the other. The prayer is for them both: “May that Supreme Being protect both of us”, “May He be pleased with both of us. May we work together with veeryam (vigour).” One needs energy and vigour to do any work. This is one of the questions that Nachiketas asks his father, in the course of the Upanishad. He asks his father, who was gifting decrepit cows which had no strength, “Why

are you giving away these feeble cows for sacrifice? There is nothing in them. Give away something that has energy.” “May we work together with energy and vitality. May our study and understanding make us illumined.” The teacher says, “I am getting illumined by the teaching. So also is the student.” This is mutual understanding and co-operation. Without such involvement, the Upanishad cannot be understood. I say this because I go for talks and sometimes, a question is not asked as a question; it is more an argument. Or, someone tries to tell us what he knows, or we try to oppose him with what we think is right. The Upanishad cannot be studied that way. It has to be studied with an understanding that the chief import of the Upanishad must be the search for the Truth. That is why in the Upanishads, the person who looks for the Truth is called satya kaama. In the Chandogya Upanishad, you will read about Satyakaama Jabala, whose name Satyakaama means he who has but one ‘desire’ or (kaama), which is to find the ‘truth’ (satya); nothing else is important to him. Then: Aum shantih shantih shantih – “Aum Peace! Peace! Peace!” Ultimately, peace is what we need. If the study of the Upanishad does not bring peace, then it is better to wind up such a study. Ultimately whatever you have, if there is no peace, it means nothing. So this shantimantra talks about the equal importance of the teacher as well as the student, or, the speaker as well as the listener and how both the teacher and the taught are to be protected and sustained. They have to work together to understand the Truth and there need be no dislike between the two. This is the essential message of the Upanishad.; It says, “Listen to what is being said, so that there is no disagreement between the two.” The Upanishadic exercise is not one of argumentation but one of discussion and understanding. All that have been stated here are not my words. I am only translating what has been said in the Upanishad, which is the shruthi, which is the original scripture of this ancient land;. We now begin the Katha Upanishad with a story.

Part 1: CHAPTER 1 SHLOKA 1 ushan ha vai vaajashravasah sarva vedasam dadau tasya ha nachiketaa naama putra aasa “The sage, Vaajashravasa, desirous of heaven, performed a sacrifice in which he gave away all his possessions. He had a son called Nachiketas.” The story goes that the sage Vaajashravasa desired heaven and for this he performed the Vishvajit sacrifice to win the entire universe. He gave away everything so that he could attain the svarga loka – “heaven”. This is our usual behaviour. We are ready to give up everything as long as we achieve our aim in life. So Vaajashravasa was also ready to do that. Performing that sacrifice, he gave away all that he possessed. He had a son called Nachiketas. The word nachiketa is interesting. It means “one who does not understand”, and therefore wants to understand. But Vaajashravasa feels that he has understood everything: he knows what he wants to get and he is giving away everything for that. Here is the son, still young, and with an open mind who does not understand and therefore wants to understand the Truth. The son watches his father giving everything away in sacrifice in order to attain svarga loka. SHLOKA 2 tam ha kumaaram santam dakshinaasu niiyamaanaasu shraddhaa vivesha sah manyata “When the gifts were being given away to the priests, shraddhaa entered into the heart of the young boy, and he thought” What does shraddhaa mean? It has been loosely translated as “faith”. shraddhaa means all these things put together: faith in one’s self, one-

pointedness, total attention to the real as opposed to the unreal, to the true as opposed to the hypocritical. That shraddhaa, for understanding the Truth, entered the heart of the young boy Nachiketas. Although he was just a boy, as he looked at the cows that were being given away as gifts to the priests who had come to conduct the sacrifice, a thought entered his mind: SHLOKA 3 peetodakaa jagdha trinaa dugdha dohaa nirindriyaah anandaa naama te lokaas taan sa gacchata taa dadat “What joyless world will they go, who present such decrepit cows, whose water is drunk, who have eaten their grass, who have given their milk and will have no more calves?” Nachiketas saw the decrepit cows that were being presented to the priests. They were so old and useless that their water was “drunk”, meaning that all their body fluids had dried. They seemed to have “eaten their grass”, meaning nothing more remained to be eaten. Their milk had been exhausted and there was no more strength left in their senses or indriyas. They had become useless. Nachiketas wondered to what joyless world they would go, those who present such cows as a sacrifice. What joyous world or svarga, can one hope to reach when all one has to give is something that is spent and useless? This means, when we have used all our energies for useless things and when all the energy has gone, if we want heaven, what do we have left to give? All has been spent, nothing is left. If one has nothing to give, what will one sacrifice? When Swami Vivekananda was wandering around India as an unknown monk, he met a young man, who said to him, “I would like to give up everything and become like Gautama Buddha.” Swamiji said that it was a wonderful idea and asked, “What is your education?” The young man said that he had never been to school. “What is your parentage?” The young

man said that he was an orphan. “Do you have any property?” The young man replied that he had nothing at all. Swamiji asked, “Then what are you going to give up? The Buddha gave up his entire kingdom and became the Buddha. But you have nothing to give; so what will you give up?” Nachiketas wondered, “Here is someone who is seeking immortality and heaven – svarga loka – where he can remain for ages in bliss, without fear of want, without hunger and thirst. Such a person is giving away useless things like old and frail cows.” Cows here are only symbolic. It means that when everything has been spent and one thinks of going to the higher spheres, then there is nothing left to give to go there. The entire life is wasted. Nachiketas could not keep quiet for it had entered his heart. He was compelled to speak to his father. SHLOKA 4 sa hovaacha pitaram taata kasmai maam daasyaseeti dviteeyam triteeyam tam hovaacha mrityave tva dadaameeti “He said to his father, ‘Father, whom will you give me to?’ And he repeated this question for a second and third time. The father heard this and said, ‘I will give you away to Death.’” What Nachiketas meant to tell his father was that, whatever he was giving away was useless. For a real sacrifice, if he really wanted to get something, he would have to sacrifice something precious. And since he was his father’s most precious possession, “Who will you give me to?” was his question. The entire world is created in sacrifice. Physically, the father gives something away and the mother receives – it is a sacrifice. The mother goes through the sacrifice of suffering, before the child is born. Everything in this universe is the result of some sacrifice or the other. Nachiketas realised this and so he said to his father, “I am the dearest to you – the other things are useless. Who will you give me away to in

sacrifice?” And he asked not once, but repeated the question dviteeyam triteeyam – “twice, thrice.” The father heard this question repeated three times, and then he answered, “I will give you away to Death.” There have been various interpretations of this. Some explain this as to mean that the father was annoyed with the boy repeatedly asking him this serious question during the sacrifice and so he impatiently replied by saying, “I will give you away to Death.” He was irritated: “This chit of a boy, what is he saying now? Is he asking me a serious question?” This is one interpretation. The other explanation is that the father Vaajashravas, who was himself a great rishi, knew that there is only one thing by which one can begin to understand the impermanence of life, and that was death. Whatever we do, however much we gather, one day we have to go and death has to take us. So he told the boy, “I give you away to Death.” The rishi meant this to be the final test: “Find out for yourself now: if you know Death, then you know the entire universe, the whole wisdom of existence. So, I give you away to Death.” That means if you are dead to the universe, you are born to the spirit. Death does not mean that you run away from the earth. There is a beautiful statement in the New Testament: “He who loseth his life shall gain it. He who gaineth his life shall lose it.” Looking comparatively at the significance of both one has to decide what is the most important. Hearing his father’s words, Nachiketas says to himself: SHLOKA 5 bahoonaam emi prathamah bahoonaam emi madhyamah kim svid yamasya kartavyam yan mayaadya karishyati “Many have gone before me to Death and many will follow me. I go as the middling. What duty towards Yama has my father that he will accomplish through me?”

Nachiketas, though a young boy, thought about death as nothing peculiar. “Everybody has to die and I too am going to die. I am in the middle because so many have gone before me to death; so many more will follow me to death. I go as the middling.” He wondered what duty his father would accomplish by sending him away to Death. Then he continues to think about life, death and rebirth: SHLOKA 6 anupashya yathaa poorve pratipashya tathaapare sasyam iva martyah pachyate sasyam iva jaayate punah “It was the same with my forefathers; it was the same also with men who come later. Just like corn, a mortal ripens, falls and is born again.” First the corn is green, then it ripens, then the seeds fall and new corn is born. This goes on eternally. Later, one decays and is reborn and the whole cycle is repeated. Nachiketas does not at all doubt the existence of life after death. He knows that like corn, one has to be born again. That is not the central concern of the Upanishad. He knows that after death, although one is gone, one is reborn. Thinking about all this, Nachiketas goes to Yama Loka, the Realm of Death. As the story goes, when Nachiketas enters Yama’s world, Yama is away. Nachiketas waits there for three days, without food, for Yama to return. How did Nachiketas enter the House of Death? He did not enter like an ordinary person, crying and weeping and fearing that he had to leave the earth behind. He entered like fire. He went with the intention of studying what death is. He had not gone there because he was compelled to go, he had not gone fearing what would happen on the other side, nor had he gone with any desire left behind. We think that we are afraid of death because we are afraid of the unknown. But our fear of death is because we are afraid of leaving what is

known. If we were promised that we could take everything that we have with us and die, nobody would be afraid. It would be wonderful, like a nice trip to Singapore and back. But we cannot do that. There is a famous story of Guru Nanak and a Nawab Sahib, who was a miser, who would never give any money to charity. One day, Guru Nanak sent him a note with a sewing needle, saying, “Nawab Sahib, greetings! Please keep this needle safe with you. You are going to die and I am also going to die. When I come there and meet you, please give back the needle to me.” The Nawab Sahib got quite worried. He thought, “How can I take this needle there and then give it to him when he comes?” So he said to Guru Nanak, “I cannot do this, Sir. I cannot take this needle there.” Guru Nanak said, “Then how are you going to take all your wealth? Use it for the needy here in this world.” One of the greatest fears of death is that all the so-called near and dear things will be gone. But Nachiketas did not go to the House of Death with such fears. He went with the intention of understanding the Truth. With vigour he entered the House of Death. But, as Yama was away, he waited for him outside his house, refusing all hospitality. After three days, Yama returned and was surprised to find this boy there. Yama is told about the arrival of the boy. How? SHLOKA 7 vaishvaanarah pravishaty atithir braahmano grihaan tasyaitaam shaantim kurvanti hara vaivasvatodakam “Like the universal fire, this braahmana guest entered into the house. He was offered the peace-offering of water, O son of Vaivasvaan.” Braahmana comes from the word brahman. Here it means brahma vid brahmaiva bhavati – “Braahmana is one who tries to understand the Supreme Brahman.”

When this young braahmana guest entered, shining like fire, he was given respect and the peace offering of water. But Yama was not there to do that himself. So Nachiketas, whose desire was to know the Truth, refused everything and waited without food and water for three days for Yama to arrive. It is said that when a braahmana, a person who is searching for Brahman, the Truth, shining with energy, with the desire for Truth and only the Truth, enters your house, respect him and look after him. First give him water to wash his feet and water to drink and then feed him. If he remains unfed in your house and you do not look after him, then: SHLOKA 8 aashaa prateekshe sangatam soonrutaam cha ishthaa poorte putra pashunsh cha sarvaan etad vrinkte purushasya alpamedhaso yasya annashnan vasati braahmano grihe “Hopes and expectations, friendship and joy, sacrifices and good works, sons and cattle – all are taken away from the man of poor intellect, in whose house such a braahmana enters and remains unfed.” Everything is taken away from a host who does not welcome a braahmana into his house and feed him and look after him. Such a person is referred to as alpa medha – “the one who has very poor intellect and limited understanding,” as he does not respect the seeker of Truth. Yama comes to Nachiketas, who was sitting outside his house and says to him: SHLOKA 9 tisro raatreer yaad avatseer grihe mey annashnan brahman atitthir namasyah namaste astu brahman svasti mey astu tasmaat prati treen varaan vrunneeshva

“O Braahmana, I bow down before you, respected guest. You have waited for three nights outside my house without food. Obeisance to you, O seeker of the Truth, and welfare be to me. For each of the three nights, therefore, choose three boons.” Here Death himself is welcoming Nachiketas as an honourable guest. That means, when there is such a seeker who is seeking nothing but the Truth, even Death respects him and is afraid of him. The calm Nachiketas asks for the first boon from Yama: SHLOKA 10 shaanta sankalpah sumanaa yathaa syaad veetahmanyur gautamo maabhi mrityo tvat prasrushtam ma abhivadet prateeta etat trayaanaam prathamam varam vrinney “May my father, Gautama, be without any anxiety.With his anger gone, may he be gracious to me, O Death. May he recognize me and greet me, when you send me back from here. This is the first of the three boons I choose.” Nachiketas asks Yama for the first boon, that his father Gautama should greet him without anger and recognize him when he returns. Here, the name “Gautama” is also used to refer to Nachiketas’ father. Earlier, his father’s name is mentioned as “Vaajashravasa”. In the Upanishads, names are interchangeable. “Gautama” occurs in many other Upanishads, as in the Chandogya Upanishad, where there is a Gautama, who is the son of Haridrumat and the guru of Satyakama Jabala. There appears the beautiful story of Satyakama Jabala, a young boy, like Nachiketas, whose only desire was to find the Truth,satya. He did not know who his father was. He said to his mother, Jabala, “Mother, I want to go to a teacher and learn about the Truth, the Brahman. But when I go there, I will be asked my parentage. I do not know who my father is. What shall I tell them?”

Jabala, his mother, said, “Look, before you were born, I worked as a maid in many places with various people. So I do not know who your father is. So go there and tell them the truth. A braahmana is judged by his truthfulness. Tell the teacher the truth. Say, ‘This is what my mother told me; my name is Satyakama and I am the son of Jabala. So I am known as Satyakama Jabala.’ That is enough.” The boy went to the great rishi Gautama, who was the son of Haridrumat, and said, “Sir, I have come to learn the Truth.” The rishi asked him, “Who are you?” The boy replied, “I am Satyakama, the son of Jabala.” He then told the story about his parentage and about his earnest desire to know about the Truth. Gautama rishi said, “None but a seeker of Truth would have told me the truth without any pretensions. Therefore you are a perfect candidate for learning the Truth and I will teach you.” Here, Nachiketas asks Yama that his father Gautama should greet him without anger and that he should “recognize” him when he returns home. This not only applies to the father in the story, but to others as well. Many times, the person who has found the Truth and gone back is not recognised. After finding the truth one is different; one is not the same person again. Not only do people not “recognize” that person but instead of welcoming him with happiness and joy, they may persecute him. Many people who have found the Truth have been persecuted. So it is a genuine request that Nachiketas makes. In fact, in the New Testament it is said, “No prophet is welcome in his own place.” What troubles the great man Jesus went through and hung on the cross just because He had seen the Truth! It need not be that one is hung on a wooden cross. But, that “crucifixion” generally takes place because the person who has seen the Truth is looking at things from a different dimension, which everyone cannot follow. So instead of saying, “I cannot see that angle”, you dismiss it as either insanity or unacceptable. The plain fact is, you do not see that angle. Also, it is a little difficult to adapt after seeing That. Suppose you have been living in darkness for many years and suddenly you see the sun in its full brightness; then, when you look down on the earth, you cannot see

clearly for a long time because your eyes are dazzled by the brilliance of the Sun. It takes some time to adjust. So Nachiketas is asking for all these “adjustments”. Yama tells him not to worry. He says: SHLOKA 11 yathaa purastaad bhavitaa prateeta auddhaalakir aarunir mat prasrshtah sukham ratrih shayitaa veeta manyus tvaam dadrishivaan mrityu mukhaat pramuktam “Through my favour, he will also recognize you, as of old, in the same way as Uddhalaka recognized his son Aruni. Seeing that you have been released from the jaws of Death, no more will he have any anger left and he will sleep peacefully through the nights.” Here again, is a name from another Upanishad: Uddhalaka, the great rishi, and his son Aruni are mentioned in the Chandogya Upanishad. Names are interchangeable in the Upanishads. What was till now “Nachiketas” is now being addressed as “Uddhalaka Aruni”- Aruni, the son of Uddhalaka. “Released from the jaws of Death” – mrutyumukhaat pramuktam – does not mean that since he has come back from Yama, therefore, he has been “released from the jaws of Death”. What Yama means is, “When you go back from here, you will be free forever from death,” which means, “no more will death frighten you for you will understand what is real life and what is immortality.” Therefore, you are “released from the jaws of Death.” Then Nachiketas asks about the world of heaven: SHLOKA 12 svarge loke na bhayam kin cha naasti na tatra tvam na jaraya bibheti ubhe teertva ashanaayaa pipaase

shokaatigo modate svargaloke “In the world of heaven, there is no fear whatsoever. You, Death, also do not go there and there is no fear of old age. There is no hunger and there is no thirst and therefore, leaving sorrow behind, one rejoices in the world of heaven.” Nachiketas is talking to Yama about the “world of heaven” – svarga loka – “where one rejoices as there is no fear that Death will come and take us away; where one is free from old age, hunger and thirst and so, there is no sorrow.” In that world, there is nothing to fear whatsoever because you will never grow old and you will remain young. There is no fear of old age, death, catastrophes or cyclones. One enjoys a relatively long life. When Nachiketas talks about the “world of heaven,” svarga loka, he is not talking about the ultimate discovery of Truth, which is known as moksha. There is a difference. In asking for the second boon, he wants to know about heaven and in asking the third boon, he wants to know what is beyond svarga and what the ultimate Truth is. Nachiketas asks for the second boon: SHLOKA 13 sa tvam agnim svargyam adhyeshi mrityo prabroohi tam shraddha daanaaya mahyam svarga lokaa amritatvam bhajanta etad dviteeyena vrinney varenna “O Death, you know that fire-sacrifice, which is an aid to heaven Please describe it to me as I am full of faith. Tell me that secret by which one can gain immortality in heaven. This, I choose as my second boon.” As his second boon, Nachiketas asks Yama to tell him about that secret of the fire-sacrifice, that technique of reaching svarga loka, where there is no fear of old age or of death, where one lives for ages, rejoicing in happiness.

In the Vedas, everything that needs to be burnt, which needs energy, which needs light, is referred to as agnim, “fire”. So “Tell me that agnim which will take me to svarga. This I choose as my second boon.” Yama replies: SHLOKA 14 pra te braveemi tad u me nibodha svargyam agnim nachiketah prajaanan ananta lokaaptim atho pratishthaam viddhi tvam etam nihitam guhaayaam “I know that fire which will take you to heaven. I will describe it to you. You learn it from me, O Nachiketas. That fire is the means to attaining the boundless world of heaven. It supports the entire universe and resides in a secret place within you.” All the acharyas have interpreted “fire” as “desire”. That is the fire of the desire for Truth. It is the same fire which is also the desire for happiness. What is this desire that keeps us evolving, keeps us moving in this world? It is the desire for happiness and it is like a fire that burns in us all the time. While it is burning, it is wonderful; when it has finished burning, it becomes ash. It is this same fire which is also the search for the Supreme Being. The difference is, here it burns up and there, it burns down! That fire resides in a secret place within the heart. “Heart” does not mean the physical heart; it means the “centre of one’s consciousness”. In the next shloka, Yama describes that fire: SHLOKA 15 lokaadim agnim tam uvaacha tasmai yaa ishtakaa yaavateer vaa yathaa vaa sa cha api tat pratyavadat yathoktam

atha asya mrityuh punar evaaha tushtah “That fire-sacrifice, which is the source of the world, I will describe to you: what kind of bricks to use, how many, and, in what manner to place them and how to light the fire. Nachiketas then repeated it all, just as it had been told to him. Pleased with this, Death then said…” Here, when Yama talks about the “bricks’ to be used for the firesacrifice, he means the “building blocks” that will take one to svarga loka. When he says “fire”, he means “desire”. When Yama mentions the “bricks”, it is not as if he is going to describe how to arrange the bricks and light the fire. That is the external part of it. The Upanishad does not deal with the external part and the ceremonies – the Brahmanas deal with that. So Yama said, “I will teach you that fire-sacrifice.” He described it to him and taught him how to reach svarga loka. Nachiketas understood clearly what was taught and repeated it exactly as it was told to him. Death was delighted. Being so pleased, Death gave him an additional boon: SHLOKA 16 tam abraveet preeyamaanno mahaatmaa varam tava iha aadhya dadaami bhooyah tava eva naamnaa bhavitaayam agnih srinkaam cha imaam aneka roopaam gruhaanna “The great Death was extremely delighted and he said to Nachiketas, ‘I am giving you an additional boon. From now on, this fire-sacrifice will be named after you. Also, take this splendid chain of many shapes.’” This “chain,” srinkaam, has many interpretations. The various shapes and splendid beads that form the chain are meant to be all the blessings that one gets in svarga loka. All the blessings are put together in one chain. But, “chain” also means “that which binds”. Chains can be made of iron, or silver or gold, but they are chains – “that which bind”. So when Yama tells

Nachiketas to take that splendid chain as an additional boon, he means, “Along with svarga, I give you all the joys that bind you. Take that too!” Then Yama describes what happens to the one who performs the “Nachiketas fire” thrice. He says: SHLOKA 17 trinnaachiketas tribhir etya sandhim trikarma krut tarati janma mrityuu brahmajajnnam devam iiddyam viditvaa nichaayye maam shantim atyantam eti “He, who has lit the Nachiketas fire thrice, associating with the three, having performed the three acts, crosses over birth and death. And knowing the Son of Brahman, the omniscient, the resp-lendent and adorable Agni, and realizing Him, he attains everlasting peace.” There are a few terms that have to be explained here. “He, who has lit the Nachiketas fire thrice”, refers to the seeker who has understood “that” fire: he knows that in the inner being, fire of desire, of wanting to attain immortality, burns strong. He has lit the fire already and he has lit the fire thrice. “Thrice” has different meanings. Basically, it means that not only has the fire been lit by the three dimensions of his being – the mind, speech and action (manasa, vaacha, karmana) – but they also reflect the seriousness with which he has lit that fire, which is the fire of desire to reach immortality. “Associating with the three”: these three are shravana, manana and nidhidyasa, which mean, not only listening to what is being said but thinking about it constantly, contemplating on it and understanding it. “Having performed the three acts”: there are three important acts or duties to be performed by a seeker or sadhaka. One is ijja or sacrifice, which means, unless you are ready to sacrifice something, you cannot get something higher. You cannot say, “I will do something, but everything will

stay with me.” Something has to go for something else to come in. There needs to be space. The second important act, adhyayam or study, is required. The third is daana or gifting. If you have both deep study and a sacrificing approach, involuntarily daana comes in, since you give away what is good for others, not only material goods but also the knowledge that you possess. The greatest daana is to give knowledge free. So when a seeker lives performing the three acts, associating with the three and having lit the Nachiketas fire thrice, he crosses over birth and death. Knowing the Son of Brahman, he attains everlasting peace. Here it says, “Son of Brahman, Agni”, and not “Brahman the Supreme Being”. By knowing the Son of Brahman, one attains svarga loka or heaven, which is the aim of the seeker who wants to attain this eternal world, where old age does not touch you and where there is much bliss and happiness. But it is not the Absolute Brahman, the Supreme Being, which the Upanishad is really seeking. The Upanishadic aim is to seek that Supreme Being, not just this svarga. But then, one cannot jump directly – most people would like to know what this is, and then proceed to the next step. So this boon is for attaining svarga loka, which is considered to be one step lower than the Brahman. In the Absolute state of Brahman, which is beyond the svarga loka mentioned here, the individual does not exist anymore. There is only the Supreme Being. The ego has been completely erased. Here, in svarga, the ego persists, enjoying itself as an individual. That is the difference. So, the seeker, who has understood the Nachiketas fire, reaches that world of heaven, svarga loka. Then Yama says: SHLOKA 18 trin naachiketas trayam etad viditvaa ya evam vidvaams chinute naachiketam mrityu paashaan puratah pranodya shokaatigo modate svargaloke

“The wise man, who has in this manner, sacrificed thrice to the Nachiketas fire, who has known these three and thus knowing, throws off the bonds of death and overcoming sorrow, rejoices in the World of Heaven.” This is an Upanishad in sutra form, so one has to look into the commentaries. The wise man who has lit the Nachiketas fire thrice and has understood the “three”, purifies himself in meditation, not only in the physical body, but also in the subtler levels of consciousness. So the wise man is purified in the physical body the sthula sharira; in the subtle body, the sukshma sharira, and in the subtlest body, the karana sharira. (I am deliberately not using the word “astral” because it is a very popular word nowadays: every other person fancies himself to be flying around in his astral body). Such a wise man who purifies himself in meditation, not only in the physical body but also in the subtler levels of consciousness, “throws off the bonds of death, and overcoming sorrow, he rejoices in the world of heaven, in svarga loka.” But still, he remains in svarga not reaching beyond. Yama then asks Nachiketas to choose his third boon. He says: SHLOKA 19 esha teh agnir nachiketas svargyo yam avrineethaah dviteeyena varena etam agnim tava iva pravakshyanti janaasas triteeyam varam nachiketo vrineeshva “This is your fire, O Nachiketas, which leads to Heaven. You have chosen to know about this as your second boon. People will always call this fire-sacrifice by your name. Now choose your third boon.” As his third boon, Nachiketas asks Yama to clarify a doubt: SHLOKA 20

yeyam prete vichikitsaa manushye asti iti eke naayam asti iti cha eke etat vidyaam anushishtas tvayaaham varaanaam esha varas triteeyah “There is this doubt – some people say that a person who has departed continues to exist somewhere. Others say he does not. I would like to know this from you. Please tell me. This is the third boon that I ask.” You must remember that Nachiketas has no doubt that the soul exists after leaving the body. That is not his question as he has previously said, “Just as corn ripens and falls and then corn is born again, so too a person is reborn, again and again.” What he stresses upon here is “the free” when he says prete or “the departed.”It is also the meaning that both Shankaracharya and Madhvacharya state in their interpretation, though otherwise, they are poles apart. But when they interpret this, Madhvacharya substitutes the word “the free” or mukte for prete and Shankara also says that here prete means mukte. What Nachiketas wants to know is: What happens to a person when he is free? When one has attained spiritual freedom, when one is free from the surroundings, when one is free from the conditionings of this world, then what happens to one? Does one exist or not? Which means, is there only that Supreme Being in all its majesty? Or, is there also one little self inside enjoying It, or is the self merged with it? What is the Truth? When Yama hears the question, he knows the seriousness of it. This question has been discussed not only in Hindu philosophy, but in various others; whether the state of freedom is one in which there is an individual or only the Supreme Consciousness. In the Upanishadic way of teaching, it is never said, “It is like this, so you believe it!” The Upanishad always guides step by step, saying, “You look into this, you experience it and you find out what it is because of the simple fact that the Truth is not something which is like a material object.” The Upanishad enquires into the Supreme Truth, the Brahman, which is not something material, which can be put into a test tube and given to us, like

say, you put two compounds together and get a third. You cannot do that. We are talking about consciousness, which is immaterial. Suppose Yama says, “Look! This is what happens – you actually exist” or “you do not exist – you are merged with Brahman”, Nachiketas, who wants to know for himself, may not accept it. He has already challenged his father, the rishi Vaajashravasa, over the sacrifice. He would say, “You may say so but why should I believe it?” Hence, Yama leads Nachiketas, step by step, to an actual understanding of what it is. Here, the teacher is Yama; in the other Upanishads, it is other teachers who lead the students gradually, saying, “You understand what it is; and then you will find your answer to it. If I say something, it is my answer; it may not be yours.” This is a very important part of the Upanishadic teaching. So instead of directly listing and saying, “Yes, this is how you exist after death,” and so on, Yama thought to himself, “I want to first find out if this fellow is really serious, or if he is trying to ask me for the sake of argument.” There are many people who ask this question. But if you give them the same tests which Yama gave Nachiketas, they would rather agree and not question. They will say, “Ah! This is enough! I am happy. Who is bothered about what happens after death?” So Yama wants to test Nachiketas and find out if he is really serious about this question. Or, is he one of those who want to just say, “Oh! I have challenged even Death and asked him a question, which he could not answer.” Yama wants to find out how serious Nachiketas is. Is his interest, really, in finding the Truth alone? Or, is his interest in finding his own way of happiness in the name of Truth? Or, is he looking for entertainment, thinking that it is the Truth? This is the serious thing. To find out how serious he is, Yama says to Nachiketas: SHLOKA 21 devair atra api vichikitsitam puraa na hi suvijneyam anur esha dharmah anyam varam nachiketo vrinishva maa ma uparotsir ati maa srijainam

“Even the gods of ancient times had some doubts about this point. It is not easy to understand. It is as subtle as the atom. So choose another boon, O Nachiketas. Do not compel me! Please release me from this problem.” Yama discourages him because he also wants to find out how strong and clear Nachiketas is on wanting to know the Truth. Later on, Yama offers him various things to tempt him. He says, “Take all these things and be happy.” Why do you want to ask this? Why do you want to get into all this? But Nachiketas says, “No! I do not want anything.” How many people are there, who will not accept all that Yama offers, and remain really serious in their search for the Truth? Most will say, “If you are giving me all this, it is enough – forget about the Truth!” In response to Yama’s plea to not ask him that question and to ask for anything else, Nachiketas replies: SHLOKA 22 devair atra api vichikitsitam kila tvam cha mrityo yan na suvijneyam aattha vaktaa cha asya tvaadrig anyo na labhyah naanyo varas tulya etasya kashchit “Even the gods had doubts about this, O Death, and you say it is not easy to understand. It is not easy to get a teacher like you on this subject. So I believe no other boon is equal to this.” Yama then tries another technique to discourage him. Actually, it is not that Yama does not want to go into this question. He wants to find out how serious this young boy really is. Yama says: SHLOKA 23 shataayushah putra pautraan vrinishva bahoon pashoon hasti hiranyam ashvaan bhoomer mahad aayatanam vrineeshva

svayam cha jeeva sharado yaavad icchasi “Choose sons, grandsons, who will live a hundred years; choose cattle in plenty, elephants, gold, horses; choose vast expanse of land and yourself live as long as you want.” In those days, cattle meant wealth. Yama continues to offer more to Nachiketas: SHLOKA 24 etat tulyam yadi manyase varam vrinishva vittam chira jeevikaam cha mahaa bhoomau nachiketas tvam edhi kaamaanaam tvaa kaamabhaajam karomi “If you think of any other boon equal to this, ask. Choose also wealth and long life, O Nachiketas. Prosper on this vast earth. I will make you the enjoyer of all desires. Choose!” Yama continues to tempt Nachiketas: SHLOKA 25 ye ye kaamaa durlabhaa martyaloke sarvaan kaamaams chandatah praarthayasva imaa raamaah sarathaah satooryaah na hiidrushaa lambhaneeyaa manushyaih aabhir mat prattaabhih parichaarayasva nachiketo marannam ma anupraaksheeh “Whatever desires are hard to attain in this world of mortals, ask for them, as you will. There are noble maidens with chariots and musical instruments, the like of whom cannot be won by men. Be served by them, whom I give to you. But Nachiketas, do not ask me about death.”

This is the test for Nachiketas. He is saying, “I want to know about death and beyond death. I want to find the Truth.” And here is Yama saying, “Please take these lovely maidens with their chariots and musical instruments; they will sing and also dance for you!” But, Nachiketas is not impressed. He says to Yama: SHLOKA 26 shvobhaavaa martyasya yad antakaitat sarva indriyaanaam jarayanti tejah api sarvam jeevitam alpam eva tavaiva vaahaas tava nritya geete “All these are transient, O Death. They wear out the vigour of all the senses in man. And the whole span of life is but short. So, keep the horses, song, and dance, for yourself.” He continues: SHLOKA 27 na vittena tarpaneeyo manushyah lapsyaamahe vittam adraakshma chet tvaa jeevishyaamo yaavad eeshishyasi tvam varas tu me varaneeyah sa eva “Man never gets contented with wealth. Having seen you, shall we enjoy wealth? Shall we live as long as you rule? That alone is the boon chosen by me.” Nachiketas says sensual pleasures are ephemeral and there is no point in asking for them. He says: SHLOKA 28 ajeeryataam amritaanaam upetya

jeeryan martyah kvadhasthah prajaanan abhidhyaayan varnnah ratih pramodaan ati deerghe jeevite ko rameta “Having approached the imperishable, undecaying immortal one, what decaying mortal being who knows he can receive more worthy boons from him, can exult in living long, after scrutinising the enjoyments of singing and dancing?” Nachiketas makes it clear that he has no interest in these things: SHLOKA 29 yasminn idam vichikitsanti mrityo yat saamparaaye mahati broohi nas tat yah ayam varo gooddham anupravishto naanyam tasmaan nachiketaa vrinneete “Tell us that, about which they have a doubt, O Death, what there is in that great passing on, after death. This boon, which penetrates that mystery, and no other than that does Nachiketas choose.” Nachiketas asks Yama for the answer to that mystery, about life after death, about which there is a doubt. Yama is now convinced that the boy is indeed ardent about finding the Truth. Everything had been offered to him by the Lord of Death Himself and he knew that it would come through, if he accepted it. Yet, he said, “I want nothing else. I only want to know about The Truth.” Yama feels sure that Nachiketas is qualified to ask the question and he begins the teaching. He does not say, “This is what I say.” The Upanishad does not directly say, “Yes, you exist,” or, “you do not exist.” It starts from the root of the problem and then guides you to discover the answer for yourself.

CHAPTER 2 Yama begins to teach the pure-minded and qualified student Nachiketas and goes to the root of the enquiry. Yama says to him: SHLOKA 1 anyat shreyo anyad uta eva preyah te ubhe naanaarthe purusham sineetah tayoh shreya aadadaanasya saadhu bhavati hee yate arthaad ya u preyo vrinneete “Understand this: different is ‘the good’ and different indeed is ‘the pleasant’. These two, with different purposes, bind a man. Both appear to a person. It is well for him who chooses ‘the good’ but he who chooses ‘the pleasant’ loses his goal.” Yama tells Nachiketas, “First understand the root of your enquiry, the beginning of your enquiry; that ‘the good’ is different from ‘the pleasant’. What appears pleasant may not be good and what is good may not always be pleasant. So first understand this difference clearly. These two, ‘the good’ and ‘the pleasant’, bind a man for different purposes. Man comes face to face with ‘the good’ and also with ‘the pleasant’. Both these come to a person. Of these two, it is well for him, who takes hold of ‘the good’ as he moves towards the goal. He who chooses ‘the pleasant’ loses his goal.” A serious seeker of the Truth must understand that there is a difference between “the good” and “the pleasant”. Both appear to a person, a seeker, with their own purpose and bind man. A seeker who holds onto “the good” not worrying about whether it is pleasant or not, moves towards the goal. The person who chooses “the pleasant” over “the good”, falls and misses his aim. Yama tells Nachiketas the importance of choice: SHLOKA 2

shreyas cha preyas cha manushyam etas tau sampareetya vivinakti dheerah shreyo hi dheeroh abhi preyaso vrineete preyo mando yogakshemaad vrineete “Both ‘the good’ and ‘the pleasant’ approach a person. The wise man ponders over them and distinguishes. The wise man chooses ‘the good’ in preference to ‘the pleasant’. The other, for the sake of worldly well-being, chooses ‘the pleasant’.” Both “the good” and “the pleasant” approach a person: what does he choose? This is the beginning of spiritual enquiry. The one, who misses “the pleasant” and takes up “the good”, reaches the goal, if he seriously is a spiritual seeker of the Truth. The other, who is only happy with “the pleasant” – it does not matter what it is, whether good or bad – does not attain the aim of his search and misses the goal. Yama praises Nachiketas’ sense of discretion: SHLOKA 3 sa tvam priyaan priyaroopaamscha kaamaan abhidhyaayan nachiketo tyasraaksheeh naitaam srunkaam vittamayeem avaapto yasyaam majjanti bahavo manushyaah “Therefore O Nachiketas, after examining them, you have rejected those desirable objects, which appear pleasant. You have not taken the path of wealth, where many mortals sink into ruin.” Yama says to Nachiketas: “You have rejected ‘the pleasant’, after examining it and you want to hold on to ‘the good’. After discriminating, you have chosen wisely, the path of ‘the good’. You have not chosen that path of wealth and possessions, which takes many men to ruin.” He has not got into that which, the more it multiplies, the more you want. There is

never an end to wanting more and more wealth and possessions. It is an unending act. At every level, somebody thinks he has less than the other. Yama tells Nachiketas where the paths lead: SHLOKA 4 dooram ete vipareete vishoochi avidyaa yaa cha vidyeti inaataa vidyaabheepsinam nachiketasam manye na tvaa kaamaa bahavo lolupantah “Widely apart and leading to divergent ends, are these two – ‘igno rance’ and what is known as ‘wisdom’. You have chosen wisdom, Nachiketas, even the many desirable objects, which I set forth before you, did not distract you.” Yama considers Nachiketas as an aspirant for knowledge on his way to understanding. He warns him about “fools who think they are wise”. In the Mundaka Upanishad, you will find the popular saying “like the blind leading the blind.” That was said at least three thousand years ago. Here is something, which Yama says a little differently. SHLOKA 5 avidyaayam antare vartamaanaah svayam dheerah panditam manyamaanaah dandramya maannaah pariyanti mooddhah andhenaiva neeyamaanaa yatha andhaah “Abiding in the midst of ignorance, thinking that they are wise; and in their own esteem, thinking themselves to be learned; fools, treading a tortuous path, go about like blind men, led by one who is himself blind.”

“Abiding in the midst of ignorance”- since this is said after Nachiketas has rejected everything but the desire to find the Truth, “ignorance” means “any desire to know that which is other than the Truth”. So however learned we think we are, if the search for the Supreme Ultimate Truth is not our true desire, then we are more satisfied with “the pleasant” rather than “the good.” Thus, he says, “They are like ‘the blind leading the blind.’” Yama talks about the fate of the deluded. He says: SHLOKA 6 na saamparaayah pratibhaati baalam pramaadhyantam vitta mohena mooddham ayam loko naasti para iti maanee punah punar vasham apadhyate me “What lies beyond the attractions of the senses shines not to the ones who are simple-minded, careless and deluded by the glamour of worldly possessions. Thinking that this world alone exists and that there is no other, he falls again and again, into my power.” Having attained everything, these simple-minded people do not understand what lies beyond, deluded as they are by the glamour of worldly possessions. They think they are wise, thinking that this world alone exists and nothing else. Yama says, “They fall again and again into my power,” meaning they fall into the control of Death. Yama then points out a very important thing: When one begins to understand the Upanishadic dialogue, the Upanishadic teaching, when he says “That” or “He”, he is referring to the Supreme Truth or the Supreme Being. And the finding of the Truth, according to the Upanishad, is not a mass phenomenon, but an individual concern. Yama points out: SHLOKA 7 shravannaaya api bahubhir yo na labhyah

srunvanto api bahavo yam na vidyuh aashcharyo vaktaa kushala asya labdhaa aashcharyo jnyaataa kushala anushishtah “He, who cannot even be heard of, by many; whom many, even though they hear, do not understand; wondrous is he, who can teach and skilful is he who finds Him. Wondrous is he who knows Him, when instructed by the wise.” So, the finding of the Truth, according to the Upanishad, is not a mass phenomenon. It is an individual effort. There is no magic formula which the teacher can give to hundreds of people: “You practice this and you’ll reach the Truth.” Impossible! As far as the Upanishad, or Shruthi, is concerned, it does not work that way. The Shruthi says here about the Supreme Being, that many have not heard of Him; many, even though they hear about Him, do not understand. So it is wonderful, if someone can teach It, and it is also more wonderful, if someone is skilful enough to understand what is being taught. Wondrous is he who knows Him, being instructed by the wise. The Supreme Being cannot be understood en mass – it is too subtle. Why is it so difficult to understand? The basic reason is because the mind is attracted, caught and trapped by the outside world of the senses. Once the mind is free, there is no difficulty in understanding. But, it is not a joke to free the mind. Look carefully, critically, within your minds, without fooling yourself: You will find that, in the beginning, many sadhaks start on earnest sadhana. One wants to very seriously discover the Truth and so on. Somewhere along the line, there are temptations, which are not good, naturally. Now, there are some sadhaks who say, “Ah! These are temptations. I should overcome them.” There are many who get into a new teaching, suddenly, and say, “These temptations are inevitable, so let me carry on!” They are lost! Then the Upanishad points out that it is not easy for everybody to teach about the Supreme Being. Why is it so? According to the Upanishad, this can be taught only by one who has understood It. If he has not

understood and experienced It, It cannot be conveyed. It cannot be taught by word of mouth. That is why it says: “Skilful is he who understands even when the wise teach him,” because his mind has to be ready to grasp It; otherwise, the words may go to waste. Yama continues about the importance of the right teacher who has understood the Supreme Being. He says: SHLOKA 8 na narenna avarena proktaa esha suvignyeyo bahudhaa chintyamaanah ananya prokte gatir atra na asti anneeyaan hy atarkyam anu pramaannaat “Taught by an inferior person, He cannot be truly understood, as He is thought of in many ways. Unless It is taught by one who knows Him, there is no way to understand It. It is inconceivable and subtler than the subtlest.” Yama states that the Supreme Being cannot be taught by an inferior teacher. He, or It, cannot be truly understood because He is thought of in many ways. There are many ways of looking at this Supreme Being. It is infinite – therefore, there are infinite ways of looking at It. So, if a person who has not understood It in Its entirety, teaches, then It cannot be truly understood. It is inconceivable and subtler than the subtlest. Therefore, unless it is taught by one who knows himself as that Supreme Being; unless the person, who is teaching, has understood that in his inner Self, he is either connected with that Supreme Being or identified with that Supreme Being; unless and until such a person teaches, there is no way to understand It, because It is inconceivable and subtler than the subtlest – anu pramaanat. It is so subtle that It cannot be understood until the student is ready, without any kind of prejudice, to understand It and his mind is looking onepointedly, only for It. And, It also cannot be understood if the person who teaches has no experience of what he is saying. If both these conditions do not apply, then It cannot be understood.

Then, how do we understand? The way of understanding is called “negation”. You slowly take out all that is unnecessary or all that is not applicable; eliminate everything and then what is left is that Supreme Being. This is the Upanishadic teaching. Shankaracharya has said that It is the unreachable substratum, after the negation of all tangible objects. That means, It is That where the mind cannot reach. Then, how do we see It? Only when the mind has totally settled down, can It be understood. Yama then says: SHLOKA 9 naishaa tarkena matir aapaneyaa prokta anyenaiva sujnaanaaya preshtha yaam tvam aapah satyadhritir bataasi tvaadrun no bhooyaan nachiketah prashtaa “Not by reasoning can It be attained, O dearest, but when it is taught by another, who has understood It, It is well understood. You have truly resolved to understand by holding fast to truth. May we get other enquirers like you, O Nachiketas.” Yama is saying, “I wish there was another enquirer as serious and sincere as you in the attempt to understand the Truth. I pray that there are more Nachiketas born, who can understand this Truth. This is not attainable through reason but It is attainable only when It is taught by one who has understood It.” Yama continues saying how difficult it is to reach It. He says: SHLOKA 10 jaanaamy aham shevadhir ity anityam na hy adhruvaih praapyate hi dhruvam tat tato mayaa nachiketas chitah agnir anityair dravyaih praaptavaan asmi nityam

“I know that wealth is impermanent, not reached through transient things. Yet, by me is laid the Nachiketas-fire, and by impermanent means have I reached the Ever-lasting.” This is a very interesting statement. The previous shloka said It cannot be reached either by reason, or by any impermanent means. The Nachiketas-fire, being in oneself, is after all part of the impermanent world. So, what Yama says is that there is a way of reaching the Permanent through the impermanent world; not through reasoning and dispute and discourse, but when someone who knows It, teaches, then it directly opens the heart, lights the fire. When that fire is lit, it is the connection between the impermanent and the Permanent. Yama continues to praise Nachiketas. He says: SHLOKA 11 kaamasya aptim jagatah pratishtaam krator aanantyam abhayasya paaram stomaa mahat urugaayam pratishthaam drushtvaa dhrutyaa dheero nachiketo atyasraaksheeh “Having seen the fulfilment of all desires, the support of the world, the endless fruit of all the rites, the other shore, where there is no fear; having also seen the greatness of fame, the far-stretching, the foundation of everything, you, O Nachiketas, have still held steadfastly to the Truth and firmly rejected everything.” Yama then tells Nachiketas how one can access that Supreme Being. How can It be realised? He says: SHLOKA 12 tam durdarsham goodham anupravishtham guhaahitam gahvareshtam puraanam adhyaatma yogaadhigamena devam

matvaa dheero harsha shokau jahaati “Realising through Self-contemplation that Primeval God, the Supreme Being, difficult to be seen, deeply hidden in the cave of the heart, dwelling subtly within; when the wise man reaches That in meditation, he leaves behind both joy as well as sorrow.” Yama says that the Supreme Being can be realised through Selfcontemplation – not by looking for It in words, or in discourses. When It is looked for within, the wise man, through meditation, realises the Supreme Being dwelling subtly within the deep cave of his heart. When he reaches That, he leaves behind both joy and sorrow. Normally, if there is some joy, there is always some sorrow following it, and if there is sorrow, we always live with the hope that around the corner, there might be some joy still to come. But, in this state, where one leaves behind both joy and sorrow, there is the ultimate shanti. And that, says Yama, is realised through Self-contemplation on that Primeval God. You need not search for It anywhere outside – look for It in the cave of your own heart and see it in the secret recesses of your heart. No more do joy and sorrow exist, which means, no more are pleasure and pain there. One is beyond pleasure and pain. It may be a little difficult, in the beginning, to theoretically understand the Upanishadic statements about the Supreme Being. For instance, as the Kena Upanishad declares, na tatra chakshur gacchatti na vaag gacchatti no manah: “Where the eye does not go, nor does the ear, nor does the mind.” This is incomprehensible! If the eye does not go there, okay, I can still hear about It. But, if the ear too does not go there, then what do I do? Okay, I have my mind. But, if even the mind does not reach there, then how do I find It? So it becomes an inscrutable mystery. But, in the Upanishad itself, you discover what it actually means. As long as I am trying to find It, there is still the element of “I” in it and I cannot find It. So, what the Upanishad says is when the mind is totally quiet and calm, not reaching out anywhere, whether into this world or into the other; when it has completely settled down, is silent, then that Truth is revealed. So, although the Upanishadic statements appear to be

contradictory and paradoxical sometimes, if you look at them seriously and carefully, you will find that there is some sense in them. Also, the Upanishadic teachings are somewhat like Zen teachings; trying to prove that there are certain things that cannot be attained by way of linear logic: “I am here, I have to go there; therefore, I have to travel this distance.” But the Supreme Being is here, there and everywhere simultaneously. In trying to study about the Supreme Being, the Ishavasya Upanishad declares isha vaasyam idam sarvam: “That Supreme Being pervades everything here” – there is no question of going from one point to another. Therefore, in some places, the Upanishad uses the language of paradox and contradiction to break down our usual shells of logical thinking. In this context, sometimes two plus two equals five. But then, this is somewhat like the difference between Newtonian physics and Quantum physics. In Quantum physics, everything is uncertain. It is called the Uncertainty Principle. In Newtonian physics, everything is certain and this is applicable to our day-to-day life. But, when we go to the higher plane things become uncertain. Thus, the difference between the Upanishadic teaching and other kind of teaching can be equated to the difference between Quantum physics and Newtonian physics. Here, we are dealing with the imponderables and yet one has to touch It, otherwise there is no point in going through the whole exercise. The Upanishad does not say, “Abandon It because you cannot find It.” Instead it says, “Look carefully and you will find It, but not the way you usually think you can find It.” That’s why, sometimes, it gets a little confusing. The Upanishadic teachings are those which have to be listened to, thought over, understood and realised and made one’s own experience. That is why the student must go through shravanam mananam nidhidyasa – you first listen; then think about what you have listened to and carefully put your mind to it. When what the teacher has been trying to teach has been understood, then it is made one’s own experience. SHLOKA 13

etat shrutvaa samparigrihya martyah pravruhya dharmyam anum etam aapya sa modate modaneeyam hi labdhvaa vivrutam sadma nachiketasam manye “Hearing about this and comprehending It, a mortal extracts the essence of the subtle and rejoices, having reached the source of all joy. Such an abode of peace, which is understood by comprehending this Truth, is wide open unto Nachiketas.” Nachiketas then asks Yama this question: SHLOKA 14 anyatra dharmaat anyatra adharmaat anyatra asmaat krutakrutaat anyatra bhootaats cha bhavyaats cha yat tat pashyasi tat vada “Tell me that which you see beyond right and wrong; beyond what is done or not done; beyond the past and the future. Please tell me.” If a thing has a past and future, it definitely belongs to this world because the moment we look at the present, it has shifted to the past. Even a thought: the moment you have thought, it has been thought already, and gone. When we study something and get what we call knowledge, it goes into memory and it is past. And when we want to recall it, then we have to go back, recollect and retrieve it. So, none of these things can be the everlasting Reality, because the everlasting Reality should not disappear with the future and become the past. It has to be present always, as It is. Nachiketas asks, “Do you know of something, O Yama; which is beyond right and wrong?” That means, a state where once one reaches, the ordinary concepts of right and wrong do not remain. Please understand that the Upanishad is not advocating that you should be a Bohemian and have

no discretion between right and wrong. As the Upanishad proceeds, you will see that the only approach to It, is through goodness and righteousness. Yama says, “Now I will let you in, a little more, into this state.” He says: SHLOKA 15 sarve vedaa yat padam aamananti tapaamsi sarvaani cha yad vadanti yad icchanto brahmacharayam charanti tat te padam sangrahenna braveemi aum ity etat “That Word, which all the Vedas declare, desiring which, people perform austerities to attain and live the life of a religious student, brahmacharya; that Word, I will declare to you in brief. It is Aum.” The entire Vedas and the Upanishads declare om or aum as the One Word, the One Truth. People perform austerities and live the life of a religious student, or brahmacharya, to attain That Supreme Being, the Brahman, who is none other than that word Aum. “That charya, or that activity, which takes you to the Brahman,” this is the meaning of brahmacharya. In the Mandukya Upanishad, om or aum, is described as the symbol of the different states of consciousness: “a” is for the waking state or jaagrit; “u” is for the dream state or svapna; and “m” or “im” is for the deep sleep state or sushupti. And beyond the three is what is known as the turiya, which is the Witness of all the three states. When one understands that Witness, one knows that all these states are relatively unreal when compared to each other. For instance, in a dream, you are chased by a tiger – you run fast, the tiger is after you; it has almost caught you.You wake up; there is no tiger, but you are still sweating, your heart is pounding. It is very real. In the dream, if somebody said it was unreal, you wouldn’t believe it but when you wake up, it is actually unreal. So in the dream state, the waking state is unreal and in the waking state, the

dream state is a dream. Now, these states are relative to each other; real only when they exist, unreal, when they don’t. But there is a Witness who witnesses and is conscious and aware of all that is happening, and that is known as the turiya. And all this is represented by aum: a, u, im, represent the three states of consciousness, which are normally known to us and the ardha matra of aum is the last ringing sound, which comes after you chant aum, the mmm sound, which goes on in the end, like the ringing of the bell – that is the turiya. This, in brief, is the aum. Let us now come to the philosophical part of it. Those who are in the practice of sadhana, will know that in the deep stages of meditation, one begins to hear the sound of the pranava aum, within, and that is the link to moving into the higher realms of consciousness. Some schools of philosophy or religious teachings call it the surat shabdha, by which one proceeds further up. It is known as the pranava dhvani and also the anaahata shabdha. Describing the syllable aum further, Yama says: SHLOKA 16 etadd hy evaakshram brahma etadd hy evaakshram param etadd hy evaakshram jnaatvaa yo yad icchati tasya tat “This syllable aum is verily the everlasting Brahman; this syllable indeed is the highest end; knowing this very syllable, whatever one desires, that indeed will be his.” It means, if you understand what that aum is, you have understood the entire mystery of the universe and have attained everything. It does not mean that if I keep chanting aum and I desire a new tape-recorder, it will fall into my lap! That is not the meaning of the Upanishad. The Upanishad does not discuss such matters. It means, when you have understood the meaning of that syllable aum, you have attained everything that is to be attained. The aim of life, therefore, is to understand that aum.

Continuing about the significance of aum, Yama says: SHLOKA 17 etad aalambanam sreshtham etad aalambanam param etad aalambanam jnaatvaa brahmaloke maheeyate “This support is the best; this support is the supreme. Knowing this support, one is worshipped in Brahmaloka, the World of Brahma.” Yama then says, “I must tell you the qualities of that inner Self, your true identity, by understanding which, you are free of joy and sorrow and are not disturbed by any of the opposites.” He says: SHLOKA 18 na jaayate mriyate va vipashchit na aayam kutashchinn na babhuva kashchit ajo nityah shashvoto yam purano na hanyate hanyamaane sharirey “That Self, which is the knowing Self, is never born nor does It ever die. It has sprung from nothing and nothing springs from It. It is unborn, eternal, abiding and primeval. It is not slain when the body is slain.” This is also expressed in the Bhagavad Gita, a little differently. It means, that Self, which is the Witness, the knower – not that which is known – is like the eye that sees everything. But the eye does not see itself – we see the eye’s reflection in the mirror. But, because the eye does not see itself, we cannot say it does not exist. It is because of the existence of the eye that the whole world is seen. This Brahman, or the Supreme Self, is like the eye – It is the Seer of everything and although it is not seen by itself, it knows that it exists because it sees everything else. Harinama Sankirtana, which is chanted in the evenings in many homes in Kerala, is supposed to be a bhakti song, but it is quite philosophical. It

means: “The ‘eye’ of the eye is the ‘eye’ of the mind; when I realise that I am the ‘eye’ of the mind, how joyous it is.” The Self, the eternal Self, which is your true identity, is never born nor does It die. If one gets really fixed on this firm foundation of understanding of one’s own inner Self, one is no more identified with the body, but is identified with the Self. What fear or unhappiness is there for such a person? When I say, “I am that Self which is never born” – not merely say but understand and realize – “I remain always the same. When the body is slain, I am not slain.” Yama continues: SHLOKA 19 hantaa chen manyate hantum hatah chen manyate hatam ubhau tau na vijaaneeto naayam hanti na hanyate “If the slayer who kills thinks that he slays, or if the slain thinks that he is being slain, both of them do not understand It. It neither slays nor is It slain.” The slayer and the slain do not understand It because it is the body which is being slain; the Self cannot be slain. The Upanishad is not saying, “You go and slay somebody.”Once you read and understand something, you have to look at the other aspect, because there are people who look only at one side. We cannot help that. So the real Self is not slain, nor does one who thinks he slays It, slay It. It is always existent, without any change. Yama continues with the description of the Self: SHLOKA 20 anor aneeyaan mahato maheeyaan aatmaasya jantor nihito guhaayaam tam akratuh pashyati veetashoko

dhaatuprasaadaan mahimaanam aatmanah “It is smaller than the small and greater than the great; yet, the Self is seated in the hearts of every creature. The unstriving man, free from sorrow, through tranquility of the mind and the senses, sees the greatness of the Self.” The Upanishad is trying to lead you into something which is difficult to grasp by the so-called rational mind, which knows that one plus one equals two. When we go to deeper aspects, there is a certain element of uncertainty, which means that it can be understood only when one goes beyond the ordinary, practical, rational mind. But, rationality is very important, please understand. It is only the rational mind which can understand that it has its limitations. This is the teaching of the Upanishad – not that you have to ban it, but to realise its limitations. This is also the prayer of the Gayatri Mantra – “Illumine my intelligence so that I may understand its limitations.” The intellect is useful in its own place, there is no doubt, but beyond a certain point, it cannot move; and we are looking for the Source from which intelligence originates, the core of consciousness. Therefore, the only way this can be described is: “It is smaller than the small” or “bigger than the big” and so on, because you cannot really say what It is. Even air cannot be described, leave alone the Brahman! This description of being “smaller than the small, greater than the great” is a contradiction in the ordinary world because if something is “smaller than the small” it cannot at the same time be “greater than the great.” So, it means that it is trying, through contradictions, to prove the existence of something that is beyond conception. “It is smaller than the small and greater than the great; the Self is seated in the heart of every creature”, also means It is all-pervading and yet It can be contacted in the heart of every creature – fortunately! “The unstriving man beholds Him, freed from sorrow”: What is the meaning of “unstriving”? akratuh is the word used – it means “one who does not strive.” This can mean two things: “the unstriving man” can be one who has understood the futility of striving for pleasures in this world. It can also mean that while in meditation, one strives in the beginning to reach a certain point; after that, one lets go and remains quiet and settled.

The Zen Buddhists have described it beautifully by saying how an arrow and a bow are used to shoot a target. You need a bow, you need an arrow, you need a human mind, you need the eye, and you need intelligence. Then, you need energy to pull the arrow and the bowstring and you need the target. You keep the target and the arrow to your eye, in the same line. You pull the bowstring taut – now everything is ready. Then, if you have to hit the target, what will you do? Will you let go the arrow, or will you hold on? Can one deny that the exercise of holding it straight is necessary? But, after a point, is it necessary? It is not. You have to throw the bow and the arrow. So, akratuh is one who does not strive. He understands the futility of striving and he lets go. In such a case, the mind is tranquil, the senses are tranquil. Remaining quiet and settled, he beholds that Supreme Being, freed from sorrow. That is also the meaning of surrender. But that surrender will not come to an intellectual, until he is intellectually convinced that he has to surrender. The simple man may surrender straight away and throw the bow and arrow and say, “Take me.” But that is not possible for the thinking human being, who has to think and find out that one should surrender. That’s fine – that is how intelligent people go about it. But ultimately, one has to transcend the intellect. There is a wrong concept among some people that one can attain the Supreme Being intellectually. This is not possible. It is only when we understand, through subtle and higher intelligence, that it is impossible for the limited brain to reach that Supreme Being, that it may be possible to reach it. This is the teaching of the Upanishad. So the unstriving man, free from sorrow, through tranquility of the mind and senses beholds the greatness of the Self. Yama continues giving contradictory descriptions of the Supreme Being. He says: SHLOKA 21 aaseeno dooram vrajati shayaano yaati sarvatah kastam madaamadam devam mad anyo jnaatum arhati

“Sitting, He moves far; lying down, He goes everywhere.” “Who, save me, can know that God, who rejoices and rejoices not?” “Sitting, He moves far; lying down, He goes everywhere”: this description of the Supreme Being means that It is all-pervading. It is not, and cannot be, confined to a single place. If It is sitting here, It is also there. Even in my own small way, I may be sitting here, but my mind can be elsewhere. It is possible. How is it possible for me to sit here and also be away from here? Because my mind has come from That which is allpervading. This is not possible for a human being, except in a dream. It is not impossible for the Supreme Being. Yama then says: SHLOKA 22 ashareeram shareereshu anavastheshu avasthitam mahaantam vibhum aatmaanam matvaa dheero na shochati “Knowing the Self, who is bodiless among the bodies; the stable among the unstable; the great and the all-pervading, the wise man does not grieve.” Knowing that Supreme Self, who is hidden in the heart, but is also allpervading, who is the most stable among unstable things, who is bodiless although present in all bodies – knowing that Self, the wise man does not grieve. Here comes a real shock. Yama says: SHLOKA 23 naayam aatmaa pravachane na labhyo na medhayaa na bahunaa shrutena yamevaisha vrineete tena labhyas tasyaisha aatmaa vivrineete tanoom svaam

“This Self cannot be attained by instruction, or by intellectual power, or even through much hearing. He is to be attained only by the one whom He chooses. To such a one, the Self reveals His own nature.” This does not mean that it is futile to try to understand the Supreme Self. The meaning of this statement, which is connected to what was said before, is that this Supreme Self cannot be attained by following what one was instructed to do, because there is no step by step instruction like, “If you stand on your head for fifteen hours, you will see the Supreme Brahman,” or, “If you read a particular book, you will see the Supreme Brahman.” One may do all this; yet if the mind has not become stable and quiet, the experience is impossible. Mere instruction is of little help – the person should also be ready for instruction. Mere intellectual power is not enough. If that was the case, all the great intellectuals would be Godrealised, which is not always true, because, one may listen to many lectures, but still one has not found the Truth. So, It is not attained through much hearing. Then, how is It attained? It is attained by the one whom the Self chooses. “To such a one, the Self reveals his own nature.” When will the Self choose one? When you realize that you are helpless, the Self chooses you. To illustrate this point, once while sitting in a cave and shivering in the cold, my Master gave me this interesting example: Imagine that there is an open glass box, with a division in-between, which is also made of glass. On one side there is a beautiful section with a lot of greenery and garden; and the other side is dry and drab with not even water. There are these little, wafer-thin creatures on either side. There are very few, just one or two creatures, blue in colour, on the beautiful garden side, while the dry side is full of red creatures, in plenty. But there is one peculiarity in these wafer-thin red creatures, which is that they know only two-dimensions – length and breadth. They do not know of the third dimension, height or depth. It is possible for them to move only in the direction they know, that is either along the length or the breadth. Through this dividing wall of glass, the red ones see those other guys, the blue ones, enjoying themselves in the beautiful greenery. They too want

to go there but since they know only two dimensions, they keep moving sideways, trying to go the other side. They try and try. But they do not have any concept of the dimension called “up”. Even though the top of the box is open, they are powerless to go up. They only know length and breadth and so they keep moving sideways. Standing out of it, you can look into the box and see the antics of these beings, going round and round. You wonder why they don’t climb across and go over to the other side, and then you realise that these fellows do not have the capacity, they do not know that dimension. You very much want to catch them and put them on the other side, but, how can you choose them when they are all the time moving and trying, on their own? You try to catch them, but they keep moving, desperately trying to get out. One of these creatures, after having tried everything, goes to a corner and says, “I think this is not possible. There is no way – let me be still.” So when he stops moving, you pick him up and put him on the other side. “Ah! Here I am!” he exclaims. Such stories have their imperfections but they illustrate a point. Therefore, the Supreme Self chooses one, when one has completely understood that the only way is to settle down and become quiet. “To such a one, the Self reveals His own nature.” Since this has been declared, it may be misinterpreted. We can say that we can do whatever we like but ultimately, the Self will choose us! Many people use this as an excuse and if you are satisfied with this world, it’s fine. But it is not an excuse for a sadhaka. So, there is a clarification which follows immediately after. What is the clarification? Yama says: SHLOKA 24 na avirato dushcharitaan naashanto naasamaahitah naashanta maanaso vaapi prajnaanenainam aapnuyaat “Not he, who has not desisted from evil ways; not he, who is not tranquil; not he, who has not a concentrated mind; not he whose mind is not

composed, can reach this Self, even through right knowledge.” So, none can reach that Self “even through right knowledge, until the Self chooses to reveal Itself.” However, this is not an excuse and sadhana has to be practised. What the Upanishad says is that this Self cannot be reached by somebody who has not desisted from evil ways, who has not tried and achieved the technique of becoming tranquil, who has not a concentrated mind, whose mind is not composed. These are all part of sadhana and have to be practiced to have the qualification to know the Self. Yama continues: SHLOKA 25 yasya brahma cha kshatram cha ubhe bhavata odanah mrityur yasyopasechanam ka itthaa veda yatra sah “That Supreme Being, for whom priesthood and nobility are as food, and Death as a sauce – who really knows where He is?” That Supreme Being, “for whom the Brahmin and the Kshatriya are like food” – that means He eats them up in no time. “For whom even Death is like a sauce”- He adds that in and eats them up. Who really knows where that Supreme Being is? How is it possible to know that Supreme Being? What is the way to know that Supreme Being? For that, one has to understand the limitations of one’s capacity to reach It and therefore to let go and relax, and then what takes place is called surrender. It comes to various people at various times – there is a pace for everybody. For some, it comes early; for some, it comes late and there are multifarious reasons for that.

CHAPTER 3 Yama continues his teaching. He says: SHLOKA 1

hritam pibantau sukritasya loke guhaam pravishtau parame paraardhe chaayaa tapau brahmavido vadanti panchaagnayo ye cha tri naachiketaah “There are two Selves that drink the fruit of karma in the world of good deeds. Both are lodged in the secret place of the heart, which is the seat of the Supreme Being. The knowers of Brahman as well as those householders who maintain the five sacrificial-fires and perform the Nachiketa-rite speak of these two Selves as light and shade.” The Upanishad clarifies that “the knowers of Brahman” or “the knowers of the Truth” are not only the sannyasins who have given up the world; they are also “those householders who maintain the five sacrificial fires and perform the Nachiketa-rite.” It includes all human beings, irrespective of whether they are renunciants or living in the world. They, who have known that Supreme Being, speak of these two Selves who reside in the heart, as “light and shade” or “light and shadow”. That means, one is “real” and the other is the “shadow”. The “real” is the one who enjoys, without being involved. And the “shade” or the “shadow” is that self which actually thinks it is rejoicing and therefore, it is also suffering when it is not rejoicing. Or, when the joy or the source of joy is taken away, it suffers. When we have no joy, that itself is suffering. Of these, that which is known as the “shadow” is the unreal self, which is our mind. Therefore, to realise that one’s true identity is not that “shadow” called the mind, but that which is Conscious and is yet not affected by any of these – that, is the teaching of the Upanishad. Yama says: SHLOKA 2 yah setur eejaanaanaam aksharam brahma yat param abhayam titeershatam paaram naachiketam shakemahi

“Those who wish to be free and cross over to the other side, perform the Nachiketa-fire sacrifice. May we master that fire sacrifice, which is the bridge to the fearless shore, which is the highest, imperishable Brahman!” This is a prayer seeking to master that technique known as the Nachiketa-fire sacrifice, the bridge by which one crosses to the other shore of absolute fearlessness. Yama compares the body to a chariot and the Self is the Lord within. He says: SHLOKA 3 aatmaanam rathinam viddhi shareeram ratham eva tu buddhim tu saarathim viddhi manah pragraham eva cha “Know the Supreme Self as the Lord of the chariot and the body as the chariot. Know the intellect as the charioteer and the mind as the reins.” Yama continues: SHLOKA 4 indriyaani hayaan aahur vishayaams teshu gocharaan atma indriya mano yuktam bhokta iti aahur manishinah “The senses are the horses, the objects of the senses are the paths through which they travel. The wise declare the Self, associating with the body, the senses and the mind as the enjoyer.” Yama describes that the Self, the atman, is the Lord of the chariot. The body, the intellect is the charioteer. The mind is the rein. The senses are the horses. The objects of the senses are the paths which they take and the Self, associating with all this, enjoys the whole thing, the whole activity. Yama tells Nachiketas about the mind and its role in reaching our goal. He says:

SHLOKA 5 yas tu avijnyaanavaan bhavaty ayuktena manasaa sadaa tasya indriyaani avashyaani dushtaashvaa iva saaratheh “Therefore, he who has no understanding, whose mind is always unrestrained, his senses are out of control, just as wicked horses are for a charioteer.” How can such a person reach his goal, whose horses are wanton and do not obey his command? SHLOKA 6 yas tu vijnaanavaan bhavati yuktena manasaa sadaa tasya indriyaani vashyaani sadashvaa iva saaratheh “However, he who has understanding, whose mind is always restrained, has his senses under control – they are like good horses to a charioteer.” Yama continues telling Nachiketas about one who has no understanding, who has no control over his mind. Such a person does not attain his goal, but comes back into mundane life. He says: SHLOKA 7 yas tu avijnyaanavaan bhavaty amanaskas sadaa shuchih na sa tat padam aapnoti samsaaram cha adhigacchati “One who has no understanding and has no control over his wandering mind, and is impure, reaches not that goal but comes back again and again into mundane life.” Practically, another way of looking at this is, when one thinks of this world, it means that instead of remaining, or being able to remain at rest in the inner Being, one returns repeatedly into the turbulent world.

Yama continues: SHLOKA 8 yas tu vijnaanavaan bhavati samanaskas sadaa shuchih sa tu tat padam aapnoti yasmaad bhooyo na jaayate “However, he who has understanding, who has control over his mind, and is pure, reaches that goal from which he is not born again.” Again, we can interpret it for here and for the hereafter: either the soul does not come back because it is free, or the one whose mind is pure and has understanding is free from the sorrows of this world. He who is calm, quiet, restrained and pure, is “not born again”, meaning, nothing more that can cause sorrow for him is born in his mind. Normally, whenever we get some peace, something comes up and again we are caught up in the world. So what the Upanishad is saying is that in that state, there is no more getting caught in this circle – you are free! That does not mean that the realised man does not have problems like all of us do, but his way of looking at the problems, facing them and dealing with them is different from what is normally done. We all know that Ramana Maharishi had cancer. Many other people also have cancer but there is a difference between the Maharishi and them. The Maharishi lived with the understanding that he was not the body. So even if he had some pain at some point, that pain did not affect his inner Self, of which he was very aware. Whereas an ordinary person, who is identified with the body, would think that is the end and there is a great deal of suffering also because he has to leave all that he considers to be the dearest and the nearest to himself. The one who is realised, like the Maharishi, sees that the inner Self is the dearest and the nearest. Yama says that the goal can be reached by a man of self-control. He says: SHLOKA 9

vijnaana saarathir yastu manah pragrahavaan narah sa adhvanah param aapnoti tad vishnoh paramam padam “He, who drives with this understanding, becomes the clever driver of his chariot and controls the reins of his mind. He surely reaches the end of his journey, which is the Supreme Abode of Vishnu.” “Vishnu” means “the all-pervading Self” – present everywhere. So the man of discrimination and self control attains the supreme goal of life, the abode of Vishnu. Then Yama gives a step by step description about the connection between this world and That. He says: SHLOKA 10 indriyebhyah paraa hy arthaa arthebhyas cha param manah manasas cha paraa buddhir buddher aatmaa mahaan parah “Beyond the senses are the objects, beyond the objects is the mind, beyond the mind is the intelligence and beyond the intelligence or the understanding is the Great Self, the mahaan atman.” The sense objects are beyond the senses because the senses are meaningless if there are no objects. In deep sleep, the senses are there but they are of no use because there are no objects for the senses. “Beyond the objects is the mind”: That which attaches the senses to the objects is manah- the mind or thought. The whole bundle of thoughts that we have is called the mind. “Beyond the mind is buddhi” – the intelligence or what can be called the understanding. What is this understanding? It is that which is seeing the mind and also understanding: “Ah! This is my mind. It is functioning, it is thinking. I should think, I should not think.” That is what is known here as “the understanding” which is beyond the mind.

“Beyond the understanding is the mahaan atman” – the Great Self, which is the core of one’s consciousness, which is within, which is the Witness. That is not all, as Yama continues grading what is existent in the scale of what is the subtlest. He says: SHLOKA 11 mahatah param avyaktam avyaktaat purushah parah purushaan na param kinchit: sa kaashtaa saa paraa gatih “Beyond that Great Self is the Unmanifest – avyaktam – and beyond the Unmanifest is the Spirit – the purusha. That purusha is the final goal – that is the end of the journey. There is nothing beyond.” Beyond that Great Self, which is the Witness, which watches everything – all the activities of the senses, the mind and the intellect – is the Unmanifest, the avyaktam, which is the Mind, considered not as the mind of an individual, but as the sum total of all minds, the universal Mind. Actually, if you look at it, there is one universal Mind that manifests through different centres or different brains. Try to figure it out: you have some sorrow, I have some sorrow and a third person also has some sorrow. Your sorrow and the cause of your sorrow may be different from my sorrow and the cause of my sorrow. It may be different, but the fact remains that we all have sorrow – it is a common factor. So also is joy. Your joy may be different. For you, joy may be having a nice puff after a long time and my joy may be having idli and chutney powder. But, the joy is a common factor. In the same way, there is one sorrow in the whole world and it manifests itself for different reasons through different people at different times. That is the avyakta – Mind.

“Beyond the avyaktam is the purusha”- the Spirit. The word purusha shows it is not “nothingness” or an impersonal object. Here, purusha means a conscious entity, but not a limited entity. And that purusha is the final goal, the end of the journey. There is nothing beyond That. The Buddhists also believe, “That is the end, beyond which there is no movement; it is the other shore” – tad yatha gatha gathe para gathe para samgathe bodhi svaha. Many of these terms, although they are in the Upanishads, can be found in the Samkhya philosophy, like the word purusha. The first mention of purusha is in the Rig Veda, in the Purusha Suktam – sahasrashirshapurushah sahasraaksha sahasrapaad. Later, when Kapila Muni introduced his system of philosophy known as the Samkhya Yoga, he incorporated many terms from the Upanishads. In fact, yoga is one part of Samkhya philosophy. And Kapila Muni is very important, because, in the Bhagavad Gita, when Krishna lists his mahimas, he says, “Among the mountains, I am Meru; among the Vedas, I am Sama Veda; among the munis, I am Kapila.” So the great muni, Kapila, brought out the Samkhya system of philosophy, which is an excellent system of cosmology too. It begins with purusha prakriti and how the world comes into being and so on. In fact, there is a beautiful description of prakriti in the Samkhya Pravachana Sutra. It says, prakaroti iti prakriti – “that which divides and creates division is prakriti.” And unity is that which goes back to the purusha. So that is the final goal, that purusha, who is beyond even the totality of thinking and the Mind. Yama continues about the hidden Spirit, purusha. He says: SHLOKA 12 esha sarveshu bhooteshu gooddho aatma na prakaashate drushyate tvagryayaa buddhyaa sookshmayaa sookshma darshibhih “That Self, atman, though hidden in all beings, does not shine forth visibly. It can only be seen by the seers through the sharp and subtle

understanding or intelligence.” That Self, that purusha, is “hidden in all beings”. It is not as if It belongs only to the teacher of the Upanishad, but It is hidden in all beings. Therefore, in that way, everybody is equal, as the Self is hidden in all beings. That is the kind of equality which is the best – it has no caste, no creed, no race, and no religion. That atman is hidden in all beings and does not shine forth. It is not evident when you look at a being that there is this inner Self, this purusha inside. It can be seen by the seers with subtle minds, through their sharp intelligence and subtle understanding. They see the Self within. Then Yama tells Nachiketas how the wise attain a peaceful state. He says: SHLOKA 13 yacched vaang manasee praajnyas tad yacched jnyaana aatmani jnyaanam aatmani mahati niyacchet tad yacchet shaanta aatmani “The wise should merge the speech in the mind and that mind in the intellect; the intellect in the Great Self and that Great Self in the Self of Peace.” After saying all that, the rishi of the Upanishad urges not to be complacent. Yama says to Nachiketas: SHLOKA 14 uttishthata jaagrata praapya varaan nibodhata kshoorayasya dhaaraa nishitaa duratyayaa durgam pathas tat kavayo vadanti

“Arise! Awake! Having attained all your boons, understand them. This path that you are taking is like the sharp edge of a razor, difficult and hard to cross – so the great sages have declared.” Swami Vivekananda was very fond of this statement “Arise! Awake!” Some people translate it as “stop not till the goal is reached.” But I would say, “Now that you have got your boons, understand them.” Yama urges Nachiketas not to be complacent. He says, “Now that you have attained all your boons, do not be complacent but try to understand them and realise the Self. Be awake, be careful because this path that you are taking is as sharp as the edge of a razor and is hard to cross. The great sages have declared that it is a difficult path to cross.” In ancient Vedic terminology, kavi is not just a “poet” but it also means “the wise”. “The wise” that have the revelation or understanding of the Truth and therefore sing about it in ecstasy are called kavi. Yama then describes the Self, the atman, knowing which, one is free from the fear of death. He says: SHLOKA 15 ashabdam asparsham aroopam avyayam tathaa arasam nityam agandhavac cha yat anaadyanantam mahatah param dhruvam nichaayya tam mrityu mukhaat pramuchyate “That Self is without sound, without touch, without form, without decay; It cannot be tasted or smelled; It is eternal and has no beginning or end; It is immutable and beyond the Great Self. Discerning that and abiding in It, one is free from the fear of death.” What Yama is saying is, “Awake! Arise! Understand, Nachiketas, that you are not the little fellow who you think you are, but you are that formless, greater than the greatest, the Self which can be neither destroyed nor is born, that ever-existing Supreme Self. Knowing that Self and abiding in that Peace be free from the fear of death.”

That means, if one is That Self then there is no fear of death. Where is death going to take us? It is only when I am identified with my little self, there is fear. So, understand this, apply your mind to it and don’t be complacent till you reach the goal. Now, this is a great message. It is a message of strength and greatness. It is not a message of weakness and littleness. In fact, the Chandogya Upanishad declares, “naayam atma balahine na labhya” – “This atma cannot be attained by the weak.” This does not mean that you have to have biceps to do that – what you need is grit. The Upanishad itself declares and those who have experienced It have also found that within all individuals, there is That Supreme Reality, which is powerful, peaceful, eternal and unending. Even to think about It theoretically, one is filled with a certain greatness. What happens when we relate this story or hear it? Yama says: SHLOKA 16 naachikatam upaakhyaanam mrutyuproktam sanaatanam uktvaa shrutvaa cha medhaavee brahmaloke maheeyate “By hearing or relating this ancient story of Nachiketas, as told by Death, a wise man grows great in the world of Brahman.” The one who tells this ancient story and the one who hears it, “goes up” in his level of consciousness, because by listening to it, even if it does not register, it will linger somewhere inside. Yama repeats: SHLOKA 17 ya imam paramam guhyam shraavayet brahma samsadi prayatah shraadha kaale vaa tad aanantyaaya kalpate

“Whoever shall have this supreme, mysterious story recited before an assembly of serious seekers, or devoutly repeated at the time of the ceremonies for the dead, will prepare him for everlasting life. This will prepare him for everlasting life!” In the Tibetan Book of the Dead and the Egyptian Book of the Dead, it is said that when a person is passing away, he does not know where he is going. He is in anxiety, generally. When it says, “at the time of the ceremonies for the dead,” it means the ceremonies while the person is dying, not after he has gone. At that time, if someone chants this to him and he listens to it, he goes with perfect peace and understanding, knowing that he is not this little body or this individual self, and that he is going into eternity. With this, Part 1 of the Katha Upanishad ends. Some scholars are of the opinion that this is the end of the Katha Upanishad. The section that follows has been added to the body of the Upanishad, to make clearer what has been discussed.

Part 2: Chapter 4 This section is a corollary to all that has been discussed in Part 1; it is like a commentary. The rishi of the Upanishad says: SHLOKA 1 paraanchi khaani vyatrunnat svayambhooh tasmaat paraang pashyati na antaraatman kaschid dheerah pratyag aatmaanam aikshad aavritta chakshur amritatvam icchan “That Self is not to be found through the senses. That Supreme Self has pierced outwards, the openings of the senses. Therefore, one looks outward and not within oneself. Only the wise man, seeking life eternal, with his eyes turned inward, beholds the inner atman, the Immortal Self.”

The senses cannot find that Self. Just as the eye sees everything but cannot see itself because it is the sense of sight, in the same way, that Supreme Being, the Self, activates the senses and therefore, the senses cannot see It. It is from this Self that the senses proceed outwardly. Therefore, one does not normally look within oneself. Only a wise man, not satisfied with all this impermanence, turns within and sees the Immortal Self. When most look outwards, he looks within and beholds the immortal Self. SHLOKA 2 paraachah kaamaan anuyanti baalah te mrityor yanti vitatasya paasham atha dheera amritatvam viditvaa dhruvam adruveshu iha na praarthayante “The small-minded go after outward pleasure and they walk into the snare of the wide-spread death. The wise, however, recognising life eternal, do not try to find the stable among the unstable things of this world.” Death has laid a snare in this world of the senses. The ignorant go after pleasure, rather than the good and they walk into the snare. But the wise do not fall into this snare – they know that they cannot find stability in this unstable world. Then: SHLOKA 3 yena roopam rasam gandham shabdaan sparshaams cha maithunaan etenaiva vijaanaati kim atra parishishyate etad vai tat “That, because of which one perceives form, tastes, smells, hears sounds and feels the touches of love; by That alone one perceives that Self.

So what is there in this world that remains unknown to That Supreme Self? This verily is That Self.” It is because of the presence of that inner Self that one experiences this world. There is nothing that is unknown to that Self, which experiences everything, although we think that we are experiencing. After going within and finding out that true Self, hidden in the recesses of the heart, the rishi discovers that, what is hidden here, is also what is outside; that which is inside is also there. That which is here is also there. SHLOKA 4 svapnaan tam jaagaritaantam cha ubhau yena anupashyati mahaantam vibhum aatmaanam matvaa dheero na shochati “Having known That Great Omnipresent Self, by which one perceives the waking and dream states, the wise man grieves no more.” There is a Witness which perceives the waking state, which perceives the dream state, which apparently, is also present when one is in deep sleep, without dreams, because when we wake up, we are left with the feeling, “Ah! That was wonderful!” So there is a Witness, but we are not aware of it. And that is the Omnipresent Self, “omnipresent” because It is present in all states of consciousness. That Self perceives all these states. Having known That Omnipresent Self, no more does sorrow touch the wise man who has realised the Supreme Being. SHLOKA 5 ya imam madhvadam veda aatmaanam jeevam antikaat eeshaanam bhoota-bhavyasya na tato vijugupsate etad vai tat “He who knows this Self, the experiencer, the Lord of both past and present, the living Spirit, close at hand, he knows no fear thereafter. This is verily That.”

There is another statement that expresses this, “He is nearer to you than your own jugular vein.” So this Self, the experiencer is verily That Brahman. This is verily That. SHLOKA 6 yaa poorvam tapaso jaatam adbhyah poorvam ajaayata guhaam pravishya tishthantam yo bhootebhir yapashyata etad vai tat “He was born of old from austerity. He was born before the waters. That Being, who is from the beginning, having entered the secret place of the heart and dwelling with the elements, looks forth through the beings. This is verily That.” “He was born of old through austerity”: this refers to the story in the scriptures, which says the whole world was born through the tapasya – austerity – of Prajapati. That only means that nothing can be made without some kind of sacrifice (tapasya is also “sacrifice”). Unless you give up something, you cannot find something else. “He was born before the waters”: this, again, is the cosmological story of how the whole world was created from the waters. In fact, “Narayana” means “the vehicle in the deep waters”: ayana means “vehicle”; in the nara “deep waters”. That ancient Being, from the beginning, having entered the secret place of the heart, dwells in the body made of five elements and looks forth through these beings. When I say, “I look,” it is the Supreme Being who is looking forth. When I am identified with my individual Self, I am separate; I look and I see only a few things. Now, you are also identified with your individual Self and so you also see a few things. So do all the people in this world, who look through their eyes and their individual self. Therefore, the Supreme Self who is in all, sees everything, all at once, because He is seeing through you, He is seeing through me and through everyone else. So This Being is indeed That Being.

SHLOKA 7 yaa praanena sambhavaty ya aditir devataamayi guhaam pravishya tishthantim yaa bhutebhir vyajaayata etat vai tat “She, who rises with the ‘life-force’ – prana – that aditi, the soul of the gods, the first-born who was created with the elements, has entered the secret place of the heart and dwells there. This is verily That.” Here the Supreme Being is called “She” instead of “He” as earlier, meaning aditi, “the soul of the gods”. Aditi means “unbound” or “boundless”. She, who rises with life, that unbound aditi, the soul of the gods, has manifested with the elements as the life-force – prana – and has entered the secret place of the heart. This aditi, the soul of the gods, the first-born, who was born with all the beings, is no other than That Supreme Being. “This is indeed That.” SHLOKA 8 aranyor nihito jaata vedaa garbha iva subhrito garbhinnibhih dive diva eedyo jaagrivadbhih havishmadbhir manushyebhir agnih etad vai tat “That omniscient agni, like the well-protected embryo in pregnant woman, is lodged hidden in the two fire sticks; He is adored daily by the watchful men, who offer oblations to the sacrificial fire. This is verily That.” Agni is associated with sticks because in ancient times, when they wanted a fire, they rubbed two sticks together and out of that came the fire. So it is a symbol of that which is hidden, which can manifest at any time, from any place. So agni, hidden in the sticks, is also compared to the embryo, hidden in the well-protected womb of pregnant women. That means, That Supreme Being stays hidden in the secret place, like an embryo in the womb and the unmanifest fire in the sticks. That agni should be adored daily by the watchful people, who offer It oblations, as This is indeed That.

Every day, human beings should adore That inner Being, hidden like fire within, and offer oblations unto that inner Being. “Offer oblations” means sacrifice everything else to the understanding of that inner Fire, which is also called the Nachiketas-fire. SHLOKA 9 yatah cha udeti sooryo astam yatra cha gachhati tam devaas sarve arpitaas tadu naatyeti kas chana etad vai tat “That, from where the sun rises and to where it goes to rest – in It are all the gods founded and no god goes beyond That. This is verily That.” The sun, from where it rises and to where it sets, means the universe, the entire cosmos, everything, is rooted in That Supreme Being, including the gods. It means that there is nothing that is not in the ambit of that Supreme Being and none can go beyond It. It covers everything. Next, the rishi of the Upanishad gives poetic descriptions of It, one by one, so that nothing is left out. SHLOKA 10 yat eva iha tat amutra yat amutra tat anviha mrityoh sa mrityum aapnoti ya iha naana iva pashyati “Whatever is here, is also there; what is there, is also here. Whoever perceives ‘the many’ here goes from death to death.” That means, That Supreme Being is all-pervading – “whatever is here, that is also there”. Isha vasyam idam sarvam – “that Supreme Being pervades everything here”. There is no place where It is not – It is here, It is also there. “Whoever perceives ‘the many’ here goes from death to death” – What the Upanishad means is that when one realises that in “the many” that you see, there is only the Supreme Being, then, one is safe. Otherwise, one goes from death to death.

Now, “death to death” could mean, metaphysically, that one is born again and again. It could also mean that one tries to enjoy one’s desires again and again and because one enjoys and then gets sorrow when it is finished, that is like death. But then, one looks for more enjoyment again and again, and suffers – that is also “death to death.” The one who sees the Unity as the essential Self, has no death because he is always in that tranquility. SHLOKA 11 manasa eva idam aaptavyam na iha naanaasti kin chana mrityoh sa mrityum gacchati ya iha naana iva pashyati “By mind alone is That to be attained. There is no variety here, it is all One. Whoever perceives variety goes from death to death.” The Self is to be attained only by the mind. It cannot be obtained by anything else. There is no variety and the one who perceives variety, goes from death to death. Whoever perceives Unity as the essence of all beings remains anchored in the inner Self. It is to be attained only through the mind; there is no other way. One can only reach It through thinking about It, by trying to understand It; not by reaching for It through the senses. SHLOKA 12 angushtha maatrah purusho madhya aatmani tishthati ishaano bhoota bhavyasya na tato vijigupsate etad vai tat “That purusha, of the size of a thumb, resides in the middle of the body. After knowing Him, who is the Lord of the past and the future, one does not move away from Him anymore. This is verily That.” That Supreme Being, the purusha, is “of the size of the thumb”. This is a figurative and poetic expression to indicate that It is small and very subtle, remaining hidden inside. It does not mean that the Supreme Being is residing inside, looking like a thumb!

That inner Being resides in the “middle of the body”, in the inner recesses of one’s consciousness, meaning in the “heart” which is the centre of consciousness – not the physical heart. After knowing that Supreme Being, who resides in the heart, who is the Lord of the past and the future, one does not move away from Him anymore because one has understood one’s true identity in Being. This “thumb-sized” purusha is no other than That Supreme Being. There is no difference. This is That. SHLOKA 13 angushtha maatrah purusho jyotir iva adhoomakah eeshaano bhoota bhavyasya sa evaadya sa u shvah etad vai tat “That purusha, of the size of a thumb, is like a flame without smoke. He is the Lord of the past and the future. He is the same today and also the same tomorrow. This verily is That.” That Supreme Person, the purusha, residing as atma in the individual, in the middle of the body, of the size of a thumb, “is like a flame without smoke”. That means It is Self-existing. Any flame, which has been lit from outside, has some smoke. Here, It is a Self-sustaining flame; therefore, It does not have smoke. He is the unchanging Lord, who is the same today and the same tomorrow. There is no difference. This purusha is verily That Supreme Being. SHLOKA 14 yathodakam durge vrishtham parvateshu vidhaavati evam dharmaan prithak pashyams taan eva anuvidhaavati “As rain water on a hill top flows down the hill sides in various streams, so he who sees the various things of the world as different, verily runs after them, distracted.” He who sees the various things of the world as different, runs after them distracted. He goes behind each stream, thinking this stream is different from the other, and he is exhausted trying to find the source. The

source is One, coming from the top, like the rain. He does not know the underlying unity of the Self, the Supreme Being, and sees the world as different. SHLOKA 15 yathodakam shuddhe shuddham aasiktam taadrig eva bhavati evam muner vijaanata aatmaa bhavati gautama “O Gautama, as pure water poured into pure water becomes the same water, so the seer, who has the understanding of the inner Self, becomes One.” The seer, who has the understanding of the Self and knows the unity of the atman, becomes one with the Supreme Being. There is no more a separate identity for that Being as he is merged with the Supreme Being – just as pure water poured into pure water merges and becomes one.

CHAPTER 5 The rishi of the Upanishad gives another beautiful description: SHLOKA 1 puram ekaadasha dvaaram ajasya avakra chetasah anushthaaya na shochati vimuktahs cha vimuchyate etad vai tat “The unborn, of uncrooked Intelligence, sits in the city of eleven gates, ruling. Having known That, one does not grieve any more and being freed, is free indeed. This verily is That Supreme.” Most of us have heard of “the city of nine gates” which means the human body with its nava dwaras or “nine openings”: seven in the head and two lower ones. Here, two more have been added, which shows a shift to the practical application of yoga. In the yogic parlance, there are eleven dwaras in the body. Apart from these nava dwaras, there are two more

important dwaras: one is at the nabhi or navel, from where creation comes up and the other dwara is at the top of the head, called brahmarandhra. You can feel it at the top of the head of a new-born child – there is a soft part there, where there is a pulse. After a while, it becomes hard. That is called brahmarandhra by the yogis: that, by which the prana exits. This applies only to great souls, not for everybody. So this body is the city of eleven gates. In that city sits the “unborn, uncrooked Intelligence” – the Self, which is not born, though we think It is born, which is not crooked, but straight and direct and has not been caught in the crookedness of our usual intellect, by which generally, we seek “the pleasant” and not “the good”. We are so caught up by the senses, that even though we think we are thinking straight, we are not – we are only thinking of satisfying the senses in some way. The moment somebody says something which may not be pleasant for the senses, we think it is nonsense! So, knowing That direct Intelligence, the Self, the unborn, who sits ruling in the city of eleven gates, the body, one does not grieve any more and being freed, is free indeed. This atman, the Self in the city, is verily That Supreme Being. SHLOKA 2 hamsah shuchishat vasur antarikshasat hotaa vedishat atithir duronnasat nrishat varasat ritasat vyomasat abjaa gojaa ritajaa adrijaa ritam brihat ”That Supreme Being is the swan (the sun) moving in the sky; the pervader in space (the air); the priest who offers (the fire) in the altar; the guest in the sacrificial jar. He dwells in men, He dwells in gods, He resides in the sacrificial rites, He is in the all-pervading sky. He is born of water, He sprang from the earth, He is there in the mountains. He is the Supreme, the Great Being.”

This is a beautiful description of the all-pervading Supreme Being, who is in everything that exists. Even if you don’t know the meaning of the Sanskrit words, the sound is beautiful. It means: That Supreme Being is “the swan in the sky” – some acharyas have also interpreted this “swan” to mean “the sun in the sky” which rises and sets. But I think if you can forget the sun, and can see a white swan gliding up suddenly, and as it goes up, covers the entire horizon. As it flies, it is as if it has left the heaviness of the earth and is afloat, high up there – it is a wonderful feeling! It also means that the swan in the sky is like the sun in the sky. It is That Supreme Being, who is the sun in the sky. He is the air that pervades space, He is the sacrificial fire, He is the priest who offers at the altar, He is the guest at every sacrifice. He is the one who eats, while we eat. He dwells in man and in the gods. He dwells in rites and rhythm hrita can also be “order” or “rhythm”. He pervades the sky, the earth, the mountains and the water. He is the Great, all-pervading Being in everything that is. Then comes a description of how It is connected to the practice of yoga. SHLOKA 3 oordhvam praanam unnayaty apaanam pratyag asyati madhye vaamanam aaseenam vishve devaa upaasate “He leads the in-breath, praana, upwards and casts the out-breath, apaana, downwards. That Little Being, vaamana, who is seated in the middle, all the gods adore.” That Supreme Being, seated in the heart, is called vaamana or “dwarf”. When a person reaches the stage where he understands that Little Being is within himself, even the gods adore Him. And who is He? He is the one who leads the in-breath upwards and He casts the out-breath downwards. Generally, we are not aware of this, but from the time we are born till the time we die, the breath is moving up and down. The moment it stops,

we are dead. We don’t ask the lungs to breathe; the process goes on by itself and when it stops, we reach the end. We can live without food for sometime; we can live without water also, for quite sometime, but we cannot live without breath for even a few minutes. So it is one of the most important sources that sustain our system. Therefore, it is called the Life-Giver or Life-Force, praana. The moment it is gone, there is nothing left. So the praana, which goes in and out is very important. And there is some Intelligence which operates this going in and out, although we are not aware of It. There are other functions also in the body, which work without our knowledge. Circulation works without our knowledge, digestion works without our knowledge. The heart beats without our asking it to beat – so also the breath goes in and out. But, there is a difference here. Breath happens to be one function, which, although is involuntary all the time, can also be voluntarily controlled, if we want. Therefore, breath is the link to that Intelligence, which is always controlling it. I hope you can grasp what I am trying to say. As you begin to control your breath, or become aware of your breath and try to change the pattern, you are moving closer to that Intelligence, which is always adjusting its pattern. It is also one’s practical experience that when you watch and become aware of your breath, the breath slows down ultimately. And when it slows down, there is absolute quietitude. From there, one connects to meditation. So, the breath is especially mentioned here. SHLOKA 4 asya visramsamaanasya shareerasthasya dehinah dehaad vimuchyamaanasya kima atra parishishyate etad vai tat “When the embodied Self that dwells within the body, slips off and is released from the body, what remains then? This is verily That.” So when the praana, the Life-Force, leaves the body, it becomes of no use. When the atman is released from the body – nothing else but only That Supreme Being is left.

SHLOKA 5 na praanena na apaanena martyo jeevati kash chana itarena tu jeevanti yasminn etaav upaashritau “No mortal ever lives by the in-breath, praana or by the out-breath, apaana; but lives by something different, on whom these depend.” SHLOKA 6 hanta te idam pravakshyaami guhyam brahma sanaatanam yathaa cha maranam praapya aatmaa bhavati gautama “O Gautama, I shall explain to you the mystery of the eternal Brahman and what happens to the Self after reaching Death.” Yama says to Nachiketas, who is called Gautama, “I shall explain to you what happens to the soul after death.” When the body dies, we think we are dead. What really happens? Yama explains: SHLOKA 7 yonim anye prapadyante shareeratvaaya dehinah sthaannum anye anusamyanti yathaa karma yathaa shrutam “Some souls enter a womb for embodiment, according to their deeds, according to their desires – others go to stations immovable.” After the body dies, some souls enter a womb to have a body according to their deeds and their desires. What they desire that they gain, and therefore, it is said, that whatever one’s mind is fixed on, during the last stages of one’s life, that one attains. But, it cannot be done in the last minute. One must think about it from the beginning, otherwise it is not possible. There is this old story about this extreme miser, who wanted to think of God, as he was passing away. So he was fixing his mind on God, but just

at the moment before he passed away, suddenly he turned and saw that the wick in the oil lamp, which was burning, was a little forward – oil was being wasted! So he told his sons, “Push the wick in.” That was the last thing he thought of and so he was supposed to have been reborn as an oilseller! So, according to their deeds, according to their desires and according to their thoughts, souls come back into a womb for embodiment. SHLOKA 8 ya esha supteshu jaagarti kaamam kaamam purusho nirmimaanah tad eva shukram tad brahma tad eva amrutam uchyate tasmin lokaah shritaah sarve tad u naatyeti kash chana etad vai tat “That Person, the purusha, who is awake in those who sleep, shaping desire after desire, That one is, indeed, the pure, That is the Brahman and That is also called the immortal. In It, all the worlds rest and no one goes beyond It. This verily is That.” This means, That purusha, the Self, who is awake even when one is in sound sleep, who watches the shaping of desire after desire in the dream state, but is not involved in it, who is the Witness of all that is happening; That Self is indeed the pure Self, That Self is the Brahman, the Supreme Self, the immortal one. All the worlds rest in It and no one can go beyond It, which means, even the devas cannot go beyond It. That is why, they say, a human being is very important. When a human being reaches a high spiritual stature, even the gods have to bow down to him. In the Ramayana, when Ravana took the boon that no devas could kill him, he forgot to mention human beings. So the Supreme Being, according to the Ramayana, had to come in human form and kill Ravana, who could do nothing about it. So, it is important to use the life that we have gained and not waste it. SHLOKA 9 agnir yatha ekah bhuvanam pravishto roopam roopam

pratiroopo babhoova ekas tathaa sarva bhootaantaraatmaa roopam roopam pratiroopo bahis cha “As fire, which is one, having entered the world becomes varied according to the shapes which it occupies, so also the One Self within all beings becomes varied according to whatever It enters; but It also exists outside them.” Fire, as it is, does not have any shape. But, when it burns something, say a tree trunk, and when it is finished, you see a charred tree trunk. So, depending on the object it burns, it assumes that form. So also, the One Self becomes varied, according to whatever forms It enters. But It also exists outside them, without them, without change, like fire. The original fire is always the original fire. When the fire enters the tree trunk, it burns it and then it is gone. But the fire now has no shape. In the same way, even though the Supreme Self enters different roopas, or forms, It also exists outside that roopa. SHLOKA 10 vaayur yathaa eko bhuvanam pravishto roopam roopam pratiroopo babhoova ekah tathaa sarva bhoota antaraatma roopam roopam pratiroopo bahis cha “As air, which is one air, having entered this world acquires different shapes according to the objects that it enters, so also, the One Supreme Self, within all beings, becomes varied according to whatever It enters. And, It also exists outside.” For example, there is air in this empty cup, and it is in the shape of the cup. But, apart from being in that cup, it also exists outside. In the same way, the Supreme Self is within all beings and also exists outside them.

SHLOKA 11 suryo yathaa sarva lokasya chakshur na lipyate chaakshushair baahya doshaih ekas tathaa sarva bhootaantaraatmaa na lipyate loka duhkhena baahyah “Just as the sun, the eye of the whole world, is not defiled by the faults seen by it, even so, the one atman within all beings is not tainted by the sorrows of the world.” The sun rises. Due of the light of the sun, everything is seen, but the sun is not affected by the faults of that which is seen. Even so, the Self within all beings is not tainted by the sorrows of the world because although it appears that He is in the sorrow, He is really outside it. SHLOKA 12 eko vashee sarva bhootaantaraatmaa ekam beejam bahudhaa yah karoti tam aatmastham ye anupashyanti dheerah teshaam sukham shaashvatam netareshaam “That One controller, the inner Self of all things, makes His one form into many forms. Those wise who perceive Him as only One, abiding in the soul, get eternal bliss – nobody else gets it.” The wise who know the Supreme Being – who makes His One form into many different forms and abides within as the Self, the atman – get bliss. The one caught in differences is stuck in sorrow, whereas, the one who sees unity of being, is in happiness. SHLOKA 13 nityo anityanaam chetanash chetanaanaam eko bahoonaam yo vidadhaati kaamaan

tam aatmastham ye anupashyanti dheerah teshaam shaantih shaashvatee na itareshaam “He is the eternal One, who is the basis of all that is transient and changing; the One, who is the conscious amidst the different levels of consciousness; the One, who grants the desires of the many. Those wise men who perceive Him as being in their own soul – to them is eternal peace and to no other.” SHLOKA 14 tad etad iti manyante anirdeshyam paramam sukham katham nu tad vijaaneeyaam kimu bhaati vibhaati vaa “This is That Supreme Self which the wise recognise as the ineffable Supreme Bliss. How can I come to know It? Does It shine or does It not shine in the reflection?” That Supreme Self, which the wise recognise as Bliss; how am I supposed to recognise It as the eternal, blissful Self, which is in me? Does It shine by Itself or does It need anything else to shine? How can I find that out? Am I a reflection of That Supreme Self? Is It luminous? The answer follows, describing the Self-effulgence of atman. In That Supreme Self: SHLOKA 15 na tatra suryo bhaati na chandra taarakam na imaah vidyuto bhaanti kutah ayam agnih tam eva bhaantam anubhaati sarvam tasya bhaasaa sarvam idam vibhaati “The sun does not shine there, nor do the moon and the stars; nor does the lightning shine. How then, can this fire? Everything shines only after

That Shining Light. It is His shining that illumines all this.” That means neither the sun nor the moon nor the stars – which are the heavenly bodies that we know of – nor the lightning and much less the fire, are needed to illuminate this Supreme Being. This Original Being shines first, and from Him shines everything else. Therefore, He need not be illumined either by the sun or the moon or by electricity, or by anything else. It is just to show that this Supreme Reality, which the Upanishad is talking about, is not illumined by anything, but is the Source of all illumination – It is the Source of all Light.

CHAPTER 6 There is a shloka in the 15th chapter of the Bhagwad Gita that talks about the “upside-down tree”. Here, the Upanishad also mentions it: SHLOKA 1 oordhvamoolah avaakshaakha eshah ashvatthah sanaatanah tad eva shukram tad brahma tad evaamritam uchyate tasmin lokaah shritaah sarve tad u naatyeti kash chana etad vai tat “There is a tree with the roots above and branches below – the ancient Ashwatha tree. That is the pure tree, that is the Brahman, that indeed is also called the immortal. In it, all the worlds rest and no one goes beyond it. This verily is That.” The Upanishad is not trying to say that the Supreme Being is an upside-down Ashwatha tree! It is a figurative expression of trying to explain that, as far as the teaching of the Supreme Self is concerned, it is not from the “particular” to the “universal”, but from the “universal” to the “particular”- it is not inductive reasoning. The roots are up and the branches are down below – this means that the beginning is invisible and what is seen as the manifest is visible.

Therefore, seeing the visible, one begins to wonder what is the invisible, which is the root of all this. The branches and leaves do not satisfy the wise, who want to find out what the root is. The whole tree with its root is the Supreme Being and the branches spread out, is the world that we see – the visible world. It is an illustration of the Supreme Being pervading this entire universe. Although the essence is in the roots above, it also means,“as above, so below”, “That above, This below”: etad vai tat. What we see here is the manifest, and what is above is the Unmanifest. However here, the Unmanifest is the root and the manifest, the branches. This is the meaning of oordhvamoolam – the moolaa is up, the root is up, the branches are below. SHLOKA 2 yad idam kin cha jagat sarvam praana ejati nihshritam mahad bhayam vajram udyatam ye etad vidur r amritaas te bhavanti “The prana being present, the whole universe comes out of Him and vibrates within Him. He is a great terror like the raised thunderbolt. Those who know this become immortal.” SHLOKA 3 bhayaad asya agnis tapati bhayaat tapati suryah bhayaad indras cha vaayus cha mrityur dhaavati panchamah “For fear of Him the Fire burns; for fear of Him shines the Sun; for fear of Him do Indra, Vayu and Death, the five, proceed with their respective functions.” SHLOKA 4 iha ched ashakad boddhum praak shareerasya visrasah

tatah sargeshu lokeshu shareeratvaaya kalpate “If one is able to realise that Brahman here, before the fall of the body, one becomes free from the bondage of the world; if not, one has to take body again in the worlds of creation.” SHLOKA 5 yathaa aadarshe tathaa aatmani yathaa svapne tathaa pitrloke yatha aapsu pareeva dadrishe tathaa gandharva loke chaayaa tapayor iva brahma loke “Brahman is seen in the Self as one sees oneself in a mirror; in the world of manes, as one perceives oneself in dream; in the world of Gandharvas, as one’s reflection is seen in the water; in the world of Brahma, as light and shade.” SHLOKA 6 indriyaannaam prithag bhaavam udayaastamayau cha yat prithag utpadyamaanaanam matvaa dheero na shochati “The wise one, having known the distinct nature of the senses, which are separately produced, as well as about their rising and setting, grieves not.” SHLOKA 7 indriyebhyah param mano manasah sattvam uttamam sattvaad adhi mahaan aatmaa mahatah avyaktam uttamam “Beyond the senses is the mind, beyond the mind is the intellect, beyond the intellect is the Great atman. Superior to the Great atman is the

Unmanifest.” SHLOKA 8 avyaktaat tu parah purusho vyaapakah alinga eva cha yam jnyaatvaa muchyate jantur amritatvam cha gacchati “Beyond the Unmanifest, is the purusha, That Being, who is allpervading, who is without any marks, knowing whom, a human is liberated and goes to life eternal.” Beyond that which is not manifest, which is the root of the tree, is the all-pervading purusha, who has no linga, meaning he has no distinctive mark on Him anywhere. That means He cannot be marked and He is “without blemish” – nirmala. There is nothing which can stick to Him. Knowing Him, man is liberated. SHLOKA 9 na sandrishe tishthat roopam asya na chakshushaa pashyati kashchana inam hridaa maneeshaa manasa abhiklupto ya etad vidur amiutaas te bhavanti “He does not stand in the field of our vision. No one sees Him with these eyes. Through the heart, through the mind, through thought alone He is apprehended. Those who know Him become immortal.” That Supreme Being cannot be seen by our ordinary faculties of sensation, by our ordinary field of vision. “Field of vision” does not mean the eyes only, but all our sensory organs and apparatus. This means that He cannot be seen through our sensory organs. With our sensory apparatus we cannot even see bacteria – we need a microscope! Only because we cannot see, we cannot say it does not exist. In the same way, the inner Self cannot be seen by our ordinary sense organs. He can be seen and apprehended through the heart, hridaya, in the

inner recesses of the mind and those who know Him become immortal. SHLOKA 10 yadaa pancha avatishthante jnyaanaani manasaa saha buddhhish cha na vicheshtati taam aahuh paramaam gatim “When the five senses, together with the mind, cease from all activity and the intelligence itself does not stir, that is the highest state, they say.” Having seen the futility of trying to understand the Supreme Being through the senses, and, having seen the futility of enjoying that which can end at any time; having completely understood this, and having listened to the Upanishad and knowing that one’s inner Self resides within, when one no more attempts to achieve anything outside and settles down quietly, when the mind becomes absolutely quiet, when even the intelligence does not stir, but remains steady in itself, one is at the highest state. SHLOKA 11 taam yogam iti manyante sthiraam indriya dhaarannaam apramattas tadaa bhavati yogo hi prabha vaapyayau “This state, where there is steady control of all the senses, is what is called yoga. Then one becomes undisturbed from the practice of yoga. In that steadiness, one remains without stirring.” That state, where everything has become quiet and does not stir and the yogi has steady control of all the senses – that, they consider to be yoga. “Control of all the senses” means the senses have become absolutely quiet and one remains without stirring. SHLOKA 12 naiva vaachaa na manasaa praaptum shakyo na chakshushaa asti iti bruvato anyatra katham tad upalabhyate

“Not by speech, not by mind, not by sight, can It be apprehended. How then can It be apprehended, except from those who say, ‘It is’?” The Supreme Being exists – so the sages say. The only way to comprehend the Supreme Being is to understand that It is. As Plato states, “There are two eternal things in this universe: one is, and is ‘neverbecoming’; the other is not, but is ‘ever-becoming’.” So, when one is free from that which “is not, but is ever-becoming” which is our mind, and one remains in that which “is, and is neverbecoming”, then that is the state called asti. In fact, in the Vedantasutras, Vyaasa describes the Supreme Being as asti bhaati priya. Asti is That which is, without any movement whatsoever, in Its Being – essential “Beingness”. Bhaati is Consciousness, Self-effulgence. Priya is that because of which one understands what is known as Love. SHLOKA 13 asti ity eva upalabdhavyah tattva bhaavena cha ubhayoh asti ity eva upalabdhasya tattva bhaavah praseedati “It should be apprehended only as existent in Its real nature. When It is apprehended as existent, Its real nature becomes clear.” In the beginning, the only thing one can do is to understand that It is only pure existence, without any movement. As you keep contemplating on this fact and going deeper and deeper, then you will understand what that real Self is. Why does it take time to understand what that real Self is? It is because there are still some conditionings in the mind that stop us from looking at It clearly. And what are these conditionings of the mind? SHLOKA 14 yadaa sarve pramuchyante kaamaa ye asya hrudi shritaah atha martyah amrutah bhavaty atra brahma samashnute

“When all the desires that dwell within the heart are cast away, then a mortal becomes immortal even here, and attains that Brahman.” How does one begin? One cannot, obviously, begin by casting off all desires. That is not possible, nor is it reasonable to do so. When all desires become united into a strong, single desire for the understanding of that Supreme Being, and one sees the impermanence of fulfilment of the desires of this world, then one becomes steady and begins to think of that Supreme Being as pure existence. Gradually, the hold of the senses gets loosened and they drop away and one reaches that Supreme Brahman. SHLOKA 15 yadaa sarve prabhidyante hrudayasyacha granthayah atha martyah amruto bhavaty etaavad anushaasanam “When all the knots that fetter the heart are cut asunder; then a mortal becomes immortal. Thus far is the teaching.” When all desires are cast away and the knots that fetter the heart are cut, then a mortal becomes immortal. Otherwise, he is still caught in individual existence. Then the Upanishad confesses: “Thus far is the teaching.” Beyond this, we cannot say anything. All that we can say is that this is the limit to which we can speak about the unspeakable. Then the rishi of the Upanishad gives a very yogic description about the naadis, or subtle nerves that come out of the heart, the centre of one’s being: SHLOKA 16 shatam cha ekaa cha hrudayasya naadyahs taasaam murdhaanam api nihshruta ekaa tayaa urdvam aayan amrutatvam eti vishvank anyah utkramanne bhavanti

“A hundred and one are the naadis that come out of the heart. One of them leads to the crown of the head. Going upwards through that, one becomes immortal. The other naadis are for going in other directions, after death.” Now, this yogic description has not been covered by the earlier Upanishads. In the later ones, we have the Yoga Upanishads which talk about this. But in the earlier Upanishads, these are not mentioned. According to yoga, our system has many naadis, the subtle nerves, of which the ida and the pingala are the two main ones. The major one is the sushumna naadi, which is supposed to run straight, from the heart to the head. It is not an anatomical system – you cannot find it if you open up a dead body. You can find the spinal cord, but you cannot find any naadis going up and down. You can see some nerve centres and plexuses of the nervous system – the ganglion chain and the central nervous system with the spine and the brain and so on – but, you cannot actually see the naadis, as described, with the chakras. These are basically psychic centres. So they are talking about that which we cannot go into details here, of the different naadis that come out of the heart – heart, meaning the centre of one’s consciousness, not the physical heart. The major naadi that goes up from the heart to the crown of the head is the sushumna naadi. When the prana leaves the body through that, then one becomes immortal. When it leaves the body through the other naadis, then one goes in various directions, after death. The centre in the head is considered to be the highest – this is known as brahmarandhra in yogic parlance. When all of one’s thoughts and energy are concentrated on the highest centre, then, all the energies are flowing through that naadi towards the Supreme Being. And when thought is flowing through the lower centres, then it is absorbed in other activities, which bring the soul back again and again to this earth, into this circuit of pleasure and pain. SHLOKA 17 angushtha maatrah purushah antar aatma

sadaa janaanaam hridaye sannivishthah tam svaacchareeraat pravrihen munnjaad iva ishikaam dhairyena tam vidyaat shukram amritam tam vidyaat shukram amritam iti “The Person, the purusha, of the size of the thumb, the inner Self, always abides in the hearts of men. Him, one should draw out firmly from the body, as the wind drawn out from the reed. That Supreme Being – one should know as the pure, the immortal. That Supreme Being – one should know as the pure, the immortal.” That Supreme Being resides in the innermost Self, in the hearts of all beings. He should be drawn out from the body firmly. If you are complacent, you cannot draw It out. You should draw It out from the body, with firmness, with alertness, with attention, with understanding, as the wind is drawn out forcibly from the reed. This also has yogic connotations. Just as you would forcibly draw out the wind through a tube, so also, the practicing yogi draws out the prana upwards, through the sushumna naadi, which is supposed to be shaped like a reed. It also means that all of one’s energies, all of one’s thoughts, everything, should be completely aligned to understanding that Supreme Self. When that is done one experiences the Supreme Self, the pure, the immortal. SHLOKA 18 mrityproktaam nachiketo atha labdhvaa vidyaam etaam yoga vidhim cha kritsnam brahma praapto virajah abhood vimrityur anyah api evam yo vid adhyaatmam eva “Then Nachiketas, having gained this knowledge declared by Death and also the rules of yoga, attained that Supreme Brahman and became free

from passion and therefore, free from Death. So may others, who know thus the inner Self, be free!” There is definitely a description of some kind of yogic practice here. Just as Nachiketas became free through understanding this may anyone else, who has given attention to it, become as free as Nachiketas and reach immortality. This is the end of the Katha Upanishad – the reading of the Upanishad, not the end of the katha. The katha, or story, has just started. Each one has to work out the story by himself or herself! Aum shantih shantih shantihi!

2 Prashna Upanishad

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aving come to a theoretical understanding of the Reality behind the illusionary perception that the Upanishads speak about, I would like to go into a proper Upanishad and see how the great rishis, the teachers of the Upanishads, handled this question of self-discovery or self-realisation. This is the knowledge of the Self, which is also the knowledge of the allpervading consciousness. Let us take up the Prashna Upanishad, which is not a very popular Upanishad. It should be, because, it is an Upanishad that questions. The word prashna means “question”. So it is an Upanishad which does not accept, but questions before accepting. That should be the hallmark of any enquiry – not to believe just because somebody said so, but to question, to ask. All great things have been achieved by asking and questioning, not otherwise. The Prashna Upanishad belongs to the Atharva Veda. It has six sections which contain six questions putforth to a great rishi by his disciples, who were all seekers of the Supreme Reality. They wanted to know about the ultimate cause of everything – about the powers that support creation; about the origin of praana, the Life Energy; about the nature of the human being and the waking, dream and deep sleep states; about the sound aum which is chanted; about the Supreme Being, the Person, and its relationship with the world and so on. Most of the Upanishads begin with an invocation. The invocation is a prayer to the Gods to keep everything in order – body and mind – so that one may examine the universal questions and go deep into the understanding of Truth. The invocation in the Prashna Upanishad is: Aum bhadram karnebhih shrunuyaama devaah bhadram pashyema-akshabhir yajatraah

sthirair angais tushtuvaamsas tanoobhih vyashema devahitam yad aayuh svasti na indro vruddhashravaah svasti nah pushaa vishvavedaah svasti nas taarkshyo arishta nemih svasti no brihaspatir dadhaatu Aum shaantih shaantih shaantih “Aum, May we O Gods, hear what is auspicious with our ears; O ye, who are worthy of worship, may we see with our eyes, what is auspicious; May we enjoy the life allotted to us by the Gods, offering praise, with our bodies strong and our limbs strong; May Indra, of increasing glory, bestow prosperity on us; May Pushan, the nourisher of all, bestow prosperity on us; May Tarkshyah, of unobstructed path bestow prosperity on us; May Brihaspati bestow prosperity on us. Aum, peace, peace, peace!”

QUESTION ONE The six sons of great rishis, all seekers of Truth, approach the revered rishi Pippalaada, wanting to know all about Brahman, the Supreme Reality, and the created universe. SHLOKA 1 sukesha cha bhaaradvaaja shaibyash cha satyakaamah sauryaayani cha gaargyah kausalysh cha shvalaayano bhaargavo vaidarbhih kabandhii kaatyaayanah te haite brahma paarah brahma nishthaah

param brahmaanveshamaanaa esha ha vai tat sarvam vakshyati iti te ha samit paanayo bhagavantam pipalaadam upasannaah. “Sukesha, son of Bhaaradvaaja; Satyakaama, son of Shibi; Gargya, the grandson of Surya; Kausalya, son of Ashvala; Bhaargava of the Vidarbha clan and Kabandhin, son of Katya – all these, indeed devoted to Brahman and seeking to know the Highest Brahman, approach the revered Pippalada with sacrificial fuel in their hands, thinking that he would explain all that to them.” These young men, sons of rishis themselves and seekers of the Highest Truth, approach Pippalada, the great revered rishi, wanting to know what the Supreme Reality, the Brahman, is. Thinking that he would explain everything, they approach with samit or sacrificial fuel, in their hands. That means, to find the Truth, one has to sacrifice the “untruth”. One has to be intent and make it a one-pointed search, no matter what stands as an obstacle. One should be ready to sacrifice it, in the search for knowledge. That “sacrifice” is the “sacrificial fuel” in their hands. So, intent on understanding the Supreme and ready to sacrifice anything to do so, they approach the great rishi Pippalada. SHLOKA 2 taan ha sa rishir uvaacha bhooya eva tapasaa brahmacharyena shraddhayaa samvatsaram samvatsyatha yathaa kaamam prashnaan pricchata yadi vijnaasyaamah sarvam ha vo vakshyaama iti “The rishi, the seer, said to them, ‘Live with me for a year with austerity, chastity and faith and then ask me questions according to your desire. If I know, I shall indeed tell you all that.’” Pippalada wanted to prepare them to understand the highest Truth. He said to them, “Live with me here, for a year”. That means, to lead a simple life and not get caught up in the indulgence of luxury.

“Live here in this beautiful forest with me with austerity, chastity and faith. Stick to the truth, be chaste, be pure. Have faith that the answer will come, after you have lived with me for one full year.” That is the preliminary preparation for the understanding of Truth, which we are not prepared to do – we just want to find the Truth. It is necessary to become qualified to enquire. Pippalada does not presuppose that he knows the answers; he does not have ready answers. He did not say, “I will then answer them.” Instead, he said, “If I know, I shall indeed tell you all that.” After the seekers thus lived for a year, after they had followed the instructions of the rishi Pippalada, they approached him with their questions. It is indeed “Prashna” Upanishad -“the questioning” Upanishad. Kabandhin, son of the rishi Katya, asked the first question about creation: SHLOKA 3 atha kabandhii kaatyaayana upetya papraccha bhagavan kuto ha vaa imaah prajaah prajaayante iti “Kabandhin, son of Katya, first approached the rishi and said, ‘Bhagavan, venerable Sir, from where have all the creatures been born?’” SHLOKA 4 tasmai sa hovaacha prajaa kaamo vai prajaapatih sa tapah atapyata sa tapas taptvaa sa mithunam utpaadayate rayim cha praanam cha ity etau me bahudhaa prajaah karishyata iti “To him the rishi said, ‘Prajaapati, the creator, the lord of creation, had this desire to multiply. He performed tapasya. After he had performed austerities, he produced a pair – Matter, or rayih, and Life, or praana, thinking that they would produce creatures for him in various ways.”

That means, austerity, or tapasya, is required for any kind of multiplication, for growth. Even Prajapati, the Lord of Creation, who desired to multiply, to have off-spring, performed austerities. So, the first principal of creativity, the Creator, through austerity, produced a pair. What are they? Matter and Life: Matter, which is nonliving and inanimate, and Life, which is the Energy that animates it. And, between Matter and Life, was produced all that exists in the universe. SHLOKA 5 aadityo ha vai praanah rayir eva chandramaah rayir vaa etat sarvam yan moortam cha amoortam cha tasmaat moortir eva rayih “The Sun indeed is Life – praana; and Matter, rayih, is the Moon. Then is formed whatever is with form and the formless. Therefore, whatever there is, is itself Matter.” The rishi goes on to explain what this Life is, what this praana is, and its different variations and how it is in different forms. “The Sun indeed is Life – praana” because it is the Sun that causes photosynthesis, it is the Sun that makes life. If there is no Sun for some days, there will be no agriculture, no growth, nothing. It is the Sun that gives light and heat. “Matter is the Moon” because the Moon is identified with coolness. We have the cool light of the Moon and the hot light of the Sun. The Moon is feminine with its cool, silvery light, and the Sun is masculine with its hot, fiery light. So when virility or the hot, glowing light of the Sun, the Life, unites with the cool light of the Moon, the Matter, “then is formed whatever is with form and what is without form. Therefore, whatever you see here is itself Matter,” says the rishi. SHLOKA 6 atha aditya udayan yat praachiim disham pravishati tena praachyaan pranaan rashmishu sannidhatte yad dakshinaam yat pratiichiim yad udiichiim yad adho yad oordhvam yad antaraa disho yat sarvam prakaashayati

tena sarvaan pranaan rashmishu sannidhatte “Now, the Sun, after rising, enters the Eastern side. By that he bathes with his rays all Life, in the East. When he illumines all the other sides – the South, the West, and the North, below, above and in-between – by that he bathes his rays on all living beings with Life.” That means, the praana, or Life Energy, in the form of the light of the Sun, bathes the entire universe, in all directions, with Life. SHLOKA 7 sa esha vaishvaanaro vishva roopah praano agnir udayate tad etad richa abhyuktam “It is he, the Vaishvaanara – the Fire – assuming every form of life as Fire, who rises every day. This is declared in the verses of the Rig.” Vaishvaanara is the Fire, the Life, which is the essence of all living beings. The Life, the praana, the energy that glows in all human beings, is that Vaishvaanara, the essence of the whole universe. So the rishi says that this light, which appears as the Sun is the Vaishvaanara, the Fire that assumes every form and rises every day. And this is what the verse in the Rig Veda also says. About the Vaishvaanara, or the Supreme Essence that pervades everything, the Upanishad declares this: SHLOKA 8 vishva roopam harinam jaata vedasam paraayanam jyotir ekam tapantam sahasra rashmih shatadhaa vartamaanah praanah prajaanaam udayaty esha sooryah

“This Vaishvaanara, this Lord who has all forms – the golden one, the Sun, the all-knowing, the goal of all, the sole light, the giver of heat; possessing thousands of rays, existing in hundreds of forms – thus rises as the Sun, the Life of all creation.” Here, the Sun is a symbol of the supreme, primordial, Life Energy; the Vaishvaanara, the Fire of Life which pervades all objects, protects all objects and gives life to everything on Earth. The rishi, who is also known as the kavi, the poet, praises that Supreme Being in beautiful verses. “That Surya, the Life of all creation, the golden one, the all-knowing, the goal of all, the sole light, the giver of heat, possessing a thousand rays, exists in hundreds of forms.” That means, there is one Reality, the essence of the Supreme that exists in hundreds of forms. As the Ishavasya Upanishad says, Isha vasya idam sarvam – “That Supreme Being pervades everything here.” In the next part of the Prashna Upanishad, the Year is identified with the Lord of Creation. The Upanishads and the Vedas deal with the universals and link them with the particulars, which are larger than life. “Year” or samvat is an abstract concept for three hundred and sixty five days. “Year after year”, “hundreds of years”… “Year” is an expression and samvatsara means “a period of time”. So here, the rishi says, “That period of time by which you live, grow and die, is none other than the Lord of Creation.” This is the link. SHLOKA 9 samvatsaro vai prajaapatih tasyaayane dakshinam cha uttaram cha tad ye ha vai tad ishtaa poorte kritam ity upaasate te chaandramasam eva lokam abhijayante, ta eva punar aavartante, tasmaad ete rishayah prajaa kaamaa dakshinam pratipadyante esha ha vai rayir yah pitriyaanah “The Year verily is the Lord of creation. Of it, there are two paths – the Southern and the Northern. Now those, verily, who worship by performing sacrifice and doing pious acts, thinking these as valuable work,

they devoutly live in the human world. They will certainly return again, after attaining the world of the Moon. Therefore, those sages, who desire offspring, take this Southern route – this is the path of the ancestors, the path of Matter.” Having said that the Year is the Lord of creation, the rishi says, in a very poetic expression, that as there are only two parts of the Year, so there are two paths – Northern and Southern, which means the upward and the downward paths. One moves either up, on the Northern Path, or down, on the Southern Path. Those rishis who worship by performing sacrifice and doing pious acts, who do charity, who sacrifice themselves for others, thinking that this is the work one should do – they win the human world. But, they are not free of desire and therefore, they return again to this world, after attaining the world of the Moon. They are reborn, their life cycle is not ended, they come again – they do not move towards absolute freedom. These sages, who are desirous of offspring, who want their glory to continue on this earth, even after they are gone, take the Southern route, because their aim is to be happy in this world and they want to leave their offspring happy in this world, after they are gone. This is the path that most ancestors have followed – this is the path of material well-being, this is the path of coming again and again to this world. There is another path, the Northern path, which is the upward one. In yogic terms, the description of the movement of aspiration, thought, concentration and energy, is either upwards, towards the higher side, or downwards, towards the lower side. Moving up and down the spine is mukhyaprana – the Supreme Energy. When it goes down, it leads to material well-being; when it goes up, it leads to spiritual well-being. I am deliberately not using the word, kundalini, as it can be misunderstood. It is the ascent and descent of consciousness in two different spheres – material or spiritual. Now the rishi says of those who take the Northern route, who move upwards: SHLOKA 10

atha uttarena tapasaa brahmacharyena shraddhayaa vidyaya atmaanam anvishya adityam abhijayante etad vai praanaanaam aayatanam, etad amritam abhayam, etat paraayanam, etasmaan na punar aavartante ity esha nirodhah tad esha shlokah “Those who seek the Self through austerity, chastity, faith and knowledge, they move by the Northern route and gain the domain of the Sun, who shines in the upper-most reaches. That is the support of all breaths, the Life Breath. When one has reached that, the Sun, which is the eternal and fearless abode, one has reached the end. About that, there is this verse.” The Life Breath, the mukhyaprana, the Supreme praana, supports all other praanas or movement of breath in the body. When one has reached That, at the end of the Northern path, one has reached the final goal, the Sun – the spiritual Sun. That is the eternal and fearless abode, from where one does not have to come back into this world of sorrow. That is the stopping of conditioning. Those who have reached the Supreme Abode, the Supreme Being, the true Self, from which one does not become conditioned to be reborn again, remain eternally free and unconditioned. Such people are not reborn, for that is the final goal – they do not return. About that Supreme Being, there is this verse, where He is spoken of as the “Father”: SHLOKA 11 pancha paadam pitaram dvadasha akritim diva aahuh pare ardhe purishinam atheme anya u pare vichakshanam sapta chakre shadara aahur arpitam “Some say that That Being, the Father, having five feet and twelve forms, is seated in the higher half of the heavens, full of water; and others

speak of Him as the Omniscient, seated on a chariot with seven wheels and six spokes.” This means that those who follow the upward, evolutionary path, or the Northern path, as it is called, who seek the Self through austerity, chastity, faith and knowledge, gain the ultimate and reach That Supreme abode, the world of the Sun, who is called the Father. He has five feet and twelve forms, meaning the seasons and months. He is seated in the higher part of the heavens, full of water. “Seven wheels and six spokes,” indicates the psychic system of the naadis, which exist in the human body, and the upward movement of Energy, the praana, through the central channel, the sushumnanaadi. It refers to the Northern or the upward movement of Energy, which goes through the seven wheels, which are the seven chakras, which are the seven psychic centres along the sushumna naadi – until it reaches the highest heaven, which is the sahasraarachakra, full of water. Water here means the apastattva, or the element of liquidity, of movement, identified with the Moon or the soma. Having reached there, the rishi is never reborn, and he lives identified with the Omniscient. Again, the rishi uses the symbol of Month to explain creation. He says: SHLOKA 12 maaso vai prajaapatih tasya krishnapaksha eva rayih shuklah praanah tasmaad eta rishayah sukhlah ishtim kurvanti itara itarasmin “The Month verily is the Lord of creation. The dark half of the Month is Matter, or rayih, and the bright half of the Month is Life, or praana. In the bright half of the Month, some seers, the rishis, perform their sacrifices, while others use the other half of the month.” Those rishis, who seek spiritual splendour or fulfilment, and eternal freedom, use the brighter half of the Month and perform their sacrifices. And those who look for Matter, for material ful-filment, utilise the dark half of the Month and perform their sacrifices.

The idea is that there are two halves, meaning opposites – light and darkness. One moves towards the light and abjures darkness. All other symbols are used to bring this fact out clearly. Continuing to depict duality and its opposites in creation as coming from and existing in the Supreme Unity, the Upanishad continues: SHLOKA 13 aho raatro vai prajaapatih tasya ahar eva praano raatrir eva rayih praanam vaa ete praskandanti ye divaa ratyaa samyujyam te brahmacharyam eva tad yad raatrau ratyaa samyujyante “Day and Night are verily the Lord of creation. Day indeed is Life and Night is Matter. Those who join, who have sexual intercourse by day, dissipate their Life and those who have intercourse by night are chaste indeed.” Now this is interesting – brahmacharya, at least from this verse, appears to be not “complete abstinence from sex, but control of sex because the Prashna Upanishad declares, “those who have sexual intercourse by day, dissipate their life. Those who have sexual intercourse by night are chaste indeed.” That means, there has to be a certain “control” of energies, not complete abstinence. The Upanishads, with all their exultation of celibacy, recognise the value of married life. Most of the rishis were married men. Now, from there, the Upanishad proceeds, saying: SHLOKA 14 annam vai prajaapatih tato ha vaitad retah tasmaad imaah prajaah prajaayante “Food also, indeed, is the Lord of creation, because from food comes the seed. From this, creatures here are born.” From food comes the vital material required for reproduction. From that, creatures are born.

This is the approach of the Upanishad. In one place it talks of the exalted, untouchable, unreachable, spiritual Being and then brings it down to the ordinary level of day to day things. While admitting that the Supreme Brahman is absolute, it also says that the Supreme Brahman, in this case, as far as existence is concerned, manifests itself as food. “Food indeed is the Lord of creation”; for, from this, verily, is semen created and from this, all creatures are born. Therefore, food is the manifestation of Brahman. That annam or food is Brahman, is also mentioned in other Upanishads. The Upanishad then says: SHLOKA 15 tad ye ha vai tat prajaapati vratam charanti te mithunam utpaadayante teshaam evaisha brahma loko yeshaam tapo brahmacharyam yeshu satyam pratishthitam “Thus, those who practice this rule of the Lord of creation, produce couples. To them alone is the world of Brahma, in whom austerity, chastity and truth are established.” Those who understand the value of celibacy, as well as the value of creation; those who practice the rules by which they know how to control and use their energies at the proper time and in the proper direction attain Brahma’s world of creation, as they are established in austerity, chastity and truth. The Upanishad sees great beauty in the natural innocence and beauty of sexual life and parental love and links it to the deeper and higher energies of the cosmos. So, the Upanishad establishes the link – from the high to the middle and then to ordinary life, which is the practice of living – from the grand Brahman to what you should do in your day to day life to attain Brahman.

SHLOKA 16 teshaam asau virajo brahmaloko na yeshu jihmam anritam na maayaa cheti “To them is that stainless world of Brahman, in whom there is no crookedness, no falsehood and no trickery.” Or, the corollary to this would be that when there is crookedness, falsehood and trickery, one cannot hope to reach the pure world of the stainless Brahman. One has to become stainless first in one’s living – otherwise, how can one proceed to the stainless Supreme Being? Those who know how to control and use their energies properly, at the right time and the right moment, attain that stainless world, where there is no crookedness, falsehood or trickery. That means, if you have crookedness, falsehood or trickery, you cannot hope to reach that stainless world of the Supreme Brahman.

QUESTION TWO Then Bhaargava of the Vidarbha country asks about the powers that support creation: SHLOKA 1 atha hainam bhaargavo vaidarbhih papraccha bhagavan katy eva devaah prajaam vidhaarayante katara etat prakaashayante kah punar eshaam varishthah iti “Bhaargava of Vidarbha asked him, ‘Venerable Sir, Bhagavan, how many powers support the created world? How many illumine this and who among them is the greatest?’” SHLOKA 2

tasmai sa hovaacha aakaasho ha vaa esha devo vayur agnih aapah prithivi vaang manas chakshuh shrotram cha te prakaashya abhivadanti vayam etad baanam avashtabhya vidhaarayaamah “To him he said, ‘Akasha, ether or space, is verily, such a power. Air, fire, water, earth, speech, mind, eye and ear too. They, having illumined their power, declare, ‘We sustain and support this body.’’” As far as the human body is concerned, speech, by which one can communicate this Truth to others; the mind, without which we cannot even speculate on the Truth; the eye which sees the universe in its splendour and gravity; and the ear which hears both the auspicious and the inauspicious – these are those powers which illumine the body and sustain and support this body. But the greatest of these powers is Life, praana, which is the sum total of everything. It is the Energy that animates everything. So Life, the greatest of these powers, is deified here. And Life said to the rest of the Energies of the universe: SHLOKA 3 taan varishthah praana uvaacha maa moham aapadyatha aham evaitat panchadha atmaanam pravibhajya etat baanam avashtabhya vidhaarayaami iti “The chief praana, the Life Energy, said to them, ‘Do not be deluded. I alone, dividing myself five-fold, sustain and support this body.’ The chief Life Energy divides itself into the five forms of vital breath – prana, apana, vyana, udana, samana – in the body, and sustains and supports it. It also divides itself into the five forms of energy – space, wind, fire, water, earth – in the universe. The one praana acts through the body and the universe- they are linked together. But the mind, the eye, the ear, the speech, they did not believe him – they did not believe the deity, Life. Then they saw that he, praana, seemed

to go upward, from the body. SHLOKA 4 te ashraddadhaana babhoovuh sa abhimaanaad oordhvam utkramata iva tasminn utkraamaty yatha itare sarva eva utkraamante tasmin cha pratishthamaane sarva eva praatishthante tad yathaa makshikaa madhu kara raajaanam utkraamantam sarva eva utkraamante tasmin cha pratishtamaane sarva eva praatishthante evam vaang manas chakshuh shrotram cha te priitaah praanam stunvanti “They believed him not. Out of indignation, he, praana, the Life Energy, the breath, seemed to go upward. When the breath went up, all other senses went up with it. When it settled down, all others settled down. Just as the bees go out when the queen bee goes out and they settle down when she settles down, even so do speech, mind, sight and hearing- they go where the Life Energy leads them. They, being satisfied, praise Life – praana.” Here is a beautiful link between the universal and the particular. Just as praana, the Life Energy, sustains the entire universe, it also sustains the body. The Life Energy in human, which resides in the body, is the praana. This pranic Life Energy, the one vital breath, divides itself into five parts – praana, apana, udana, samana and vyana – and these sustain the functions of the body. It is this one Energy, which moves through the central channel, or the sushumna naadi, when the breath is made to go up, through meditation. When the breath goes up, then the hearing, sight, feeling, mind – everything goes up with it. When it settles down, in the highest of spiritual spheres, everything settles down and there is utter peace, and there is the utter satisfaction of blissfulness, then, one praises Life. This is that one Energy,

the Supreme Energy, which is the Life Energy in material things, as well as the vital breath in the human body. SHLOKA 5 esho agnih tapaty esha soorya esha parjanyo maghavaan esha vaayuh esha prithivii rayir devah sat asat cha amritam cha yat “It is this Supreme Energy that, as fire, burns, as the Sun, gives light. He is that Energy, who is also the Rain God, the Wind, the Earth, the Matter. He is Being and Non-being and is immortal.” That means, this Supreme Energy is consciousness, as well as that which is unconscious and inanimate. It is also that which is immortal. SHLOKA 6 araa iva ratha naabhau praane sarvam pratishthitam rikho yajoomshi saamaani yajnaah kshatram brahma cha “As spokes in the centre of a wheel, everything is established in Life – the Rig, the Yajur, the Sama, the sacrifice, the valour and the wisdom.” The Supreme Being, the Life, is the centre of the wheel, while the verses of the Rig Veda, the formulae of the Yajur Veda, the chants of the Sama Veda; and the Vedic sacrifice, the valour and the wisdom, are all spokes from the centre of the wheel. While the centre is the Supreme Being, the Life, and everything, is established in it. SHLOKA 7 prajaapatis charasi garbhe tvam eva pratijaayase tubhyam praana prajaastv imaa balim haranti yah praanaih pratitishthasi

“As the Lord of the creatures, Life, you move in the womb and then are born again as a living being. O Life, creatures here bring offerings to thee, who dwells with the vital breath.” That Prajapati becomes the seed and from the father, through the mother, becomes the child. And yet, even in the child dwells that Supreme Being in the form of the vital breath. So, can we say that the vital breath, which moves in the human body, is the final vital link to the Supreme Breath that moves in the universe? Can we ask that question? SHLOKA 8 devaanaam asi vahnitamah pitrinaam prathamaa svadhaa rishii naam charitam satyam atharvaangirasaam asi “Thou, O Supreme Being, are the chief bearer of the offerings to the Gods; you are the first offering to the forefathers, the ancestors. You are that which the great rishis – the descendants of Atharvana and Angirasa – practice.” SHLOKA 9 indras tvam praana tejasaa rudro asi parirakshitaa tvam antarikshe charasi sooryas tvam jyotishaam patih “O Life; as Indra, you are the Lord of the senses. As Rudra, you are the protector. You move in the atmosphere as the Sun, the Lord of Lights.” SHLOKA 10 yadaa tvam abhivarshasy atha imaah praana te prajaah aanadaroopaas tishthanti kaamaaya annam bhavishyati iti

“O Life, when you pour down rain, then these creatures breathe and live in a state of bliss, thinking that there will be food according to their desire.” SHLOKA 11 vraatyas tvam praana ekarshir attaa vishvasya satpatih vayam aadhyasya daataarah pitaa tvam maatarishva nah “You are ever pure, O Life, the one fire, the eater, the true Lord of all. We are the givers of what is to be eaten. O all-pervading air, Breath, you are our father.” SHLOKA 12 yaa te tanoor vaachi pratishthitaa yaa shrotre yaa cha chakshushi yaa cha manasi santataa shivaam taam kuru ma utkramiih “That form of yours, well-established in speech, in the ear and in the eye; which exists continuously in the mind, make that auspicious, do not get away.” Having described the Supreme Being, the Supreme Light, which is the basis of everything, the rishi prays and says, “That form of yours, which can be expressed by speech, which is heard in the ear and seen by the eye” – which is the Supreme Being in the form of the world; and the Supreme Being within, “which exists continuously in the mind”, which gives the mind the capacity to think, which is the Consciousness, the Witness of all that happens – “make that auspicious for us. Do not go away.” SHLOKA 13 praanasya idam vashe sarvam tridive yat pratishthitam maata iva putraan rakshasva shrish cha prajnaam cha vidhehi nah iti

“All this is under the control of you, O Supreme Life, which is wellestablished in the three worlds. Protect us as a mother protects her children. Grant us prosperity and wisdom.” There is a beautiful prayer in the Devi Bhagavatam, where the devotee prays, “O noble Goddess! May this relationship of mother and child prevail unbroken between you and me, now and forever more” – devi ho yat vyapti sadeyho janani sadeyho

QUESTION THREE SHLOKA 1 atha hainam kausalyas cha ashvalaayanah papraccha bhagavan, kuta esha praano jaayate, katham aayaaty asmin sharire, aatmaanam vaa pravibhajya katham pratishthate, kenotkraamate, katham baahyam abhidhatte, katham adhyaatmam iti “Then Kausalya, the son of Ashvala, asked him, ‘Venerable Sir, Bhagavan, whence is this Life, praana, born? How does it come into this body? How does it distribute itself and establish itself? In what way does it depart? How does it support what is external? How does it support what relates to the individual Self? Please explain this to me.” Pippalada was well pleased. SHLOKA 2 tasmai sa hovaacha ati prashnaan pricchasi brahmishtha asi iti tasmad te ham te braviimi “To him (Kausalya) he said, ‘You are asking questions which are highly transcendental. Because I think you are most devoted to Brahman, the Supreme Being, and therefore I will tell you.’”

SHLOKA 3 aatmanaa esha praano jaayate yatha esha purushe chaya etasminn etad aatatam manokrutena ayaati asminn shariire “This Life, praana, is born of the Self. As in the case of a person, there is this shadow, so is this Life connected with the Self. It comes into this body with the activity of the mind.” “This Life is born of the Self” – “Self”, meaning the inner Self, the atman, not the body. With the activity of the mind, with the activity of thought, Life comes into this body. The rishi gives an interesting example. He says that just as a person has a shadow and the shadow looks in many ways, similarly the body is only a shadow. Although the body looks like the Self, it is the shadow of the true Self, which is the atman. How does Life come into the body? It is in the body because of the activity of thought. When thought ceases, it does not act in the body. It is free, it is back to its original state. When thought functions, the shadow is mistaken for the Reality. The rishi gives another example: SHLOKA 4 yathaa samraat eva adhikritaan viniyunkte etaan graamaan etaan graamaan adhitishthasva iti evam eva esha praanah itaraan praanaan prithak prithag eva sannidhatte “As a sovereign commands his officers, saying ‘You superintend such and such village,’ even so does this Life allot the other vital breaths to their respective places.” This praana, this mukhya praana, this Supreme Energy allots the various functions to the other vital breaths, in their respective places, just as a king commands his officers – “You do this, you do that.”

The rishi tells about the different breaths that come from the one Breath, the Life, praana: SHLOKA 5 paayu upaasthe apaanam chakshuh shrotre mukha naasikaabyaam praanah svayam pratishtate madhye tu samaanah esha hy etadd hutam annam samam nayati tasmaad etaah saptaarchisho bhavanti “The out-breath, the apaana, is in the organs of excretion and regeneration. The Life Breath, praana, himself, is in the eye and the ear, and also in the mouth and the nose. In the middle is the equalizing breath, samaana. It is this that equalises whatever is offered as food. From it arise the seven flames.” Here, a distinction, or differentiation, is made between the different breaths, which come from the one Breath, praana, the Energy of Breath, or the Energy of Life. This one Breath, the praana, is divided into five breaths – the out-breath apaana, the equalizing-breath samaana, the life-breath praana, the up-breath udaana and the diffused-breath vyaana. Their function is to maintain the body. It means that breath, which is the out-breath, the apaana, operates the excretion and regeneration. The Life Breath, which is the praana, is in the eye, the ear, the mouth and the nose. It is that which makes us speak, it is that which makes us hear and it is that which makes us see. In the middle is the equalising breath, the samaana. It is this that equalises whatever is offered as food. That means it equalises all these breaths and it also digests the food – combustion is required to digest food. From this breath arise “the seven flames”. Now, wherever you find mention of “seven flames” or “seven wheels”, you can be sure it refers to the psychic apparatus or the chakra system, in the human body. So the

“seven flames” are the Energies that are active in the centres of psychic perception. Continuing, the rishi says: SHLOKA 6 hrudy hy esha aatmaa atra etad ekashatam naadiinaam taasaam shatam shatam ekaikasyaam dvaasaptatir dvaasaptatih pratishaakhaa naadii sahasraani bhavanti aasu vyaanas charati “The Supreme Self is in the heart. Here, there are a hundred and one arteries. To each one of these belong a hundred smaller arteries. To each of these belong seventy two thousand branching arteries. Within them moves the diffused breath, vyaana.” SHLOKA 7 atha ekaya urdhva udaanah punyena punya lokam nayati paapena paapam ubhaabhyaam eva manushya lokam “Now, rising upwards, through one of these, the up-breath, the udaana, leads the soul, in consequence of the good work, to the good world and in consequence of the evil, to the evil world; and, in consequence of both, to the world of men.” Wherever this breath is diverted, up or down, higher or lower, decides the fate of the human being. Then the rishi connects the Breath in the human body with that which is the eternal Energy of the visible universe: SHLOKA 8 adityo ha vai baahyah praana udayati esha hy enam

chakshusham praanam anugrahnaanah prithivyaam yaa devataa sa eshaa purushasya apaanam avashtabhya antaraa yad akaashah sa samaano vaayur vyaanah “The sun verily rises as the external Life, for it is that which helps the Life-Breath, the praana, in the eye. The divinity, which is in the earth, supports a person’s out-breath, the apaana. What is between the sun and the earth is the equalising breath, the samaana. Air is the diffused breath, vyaana.” The sun rises as the external Life, praana, and it helps the praana in the eye – for, without light, one cannot see. The earth supports a person’s out-breath, apaana. The space is the equalising-breath, samaana. The air is the diffused-breath, vyaana, which is available for all creatures to breathe and be sustained. SHLOKA 9 tejo ha vai udaanah tasmaat upashaanta tejaah punarbhavam indriyair manasi sampadyamaanaih “Fire is verily the up-breath, udaana. Therefore, he whose fire of Life has ceased goes to rebirth with his senses sunk in the mind.” He who thus leaves the body, in whom the fire of Life is moving upwards, in whom the aspiration for freedom is gone, comes back to earth because his sensory perceptions, his desires are still sunk in the mind. Therefore, he goes to rebirth. SHLOKA 10 yat chittas tena esha praanam aayaati praanas tejasaa yuktah

saha atmanaa yathaa samkalpitam lokam nayati “Whatever is one’s thinking, therewith one enters into Life, praana. His Life, combined with fire, along with the Self, leads to whatever world has been fashioned by thought.” The Upanishad hits upon the most important aspect of all thinking, which is, whatever you think you want to be, that you become. Whatever one is thinking of at the time of death, one enters into Life, in that form. The fire of desire catches on to that which you want to become, and the Self leads you to whatever world has been fashioned by you in thought, as desired by you and you attain that. If you are caught by this world, you will naturally come back to this world. The rishi then tells about what happens to the wise man who understands Life, praana, in all its aspects: SHLOKA 7 ya evam vidvaan praanam veda na haasya prajaa hiiyate amrito bhavati tad esha shlokah “The wise one who knows Life thus, to him there shall be no continuation. He becomes immortal. As to this, there is this verse:” “Off-spring” is the word used, but it means “continuation”. The wise man who understands Life, praana, will have no continuation of the cycle of birth and death. He is free from rebirth as he becomes immortal. As to this, there is the following verse: SHLOKA 12 utpattim aayatim sthaanam vibhutvam cha eva panchadhaa adhyaatmam cha eva praanasya vijnaaya amritam ashnute vijnaayam amritam ashnuta iti

“The birth of Life, praana – its entry, its abode, its five-fold overlordship and its relationship to the Self; knowing these, one attains immortality, knowing these, one attains immortality.” The wise man who understands Life, praana, in all its aspects – its origin, its abode, its five-fold division and its relationship to the Self attains immortality. Knowing that your mind takes you to where you want to go, and what you think you attain, the wise one attains immortality. So far, three questions have been answered. There are three more questions to answer, in this Upanishad.

QUESTION FOUR Gargya, the grandson of Surya, asked the rishi Pippalada, the next question about the waking, dream and deep sleep states: SHLOKA 1 atha hainam sauryaayanii gaargyah papraccha bhagavan etasmin purushe kaani svapanti kaany asmin jaagrati katara esha devah svapnaan pashyati kasya etat sukham bhavati kasmin nu sarve sampratishthita bhavanti iti “Then Gargya, the grandson of Surya, asked him, ‘Reverend Sir, what are they that sleep in a person? What are they that keep awake in him? What is the God that sees dreams? Whose is this happiness? In whom are all these established?” Where do all these mystifying things come from? What happens when we sleep? Everybody sleeps – the hard-working labourer or the chief of a company, everyone goes to sleep. And when they sleep, neither is aware of one’s own existence. When they wake up, they are back again to their own, usual daily cycle. So what happens when one sleeps? What happens when one wakes up? How are they linked together? Pippalada then said to him:

SHLOKA 2 tasmai sa hovaacha: yathaa gaargya marichayah arkasya astam gacchatah sarvaa etasmin tejo mandala ekii bhavanti taah punah punar udayatah pracharanti evam ha vai tat sarvam pare deve manasy ekii bhavati tena tarhy esha purusho na shrunoti na pashyati na jighrati na rasayate na sprushate na abhivadate na aadatte na aanandayate na visrujate na iyaayate svapiti iti aachakshate “He said to him, ‘O Gargya! As all the rays of the setting sun become one in the circle of light, and as they spread forth again when he rises again, even so does all this become one in the superior god, which is the mind. Hence the person hears not, sees not, smells not, tastes not, touches not, speaks not, takes not, rejoices not, emits not and moves not. Then, they say, ‘He sleeps.’’” When everything has ceased, when all the sensations have ceased and withdrawn, like the rays of the sun to the centre of the sun, in that state, the rishi says, when one falls asleep, everything goes back to the centre, which is the Superior God, the Mind. About two thousand years ago, at a conservative estimate, much before the modern psychologist, the rishi says – that everything is in the mind. Everything starts with the mind. He calls the mind “the superior god” where everything converges when we sleep, like the rays of the setting sun and from where everything starts again like the rising sun, when we wake up. In sleep, though the senses are dormant, the Life Energy, praana, remains active. Here, the different parts of the Life Energy are used for different oblations and Life is conceived of as a sacrifice, yagnya: SHLOKA 3 praana agnaya eva etasmin pure jaagrati gaarhapatyo ha vaa esha apaanah vyaanah anvaahaarya pachanah

yad gaarhapatyaat praniiyate praanayanaad aahavaniiyah praanah “The fires of Life, praana, alone remain awake in the city – the body. The householder’s fire is the out-breath; the southern sacrificial fire is the diffused breath; and the oblation fire is the in-breath, since it is taken from the householder’s fire.” Here, Life is conceived of as a sacrifice, and the three breaths are symbolically identified with the fires used in the Vedic sacrifice: The garhapatya is the householder’s fire, which is the sacred fire that is kept burning in all homes and all other fires are taken from it. The householder’s fire is the out-breath – apaana. The southern sacrificial fire, anvaahaaryapachana, is that fire into which oblations to the forefathers are offered. It is the diffused breath – vyaana. The oblation fire, ahavaniya, is that fire into which oblations to the gods are offered. It is the in-breath – praana. To keep the body alive, the different parts of the Life Energy remain functioning; the out-breath, the in-breath and that which is between the inner and the outer breath, the equalizing breath – the samaana. SHLOKA 4 yad ucchvaasa nihshvaasaav etaav aahutii samam nayati iti samaanah mano ha vaa va yajamaanah ishta phalam eva udaanah sa evam yajamaanam ahar ahar brahma gamayati “As the equalising breath, samaana carries equally the in-breath and the out-breath as the oblations; so samaana is the priest. The mind is the one who performs the sacrifice, the yajamaanah, the sacrificer. The fruit of the sacrifice is the up-breath, udaana; it leads the sacrificer everyday to Brahman.”

The up-breath, udaana, takes the mind, the sacrificer, everyday to Brahman, in deep sleep. But the one who practices yoga will understand what the word, “up-breath” means. When the mind and the praana are completely moving upwards, which means moving to the higher states of consciousness, then, one is daily, constantly in touch with the highest Supreme Reality, which is the super-conscious state. SHLOKA 5 atra esha devah svapne mahimaanam anubhavati yad drushtam drushtam anupashyati shrutam shrutam eva artham anushrunoti desha digantaraish cha praty anubhootam punah punah praty anubhavati drushtam cha adrushtam cha shrutam cha ashrutam cha anubhootam cha ananubhootam cha sat cha asat cha sarvam pashyati sarvah pashyati “There in that sleep, that god (meaning the mind) experiences greatness. He sees again what object has been seen; he hears again whatever has been heard; he experiences again and again whatever has been experienced in different places and directions. He sees what has been seen and also what has not been seen; what has been heard and what has not been heard; what has been experienced and what has not been experienced; what is existent and what is not existent. He sees all.” The mind at rest, free from the trammels, the conditionings of sensory data, becomes once again, all-powerful and all-pervading and sees everything and experiences everything, because, says the rishi, “He is all.” Being all, he sees all. What happens then? SHLOKA 6 sa yaada tejasa abhibhooto bhavati atra esha devah svapnaan na pashyati

atha tad etasmin shariire etat sukham bhavati “When he (the mind) is overcome with light, that god sees no dreams. Then, here, in this body, arises great happiness.” When the consciousness is moved to the highest realm, with the upbreath; when the mind has become quiet, absolutely still, at rest, tranquil, peaceful and auspicious, then that mind is filled with light. In such a state, that mind sees no dreams. Then here, in this body, arises the great happiness of dreamless sleep, sushupti. SHLOKA 7 sa yathaa saumya vayaamsi vaaso vruksham sampratishthante evam ha vai tat sarvam para aatmani sampratishthante “Even as birds, O dear one, resort to a tree for a resting place, so does everything here resorts to the Supreme Self and finds its rest.” So, every night, after all the activity, action and exhaustion, when the mind goes back to sleep, filled with light, it sees no dreams and is happy. Even as birds perch and rest in a tree, so does the mind rest in the Supreme Self, because the Supreme Self is the all-restful Being. What finds rest in the Supreme Self? The rishi says: SHLOKA 8 prithivii cha prithivii maatraa cha aapas cha aapomaatraa cha tejas cha tejomaatraa cha vayus cha vaayumaatraa cha aakaashas cha aakaashamaatraa cha chakshus cha drashtavyam cha shrotram cha shrotavyam cha ghraanam cha ghraatavyam cha rasas cha rasayitavyam cha tvak cha sparshayitavyam cha vaak cha vaktavyam cha hastau cha adaatavyam cha upasthas cha anandayitavyam cha paayus cha visarjayitavyam cha

paadau cha gantavyam cha manas cha mantavyam cha buddhis cha boddhavyam cha ahamkaaras cha ahamkartavyam cha chittam cha chetayitavyam cha tejas cha vidyotayitavyam cha praanas cha viddhaarayitavyam cha “The earth and the elements of earth; water and the elements of water; fire and the elements of fire; air and the elements of air; ether and the elements of ether; sight and what can be seen; hearing and what can be heard; smell and what can be smelled; taste and what can be tasted; the skin and what can be touched; the organ of speech and what can be spoken; hands and what can be handled; the organ of generation and what can be enjoyed; the organ of excretion and what can be excreted; the feet and what can be walked to; the mind and what can be perceived; the intellect and what can be conceived; the self-sense and what can be connected with the self; thought and what can be thought; radiance and what can be illumined and the Life-Breath and what can be supported by it – all these rest in the Self, the atman, in sleep.” SHLOKA 9 esha hi drashtaa sprashtaa shrotaa ghraataa rasayitaa mantaa boddhaa kartaa vijnaanaatmaa purushah sa pare akshara aatmani sampratishthate “He, the Person, verily is the seer, the toucher, the hearer, the smeller, the taster, the perceiver, the knower, the doer, the thin-king Self. He becomes established in the Supreme, undecaying Self.” It means that the subject Self, which is the Awareness of all that is going on, which enjoys itself in deep sleep, which also enjoys dreams and can also be beyond that position and be established in its own state – that state, which is in the spirit, transcends duality of subject and object. In that, he remains in the Supreme, undecaying Self. SHLOKA 10

param eva aksharam pratipadyate sa yo ha vai tad acchaayam ashariiram alohitam shubhram aksharam vedayate yas tu saumya sa sarvajnaah sarvo bhavati tad esha shlokah “Therefore he, who knows the shadowless, bodiless, colourless, pure, undecaying Self, attains verily the Supreme, undecaying Self. He who, O dear one, knows this, becomes omniscient; he becomes all. As to this, there is this verse:” SHLOKA 11 vijnaanaatmaa saha devaish cha sarvaih praanaa bhootaani sampratishthanti yatra tad aksharam vedayate yas tu saumya sa sarvajnah sarvam eva avivesha iti “He who knows that undecaying Self, which is of the nature of intelligence, in which is established the vital breath, praana, and the elements along with all the gods, the senses, becomes omniscient and enters all.”

QUESTION FIVE SHLOKA 1 atha ha enam shaibyas satyakaamah papraccha sa yo ha vai tad bhagavan manushyeshu praayanaantam aumkaaram abhidhyaayiita katamam vaa va sa tena lokam jayati iti “Then Satyakaama, the son of Shibi, asked him, ‘Venerable Sir, by doing this, what world does he win, who, among men, meditates on that

aumkaara, until the end of his life?’ Although Satyakaama here has been depicted as the son of Shibi, he represents anyone who wants to know the Truth, who is not interested in anything else. Satyakaama wanted to know what happens to people who chant aum and meditate on the syllable aum, until the end of their lives. He asked the rishi Pippalada, the most important question: What world do such people attain, by meditating on aum? Where do they go? What do they get? Pippalada said to him: SHLOKA 2 tasmai sa ha uvaacha etad vai satyakaama param cha aparam cha brahma yad aumkaarah tasmaad vidvaan etenaivaayatanena ekataram anveti “That which is the sound aum, O Satyakaama, is both the higher and the lower Brahman. Therefore, with this support alone, does the wise man reach the one or the other.” Now, “the higher and the lower Brahman” needs to be explained. “The lower Brahman” means the qualified, personal Ishwara, or the Supreme Energy, or the Supreme Brahman conceived as the Creator, the Preserver and the Destroyer, who can be worshipped and so on. “The higher Brahman” is the highest, the absolute Brahman, which is the unqualified, absolute Self, which cannot be defined or held in our mind. So what Pippalada meant was that the sound aum is the most important support for the wise to reach, either the personal Ishwara, or the unqualified, absolute Brahman. The rishi gives details about what happens when a person meditates on the elements or syllables of aum – “a”, “u” and “m”:

SHLOKA 3 sa yady eka maatram abhidhyaayiita sa tena eva samveditas toornam eva jagatyaam abhisampadyate tam richo manushya lokam upanayante sa tatra tapaasa brahmacharyena shraddhayaa sampanno mahimaanam anubhavati “If he meditates on the first element, ‘a’, he is enlightened by that. He comes back quickly to this world, after death. The verses of the Rig Veda lead him to the world of men. There, endowed with austerity, chastity and faith, he experiences greatness.” “a” is the first syllable in the sound aum. It is the beginning of everything: “a” – akshara or “indestructible”. It is the beginning of all sounds which even the dumb can pronounce. If a person meditates on “a”, the first syllable of aum, and contemplates on it–on the sound as well as the meaning of it–he becomes enlightened enough to come back quickly to the world of men, after death. And there, not as an ordinary person, but as one endowed with austerity, chastity and faith. There he attains greatness in life. This is the result of meditating on the first syllable “a”. I am translating shraddha as “faith”. It also means “one-pointedness, complete attention and the eagerness to find the Truth.” So it is faith in one’s Self, in one’s capacity to find the Truth that leads one to greatness. What happens to a person when he meditates on the second syllable “u”, or the two elements, “au” of “aum”? The rishi continues: SHLOKA 4 atha yadi dvi maatrena manasi sampadyate sa antariksham yajurbhir unniiyate soma lokam sa soma loke vibhootim anubhooya punar aavartate

“Then if he meditates on the two elements, he attains the mind. He learns the formulae. The Yajur takes him to the world of the Moon in the intermediary space, after death. Having experienced greatness there, he returns again.” So, a person, who meditates on the two elements of aum, on “a” and “u” – “au” – attains the mind. He becomes an expert in being able to work on the creative aspect of his mind. After death, he is taken to the world of the Moon, where he experiences greatness. He is able to do anything that he imagines, living in the world of imagination, because, the moon is associated with imagination, visualisation, creativity of thought, which of course, when goes beyond control, becomes lunacy – the word “lunar” is related to lunacy. So, after living in the world of visualisation, living and enjoying the world which he visualises with his imagination, he returns again to this earth, from the inter-space, to further evolve and attain greater levels of understanding. SHLOKA 5 yah punar etam tri maatrena aum ity etena iva aksharena param purusham abhidhyaayiita sa tejasi soorye sampannah yathaa paadodaras tvacha vinirmuchyata evam ha vai sa paapmanaa vinirmuktah sa saamabhir unniiyate brahma lokam sa etasmaat jiivaghanaat paraat param purishayam purusham iikshate tad etau shlokau bhavatah “Then, he who meditates on the highest Person, with the three elements of aum – “a”, “u”, “m” – becomes one with the highest Light, which is the Sun. As a snake is freed from its skin, even so he is freed from sins. After death, he is led by the chanting of the Saama hymns to the world of Brahma. From this highest Light, he sees the Person that dwells in the body. As to this, there are these two verses:”

SHLOKA 6 tisro maatraa mrityumatyah prayuktaa anyonya saktaa anavi prayuktaah kriyaasu baahyaabhyantara madhyamaasu samyak prayuktaasu na kampate jnah “Now, these are the three elements, each leading to death, if taken by themselves and separately practiced. But if they are connected to each other without being separated, they are well-employed in all the actions – external, internal or intermediate–and the knower does not waver (in meditation).” A person who knows the significance of meditating on the three elements does not waver from the meditation. He moves forward. Pippalada continues in the next verse: SHLOKA 7 rigbhir etam yajurbhir antariksham saamabhir yat tat kavayo vedayante tam aumkaarena eva ayatanena anveti vidvaan yat tat chaantam ajaram amritam abhayam param cha “With the Rig verses, one attains this world; with the Yajur formulae, one attains the inter-space and with the Saama chants, one attains that which the rishis recognise. Also, even by the mere sound aum as the support, the wise one attains That which is tranquil, unageing, immortal, fearless and supreme.” What can a person do to attain higher levels of understanding? With the understanding of the teachings of the Rik verses, the hymns, he can attain this world. With the understanding of the formulae of the Yajur, by which one imagines, he can attain higher levels of understanding; he can attain the

inter-space, which means, he ascends above earthly existence. With the Saama chants, the sacred hymns, which are tuned to lift one up, he can attain the highest state of consciousness, which the great rishis recognise. He attains that when he practices all the three together – the Rik, the Yajur and the Saama. Now, says the Upanishad, the wise one attains that stage merely by the sound, aum. He does not have to go through the Rik, the Yajur and the Saama, as aum is the essence of the Rik, the Yajur and the Saama. And when the wise one takes refuge in the sound aum, as the support, then he attains that, which is by itself, tranquil, unageing, immortal, fearless and supreme. He goes beyond all the three states. That is the tureeya, and it underlies all other states and transcends them.

QUESTION SIX Sukesha, son of Bhaaradvaaja, asks Pippalada about the Supreme Being, the Person of sixteen parts, the Purusha. SHLOKA 1 atha ha enam sukeshaa bhaaradvaajah papraccha bhagavan hiranyanaabhah kausalyo raaja putro maam upetya etam prashnam apricchata shodasha kalam bhaaradvaaja purusham vettha tam aham kumaaram abruvam na aham imam veda yady aham imam avedisham katham te na avakshyam iti sa moolo vaa esha parishushyati yo anritam abhivadati tasmaan na arhamy anritam vaktum sa tooshniim ratham aaruhya pravavraaja tam tvaa pricchaami kvaasau purushah iti “Sukesha, son of Bhaaradvaaja, said to him, ‘Venerable Sir, Hiranyanaabha, a prince of the Kosala kingdom, approached me, and asked

this question, ‘Bhaaradvaaja, do you know the Person who is of sixteen parts?’ I replied to the prince, ‘I know him not. If I had known him, why should I not tell you about it? Verily, he who speaks an untruth withers to his roots. Therefore, it is not proper for me to speak untruth.’ In silence, he mounted his chariot and departed. So, I ask you Sir, where is that Person?’” Sukesha, the son of the great rishi Bhaaradvaaja, told Pippalada that he was once asked by Hiranyanaabha, a prince of the Kosala kingdom, if he knew the Person who is of sixteen parts. Sukesha said to the prince, “I know him not.” That was a fact. He did not know the Person who is of sixteen parts. He did not try to hide his ignorance and say, “You are not ready for it, so I cannot tell you.” He did not say, “I know, but I cannot tell you.” He did not say all that because he believed in the Vedic dictum that “He who speaks an untruth, withers to his roots.” This shows his great dedication to the truth. We cannot hope to find the Supreme Absolute Truth if we cannot stick to truth in day-to-day matters. Pippalada said to him: SHLOKA 2 tasmai sa ha uvaacha iha eva antah shariire saumya sa purusho yasminn etaah shodasha kalaah prabhavanti iti “He said to him, ‘Even here within this body, O dear friend, is that Person or Purusha, in whom the sixteen parts arise.’” In the Sankhya system of philosophy, the great rishi Kapila talks of “the Self of sixteen parts,” and calls it the linga sharira or “the subtle body”, and here, the same thing is referred to, with some modifications. He reflected to himself about the Person within this body:

SHLOKA 3 sa iikshaamchakre kasminn aham utkraanta utkraanto bhavishyaami kasmin vaa pratishthite pratishthaasyaami iti “He reflected, ‘In whose departure shall I be departing and in whose settling down shall I be settling down (in the body)?’” Then the rishi tells him how the sixteen parts of creation proceed from the Person, the purusha: SHLOKA 4 sa praanam asrijata praanaat shraddhaam kham vaayur jyotir aapah prithivi indriyam manah annam annaad viiryam, tapo mantraah karma lokaah lokeshu cha naama cha “He created life from Life, praana. From life came faith, ether, air, fire, water, earth, senses, mind and food. From food came vigour, austerity, the hymns, works and worlds; and in the world was created name.” “That Supreme Being of the sixteen parts” created Life, praana or Energy. So from Him proceeds Life; from Life came shraddha or onepointedness and then kham or ether; then came vaayu or air; then jyoti or light, meaning fire; then aapah or water and prithivi or earth – these mean the vapour, the liquid and the solid. Then came indriyam or senses, the organs of perception; then manah or mind; and annam or food. From food came viryam or vigour, vitality, strength and energy. From energy came tapah or austerity, mantrah or the capacity to chant and karma or the ability to work or perform action. Then came lokah or worlds and in the worlds came naama or name. “Name” suggests individuation. It is only by giving a name to something, a label, that one thing is distinguished from another. Everything is distinguished by their names. So this is the description of the sixteen parts, which proceed from the Person, the purusha, who is seated in the body.

Next, these sixteen parts are compared to the rivers; while the Person is the ocean. SHLOKA 5 sa yatha imaa nadyah syandamaanaah samudraayanaah samudram praapya astam gacchanti bhidyete taasaam naamaroope samudra ity evam prochyate evam eva asya paridrashtur imah shodasha kalaah purushaayanaah purusham praapya ashtam gacchanti bhidyete chaasaam naama roope purusha ity evam prochyate sa esho akala amrito bhavati tad esha shlokah “The flowing rivers that tend towards the ocean, disappear into it, and on reaching the ocean, their names and shapes being broken up, they lose their individualities and are simply called “ocean”. Even so of the Seer, whose sixteen parts, though resting in the Person, on reaching the Person, disappear; their names and shapes broken up, they are simply called ‘the Person’. That Person is One, without parts and is immortal. As to that, there is this verse.” Here, all the sixteen parts that exist are compared to the many rivers, which have their own individuality, their own names, their own shapes, their own forms. When they flow into the ocean, then they are one ocean. The sixteen parts become one ocean, which is the one Person. They disappear – their nama-rupa, or names and shapes, are broken up and there is only one Person, the purusha. The one Person, who possessed the sixteen parts, is now back to being the one Person. “That One is without parts and immortal. As to that, there is this verse.” We find the same in the Tao teaching: “All under heavens will come as streams and torrents to flow into a great river or the sea.”

Jalaluddin Rumi says, “A drop may enter the sea.” In the Shams-eTabrez, he says, “None has knowledge of each who enters, that ‘he is so and so’. All is gone and there is only the ocean.” Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa used to say that it is like the salt-doll trying to find the depth of the ocean. There is no salt-doll left any more – there is just the ocean. There was this great English poet, Christina Rosetti, whose poems I was taught by a wonderful teacher, Harihara Iyer, in the Model High School, Trivandrum. His way of teaching was so good that I can never forget it. In a beautiful poem, Christina Rossetti says: “Lord, we are rivers running to thy sea! Our waves and ripples all derived from thee; And nothing we should have and nothing to be – except for thee!” The verse that follows, talks about this. The rishi gives another simile: SHLOKA 6 araa iva ratha naabhau kaala yasmin pratishtitaah tam vedyam purusham veda yathaa maa vo mrityuh parivyathaah “In whom the parts are well-established as spokes in the centre of the wheel; know Him as the Person, worthy to be known, so that death may not afflict you.” The sixteen parts were first compared to the rivers which lose their identity in the ocean, the purusha. Here, the parts are compared to spokes that rest in the purusha, the centre of the wheel. Then comes the conclusion of the instruction, after all the questions have been asked and discussed, and samvaada or dialogue has taken place. What does the great rishi Pippalada say, in conclusion? He does not say, “This is the absolute Truth I have given you!” That would be arrogance.

So how does Pippalada conclude his instruction? What does he say to the students? SHLOKA 7 taan hovaacha etaavad evaaham etat param brahma veda na atah param asti iti “He then said to them, ‘Only thus far do I know that Supreme Brahman. There is none higher than that Supreme Being.’” The more you know, the more remains to be known. The problem is when somebody says, “I have understood the Brahman completely,” he does not know the Brahman at all. For, It is so immeasurable and infinite, that no one can claim that he knows the Brahman with his puny brain, which is only one chromosome different from that of the chimpanzee! The students praised rishi Pippalada and said: SHLOKA 8 te tam archayantah tvam hi nah pitaa yah asmaakam avidyaayaah param paaram taarayasi iti namah parama rishibhyo namah parama rishibhyah “They worshipped, praising him, ‘Thou indeed are our father, who does take us across to the other shore beyond ignorance. Salutations to the supreme rishis! Salutations to the supreme rishis!’” Here a distinction is being made between our physical father and our teacher. Here, the rishi is addressed using the beautiful expression, nah pitaa or “our father”. The teacher is the one who helps us know the Truth, so he is the “spiritual father”, who is distinct from the “physical father”, who has given us birth. So, the students praised the rishi Pippalada. Any action performed in praise of the Supreme is archana. Not only a ritual, even praise, is archana.

The students praised their teacher, “You, who have taken us across to the other shore, beyond ignorance, you are indeed our father. Salutations to the supreme rishis! Salutations to the supreme rishis!” Here ends the Prashna Upanishad, the Upanishad of questions. I would now like to elaborate on That Supreme Being, who has been referred to, in the Prashna Upanishad, by Pippalada, as “That Person of sixteen parts” and go into another Upanishad, the Shvetaashvataara Upanishad – “The Upanishad of the White Horse” – where there is the description of the Supreme Cosmic Person: sarva aanana shiro griivah sarva bhoota guhaashayah sarva vyaapii sa bhagavaan stasmaat sarvagatah shivah “He, who is in the faces, heads and necks of all; who also dwells in the caves of all beings; who is all-pervading; He is the Lord and He is none other than the omnipresent Shiva.” Even though that Person dwells in secret, hidden in all beings – hidden in the hearts of all beings – He is all-pervading, the omni-present Shiva. That Supreme Being, indeed, is the great Lord, the Emperor and the Highest Being. He is the Ruler, the imperishable Light. When the Upanishad says, bhagavaan, it means what the Bhagavatam describes as bhagavaan: aishwarasya samagrasya dharmasya yashasah shriyah jnaana vairagyayos cha eva sannaam bhaga itiiranaa “He who has the six qualities of lordship, righteousness, fame, prosperity, wisdom and renunciation, is Bhagavaan.” Then follows another description of the Supreme Being, which connects it to oneself, to the heart of the human being, and to some abstract, indefinable, unreachable substance. What is that?

angushtah matraah purusho antaraatmaa sadaa janaanam hridaye sannivishtah hridaa manavisho manaasabhi klapto ya etad vidur amritas te bhavanti “He is a Person of the measure of a thumb. He is the inner Self of all beings, ever dwelling in the hearts of men. He is the Lord of knowledge, framed by the heart and the mind. He who knows this becomes immortal.” Those who know that the Supreme Lord, resides in the heart in the little shape “of the measure of a thumb,” become immortal. And, it is this little Person, who is in the heart, who is of just the measure of a thumb, who is also “the Person who has a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, a thousand feet; who surrounds the earth on all sides, stands ten fingers breadth beyond.” How poetic is this description! sahasra shirshaa purushah sahasraakshah sahasrapaad sabhoomim vishvato vritvaa aty atishtad That little “spark”, which is in the heart of man, of the human being, that little “spark” is the Supreme Being, ever-dwelling in the heart, knowing whom, men become immortal. This is the same one “with a thousand heads, a thousand eyes, a thousand feet.” He is greater even than the earth, as he surrounds the earth on all sides and stands ten fingers breadth beyond the whole world. purusha evedam sarvam yad bhootam yat cha bhavyam utaamritatvasyesha ano yad annenaatirohati “That Person is truly this whole world, meaning the whole universe, whatever has been and whatever will be. That Person is also the Lord of immortality and whatever grows by way of food.” That means, everything that grows, everything that lives, and everything that is here, there, anywhere; and whatever was and whatever will be, all that there is – everything is pervaded by that Supreme Being.

“On every side, It has a hand and a foot; and on every side, an eye, head and face. It has an ear everywhere. It stands encompassing all the worlds.” sarvatah paani paadam tat sarvato akshi shiro mukham sarvatah shrutimal loke sarvam aavritya tishthati “Reflecting the qualities of all these senses, and yet devoid of all the senses, that Supreme Being is the Lord and Ruler and the great Refuge of all.” Understand that Supreme Being, because of whom all the senses function, and yet He is devoid of all senses – He is the Lord and Ruler and above all, and most important of all, He is the Refuge of all. sarvasya prabhum eshaanam sarvasya sharanam brihat That means, finally, after going through everything, after being tossed around by the vagaries of nature and the foolishness of our own actions, one finally surrenders and finds supreme rest in the great Refuge, in that Supreme, all-pervading Being, who need not be searched for anywhere as He resides in the deep recesses of one’s own heart. What a wonderful message! Can we think about it for a second? Isn’t it profound and moving? Isn’t it a way out of the confusion and the conflict and the pain and the sorrow? “The embodied soul, in the city of nine gates, sports, moving to and fro in the outside world, yet is the controller of the whole world – the stationary and the moving.” nava dvaare pure dehii hamso leelayate bahih vasi sarvasya lokasya sthaavarasya charasya cha

So, this embodied soul, this “thumb-sized Being”, sits in “the city of nine gates”, which is the human body, moving to and fro, sporting in the outside world. Yet, He is the controller of the whole world – the world that moves and the world that does not. “Without foot or hand, yet swift and grasping; that Being sees without eyes, and hears without ears and knows whatever is to be known; although of Him, there is none who knows.” They call that Being the Primeval Being, the Supreme Person. That Supreme Person has “no foot or hand”, yet, He is so swift that He can grasp faster than anything. He sees without eyes; without ears, He hears; He knows whatever is to be known; of Him, there is none who knows. sa vetti vedyam na cha tasyaati vettaa tam aahur agryam purusham mahaantam That Supreme Person is again described as, “Subtler than the subtle; greater than the great is that Self. Seated in the cave of the heart of the creature, one beholds Him as being action-less and becomes free from sorrow, when, through the grace of the Creator, he sees the Lord and His majesty.” anor anaiyaa mahato mahiiyan aatmaa guhaayaan nihito asya jantoh tam akratum pashyati veeta shoko dhaatuh prasaadaan mahimaanam eshaam When that Supreme Being is seen, then one is freed and becomes free from action and sorrow, through the grace of that Supreme Creator, who Himself is that Supreme Self. He sees the Lord and His majesty. Then the rishi says, “I know that undecaying, ancient, primeval Self of all, present in everything on account of infinity, knowing whom, they declare, there is stoppage of birth.”

If we can read these verses in Sanskrit, the vibrations of these tunes, by themselves, produce a calmness of mind, which, when taken to its logical conclusion, can bring about that stillness and tranquility, which centres one in the centre of one’s heart, where the in-dwelling Supreme Reality is seen face to face, or is experienced. The expounders of that Supreme Brahman proclaim Him to be eternal which means there is no birth and death for that Supreme Being. It remains forever and is all-pervading in the manifold world, and, in the hearts of all beings. And surrendering and settling oneself in that centre of consciousness, one attains perfect tranquility and freedom which is known as nirvana; it is known as kaivalya; it is known as sahaja avastah; it is known as that from which there is no return. It is this, which the Upanishads speak of; it is that perfect, unconditional, absolute freedom – moksha, which we all seek in understanding the Upanishads. Aum shantih shantih shantihi!

3 Mundaka Upanishad

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ome of the important teachings which have come to us from ancient times, were stated for the first time in the Mundaka Upanishad, over two thousand years ago. For instance, satyameva jayate: “Truth Alone Wins” – comes from the Mundaka Upanishad. The other famous statement from the Mundaka Upanishad, which Swami Vivekananda was very fond of, is naayam atmaa balaheenena labhya: “This atma cannot be attained by the weak.” There is a tendency among certain people to think that the Upanishads and Vedanta are only meant for people who have no other work to do, or, for those who cannot fight opposing forces and are weak-minded. In fact, they are meant for the strong as made clear by this statement. The third important saying which most people do not even know comes from this ancient source, but often quote is, andhenaiva niyamaana yatha andhaah, which means, “the blind leading the blind.” The Mundaka Upanishad discusses the state when a person, swollen with the pride of having read thousands of books, begins to lead people with just his bookish knowledge; that, the Upanishad says, is like “the blind leading the blind.” Mundaka also means “shaven-headed”, so some people may misunderstand that this Upanishad is meant only for the sanyasin who has shaved his head. What it means is, to shave off ignorance and make the mind clear. This Upanishad comes from the Atharva Veda. In fact, the lineage is mentioned: this Upanishad started from Atharvan, who is the son of Brahma. Let us now we take up the study of the Mundaka Upanishad. There are people who think all this is meant for either sanyasins or people who have no interest in life and have retired to the forest: they are mistaken. The basic teaching of the Upanishads is how to find true happiness. Therefore, for those who feel that they have everything in life, and yet there is some vacuum somewhere and something is missing; for every such person, it would be very useful to start the study of the

Upanishads. The reason why the Upanishads were not taught publicly, for a long time, was because many of the rishis felt that if they were to be improperly understood, they could create more problems than offer solutions. And perhaps there were also some who had vested interest in not letting everybody know what the Upanishads were all about. In fact, when Buddha started preaching, some people felt uncomfortable because he was giving the essence of the Upanishads. When Adi Shankaracharya started teaching the Upanishads and opposing the Buddhists, those who were interested only in rituals and ceremonies, called him prachchanna boudhika or a “Buddhist in disguise” because they feared they would lose their hold. The Upanishad is therefore a very profound teaching, to understand which, one has to give complete attention.

Part 1: Section 1 SHLOKA 1 Om brahmaa devaanaam prathamah sambabhoova vishvasya kartaa bhuvanasya goptaa sa brahmavidyaam sarvavidyaa pratishthaam atharvaaya jyesthaputraaya praaha The Mundaka Upanishad first gives a description of how the knowledge was passed down, where it started, the genesis of the Upanishad. It says: Om brahmaa devaanaam prathamah sambabhoova vishwasya kartaa bhuvanasya goptaa – “First Brahma arose, the first among the Gods, the creator, the maker of the universe, the protector of the world.” sa brahmavidyaam sarvavidyaa pratishtaam – “Then he taught the knowledge of Brahman.” What kind of knowledge? sarvavidya pratishtaam – “That which is the foundation of all knowledge.” It is called the “foundation of all knowledge” because it is “that knowledge which, when

known, nothing else remains to be known.” It is the foundation of one’s own true origin, of what one really is. Atharvaaya jyestaputraaya praaha – “To his eldest son, Atharvan, Brahma taught this knowledge.” SHLOKA 2 atharvane yaam pravadeta brahma atharvaa taam purovaachaangire brahmavidyaam sa bhaaradvaajaaya satyavaahaaya praaha bhaaradvaajongirase paraavaraam atharvane yaam pravadeta brahma atharvaa taam purovaachaangire brahmavidyaam – “That knowledge of Brahman, which Brahma taught to Atharvan; Atharvan, in the ancient times, taught to Angirasa.” (A character is mentioned here named Angirasa) sa bhaaradvaajaaya satyavaahaaya praaha bhaaradvaajongirase paraavaraam – “Then he, Angirasa, taught it to Satyavaaha, who was the son of Bhaaradvaaja, and then the son of Bhaaradvaaja taught it to Angirasa.”This is another Angirasa. In the Vedas, there are different people at different times with the same name. “Vyasa” for instance means, “a compiler”. So “Veda Vyasa” means “a compiler of Vedas”. There could be many Vyasas – “compilers” – because in Sanskrit, every noun is formed from a verb. It is not a meaningless word. So Angirasa taught it to Satyavaaha. “Satyavaaha was the son of Bhaaradvaaja and he taught it to Angirasa again.” What did he teach? paraavaraam – “He taught the paraa aparaa,” which means he taught two kinds of knowledge – “the knowledge of the higher and of the lower.” SHLOKA 3 shaunako ha vai mahaashaalongirasam vidhivad upasannah papraccha kasmin nu bhagavo vijnaate sarvam idam vijnaatam bhavati iti

Then, “Shaunaka, the great householder, approached Angirasa…” It is clear from this, that the Upanishad is not meant only for sanyasins;it was taught to “Shaunaka, the great householder”. Why “great householder” and not an ordinary one? If you read the ancient laws of how the householder should live, then you will understand the meaning of “great”. For instance, one of the rules is when the food has been prepared, the householder is supposed to go out to the gate and loudly proclaim thrice, “Is anybody going hungry here?” If somebody answers, he has to be brought in and fed and the ideal householder should eat what is leftover. This is just an example. The householder happened to be the support of the entire system. Even the sanyasin had to be fed by the householder. “Shaunaka, the great householder, duly approached Angirasa.” “Duly” means, with all the respect that is necessary. He did not go to Angirasa and say, “Hey, teach me the knowledge of Brahman!” With great respect, with great understanding, Shaunaka approached Angirasa and asked him, kasmin nu bhagavo vijnaate sarvam idam vijnaatam bhavati iti – “Angirasa, I offer my pranaam to you. I bow down to you. Please tell me, what is that knowledge, venerable Sir. What is that which, when known, all this becomes known?” This does not mean that the “knower of Brahman” will be an expert in engineering or mining or anything of that kind. The real interpretation of sarvamidam vijnaatam bhavati iti is, when That is known, the essence of oneself and the essence of the world is known and therefore, nothing else needs to be known. It is not as if “everything” will be known when the knowledge of the Supreme Being is attained, but, one would have, by then, attained an excellent level of concentration which, when applied to any subject, makes it graspable and one can learn it faster than anybody else. But, the meaning here is not that when you know That, you know everything else! SHLOKA 4 tasmai sa hovaacha- dve vidye veditavye iti ha sma yad brahmavido vadanti paraa chaivaparaa cha

tasmai sa hovaacha – “He said to him…” dve vidye veditavye iti ha sma yad brahmavido vadanti – “Two kinds of knowledge are to be known, so say the knowers of Brahman.” What are the two kinds of knowledge? paraa cha iva aparaa cha – “The paraa vidya and the aparaa vidya. “The higher knowledge” and “the lower knowledge”. There is a very interesting list in the Mundaka Upanishad of what is paraa vidya or higher knowledge and what is aparaa vidya or lower knowledge. First, the rishi gives a list of what is part of the lower knowledge, apaara vidya: SHLOKA 5 tatraaparaa rigvedo yajurvedah saamavedotharavedah shikshaa kalpo vyaakaranam niruktam chando jyotisham iti atha paraa yayaa tad aksharam adhigamyate This is the list of what is lower knowledge – “The Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda, Atharvaveda, phonetics, ritual, grammar, etymology, metrics and astrology.” Jyotisha need not necessarily mean astrology – it could also be astronomy. As a Vedanga, it is astronomy – knowledge of the heavens. All these are aparaa vidya. Why does the rishi say, “All these are lower knowledge?” It is because he explains what the higher knowledge is, and compared to that higher knowledge, all this is lower knowledge. But that does not mean that one can ignore the study of the Upanishads just because they are aparaa vidya! Aparaa vidya is that which leads one to paraa vidya. But while studying, one must remember that it is not just through reading and memorising all the Vedas, that one can know that Supreme Being. The Supreme Being can be known only through understanding and that is what the Upanishad teaches.

Therefore, all these are essential, but they are considered to be lower knowledge in comparison to the higher knowledge, which is the realisation of the Supreme Being. In Bhaja Govindam, Shankaracharya said, “nahi nahi rakshati dukrin karane” – By going into the intricacies of grammar, one cannot see that Supreme Being. He went a step further and called everybody fools – moodah matey. This, the Upanishad has not done yet! It will come later in the Mundaka Upanishad. Then, what is that higher knowledge? It is that by which the Undecaying, the Indestructible is apprehended: atha paraa yayaa tad aksharam adhigamyate. The rishis said everything absolutely clearly. They were not fencesitters. They declared everything in as clear terms as possible. Here, the rishi has described what is aparaa vidya and paraa vidya. After saying that the higher knowledge or paraa vidya is “That by which the Undecaying, the Indestructible is understood or apprehended” he then describes the so-called “qualities” of that Indestructible Supreme Being, Brahman, which has to be apprehended. And the description is: SHLOKA 6 yat tad adreshyam agraahyam agotram avarnam achakshuh shrotram tad apaani paadam nityam vibhum sarvagatam susukshmam tad avyayam yad bhootayonim paripashyanti dheeraah This means, that the higher knowledge by which that Supreme Being is perceived and apprehended, is first described as adreshyam, that which cannot be seen: adreshyam agraahyam agotram avarnam. It is agraahyam – “ungraspable”. One may ask, “If It is ungraspable, then what is the use of studying the Upanishad?” What they mean by “ungraspable” is, that which cannot be grasped by the senses or by the ordinary, rational mind. It cannot be caught through reason, nor can It be grasped by the senses. If It could be grasped by reasoning, then the most

intelligent person would also be “the knower of Brahman” which is not the case generally! In these matters, we are talking of a different dimension altogether and sometimes, two and two can become five! It is agotram, which means, it does not have a particular caste. We can also say “no origin”. That means, “That which does not belong to one particular family or lineage.” It is avarnam, which means “It is without colour.” It is achakshuh shrotram – “It is without sight or hearing. It does not have eyes or ears like ours.” It is apaani paadam – “without hands or feet.” It is “eternal”, nityam, because It is “That which remains always when everything else disappears.” Therefore, one of the most important features of that Supreme Being is that It is nitya – “That which remains forever, permanent”; as opposed to the impermanence of the things that we see around us. Then, “vibhum sarvagatam susukshmam tad avyayam yad bhootayonim paripashyanti dheeraah” – “It is Eternal, All-pervading, Omnipresent, exceedingly Subtle (susukshman)”. “Subtler than the subtlest” is one of the descriptions given in the Upanishad – “That which is so subtle that It cannot be grasped even by the mind.” The Kenopanishad says, “yen manasa na manute yen ahur mano matam” – “That which even the mind cannot grasp, but because of which the mind exists.” “Bhootayonim paripashyanti dheeraah” – “That, the wise perceive as the Source of all beings.” “Wise” meaning “Those who have understood That Supreme Being as the Source of everything in this universe.” All this comes from That Supreme Being. “Bhootayonim” – “Source of all the bhoota (elements).” The world, or the universe, and how it came about are mentioned in the next shloka. It says: SHLOKA 7 yathornanaabhih srijate grihnate cha

yathaa prithivyaam oshadhayas sambhavanti yathaa sataha purushaat keshalomaani tathaaksharaat sambhavateeha vishvam The Upanishad gives the example of a spider, which takes out some material from itself when it builds its web, and then draws it back again. So, “Just as the spider sends forth its cobweb and draws it back; just as herbs grow on this earth…” – The herbs grow naturally; nobody does anything to them – “…just as hair grows on the head and body of a living person, in the same way, from the Imperishable arises this entire universe, naturally.” SHLOKA 8 tapasaa cheeyate brahma tatonnam abhijaayate annaat praano manah satyam lokaah karmasu cha amritam Brahman, the Supreme Being expands, grows. In fact, the root of the word, Brahman, is brih, “to expand”. “That Supreme Being Brahman expands.” How does He expand? By tapasya, “contemplation”. Therefore, it implies that any kind of expansion, any kind of growth, any kind of moving into higher things, can also be attained through tapasya. In the Upanishad, it is described in different ways and one of the descriptions of tapasya is “sacrifice”, which means the capacity to go into hardship and do penance to achieve your aim. Even the expansion of the universe comes through the tapasya or penance or austerities of the Supreme Being. “From that tapasya of the Supreme Being, first comes nourishment” – annam here means “nourishment”. It does not mean just the food that we eat; it means nourishment. “And from there, comes the mind; then come the five elements”, which are mentioned as the pancha bhoota. And then, from the five elements come, “the combination of the five elements, which makes the world, and once the world is created, comes the different rituals that we perform and from there, the resulting immortality.” “Ritual” also means “the practice of living” which itself is a ritual.

SHLOKA 9 yah sarvajnah sarvavid yasya jnaanamayam tapah tasmaad etad brahma naama roopam annam cha jaayate A particular kind of tapasya is described. “He is All-knowing”, who has understood that Supreme, “who is the Brahman”, that Supreme Reality, who is not only All-knowing but also sarvavid (All-wise);whose austerity or tapasya consists of knowledge; jnaanamayam tapah; for whom tapasya is knowledge itself, or, “the understanding of know ledge is his tapasya. From that Brahman, from that Supreme Being is born this Brahma.” This means that from that unconditioned Supreme Being is born this conditioned being called Brahma, who is the creator, who is also mentioned as hiranyagarbha. “Naamaroopam annam cha jaayate” – “And from that is also born name, shape and form and their nourishment.” To put it in a nutshell, from that undifferentiated Supreme Reality come all these different forms with their names and shapes, and also the nourishment that they need. From that undifferentiated Supreme Reality come the differentiated names, the diversity that we see, which have various names and forms, and are nourished by what they need. Now, to look at it in the opposite way: Each thing that we see here in this world, which is nourished, is with naama-rupa and ultimately, when it is free of the difference of name and form, it goes back to the Source, or the undifferentiated Supreme Being. And that is the journey – from diversity to Unity. This is the Upanishadic teaching: to go back from the differences to the Single, to go back from diversity to Unity, to trace back one’s Source and come to understand that one is a “spark” of that Supreme Reality, which the Upanishads call Brahman. This is section I of the Mundaka Upanishad. In the next section of the Mundaka, there is a description of what is known as “ceremonial religion”, which means “rituals”.

Some people who say, “Since we are studying the Upanishads, we do not need to go into all this”, take the Upanishad’s antipathy to rituals to an extreme. This is a totally wrong interpretation of these matters because “ritual” does not mean merely a ceremony. The word “ritual” means “any activity which is repeated regularly.” What the Upanishad is against is that one must not just stick to the skeleton, the shell of the ritual; one must find out what the deep meaning of it is and go into it. Before one touches that meaning, before one becomes free, before one has attained a stage of maturity to understand the Truth, it is sometimes very essential to follow certain rituals, to follow a certain path, because each individual is made differently. One individual in a million may be able to go directly to the Truth, but we cannot imitate. Each person has his or her own pace. In many cases, it is necessary to follow a certain path, certain rituals. If before starting, one says, “Truth is a pathless land”, one will end up pathless! Certain rituals, certain direction, certain attention, a certain path are necessary, before you arrive at that stage of maturity; that will now be discussed in the Mundaka.

Part 1: SECTION 2 In Part I Section II, the rishi describes what is known as “ceremonial religion”. As one proceeds or starts from a point, that aspect of religion called rituals are to be followed by most, so that the attention is fixed on the path. SHLOKA 1 Tad etat satyam mantreshu karmani kavayo yaany apashyams taani tretaayaam bahudhaa santataani taanya acharatha niyatam satyakaamaa esha vah panthaah sukritasya loke

tad etat satyam – “That is the Truth.” This is meant for those who are “lovers of Truth”, whose main desire is for the Truth, whose only priority is to find the Truth – the “Satyakaama”. Normally, our priorities are all mixed up. We get time for everything, but for meditation we do not get time as we do not give it priority. The rishi says, “This is the Truth. The activities, the works that the sages have mentioned in the different hymns of the Vedas – perform them constantly, if you are “lovers of Truth”. You lovers of Truth, perform the actions prescribed by the sages who have understood the Vedas. Continue to perform them until you have found the Truth. This is your path to the world of good deeds. Perform them, and you will reach the path of the Supreme Truth.” The word “ritual” here describes any activity, which is done by one externally, in the external world, and that which is done internally by the one who moves towards the Truth. SHLOKA 2 yathaa lelaayate hy archih samiddhe havyavaahane tad aajyabhaagaavantarenaahutih pratipaadayet shraddhayaahutam Now, the rishi describes the fire-sacrifice, the homa, in which the fire burns. He says, “When the flame moves, after the fire has been kindled, then one should pour, with faith, his oblations of melted butter, between the two portions of the fire.” How does one pour it? Not as a mere ritual but “with faith” saying, “Here, I offer myself into the fire. Here, I sacrifice my all into the fire.” To ask an ordinary person to sacrifice everything to find the Truth is a tall order. He begins, first, by offering oblations into the fire. A person, who is not interested, would rather eat the oblations than offer them! One has to make a start and proceed slowly. One cannot take giant leaps in this field.

SHLOKA 3 yasyaagnihotram adarsham apaurnamaasam achaaturmaasyam anaagrayanam atithivarjitam cha ahutam avaishvadevam avidhinaa hutam aasaptamaams tasya lokaan hinasti “If a person’s fire-sacrifice or agnihotra is not followed by the other rules which are to be followed, like the sacrifice of the new moon, the full moon, chaaturmaasya” – which means the “sacrifice of the four months” and other prescribed rituals – “he will be without guests, without oblations, without the ceremony, to all Gods, or gives offerings contrary to rule; and destroys his worlds till the seventh.” One need not worry about the number “seven” – it means, if one does not follow the rules of practice, laid down by the rishis, to find the Truth, then one “destroys all the seven worlds that are to follow”, which means, one suffers in all the stages of progress towards the Supreme Being. Listen carefully, understand, try to follow what has been prescribed by the rishis. Do not throw everything overboard because you have read the Upanishads! Certain regulations and rules have to be followed to progress. We know what happens when we say, “All this is nonsense”! There is chaos. So, provided you are a “lover of Truth”, follow whatever practices have been prescribed by the teacher depending on what is suitable to you. This can be found only by consulting a person who knows about it. If a great teacher with whom you have contact and dialogue, says, “All this is not necessary for you – this and this is enough”, then, you can follow that. But do not make your own decisions regarding the matter because some rituals may be very useful to you in your progress, on your path. Of course, when you have reached the end of it, you can drop everything. That is what the sanyasin does, when he does the viraja homa and takes sanyasa: he cuts his sacred thread and puts it into the fire. He has no caste after that; he cuts off his tuft to indicate that he has no family. For such a person, there is no need of any ritual. But we are not so: we think we

are free, but, we are free of one set of rituals and caught in another. Rules and regulations are made so that we are caught in something that is useful and will take us further on our path. Then, there is a description of “the seven moving flames of fire”. The rishi, the person who performs the sacrifice, watches the fire and sees different kinds of flames in the homa kunda. The different kinds of flames in the fire-ritual, agnihotra, are described thus: SHLOKA 4 kaalii karalii cha manojavaa cha sulohitaa yaa cha sudhoomravarnaa sphulinginii vishvaroopii cha devii lelaayamaanaa iti sapta jihvaah “There are the seven tongues of fire. The black, the terrific, the swift as mind, the very red, the very smoky-coloured, the spark of the fire, the all-shaped goddess.” Now all of a sudden, after talking about abstractions, we have come to the “all-shaped goddess”; to the “spark of the fire”; to the different forms of the flames: “the black”, “the terrific”, “the swift as mind”, “the red”, and the “the smoky-coloured”. This could be the description of the different kinds of flames in the fire-sacrifice. But, if you go to a teacher who is personally into the practice of a certain marga, he/she will help you to identify all these colours and fires with the different centres of consciousness – the chakras – which also happen to be seven. Such a teacher will tell you how the consciousness or the Energy is worshipped as a goddess – the “all-shaped goddess” – but, we will not go into it now. We will consider this, at the moment, as a description of the “fire of agnihotra” and “the seven kinds of flames”.

SHLOKA 5 eteshu yashcharate bhraajamaaneshu yathaakaalam chaahutay hy aadadaayan tam nayanty etas sooryasya rashmayo yatra devaanaam patir ekodhivaasah “If you perform the works which have been prescribed by the rishis, and, according to their instructions, make offerings at the proper time when these tongues are shining, then these offerings, in the form of the rays of the sun, lead you to the world where that Supreme Being resides.” SHLOKA 6 ehy eheeti tam aahutayas suvarchasah sooryasya rashmibhir yajamaanam vahanti priyaam vaacham abhivadantyorchayantya esha vah punyas sukrito brahmalokah The offerings which you have made, the sacrifices which you have done to attain that abode of the Supreme Being, all that you have given – “Those offerings will come in the form of hosts, and they will receive you, saying, ‘Come, come!’ They will carry the sacrificer by the rays of the sun, honoring him and saluting him with pleasing words, saying, ‘This is the holy World of Brahma, won through good deeds!’” After describing the sacrifices, the agnihotra and so on, the Upanishad makes a subtle shift in the seventh shloka. It says: SHLOKA 7 plavaa hy ete adridhaa yajnaroopaa ashtaadashoktam avaram yeshu karmaa etacchreyo yebhinandanti moodhaah jaraamrityum te punar evaapiyanti

plavaa hy ete adridhaa yajnaroopaa ashtaadashoktama varam yeshu karma – “Unsteady are these boats of the eighteen sacrificial forms, which are said to be inferior karma.” This means that while it is necessary for you to follow a path and do certain rituals which have been prescribed, it could be that what you are performing is “the inferior path”, the lower knowledge. They are called the “eighteen sacrificial forms” because, for the agnihotra, there are sixteen ritviks who sit down for the sacrifice along with the yajamana, the sacrificer, and his wife. For every sacrifice, the wife is necessary to perform, what is known as ashtadashoktam, the “eighteen-fold sacrifice”. But, even that could be “the inferior karma”, because, etacchreyo yehbhinandanti moodhaah jaraamrityum te punar evaapi yanti – “the deluded” – those who are caught in the illusion – “delight in this, which they have done, as leading to good; but fall again into old age and death.” SHLOKA 8 avidyaayaam antare vartamaanaah svayam dheeraah panditam manyamaanaah janghanyamaanaah pariyanti moodaah andhenaiva neeyamaanaa yatha andhaah The Upanishad says about such people, “They abide in the midst of ignorance, wise in their own esteem, thinking themselves to be learned, but they are fools, afflicted with troubles”, because they think that the be-all and end-all of happiness is this world and all that is done is for goodness in this world, for happiness in this world. They do not think of the other. “Such people, abiding in the midst of ignorance, wise in their own esteem” – nobody calls them wise but they think that they are wise – “thinking themselves to be learned” – svayam dheeraah panditam manyamaanaa – “but, they are fools afflicted with troubles, who are not only under illusion themselves, but they also lead others into illusion.” So how do they go about doing that? andhenaiva neeyamaanaa yatha andhaah – “Like the blind leading the blind.” So this expression, “blind

leading the blind”, is, at least, by a conservative estimate, two thousand years old; it is not new! It was not invented by the English dictionary! SHLOKA 9 avidyaayaam bahudhaa vartamaanaa vayam kritaartha ity abhimanyanti baalaah yat karmino na pravedayanti raagaat tenaaturaah ksheenalokaaschyavante These deluded men are called “the immature”. They have not come to the full evolution of their consciousness or their intelligence. “The immature, living in ignorance, think that by performing the rituals, ‘We have achieved our aim; we have accomplished our aim’. They do not understand the Truth because of raaga (attachments). Therefore, they sink down, wretched, when their merits are exhausted.” We need not even think of other worlds; we can see what happens in this world. We are attached to so many things in life. We think we have achieved our happiness by acquiring that which we are attached to. Then what happens after a while? We grow old and we cannot enjoy it anymore, or, just as we are about to enjoy, we may drop dead or that which we are attached to, is taken away from us. So where is the happiness? What happens then? We sink down, feel wretched. This also applies, if you believe in future births, to other worlds, because here, the implication is also that those who perform sacrifices, who think auspiciously, who do good deeds, who help others and so on go to higher worlds. But when the merit is exhausted, they come back again to this world and lead a miserable existence. SHLOKA 10 ishtaapoortam manyamaanaa varishtam naanyacchreyo vedayante pramoodhaah naakasya prishthe te sukritenubhootvemam

lokam heenataram vaa vishanti “These deluded men, regarding sacrifices and works of merit as most important, do not know any other good.” They think that sacrifices and good works are the most important thing – they do not know anything beyond that. “Having enjoyed in heaven, the high place won by good deeds, they enter this world again or may be a still lower one.” It is obvious that the Upanishad and the ancient Vedic philosophy believe in birth after birth, or the transmigration of the soul. Therefore, it says, even if you enjoy the effect of your good deeds in heaven or in some other higher plane, you come back again into this world or perhaps into a still lower world, because you are caught, attached and drawn towards it. Sometimes people ask, “Can human beings be born as animals?” We really cannot tell you clearly whether it is possible or not. But, I can tell you one thing: there are many who are born as human beings but are with animal characteristics. There is a story of the great Saint Nizamudin, who lived in Delhi. He used to go for the Friday prayers with a blind-fold over his eyes. He was once asked, “Why do you wear a blind-fold?” He said, “Does anybody want to try it?” The story says that someone volunteered and tried the blind-fold, looked around and saw that most of the people, who had gathered for worship in the mosque, had animal faces! Some looked like pigs, some like dogs and some like other animals. He said, “What is happening? They are on the outside like humans but inside they are not!” So, “lower birth” and “animal birth” could also mean “animal instincts” and “animal life”. Sometimes you find animals that are as good as humans or even better! The deluded men who regard sacrifice and works of merit as the most important, enjoy for a while and then get back into the same world or perhaps into a lower world – that is about the ordinary sacrificers whose only interest is happiness in this world. If you need happiness in this world, you still need to sacrifice, you have to work hard. If you do not work hard for the exams, you are not going to get good marks. Or, if you want to make money, you have to sacrifice something. Thus, sacrifice is essential.

Till now, the condition of those who sacrifice for material pleasures and happiness was mentioned. The Upanishad never says “Do not do that!” dharma artha kaama and moksha are all legitimate. In the next shloka, the rishi talks about those who perform another kind of sacrifice, who go steadily on to the understanding of the Supreme Truth and eternal happiness. SHLOKA 11 Tapah shraddhe ye hy upavasanty aranye shantaa vidvaamso bhaiksh acharyaam charantah sooryadvaarena te virajaah prayaanti yatraamritah sa purusho hy avyayaatmaa “Those who practice austerity and faith in forests, those tranquil knowers, who live the life of mendicants in forests, depart, free from sin, through the orb of the sun, to where the Immortal, Imperishable Person dwells.” Those who have sacrificed everything else for the understanding of the Supreme Truth, therefore, practice austerity or tapas; they also have shraddha (faith) and they live in forests or in quiet places. They want to find out what the Truth is. Such persons, instead of enjoying for a while the results of their good deeds and then coming back again to a miserable existence, go higher and higher into happiness, until they reach the abode of that Supreme Being, who, by His very essence, is Bliss. There is no more of this “coming and going”. It stops, because their sacrifice is one of austerity and faith. After having said that, the Upanishad describes the Truth, that Supreme Being, who is absolute Bliss, who is free. When That is attained, one is free of all misery and when That is known, “nothing more remains to be known”. How is that Supreme Being to be attained? How does one approach that Supreme Being? It cannot be found out by reading; but as the rishi has said, “through tapasya and through shraddha”. Apart from that, there are

other ways to find out, for which you need a guide. In fact, even to practice ordinary things like yogasanas, it is better to take guidance from a teacher because you may tie yourself in a knot from which you cannot come out! So, a guide is essential. And to approach the Supreme Being is no ordinary thing. It is very subtle. It is the absolute essence of happiness, the essence of life, the true meaning of life, and for attaining That, you need instructions, you need guidance. The next shloka describes how to find the Supreme Being, whom to approach and what to do. SHLOKA 12 pareekshya lokaan karmachitaan braahmano nirvedam aayaan nasty akritah kritena tad vijnaanaartham sa gurum evaabhigacchet samitpaanih shrotriyam brahmanishtam There are some qualifications of an aspirant that are first described; only such an aspirant will start looking for the Truth and for the instructions to find It. The rishi gives the qualifications of an aspirant – the seeker of the Truth – and then, the qualifications of a teacher who is qualified to guide. “The seeker is one who has seen the worlds won by good deeds and also the utter futility and emptiness of the achievements of this world.” He has seen how happiness is such a short-lived experience. How nobody is completely happy, how, in any happiness, there is always some unhappiness hidden, which, at any moment, can show up. Having seen this uncertainty and the futility of finding happiness in the worlds won by karma, by works in this world, the Upanishad says, “Let a brahmana arrive at non-attachment.” A brahmana here means “one who is intent upon knowing the Brahman” – brahma vit brahma aiva bhavati. Seeing the futility of attachment in this world, and understanding that non-attachment is “not being caught by this world”, this state has to awaken in the mind of a seeker, at least, to some extent, if he is going to seriously

enquire into the knowledge of Brahman. The Upanishad will not penetrate, however much we talk, unless and until one understands the impermanence of this world. Somewhere along the line, when man, by his experience, realises the futility of this whole circus that is going on, and sees how people respect you when you are rich and kick you when you are poor; how there is no true love or affection between people and that it is only a question of exploiting each other; seeing all this – the sufferings of this world with just snatches of joy – he arrives at non-attachment. And having understood the impermanence of the world and getting the notion, in the back of his mind, that “there must be some way out of this mess” he or she should approach a teacher as samitpaani or one with the “sacrificial-fuel” in hand. “For the sake of understanding the true knowledge, which leads one to eternal happiness, the student should approach a guru, who should be a shrotriya, or “learned in the scriptures” and a brahmanishta, (established in the Brahman), bringing samit in hand.” Bringing this samit (sacrificial fuel) in hand to the teacher has many meanings: One is that it is a symbol to demonstrate that the student is ready to sacrifice everything for understanding that Truth. If such a student approaches a teacher who is qualified, then the deed is done. If it is a halfhearted attempt, then naturally, it will take time. The other meaning is that by taking the “sacrificial-fuel” to the teacher, the student shows that he is ready to sacrifice even the “sacrificial-fuel” that was given to him when he got married. He is sacrificing everything to the guru. But what kind of guru should he go to? The Upanishad says that the guru must have two qualifications: one is that he is “established in Brahman” or is a brahmanishta, and the other is that he is “learned in the scriptures” or shrotriya. This combination is hard to get. Some people are shrotriya but not brahmanishta. If there is a combination of both in a person, then he is an ideal teacher. The Upanishads and the Vedas are shruti – they are the experiences and the revelations that have come to people who have gone into the Truth. So if one is a shrotriya, and if he has a spiritual experience, he knows where he stands because it has all been done before, it is nothing new. So, when he

reaches a certain stage of spiritual illumination, he knows the points of reference. He knows where he stands. He does not think, “I have attained everything and therefore, throw all the books into the river!” We hear that very often! He knows where he has reached, because, in this particular journey, there are many “stations” – the sufis call them, mukhaam. And each station is blissful and feels wonderful; and, compared to the stage from which you have come, it appears that you have attained everything! But if you are a shrotriya, if you have read the shruti, you will see that these are all different stages to the Highest. So it is a point of reference. Therefore, as Swami Vivekananda used to say that if a person says he has realised the Absolute Truth and at the same time says, “All the scriptures are nonsense” be careful! Take it with a pinch of salt. So go to a teacher who is both a shrotriya and a brahmanishta. But, what is the condition to go to the teacher? That you should be a satyakaama – your desire, your priority is to know the Truth. You are ready to sacrifice everything to understand the Truth and with that intention and onepointedness, you must approach a guru who is a bhramanishta himself, who has knowledge of Brahman, who has realised Brahman, who is also a shrotriya himself. SHLOKA 13 tasmai sa vidvaan upasannaaya samyak prashaanta chittaaya samaanvitaaya yenaaksharam purusham veda satyam provaacha taam tattvato brahmavidyaam “Unto him who has thus approached, in due form, in the right manner possible, whose mind is tranquil, who has attained peace, let the knowing teacher teach Brahma vidya.” Do not go to such a teacher and say, “Hey you! Can you teach me the Truth?” Approach him in due form and with great respect. When the qualified student, whose mind is tranquil and has attained peace,

approaches the “knowing” teacher – not andhaah, “the blind leader” – but the teacher who really knows; let such a teacher teach the very truth about Brahman by which one comes to know the Imperishable Person, who is the Truth. That is Brahma vidya.

Part 2: SECTION 1 SHLOKA 1 tad etat satyam yathaa sudeeptaat paavakaad visphulingaah sahasrashah prabhavante saroopaah tatha aksharaad vividhaah saumya bhaavaah prajaayante tatra chaivaapi yanti What does the teacher say? “This is the Truth: just as sparks come out of the blazing fire by the thousands, even so, many kinds of beings come forth from the Immutable Supreme and then they return to It.” The “sparks” that come out of the “blazing fire” are also only fire – they are part of the fire and cannot be distinguished, as they are the same. Here, “the blazing fire” is equated with the Supreme Being, Brahman, and “the sparks” are equated with the atman, the individual beings, who are in this world. Before the “sparks” return to the “blazing fire”, the interim stage is what we are in now – the return has to take place at some time. But the rishi says, “If you know that one has to ultimately return, why wait? Go back immediately to ‘the blazing fire’! Why do you want to be a mere ‘spark’?” What I want to point out, especially, is the way in which the seeker is addressed by the teacher as saumya, or “beloved one”. The teacher does not say, “You idiot, listen to me!” He says, “O beloved one”, which shows that the connection between the teacher and the student is one of great love and affection. That love and affection comes only through proper understanding. Such a great, spiritual teacher, who is a brahmanishta, is full of compassion in his heart.

That is why, if I am practising what is known as sadhana, which is supposed to take me closer and closer to the Supreme Being, and if, after twenty years of such sadhana, I have various visions but my heart does not melt if I hear someone crying at my door, then there is something totally wrong with my sadhana. I have to go within and try to workout, “What is wrong with me? Where have I gone wrong?” The closer one moves to the Supreme Being the softer the heart becomes, because you are also part of that Supreme Being and you realise that others are also “sparks” of that Supreme Being. So, when someone is hurt, you are hurt. If it does not happen, then there is something terribly wrong. Since great spiritual teachers have deep affection, the student here is called, “O beloved one”, saumya. Then the rishi describes the Supreme Being again in different words. They are only different ways of trying to describe the Indescribable “blazing fire” or the Supreme Being. SHLOKA 2 divyo hy amoortah purushah sa baahyaabhyantaro hy ajah apraano hy amanaah shubhro aksharaat paratah parah “Divine and formless is that Person, that Supreme Being. He is without and within, unborn, without breath, without mind, pure, higher than the highest, and immutable.” If you think of something as the highest, then He is higher than that, which means, the more the individual “spark” of that “blazing fire” begins to reflect on these characteristics of the Supreme Being, slowly and slowly, he moves closer to that Supreme Being. And that Supreme Being is divine. He is within and without. He is “unborn” and “without breath”. The Isha Vasya Upanishad also says the

same thing in different words: Isha vaasyam idam sarvam yat kim cha jagatyaam jagat – “That Supreme Isha pervades everything here: that which moves and that which does not move.” That is also the teaching given here. SHLOKA 3 etasmajjaayate praano manah sarvendriyaani cha kham vaayur jyotir aapah prithivee vishvasya dhaarinee “From Him are born life, mind, all sense organs, akasha, air, light, water and earth, for He is the supporter of all.” Or, it could also be translated as “earth, which is the supporter of all.” Then again, a graphic description is given, of the “Indescribable”. SHLOKA 4 agnir moordhaa chakshushee chandrasooryau dishah shrotre vaag vivritaascha vedaah vaayuh praano hridayam vishvam asya padbhyaam prithivi hy esha sarva bhootaantaraatma “Fire is His head; His eyes are the sun and the moon” – this is a figurative description. Do not think that the rishis were childish enough to think that the Supreme Being had the sun and the moon in the eyes! In fact, the rishis were very scientific because jyotisha is one of the angaas of the Vedas and astronomy was well developed. In the olden days, people thought that art had to imitate nature. So they used to paint beautiful flowers. And the beauty was judged by saying, “Oh, how much like a real flower it looks!” Then came photography and no artist could do as perfect a duplication of nature as photography. Then it

occurred to the artists that art should be more an expression of what our reaction to it is, rather than a duplication and imitation of nature. Then modern art developed, as a movement, starting with Picasso. If you go to Puri, you will see Lord Jagannath, in the temple. There is nothing there except two stumps and round eyes to represent the Lord of the universe, Jagannath. It is one of the earliest abstract representations of “the all-seeing eyes”. It is not childish art but a deliberate attempt. In the same way, the artist’s expression of exaggerated beauty is seen in ancient art – Chola art or Khajuraho and so on – in which all the parts of the human body that are normally associated with rasa, are exaggerated deliberately. It is not as if they did not know how to make the correct figure. It is only through such expression that one can try to grasp what cannot be grasped. Therefore, in the shloka the Supreme Being is symbolically described: “The fire is His head; His eyes are the sun and moon; the regions of space are His ears; His speech are the revealed Vedas; air is His life and His heart and the world. Out of His feet, the earth is born. Indeed, He is the Self of all beings” (sarva bhootaantaraatma). SHLOKA 5 tasmaad agnir samidho yasya sooryah somaat parjanya oshadhayah prithivyaam pumaan retas sinchati yoshitaayaam bahveeh prajaah purushaat samprasootaah “From Him proceeds fire; from Him proceeds the sun, the moon, the rain, and the herbs on the earth; and, nourished by all this, the male-fire pours the seed in the female. Thus all creatures are produced from the Person.” SHLOKA 6 tasmaad richah saama yajoomshi deekshaa

yajnaas cha sarve kratavo dakshinaas cha samvatsaras cha yajamaanas cha lokaah somo yatra pavate yatra sooryah “From Him are born the Rig Veda, the Sama, the Yajus, which means the formulae of sacrifice, the rites of initiation, all the sacrifices, ceremonies and the sacrificial gifts; the year, the sacrificer, the world where the moon purifies, where the sun shines.” This means, there is nothing here in this cosmos, which is not pervaded by that Supreme Being. From the Supreme Being proceeds everything. Therefore, our journey is to trace our Source and go back to that Supreme Being. This is the message. SHLOKA 7 sapta praanaah prabhavanti tasmaat saptaarchishah samidhas sapta homaah sapta ime lokaa yeshu charanti praanaa guhaashayaa nihitaas sapta sapta “From Him comes forth the seven life-breaths, the seven flames, their fuel, the seven oblations, these seven worlds in which move the life-breaths and the seven which dwell in the secret place of the heart.” It says, in the end, sapta ime lokaa yeshu charanti praanaa guhaashayaa nihitaah sapta sapta – “These life-breaths that move in the seven places in the body and the seven worlds dwell in the secret place of the heart.” “Heart” is not yet mentioned but it will be later on. SHLOKA 8 atas samudraa girayas cha sarve asmaat syandante sindhavas sarva roopaah atas cha sarvaa oshadhayo rasas cha

yenaisha bhootais tishthate hy antaraatma “From Him come all the seas and the mountains; from Him flow the rivers of every kind; from Him are all the herbs and their juices, by which, together with the elements, the inner Soul is held.” SHLOKA 9 purusha evedam vishvam karma tapo brahma paraamritam etad yo veda nihitam guhaayaam sovidyaagranthim vikirateeha saumya Again, the teacher calls the seeker, “O beloved one.” “That Supreme Person is all this that we have described – austerity is He and that Brahman beyond death, is also Him. He who knows That, which is seated in the secret place, O beloved one, cuts off ‘the knot of ignorance’ here, on this earth.” That means, if you could only know, if you could only realise that the “spark” in you is really a part of that “blazing fire” from which everything proceeds, which is Absolute and Supreme, then “the knot of ignorance” is cut. No more will you think that you are identified with this little ego and fall repeatedly in this circuit of birth, death and suffering.

Part 2: Section 2 SHLOKA 1 aavih sannihitam guhaacharam naama mahat padam atraitat samarpitam ejat praanan nimishaccha yad etajjaanatha sad asad varenyam param vijnaanaad yad varishhtam prajaanaam

“Manifest, well-fixed, moving, dwelling in the secret place of the heart – such is the great support.” “Support” here means the Supreme Being, Brahman. “In It, is centred all that moves, breathes and winks. Know that as Being, as well as non-being”. It is also “non-being” as It cannot be identified with the limited being. “Know that to be the Supreme Object to be desired. It is the highest, beyond the reach of man’s understanding.” No amount of intellectual arguments, no amount of cerebration can lead one to that Supreme Being. It is beyond the scope of man’s understanding. If It is beyond the scope of man’s understanding, how does one understand It? It will be described later. But let us mention it a little earlier that when the intellect, meaning the mind and the brain, has through constant reasoning and reading of the scriptures, understood that by no amount of grasping and by no amount of effort is it possible for it to attain that dimension of the Supreme Being, then, it gives up and settles down. No more does it move from this direction to that direction or from that direction to this. In that state of absolute stillness, which the bhakta calls “surrender”, “something” takes place. What happens is that when complete stillness is in the mind, the individual ego has also subsided. “Fancy no more unfurls her wings.” There is absolute stillness and in that, is the possibility of the understanding of the Supreme Being – neither through the senses can It be grasped, nor through the mind, which is very limited. And therefore, sadhana is the way by which the instruments of perception, other than those of the senses and the mind, are opened up so that one goes closer to that Supreme Being. You need a microscope to look at even ordinary things like microbes. So too, we need other instruments of perception, faculties – other than the reasoning and the senses – to find that Supreme Being. Therefore, He is mentioned as “ungraspable”. But if It can never be grasped, then there would be no point in our reading or understanding anything. But sadhana is the way by which other instruments of perception are opened.

SHLOKA 2 yad archimad yad anubhyonu cha yasmin lokaa nihitaa lokinas cha tad etad aksharam brahma sa praanas tad vaangmanah tad etat satyam tad amritam tad veddhavyam saumya viddhi “Understand, O beloved disciple, what is luminous, what is subtler than the subtlest, in which are centred all the worlds and those that dwell in them; That is the imperishable Supreme Brahman, That is life, That is speech and That is the mind, That is Truth, That is immortal and That is to be known – nothing else is to be known except That.” SHLOKA 3 dhanur grihitva auapanishadam mahaastram sharam hy upaasaanishitam sandadheeta aayamya tad bhaavagatena chetasaa lakshyam tad evaaksharam saumya viddhi “O beloved disciple, know that That ‘imperishable’ Supreme Being is the target. Use the great weapon, the Upanishads, as the bow and place in it the arrow which is sharpened by meditation, and draw it with the mind that is engaged in the contemplation of that Brahman.” “Take as the bow, the great weapon of the Upanishads, place in it the arrow sharpened by meditation” – not an ordinary arrow but that which is sharpened by upasana, by meditation – “draw it with a mind engaged in contemplation of that Brahman, O beloved one, and know that That ‘imperishable’ Brahman is your target.” SHLOKA 4 pranavo dhanuh sharo hy aatmaa brahma tal lakshyam uchyate

apramattena veddhavyam sharavat tanmayo bhavet The syllable aum is the bow – “Use aum as the bow, one’s inner Self as the arrow and Brahman is the target. It is to be hit without making a mistake. Thus one becomes united with It, as the arrow becomes one with the target.” This is the advice given of how to hit the target of Brahman. Aum is to be used as the bow. Further instruction in this matter, I think, should be taken from a teacher who is a brahmanishta and a shrotriya. SHLOKA 5 yasmin dyauh prithivee cha antariksham otam manah saha praanaischa sarvaih tam evaikam jaanatha atmaanam anyaa vaacho vimunchatha amritasyaisha setuh dyauh is “sky”; prithivee is “earth”, antariksham is “the space between”. “He, in whom the sky, the earth and the inter-space are woven together…” “…and also the mind and all the vital breaths…” The praana is divided into apaana, udaana, samaana, vyaana;different kinds of lifeenergies that have been graded. tamevaikam jaanatha aatmaanam – “That alone is the atman, understand.” anya vaacho vimunchathaa – “Dismiss other utterances.” Forget about other things. Whatever other things I have said, neglect it. Just remember that the sky, the earth and that which is in between, the mind, the prana; they all come from that one Supreme Being. Remember only that. “Dismiss other utterances” for amritasyaisha setuh – “This is the bridge to immortality.” “Remember that and forget about other things.” That means slowly begin to dissociate from your mind the idea that you are the body – “I am

this”, “I am that”, “This is my body”. Slowly, as one begins to dissociate oneself from this and dismisses it as utter nonsense, then “the bridge to immortality” is created and one marches on to that Supreme Being from which the whole circus has begun. Do not ask me why it has begun – I have no idea! SHLOKA 6 araa iva rathanaabhau samhataa yatra naadyah sa eshontas charate bahudhaa jaayamaanah aum ity evam dhyaayatha aatmaanam svasti vah paaraaya tamasah parastaat “Where the arteries of the body are brought together like the spokes in the centre of a wheel…” “Arteries” need not necessarily mean the physical arteries – it could also mean all the pathways through which energy travels. Just as in the wheel, the center is the point where all the spokes are brought together, so too, in the body, the arteries are brought together in the centre, and “… within that Centre is the Self. Meditate on that aum as Self.” Then the prayer is, “May you be successful in crossing over to the further shore beyond darkness.” That means, In the hridaya or the Centre of one’s being, which is like the centre of a wheel, where all the spokes meet, resides that Supreme Being. Meditate on that Supreme Being as the Self, as aum. Previously, aum was mentioned as being used to reach the target. Here, the target is shown – it is in “the inner heart.” It need not necessarily mean the physical heart; it could mean the Centre of our being. Whenever you say “me”, you point towards your heart. So, fix your attention there at that Centre, from which everything proceeds and where everything goes back. Consider yourself as aum and meditate on that aum as self, so that you move far from darkness. SHLOKA 7 yah sarvajnah sarvavid yasyaisha mahimaa bhuvi

divye brahmapure hy esha vyomny aatma pratishtitah “He, who is all-knowing; He, who is all-wise; to whom belongs this greatness of the earth, sitting in the divine city of Brahmaa, in the ether of the heart, is that Self established.” The all-knowing, all-wise Brahman, because of whom the entire glory of the earth is, resides in the divine city of the heart. He is Self-established. Nobody needs to establish Him. He is swayambhu and also swayam pratishtita. And, as the rishi said earlier, “Meditate on that Being as aum.” The Upanishad goes on describing this in different ways, looking at it from different angles. SHLOKA 8 manomayah praana shareera netaa pratishtitonne hridayam sannidhaaya tad vijinaanena paripashyanti dheeraah aanandaroopam amritam yad vibhaati manomayah praana shareera netaa – “He consists of the mind; He is the one who leads; who is the leader of life and body…” pratishthita anne – “…and as the nourisher of everything, he sits as food…” “He consists of the mind; He is the one who leads; who is the leader of life and body and is seated as food.” Now annam need not necessarily mean the food that we eat. It means “the nourisher”. He is the nourisher of the entire system. And what does He do? “He sits, controlling the heart” – hridayam sannidhaaya. Till now, hridaya had not been mentioned; only terms like “center”, “inner”, “secret” were used. Only now, for the first time, “heart”, hridayam, is mentioned.

hridayam sannidhaaya tadvijnaanena paripashyanti dheerah aanandaroopam amritam yadvibhaati When He withdraws, we are dead. This not only applies to the microcosm which is the body; it also applies to the macrocosm, the cosmos. He is in the heart of the cosmos, the Centre of the cosmos. He is in the microcosm, if you consider the human body as a small world, with the arteries and veins like rivers; and the bones as the mountains, as it was described earlier. There, He sits in the hridaya sthana as the Supreme Being, nourishing and controlling everything. When He is seen, He is first to be seen “within” and then He is seen “without”. You cannot first see Him “without” – you can only find Him “within” first. And when He is seen “within”, He is also seen “without”. That is why I have mentioned the microcosm and the macrocosm. SHLOKA 9 bhidyate hridayagranthih chidyante sarvasamshayaah ksheeyante chaasya karmaani tasmin drishte paraavare What happens when the Supreme Being is seen in the lower and the higher? bhidyate hridayagranthih chidyante sarvasamshayaah – “the knot of ignorance is cut asunder.” No more can such a Being be conditioned to think, “This is mine.” His world has expanded. He is not anymore revolving around just himself. There are people, who talk very high philosophy, but try taking a small thing away from them and for ten days, they are worried about it. “How I loved my pen. Who has taken it? Where is it gone?” This is because the idea of possession has not gone. Such a person’s philosophy is not experiential but is theoretical. Here we are talking about a Being who has understood the Reality seated in the heart; who has understood that it is “here” and also “there”. For such a person, the “knot of ignorance”, which means “that which

conditions one and says, this is mine and that is yours”, is cut asunder. Then all the doubts are dispelled. Doubts generally arise because I am conditioned to think that I am a separate entity from the other. “I must get this and if I do not get this, then …”, “Maybe he is telling the truth, maybe not…” – all these doubts cease because one is no more functioning in the field of thought, in the field of the brain. Once the “knot of ignorance” has been cut asunder, one has suddenly become free. All doubts are dispelled and his deeds terminate. He does not have to do anything to see that Supreme Being. He has realised that he is himself, in essence, That Supreme Being – the “higher”, as well as the “lower”. SHLOKA 10 hiranmaye pare koshe virajam brahma nishkalam tacchubhram jyotishaam jyotih tad yad aatmavido viduh “In the highest golden sheath is Brahman without stain, without parts, pure, the light of lights – that is what the knowers of the Self discover.” What do the knowers of the Self discover? hiranmaye pare koshe virajam brahma nishkalam – “In that golden sheath is the Brahman, without stain and also without parts.” ”In the highest golden sheath” – this is a way of expressing that It is the highest because gold has always been regarded as the most precious of metals. It is “with no parts” – there is no diversity; thus It is one absolute unity. And it is that Supreme Being without any kalanka, “without any stain” – nishkalam (pure). It is the “light of lights”, jyotishaam jyotih, brighter than any light that you can conceive of. “That is what the knowers of the Self know” – tad yad aatmavido viduh. They see It as shining brighter than the brightest in the hridaya, “heart”. SHLOKA 11

na tatra sooryo bhaati na chandrataarakam nemaa vidyuto bhaanti kutoyam agnih tam eva bhaantam anubhaati sarvam tasya bhaasaa sarvam idam vibhaati “Where the sun does not shine” – There is no need for sunlight. This “light” is not the light that we know of. This is the “inner light”, “the light of inner effulgence” – bhaati. So there is no need of the sun to light That. In fact, the sun derives its capacity for lighting from that Supreme Self. So the sun shines not there. It does not mean that we enter some dark cave where Brahman sits. “The lightning also does not shine there” – nemaa vidyuto bhaanti. If all that does not shine there, the rishi asks, kutoyam agnih, “How will the fire – agni – light?” That means that there is no fire there to light It as It is not a material object. It is not that which is illumined by the material sun, or that which is cooled by the material moon, or that which is lit up by the stars, like the night skies, nor is It that which needs fire, to be visible. tam eva bhaantam anubhaati sarvam – “Everything shines only after that primeval ‘light’.” That “light” shines and due to that everything else also shines. It is not as if you can find It with a torch – It is the “battery” that lights the torch itself. It is like the “eye” that sees everything. The eye cannot see itself but that does not disprove its existence because without it, we cannot see anything else. tasya bhaasaa sarvam idam vibhaati – “His shining light illumines all this world.” All that shines here shines because of His shining – let us put it that way. When I was a young boy, I used to go to a Christian missionary school. I read the Old Testament a couple of times and I found a very peculiar statement, which used to worry me; but I believed in it, of course. It said, “In the beginning, God said, ‘Let there be light’, and there was

light.” And after a long time, God created the heaven and the earth and then he made the sun and the stars. I used to wonder how there could be light when the sun and the stars had not yet been created! That which was mentioned as the “light” there, perhaps, was not the light of the sun, but the “spiritual light” or “the effulgent light”. God said, “Let there be light and there was light”, is a very cryptic yet simple way of putting it. There is no other way in which you can describe It. In fact, there are many parallels: St. John, for instance says, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” You can find, roughly, the same statement in the RigVeda: prajapati vai idam agre asit tasya vaak divitya asit vaak vai parabrahma “In the beginning was Prajapati, the Brahma; from Him proceeded the Word and that Word itself is that Supreme Reality.” In the beginning was the Word, the pranava, “the original sound”. Therefore, to get to that Supreme Being, it is also possible to proceed through the pranava, because that is the first sound that has come out of It. “Where the sun shines not, nor the moon, nor the stars, nor the lightning, nor fire – but everything shines only after that primeval Light. His Light illumines this entire world.” SHLOKA 12 brahmaivedam amritam purastaad brahma paschaat brahma dakshinataschottarena adhaschordhvam cha prasritam brahmaivedam vishvamidam varishhtam “That Supreme Being, Brahman, is verily this immortal Being, Brahman. In front is Brahman, behind is Brahman, to the right and to the

left. It spreads forth below and above. Brahman indeed is this universe.” That means, wherever you look you can only see Brahman. In fact, the Chaandogya Upanishad says, sarvam kalvidam brahma – “All this is the Supreme Being.” But the way we look at it, we think that it is not. “Brahman indeed is this universe” – bramaivedam vishvam idam varishtham. It is the greatest. There is nothing greater than that. That Supreme Being is this Brahman and this, what we see, is also that Brahman. There is no way that Brahman can be separated and it is that highest Brahman, wherever we look. Therefore, you are free to find your own definition for It – call It, “God”. But then, if that is the Supreme, all-pervading God, It has to be here, there and everywhere! This is one way of saying, “It is up, down, below, on all sides – surrounding everything!” There is no place where you can look and you cannot see the Supreme Being. I am reminded of an old story of how Guru Nanak was once sleeping at a place with his feet towards the direction where people usually bowed down and prayed to God. Someone came to him and said, “Please do not put your feet on that side. That is where we worship the Lord.” So Guru Nanak asked him, “Look, can you show me one direction where God is not? Just one direction – so that I can put my feet there! I have to sleep and I have to put my feet somewhere. Since you say, I will put them in the other direction. But, do not forget that God is also out there! He is not only in this direction!” Wise men may call It by different names, different directions. But the Truth Supreme is One – ekam sat vipra bahudaa vadanti. That Brahman is everywhere. It is the greatest.

Part 3: SECTION 1 In Section 1 of the third mandala of the Mundaka, there is a beautiful description of two birds that sit on a tree: One bird eats the sweet fruit and enjoys it and the other looks on at the bird that is eating and enjoying. So,

think of two beautiful birds sitting, on the same branch of a tree – one is eating the fruit and the other is just watching, without eating. It is a description of beauty and also a wonderful example because the rishi makes a comparison between the bird who is eating and the person who is immersed in grief, who is deluded by his sorrows. When he sees the other, who is sitting quietly, without experiencing these things, he becomes free from sorrow! We will not go into it now. I am only giving the example. Make what you will of it! This is the beauty of the Upanishad. One would think that the Upanishad is discussing the highest metaphysical truths – but then, one finds it coming down to such a simple and practical example that what seems like the flight of metaphysical fancy, suddenly comes down to something we can understand and grasp. The Upanishads are excellent writings. But they took on the written form only much later. In fact, the Upanishads first saw the light of the world outside India because of Dara Shikoh, one of the brothers of Aurangzeb, who was a great Krishna bhakta. He translated the principal Upanishads into Persian and Arabic for the first time, sometime around 1600. That was the time when the Arabs traveled a lot and they carried the Upanishadic translations with them; at least the sufis did (those who delved into the inner understanding of Islam). And, it went to Greece or Yunaan; in Arabic, Greece is called Yunaan. That is why Arabic medicine is called Yunaani medicine. As the Arabs travelled extensively, they took something from here and put it there; they brought something from there and put it here. Then in Greek, Upanishad was translated as “Upanikhat” roughly around 1760. It was when it was translated into Greek that the world began to understand what wonderful teachings these were, so ancient and yet so fresh, applicable to any time, to anybody! In fact, the first English translation of the Upanishad came very late – sometime in the 1800’s. The first person to translate the Upanishad into English was Raja Ram Mohan Roy. Max Muller translated it after him and then came various others like Sir Monur Williams, who compiled a Sanskrit-English dictionary. So the whole thing went to the West and when

it went to the West, we woke up and said, “Ah! What wonderful teaching!” Till then, we had little idea about it! Of course, those who knew did know. There is an interesting little incident from Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa’s life. One day, a man came to him and said, “The Bhagavad Gita is a beautiful scripture – it has to be read!” Ramakrishna turned to another person near him and said, “I have been telling this gentleman for the past one year, to read the Gita. Today, some Englishman must have told him the same. So he says, ‘It’s a wonderful book’!” These things happen. Swami Vivekananda walked around this country with barely any food to eat, in rags. There was hardly anybody who listened to him in those days. When he went West, they recognised him and then he was recognised here! There is a beautiful address recorded when he reached Calcutta and the entire public of Calcutta went to receive him. He reprimanded them saying, “What were you all doing when I was walking around here?” There is a story of a sufi teacher who had a disciple, who, for twentyfive years, wandered around with him. The disciple was quite dejected as he had not achieved that supreme peace which everybody seeks. One day, while they were going for a walk, he asked the master, “Sir, I have been with you for twenty-five years now. Here and there I have experienced certain things – but, where is the abiding peace and the merging with the Supreme Being, which you speak of?” The master kept quiet, because sometimes it is wiser to keep quiet than to talk. He then said, “Come on, walk with me!” They went to a riverbank and the master walked into the river and the disciple followed him. They went almost neck deep. When the disciple was beginning to wonder what was going to happen, the master caught his head and pushed it under the water and held down there. The disciple struggled with all his might. But the master was very strong and he continued to hold him down. The disciple, in his last moments, thought, “What kind of a master is this? You ask him a serious question and he is trying to drown you!” When he could no longer struggle for that last gasp of breath, the master let go! So out came his head! And then they walked out. The disciple asked, “Sir, what was this that you were doing to me?”

The master said, “When your head was inside the water, at that last minute before I let go, how much did you yearn for a single whiff of oxygen, fresh air?” The disciple said, “Sir, with all my life!” The master said, “When your desire for the Supreme Being would become as intense, then the Supreme Being would have been found already!” Often, our aspirations are not so keen and so we try to invent various excuses – there is nothing wrong in that! If we could at least admit it, it is okay. We need not all suddenly become satyakaama! What we normally do is to get a little bit of satisfaction here, a little bit there. We want to have everything, and religion too, like a rose, is worn in the lapel. If we are happy, that is fine – it is better than nothing at all! But, when the urge to know the Supreme becomes very serious, when that becomes the priority, the path opens up! ***** This Upanishad is indeed wonderful! Here is the description of two birds sitting on a tree. It talks of the sublime and suddenly comes down to mundane things, which we see and understand. SHLOKA 1 dvaa suparnaa sayujaa sakhaayaa samaanam vriksham parishasvajaate tayor anyah pippalam svaadv atty anashnann anyo abhichaakashiiti “There are two birds – companions, always together. They do not go separately.” tayor anyah pippalam svaadv atty – “Of these two, one eats the sweet fruit…” pippalam means “sweet fruit”, not a peepul tree or a peepul fruit.

“…the other looks on, without eating.” There is a great deal of depth in this. Basically, it means that the atman, or the Self, is the Witness to everything that is happening; all the activities, actions and states of consciousness of the mind. The mind, the ego enjoys; and since it enjoys, it also suffers. There is no enjoyment without some degree of suffering in it. If you want to get any enjoyment, you have to work hard. Working hard is a suffering. You work hard because you want to enjoy. That working hard is a fact, but the hardness is forgotten as the mind is fixed on the aim of attaining joy. The ego, which is one bird, eats and enjoys and also suffers. The atman, the Self, which is the other bird, sitting on the same branch, is the one that witnesses all this. It is linked to that mind, but It neither eats nor suffers but It enjoys all that is happening by just watching the enjoyment. And that atman is “a spark” from “the blazing fire,” which is the paramaatman, the Supreme Being. There is a further description: SHLOKA 2 samaane vrikshe purusho nimagno aneeshayaa shochati muhyamaanah jushtam yadaa pashyaty anyam eesham asya mahimaanam iti veetashokah “On the same tree, a person, a purusha, immersed in sorrow and deluded, grieves on account of his helplessness, but when he sees the other bird, the worshipful Lord and His greatness, he becomes free from sorrow!” According to the Upanishad, the sorrow of birth and death, the sorrow and the misery of the external world are felt only as long as one is identified with the ego. The sorrow ends the moment one realises that one is the other bird, really speaking, which is the Witness of all that is happening, which is a “spark” of the Supreme Being. We will not get into the argument now

whether it is “a spark” or “the whole”. Let us say, “spark” – at least qualitatively, it is the same. So when that identification is gained, then all this misery vanishes because one knows that one is not the bird which is eating, but the bird that is watching. There is another interpretation for this. On the same tree, sit the two birds; one is eating the fruit and the other is not. Actually, if one could identify oneself with that Supreme Being, one can eat and still remain without being affected by the sorrows, which means that one realises that the eating is as imaginary as a dream. When you are in a dream-state, if there is a tiger running behind you, you run with all your might because you do not know when the tiger is going to pounce on you. In fact, it is so real, that even when you wake up, you are still sweating and feel palpitation of the heart. After you wake up, you say, “Oh! It was a dream!” and you realise that there was no real tiger. In the same way, in the waking-state, the identification is wrong. It is not the actual person, but the identification. As long as one is identified with the bird that is eating, then there is all the misery and the suffering, and also the enjoyment within. But when one wakes up from the dream, the identification itself is lost. One realises that there is no such bird that was eating – there is only one bird sitting and watching; although, from the relative point of view there are two birds. When one realises one’s true identity as a “spark” of the Divine, as opposed to the limited ego which enjoys and suffers, then one becomes “free from sorrow” – veetashokah. There is no more shoka for such a person; there is no more sorrow. SHLOKA 3 yadaa pashyah pashyate rukmavarnam kartaaram eesham purusham brahmayonim tadaa vidvaan punyapaape vidhooya niranjanah paramam saamyam upaiti

“When the seer sees that golden, shining, effulgent Supreme Being” – who is the Witness of all the activities that go on, but is not affected by the activities – “who is also the Source of everything, including Brahma, the creator, of golden hue” – then, being the Knower and not the known, shaking off good and evil and free from any kind of stain, he attains supreme equality with the Lord. That means, when the true identity of being that “spark” of the Supreme Being is discovered and one attains that supreme state, when one is no longer identified with the temporary ego, then one becomes free from stain, free from good and evil. “Free from good and evil” needs some explanation. “Free from good and evil” means one is no longer being identified with the ego. It is the ego which has good and evil. That Supreme Being, that “spark” of the Divine, is equally present in the good as well as the evil; but to find It, you have to first shift from evil to good. Once found, there is no difference between good and evil for the one who has found It. But, for the one who has not found It and is still trying to find It, there is still the differentiation between good and evil. One cannot dump everything all at once and say, “I’ll do what I like; there is no good or evil – I am the Supreme Being!” It could be dangerous! One of the reasons why the Upanishads were not discussed in public was because they could very easily be misconstrued and misinterpreted and used as an argument for living as one likes: “There is no good, no evil – so what?” The people who ask us to do sadhana are not fools! One can approach satva only by first shifting from tamoguna to rajoguna and then to satvaguna. You cannot remain in tamoguna and say, “I am free.” Only when one has reached the satvikguna can one become gunaateeta. You cannot suddenly jump from tamoguna and become free from all gunas! SHLOKA 4 praano hy esha yah sarvabhootair vibhaati vijaanan vidvaan bhavate naativaadee aatma kreeda aatmaratih kriyaavaan

esha brahma vidaam varishthah praano hy esha yah sarvabhootaamvibhaati – “Truly, it is the Light that shines forth in all beings.” It is very beautifully put. No being can be removed from the Light that shines forth. From the point of view of one who has reached the highest Reality, there is no thing or person who can be called, “bad”. vijaanan vidvaan bhavate naativaadee – “Knowing this, the wise man does not talk of anything else.” The “wise man” – the vidvaan – who has understood that Brahman, never says something is “bad” or “evil” because he sees it is the same Light that shines forth in all beings. He does not see what they are doing. He sees only that Light which shines forth in all beings. Therefore, he does not talk about anything else. When he sees a person, he does not say, “He is a horrible person.” He says, “He is one of the ‘sparks’ of that ‘light.’ It is veiled for the time being but it will be unveiled, eventually.” aatmakreeda aatmaratihkriyavaan esha brahmavidaam varishthah – “Sporting in the Self, enjoying the bliss of the inner Self, he works. He is great among the knowers of the Brahman.” Knowing this and sporting in the effulgence and unlimited bliss of the inner Self, delighting in the Self, he works. In this sentence is the word, kriyaavaan, “doing work”. This is to prove that such a person, who is established in the Supreme Being, who is enjoying the bliss of the Supreme Being, does not shut himself up in a room. He works; he is a kriyaavaan. How does he work? He works without any selfish motive, and working without any selfish motive, he has tremendous energies generated because the energies are not dissipated by success, failure, depression, exultation and so on. In that tranquility, the access to the Supreme Energy is tremendous. Great people and saints like Shankaracharya, Madhvacharya and Swami Vivekananda, in the recent past, have done tremendous work in a few years of their lives, which a hundred people cannot do in a hundred years. You sometimes wonder how, in their short span of life, they could have done all those things that they did. But they worked, not for themselves, but for a certain cause. They worked with the understanding

that praano hy esha yah sarva bhootaam – “That all beings are part of that Supreme praanah, that Energy.” The Upanishad says, such a person is a kriyaavaan. He is not a man who has stopped all actions. On the other hand, he is full of action. But that action is a different kind of action. The Ishaavaasya Upanishad makes a statement: kurvann eveha karmaani jijivishec chatam samaah – “You can do your karmas for a hundred years…” evam tyayi nanyatheto asti – “that is the only way you can exist…” na karma lipyate nare – “without allowing the impurities of the stains of karma to touch you.” You can perform your karmas for a hundred years and yet be free. How? If you would only understand what we said earlier that is the shloka with which the Ishaavasya Upanishad begins: ishaa vaasyam idam sarvam yat kincha jagatyaam jagat tena tyaktena bhunjeetha maa gridhah kasya svid dhanam Here too, karma is mentioned. The Upanishad does not say, “Do not do any karma.” It says, “If you live with the understanding that ishaa vaasyam idam sarvam”, that Supreme Being pervades everything here; just as it is said in this Upanishad that, praano hy esha yah sarva bhootair vibhaati (That praana, that Life-energy pervades everything here), then one can “Let go and rejoice!” – tena tyaktena bhunjiitha. Normally we associate enjoyment with acquiring, hanging on to, grasping. Here is an Upanishad which says, “Let go and rejoice!” because everything is that Supreme Being and you are part of that Supreme Being. Therefore, all this is immersed in eternal joy!

If you live like that, kurvann eveha karmaani jijivishec chatam samaah – “You can work for one hundred years without the stain of karma sticking on you.” It is the same as that is said here. The one who works with the understanding that the Supreme Being is his true essence, esha brahmavidaam varishthah – “Such a one is the greatest of the knowers of Brahman.” SHLOKA 5 satyena labhyas tapasaa hy esha aatmaa samyagjnaanena brahmacharyena nityam antahshareere jyotirmayo hi shubhro yam pashyanti yatayah ksheenadoshaah How does one attain that Being which is, by nature Light, which is within the body? You can attain It by satya tapasya brahmacharya samyagjnaana – “It can be attained by truth, austerity and sacrifice, chastity, right knowledge.” This Supreme Self within the body, the Supreme Being which lives within the body, which is of the nature of Light, which is pure, is attained by “truth”. Working towards It, not worrying about the consequences is “austerity”. “Austerity” need not necessarily mean to have only one loincloth. It means, working towards that Supreme Being, no matter what the consequences. It can be attained through “right knowledge” and with the constant practice of “chastity”. Now, “chastity” means “chastity in thought, word and deed”. “Chastity” means no falsehood of any kind. Brahmacharya means those activities that take you towards Brahman. It also includes control of the sense organs of course; otherwise, the sense organs will run away with you! What it means is that you should be in control of your sense organs, not that the sense organs control you.

If these four are followed, says the Upanishad, then that Supreme Being can be attained. The great ascetics, the great yogis, the great meditators, with all their imperfections gone by constantly working towards It, behold the Supreme Being, who is, after all, our own inner Self that lives within the body. Now we come to something, a part of which has been framed and hung in all our government offices and administrative power centres. SHLOKA 6 satyameva jayate naanritam satyena panthaa vitato devayaanah yenaakramanty arishayo hy aaptakaamaa yatra tat satyasya paramam nidhaanam satyameva jayate naanritam – “Truth alone wins, not untruth.” satyena panthaa vitato devayaanah – “By truth is laid out the path leading to the Gods.” yenaakramanty arishayo hy aaptakaamaa yatra tat satyasya paramam nidhaanam – “...on which the rishis, the great sages who have their desires fulfilled, travel, to the supreme abode of Truth.” One must note: “Truth alone conquers, not untruth. This alone is the path, which leads one to that abode of the Supreme, on which the rishis have traveled.” What kind of rishis? Those rishis, who have had their desires fulfilled, travel on the path. There are two meanings to this: One is that when one reaches there, all one’s desires are fulfilled because, after all, one seeks happiness and there, one comes to that which is the Essence of all happiness. The other meaning is that unless one’s ordinary desires are fulfilled to some extent, one finds it

difficult to travel along the path because, while one is traveling, these little desires hinder one from moving forward. That is why in the normal course of things, it is better for a person to go from the stage of a student to that of a family man and then go to sanyasa, rather than head straight to sanyasa. It is possible, perhaps, for one in a million, but not generally. If these little desires are fulfilled, one may begin to see the futility of fulfilling them; that there is nothing much – even the donkeys fulfil some of these basic desires! Seeing that, and “letting go” of it, one goes further up. One travels on the path and reaches that Supreme Abode, “not through untruth, but by truth” – satyemeva jayate naanritam. SHLOKA 7 brihaccha tad divyam achintyaroopam sookshmaaccha tat sookshmataram vibhaati dooraat sudoore tad ihaantike cha pashyatsv ihaiva nihitam guhaayaam “The Supreme Being is vast, divine, of unthinkable form…” – no amount of our thinking can describe that Supreme Being. sookshmaaccha tat sookshmataram – “It is subtler than the subtlest…” vibhaati – “It shines forth…” How does it shine forth? dooraat sudoore tad ihaantika – “Farther than the far, yet near at hand, It shines forth.” We think that It is far, yet, It is near, which means that It is all-pervading. It can be here, It can be there, at the same time. And where does It sit? “It sits in the secret place, as seen by the intelligence.” Those who have understood It, can see that It resides “in the secret place”, very much in the heart. You do not have to search for It anywhere else.

There is another religious book in which this is described as, “That Supreme Lord is nearer to you than your own jugular vein!” It has been described as “vast, unthinkable” and so on. We would wonder if we can ever find It? They say, “Do not search outside; It is right here inside!” Kabir has said moko kahan dhundhe re bande mai toh tere paas hun. “Where are you searching for me, my dear? I am right here before you, in you, near you.” SHLOKA 8 nachaksushaa grihyate naapi vaachaa naanyair devaistapasaa karmanaa vaa jnaana prasaadena vishuddhasattvas tatas tu tam pashyate nishkalam dhyaayamaanah “He is not grasped by the eye, nor by speech, nor by other sense organs, nor by austerity, nor by work” – none of these things can go near that Supreme Being. When one’s nature is purified by the light of knowledge, then He is seen in meditation. When the mind has become purified, when the nature has become purified, then He is seen – not through austerity, not through rituals – all these are necessary to purify the nature. If one’s nature is not getting purified, then they are futile, because unless the mind is clear and pure and stainless, He cannot be seen. In the New Testament, there is a lovely saying in the ‘Sermon on the Mount’: “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” So that is what is essential. However much knowledge we have, it is not enough; purity of heart is essential to see Him. SHLOKA 9 eshonur aatmaa chetasaa veditavyo yasmin praanah panchadhaa samvivesha praanaischittam sarvamotam prajaanaam yasmin vishuddhe vibhavaty esha aatma

“That subtle Self, that sookshma Self, is to be known by the quiet mind in which the senses, in five different forms, are centred.” That Self is to be known or understood by the mind, from which all the five senses derive their nourishment. In fact, the senses are moving towards enjoyment. There is no sense that does not move towards enjoyment. This search for happiness of the senses is really a search for the Source from which they have started. At the back of the mind, the mind knows that somewhere, there is happiness, which is permanent. But it searches for it in the wrong direction, through the senses. The moment it realises that there is very limited happiness that can be derived by the senses, it moves back and gets to the Source from where it started, which is inside. And then, it experiences bliss. Man’s entire thought is pervaded by the Self. “When thought is purified, the Self shines forth.” So the mind cannot find the Supreme Being basically because it is always engaged in the satisfaction of the senses. The moment it realises the futility of it, then it quietens down. No more does it try to satisfy itself through the senses. When the mind becomes utterly quiet and still, when there is “purification of thought”; then the “Self shines forth” not before that! SHLOKA 10 yam yam lokam manasaa samvibhaati vishuddhasattvah kaamayate yaamscha kaamaan tam tam lokam jaayate taamscha kaamaams tasmaad aatmajnam hy archayed bhootikaamah “Whatever world a man with purified nature desires, that he attains. Therefore, let him who desires prosperity, worship the knower of the Self.” We were talking about the Self and now, we also talk about “the knower of the Self”. What a man of purified nature thinks of, in his mind, that he acquires. That is because his mind, which is purified, is not agitated by the “happenings” in the world around him. It remains calm and tranquil,

free from agitation and therefore, free from dissipation of energy that normally takes place with a disturbed mind. His energies are all gathered and are complete and concentrated. When such a person fixes his mind on doing something, he definitely achieves it, because it is for the good of the world – it cannot be for himself. If a person, who has sworn to tell the truth even at the cost of his life, practices satyameva jayate, then satyam really wins and conquers untruth. Even if, by mistake, he utters something wrong, that will also turn into the truth! In the same way, when a man of purified nature, who remains calm, collected and tranquil and does not let his senses agitate him, fixes his mind on something, he definitely attains it. So the rishi says, “Therefore, if you desire prosperity, worship the knower of the Self.” Now “prosperity” here need not mean material prosperity alone. Anyone who desires prosperity and cannot worship that Supreme Being, must at least worship “the knower of the Self”. By worshipping and understanding or living with “the knower of the Self”, you will also attain that calmness and tranquility of mind by which you will also be able to attain your desire. But, by then, by the end of the day, living with such a person, your only desire will be to attain moksha; because you will see how happy this person is, not bothered about anything else. So, why go for any thing else?

Part 3: SECTION 2 SHLOKA 1 sa vedaitat paramam brahma dhaama yatra vishvam nihitam bhaati shubhram upaasate purusham ye hy akaamaas te shukram etad ativartanti dheeraah “He who knows that Supreme Abode of Brahman, wherein the world shines brightly, and when one is established there, the world shines brightly.”

No more is the world seen as darkness, no more is the world seen as full of misery. SHLOKA 2 kaamaan yah kaamayate manyamaanah sa kaamabhir jaayate tatra tatra paryaapta kaamasya kritaatmanas tu ihaiva sarve pravileeyanti kaamaah “He who entertains desires, thinking of them all the time, is born here on account of his desires.” If I desire something with my entire mind and I cannot attain it in this life, then, according to the Upanishadic or Vedic theory, I will attain it in some other life – in the next, perhaps. “But in the case of a wise man whose desires have ended, who has realised the Self, all desires vanish right here, in this life.” Desires are entertained in the mind. Thus, to control the mind is the first step. It is easier said than done! Arjuna tells Krishna, in the Gita, “Krishna, my mind is very difficult to control. It is stronger than the wind. I try my best, but very often, doubts trouble me. What will happen to such a person like me, who has left the shore of this world and has not yet reached the other shore? I am in-between!” This is the state of yoga brashta or “fallen from yoga”. Krishna assures Arjuna that whatever one builds up spiritually in this life, will be counted from where one has left off, in the next. We do not have to go back to square one! Krishna says there is a possibility of two kinds of birth that one may take, which will give a good start: one may be born either in a very affluent and good family or in a family of yogis. One may be born in an affluent and good-natured family, so that very soon in life, one not only sees all the desires fulfilled but also sees the futility of fulfilling them and so gives them up and moves towards the path. Or one is born in a family of pure yogis, who are not bothered about their material welfare at all, so that from childhood, one is turned in that direction. The latter is rare.

So, he who has desires is born here on account of his desires. But the one who has his desires fully satisfied realises that all joys lie in understanding the Supreme Being – for such a perfected soul, all desires vanish right here on earth! He does not have to come back again and again. SHLOKA 3 naayam aatmaa pravachanena labhyo na medhayaa na bahunaa shrutena yam evaisha vrinute tena labhyas tasyaisha aatmaa vivrinute tanoom svaam naayamaatmaa pravachanena labhyo na medhayaa na bahunaa shrutena – “This atma, this Supreme Brahman cannot be attained by instructions, nor by intellectual power nor through much hearing.” All these are important but you cannot achieve that Supreme Being by any of these ways. Then how does one attain Him? yamevaisha vrinute tena labhyastasyaisha aatmaa vivrinute tanum svaam – “He is to be attained by the one who is chosen by the Self! To such a one, the Self reveals His own nature.” That means, do not think that you can achieve the Supreme Self by gate-crashing the Supreme Self. First, realise your limits, realise the limitations of your intellectual powers. You cannot find It through instructions, through pravachana. You cannot understand It by your intelligence. If you are proud of your intelligence and think you can understand the Supreme Being by sitting down and working on your computer, no, you cannot! Nor can you find It through much hearing. If you have heard the Upanishads a thousand times, you may not still have understood the Supreme Being. Then, who can know Him? “He is understood by him who is chosen by the Self.” One interpretation to this is that all sadhana and all effort towards the understanding of the Supreme Being, is to the extent of purifying the mind, clearing all the obstacles – that’s all! Up to that extent, one can go. After that, any attempt to superimpose the experience of the

Supreme Being, ends up in imagining that one has reached the Supreme Being. After that, what does one do? One has to settle down quietly, relax and wait patiently for the Supreme Being to reveal Itself. It is like cleaning up the room, dusting the carpet, opening the doors and windows and then sitting down, waiting for the breeze to blow – you cannot command the breeze to blow. And, when the breeze blows, if your windows are shut, it will not come in! So, all your activities, all your sadhana, all your knowledge, is “the opening of the windows”. It is very essential. But, you cannot make the breeze blow. The breeze will certainly blow – it has blown before and it will blow in the future. You have to wait. You cannot choose when it should happen. Therefore, there are a few guidelines to be followed. The Upanishad itself declares, “He who says he knows, does not know; and he who says he does not know, knows.” That means, once It is known, the ego cannot sit up and say, “I have known It!” This is because It is known when the ego has disappeared. And any attempt to try to forcibly dissolve the ego, generally ends up in strengthening it. So that is where the question of patience, surrender and faith arises. What I am trying to explain is what the Upanishad intends to explain; that the search for moksha is not a career to be pursued. It is to be done with the utmost humility, with the understanding that one needs to dissolve one’s centre. You cannot attain the Supreme Being by sitting down and doing controlled breathing a few times every day. If that was the case, then it would have been very simple – hundreds of people would have attained the Supreme Being! All that effort and sadhana is necessary to purify your mind, to keep your windows and door open. The grace has to come. It is like the lovely breeze that comes in. But then, the room has to be clean – that is sadhana. Otherwise, the breeze will bring in the dust. The other interpretation to the statement “He is to be attained by the one, who is chosen by the Self”, is that it means that the Supreme Being is realised by him alone whose only aim is to find the Supreme Being – nothing else is his priority!

SHLOKA 4 naayam aatmaa balaheenena labhyo na cha pramaadaat tapaso vaapy alingaat etair upaayair yatate yas tu vidvaams tasyaisha aatmaa vishate brahmadhaama Having said that we cannot reach It and that we have to depend on the grace of the Supreme Being to attain It, the rishi says that it does not mean that you must become weak and give up and say, “I am not going to struggle.” He says, naayam aatmaa balaheenena labhya – “This Self cannot be attained by one without strength.” So, full-fledged attention and complete dedication to the understanding of the Truth is essential. This Self cannot be attained without strength nor through heedlessness: “Let the Self reveal Itself – I don’t care!’ Such heedlessness will not help; nor does austerity without an aim. Austerity is fine, but the aim of austerity must be to find the Supreme Truth. I may say, “I am a very austere and simple man.” But that simplicity may be for convenience – and may have nothing to do with finding the Truth. If I have four pairs of khaddar dresses, it is very easy for me to maintain them; It does not mean I am austere. So, austerity with an aim is required; not austerity without aim. “But he who strives by these means…” What are the means? “Through strength, through austerity with an aim…”, and being perfectly heedful of what he is doing – “…enters the abode of that Supreme Brahman.” What is the nature of the liberation that takes place in this manner? SHLOKA 5 vedaanta vijnaana sunischitaarthah sannyaasa yogaad yatayah shuddhasattvaah te brahmalokeshu paraantakaale paraamritaah parimuchyanti sarve

“The seers, rishis who have discovered and understood well the meaning of the Vedanta knowledge, who have purified their nature through renunciation, dwell in the world of Brahma and are all liberated at the end of time, being one with the immortal.” SHLOKA 6 sampraapyainam rishayo jnaanatriptaah kritaatmaano veetaraagaah prashaantaah te sarvagam sarvatah praapya dheera yuktaatmanah sarvam evaavishanti “Having attained Him, those seers, those rishis who are satisfied with their knowledge of the Supreme Being; perfected souls, who are free from passion and are tranquil; having attained to that omnipresent Self on all sides, they, with concentrated minds, enter into that sarvam, into ‘That, which is everywhere’ and become one with It.” SHLOKA 7 gataah kalaah panchadasha pratishthaa devaascha sarve pratidevataasu karmaani vijnaanamayascha aatmaa parevyaye sarva ekeebhavanti What happens when one enters the sarvam? “Gone are the fifteen parts with their supports…” That means all that supports the sense organs, all that supports the tatvas; everything goes back to its Source. “…and all the Gods enter into their corresponding deities”, meaning, all the sense organs go back to their Source. The “senses” are the “Gods” and Indra is the “chief God of the senses” – that is why they are called indriyas. All the senses go to their Source – no more are they indulgent. “One’s deeds and the Self consisting of our understanding – all have become one with that Supreme Being.” So all that started from “the blazing

fire” has now gone back into the central Source – let’s put it that way. How has it all gone back? SHLOKA 8 yathaa nadyah syandamaanaah samudre astam gacchanti naamaroope vihaaya tathaa vidvaan naamaroopaad vimuktah paraatparam purusham upaiti divyam “Just as the flowing rivers disappear into the ocean, casting off names and shapes, even so the knower of that Supreme Being is freed from name and shape.” No more is the knower known by his name, or his shape or his form – “He attains to that Divine Person, higher than the high!” SHLOKA 9 sa yo ha vai tat paramam brahma veda brahmaiva bhavati naasyaabrahmavit kule bhavati tarati shokam tarati paapmaanam guhaagranthibhyo vimuktomrito bhavati “He who knows that Supreme Brahman becomes Brahman Himself.” No more does his ego bother him, it is finished! He has identified himself with that Supreme Being. “In his family, no one who does not know the Brahman will be born. He crosses over sorrow, he crosses over sins, liberated from the ‘knot of the secret place’, he becomes immortal.” Liberated from the “knot of the heart”, liberated from the conditioning of his individual soul, he becomes immortal! It is interesting that “In his family no one who does not know the Brahman will be born.” Now, two things have to be clarified – one is that I do not think it applies to children who were born before he realised

Brahman. The other is that even if the knower of Brahman has a child, do not judge the child only by the present birth – perhaps he would be a knower of Brahman at some point earlier. SHLOKA 10 tad etat richaabhyuktam kriyaavantah shrotriyaa brahmanishthaah svayam juhvata ekarshim shraddhayantah teshaam evaitaam brahmavidyaam vadeta shirovratam vidhivad yais tu chirnam This is the doctrine declared in the Rig verses: “Those who perform the rites, those who are learned in the scriptures, who are well established in Brahman, who offer of themselves oblations to the Sole Seer, with faith, to them alone should one declare this knowledge of Brahman.” “By whom the ‘rite on the head’ has been performed, according to rule, this knowledge of Brahman is to be given…” Do not throw around this knowledge and waste it. Offer it only to those who perform the rites of the journey, who have, with great faith, learned the scriptures to understand the Supreme Truth; who are well-established in the service of Brahman, who are in search of Brahman, who offer themselves as oblations to that Sole Seer, with faith; who have performed the “rite on the head”. That means those who have performed the rite of total surrender to the Supreme Being, to the Truth. “Rite on the head has been variously interpreted. Some people interpret it as one who has shaven his head, tonsured his head and so on, which is also, actually, an external symbol of completely surrendering oneself to the Truth. Only to such a one whose first priority is to understand that Supreme Truth, may this doctrine be given – this is declared in the verse – not to one who is unfit. SHLOKA 11 tad etat satyam rishir angiraah purovaacha

naitadacheernavrato dheete namah paramarishibhyo namah paramarishibhyah tad etat satyam – “This is the Truth.” The seer, the Rishi Angirasa, declared it before: “Let none who has not performed the ritual, which we have mentioned before, study this. Salutations to the great seers! Salutations to the great seers, the rishis!” This is how the Mundaka Upanishad ends. One should not think that we are trying to become exclusive by saying that we should not give it to others. What the rishi is trying to say is that it is futile to study all this, unless one’s priority is to find the Truth. Of course, none of us are searching for the untruth. But then, the Upanishadic teaching is that the Truth is, “That which when known, everything else is known.” So, search for That! That is why it is studied, to try to understand It. But the practice of it can come only when one’s priority is to find that Truth; otherwise, one can have endless discussions on the subject, but return to where one started. As it is said in the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam, “Coming out through the same door through which one went in.” Aum shantih shantih shantihi!

About the Author Sri M was born in Trivandrum, Kerala. At the age of nineteen and a half, attracted by a strange and irresistible urge to go to the Himalayas, he left home. At the Vyasa Cave, beyond the Himalayan shrine of Badrinath, he met his Master and lived with him for three and a half years, wandering freely, the length and breadth of the snow clad Himalayan region. What he learnt from his Master Maheshwarnath Babaji, transformed his consciousness totally. Back in the plains, he, as instructed by his Master, lived a normal life, working for a living, fulfilling his social commitments and at the same time preparing himself to teach all that he had learnt and experienced. At a signal from his Master he entered the teaching phase of his life. Today, he travels all over the world to share his experiences and knowledge. Equally at home in the religious teachings of most major religions, Sri M, born as Mumtaz Ali Khan, says “Go to the core. Theories are of no use.” Sri M is married and has two children. During 2015-16 Sri M undertook the Walk of Hope, from Kanyakumari to Kashmir for 15 months covering a distance of 7500 kms, spreading the message of peace and harmony to restore the nation fit enough to be bequeathed to the future generations. He leads a simple life – teaching and heading the Satsang Foundation, a charitable concern promoting excellence in education. At present he lives in Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh, three hours drive from Bangalore. He may be contacted at: www.satsang-foundation.org

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Contents tle Page opyright & Permissions reface oreword Profile of ‘M’ havasya Upanishad enopanishad Mandukya Upanishad bout the Author bout the Book ackcover

Preface

The contents of this book are the edited transcriptions of the discourses on the Upanishads by Sri M. Minimum editing has been done to retain the style of the talks. The editor acknowledges the contribution of Ms. Uma Singh and Ms. Kamal Aswani in transcribing the discourses with care and attention. The introductory portions might sound repetitious at times, but that could not be avoided, considering that the talks were given at different times to different people. It is suggested that these portions be re-read for a thorough comprehension of each Upanishad. Editor

Foreword

The Upanishads represent the high watermark not only of Hindu Philosophy but of spiritual literature anywhere in the world. These marvellous discourses and dialogues between self-realized seers, known as Rishis, and one or more disciples, contain powerful and eloquent statements regarding the ultimate reality in its multifarious facets. They have been well described as providing an ‘ecstatic slide show of reality, a privileged glimpse of the unitive vision in which all thing are one in a world aflame with God’. They contain some of the most eloquent passages such as – ‘I have seen that Great Being shining like a thousand suns beyond the darkness; it is only by knowing that being that we can achieve immortality’ and again, ‘Hear O children of immortal bliss, you are born to be united with the Divine; follow the path of the illumined ones and be united with the Supreme Being’. The universal truths articulated in the Upanishads have formed the basis for numerous commentaries down through the centuries, beginning with the luminous insights of Adi Shankaracharya. In our own times Sri Aurobindo, Sri Krishnaprem, Dr Radhakrishnan, Swami Ranganathananda, Eknath Ishwaran and other great seers and sages have produced commentaries and interpretations on various Upanishads. The Upanishads are enduring and unfailing sources of inspiration, and their impact grows with each successive reading. One of my favourites is the Mundaka which I have translated and upon which I have attempted a short commentary. The author of this book, Sri Mumtaz Ali, popularly known as ‘M’, has spoken extensively upon the Upanishads, based on his personal experience. The fact that a person born a Muslim should have such a deep insight into the Hindu tradition proves once again that the spiritual path accepts no boundaries. The three Upanishads upon which M has commented are among the most important – the Ishavasya, which is always given pride of

place in any list of Upanishads, the Mandukya which expounds the deeper symbolism of the sacred symbol Aum, and the Kena where we have the marvellous allegory of the Devas who thought they had won a victory, whereas actually it was the victory of the divine Brahman. In this Upanishad we come across Shiva and Yaksha, whose identity the Devas are unable to comprehend, and are also introduced to Uma, Haimavati, the many splendoured daughter of the Himalayas, who appears as the mediator between the Devas and the Supreme Brahman. In these talks M has expounded in a clear and cogent fashion various aspects of these three great texts. I have pleasure in commending this book to spiritual seekers and students of Hinduism around the world. Dr. Karan Singh

A Profile of ‘M’

The boy was a little more than 9 years old when he saw the strange being. He was the son of a Deccani Muslim family, settled in Trivandrum, the beautiful capital of Kerala. Having heard stories of angels coming down to bless Mohammed and other prophets and saints from his devout grandmother, he thought at first that it was an angel. One evening, the boy was wandering around the courtyard of his house in Vanchiyoor, doing nothing in particular. At the far end of the courtyard, he saw someone standing under the jackfruit tree. The stranger gestured to the boy to come forward. The boy felt no fear whatsoever, and was eager to go closer to the stranger. The stranger was tall, fair and well-built and was bare-bodied except for a piece of loin cloth worn around his waist. He put his right hand on the boy’s head and asked with kindness, “Do you remember anything?” in Hindi. To the boy’s answer that he didn’t, the stranger said in Deccani, “You will understand later. You will not meet me for many years after this, but you will have to finish the studies that you have left incomplete. You will not be allowed to tell anyone about me until the time is ripe. Go home now.” With that he vanished. That was the first initiation. Two years later, while playing hide and seek, the boy experienced what may be described in yogic terms as Keval Kumbhak – the suspension of inhalation and exhalation. Bliss filled his heart. The breathing resumed in a few minutes. Soon he could get into it at will with a deep sigh. The bliss that he experienced convinced him that a greater world existed within his being – a world of spiritual bliss.

In his outward appearance he was just like any other boy except that he loved religious scriptures and philosophy – no matter of which religion, devotional songs and discussions on God, saints and sages. When he was eleven, he used to go in the evenings to a certain house which belonged to one Mr. Pillai, whose nephew and son-in-law tutored him in mathematics. One evening he entered Pillai’s house as usual and found himself face to face with a venerable, sturdy man of about sixty, clean shaven and with closely cropped silver grey hair, wearing a half sleeved shirt and loin cloth, sitting cross-legged on a bench. The room smelled of incense. “Hello!” said the old man in Malayalam, “Come, come. Don’t be afraid.” ‘M’ walked up to him. The man patted his back and caressed his neck and head and said, “Umm. Good! Everything will be all right in good time.” Again the breathless condition and greater bliss. ‘M’ stood up and went straight home. The guidance had begun. He was the first of the great souls ‘M’ was to meet in the course of his spiritual journey. Much later ‘M’ came to know that the man was a great self-realised soul who lived in ‘Atma Bhava’ and was simply called Pujapura Swami since he lived in Pujapura. He was unmarried but not a formal monk. In his youth he had been initiated into yogic practices by a great teacher and ever since had lived a model life, his heart absorbed in the blissful, Supreme Brahman while he performed his duties like an ordinary mortal. ‘M’ also learnt that the Swami used to hold midnight Satsangs on certain days, which a great sanyasin, who had renounced even his loin-cloth, would sometimes attend. Pujapura Swami was not known outside a small circle because he forbade propaganda. When ‘M’ was seventeen, the sanyasin was no more, but a friend handed over a compilation of his teachings to ‘M’ which was privately circulated. It contained the essence of Vedanta in very simple language. By then, the knowledge that ‘M’ needed from time to time as he progressed on the path began to come to him automatically. His father had borrowed B. K. S. Iyengar’s Light on Yoga from a friend of his (his father was never an orthodox Muslim). ‘M’ read it through. A yoga teacher, Sri Sharma, gave him his initial lessons on yogasanas and Surya Namaskaras. ‘M’ met Swami Tapasyananda of the Ramakrishna Mission, a direct disciple of Sarada Devi. He was then the head of Ramakrishna Mission at

Trivandrum. The librarian at the Trivandrum Public Library kept ‘M’ well supplied with the works of Vivekananda. He chanced to read Swami Chinmayananda’s Japa Yoga and Gayatri and he began to chant the Gayatri Mantra. A Tantric instructed him in certain mantras and lent him Sir John Woodroffe’s Serpent Power. He read many other books – the Upanishads, the Gita, Yogic texts and Vedanta included. He discovered that Sanskrit was not too difficult to understand. Side by side with gaining theoretical knowledge, he meditated for long hours, especially at midnight. He had merely to shut his eyes and concentrate on the lotus of the heart to enter into Keval Kumbhak and experience tremendous bliss and extraordinary visions of divine lights and voices. Sometimes terrifying visions would flit across his mind but they would pass and he would once again be filled with ecstasy. Then he met a great person known as Chempazanthi Swami. The Jesuits had started their first Loyola Junior College at Sreekaryam in Trivandrum and ‘M’ was among the first batch of pre degree students. A few kilometers away was the remote village of Chempazanthi which is the birth place of Sri Narayana Guru, the great reformer-saint. Close to Chempazanthi is Chenkotkonam where the Swami lived. He was a tea-shop owner turned saint. A great bhakta of Rama, he was known to have lived like Hanuman for a long time, eating nuts and climbing trees. He was fond of bhajans and kirtans. When ‘M’ met him in his hut, he was thin and frail and very delicate looking. Crowning his ever-smiling face was a great chunk of wound-up matted hair and he smelled of Vibhuti. Taking a pinch of ash, he touched M’s forehead with it, popped a couple of grapes into his mouth and said, ‘Umm, needs to ripen, will ripen. Do bhajans.’ ‘M’ meditated for a few minutes, prostrated and left the place. Those days ‘M’ had a close Brahmin friend whose father worshipped Sai Baba of Shirdi. The moment ‘M’ saw Baba’s picture , an irresistible desire to know about Baba’s life rose in him. The next day Mr. Subramanya Iyer, an advocate, who was his friend’s landlord, gave him a copy of the Life of Sai Baba of Shirdi by Narasimha Swamiji.” Then he lent ‘M’ Sai Sat Charita. He fell in love with the great Faqir. At this time ‘M’ heard from a friend of his who was a medical student (he is now a neuro-surgeon) about a lady Avadhuta called Mai Ma, who lived on the Kanyakumari beach. She was reputed to be over a hundred

years old and no one could say where she came from or what language she spoke. The few words she said sounded very much like Bengali. ‘M’ went to see her alone. Kanyakumari is close to Trivandrum. He reached Kanyakumari a little before noon. He walked from the bus stand and came to the entrance of the Devi Temple. He casually walked across the rocky beach and there she was. A woman who looked to be in her sixties, she wore absolutely no clothes, her face a typically Bengali face, glowing, ageless eyes, smiling. She sat on one of the rocks with a circle of street dogs around her forming a security ring. The dogs snarled when they saw ‘M.’ Mai Ma scolded the dogs using peculiar sounds and they dispersed and sat at a distance. She motioned to ‘M’ to sit down. He sat down on a rock. She pointed to the dosas that he had with him and said something. He gave her the dosas. She fed the dogs some, ate two herself and returned a few to him. He closed his eyes and tried to tune in with her vibrations. After a long time he opened his eyes. She was still there. Giving a broad smile she said, “Jao, jao, thik...” The last word could not be made out. When Paramahamsas say “Go”, one has no business to stay. ‘M’ prostrated and came away. After visiting the Vivekananda Rock, ‘M’ returned to Trivandrum. He was made aware of the significance of Mai Ma’s darshan the following morning. Tired after meditating for a long time in the night, he could not bring himself to be up at dawn. As he slept deeply he had a wonderful and vivid dream. In the dream he was a mendicant with matted hair and wearing only a ‘kaupin,’ sitting in padmasana and meditating under a Banyan tree which stood in the middle of a junction where four paths crossed each other. The jungle all around was thick. A faint sound made him open his eyes, and from one of the paths he saw Mai approaching with a stick in her hand. She was huge, much larger than life-size. Reaching the place where he sat she touched his chin and said, “Give me something to eat.” He told her, “Mai Ma, I have only two grains of parched rice hidden in my matted hair.” She said, “Give me.” Without hesitation he gave the rice to her. She said to him, “Are you hungry?” He said “Yes, but you eat it Ma.” She ate with great relish and turning to him said, “Your hunger is for a different thing. Close your eyes.”

He closed his eyes. She pressed the middle of his forehead hard with what seemed to be her thumb. An ocean of bliss filled his whole being with its centre in the forehead. Every cell of his being was suffused with it. He lost his body consciousness. Only the other existed. Then he woke up. The dream vanished, but O! How fortunate! The bliss remained. He was like a drunken man who had had his fill. Slowly he sat up and stretched his legs and carefully went to the bathroom, afraid that he would fall. In a few minutes he got full control over his body and mind but the stream of bliss con-tinued in the core of his being. It has since remained with him. At times low, at times high, but always there. Already acquainted with the teachings of the Sufis by attending meetings of local Sufi groups and meeting some of the Amirs of the different Tariqats, he went at last to a gem among Sufis. That was Kaladi Mastan who lived naked on the beach near Bimapalli in Trivandrum. He was drinking a cup of tea given by a follower when ‘M’ first saw him. He smiled and gave ‘M’ the rest of the tea. Then he said, “Big thief came to steal the treasure. Take it legitimately.” Then he lit a cigarette and said, “Smoke.” ‘M’ smoked. Then he took it back. ‘M’ sat and meditated before him. He covered M’s head with sand and further cleared the conduits. He behaved like a mad man and many even thought he was mad, but he was a priceless gem and the few who were serious, knew. He is physically no more now. Many visit his tomb. Not very far from there lived Poontharasami, another God-intoxicated person with matted hair, who too was mistaken by many to be a madman. When ‘M’ visited him, he suddenly stood up and kicked ‘M’ on his chest. That was a timely kick. It cleared the passage through which the mighty energy travels. When ‘M’ went to thank him a month later, he had vanished, nobody knew where. An impressive looking fraud, who claimed to have been his closest disciple, tried to influence ‘M.’ The poor chap did not realize that ‘M’ could read him like an open book. When he was nineteen, ‘M’ made up his mind to go to the Himalayas. First he went to Madras by train, spent sometime in the Theosophical Society, then took a train to Delhi. From Delhi he went to Hardwar. From Hardwar he decided to walk.

All the money was finished. He had no intention of writing back home for help or even to let them know where he was. He knew he would be looked after, that the minimum needs of the body would be taken care of by the great powers that run the universe, and he was right. Of course, at certain times, he was tested thoroughly but in the end everything was fine. On foot he covered the entire journey from Rishikesh to Uttarkashi, to Gangotri, Yamunotri, from Batwari to Kedar via Buda Kedar, then to Badrinath. At Rishikesh, he decided to stay in the Divine Life Society and continue his studies and meditation. It is a lovely place for sadhaks. The Ganges flows nearby. Yoga is taught in the Ashram. The senior swamis are a great help and when one has time, one can wander around and meet sadhus of various sects. Satsang is most important for a sadhak. That pilgrim-season found ‘M’ walking again to Badrinath – sometimes on the common pilgrim routes, sometimes through forests, staying in roadside dharmashalas and chattis and many a time in forest hermitages beside the river. On his way to Badrinath, he visited Vasishta Guha and Arundhati Cave. He gathered much food for the soul. Reaching Badrinath after many days’ journey, he first slept in the choultry. It was quite cold and his single blanket was insufficient, but he was in no mood to seek help. Those were the days when the fire of spirituality burned so bright that everything else, even the bare necessities – food, clothes and shelter – melted into insignificance. A highly intoxicating, ecstatic mood came over him in the great Himalayas. He attributed this, as also his intense sadhana to the presence of highly evolved beings in these regions. He hoped to meet some of them. His physical difficulties were solved by the arrival of a Brahmachari whom he had met earlier in the Divine Life Society. He was an experienced pilgrim who had travelled many times. Quickly he found ‘M’ an independent kutir and persuaded him to stay there. He also got ‘M’ a couple of blankets and a wooden plank to sleep on; he also arranged with the Nepali Dharmashala for his food. He introduced ‘M’ to the Rawalji, the chief priest of Badrinath, and took him on a sort of conducted tour on most evenings. In Badrinath as in other pilgrim centres, there were beggars wearing saffron, others wearing the holy robes to make a living, even sadhus who

stole kamandalus and blankets from each other. Genuine yogis and paramahamsas also existed side by side, mingling with the common crowd and often deliberately pretending to be one of them. Eager to see more of such souls and learning that they lived beyond Badrinath and on the other side of Narayan Parvat, ‘M’ decided to travel further. Without informing anyone, one morning he started off with his kamandalu, staff and blanket. He had earlier explored about a kilometer of that road on his previous visit to Badrinath but beyond that the territory was unknown. After about six or seven kilometres of not easy climbing, he reached the confluence of the Saraswati and the Alakananda, called Keshav Prayag. Close to this was the cave, which, an old sanyasin had once told him, was the Vyasa Guha. ‘M’ walked beyond the Vyasa Guha to explore the other caves in the vicinity. He had walked through the rocky terrain for a long time when he realized that it would soon grow dark. Filled with doubt, fear and hunger, and disappointed about not finding any mahatmas, ‘M’ began to walk down towards the Mana village. On the way back, when he reached the Vyasa Guha, he found that a dhuni was brightly burning at the mouth of the cave. A strange force seemed to make his feet heavy. His heart overflowed with bliss but his legs would not move away from the cave. He took this as a signal and walked towards the cave. From inside the cave came a voice calling him by the name “Madhu”. Seeing this young man, the long-haired, bare-bodied, tall man patted on his left shoulder with great affection and asked him to sit. At that instant, ‘M’ recognised the person whom he had once met in the backyard of his house under the jackfruit tree. He had found his guru, his father, his mother, all in one. ‘M’ spent three and a half years with his Master travelling all over the Himalayas. The Master advised him to go back to the plains and lead a normal life and begin teaching when commanded to do so. The Master promised to keep in touch. The Master had thoroughly overhauled his thought-process and brought about a lasting change in his consciousness.* * The psychic channels in the spine and brain were opened up and the dormant energies activated so that the contact between the mind and the higher Consciousness was re-established.

According to the Master’s advice, ‘M’ went back to the plains, met many spiritual teachers and godmen, travelled all over India, took up difficult jobs to earn a living and to “see the world at close quarters,” as the Master put it. He also lived for a short while like a very materialistic-minded person, and found that compared to the spiritual life and its greater vistas, the life of the worldly man is almost nothing. The joys of the spirit are much superior and it is the worldly man who renounces real happiness that springs from the heart. But all that experience was necessary to tackle the worldly-wise who would say, “Oh! what do you know of the bliss of sensory experiences. You have not had any.” Now ‘M’ feels that he can say with confidence, “Friend, I know, and there is nothing to go ga ga about.” Off and on he had attended the talks of J. Krishnamurti in Madras and elsewhere and read most of his literature. Finally he met him and had a private discussion for forty-minutes after which he decided to stay on in the Krishnamurti Foundation for sometime. The Master had said that Krishnamurti would be the last of the important persons that ‘M’ would meet as part of his education and had instructed him to pay particular attention to everything that ‘K’ did and how the organisation would function when he lived and after his death. ‘M’ had close contact with J. Krishnamurti during the last two years of his life and was made a Trustee of the Krishnamurti Foundation, which position he resigned after five years. After K’s death ‘M’ married Sunanda whom he had met in Vas-ant Vihar, the headquarters of the Krishnamurti Foundation, and became a householder. He now feels that no one can say to him, “Well, brother, it is alright for you to say, ‘lead a spiritual life and live in the world etc.’, because you are unmarried...” and so on. ‘M’ lives with his wife and two children. “In fact, it is the best thing to do in this period of the earth’s existence, for Sanyasa is only for the rarest of the rare,” says ‘M.’ With the blessings of his Himalayan Master and by strenuous sadhana ‘M’ has transcended theories and scholarship and is established in higher consciousness. The Master had said to ‘M,’ “Do not advise people if you cannot follow the same advice. Do not talk on something if you have no personal

experience.” Wonderful teaching indeed! If only teachers follow this teaching what a lovely world this would be! – Gp. Capt. (Retd.) Ratnakar Sanadi (For a detailed account of Sri M’s life, please read his autobiography Apprenticed to a Himalayan Master – A Yogi’s Autobiography.)

he Ishavasya Upanishad, which is also known as Ishopanishad, is one of the smallest of the Upanishads. Yet, it is one of the most important Upanishads. From time immemorial sages have not only gained wisdom through their study but have also understood and experienced the Truth, and then given their experiences in the form of the Upanishads. It would be better if a small introduction is given to the very meaning of the word, ‘Upanishad,’ before commencing study of the Ishavasya Upanishad. The Upanishads are the Jnana-kanda – the ‘wisdom-section’ – of the four Vedas: Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva. Each has three portions – first the Samhitas, second the Brahmanas, and finally the Aranyakas and the Upanishads. The Samhitas are generally hymns sung in praise of Gods; the Brahmanas generally deal with the ritualistic performance of ceremonies; then we have the Aranyakas and the Upanishads. The Upanishads as well as the Aranyakas were taught in foresthermitages, not because the rishis were afraid to live in cities, but because being away from the mad rush of civilization provided an atmosphere conducive to the understanding of the scriptures. And so, they are called Aranyakas because they were taught in the forest-academies of the Rishis who lived with their students in the ambience of beautiful woods, mountains and rivers. The Upanishads are also called ‘Vedanta’ because they come at ‘the end of the Vedas’ – Veda antah; that is one view. The other view is that if you have studied the Upanishads, you have finished the study of all the Vedas. Therefore, it is also ‘Vedanta’ – ‘the end of the Vedas.’ One view is factual and the other philosophical. What does the word Upanishad mean? The word Upanishad has been divided into three parts: upa – ni – shad. ‘Upa’ means ‘to go closer, to move closer, to move nearer to.’ So in this case, it means ‘to move nearer to the truth’ in the philosophical context. In the practical context, ‘to move nearer to the teacher’ means, to give attention to what is being said. When you say, ‘move nearer to somebody,’ it means dissolve the obstacles which

are between you and that somebody, so that the listening takes place properly, without reservations. The last syllable, ‘shad,’ indicates, ‘to sit.’ When you sit down physically, it means that you are ready to listen. Of course, there were great sages who could meditate standing, but for most people, sitting is associated with settling down physically, in the mental frame of, ‘O.K., I’ve done my work, now let me sit down, relax and try to understand the deeper aspects of reality.’ This ‘sittingdown’ is shad. But when one physically sits down and the mind wanders, thinks about something else, then that cannot be called shad. There is a deeper meaning to shad – ‘the settling down of the mind.’ The mind needs to be completely receptive to what is being said. Now the syllable ‘ni’, which connects upa and shad – indicates the level of sitting. Ni Means ‘sitting down at a level lower than that of the teacher,’ which of course is not a physical level but a mental level. This ni means that the student or the listener realizes there are things to be learnt, things of which he knows little, and therefore decides, ‘Let me listen to somebody who knows.’ That, in some way, curtails the egotistic feeling that comes up often when we listen, which says, ‘I know that, I know what he is saying, I know everything.’ So, this ni indicates the humility required to listen and understand. It is not necessary that we should always bow down to the teacher or fall at his feet. These are only external marks of respect which may or may not be genuine. Humility means the understanding or awareness that one does not know at all, or that perhaps there is more to know. Confucius has this wonderful example. He asks, “When you use a bowl, do you use the empty space or the walls that surround it? You use the space, because without the space nothing can be received. If it is already full, nobody can give you anything.” So, this sitting down in voluntary humility, not imposed humility, and listening in the mood of ‘let me understand what is being said’ – that somewhat defines ni. So, bringing all the three parts – upa-ni-shad – together means that the teacher and the student, or the speaker and the listener sit down together, with the intention of moving closer to the Supreme Truth. This is done with complete humility on both sides and with complete intent to listen and

understand, putting away all the obstacles to listening. This is the meaning of the word Upanishad. One of the shanti mantras of another Upanishad defines this clearly: Sahanavavatu sahanaubhunaktu saha veeryam karavavahai Tejasvinavadhitamastu ma vidvishavahai. ‘Let both the student and the teacher co-operate; together be protected, together be nourished.’ The word used is, ‘together.’ ‘Let us not quarrel among each other’ – ma vidvishavahai. The shanti mantra, the invocatory verse of the Ishavasya Upanishad, may, on the face of it, sound confusing or even meaning- less. The mantra is: Purnamadah purnamidam purnat purnamudachyate Purnasya purnamaadaya purnamevavashishyate. If we translate as well as we can into English it would read thus: Purnamadah: ‘That is complete.’ Purnamidam: ‘This is complete’. Purnamadah purnamidam ‘That is complete, this is complete.’ Purnat purna mudachyate – ‘From that completeness comes this completeness’ or ‘That completeness is the source of this completeness.’ Purnasya purnamaadaya – ‘If we take away this completeness from that completeness...’ Purnamevavashishyate: ‘Only completeness remains.’ Like all Upanishadic statements, this too does not have only one shade of meaning. That is why there have been several translators and commentators of the Upanishads, and each person has approached it stressing that particular point that appeals to him, or one that would interest a certain section of his students. One of the philosophical interpretations of purnamadah purnamidam, especially because it comes in the beginning of the Ishavasya Upanishad, is that the Supreme Reality, which has been variously described in the Upanishad as the Supreme Brahman, Para Brahman, The Ultimate Truth, is ‘that Supreme Reality which is Complete’. This means it is purna, because

it is always full; it does not crave for anything; it is by itself independent and self-existing, permanent, remaining when everything else perishes. It is that Supreme Reality which knows no darkness but only effulgence, which is nirmala – free of impurities or imperfections. Therefore it is perfect, complete, and full. That is understandable, but is also speculative since we don’t know what that Supreme Brahman is. Now comes the phrase purnamidam – ‘This is also Complete.’ One comes across such sentences in the Ishavasya Upanishad as one proceeds, which would appear to be intended deliberately to confuse, but they are not. One has to look at it a little carefully. So by saying ‘That Supreme Truth is complete’ and ‘This is complete,’ rishis are trying to take away the line of differentiation between ‘That’ and ‘This.’ The Chandogya Upanishad says ‘sarvam kalvidam brahma’ – ‘All this is Brahman.’ All this that you see is the Truth – the only thing is, it is veiled. You remove the veil, and all differences disappear. Then ‘this’ becomes no different from ‘that Brahman.’ There is no differentiation between This and That, because differentiation is caused by the dividing mind. ‘That is Complete, This is Complete.’ Therefore, there is no way anything can be taken out or separated. We may think we are separating, but we actually are not. Purnamevavashishyate – even if we think we are separating, ‘That remains complete and purna.’ There is no way it can be separated, split, divided. It is the ultimate, supreme message of absolute unity. That is one aspect. The other aspect is the physical. It is a description of the sum total of energy that can neither be decreased nor increased. Energy can neither be created nor destroyed. It can change from one form to another, but you cannot make it disappear, because the sum total remains constant. This is the physical aspect. If we come to the psychological, the inner aspect of this particular mantra, we have to touch upon a subject which the Upanishad may not directly talk about, but is a part of personal sadhana. We are now venturing into the subtle subject of the inner energy called the kundalini. Now, the meditator, the person who wishes to go into the examination of the deeper aspects of the Upanishad, is told that there is an energy in all human beings which remains inactive in most cases, and the process of sadhana is that by

which this potential energy is awakened. So long as this energy is inactive, it is potential energy. It is converted into active or kinetic energy through sadhana. Before this energy becomes inactive, it does all the work of reproduction and growth. The whole growing-up of the organism, from the embryo to the state of a full-grown person, is done by this energy. And after it has done all its work, it descends to a psychic location, which is identified physically at the end of the spinal column, coils up, and becomes inactive. But, even after doing all this work, nothing is reduced from it. The energy is dormant, and remains forever as it was. All its work has been done, the organism has grown, yet nothing has been taken away, reduced or subtracted from this energy. It remains ready to be awakened by the proper person, at the proper time. This is one of the ways by which one could interpret this mantra. There may be many more. But now we go directly into the Ishavasya Upanishad. Ishavasya Upanishad is part of the Yajur Veda. Among the Upanishads attached to the Yajur Veda it is, though short, one of the most important Upanishads. The first shloka of this Upanishad is: SHLOKA 1 ishavasyam idam sarvam yat kincha jagatyaam jagat tena tyaktena bhunjitha ma gridhah kasya svid dhanam. Isha – ‘that Supreme Lord – that Supreme Being,’ Ishwara; vasyam – ‘pervades’; idam – ‘here’; sarvam-’everything.’ The Upanishad does not say, Ishavasyam sarvam – it adds a word idam – Ishavasyam idam sarvam – which means, ‘It pervades everything, here and now.’ There is the usual blame laid at the door of Upanishadic teaching, that it is an ‘other worldly teaching,’ something to take up after one becomes old, or may be in the next birth. This is not true. Ishavasyam idam sarvam- ‘that Supreme Being pervades everything’ – here and now! Yat kincha jagatyam jagat – ‘It pervades all that moves, and also all that does not move,’ which means, not only living beings, but also non-living things. Now, this distinction of ‘that which moves’ and ‘that which does not move.’ is a very relative distinction, because from the point of view of the physicist, there is nothing that does not move. A piece of stone or a piece of

metal does not move for us, because we see it as static. We do not see what is happening inside – but from the point of view of Physics – quantum physics or practical physics – everything is in constant motion. There is nothing that stops. So, that Supreme Being, Isha, pervades everything here, ‘that which appears to move and also that which does not appear to move.’ Then the rishi says, if the Supreme Being pervades ‘that which moves and that which does not move,’ whose wealth is all this, anyway? Ma gridhah kasya svid dhanam, which means, ‘Who does all this belong to? You? Me? To whom does the cosmos belong? If the Supreme Being pervades everything, then what property belongs to whom?’ Therefore he says, ‘tena tyaktena bhunjitha’ – ‘therefore, let go and rejoice!’ Now, this is, on the face of it, a contradictory statement. Normally, rejoicing is linked with having more and more. One needs to acquire more things in order to rejoice, is it not? But here is a contradictory statement which says, ‘Let go and rejoice!’ It can only be understood by someone who has given up something and found the relief, the joy in doing so! Otherwise, this cannot be understood. The Upanishad says, that ‘letting go’ can be done only when it is understood that the Supreme Being pervades everything. If it pervades everything, then the human being becomes self-sufficient. There is nothing which needs to be added to the human being from outside. The rejoicing is in the understanding that your very Self is not different from that Isha, that Supreme Being. Of course, when one is alive, one eats, drinks, and consumes, but deep in the consciousness, it is to be understood that the true rejoicing is a state of mind and is not dependent upon what you acquire or enjoy. ‘Rejoicing’ is more to do with the inner state than outer possessions. As one acquires fame, status and a bank balance, then automatically more needs are created and one requires more. This goes on. It is an unending process. It is not that we should give up everything and become sanyasins – No! What is being said is that as we watch, as we become aware of this unending process of acquiring, we realize that there is a state of mind which is independent of all this. That comes about only when one practically realizes what has been written here – Ishavasyam idam sarvam. For example, if one is eating tasty food, what happens in the process? One spoons the food into one’s mouth and enjoys it. Now, who is it who

enjoys it? Where is the enjoyment taking place? Is it taking place in the mouth or, is it taking place inside the person? What happens is that when there is enjoyment, it seems as if it springs from a reservoir of enjoyment within the person, which can be activated by the sensory organs coming in contact with that particular padartha or food item. When the sense organs are in touch with a particular taste or aroma or sight, then, from the inner reservoir of joy, a little bit is tapped. It comes out, it manifests itself and one says ‘I am enjoying the food.’ The rishis declare that the reservoir of all enjoyment, which manifests itself in small portions as in the last example, is all within. You may call it hridaya, you may call it the ‘inner consciousness,’ you may call it atma. It is within! If you can understand that, then you can enjoy everything at once. It comes about not through craving for enjoyment but by understanding that the craving has to cease, or by understanding that the craving has no end. Suppose you desire something, you work very hard in order to acquire it. What happens after that? You spend hours guarding it, wondering if the doors are properly locked at night because somebody may steal it. Whatever we acquire – and we are taking about not only physical objects, but also of status, name, fame – we are always afraid of losing it. So, to hold on to an image, to hold on to an object, after acquiring it, is itself a conflict. If it slips away, the happiness due to acquiring it also slips away at that moment. When the process of trying to hold on to what one acquires starts, automatically the happiness of acquiring it is diluted. Or, one may acquire something, keep it and say, ‘I must enjoy it from tomorrow,’ but in the night one might die in his sleep. These are all possible. Anything can happen. It is not pessimism. So, when one realizes this impermanence of life and when one begins to wonder whether there is anything permanent at all, the rishis step in and say that ‘There is something in you which is permanent, which is in yourself. You don’t have to search for it outside. Your search for happiness, which the whole world searches for, is actually the search for this Supreme Isha – but in the wrong direction!’ The rishis who have taught the Upanishads say, ‘This wonderful thing is here, inside you. It is for this that you are searching!’ But even if you say this one hundred times to somebody, the understanding will come only when one is ready for it. There is no other way. Somebody may say, ‘No, I

don’t want to listen to all this, let me enjoy’, or ‘I don’t want to bother about searching within.’ That is fine. But an intelligent and serious person need not put his finger into the fire, get burnt, and then understand that the fire is hot. He can see others burning their fingers, and learn from it! The Upanishad says, ‘Ishavasyam idam sarvam’ – ‘that Supreme Being pervades everything here.’ Yat kincha jagatyam jagat – ‘That which moves and That which does not move.’ Actually, the word jagat, which we call the world, comes from the root, ‘to move.’ Tena tyaktena bhunjitha – ‘therefore, let go and rejoice! Let go!’ Don’t get caught up in this circus. Let go and enjoy yourself – rejoice! Ma gridhah kasya svid dhanam – Whose wealth is this anyway? SHLOKA 2 kurvann eveha karmani jijivishet shatam samaah evam tvayi nanyatheto asti na karma lipyate nare The rishi says: If one understands, (even theoretically), if one begins to look into what has been proposed in the first shloka, then ‘one can live performing karmas for a hundred years.’ Again, this Upanishad does not say, ‘Stop all your karmas and run away to the forest.’ It says that if you understand, and if you are ready to look into what has been said in the first shloka, then you can do karmas for a hundred years and lead your life – that is the only way. Nanyatheto asti – ‘that is the only way.’ There is no other way by which you can live a full life, performing all karmas on this earth, and yet – na karma lipyate nare – not be affected by the effect of these karmas. Now we must clarify this. When the rishi says, Na karma lipyate nare, without the karmas affecting you, it does not mean that you will not suffer. It means that, having understood that your essential nature is that Isha, which pervades everything, you will not be affected by karmas. Everybody goes through difficulties. It is not that saints lead wonderful lives without any physical problems. We have known of great saints who have suffered with cancer and other diseases. But while an ordinary man is finished, he finds he has nowhere to turn, the realized person finds that his true identity, the atman, is not affected by any of these things, and therefore he carries on with a smile. Life, death, problems, hurt, pain – everything is common to all human beings as long as one has a physical body. But the inner-mind,

subtle-mind, which is centered on the atman, lives through even the worst of pain with great bliss. This is the secret. Therefore, the rishi says that you can do all your karmas and live for a hundred years, without the karmas having any effect on you, provided you understand the import of the first shloka. SHLOKA 3 asurya nama te loka andhena tamasavrutah tams te pretyabhigacchanti ye ke cha atma hano janah Asurya nama te loka andhena tamasa. This means, ‘There are some worlds which are enveloped in darkness to which those of demonic nature go.’ ‘Demonic’ does not mean people who look like devils or monsters. It means demonic nature. Demonic means ‘one who denies the performance of the Inner Self,’ ‘one who denies the Self.’ So, asurya nama te loka means ‘Those who deny the Inner Reality, who think that this world is all that is real, that there is nothing more than what they see around them – they go into worlds of darkness.’ Even without going into the philosophical aspect, one can understand this. There are people who think that all that there is, is this world. There is nothing else, there is no inner-world, there is no atma. We had such believers in ancient India – the charvaka. They said, ‘Any time you may die – so eat, drink and be merry as there is nothing else.’ Atheists and agnostics are not only found in modern times – they have existed since time immemorial. Such people are in utter darkness and misery when they get a disease or when they lose something, which they consider to be most precious. They have no one to depend on, no place to put their faith in, nothing to go back to, no solace, because whatever they think is real, is finished. Such personalities who do not have any understanding, who do not even give a thought to the idea that there might be something other than this world, finally go to worlds of absolute darkness. That is one meaning. The other meaning is that ‘without the knowledge of the Self, one keeps wandering in the darkness of ignorance.’ They are called ‘slayers of the Self.’ Ye ke cha atma hano jana – ‘Those who are slayers of the Self.’ Actually, the atman cannot be slayed. But people, for whom the most important things in the world are those seen

through their senses, who believe that there is nothing beyond their senses, are called ‘slayers of the atman,’ ‘slayers of the Self.’ In another meaning, they are also ‘slayers of their own Self,’ because they are metaphorically killing themselves, shutting out the immortal light of the inner being and believing that they are only physical bodies. They are successfully slaying themselves! Such people go into worlds of enveloping darkness, layer upon layer of darkness. So what the rishi is saying is, ‘Please wake up and look; there is something beyond this physical body.’ The famous sage Ramana Maharshi of Tiruvannamalai defined the whole of Vedanta in a nut-shell, in one sentence which he used to oft repeat – deham naham koham soham. This is the essence of Vedanta. If you know this, not just theoretically but experientially, you have known all the Upanishads, the entire Vedanta. Deham – ‘this body,’ naham – ‘I am not.’ Just as, when I am wearing clothes, you can separate me from my clothes – these are my clothes and I am different from my clothes. In the same way, Vedanta says, the Inner-Self is the atman, and the clothes that one wears is the physical body and that which belongs to me cannot be me. Therefore, I am separate and what belongs to me is separate. So, deham naham – if ‘I am not the body,’ koham? – then, ‘who am I?’ If somebody says, ‘I am just a bundle of flesh and bones,’ it is fine. Let them be content with this feeling. But if somebody says, ‘Let me go deeper into this matter; I may not be just a bundle of flesh and bones, I may be something different. But who am I?’ Ramana Maharshi said that when one is asked this question, koham! ‘Who am I?’ koham? Soham is the answer – ‘I am not different from That Supreme Being.’ ‘That Supreme Self is not different from that Supreme Being’. ‘That Supreme Self am I’ is similar to the Upanishadic statement ‘tat twam asi’ – ‘You are That!’ The study of the Upanishads is not for ‘weak minds’ because one has to take a totally different view of the world. The Upanishad itself declares, Nayam atma balaheenay na labhya – ‘This atman cannot be reached by the weak.’ We are not talking about physical weakness but mental weakness. It requires a great deal of mental strength to understand the Upanishad theoretically, and more than that to begin to live and understand it. So a great deal of strength is required and therefore it is a strength-giving message. To repeat, it is not a philosophy of running away from anything but living where you are and understanding the permanence of the Inner

Reality. That is the essence of the third shloka – ‘Those who live believing only in the permanence of this world, go to great darkness.’ And they are also called atma hano janah – the ‘slayers of the Self,’ because to them, there is no immortal Self. Such people, such beings, wander around in darkness. The fourth shloka describes the Supreme as immanent and transcendent which means, ‘It is here, and yet It is beyond the ken of the mind and the senses’. SHLOKA 4 anejad ekam manaso javiyo nainad deva apnuvan purvam arshat tad dhavato nyan atyeti tishthat tasminn apo matarishva dadhati Anejad means, ‘that which does not move.’ In other words, ‘that Supreme Self does not move’. It is that which is unmoving. Ekam – ‘One’ Manaso javiyo – ‘Even faster and swifter than the mind.’ If that ‘One’ is faster and swifter than the mind, there is no way that the mind can find It. Nainad deva apnuvan purvam arshat – ‘There is no way that the senses can ever reach It.’ Tad dhavato nyan atyeti tishthat tasminn apo matarishva dadhati ‘By itself It stands still. It out-strips those who run to reach for It. In It, the all-pervading air or energy – prana, supports the activities of all beings.’ Now, this again seems to be one of the Upanishadic contradictions, because in the beginning it describes the Supreme Self, anejad – ‘It does not move’ and later, it says, ‘It out-runs.’ If we go into one definition, we would have explained the others. The first one is anejad – ‘unmoving’ and the second, manaso javiyo nainad – ‘swifter than the mind, and the senses too do not reach it, because it is ever ahead of the senses.’ This is a typical attempt at describing the indescribable, which is what the Upanishads are all about. That atman or self, and Brahman or Supreme Reality, is the subject of discussion of the Upanishads. In the beginning of this Upanishad, it is said ‘Ishavasyam idam sarvam’ – ‘That which is everywhere, at all times.’ ‘That Supreme Being,’ the rishis declare, ‘is your Essential Self.’ It is not a material thing that you can describe. So, the formless, the ‘attributeless,’ if It can be defined at all, has to have certain ‘attributes,’ theoretically speaking, to help

us understand. One is that ‘it does not move.’ This is with reference to the fact that the mind is always in movement. It is never still. It is here now, and elsewhere the next minute! If you have read James Joyce’s works, you will know what is called ‘the stream of consciousness technique’ where one thought is linked to another thought, and the links go on endlessly. This unending movement is the quality of the mind-stuff, but the Supreme Reality, according to the Upanishads, is unmoving. Even the search for something is a movement. When one is trying to achieve something, there is the movement of trying. When the mind does not have something, it begins to look for it – so there is a movement, not in time, but in thought. Now, the Supreme Reality which is called in the Upanishads as atman, or referred to in this Upanishad as Isha, pervades everything. Therefore, there is no question of moving from one spot to another. Movement takes place from ‘here’ to ‘there,’ but if something is everywhere, then there is no question of moving from ‘here’ to ‘there.’ It ‘is.’ It does not move and therefore it is different from the mind, because the mind moves. Hence one can come upon that Supreme Being, described in the Upanishads, when the mind has stopped all its movements, inner and outer. This is a tall order of course, but the Upanishads, are all about tall orders! As the Upanishads themselves have declared, Nayam atma balaheenay na labhya – ‘This atman cannot be attained by the weak.’ Strength is required. Manaso javiyo – ‘It is swifter than the mind,’ which means the mind is not swift enough to reach It. Now, the mind is very swift – in a second, from ‘here’ it moves ‘there.’ But what we are talking of is always ‘here,’ ‘there,’ ‘everywhere,’ at the same time. Therefore the mind cannot move to It fast enough because it is there already! The other meaning is – before the mind thinks and wants to move and reach out, Isha, the Supreme Being already knows about it! So, the mind cannot think faster than the Supreme Being. It also means that people who think that they can find the Truth through intellectual acrobatics, cannot find It. They deceive themselves. Anejad ekam – ‘Unmoving, swifter than the mind, the senses do not reach It, because It is ever ahead of them.’ The senses, by themselves, do not reach even some physical objects. The senses, for instance, cannot reach

the molecular structure or atomic structure – they need instruments. Now, here we are talking about something which is definitely beyond the reach of the senses! The senses of sight, taste, hearing, touch, smell – none of these can reach that Supreme Being. What the rishi is trying to say is that, attaining knowledge of the Supreme Being is not an activity of the senses. It is something else – although, from the reaction that takes place when the senses are in contact with the external world, one may draw certain conclusions that establish the existence of that Supreme Being. Since ‘the senses cannot reach It’ the stress is on meditation within. This is the nivrittimarga as opposed to pravritti. The next few descriptions try to support what has already been said. ‘Though it stands still, it out-strips those who run’ – meaning, there is nothing which is faster than It. It is everywhere, all-pervading. It out-strips the senses; it out-strips the capacity of the mind to understand it.’ Therefore, when the mind is seeking It, it cannot reach the Supreme Being. Yet ‘It is still.’ It has no movement. When the mind has completely stopped, when it has become absolutely still, without a single movement, then perhaps one begins to understand what the Upanishad is talking about. Then it says ‘Through the all-pervading prana, It supports the activities of beings.’ It is because of the existence of this Isha, this Supreme Being, that there is life as we see it. In Malayalam there is a beautiful little bhajan which is sung in many houses in the evening. It is significant because, unlike other bhajans, it is speculative and philosophical. kanninu kannu, manam aakum kannu atinu kannayidunna porul njan ennarriyum alavanandam entu hari narayananay namah. kanninu kannu, manam aakum kannu – ‘The mind is the eye of the eye.’ This is a clear and simple statement. Even if the eye is open and all the images that are in front of me are falling on my retinal screen, if my mind is not concentrated, I do not see anything. I might be thinking of something else and therefore ‘seeing’ something else. Therefore, ‘the eye of this eye’ is ‘the mind’ – because it is the one that sees, it observes, it decides, it chooses. The ‘eye’ of the physical eye is ‘the mind.’ ‘Suppose I find out that ‘I’ am the ‘eye’ of ‘the mind.’ How wonderful it is! hari narayananay

namah – this is the kirtan. How wonderful it is to discover that ‘I’ am the ‘eye’ of the mind, which is the eye of the eye. So, being that ‘eye’ of the eye, being the essence of the Consciousness, all that we see, hear, operate; everything works because of this, which is the true ‘I,’ which is the atman! ‘The eye sees everything,’ but the eye does not see itself. You can see your eye in a mirror as an image, but the eye does not see itself, but because it sees everything, we do not doubt its existence. Somewhat similar is the case of the atman. To repeat: even though the eye sees everything, it is not able to see itself. Yet it does not rule out the existence of the eye! Also, because of the eye that other objects are seen. Also, it is because of the ‘I,’ the consciousness, that the whole world is going on. That consciousness is absolute stillness, without any movement at all. Therefore, the closer the mind goes to this state of stillness, the more it is able to comprehend what the Upanishad is talking about. Of course, it is not necessary that one should be a scholar of the Upanishads to understand this. There are many great saints who have probably not gone through the Upanishads, but they say the same thing, from their experiences. Ramana Maharshi, for example, after passing through many experiences, read the scriptures and said, ‘Ah, this is what I saw, this is what I felt.’ He did not read first and feel later. The fifth shloka is a typical presentation that sounds very close to the Zen teachings. One of the important teachings of Zen is to make it clear that even the highest level of intellect, by itself, cannot find the Supreme Truth. This is not to discourage intelligence; we are differentiating here between intelligence and intellect. What the Upanishad is trying to say, what it is trying to do, is to put all our logical thinking into an arrangement that appears to be totally contradictory. That means, what we call cold logical thinking cannot be applied to the understanding of the Supreme Being. The smallest, the slightest manifestation of this understanding is what one would call ‘affection’ or ‘love.’ If love is only given in exchange for getting something in return, like love or gifts, then that is not the love we are talking about. Love is great affection expecting nothing in return. It is rare, and there is no logic to it. Our logic is, ‘My love must get me something in return.’ It is logical to ask, ‘Why are you giving without expecting anything in return?’ This question

cannot be asked to the person who really has understood how to love. He gives – you cannot ask ‘For what?’ The fifth shloka, although it sounds as if it is another deliberate ploy to confuse, it is not. It says: SHLOKA 5 tad ejati tan naijati tad dure tad vadantike tad antarasya sarvasya tad u sarvasyasya baahyatah. Tad ejati tan naijati tad dure tad vadantike – ‘It moves, yet it moves not. It is far and yet it is near.’ Tad antarasya sarvasya – ‘It is within all this.’ Tad u sarvasyasya baahyatah – ‘It is outside all this.’ Now, on the one hand, it is a confirmation of the first shloka – Ishavasyam idam sarvam – ‘That Supreme Being pervades everything here.’ If it pervades everything here and if it is your essential Self, then you will understand what is meant by – ‘It moves and it moves not.’ It moves when we think that we are separate from it – then we move towards it. But when we understand that we are not separate from that Supreme Being, then there is no movement. Therefore, ‘It moves and it moves not.’ ‘It is far....’ If you think that it is something to be grasped, a philosophical concept or a speculative understanding, something to read and understand, then it is far. We cannot get to it because ‘It is swifter than the mind.’ If it is swifter than the mind, then it is very far off. Even the mind cannot reach it, leave alone the physical body. And then the rishi says ‘...and yet it is near’ which means that, when the mind has understood this implication and has absolutely quietened down and become silent, then it is near. It is seen as pervading everywhere and therefore it is here. So, ‘it is far and it is near. It moves and yet it does not move.’ Tad antarasya sarvasya – ‘It is within everything.’ Tad u sarvasyasya baahyatah – ‘and yet it is outside.’ That means it is inside and also outside. There is no way that you can get out of this Supreme Being, whether you like it or not. Either you are within, or the Supreme Being is within you. You can look at it both ways!

Then comes the sixth shloka. From pure speculative philosophy so far, the rishi now comes to something, touching on the personal. SHLOKA 6 yas tu sarvani bhutani atmany evaanupashyati sarva bhuteshu chatmanam tato na vijugupsate. He says, ‘He who sees all beings in his own self, and his own self in all beings, does not feel any revulsion whatsoever.’ That means, a person who begins to understand, who is absolutely still and quiet, who begins to inhale the fragrance of that Supreme Being, sees that he has no enemies anymore. He cannot be revolted he cannot be against anything or anybody, because he sees his Self in them and their Self in him. That Supreme Being pervades all. He is your antaryami, the antaryami in every one of us. To consider yourself as a separate person, and therefore create a division between ‘you’ and ‘me’ has to cease. Only when this ceases, can we forge global unity for the human race – not through politics, not through social work, but through understanding that there is no division between ‘you’ and ‘me.’ That is the only way, because we have tried all other ways. The only way is for a human being to understand that he is not different from other human beings. That can take place only when one begins to look deep within oneself to find out what is the essential being; not what has been built around it. That, says the Upanishad, is your inner atman which is not different from the atman of the other person. He who has understood that Ishavasyam idam sarvam yat kincha jagatyam jagat – that ‘Self is the Supreme Being that pervades everything – that which moves and that which does not move; such a person has no revulsion against anybody.’ SHLOKA 7 yasmin sarvani bhutani atmaivabhud vijanatah tatra ko mohah kah shokah ekatvam anupashyatah This is a corollary to what has already been said before. Yasmin sarvani bhutaniatmaivabhud vijanatah – ‘When one realizes that that Supreme Self is the inner reality of all beings, when one realizes that all beings are verily his own Self,’

Tatra ko mohah kah shokah ekatvam anupashyatah- ‘Such a person, who is established in complete Oneness, when he sees that all is One, where in him is the place for delusion and where is the place for sorrow?’ They say there is no cure for baldness, but there is something that is worse – jealousy. When one sees somebody prospering, one is consumed with jealousy, instead of feeling happy! Why is this? This is because one sees two people here – I am different, and you are different. But that person who sees the essential oneness of everything, enjoys another person having something. He says to himself, ‘Whether I have it or that person has it, it is the same thing.’ Of course, this is very easy to say but very difficult to actually feel. It needs practice to be able to feel like that, because without practice, one cannot do anything. One cannot remain in the level of theory all the time. But to practice this, one has to first firmly believe that the essential Self is not different in you and in me. ‘Then there is no delusion, then there is no sorrow,’ because when the world enjoys, it is my enjoyment! In the same way, therefore, such a person also must necessarily have compassion, because when somebody else suffers, it becomes his own suffering. So, ‘One who understands or is established firmly in the Oneness of the Self, has neither delusion nor sorrow.’ He understands the ‘oneness of the Self,’ where he is ‘alone’ but knows that ‘all is One.’ Somebody once said that ‘alone’ really means ‘all One,’ although we think that ‘alone’ means separate. Then comes a sort of description of the Supreme Being. If you can describe the Supreme Being at all, here is one way of describing the indescribable: SHLOKA 8 sa paryagach chukram akaayam avranam asnaaviram shuddham apaapa viddham kavir manishi paribhuh svayambhur yathatathyatorthan vyadadhac chashvatibhyas samabhyah. Sa paryagachukram – ‘He has filled all and is radiant.’ That means ‘He is everywhere, his radiance is everywhere’ or ‘That pervasive radiance is everywhere.’ Here, ‘radiant’ is not to be misunderstood as the light which we normally know of, which is the absence of darkness. This is

‘effulgence,’ which is nothing to do with darkness and light. ‘Spiritual effulgence’ – that is what is called ‘radiance.’ Akaayam – That means ‘It has no body,’ which means, It has no form or shape of any kind. Avranam – ‘That which is not vulnerable,’ which cannot be cut or hurt or injured. ‘That which cannot be injured,’ not only from the physical point of view but also from the psychological point of view. What we must understand is that, when a description of the Supreme Being is given and when it is said that one’s essential identity is not different from that Supreme Being, the yogi who moves closer and closer to that Supreme Being begins to have these attributes little by little. So the person established in the stability of the Supreme Self also ‘cannot be injured.’ Of course, if he stands in the middle of the road and gets hit, he will be injured; but we don’t mean that! Psychologically, one cannot injure him, because he has not made an image for himself. There is nothing that one can break, because only if one has an image can it be broken! Here, images have all been discarded and there is only stillness. Remember, as long as there is movement, there is an image. Asnaaviram – ‘He is not a physical thing,’ with muscles and bones and sinew. Shuddham – ‘Pure,’ absolutely pure. Apaapa viddham – ‘Untouched,’ unsoiled by any kind of evil. Kavir manishi paribhuh svayambhur yathatathyatorthan vyadadhachashvatibhyas samabhyah – ‘He is the seer, the thinker, the all pervading Self.’ And, since the beginning of creation, He has distributed Himself in all objects according to their own nature while remaining attributeless. The Supreme Being has divided Itself over the years into all the attributes seen in the world before us. By Itself being without any movement, It has distributed Itself into this variegated world. Therefore, to get back to It, one must turn away from this differentiation and get back into the Unity. Differentiation has taken place; now to get back into Unity is the purpose of sadhana. The Upanishad says that ‘the Supreme Being is immutable, uninjurable, absolutely still, unmoving’ and so on. But what we see is the ‘injurable, moving, different, divisible’; this is what we see with our senses. So it seems to be a contradiction. The Upanishad says that ‘The Supreme Being

is absolutely clear, still, silent, peaceful and all-pervading.’ But we see only differences. We see only strife and chaos. The Upanishad teaches us to come out of this differentiation, back to the essential Unity. That is the purpose of the teaching and that is the purpose of sadhana. The next shloka, the ninth, is very significant. It has also created a lot of confusion, because the first part of it can be easily understood, but the second part seems to be a total contradiction. SHLOKA 9 andham tamaha pravishanti ya avidyam upasate tato bhuya iva te tamo ya u vidyayam ratah The first part is, andham tamaha pravishanti ya avidyam upasate – ‘Into great darkness, blinding darkness, enter those who follow ignorance or worship ignorance.’ Now this is clear. We all agree that those who worship ignorance or those who follow ignorance will enter into darkness. This is understandable. The second part seems to be a contradiction. ‘Tato bhuya iva te tamo ya u vidyayam ratah’ – but those who delight in knowledge enter into greater darkness. Now, this is a very big contradiction! Should we not learn? Does knowledge cause us to enter into greater darkness? It is understandable that when we follow ignorance we enter into darkness. But, ‘those who worship knowledge or delight in knowledge enter into greater darkness’ – this is something one has to examine very carefully. The usual interpretation to this statement is that, by ‘ignorance’ is meant all the worldly knowledge which we have. Since it is not the knowledge of the Spirit, it is considered to be ‘ignorance.’ Only the understanding of Spirit is true ‘knowledge.’ Any knowledge which does not contribute to the understanding of the inner Self is still ignorance and therefore darkness – that is one theory. One has to look a little more closely at the word ‘knowledge.’ Especially because the same Upanishad says, ‘That Supreme Self cannot be reached by the mind or the senses.’ When one says ‘intelligence,’ ‘knowledge’ and so on, it is still within the field of the mind. So one of the interpretations that can be made is this: if somebody, after studying a lot about the Supreme Being, feels he has understood the Supreme Being and is therefore rejoicing, ‘he is entering into greater darkness,’ because he has not

understood it. He understands it only when the mind has become absolutely still and that is not the function of knowledge. The function of knowledge, the function of the intellect, the Upanishads say, is to lead one to understand its limitations in the field of the Spirit. The Upanishads go further: ‘Nothing that you worship here is the Supreme Being’! This is what the Kena Upanishad says: Yan manasa na manute yenahur mano matam tadeva Brahma tvam viddhi nedam yad idam upasate – ‘that which the mind cannot reach, but which is the basis of the mind, know That alone is Truth, nothing that you worship here.’ When he says, ‘nothing that you worship,’ it does not mean that you are not supposed to do any worship. It means no activity, pravritti, on your part can bring about the realization of the Supreme. In fact, no pravritti can bring it about. It is the nivritti marga. Therefore, when the mind becomes quiet and when quietness enters, then ‘That’ is revealed. The other point is that if one examines the actual character of what we call ‘knowledge,’ we come upon something very interesting. Let us say we don’t have knowledge of a particular subject, and we set about trying to understand it. After some time of study, we understand it. That understanding is important. But after the understanding, what happens? When I say, ‘I have knowledge of the subject’ it means I have stored the understanding in my brain in the form of a memory. All knowledge is memory that has been stored, ready for retrieval. And when one says, ‘I have a good memory’, it means one has the capacity to retrieve correctly what has been stored at any time in the past. This is what is meant by ‘having a good memory’ or, in other words, ‘knowledge of the subject.’ Memory cannot be a thing of the present, it can only be of the past. We would not have to recall it if it is not a thing of the past. Therefore, any knowledge, including theoretical knowledge of the scriptures, lies in the past. And what does the Upanishad say? Ishavasyam idam sarvam – ‘That Supreme Being pervades everything, here and now!’ So, the knowledge of the Supreme Being, is not something that can be understood, stored and kept for reference! When it is understood, it is always understood, it is always present. It is not something that can be recalled. It is not something that can be recorded and retrieved. Once there, it is always there! If it goes, then it is not the knowledge of the Supreme; because it is a memory, it has

vanished. So, ‘Into blinding darkness enter those who worship ignorance; into greater darkness enter those who delight in knowledge!’ Now, there is another psychological explanation to this, which is, when the mind becomes filled with the pride of having acquired knowledge and thinks that it will now see the Supreme Being, then it is very far away from understanding the Supreme, because now the ego has come in. Here, our effort should be to reverse the process and break down the barrier of ego. Sometimes, knowledge also becomes an obstacle to the understanding of the Truth, because Truth should be absolutely clear and simple. It need not be scholastic; it need not be intellectual. And, filled with this knowledge, sometimes one does not have space in the mind to receive a glimpse of the Supreme Being, even if it comes. There is a story about a professor who went to a great yogi and asked, ‘When will I attain Self-realization?’ And the yogi told him, ‘Sir, you will take at least six to seven years.’ Then the postman, who had come there to deliver letters to the yogi said, ‘Sir, I think I must stop all this work now and keep quiet. I have this feeling of wonderful stillness coming in my heart when I come near you. I don’t know what it is. Whenever I come, I listen when you talk to others – though I have not read any books.... When will I attain that absolute stillness which you talk about?’ The yogi said, ‘Soon, very soon; may be in a few days!’ The professor got very upset. ‘What is this yogi saying? Here I am who has studied everything, and this postman knows nothing. Then how can he attain self–realization in a few days while I need six years!’ When he had cooled down, the yogi said, ‘Sir, it will take me six years to clear the rubbish which you have collected in your memory! When it is gone, the rest is easy!’ Then there is this famous story about the learned professor who went to the Zen master and said, ‘I have come to understand Zen. Please give me Satori – Zen!’ (The great experience of Zen is Sa-tori). The master said, ‘Sir, first let’s have some tea.’ So he made tea and then poured the tea into a cup. As he poured, the cup became full and started to overflow. The professor exclaimed, ‘The cup is over-flowing!’ The master turned to him and said, ‘So also is your cup Sir. It is overflowing! How can I give you Zen? It is already full, so it is unable to receive anything. First, it has to become empty!’

The tenth shloka supports what has already been expressed. SHLOKA 10 anyad evahur vidyaya anyad ahur avidyaya iti shushruma dhiranam ye nas tad vichachakshire. ‘They say that the result of knowledge is different from the result of ignorance. This, we have heard from the wise, who have explained it to us.’ Now, the rishi is talking in humble terms. He does not say, ‘I am saying this.’ He says, ‘This has been explained to me by the wise, from whom we have heard that there are two results – from knowledge comes one result and from ignorance comes another.’ This means that the process of understanding brings about a result, which is the knowledge of the object about which we seek to understand. The result of ignorance is that we do not know about the object which we are trying to understand. These are the two results. The ‘object’ referred to is the Supreme Self. It is not any physical or material object, but the object of enquiry of the Upanishad – that Supreme Being. Knowledge and ignorance – these are the two outcomes of this process. SHLOKA 11 vidyaam chaavidyaam cha yas tad vedobhayam saha avidyaya mrityum tirtva vidyayaamritam ashnute. This means, ‘But one who knows these two together, knowledge and ignorance, crosses death through ignorance and attains life eternal through knowledge.’ Now, how can one cross death through ignorance and attain life eternal? ‘Life eternal through knowledge,’ we can understand; but how does one ‘cross death through ignorance?’ This is another of those difficult parts of the Upanishad. If we have followed what has been discussed till now, a slight glimmer of light will appear. The shloka before this said that the results of knowledge and ignorance are distinct and different. This shloka says, ‘But if you understand both, knowledge and ignorance together, then you cross death through ignorance, and life eternal through knowledge.’ Now, actually, both are the same. ‘Life eternal’ is the same as ‘crossing death.’ There is no difference!

In the vedic prayer, mrityor ma amritam gamaya – ‘lead me from mrityu to amrityu,’ – it is the same thing. Amrityu means amrita – ‘immortality.’ That means, when one understands this concept of knowledge and ignorance which is, ‘the one who worships ignorance enters into darkness and the one who worships knowledge enters into greater darkness,’ then one has understood knowledge and ignorance together for what they really stand. If you have understood that, then you have ‘crossed death and attained life eternal.’ ‘Crossed death through ignorance’ – there must be some reason why they have used ‘ignorance’ with ‘death’ and put them together. ‘Understanding ignorance’ means ‘to be free of that ignorance.’ You cannot be free of something until you have understood it. If you want to be free of violence, you have to first understand what violence is, in all its intricate patterns, and this cannot be done by sitting for years in a cave. It has to be done only in society. There is nobody to be violent with in the cave. Only when you come out of the cave, interact with others and get hurt in the process, will you really know whether or not you are really free of anger and violence. So, to understand ignorance means to understand the implications of the meaning of ignorance. And when you have understood that, you are free of death. When you have understood that the Supreme Being which pervades everything, which pervades the entire universe, is no different from your Self, then there is no death for you. Even a yogi or a rishi who has understood or has taught the Upanishad dies physically. Physical death is there for everyone. But the yogi understands that his inner Self does not die. Therefore, he ‘crosses over death.’ Amrita does not mean ‘to be free from physical death’; it means, ‘to understand that the inner Self or the inner Consciousness does not cease to exist with the demise of the physical body.’ The twelfth shloka is about the manifest world and the unmanifest cause–the manifest and the unmanifest Brahman. SHLOKA 12 andham tamah pravishanti ye asambhutim upasate tato bhuya iva te tamo ya u sambhutyam rataah.

‘Into blinding darkness enter those who worship the unmanifest and into still greater darkness, as it were, enter those who delight in the manifest!’ The same style of teaching occurs again and again in the Upanishad. Now, the ‘manifest’ means ‘the world’ that is ‘manifested’ – the world that we see in everyday life. Let us start from the last part of this shloka – ‘they enter greater darkness who delight in the manifest.’ That means, those who delight only in the physical world and whose relationship with the world is only physical, going nothing beyond food, drink, sleep and sex – ‘they enter into greater darkness’. This is very simple. Unless we have chosen not to look, we see the darkness. That means, at every step there is a problem and at every step there is the spectre of sorrow and death haunting us. This is not being pessimistic; this is fact. Everything is indeterminate, unknown. We never know when life is going to end. We do not know when something will last, and when something will end. We never know when the little snatches of happiness that we have, are going to escape from our hands. As one progresses, as one grows older and older, one begins to see that life is coming slowly to a close. Going nearer and nearer to the end, one begins to see that one is staring into darkness – there is nothing to see, there is nothing to gain, nothing to get, nothing more to enjoy. There are those who worship the unmanifest. They also enter into darkness, but not as great a darkness as those who worship only the manifest. ‘Worshipping the unmanifest’ means worshipping that which is the cause of the manifest world. The Upanishadic teaching is that one has to transcend both, the manifest and the unmanifest. When they speak of the unmanifest they are speaking about the Supreme Reality as a creator, destroyer and so on. It is unmanifest because it is behind the manifestations that we see before us. It is the operator of all that operates. The Upanishad says that you can remain at that level, but the Truth, which is Light, is beyond both, the manifest as well as the unmanifest. That means we have to transcend even the very differentiation between the individual self and the Supreme Being. The manifest is the individual and the unmanifest is the Supreme. One has to understand that the individual self and the Supreme Being are one and the same. Otherwise, according to the Upanishad, we are still operating, comparatively, from a level of darkness. Since we are dealing with Upanishadic philosophy we are dealing with death as in the ‘death’ of the ‘conditioned individual,’ and the manifestation of the immeasurable Supreme Being. Therefore, we chant the last shlokas

of the Upanishad, the funeral prayers, in the end so that the ‘little I’ is cremated and the ‘larger I,’ Ishwara or Isha, manifests itself. There are several initiation rites in many mystic orders that celebrate the ‘death’ of the initiate. When the ‘little ego,’ the ‘little I’ is done with and becomes still, then the ‘greater I’ manifests itself. This is the message of the Upanishad. Swami Vivekananda once summed up the essence of the whole of the Hindu religion and culture by saying, ‘Man is essentially divine. To manifest this divinity through work, worship, meditation or knowledge is the sum and substance of the Hindu religion, the Hindu teaching.’ All other things are just incidental. So far, we have in detail gone into the genesis of what Upanishad means and what the Ishavasya Upanishad says. Starting with the first shloka, we have come up to the twelfth shloka. It is desirable to recount in a nutshell what we have gone through and then return to the next. The Upanishad, in its essence, is a teaching given from a teacher, personally, to a learner or a student. It is not a text that is to be treated merely at a scholastic level. It is to do with the inner awakening, and that is one of the reasons why the Upanishads were reserved for those who had already gone through everything else in life and come to the last stage. The ancients divided the different stages of life into the four ashramas – brahmacharya, grihasta, vanaprasta and sanyasa. The study of the Upanishads was partly taken up during brahmacharya, but the most important aspects were generally taken up during the vanaprasta stage, expect in notable exceptions where the student, as a brahmachari, had the capacity to go directly to the Upanishad, which is a very important and advanced part of the Vedas. That is why the Upanishad is also called Vedanta – it comes at the end of the other portions of the Vedas. After one mastered the Samhitas and the Brahmanas, one went to the Aranyakas and the Upanishads. Aranyaka means ‘forest’ and therefore the Upanishads are sometimes referred to as ‘forest-scriptures’ which were taught in foresthermitages. Therefore, it is not merely a study to compare and criticize, or for intellectual hair-splitting. It is more to do with one’s inner development. It is a guide, a blueprint to the inner development. This is the spirit with which the Upanishad has to be studied. The word ‘Upanishad’ itself means that.

As explained, upa means ‘to go closer,’ ‘to go nearer.’ Shad means ‘to sit and listen’; and ‘ni’ indicates the student’s humility in admitting that he is at a lower level than the teacher. Even the teacher speaks with great humility when he says, ‘This is what we have heard, as taught by the ancients.’ The Ishavasya Upanishad is part of the Yajur Veda. The first shloka is actually the sum and substance of the entire Upanishad. If we go deep into the first and the second shlokas, we actually have the whole Upanishad. The first shloka is ‘Ishavasyam idam sarvam yat kincha jagatyam jagat tena tyaktena bhunjitha ma gridah kasya svid dhanam’. Ishavasyam idam sarvam – ‘that Supreme Being pervades everything here.’ Yat kincha jagatyam jagat – ‘that which moves and that which does not move.’ Tena tyaktena bhunjitha – ‘therefore, give up and rejoice!’ Now, this is the key phrase of the Upanishad – ‘give up’ or ‘let go.’ Normally, when we say ‘enjoy’ or ‘rejoice’ we mean ‘acquire and rejoice!’ Here is an Upanishad which says ‘give up and rejoice!’ So ‘give up’ not only means ‘to give up physical objects’ it also means, ‘to let go of the mind’s hold on the ego.’ That is more important. When you ‘let go,’ then the mind is cleared and one experiences, or at least, one goes close to the understanding of ‘Ishavasyam idam sarvam’ – ‘that Supreme Being pervades everything here.’ And, says the Upanishad, ‘The one who begins to understand this can live a hundred years doing his karmas without fear of getting even one blot on his life from the effects of his karmas.’ The second shloka says ‘Jijivishet shatam samah’ – for one hundred years one can work, ‘na karma lipyate nare’ – karma does not touch you. When one begins to understand what has been said in the first shloka, then from there, the Upanishadic thought is developed and brought to the understanding of: - what is real and what is unreal; - what is knowledge and what is ignorance; - how knowledge alone cannot lead to understanding the Supreme Being; - that the highest understanding that should come out of knowledge is to understand the limitations of that intellectual knowledge; - that it is not the intellect that is more important but some other quality which helps the clearing of the inner-centres so that the energies of the Supreme Being are free to act without obstacles.

Then the Upanishad explains the condition of such a person who has understood this concept of the Supreme Being pervading everywhere, the Supreme Being being as his very own Self, and therefore also the very Self of all other beings. For such a person, the Upanishad asks, ‘Where can there be sorrow and how can there be death, for he has understood that everything is himself!’ For a person who has understood that his inner spirit is the same as the inner spirit in the other person, ‘Where is delusion? Where is sorrow? Where is death?’ Physical death is common to all. So when they say, amrita – ‘immortality,’ it does not mean that one will remain alive forever. It means that the person realizes that the inner essence does not end with the end of the physical body. It remains forever in its own essential bliss. Then we came to the examination of what is knowledge and what is ignorance. Here the statement is made, ‘He who worships ignorance enters into darkness and he who worships knowledge, who delights in knowledge alone, enters into greater darkness.’ We examined this carefully and discussed why this statement is made; mere intellectual knowledge cannot take one to the Supreme Being and no verbal acrobatics can ever lead one to self-realization. We also discussed the level upto which the intellect and the mind can travel, after which the mind in its subtlety, in the height of its awareness, understands the limitations of mere cerebration and then quietens down. In that stillness comes about the realization of the Supreme Being. Great intellectual giants who have been in the forefront of Vedantic thought, especially Adi Shankaracharya (who wrote so many commentaries on the shastras), were also aware of the fact that there is a level beyond which the mind cannot travel. Now we come to the thirteenth shloka, where distinction is made between what is manifest and what is unmanifest. SHLOKA 13 anyad evahuh sambhavad anyad ahur asambhavat iti shushruma dhiranam ye nas tad vichachakshire. Anyad evahuh sambhavad anyad ahur asambhavat – ‘Indeed, they say, the results of the manifest are distinct from the results of the unmanifest.’ Iti shushruma dhiranam ye nas tad vichachakshire – ‘Thus we have heard from the ancients, the results that come from the worship of the

manifest are different from the results of worshipping the unmanifest.’ The difference between the manifest and the unmanifest is that ‘manifest’ means ‘the world which is manifested out of the Supreme Being,’ and ‘the unmanifest’ is ‘the cause of this manifestation.’ So the results of worshipping the two are different. The unmanifest is that Supreme Being from whom this manifestation has taken place. One who worships the unmanifest, who tries to understand the inner core of this manifest world, realizes ultimately that the core is his own inner Self and therefore the inner self of all living beings. The one who worships the manifest world often completely ignores the source and cause – the unmanifest Supreme Being – and believes that the manifest world is all that ‘is.’ His values are entirely based on the manifest and therefore when sorrow strikes him, or when death overtakes him, everything is at an end. When we come face to face with disease and death, then we begin to understand the foolishness of depending only on the manifest, because soon it is all going to disappear, and we wonder ‘Is there something permanent other than this?’ That question is what the Upanishads ask and try to answer, or rather, try to bring out the answer from us. Dialogue is a very important method of teaching in the Upanishads. If one imposes an answer on somebody, then that is a second-hand answer and after sometime it will be forgotten or ignored. The answer has to come from within. Therefore it is more important to keep a question alive than to get a ready-made answer from somebody. And it all depends on our personal sadhana because, as we keep the question in mind and do our sadhana, the psychic capacity, or let us say, the ‘intellectual’ capacity to answer this question also increases. Then we discover that our answer is where our question started. Introspection is something that one should not avoid and has to do. One should not look for ready-made answers. There are ready-made answers available in books, but they mean nothing unless they form part of our own experience. And the strength of the Upanishads lies in taking us on to this experience within. That is why sometimes they go through these subtle intellectual acrobatics, so that the answer is worked out within oneself. So, for those who worship only the manifest world, the result is different from the result of the worship of the unmanifest, which is the cause of this manifest world. But sometimes pure introspection can go to extremes. The

Ishavasya Upanishad is one of the Upanishads that tries to bring about a balance between too much monasticism and too much worldliness. That is why the second shloka says, ‘Do your karma for a hundred years; don’t run away! If you do it with the understanding that the Supreme Being pervades everything, then the effect of the karma will not touch you.’ This is one of the principal Upanishads, and also one of the oldest, which tries to bring about a balance between extreme monastic life on one side, and worldly life on the other. After explaining that the result of worshipping the unmanifest is different from the effect of worshipping the manifest, the next shloka says: SHLOKA 14 sambhutim cha vinasham cha yas tad vedobhayam saha vinashena mrityum tirtva sambhutya amritam ashnute. ‘He who understands the manifest and the unmanifest together, crosses death.’ This is said because one could otherwise become one-sided and forget the world and concentrate only on the unmanifest! This is almost impossible because it requires a great deal of physical, mental, and psychological preparation. ‘Understanding the unmanifest and the manifest together’ means to live where you are, and simultaneously go on with your studies and your search for the Truth, giving enough importance to the manifest as well as the unmanifest, until you begin to understand the truth that the Supreme Being is the only living reality, and is all-pervading. Only then can you give up the manifest, but not before that, because it is a question of maturity. Few human beings reach that level of maturity where they can directly go to the unmanifest, giving no attention to the manifest. But, if the rest, who are not ready, try to imitate them, they might go some distance but come back again. Vairagya is important, but vairagya should not be like what Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa used to call ‘the monkey’s vairagya!’ So, one has to go carefully. Keep the manifest in view, keep the unmanifest in view, balance the two and move forward. When one is completely convinced, then one can drop the manifest. In fact, you do not even have to drop it. Maya pushes you out; you don’t have to even try! For example: When the embryo is in the womb of the mother for nine months, the muscles of the womb protect the embryo until it matures. When it is matured and has become a child who is ready to emerge, then the same

muscles that were protecting the embryo, push the child out because the child has attained the level of maturity to be free. When maturity develops by study, understanding, sadhana, meditation and other means, then automatically you are out of the manifest, you don’t have to try to come out! The moment you try to come out half-heartedly it means there is much more distance left to travel. When the understanding comes, it comes at once, nothing can stop it! When the understanding comes, one does not have this uncertainty whether one should give up or not. As long as uncertainty is there, stick to what you have and carry on slowly; do your sadhana, study, be at peace. In Shirdi, there are two words written on top of the samadhi of Shirdi Sai Baba: Shraddha and Saburi. In Marathi, saburi means ‘patience,’ like sabar in Hindi. This patience is of great importance, even in sadhana. People become very impatient – ‘I’ve been doing this bandha, that bandha, this yoga and that meditation – and the kundalini is still not rising within me!’ This is the complaint one hears often. But you see, first of all, your mind is so agitated! Cool it down, calm it down; let us be patient. One works a lifetime to build up a decent bank balance. But when it comes to sadhana, everything has to be done in a week’s time. Otherwise it is not worth it! For everything else we don’t mind working and slaving for years, but for this search, magical solutions are expected! Unfortunately, there are some who say that they can provide this magic through short-cuts. That is another problem. The shlokas from the fifteenth upto the eighteenth are chanted at the funeral rites. SHLOKA 15 hiranmayena patrena satyasyaapihitam mukham tattwam pushann apaavrinu satya dharmaya drishtaye. Hiranmayena paatrena satyasyaapihitam mukham: ‘The face of the Supreme Truth is covered by a golden disc.’ And the student says, ‘O Pushann, O Surya, O controller of everything, remove this golden disc that covers your face, so that I, who love the Truth, may perceive It!’ This is a beautiful prayer. This prayer is only for the one who loves the Truth, who prays, ‘May I see it in all its glory.’

This ‘golden disc’ that covers the face of Truth is the captivating glamour and glitter of the world. Often, most of us are carried away by the shining ‘golden disc.’ So this prayer is, ‘I can do nothing about this goldendisc except plead; please remove it O Pushann, O Controller, so that I may see you as you are, as the Real Truth!’ Since Pushann also means Surya, the Sun-God, the ‘golden disc’ could also figuratively refer to the golden color of the sun when it rises in the morning and sets in the evening. ‘Remove that golden disc so that I may see your face.’ It also means, ‘Remove all the attributes so that I may see you as the Attributeless Supreme Being.’ This is the second interpretation. The second part of this prayer, which is, ‘I, who am the lover of Truth,’ is important. If one is not the lover of ‘Truth’ then one can be happy with that golden disc alone. One does not want to look beyond it. Now, even after going through this Upanishad, the student has to still make a prayer and say, ‘Please remove this golden disc so that I may see you face-to-face.’ It is noteworthy that even at the highest level of intellectual speculation, prayer still has importance. If you say, ‘I am the Supreme Being, so I don’t have to pray’ then you don’t have to, provided you really know. Otherwise, prayer is important till one has crossed that distinction. And prayer is not a ‘silly thing’ which has come down to us from ancient times as a leftover item from the primitive people who worshipped fire and the elements. It has been seen that through prayer, even disease and physical problems can be cured to a great extent. If a hundred people pray together, if their minds are fixed together on attaining an objective, there are more chances of getting it than when one single person is trying to do the same. When we go to a holy place where thousands of pilgrims have come and prayed, there is a certain change that takes place in us. It is partly because of the atmosphere of the place, and the major contribution to the atmosphere are the thousands of people who go there, with their minds fixed on the Deity. The mental energy of millions of people gets accumulated at that holy place and so when we go there, we share it. The Upanishad is trying to say that ultimately, the most important truth is within. When a temple is built, and the image of the deity is actually being made, the sculptor sits on the chest and knocks at the nose, because it has not yet become the Deity – it is still a stone. And then when the image

is complete, there begins an elaborate process. The vedic kriya called prana pratishta is done, then the homa – the holy fire is lit, then the avahan, and so on. The person who does the prana pratishta first clears up his own inner-heart – hridaya. Then he does the avahan – he invites the Deity to come and settle in his heart, his temple within, and from there he transfers the energy to the heart of the stone deity in the actual temple and the prana pratishta has been completed. That Deity has become God! So it is from within, within the heart, that the whole thing starts. So ‘I, who love to see the ‘Truth’ request you, pray to you, please remove this golden disc that covers your countenance, so that I may come face to face with you as the Supreme Truth’ – is the first prayer. SHLOKA 16 pushann ekarshe yama surya prajapatya vyuha rashmin samuha tejah yat te rupam kalyanatamam tat te pashyami yo saav asau purushah so ham asmi. Pushann ekarshe yama surya prajapatya vyuha rashmin samuha tejah – these are all descriptions of Surya or Pushann; the Controller, the Seer, the off-spring of Prajapathi. Yat te rupam kalyanatamam tat te pashyami yo saavasau purushah so ham asmi – ‘Spread forth your rays – gather up your Light so that I may behold you.’ Let us say that the golden-disc has been removed and the ‘Truth’ shines forth in all its glory. Then the disciple says, ‘Please gather up your rays; let me behold you because the flash is too much for the physical eyes, for me, the limited being, to see you. Please then show me your radiant form so that I can come to terms with what I am seeing.’ If we go into the Old Testament, there is something similar given there. When Moses went up the Mount, he is supposed to have seen God in the form of a ‘burning bush’ – Light. He sees nothing but a light shining. The story is that Moses did not see the bare Truth. The brightness would have blinded him. So it was seen from behind the tree which looked like a ‘burning bush.’ And when Moses entered wearing his shoes, a voice said, ‘Remove your shoes, for you are on sacred land!’ This is what we do when we go to a temple – we remove our shoes and enter. Again we draw a parallel between the Upanishad and the Old Testament. Moses asked this Light that was burning behind the tree, ‘Who are you?’

because at that time, he probably thought that God was somebody sitting in heaven with a crown on his head. The answer he got in the Hebrew language was – ahiyae ashar ahiyae – which means ‘I am That I am!’ There is no other way that it can be described but as ‘I am That I am!’ So here, after praying for the golden disc to be removed the devotee says, ‘Please gather up your radiant light so that I may see your lovely form.’ The word ‘form’ is being used because, for most people, a form is necessary to relate to. To understand and have a relationship with an attributeless nothingness is next to impossible for most people. This is why the system of worship through images has been established. You may choose the image you are comfortable with – the divine mother, or Krishna, or the Siva Linga. ‘Please show me your beautiful form so that I may rejoice in it!’ From the form, one can go to the formless. Lest people mistake the meaning of the prayer and think that it talks about wanting to see the Supreme Being in form alone, the rishi adds, ‘That purusha who I want to see, that am I!’ Soham Asmi! ‘That which I seek to see, to whom I pray, is no different from my Inner Self.’ This is a beautiful prayer. It not only asks the Supreme to be seen, it also says, ‘That Essence, that great Being whom I, the lover of ‘Truth’ would like to see in Its wondrous form – Soham Asmi! That is not different from my own ‘Inner Being,’ my own Inner Essence!’ That means, I exist because of It; if That is not, then I am not. Now, while this is the teaching in the Upanishad, which is a highly speculative and philosophical text, the bhakta in his simplicity, comes to the same point! The Vedantin, after going through the Vedantic texts and meditating on it, comes to the understanding that the Supreme Being transcends the limitations of the intellect. The bhakta, however from the beginning says, ‘I know nothing except that I can’t find ‘Him’ through the intellect, so let me attach my mind to that Supreme Being. The Vedas have said it, so let me have faith and fix my mind.’ In the case of Bhakti, it begins with faith; in the case of Jnana or intellectual reasoning it begins with doubt; but in the end, the conclusion is that realization comes about when the mind has become absolutely still, either through bhakti or through karma or through jnana or through Vedanta. As long as this ‘little I’ is super-active, ‘the real I’ will not

manifest itself. When ‘this’ becomes quiet and silent, then ‘That’ manifests itself as one’s own Supreme Self. This is the teaching of the Upanishad. There is a very interesting book called Bardo – The Tibetan Book of the Dead. When a person is about to die and he is on his deathbed, the chief lama goes and sits near the person, holds his hand and chants the ‘Bardo’ in Tibetan. If you translate it into Sanskrit it will sound just like the seventeenth shloka: SHLOKA 17 vayur anilam amritam athedam bhasmantam shariram aum krito smara kritam smara krito smara kritam smara. Vayur anilam amritam athedam: ‘May this life enter into the immortal breath’ – this is the prayer. This is still chanted when a person dies. Perhaps it was originally intended that one sits and chants this when a person is dying, is going away. The mind is reminded that this life, the soul, is entering into the Immortal Breath. Bhasmantam shariram – ‘This body is becoming ashes.’ The person is reminded, ‘You are not the body! The body is ending in ashes, but you are going to the other sphere, mingling with the Vital Breath.’ And then, a message to the intelligence; ‘Aum krito smara kritam smara krito smara kritam smara’ – ‘Remember, remember what we are doing here; remember what we are telling you, remember O Intelligence, remember!’ ‘Go! Go with this understanding; remember that you are the Supreme Spirit; remember that your body is becoming ashes and you are free! Mingling with the immortal breath, go!’ Aum krito smara kritam smara krito smara kritam smara. This is a prayer chanted when a person is dying. Now we come to the question: Is it to be obtained only when a person is dying? Or is it something which we should remember at all times? Because, who knows when death comes? So let us say that death is like a welcome friend – always with us! Even if you are afraid of it, it won’t go away. So why be afraid of it? Stay with it! Death is ever at our doorstep. It is our companion. It is nothing to worry about. Therefore remember; let this life mingle with the vital breath. That Supreme Being am I – Soham Asmi. It is a reminder, not merely a ritual.

Now again, when we speak of death, is man really afraid of death? Or is a human being afraid of losing his possessions? We know nothing about death, really speaking. If somebody were to guarantee you that whatever you had you could take with you when you die, then would you be afraid of death? It is the fear that whatever we hold near and dear to us, will be left behind. There is a famous story of Guru Nanak. When Guru Nanak was wandering around he met a Nawab Saheb who was a big miser, who would not part with a single penny. Guru Nanak was always helping people. Wherever he went, he opened what are called ‘langars’ which operate even today in all Gurudwaras. Any person going to a Gurudwara can get free food and accommodation for a few days. Guru Nanak wanted to teach a lesson to the Nawab Saheb. One day he took a sewing needle, wrapped it up, wrote a note and sent it to the Nawab. The note said, ‘Nawab Saheb, I pay my respects to you. I am sending you a sewing needle. Please keep it safe with you. I feel that you and I will pass away very soon. So when we meet in the other world, please return this sewing needle to me! It is a small help you can do for me. Please keep it safe until then!’ The Nawab got quite perturbed. Deep down in his heart he respected Guru Nanak, and felt that perhaps what the holy man said about death might come true, and if he gave a promise to a saint, he would have to keep it. So he replied, ‘Sir you have put me in a fix! How am I going to carry this sewing needle after my death and give it back to you? Sorry, I cannot take this needle.’ Then Guru Nanak said, ‘In that case, how do you expect to take all your money with you? Why don’t you give to the needy?’ When the human being comes to understand that at some moment or the other all his worldly activity will cease, and he says to himself, ‘Let me think that all this has already ceased. Then how would I lead my life? What would I clear up so as to live like that?’ He will then live accordingly. Do you know how the Bhagavat was written? King Parikshit was told that he was going to die in seven days. So he decided, ‘Now that I am going to die, let me do something worthwhile.’ If you look at this matter carefully, every night we die in a way, and come alive in the morning. Can we not say that every minute we are dying, because what has already happened to us is gone forever? Psychologically,

it is possible to think that we are dead to what happened to us yesterday. You twisted my ear yesterday. I carry the memory for twenty years, wanting to twist your ear back! The actual event is finished, but I have been carrying it with me and nursing it carefully for years. Can one die to this kind of situation? Swami Vivekananda once said, ‘Yesterday is dead, forget it! Tomorrow has not come, don’t worry! Today is here, use it!’ ‘Aum krito smara kritam smara krito smara kritam smara – ‘Remember, Remember, Remember.’ And the last shloka is: SHLOKA 18 agne naya supatha raye asmaan vishvaani deva vayunaani vidvaan yuyodhya asmaj juharaanam eno bhuyisthaam te nama uktim vidhema. This is addressed to the God of fire, Agni. Agni was always considered to be a powerful deity because fire has the capacity to burn everything to ashes and equalize them. ‘Sceptre and crown must tumble down And in the dust be equal made.’ Fire has always been a symbol of the spirit. In ancient times, when the matchstick was not invented, fire had to be lit by rubbing dry flint to dry firewood, and the fire came from a spark. And the question asked was, ‘Where was this fire before it came out?’ So, it was used as a symbol for the inner Self that manifests itself and then goes back into the unmanifest. You will also notice that with one candle you can light a hundred candles without diminishing the flame. That again is a reason why Agni is given so much importance because, from one atman can be ‘lit’ several atma, and yet nothing is reduced here! Purnamadah purnamidam purnaat purnamudachyate purnasya purnamaadaaya purnamevaavashishyate.’ Again, fire gives light. In ancient times there was no electricity and we had to light a lamp to see the face of the deity in the garbha griha, in the temple. To that Agni one prays, ‘Lead us along the auspicious path to prosperity.... Prosperity, not only in this world but also after death. Agni, you who know what we are doing; we admit to you what we are doing – right and wrong. You, who are the knower of everything, lead us unto prosperity. Take away all sins from us. Take away all deceitfulness from us. Burn it to ashes and we shall offer many prayers unto you forever! We shall

continue to burn all our bad karma in You, O Agni! Destroy our bad karma, turn all our bad deeds to ashes and lead us to the path of prosperity.’ This is how the Ishavasya Upanishad ends. Om Shantih! Om Shantih! Om Shantih! QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Q: ‘In the Upanishad, there is a passage requesting the Sun, the originator, to remove the shield which covers Him. My question is, can a person get self-enlightenment without going into samadhi? Is the shield removed only with samadhi?’ A: This may sound like a technical question, but actually it is something that a sincere sadhak would like to understand. Samadhi has been interpreted in different ways. Some people think that samadhi is always a trance-state. Others think samadhi is a state of natural being where there is no trance. The question is, ‘Can a person get self-enlightenment without going into samadhi’ or, is the ‘removing of the shield’ to do only with samadhi? The word samadhi, which is very frequently used in sadhana, occurs in the Ashtanga Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. There, it is actually split into three different parts. The words used there are dharana, dhyana, samadhi. Dharana means fixing your attention completely, to the exclusion of everything else, on the object, idea or image that is foremost in your mind at that moment. Suppose you want to meditate on the Supreme Reality as having a form, you fix your complete attention on That. If you want to fix your attention on Om as an abstract symbol of the Supreme Reality, then to have your complete attention on That, to the exclusion of any other thought, is dharana. Dhyana is when this continues uninterruptedly for a length of time, without any conflict or confusion. Continuous dharana is dhyana. Samadhi is the culmination of dharana and dhyana. It is the state in which one is so absorbed in the object or idea that one is meditating upon, that the separateness between that and the individual who is meditating is dissolved. This is called samadhi, where only that which is meditated upon

remains, and everything else has subsided. The individual no longer exists, at least for the time. If samadhi means this, then it is definitely necessary to go into samadhi or to experience samadhi to get the ‘cover’ removed. Even if it is a form of trance in which the individual ego is not completely erased, that is also a kind of samadhi. There are different forms of samadhi – nirvikalpa, vikalpa, savikalpa – these are all different states of consciousness described in yogic terms, to represent a certain stage of a person’s development. But the samadhi which is necessary for the Ultimate Supreme Truth to reveal itself is the samadhi where the individual consciousness has been erased, the ego has been erased, and what remains is the Supreme Being. Therefore, it is necessary to go into samadhi for ‘self-realization,’ the understanding of the Supreme Being, not just a devata or an image. Q: Can you make a comparison and contrast between vidya-avidya; sambhuti-asambhuti? And what is atma hanojanah – who are called the ‘slayers of Atman’ which is expressed in the Upanishad? A: First, vidya and avidya. When you add ‘a’ before a word it negates it. So avidya means that which is not knowledge – ‘ignorance.’ Any vidya that is not directly connected to the understanding of the Supreme Being is automatically classified as avidya. From the point of view of the Upanishad, vidya is only that which takes one to the understanding of the Supreme Brahman. Any other vidya may be called vidya, in the ordinary sense of the term, but from the point of view of the Upanishad, it is still avidya, because it is still in the relative world of ignorance. So, this distinction has to be made. What you call vidya need not be vidya in the Vedantic sense of the term; it may be classified as avidya. Regarding sambhuti and asambhuti – the manifest and the unmanifest – the manifest means the differentiation that we see with our five senses and the mind. We see that things are separate. This is the manifest. When the sadhak has reached a state of total unity in himself, the same manifest has ceased to exist for him and only the unmanifest exists. So it depends on the understanding and experience of the sadhak whether he divides things into the manifest, or considers everything as the unmanifest. From the absolute standpoint there is no division between the manifest and the unmanifest. The unmanifest-manifest division comes only when viewed through the limited understanding of the human mind.

Atma hanojanah – ‘the slayers of the atman’ – means those who consciously avoid understanding, avoid even the attempt to understand the Inner Being, those who believe and live with the feeling that it is only the body and the outside world that is real. Such persons are called ‘ Slayers of the atman’ – atma hanojanah. Q: When physical death happens, does the mind leave along with the soul? Does ‘mind’ mean the vasanas that are acquired? Is death the end of everything or is there something that survives forever? A: One can go into this topic theoretically. One will say that it ends with the body, while another will say that the soul survives forever. But this would be merely theoretical. We can often prove one side or the other, and the debate could go on endlessly. But from the point of view of those who have performed sadhana and have experienced the ‘Self ’ for such beings who have understood, and are completely convinced that the ‘Self ’ is other than the body, ‘something’ continues. It does not cease with the cessation of the physical body. How it continues, where it continues, whether it carries vasanas with it – these are subsidiary questions. The basic fact is that when the body is finished, the consciousness survives. For the person with self-realization, the consciousness that survives is already linked with the Supreme Consciousness. Therefore, he is not even concerned whether It exists as an individual or as a universal reality. That is why the study of the Upanishad is not merely a theoretical study or a theoretical discussion. It is more to do with inner understanding. As one progresses internally, one also continues with nidhidhyasana, with the understanding, with the study, so that both develop equally. And then at one point, a person is able to internalize and understand what he has till that time been verbally understanding. So this is an internal exercise, rather than external. Q: Is Upanishad closer to dvaita philosophy? A: This is a scholarly question requiring a bit of explanation. There is a general tendency, especially among Western Orientalists, to think that Vedanta means only Advaita vedanta of Shankara. This is not true. From Adi Shankaracharya onwards, right upto Madhva, Vallabhacharya and Ramanujacharya, different views of Vedanta have been expressed. Now to

the question: ‘Is the Upanishad closer to dvaita philosophy?’ Well, the great acharyas who have written these commentaries expressing different views about dvaita, advaita, vishishta advaita and so on, certainly did not write it to confuse people! If there is any confusion, it is due to our misunderstanding of the factual position. Without doubt, they all had some experience of the Supreme Being. They did not merely read existing books and write explanatory notes! Therefore, if there is some misunderstanding and division between these views of thought, these divisions have to be removed by people who are ready to shed their differences, sit together and sort it out. Otherwise we will always remain split. No teacher, none of the acharyas, have questioned the basic tenet of Vedanta, which is that essentially the human is divine, and that the atman which survives the physical body is the Inner Essence. Everybody admits this. Also, everybody admits that sadhana, which includes the purifying of the mind through leading a disciplined life, is necessary. All acharyas have said that, the less you are caught up in the vagaries of the senses, the easier it is to go nearer to the Supreme Being. So, if these basic tenets are accepted, you need not worry about which philosophy to follow! All acharyas are unanimous on this matter. There have been other differences. Someone says that the Supreme Being and the atman are not different; that the jivatma is only an imaginary division from the Supreme Being; that there is only the Brahman and nothing else. A second view is that the jiva is different from the atman but it may merge and partake of the glories of the Paramatman. The third view is that the jiva will always remain separate and subservient to the Supreme Reality. But even they who preach dvaita have not questioned the fact that the sadhak has to lead a pure life, has to purify his mind, has to meditate, has to go deep within himself so that he realizes his inner atman which is called the antaryami. And so, instead of going into the theoretical discussion whether this path is right or that path is right, one should take up the common factor which all the acharyas have stressed upon: purify yourself, do your sadhana, go deeper into yourself, find out the ‘inner self,’ and then decide which

acharya is to be followed. This is the right path, instead of simply staying on the theoretical ground and having a difference of opinion. There is one other thing which we can understand here. Suppose I am a great bhakta of Krishna and I begin with bhajans and kirtans, and go closer to Krishna. Now, in a high stage of devotion, when my mind is completely absorbed in the glories of Krishna, when the only thought in the mind is of Krishna, when the whole world has melted – the psychological, inner aspect, not the physical reality – when the whole world has melted and all that I know is Krishna; I speak Krishna, I eat, drink and sleep Krishna, everything is Krishna, then where is the question of ‘I?’ I don’t exist. Only Krishna exists! Or, if one substitutes the word ‘Krishna’ with Brahman, only Brahman exists. So in answer to this question, one should for the time being leave aside the external, theoretical understanding. If one feels inclined to follow the dvaita doctrine, well and good. But keep in mind that what is necessary is a pure life, purification, sadhana and whatever contributes to this sadhana – meditation, kirtan, puja, japa or anything else. The whole process of sadhana is to purify the mind so that it becomes absolutely clear. When it is clear, then it is left for one to decide whether the bliss one feels is because the atman is the Supreme Being, or whether it is a ‘reflection of the glory’ of the Supreme Being – the atma bhava as they call it in dvaita. That need not confuse us now. Let us try to find the ‘Inner Self ’ first. Q: Temper is my main problem. If I do sadhana I am able to improve. But then my approach to the mundane world becomes indifferent. I am not able to lead a normal life, enjoying the worldly attributes. Is this common? A: Temper is a common problem. So you need not think that you are isolated on this issue. Many people have the problem of quick temper or bad temper. Some may bottle it up; others may express it, but it is there. One is able to improve this with meditation but that makes one indifferent to the mundane world! This is a genuine problem. It is not common, but it is so, especially when people are sadhaks. For those who are not sadhaks, who are not interested in all this self-realisation stuff, it doesn’t matter that they have a temper. There are so many people who are not even aware that they are angry people. The very fact that you become aware that you get angry shows that you are a serious person.

Now the question is, how to begin to tackle it? You say yourself that by meditation you are able to bring about a certain change. But you are afraid that if you meditate you are becoming indifferent to the mundane world. However, it is not necessary to become indifferent to the mundane world when you are meditating. You can meditate and at the same time do your work properly. That is the whole teaching of the Bhagavad Gita. For instance, the karma yoga teaching is not to become indifferent to the mundane world but to do your work properly, meanwhile continuing your inner development through meditation or sadhana. At a point, you become mature enough to decide whether you really want to be indifferent to the world or you don’t. By sadhana, you would have reached a state when you really understand that the inner is more valuable than the external. Then there will be no conflict whether you are indifferent or not to the mundane world. The conflict indicates that you have still not become sure of the inner. Therefore, till then, give full attention to the world but at the same time, go on increasing your meditation-time and your study-time until you are able to go deeper and deeper into meditation. Then you discover and come across the condition of your mind where you are able to appreciate the inner. In that state you don’t become indifferent to the external world because you begin to see the external world as the manifestation of the inner and therefore you are not repulsed by it. On the other hand you begin to work unattached. Sometimes people think that to do perfect work, you have to be totally attached to it. This is not true. If you can do your work properly without being unduly attached to it, you can perform better than if you are emotionally caught up in it. There was a doctor who had to operate upon his son. He was a well-known doctor and an excellent surgeon. But when it came to operating upon his own son, he decided to call in another surgeon because his sentiments might come in the way of his performance. If any one of you has gone to learn unarmed combat like Karate or Kung Fu, you will know that the real expert in unarmed combat does not strike any one in anger because then the blow is bound to miss, or might land harder than expected. The expert is absolutely relaxed. He does not work from his emotions but from his reactions. Although it is not easy, one must live in the world like a lotus. Although the lotus derives all its nutrition from the water in which it stands, if you

sprinkle water on the lotus, it rolls off without a trace. One must live like that. One needs guidance to live like that. If you begin to meditate and you are aware that temper is a problem, you will certainly be able to solve it, if not in two days, then in two years! One has to work on these things, starting right now. Q: Could you kindly explain a little more in detail about the atman to be meditated upon by the common man? A: Now, this ‘common-man’ is perhaps not the right term to use. We are all common men! Let us say, ‘....meditated upon by all.’ To answer the question: one cannot have a common code of meditation for all human beings because each person is made differently, his background is different, his tendencies are different. People may like God with form or without form; some would like a philosophical approach; some might be ‘vaishnavites,’ others might be ‘shaivites,’ and so on. And so, for each individual, that meditation technique has to be given which is suitable for him. But there is, certainly, a common ground – first, as a takeoff point, the agitations of the mind have to be brought under control. Only then one can meditate. With form or without form, Vishnu, Shiva, Kali or Allah – it does not matter. The basic thing is to relax the mind, to bring out the agitations of the mind and make them disappear, little by little, until the mind attains a calm state. And for that, one simple technique can be practised by everybody, no matter which path to God he follows. It is what is called ‘watching of the breath.’ You may want to do japa but your mind is not concentrated, it wanders around. That is common. It is normal for the mind to wander. In the Gita, Arjuna asks Krishna: ‘You are saying that the mind has to be brought back and kept under control, but I cannot do it. My mind is stronger than the wind. I try to control it but it wanders off. What am I to do?’ Krishna tells Arjuna, ‘You are not the first person to ask this question. This question has been asked innumerable times. The only way is to bring it back when it wanders, until you become an expert at it.’ One technique of doing this is by what is called aana pana, in vipasana. It is also taught in kriya yoga and in many of the other yogic disciplines. Anybody, also one who has no belief in God, can make his mind calm and quiet. The technique is to sit down quietly, close the eyes and watch one’s

breath. This is not a casual practice. This particular technique of watching of the breath is taught in great secrecy in some places. Some schools of thought even consider it as the only technique necessary. ‘Watching your breath’ means to watch it closely. Close your eyes. Do not control the rhythm of the breath. Let it be as it is. Give your attention to it. Just be aware of it. As you inhale, be aware of your inhalation. As you exhale be aware of your exhalation. Continue to watch. Automatically you will find that after sometime the breathing becomes very slow and quiet and when the breathing becomes quiet, the mind also is quietened. You will notice that when you are agitated, your breath has a very disturbed rhythm. When you are calm and quiet – sitting near the sea or listening to music – if you look in and watch your breath, you will see that it has also become calm and quiet. The rhythm has slowed down. This can be done the other way round to calm your mind. Calm your breath, and the mind also becomes calm. The technique to calm it is to watch it, to observe it. If you observe it, it automatically becomes calm. Normally, we are not aware of our breathing. It takes place involuntarily, automatically. Something is controlling it, not us. It just goes on by itself. Although we pretend to be in total control of our lives, we don’t even control our own breath! It is there; when it stops, we come to an end. Now, if we begin to become aware of that which goes on by itself, then psychologically and spiritually, we move closer to the ‘entity’ who is controlling the breath. When the breath slows down the mind also slows down. The energy which is normally frittered away in too many activities of the mind is gathered in one place. And after you gather it together, fix it on your japa, fix it on your meditation or on whatever you are doing at that moment. You will see how you can really concentrate. That is why, those who have been given the gayatri mantra know that before you do the gayatri, pranayam is done, because when the breath is brought into a particular rhythm, the mind also automatically follows that rhythm. And when the mind has come to that rhythm, it is possible to fix your attention on what you want. This is the secret. So, before you meditate upon – form or formless, light, symbol or sound – it will be very helpful if you sit down for a few minutes and watch your breath. In fact, there is a higher, advanced technique of meditation in which the mantra that you chant is coupled with the breath. The nath panthies

have the famous ‘so-ham’ mantra. When they inhale, they chant, ‘so’ and ‘ham’ when they exhale. They continue doing this until they reach a state of perfect, crystal clear calmness of the mind. Q: How is one to meditate, and when? A: How and when to meditate? It is very important to fix a time when you are practising meditation. You cannot say, ‘I’ll meditate today in the morning and tomorrow at night! Fix a schedule. Don’t deviate from that schedule, no matter what happens. Fix a time as early as possible, but not too early, because one day you may get up at 3:30 a.m., the next day you may not be able to do so. If you can get up at 3:30 a.m. every day, it is ideal. Fix a reasonable time early in the morning, so that you are not disturbed, when the air is clear and cool, when it is silent, and the sounds of the day have not begun yet. Open the windows so that air comes in. Sit easy. It does not matter which side you face, but sit in a quiet place where you are not disturbed. First, look at the world around you. Look at the trees or whatever, and then send a message of love and good-will to all living beings. At least for that period of meditation you have no enemies! Sit quietly and mentally send a message of love and good wishes to all, and then do your japa, or meditation, or watch the breath, whatever it is you have been taught. Fix a time and do that exactly at the same time, if possible at the same place. What happens is that if you sit at a particular time at a particular place and meditate, that place at that time, begets a certain vibration which is built up over the years as you continue. When you go and sit down there, automatically you are in a conducive atmosphere. So it becomes easier to meditate. That is one reason. The other reason is, if any of you has a link with a teacher or a guru who has initiated you, who has given you some japa or mantra, then it is all the more important that he knows the time when you are sitting, so that he can help you because you are linked. Otherwise, your mind is wandering here and there, and even if he wants to help you, he cannot. Early morning is the best time. Brahma muhurat starts at 3:30, an ideal time but well-nigh impossible for most people! One can at least start at 5 or 5:30 and meditate. Fixing of time and place is very important. Om Shantih! Om Shantih! Om Shantih!

he Upanishads are called the Jnana Kanda or the ‘Wisdom Section’ of the Vedas and appear after the Samhitas. They are also called ‘Vedanta,’ which means, ‘the end of the Vedas’ – ‘Veda-antah.’ A more esoteric interpretation is that it is the understanding that lies ‘beyond the words of the Vedas,’ the Truth behind the words. So, there is a differentiation made between the word and the meaning of the word. This is apt because very often, a word is repeated so many times that it loses its meaning and becomes merely a mechanical repetition. If the Upanishads can be defined at all, one important and simple definition would be by splitting the word ‘Upanishad’ into three syllables: upa – ni – shad. Upa means, ‘to move closer,’ ‘to go nearer’; shad means, ‘to sit’ and ni is the connecting link between ‘moving closer’ and ‘sitting down.’ Ni represents the level where the disciple sits, a level lower than the teacher. It does not mean sitting physically at a lower level. It means that the student recognizes his level of understanding and comes to the teacher with an open mind; not with the feeling that he has already understood everything. So, he sits in front of the teacher with respect, and listens, in order that he moves closer to the ‘Truth.’ Shad means ‘sitting down,’ not only physically in which the physical act, the asana, is involved. It also means the ‘settling down of the mind.’ If one is sitting down, it means one is settled and is ready to listen. If one were to stand up, it means one is unsettled, and about to walk away. Standing up indicates movement, sitting down indicates rest. Shad is ‘to settle down quietly’, not only physically but also mentally, because the truths of the Upanishads, which one is preparing to understand, are so subtle that it is not possible to do so unless and until one has a settled mind. This, roughly, is the meaning of the word, ‘Upanishad.’ The Upanishads form the Jnana Kanda, which is the wisdom section of the Vedas. What do the Upanishads deal with exactly? The Upanishads do not deal with what the Agamas, the Shastras and the Brahmanas deal with, which are the different rituals and daily activities one is supposed to perform in this world. The Upanishads deal with what is beyond this. They do not deal with what we normally do but take up universal questions like,

‘What is the meaning of life? Where are we going?’ and so on. So, if you hope to find tips on how to make money or gain fame in the Upanishads, you are looking in the wrong place! There are many other books which can teach this. Even ancient texts like the Tantras that say, ‘Do this ritual for this benefit and that pooja for that benefit’ and so on are other sources of advice on these wordly pursuits. The Upanishads are mainly concerned with the universal search of trying to find out the meaning of life – ‘What are we moving towards? From birth to death, we keep moving, becoming, evolving. Is there an end to this movement? Is there a meaning to life? Is a human being merely born to live, reproduce and die? Is there some deeper meaning behind all this?’ These are the essential questions addressed in the Upanishads. All the Upanishads are based on the method of dialogue. They have perhaps the oldest mention of dialogue in world literature. It is a samvaad where the disciple goes to the teacher and asks him questions. The teacher does not give him readymade answers. He says, ‘Now, this is the guide to find your answer; go and meditate on it.’ So the disciple goes, meditates on it, and comes back and says, ‘This is what I have found, but I don’t think it is the Truth’. Thus it continues, till he arrives at the ‘ultimate Truth’ with the teacher’s help. If you read any of the Upanishads, you will find this method of a continued dialogue, because dialogue is a very important part of understanding. The Bhagavad Gita which declares at the end of every chapter, that it is a ‘Krishna – Arjuna samvaada’ is also a dialogue. Universal questions such as ‘What are we seeking?’ ‘What is our real identity?’ are asked and meditated upon by the student. We are born, grow into children, become adolescents and adults, and have children of our own. So at different stages, we are different people. ‘Is there something permanent behind all this?’ To guide us to the answer, the Upanishads examine the three states that we all experience – the waking, dream and deep-sleep states. These states are universal. The Upanishads explain that which is permanent, which continues through all these three states. We have dreams, and when we wake up, we find that the dreams we had were not rooted in reality. We find ourselves in a different state altogether – the waking state. The great sage Janaka Maharaj once had a dream in which he was a beggar, with torn clothes, walking around with a bowl, without

food to eat. In the morning, he woke up and found himself in the palace, a king! So he asked his Guru Yajnavalkya that famous question, ‘Sir, tell me the truth – am I a beggar or am I a king? Please explain this to me. If the dream had stretched for a longer time, I would have continued to be a beggar and suffered all the difficulties, agony and sorrow. Now that I am awake, I feel that I am the king. Which is the real me?’ Vedanta explains your true identity; that which continues through all three states but which is unaffected by any of them. ‘What is my true identity? What am I searching for? Is there an end to this becoming?’ These are all basic questions that everyone should ask, at least in this age when we claim we are evolved human beings. This is the subject matter that the Upanishads deal with. People dismiss the Upanishads as something that is highly complex and difficult to understand. In fact, it is an excuse put forth by the mind which is either too lazy to think, or is afraid of going into deeper aspects because it might lose hold of all the enjoyments it has in the material world. The Upanishads are neither too high nor too deep to be comprehended. The Kenopanishad, has a wonderful name. Kena means ‘By who?’ It does not sing the praises of any God or any ‘being.’ It does not tell us how to find fulfilment in the material world. There are different parts of the Vedas that deal with such matters. Here, a question is asked – ‘By who?’ or, ‘Who is behind all this activity that goes on within the personality ‘I?’ To find one’s true identity is the aim of the Upanishad. This Upanishad belongs to the Sama Veda. The Sama Veda is the third of the four Vedas. It is a very important Veda for various reasons, one of them being that in the Bhagavad Gita, when Krishna describes His glories, He says, ‘Of the four Vedas, I am the Sama Veda.’ This particular Upanishad forms a part of the Talavakara Brahmana of the Sama Veda. It consists of four short sections – the first two in verse form and the other two in prose. It is not intended here to deal with the Kenopanishad, shloka by shloka. Rather, a few selected shlokas, chosen from successive sections of the Upanishad, will be discussed. The rest shall be taken up together and finally the Upanishad summarised. Before any Upanishad starts, there is always an invocation for peace, the shanti mantra. The invocation here is: SHANTI MANTRA

aum aapayaayantu mamaangaani vaak praanaschakshuh shrotramatho balamindriyaani cha sarvaani. sarvam brahmaupanidshadam ma ham brahma niraakuryaam maa maa brahma niraakarot aniraakaranamastvanirakaranam mey astu. tadatmani niratey ya upanishatsu dharmaah tey mayi santu tey mayi santu. aum shantih shantih shantih. Aapayaayantu mamaangaani vaak pranaschakshu shrotramatho Balamindriyaani cha sarvaani – means, ‘May my limbs grow vigorous; may my speech, my breath, my eye, my ear, as also the vitality in all my senses grow vigorous’; ‘may my energy be equal in all my senses.’ This shows that the Upanishads are not just talking about ‘another’ world, but of this world also. Unless one is healthy and vigorous, one cannot study the Upanishads. They are not something to be studied by people who have dissipated their energies. The invocation itself says, ‘May my limbs grow strong; may my mind become strong; may my senses become strong.’ The Mundaka Upanishad declares, nayam atma balahineyena labhya; ‘This atma cannot be achieved, attained or known by the weak.’ It is a message to be strong, to go from strength to strength. The next part of the invocation is: Sarvam brahmaupanishadam ma aham brahma niraakuryaam maa maa brahma niraakarot aniraakaranam astva nirakaranam mey astu – ‘all this is the Brahman of the Upanishads.’ The rishi who sings this invocation is already aware that everything that he sees is Brahman. ‘There is nothing other than Brahman’ – Sarvang jitat brahma. Then the student prays, ‘May I never discard Brahman, may I never discard the Truth, may I never give up the Absolute Truth nor may Brahman discard me.’ It is a repetition of a prayer, which shows a complete commitment to the finding of the Truth that is referred to in the Upanishad as Brahman. Then it says, Tadatmani niratey ya upanishatsu dharmaah tey mayi santu. Om Shantih Shantih Shantih, which means – ‘Let the Truth which is set forth in the Upanishad live in me; may I grow dedicated to the Self. After every chant, there is Om Shantih Shantih Shantih! ‘May there be peace, peace, peace!’ Shanti is something that each one of us is yearning for. Everything else is there, but there is no Shanti, no peace of mind! Shanti is always at a premium. Shanti is what we seek.

So, ‘Shantih’ is chanted in the beginning and at the end of the Vedas. Now, here is the first question asked in this Upanishad. One might interpret it as the disciple asking the teacher, or the other way round; it could be either. It says: SECTION ONE: SHLOKA 1 keneshitam patati preshitam manah kena pranah prathamah praiti yuktah keneshitaam vaachamimaam vadanti chakshu shrotram ka u devo yunakti. Keneshitam patati preshitam manah – ‘By whom is the mind activated? When I say, ‘I think,’ who is it that says ‘I think’? Who sits behind the mind and gives the initial thought of, ‘I think’? Where does thought originate from?’ The great Ramana Maharshi, who lived in Tiruvannamalai said that a simple way to find out where the thought begins from, the source of thought, is to enquire into the question, ‘Where does this ‘I’ feeling come from?’ In fact, he reduced the whole of Vedanta into a simple sentence – deham naaham koham soham. Deham naaham – ‘I am not the body.’ If I am not the body, then koham? – ‘Who am I?’ Soham! – ‘I am ‘That’!’ That Supreme Brahman which cannot be touched by life or death – ‘That’ am I! The question asked is, ‘What or who is it that gives the feeling of ‘I’? Where is the source of this ‘I’? Where does it start?’ Kena pranah prathama praiti yuktah – ‘What is it that initiates the first emergence of life, the first movement of life, pranah? Where does pranah originate from?’ In the Koran, when Mohammed got the first revelation, they say the angel who appeared before him said, ‘Read!’ Mohammed being an illiterate person in the ordinary sense of the term, said, ‘I cannot read.’ The angel said, ‘Read, in the name of God who created man from a clot of blood that issues forth from between the loins!’ So, the question asked in the Upanishad is, ‘Who is it that originates life, the beginning of life, the first? Who is behind this creation?’ Keneshitaam vaachamimaam vadanti – ‘What is it that makes me utter speech? What is the beginning of sound?’ Chakshu shrotram ka u devo yunakti – ‘What is this Being that prompts me to see and who prompts me to hear?’ Or, ‘What is it that sees and hears?’

There is a beautiful kirtan in Malayalam, written by a famous writer who was perhaps the earliest of the Malayalam poets. It is called Hari Naama Sankirtanam. When we normally say Hari Naama and sankirtanam, we mean bhakti or the singing of kirtans, but this kirtan is very Vedantic. It says, kanninu kannu, manam aakum kannu atinu kannayidunna porul tannenarieyumalavu anandam endu hari narayanaya namah. Kannu means ‘eye.’ This roughly means, That which is the ‘eye’ of the eye, that which sees behind the eye, what is that? That is the mind. The mind is the ‘eye’ of the eye. There is ‘something’ behind the mind, which sees the mind also, which witnesses the mind. How blissful it is when I understand that ‘That’ which is also the ‘eye’ of the mind is my true self! Harinarayanaya Namah! That was the first question asked. There is actually no answer because there are no readymade answers provided in the Upanishads. One has to look into the question deeply and study the Upanishads carefully to get some clues. So after this question is asked, the next shloka says: SHLOKA 2 shrotrasya shrotram manaso mano yad vaacho ha vaacham sa u praanasya praanah chakshushas chakshur atimuchya dheeraah prety asmaal lokaat amritaa bhavanti. That which you are looking for, which is watching the mind, is shrotrasya shrotram – ‘the ‘ear’ of the ear.’ It is that which hears, when you say that ‘the ear hears.’ Manaso mano – ‘It is the ‘mind’ behind the mind.’ It is that which provides the content of the mind. Yad vaacho ha vaacham – It is the basis from which sound comes forth or language comes forth.’ Sa u praanasya praanah – ‘It is the breath of the breath’; it is that from which praana originates. Chakshushas chakshur –’It is the ‘eye’ of the eye.’ Atimuchya dheeraah prety asmaal lokaat amritaa bhavanti – ‘The great sages, the wise people, give up their all and reach the higher worlds of immortality.’ Swami Chinmayananda once said that he was sitting in front of Tapovan Maharaj in Uttarkashi and was trying to understand the meaning of the

Upanishad. When Tapovan Maharaj said, ‘It is the ‘eye’ of the eye, the ‘ear’ of the ear,’ Swami Chinmayananda said, ‘Sir, please do not confuse me. Do not say ‘this of this and that of that’. Tell me exactly what it is!’ Tapovan Maharaj kept quiet for sometime and said, ‘We will discuss this later.’ Afterwards he said, ‘Go and get some water for me from the Ganga.’ Swamiji went with his kamandalu, collected some water and returned. Tapovan Maharaj flew into a rage and said, ‘Who asked you to bring the kamandalu? Go get only the water!’ Swamiji said, ‘Sir, how can I bring the water without the kamandalu?’ Tapovan Maharaj then made his point: ‘Therefore, some upaadhi, some instrument, is necessary to bring home the object of the exercise, is it not?’ When we say, ‘eye’ of the eye and ‘ear’ of the ear, we are talking about a ‘Being’ which cannot be grasped by the mind, which cannot even be touched by the intellect. These are abstract truths which require the use of some upaadhi to explain the idea; an instrument such as a simile might be used, although even if it is close in meaning, will never be completely accurate because we are not describing a material object. The rishi says, ‘Upon understanding that ‘Being’ who is the ‘eye’ of the eye and the ‘ear’ of the ear and the ‘mind’ of the mind, the wise men ‘give up’ and attain immortality.’ This is a very important statement. What do the wise men ‘give up’? When do they ‘give up’? One gives up only when one understands the ‘valueless-ness’ of a thing. Here, the rishi is talking about ‘something’ which cannot be grasped or touched by the senses. Even to begin understanding this, one must gradually loosen the grip of the senses, because the senses always keep us tied down, covered and bound. The wise who understand this truth, gradually shake off the bondage of the senses. They give up what appears to others to be valuable, but to them is valueless, as they have found what is really valuable. We are normally content with the mere tinsel that we see in this world; we hold on to it, not giving up. Once one understands the emptiness and hollowness of this tinsel, one slowly begins to let go. Only when one lets go, the rishi declares, can one comprehend what these words mean: shrotrasya shrotram – ‘the hearer behind the ear.’ Then one reaches immortality, a state where there is no death. This not only means that one goes to a state where one is not reborn, which is what is referred to, but also means that one begins to have the

understanding by which one can face death. If one can give up all, then one is ready to face death. The fear that man feels for death is not only because it is something unknown but also because he fears to lose all that he holds near and dear, all that he thinks he deserves to continue to enjoy. If someone were to say that in death we could take with us everything that we enjoyed in this world, then nobody would be afraid of death. Our fear is that we will leave behind everything that we consider to be the most essential for our happiness. When one ‘lets go’ in life, then there is no fear of ‘letting go’ in death. So, one faces death squarely. After saying this, the next question would be, ‘Can we reach ‘That’? Can we understand this ‘Being’ who is behind the mind, behind the eye and the ear? Can we understand this ‘Being’ who is the witness of all that is happening, and by realising whom, one attains immortality? If yes, then how? What is the way?’ By now the student is ready, bristling with expectations, saying, ‘How do I get there? Now that I know all this is impermanent, I want to get to the permanent, the immortal. How do I get to it?’ In answer to this, the statement that the rishi gives appears even more confusing! The rishi declares: SHLOKA 3 AND 4 na tatra chakshur gacchati na vaag gacchati no manah na vidmo na vijaaniimo yathaitad anushishyaat anyad eva tad viditaad atho aviditaad adhi iti shushruma purveshaam ye nas tad vyaacha chakshirey. Na tatra chakshur gacchati – ‘There the eye does not go’; na vaag gacchati – ‘nor can words proclaim or understand’ what that Supreme Being is. And then, he hits the last nail when he says no manah – ‘The mind also does not reach there.’ There is no other instrument for us – we are left with nothing! When even the mind cannot reach that point, then what is one to do? The agnostic would most likely say, ‘Perhaps there is a real Supreme Being, but I am not concerned because one can never reach It!’ But that is not the aim of the Upanishads – to give you the instrument as if on platter! The rishi declares, na vidmo na vijaaniimo yathaitad anushishyaat – ‘I am myself confused as to how to teach this to you. It is so difficult to teach

that which even the mind cannot reach. How do I express this to you? How do I get this through to you in a manner that you understand?’ So, even in those days, the teacher had to face the difficulty of expressing the subtle truths of the Upanishads! When the rishi declares ‘na tatra chakshur gacchati’, it certainly ‘is not something that the physical eye can see’; ‘na vaag gacchati’, it certainly ‘is not something that words can describe.’ Even if one has understood it one does not know how to express it. The reason being that we are talking about a Reality which is of a totally different dimension. We are normally accustomed to thinking in three dimensional forms having length, breadth and height, and cannot conceive of forms having a fourth or a fifth dimension of which we know nothing. Even if conceived, it is difficult to express them in three dimensional language. People who are into advanced Mathematics or Quantum Physics will appreciate what is being said here! So the rishi says, ‘The mind also cannot reach there.’ After the Master expresses his difficulty in not being able to describe the Truth, because it is ‘That’ which the mind cannot reach, he brings in the teaching of the Vedanta, which is through negation. This is what Shankaracharya declared as the neti neti method – ‘not this, not this!’ Anything that is born and dies cannot be permanent; anything that is created is not permanent. Therefore, none of these things can be the ‘Truth,’ since we are looking for a changeless permanent reality. The mind thinks of many things and keeps moving and changing all the time. So the Upanishads say, ‘not this, not this.’ Everything has thus been negated in order to arrive at what is real. Now, this is something which one has to practise in real life. The Upanishads are not theoretical texts. When one looks at everything in totality and sees the impermanence of life – the sorrow, the pain, the suffering, and ultimately, death, then one begins to negate and say, ‘if there is a Supreme Reality, it is not any of these things.’ The Upanishad declares, ‘It cannot be touched by the mind.’ So whatever I imagine, however big, however large, however extended, it cannot be the Truth. So, that is also negated. When everything is negated, what happens? Does the mind become blank? If the Truth cannot be understood at all, one would say, ‘Let us drop this exercise, let us leave it at that!’ But the rishi does not leave you there. He says, anyad eva tad viditaad atho aviditaad adhi iti shushruma purveshaam ye nas tad vyaacha chakshirey – ‘We have heard from the ancients who

have explained to us that It is indeed other than the known; but It is not the unknown either!’ So do not think that It is something that can never be known. That is what the rishi means. There is hope that we can find the answers! Only, these answers cannot be known by the instruments which are normally adopted for empirical learning, or by the knowledge of what we see in the material world. On the other hand, anyad eva tad viditaad; atho aviditaad adhi – ‘it is not the unknown; not something that cannot be known’. It can be known, but not by the instruments normally used to understand the universe of matter and also the universe of thought. So, is there some other instrument? The rishi takes up each of the known ‘instruments,’ one by one, which ‘the eye does not see nor can words proclaim.’ SHLOKA 5 yad vaachaa nabhyuditam yena vaag abhyudyate tad eva brahma tvam viddhi nedam yad idam upaasate. ‘That which is not expressed through speech, but by which speech is expressed’ – yad vaachaa nabhyuditam yena vaag abhyudyate. It is the origin of speech, but speech cannot express it. Then the rishi makes an extraordinary statement – tad eva brahma tvam vidhi nedam yad idam upaasate – ‘Therefore understand, that alone is Brahman, nothing that you worship here!’ This statement is of great significance. ‘Understand, that alone is Brahman, which speech cannot express but is the source of speech’ – tad eva brahma tvam viddhi: ‘Understand you, that alone is Brahman.’ Nedam yad idam upaasate: ‘Nothing that you worship here!’ This sounds nihilistic! When Adi Shankaracharya started giving his talks and having discussions, the religious orthodoxy, which was mostly involved with the ritualistic portions of the Vedas and not the jnana section, called him a pracchanna bouddhika – ‘a Buddhist in disguise!’ At that time, Buddhism was prevalent in the country, and the orthodox priests who controlled public religiosity felt uncomfortable with this and said, ‘As it is, Buddhism has made many people atheists; now here is someone who is trying to make us all atheists through our own Upanishads by saying, ‘Nothing that you worship here is Brahman’!’ Shankaracharya wrote commentaries on all the main Upanishads, yet they thought he was trying to destroy Hinduism! What Vedanta says is, not that there is no such reality, but that that reality has nothing to do with anything that you worship outside yourself.

When you say upaasate, ‘worship,’ it is not only worshipping an image or a picture. It also means cherishing all the material things of life which we consider to be important, all the mental imagery and the feelings which we have built up and come to adore and worship. None of them is the Truth – ‘understand this!’ SHLOKA 6 yan manasaa na manute yenaahur mano matam tad eva brahma tvam viddhi nedam yad idam upaasate ‘That which cannot be thought of by the mind’ – yan manasaa na manute. The mind cannot think of it but because of it, the mind acquires the capacity to think. Tad eva Brahma tvam viddhi – ‘That alone is the ‘Truth,’ the Brahman.’ Nedam yad idam upaasate – ‘nothing that you worship here, nothing that you adore here’. When we say, ‘I adore something’ or ‘I worship something,’ three things are involved – the worshipper, the worshipped and the act of worship. If you are looking for the ‘Supreme, Unconditioned Self,’ the Brahman, then these three separate entities are not required. Now, please understand that the Upanishad is not saying, ‘Don’t worship,’! Worship is indeed required with a different level of understanding. Even Shankaracharya, after having written commentaries on the Upanishads, established temples because they were necessary for another level of understanding. Everyone cannot start swimming in the ocean right away, but have to be led to that stage gradually, in steps. But, when you begin to seriously understand the ‘Supreme Truth,’ these intermediate steps are not important. This is very significant. So it is said, ‘That which the mind cannot understand, grasp or express, but because of which the mind exists, ‘That’ alone is the ‘Truth’, please understand, nothing that you adore here!’ Then, the last shloka in this Section: SHLOKA 7 yat praanena na praaniti yena praanah praniyate tad eva brahma tvam viddhi nedam yad idam upaasate. ‘That which is not breathed by life, but, by which life breathes.’

It is the origin of all life. ‘That alone is the Supreme Brahman, know this, nothing that you adore or worship here!’ The third shloka of the second section is particularly important here: SECTION TWO: SHLOKA 3 yasyaamatam tasya matam matam yasya na veda sah avijnaatam vijaanataam vijnaatam avijaanataam ‘Those who think they know, do not know, and those who think they do not know, perhaps do know! It is not understood by those who think they understand it; it is perhaps understood by those who think they do not understand!’ Apparently, this is a pardoxical and an illogical statement. But the idea is to make a person think. If the Supreme Being, which is our essential identity, the real ‘I’ behind our personality, the mask we wear; if that ‘I,’ that Supreme Being is infinite, it cannot be touched or understood by the senses or the mind. That is what the rishi means by saying, ‘It cannot be known.’ The one who says, ‘I have known It,’ or, ‘I have understood It,’ has used the senses, and therefore couldn’t have known It. There is a very great secret behind this statement. This is how the Upanishad, in its own way, comes from something very transcendental to something very real and actual. When I say, ‘I know something,’ the ‘I,’ the ego, is getting strengthened. When this centre, the ‘I,’ is gone, then what remains is the Supreme Truth. In bhakti there is not only singing of kirtans, bhajans and other acts of devotion, as most people think it to be. Bhakti is essentially an attitude by which a person begins to understand the limitations of the movement of the intellect. When the intellect begins to understand how limited its reach is, then it cuts itself out. It becomes absolutely silent. When fancy can no more unfurl its wings, when it settles down, then what remains is the experience of the Supreme Self. That means, the little ‘I’ has to go. Someone once told me that the shortest cut is to cut the ego into two! That is easier said than done! It was explained how anything that you know, in the ordinary sense, is merely knowledge that is stored in the memory, and therefore, not a thing which is in the present. You recall it, and then you say, ‘I have the knowledge of it.’ But the Supreme Being, if one has to know at all, is

always present now, at this moment! It is nothing that can be stored in the memory. Therefore, it cannot be known in the usual mode, like when we say, ‘I know something, I have understood something.’ This understanding is a permanent affair. Once understood, always understood! Now we come to an important part, the last shloka in the second section: SHLOKA 5 iha ched avedid atha satyam asti na ched ihaavedin mahati vinashtih bhuteshu bhuteshu vichintya dhiiraah pretyaasmal lokaad amritaa bhavanti ‘If a person knows it here, then there is ‘Truth’. If he does not know it, there is great loss.’ This shloka shows that the main purpose of the great souls has been to understand the higher mysteries of life. It is also a warning not to postpone the knowledge of ‘Brahman.’ Most people feel that there are many other things to do, more important than the search for Truth. But we must realise that life can end at any moment, and therefore there is an urgency to know the reason why we live, what we live for and who we are. The sooner we realise this the better, because one never knows what the future holds for us. If I came to know somehow that I was going to die the next day, or in a week’s time, what would I do? Would I go around trying to collect things which I cannot take with me, or would I sit down and think, ‘Where am I going? What is in store after this life? Who am I?’ So, urgency is required. It has to be now. Ramakrishna Paramahamsa had these lovely little aphorisms by which he would illustrate great truths. ‘You cannot swim in the ocean straightaway; first, you have to start in a little pool.’ Practise in the small pool. Start the practice now, with a sense of urgency. ‘If it is known, there is ‘Truth’; if it is not known, there is great loss.’ Now to the third section: SECTION THREE: SHLOKA 1 brahma ha devebhyo vijigye tasya ha brahmano vijaye deva amahiiyanta ta aikshanta asmaakam evaayam vijayo asmaakam evaayam mahimaa iti. After all this abstraction, there comes a little story, an allegory. This is something great about the Upanishads and the sacred books of all religions.

After talking what appears to be total abstraction, the rishi takes up a little story, for it is easier to relate to a story and thereby understand the Supreme Being. The story begins – ‘Once Brahman conquered for the gods.’ The gods are the different powers of nature. They get their power to perform from Brahman. When we say that ‘the gods have conquered something,’ it means that they have been given the strength to conquer by the Supreme Brahman. (Even in this world, forgetting this universal truth, when someone does something significant one feels, ‘Ah! I have done this!’) Similarly, when these gods had achieved victory, they thought that it was they who had achieved it and forgot that they got the powers to do so from Brahman. Without Brahman, there is no power, no energy. The whole vitality comes from ‘That.’ But the gods congratulated themselves. ‘We have achieved all this. This victory is ours, this greatness is ours!’ (Would they have blamed themselves, had they lost?) To illustrate this point furthur: Sri Ramakrishna was very fond of the story about the brahmin and the cow. There was a brahmin who had a beautiful garden. He looked after it very well and with great pride. He would take visitors and talk about the flowers and plants. One day, a cow came in through the fence and ate up some of the flowers. In a fit of anger the brahmin killed the cow! He did not want people to know this, so he dug a pit and buried it under a small mound. The brahmin had committed the sin of gohatya and tried to hide it. One day, Indra came in disguise, and the brahmin proudly showed him around the garden. When he asked him about the mound, the brahmin said, ‘Oh! That was done by Indra!’, because anger is associated with Indra, not with a brahmin! When we do bad actions we like to hide them. When we do good actions we like to take the credit. Seeing the attitude of the gods, the all-pervading Supreme Being, Brahman, decided to teach them the Truth. SHLOKA 2 tadd haishaam vijajnau tebhyo ha praadur babhuva tan na vyajaanata kim idam yaksham iti Brahman appeared before the gods in the form of a Yaksha, an adorable spirit. He wanted to test their conceit. He knew that they were proud of

themselves and had forgotten from where their power originated. This is the importance of this allegory. As long as we are proud of ourselves and do not remember where all the energy comes from, we are stuck; we do not know Brahman although we may think we do. When Brahman appeared before the gods they did not know who that Being was. The gods could not perceive the Supreme Being before them, as they were caught up in the proud feeling that the victory was their achievement. SHLOKA 3 tey agnim abruvan jaataveda etad vijaanihi kim etad yaksham iti tatheti Agni – Fire, is called jaatavedas – ‘the knower of the Vedas.’ The gods knew that Agni had studied the Vedas, ‘swallowed’ them and knew their meaning. So he was chosen to go and and find out who this Yaksha, this Being, was. Agni agreed. He was to soon find out that the knowledge of the Vedas is not enough to know the Supreme Being, Brahman. The Mundaka Upanishad speaks of paraa vidya and aparaa vidya. It says every branch of knowledge, including the Vedas and the Shastras, is aparaa vidya; only by the paraa vidya can one know Brahman, the Supreme Being. SHLOKA 4 tad abhyadravat tam abhyavadat ko asi iti agnir va aham asmi iti abravit jaati veda va aham asmi iti. Agni went to find out who that Being was. He rushed towards the Yaksha in all his glory, in full blaze. The Being asked, ‘Who are you?’ Agni said, ‘I am Agni. I am jaatavedas – the knower of the Vedas!’ SHLOKA 5 tasmin stvayi kim veeryam iti api idam sarvam daheyam yad idam prithivyaam iti. The Supreme Brahman said, ‘So, what power is there in you?’ This was a test. Agni replied, ‘I can burn down anything, even the whole prithvi – earth!’ Agni had not yet understood that the power of burning which he had came from the Supreme Being. He had not seen the Supreme Being and did not know about It.

SHLOKA 6 tasmai trnam nidadhau etad daheti tad upapreyaaya sarvajavena tanna shashaaka dagdhum sa tata eva nivavrte naitad ashakam vijnaatum yad etad yaksham iti. The Supreme Being put a blade of grass before Agni and said, ‘If you can burn down the universe, then burn this!’ Agni blew fire with all his might, from every side, but that little blade of grass would not burn. Try as he might, Agni could not burn it. He came back to his fellow gods and said, ‘I do not know who that Yaksha is! I could not find out!’ SHLOKA 7 atha vayum abruvan vaayav etad vijaanihi kim etad yaksham iti tatha iti Then the gods called the next powerful god, Vayu. They said, ‘O Vayu, you go now and find out who this Yaksha is.’ Vayu agreed quite confidently although he saw that Agni could not burn even a blade of grass that was placed in front of him. SHLOKA 8 tad abhyadravat tam abhyavadat ka asi iti ayur va aham asmi iti abraveen maatarishvaa aham asmi iti. And Vayu went towards the Yaksha, the Supreme Being, who asked him, ‘Who are you?’ Vayu replied, ‘I am Vayu, Maatarishva, the one who trods the skies!’ SHLOKA 9 tasmins tvayi kim veeryam iti api idam sarvam daheyam yad idam prithivyaam iti. Brahman said, ‘And what is the power within you?’ Vayu replied, ‘I can blow away everything, whatever there is on earth!’ SHLOKA 10 tasmai trnam nidaahau etad aadatsveti tad upapreyaaya tarvajavena tan na shashaaka datum sa tata eva nivavrte naitad ashakam vijnaatum yad etad yaksham iti.

The Yaksha placed a blade of grass before him and said, ‘Then blow this away!’ Vayu tried with all his might to blow off the grass, but it did not move at all. So he came back to the gods and said in amazement, ‘I don’t know what that Being is!’ SHLOKA 11 athendram abnuvan maghavan etad vijaaniihi kim etad yaksham iti tatheti tad abhyadravat tasmaat tirodadhe. The gods approached Indra, the king of gods. Indra also represents the five senses. He is also called Maghavan – he who has wealth and power. They asked him to find out who the great Being was, because Agni, the god of fire, and Vayu, the god of air, had failed to do so. In the practical context of sadhana, Agni or ‘fire’ means ‘the fire of meditation’; it also means ‘the digestive fire.’ Vayu is prana or ‘breath’ and Indra represents the ‘five senses.’ So, since Agni and Vayu, the powers of nature, tried to find Brahman and could not, they said, ‘Now let the lord of the senses, Indra try it!’ Indra agreed. As he reached there, the Yaksha disappeared. That means the senses cannot see the Being. Compared to the other powers of nature, the senses are superior. The senses capture the impressions of whatever we perceive and experience. Although they cannot see the Supreme being, they are able to at least understand the fact that they cannot! It should be understood from the shloka that the senses are not being belittled. They have their own uses. The Upanishad only says, ‘Sharpen the senses!’ and not, ‘Cut them out!’ When Indra, who represents the senses in their usual form, tried to understand the Supreme Being, he could not. The Being simply disappeared. And then what happened? SHLOKA 12 sa tasminn eva aakaashe striyam aajagaama bahu shobhamaanaam umaam haimavatiim tam ha uvaacha kim etad yaksham iti. The moment the Supreme Being disappeared, something extraordinary happened. A beautiful and charming lady, the ‘Daughter of the Himalayas’ suddenly appeared before Indra. Indra asked Her, ‘Do you know who this Being is?’

This is very significant. The rishi brings us from the abstract to the concrete. Till now, he was talking of abstraction, powers, and senses. Now, we have a form coming down as the ‘Daughter of Himalayas.’ The Himalayas are the abode of the rishis, the great ones, and also of Lord Shiva who resides in Kailash. So here appears Uma, ‘the Daughter of the Himalayas.’ She comes to teach Indra, lord of the senses. This is symbolic. The Upanishad is trying to say that abstractions can be understood through the concrete. When the senses represented by Indra, and the mind represented by Uma, come together and begin to understand the manifestation of the Supreme in concrete form, then a beginning is made, because one cannot understand the Supreme Being directly. One has to start with the faculties that one has. One cannot ‘leap’ or ‘jump’ because the mind cannot reach it directly. Indra asks Uma, ‘What is It? Who is this Being who was here? We all tried to know Him but could not. We could not even touch the blades of grass He placed before us. Who is this Being?’ Uma’s reply is in section four: SECTION FOUR: SHLOKA 1 saa brahmeti hovaacha brahmano vaa etad vijaye mahiyadvam iti tato haiva vidaa chakaara brahma iti. ‘That was indeed the Brahman. It is His victory for which you glorify yourselves. It is because of that Supreme Being’s power that you are victorious but, thinking that they are your victories, you, feel joyous and proud.’ ‘Understand that the Supreme Being, whom you cannot find, is the cause. It is because of Him that you function!’ SHLOKA 2 tasmaad va ete deva atitaraamivaanyaan devaan yad agnin vayun indrahte hy enan nedishtham pasprushuh te hy enat prathamo vidaam chakaara brahma iti. These gods, Agni, Vayu and Indra are considered to be higher than the rest because they went closest to Brahman. Indra was the one who first knew about It, even though he could not see It, and therefore he is

considered to be supreme among the gods. He was the first one who knew about the existence of the Supreme Being through the revelation by Uma. There is a lovely story from the life of Sri Ramakrishna which has some relevance to this allegory. The person who initiated him into Vedanta, Totapuri, was a great Paramahamsa sanyasin who, having got rid of everything, did not even wear any clothes. Totapuri was a huge man in contrast to Sri Ramakrishna. When Totapuri came to Dakshineshwar, Ramakrishna had already had the vision of God in the form of Mother Kali – Shakti. Totapuri came there and said, ‘I have come looking for a person to teach Vedanta. From your face, I think you are a fit person.’ Sri Ramakrishna said, ‘Wait a minute. Let me first ask my Mother!’ Totapuri was a paramahamsa sanyasin, a pure Advaitin, who only believed in Brahman and was not bothered about Shakti or anything else – Brahma satyam jagat mithya. So he thought that Sri Ramakrishna was going to ask his mother who might be somewhere inside the house. Sri Ramakrishna went to Kali, the Divine Mother, whom he worshipped and got her permission. He came back to Totapuri and said, ‘Yes, I will learn from you.’ Totapuri belonged to that order of sanyasins who do not stay for more than three days in one place because they do not want to get caught up with anything. But Totapuri lived for over three months with Sri Ramakrishna because he found that Ramakrishna could achieve the state of nirvikalpa samadhi in three days, something which took Totapuri forty years to achieve! So he stayed on with him, watching him in wonder. At the end of his stay, he had such a severe stomach ache that he could not concentrate to get into his meditation or samadhi. Being a great paramahamsa who did not care for his body, he said to himself, ‘If I cannot fix my mind, this body is useless! Let me give it up!’ He walked into the Ganges. It is said that however deep into the water he went, he could not reach deep enough to drown himself. So he came back, and Ramakrishna said, ‘If only you could accept the ‘Mother’ as an agent, you might get rid of your problem. You need not accept her as the Supreme Being, but as the link to the Supreme Being.’ Finally, Totapuri is believed to have accepted Shakti, and left. Perhaps it was ordained that he should go to Dakshineshwar to understand from Sri Ramakrishna that Shakti and Shivam, Prakriti and Purusha, are two sides of the same coin, like fire and its power to burn. They are not two things; one cannot separate them.

Going back to the Upanishad, these gods – Agni, Vayu and Indra, are called the greatest among the gods because they went closest to Brahman. Indra is the greatest among them because he was the first to learn that That invisible Supreme Being was the Brahman. SHLOKA 4 tasyaisha aadesho yad etad vidyuto vyadyutadaa itiin nyamiimishadaa iti adhidaivatam. The description of Brahman that ‘it is like a flash of lightning’ or ‘it is like the blink of an eye’ – what does this mean? It is not that the Brahman flashes like lightning. It is also not a reference to the lights one sees in meditation. This is only an example which the rishi gives, to say that the realization of the Supreme Brahman is not something that one achieves in a fixed time. It is also not something that one can attain, which may then be lost forever. I cannot say, ‘I will get it in time. I am working towards it and I will understand it after a few days!’ When it actually takes place, when one understands perfectly, the realization of Brahman comes ‘like a flash.’ No time is required, not even the time it takes to blink! It is not something that one achieves in due course of time. Then what does one achieve in due course? What is the meaning of all the sadhana that one does? That is the preparation, the movement towards making the mind steady, quiet, peaceful and still. Once that is done, the actual realization takes place once for all, as fast as a flash of lightning and as spontaneously as it comes across the dark sky. It is not something that can be imitated later, in the sense that the mind comes to know of it once and then easily experiences it again and again. When one does the sadhana that one has been taught – the meditation, chanting japa and so on, one is preparing the ground for the understanding of the Supreme Being. You are keeping the room in order; sweeping it, cleaning it, clearing the cobwebs, opening the windows, pulling the curtains – you are ready! Then, infinite patience is required. The breeze is definitely going to blow in. When it will come, nobody knows! When it comes, it comes in a flash! That is why all this preparation is necessary; otherwise, when the breeze of understanding comes, our windows and doors are shut. Sadhana opens these out. Now, since it cannot be known through the senses or the mind, there definitely is some other instrument through which one knows it and

that has been called ‘intuition,’ or ‘inspiration.’ That can come about only when the mind has settled down and stopped all its acrobatics, trying to reach here and there, going inside and outside. Everything has to stop. Sadhana is a preparation for that. If it is going to be always unknown, there would be no point studying the Upanishads. But to be in a position to read and understand the subtle truths in the Upanishads, the mind must first get still and stop its wandering. Sadhana helps us to achieve that by sitting down quietly for a few minutes everyday, closing our eyes and watching our thoughts or doing our japa. This is necessary. Some might feel that since ‘it comes in a flash,’ all this is not necessary. But, we must ask ourselves, are we ready to see the flash when it comes? So, that is one of the teachings. This Brahman is like ‘a flash of lightning’ or like ‘the blink of an eye’ for which one must prepare oneself when it comes. SHLOKA 5 atha adhyatmam yadetat gacchativa cha manah anena chaitad upasmaraty abheekshnam sankalpah. This shloka discusses the nature of the Essential Self, the Atman. It is towards this that the mind appears to move. We all desire happiness. Every sane human being looks for happiness, not pain. Even if one goes through a lot of pain, one does so in the hope that, at the end of it, there is happiness. The rishi says that this movement of the mind towards happiness is actually a movement towards the Supreme Self, which, in us, is the atman. But not knowing the right direction, it goes in the wrong direction. It can be steered in the right direction when one understands the impermanence of the world, when one sees the hollowness of existence. Then one begins to think ‘Maybe it is elsewhere that we should seek happiness.’ Then, one stops and turns around. It is a difficult process. It is difficult because you become one of the few who turn around and go upstream while everyone else moves downstream. It is because of the power of the Self that the mind is able to remember. What we call will power, or volition, is also the power of the Supreme Being, although we would like to think that it is the power of our minds.

The rishi says that when the mind moves towards happiness in the world, it is actually moving in the wrong direction. Kabirdas has this wonderful story about the musk deer. In the breeding season, the deer produces musk – kasturi – in a little bag under its tail. When the fragrance begins to waft around it, the poor deer goes looking for the source everywhere, imagining that it comes from somewhere outside but not knowing that it emanates from itself. Similarly, we look for happiness all around us; everywhere but within us! We are now at the end of the Upanishad, and a synopsis of what has been covered is useful. The Kenopanishad is a very important Upanishad. The word ‘kena’ means, ‘By who?’ It proceeds to ask the question, ‘Who is behind all that we see, all that we hear, all that we experience? Who is the experiencer or witness of all that is happening?’ This witness remains unaffected by all these things that happen. ‘Unaffected,’ in the sense that it is ‘not touched by’ or ‘not corrupted by’ anything. By asking the question, keneshitam patati preshitam manah (By whom is the mind activated?), the Upanishads proceeds to guide the questioner towards the answer and lead him step by step. Though the steps appear confusing at first, finally the matter seems to clear up! As mentioned earlier, there is in the Upanishads a way of teaching, which is very close to Zen, where the questions are not posed to get readymade answers. The questions are made to sink into the very consciousness of the person, so that the answers come out by themselves, because, according to Vedanta, the Truth cannot be experienced by anyone other than the person himself. It cannot be given on a platter. A readymade Truth cannot be fed to anybody. It has to come by one’s own realization. Therefore, the answers have to be found by you. You cannot even depend upon what has been written in books, even a book like the Upanishads. The Mundaka Upanishad declares that all the four Vedas, for instance, belong to what is called aparaa vidya, which cannot take you to the Reality. The rishis declare that it is not through any verbal knowledge or understanding, but only through deep, intuitional understanding, that transcends the working of the brain, that one can realize the Self. Na tatra chakshur gacchati na vaag gacchati no manah: ‘There the eye cannot go, neither words can describe it, nor can the mind touch it.’ So, we are looking for something that the usual instruments, the usual modes of

obtaining knowledge cannot reveal. Therefore, says the Upanishad, when the ‘limited mind’ which seeks settles down, when the mind becomes free and the ego is surrendered and finished with, then what remains is the Supreme Being. The mind seeks because it sees sorrow, it sees pain, it sees trouble. It thinks, it gets fed up and says, ‘Let me get out of this entrapment!’ The seeker, the limited self, is a part of this cycle of pain and pleasure, and the limited personality is trying to get out of its own pain and sorrow. When that seeker himself ‘ceases to exist’ – we are not talking about ‘physical death’ but the ‘finishing of the ego’ – then the seeker discovers that the seeking of the Supreme Being cannot be done by reaching out, but by settling down. That is also one of the definitions of the word Upanishad. Shankaracharya has translated the word shad as ‘shaking-up,’ ‘loosening the hold.’ What ‘holds’ the mind is mainly desire, desire by the senses to possess sensual objects desired by the imagination, and other attractions. When the anchor of the mind’s desire is ‘shaken up’ and ‘loosened’ the mind becomes free. What remains is the Supreme Being. It is not as if one can become the Supreme Being. The Supreme Being already ‘Is’ – one has to remove the veils. It is almost like the sculptor who takes a slab of stone and starts chipping away at it. He chips off what is not necessary and what is left is the image that he wants. He does not add anything from outside. In the Vedantic process of learning, more than adding, chipping away is important. Removing the veil, rubbing out what is not necessary and getting to what remains. This is why this method is called the neti neti method – ‘it is not this, it is not this.’ Then at one point, you come to the absolute end of negation. What remains is what we are seeking. This is the message well illustrated by the allegory in which Brahman, the Supreme Being, once appeared before the gods as the unknown Yaksha. Agni, Vayu and Indra – all the powerful forces of nature go to find out who He is. They had been rejoicing in their victory over evil forces and had become very proud and reveled in the glory of it. They did not know that their victory was actually the victory of the Supreme Being, without whom they had no power whatsoever. From high philosophy and abstract metaphysics, the discussion comes down to actuality, the ego. But it comes down so gradually and so

imperceptibly that one has to catch it. That is why the knowledge of the Upanishads is supposed to be very subtle. That is why, when the brahmin chants his gayatri early in the morning, his only request is – dhiyo yo nah prachodayaat – ‘stimulate my intellect; make by intellect subtle; may I understand the supreme wisdom of the Upanishads.’ Even for studies in higher mathematics, science, and other subjects, one has to have a subtle mind. To attain this, the essence of all knowledge, one obviously has to approach it with great humility and attention. This humility and attention is also a kind of affection, the love of knowledge. The love for knowledge and the desire to understand must be there. When that kind of all consuming love comes, then one is not worried about anything else. Whole-hearted attention is given because the seriousness of the problem is realized. Now, coming back to the allegory: the gods try to find out, unsuccessfully, what the Supreme Being is. The Supreme Being puts a blade of grass in front of them. He asks Agni to burn it and he fails; He asks Vayu to blow it off and he fails. Then comes Indra, the lord of the senses, but as he approaches, the Yaksha disappears. This suggests two things. One, the senses are those which can go closest to the ‘Truth,’ because it is through the experience of the senses that one even begins to think and understand that something exists beyond the senses. If we did not see, or hear, we would not know what it is to not see or hear. So, the senses are not things to be neglected or belittled. They are to be properly used, not abused and dissipated. This is the importance of sadhana; the senses are properly used and sharpened and not neglected, as the very Shanti mantra of the Kenopanishad says, ‘May our limbs grow vigorous, may our senses grow vigorous, may our mind have the energy to look within.’ The senses are there for use, not abuse. The other point is that the senses can go closest, but they cannot see or feel or experience the Supreme Being and so they return. Then the Supreme Being, in the form of the Yaksha, disappears. Then comes the most beautiful manifestation of wisdom in the form of Uma – Haimavatim bahu shobhamaanaam – of indescribable beauty, this ‘daughter of the Himalayas!’ She says to the gods, ‘The Yaksha was Brahman Himself, whose victory you thought was yours. Understand this!’ She becomes the medium to guide the seeker to the Supreme Being.

There is great meaning in presenting the teacher in feminine form. Feminine characteristics are unique; men cannot even understand them adequately. A woman is one who receives and gives in plenty. This aspect of Shakti has always been very important. Perhaps the earliest reference to Shakti or Uma comes in this Upanishad. She is beautiful, which means beauty is not a thing to be shunned. As one progresses, when one finds the inner beauty, the inner truth, then one begins to feel that everything is beautiful! Then there is no ‘inner’ and ‘outer’. There is only One! In the beginning of sadhana, the attraction to the form is often necessary in order to be guided into the formless. This is a question of practical sadhana because one cannot jump to or fix one’s mind on the abstract reality, something in thin air, although ultimately it is the formless that we seek. On the other hand, if one learns to gather one’s energies into one center or one form, or one ideal, then at some point, one may reach a stage when one may drop the form. So a form, especially an attractive form, is necessary for one to be able to fix one’s mind on one point, and then, when one comes to a certain state, one may choose to discard it. It is like making an image out of clay. Clay has no shape as such. You put the clay into a mould and press it until the image sets, and then you break the mould for the image to emerge. In Section Four, the Upanishad describes, through the words of Uma, the experience of Brahman. It is not a gradual formation, not a gradual experience, but a sudden flash, like that of lightning or like the blink of an eye. It is not an experience that is collected in the memory and retained. It is a present experience which, as the Upanishad says, ‘If you understand it now, there is bliss; if you do not understand it at this moment, it is a disastrous loss.’ So the Upanishad is speaking of the present, not of some future date when one can attain it, as some think. The fourth shloka of Section Four is: Tasyaisha aadesho yad etad vidyuto vyadyutadaa itiin nyamiimishadaa ity adhidaivatam. This speaks about Brahman. It means that, ‘It is like a flash of lightning.’ When illumination comes, it comes like a flash of lightning. No one can say when it will come. One has to be prepared for it because it can come anytime. This is the teaching concerning the Gods because it happened to the Gods Agni, Vayu and Indra. Brahman appeared before them and disappeared suddenly before they could catch It.

The issue is, ‘Can you catch it when it comes, or will you miss it?’ Every postponement of trying to find the Supreme Being is a failure, a loss, because it flashes, and it is gone! One has to be alert enough to catch it. From birth to death, thought is a continuous process. The mind chatters and moves endlessly. It appears that there is hardly any gap between one thought and another. Of course, we cannot find that gap normally, but if you could grasp that junction, then you have it, in the blink of an eye. Like the Upanishad says, iti shushruma purveshaam: ‘Thus we have heard from the ancients.’ The fifth shloka: Athaadhyaatmam yadetat gacchativa cha manah anena chaitad upasmaraty abhikshanam sankalpah. This is the teaching about the ‘Self,’ the atma. The mind always goes towards and moves towards the ‘Self,’ being attracted by it. It is also that which the mind remembers constantly. Sankalpah is ‘volition’ – the will to do something; the decision to do something, ‘I want to do something’. This is part of the working of the ‘Self.’ We all desire happiness. The mind in all of us moves towards material happiness, and that movement, say the Upanishads, is actually a movement towards the ‘Self,’ but in the opposite direction. If we understand this and change the direction of this movement, then, happiness can actually be found. When we look inwards, we come back to the source of eternal happiness. When a person enjoys something, the enjoyment is in that person, not in the thing being enjoyed. For instance, when one smells perfume, it is lovely; when one hears a beautiful song, it is wonderful; when one eats good food, it is tasty – one enjoys it all. When the song reaches the ear, its vibrations come into contact with the eardrum. When the food reaches the mouth, it comes into contact with the taste buds, the sensory organs of taste. Now, where is the enjoyment taking place? It is within the person, not in the song or the food, not even in the organs of hearing or taste. Indeed, this is why the same song or the same food does not appeal to all who hear or taste it. Indeed, the same song if heard over and over, or the same food if eaten again and again, loses its appeal! In the same way, for all sensory enjoyments, the enjoyment is actually in me, although the enjoyment is triggered off when that particular sense organ is in touch with that particular sensation.

The rishi says that the reservoir of all this enjoyment, of happiness, is within you. It is being manifested in small portions when the sensory organs come into contact with those particular senses. Therefore, when man yearns for bliss, for happiness, he is actually moving towards the ‘Self,’ although he thinks he is moving outward. If you can retrace and go within, you can enjoy the whole reservoir of bliss. The basis, the essence, the source of all bliss, can be found if the mind turns back. And then one no longer bothers about the little manifestations of bliss as enjoyed by the senses. The sixth shloka is a more detailed explanation of what was said before. SHLOKA 6 tadd ha tadvanam naama tadvanam iti upaasitavyam sa ya etad evam vedaabhi hainang sarvaani bhutaani samvaanchanti. The verse says: Brahman, the object of all desire, is the most precious of all. External objects look like something today and something else tomorrow. They will die and disappear, but the human life constantly continues with this desire – call it affection, love, attraction or lust. In fact, when someone says, ‘I love you,’ actually it is not ‘you’ but the ‘Self ’ within! The great sage Yagnavalkya reveals this to his wife Maitreyi in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. Tadd ha tadvanam naama – ‘that which is given the name of tadvanam – the most precious of all.’ That is the ‘Supreme Self,’ the object of all desire, which man mistakenly seeks outside himself. This is to be meditated upon – tadvanam iti upaasitavyam: ‘Meditate upon your own ‘Self ’ as that, which not only you desire, but everyone else also desires.’ Your ‘Inner Self,’ is the source of all happiness, the happiness that one seeks here and there, all through one’s life. The rishi adds, ‘Whoever knows it thus, all beings seek Him.’ If someone knows this, if someone has realized this truth, then all others seek Him out, because everybody seeks happiness. So if they get a hint that perhaps this person will provide what is being sought, then ‘all beings seek Him.’ Everybody seeks bliss, but this bliss must be experiential, it cannot be theoretical. At the theoretical level, one can discuss a hundred theories. It is like discussing the art of swimming or cycling. It is good to discuss theory, but it is useless

without practice! Unless and until the discovery becomes part of one’s own experience and realization, it will remain a useless theory. Now the seventh shloka is interesting because it happens very often. After all this teaching, the pupil tells the master: ‘Sir, teach me the Upanishad – the secret of the Upanishad.’ SHLOKA 7 upanishadam bho bruhi iti uktaa ta upanishat braahmeem vaava ta upanishadam abruma iti. Upanishadam bho bruhi iti: ‘It has already been taught! says the Master. ‘The secret relating to Brahman has already been taught to you!’ But apparently the student who sat through the whole discussion is not satisfied and says, ‘Sir, please teach me the Upanishad.’ A certain great man was speaking to a group about dhyana – which is the practical part of the Upanishad. They heard him speak. They thought they were listening carefully to his discourse, but at the end of it, one among the group got up and said, ‘But Sir, tell us about dhyana.’ The speaker exclaimed, ‘O god, what else have I been doing!’ This happens often. The reason is that one does not give enough attention to what is being said. The mind wanders, it alights on different things like a monkey and does not focus on reality. It likes to ruminate on past experience and speculate on the future. To have personal experience of the Supreme Being, what we require is absolute and total attention, as if one is listening to something for the first time. The moment one starts to compare and think, ‘Has this been said before?’ while one is supposedly listening to the Master, then one is not really listening to him at all! When one is listening, one must listen absolutely, with total attention, as if listening for the first time. This is because the knowledge of Brahman is something that should be known now, immediately. It is not as if, ‘I will learn about it here, go home, think about it and decide whether to know Brahman or not!’ But this disciple, after listening to the whole thing says, ‘Please teach me the Upanishad.’ And the master replies, ‘That I have already taught you.’ This also means that whatever has been taught are only words. Since all the words have been listened to, and they remain only words, perhaps the pupil

has been brought in to speak for us – ‘We have heard the words, but what is the truth behind them? Can we make it our own, or is it just written in the Upanishad?’ That is why the Upanishad is written in the form of a dialogue between the teacher and the disciple, to teach others having the same doubts. And the true master never gets fed up with a disciple, however little he understands at first. There is this famous story about Shankaracharya’s chief disciple, Hastaamalaka. When Shankaracharya was traveling in South India, he came to a village where the people brought to him a boy who had not spoken. They thought he was born dumb or retarded, and they thought that Shankaracharya being a great person, might be able to do something for him. Shankaracharya sat near him and asked, ‘Why don’t you speak?’ And the boy spoke for the first time – ‘About what? The Truth, the Reality cannot be put into words. So, why should I speak ?’ He was called ‘Hastaamalaka’ – ‘he who had the wisdom of the Vedas in the form of an amalaka fruit, in his fist – hasta.’ He became Shankaracharya’s chief disciple. When the pupil asked the master again, the master explained it again. So far, the explanation was too profound to understand. Now, the explanation is given in a practical manner. SHLOKA 8 tasyaitapo dama karmeti pratishtha vedah sarvaangani satyam aayatanam. Tapah dama karma – austerity.’ ‘self-control’ and ‘work’ – these are the supports, the foundation of Brahman, that ‘Supreme Being’ of which you ask again. Tapah is usually interpreted as ‘austerities.’ If somebody takes a vow and stands with one hand upwards for ten years, well, some call it tapas. The word tapas is derived from the root tap, which means ‘to burn.’ So, tapas also means ‘to burn away.’ But austerity is not just having one loin cloth, or standing with one hand raised up! There is this story about Janaka Maharaj who used to go to the forest to study at the feet of his master, the great sage Yagnavalkya, who always had a seat in front reserved for the king. The other ascetics and sanyasins used to feel jealous of the king. They thought that the Maharshi was either afraid

of him or partial to him because he was a king. But Yagnavalkya said nothing, for generally, sages do not react to criticism! One day, while the group was discussing the Upanishads, the truth of Brahman, the reality of existence and so on, a messenger came running, saying, ‘Sir, Videha is burning and the fire is spreading into the forest!’ Some of the ascetics started running to save their belongings from the fire – their clothes (kaupin) and their vessels (kamandalu). Only Janaka Maharaj kept seated and quiet. The Rishi turned to the ascetics and said, ‘This is the difference between him and you! His whole kingdom is burning but his attention is on Brahman, whereas you are running after your meagre possessions! You think you have given up the world but in reality you have not!’ You see, there is a great deal of difference between physically giving up and actually giving up. If one has given up all material possessions, yet is attached to what little one has, then one has not really given up! It is good to have a middle path with no extremes. Have what is necessary and have no craving for more. As Krishna says in the Gita, ‘This yoga is not for him who eats too much or too little, or sleeps too much or too little’. There is a beautiful sentence in the Ishavasya Upanishad, which says, tena tyaktena bhunjita – ‘let go and rejoice!’ Normally when you let go, you suffer! Once, when Swami Vivekananda was wandering around India, a young man came to him and said, ‘Sir, I want to renounce everything and become a sanyasin.’ Swamiji said, ‘Great! You must be a mature man to be able to do that! What is your education?’ The young man said that he had not completed his high school. Swamiji asked, ‘What about your background?’ The young man replied that his parents were dead. He had nothing, no home. Swamiji said, ‘Then what are you going to renounce?’ The young man said that he wanted to give up what little he had and become like the Buddha. And Swamiji replied, “Buddha had a whole kingdom to renounce, but you have nothing to let go! Go and make some money first, even if you have to steal! And when you have a lakh of rupees in your hand, you can come and say, ‘Swamiji, I have this much; I am going to give it up and become a sanyasin,’ and then I’ll accept your request!” Tapah is ‘the burning away of the dross,’ ‘the burning away of one’s accumulated impurities’ or ‘distractions.’ Once one begins to understand that the ‘Inner Self,’ the ‘Supreme Being’ is not touched by any of the ups

and downs of the world and its emotions, one has become a little richer. Slowly, the disturbances begin to subside. Ultimately, the burning away of the ego takes place. In Dakshineshwar, you will see Kali with a garland of human heads. When one is ready to give one’s head as part of the garland, then one has burnt everything off! That is real tapas. So, what are the supports of Brahman? They are tapas, dama and karma or ‘austerity,’ ‘self-control’ and ‘work.’ ‘Giving-up’ and ‘burning-down’ is tapas, not becoming lazy. There is a great deal of difference between satva and tamo guna. In satva, there is goodness and purity. One finds no reason to do anything. In laziness, one does not want to do anything at all. That is the difference. The study of the Upanishads is a great effort. Working towards a great goal requires great effort. Karma here means ‘the work towards the attainment of the Supreme Being,’ putting great effort to acquire the knowledge of the Supreme Being. Dama means ‘self control,’ which means not letting the mind take control of you. The mind is not allowed to dictate to you. You dictate what the mind should do, so that it is no more dissipated, it is no more running here and there like a monkey. It is calm, settled and quiet. So, tapas, dama and karma are the foundation for knowing Brahman. Another important statement is made – vedah sarvaangani – ‘the Vedas are its units.’ The Vedas, which we study, are all units of the Supreme Being because they describe the different approaches, the different angles and different visions of looking at the Supreme Being. The final statement is satyam aayatanam: ‘Truth is its final abode.’ To find this satyam, first one has to be free of all the asatyam which one has so long imagined to be true. Swami Vivekananda put this very aptly. He said, ‘We have been hypnotized by maya ; now we have to dehypnotize ourselves.’ When you get out of the abode of asatyam, you reach the abode of ‘Truth’ – aayatanam satyam, satyam aayatanam. In various Upanishads, the states of satyam and asatyam have been described and compared to a dream. Suppose you have a lengthy dream in which you see yourself as a happy child sitting inside a marriage pandal. Suddenly the marriage pandal catches fire, and you, the child, are burnt! You wake up and say, ‘Thank God that was a bad dream! I am fine in my own room!’ In the dream state, you thought that it was the truth, but when

you awoke, it was not. The waking state is the state of satyam, which is the reality of this world. But please note, even this worldly reality is only for the time being. You will find that, that is also asatyam, not the truth. So, this realization of Brahman is like waking up from all dreams. When one has woken up from all the dreams, one says, ‘Oh, what a long dream I had; what a long and lifelike dream! All the joys and sorrows of that dream state are over. Now, I am in the abode of ‘Truth,’ which is Sat Chit Ananda or, as Vyasa calls it in the Brahma Sutras – Asti Bhati Priya. SHLOKA 9 yo va etam evam veda apahatya paapmaanam ante svarge loke jyeye pratitishtati pratitishtati ‘Whoever has known this, overcomes all sin in the end, and is firmly established in the Supreme Consciousness, in the supreme world of svarga.’ Here, svargaloka is not the svarga which is described in the Puranas, where one enjoys oneself with rich food and drink, lolling in a super-sized bed! Here it means the supreme condition of total moksha, total freedom. And then, the Upanishad emphasises, ‘He is firmly established; he is firmly established in the Truth’ – pratitishtati pratitishtati. With this, the Kenopanishad ends. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS Q1.: Other than Shankara’s Vedanta, are there explanations which are more satisfying , because devotion cannot go easily towards a formless Being... A: Apart from Shankara’s Vedanta, there are beautiful commentaries written on all the Upanishads by Madhva. There are so many Upanishads that talk about the Brahman. The approach of the Kenopanishad is not the only exclusive approach to ‘Reality.’ Isha vaasyam idam sarvam: everything is Brahman. One is reminded of what Mahendranath Gupta said to Sri Ramakrishna when they first met. Sri Ramakrishna asked Mahendranath in his usual simple way, ‘Do you believe in God with form or without form?’ Mahendranath straightaway went into a lecture, ‘All these clay and stone images ... these are all nonsense! As you know the Supreme Brahman is ...’ Sri Ramakrishna cut him short and said, ‘This is one hobby of you Calcutta people – you like to lecture! If you believe that the Supreme Brahman is

everywhere, that he is infinite, then why can’t he be in an image? Why do you exclude the image?’ So, these are different approaches. One has to choose the explanation one is most comfortable with. Q2.: Since ‘Truth’ is one, is there the same interpretation in Islam, of Brahman, as in the Kenopanishad? A: The Koran has the stature of Shruti. Everything else, including Hadis, is considered to be a revelation; the Hadis comprises the sayings of Prophet Mohammad. In various places in the Koran, you find references to the Supreme Being in different ways. In some places the Supreme Being is represented as the creator, like Brahma. He creates, He destroys, He punishes; the Supreme Being becomes a God of the saguna variety. The God of the Koran is without form. He has no roopa, but He has qualities and attributes. So, what would you call Him? Niraakaar or niraakaar saguna because the gunas are there. There are some places where there is mention of God from whom both good and evil have started. This kind of mention is very rare. There is one stream of Islam called the Sufi stream, followed by those who have gone into the mystical aspect of the religion. They are not so much concerned with what is called Shariat, but they discuss the Tariqat. Unfortunately, Sufis are prohibited from entering many Islamic countries. India is one country where Sufis have never been persecuted. One of the greatest Sufis, Ali Mansoor Al Halaj, was executed in Baghdad for proclaiming ‘Anul Haq’ – ‘I am the Truth!’ In the Sufi stream, there is also mention of Brahman, which has been described in the Kenopanishad. ‘Sufi’ is a word coined by some European writers on Islam. The Sufi himself does not know that he is called a ‘Sufi’! They generally like to call themselves ‘people on the path’ or ‘travelers.’ The whole Sufi system is built on a personal saying of Mohammad which is called ‘Hadis’ – Man arfa nafsu fa khad arfa rabbu – which means, ‘He who knows his Self knoweth his Lord.’ The entire Sufi system has been built on this. So, considering it that way, Brahman, as referred to in the Kenopanishad, also exists, especially with the Sufis. But in the rest of the Koran you will find the saguna Brahman generally, God as creator, God as preserver, God as destroyer, God without form but with attributes. In a few rare places, the

Supreme Reality is referred to as the ‘Light that shines like a lamp in the khalb – heart.’ Q3.: What is the difference between Gods such as Sri Rama and Sri Krishna and the Supreme Brahman? Where are these gods? How is it that when we pray we get God’s blessings? We also have a feeling that a kind of power exists at some particular place, at Vaishno Devi, for instance. What are these powers? A: It must be made clear that nowhere do the Upanishads declare that there are no gods or there are no powers of nature or there are no higher beings. In this Upanishad itself one finds many references to gods, higher powers of nature to whom one prays and gets help. But what the Upanishads say is that the Core or the Essence of even those gods is the Supreme Being. This is what this Upanishad declares – that even the gods derive their power from that Supreme Being. When one prays, does one get blessings? Somtimes one does and sometimes one does not. It depends not only on how much one prays or what energy one puts into it; it also depends on the circumstances. Often we pray for things that we want, but they may not be the things we need for our evolution. There is a difference between what you want and what you need to evolve spiritually. Since the Supreme Being is concerned with your need to evolve rather than satisfy your want at that moment, sometimes prayers are not answered. But the mind has such powers that if you apply your mind to achieving something, ninety-nine percent, we must always leave one percent to chance, you will get it. One must know how to get it, how to apply the mind. That is the whole science of dhyana, dharana and samadhi. The Tantra Shastras not only apply to higher things, they also apply to the achievement and attainment of things of this world. There are havans, there are homas and there are pujas. All these are there as forms of prayer. It so happens that the Upanishads do not deal with this, they deal with the Essence. However, they do not deny these forms of prayer. But for the seeker who is looking for the absolute, original, uncorrupted ‘Truth’, these are of no importance. That is all that is said. About places like Vaishno Devi, for instance, it is true that certain places acquire certain vibrations because of the presence of very highly evolved spiritual beings. Added to that are the concentrated energies of the hundreds

and millions of people who visit the place, pray, and further strengthen the energies there. When a temple is built, there is a process called praana pratishta. Before the praana pratishta is done, the image is nothing. The sculptor might sit on the head of Vishnu and knock at the nose as he carves the stone, because it has not become Vishnu yet. Once the image is installed, when the praana pratishta is done, the stone idol becomes God! The process of praana pratishta, apart from the mantras and rituals, is very interesting. The person who does the praana pratishta first visualizes the cavern of his heart as well lit and clean. Then he does what is called aavaahan, which means he invites the God to be present in his heart. When he has brought the God into his heart, then he does the pratishta. He passes the God on to the image and says, ‘Please enter this image so that we may pray to you from here.’ Once the prana pratishta is done, it becomes powerful, and then, depending on the performance of the daily rituals and the attention given by the hundreds of people who go there, it becomes more and more powerful. The power is provided from within, but it can also come from without. There are some special places where there are special vibrations. People are now studying the effect of pyramids, for example. The Upanishads do not talk about it, but it does not mean that they do not exist. It is just that the Upanishads are concerned with something different. Q4.: In this Upanishad, when Vayu, Agni and Indra could not understand the Inner Being, the Para Brahman, who is this Uma that makes you understand? A: The question is, ‘Who is Uma?’ Uma is always associated with ShivaParvati; Uma is the mystical energy that is in all of us which has been variously referred to as the Kundalini. When that energy is aroused and made active, then different instruments of perception come into being. Among those instruments, the most important is the center called the Ajna Chakra, which is again represented in Shiva as the third eye. This is why Shiva is called Trayambak – ‘the one with three eyes.’ It is that eye, the single eye, which when opens, your whole being is full of light. There is a statement in the New Testament: ‘Therefore, if thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light!’ Obviously, it does not refer to being blind in one eye!

So, this Uma within, when considered as an internal force, is that energy, or Shakti, or Kundalini, which opens up one’s wisdom and takes one to the Brahman, the Supreme Reality. Q5.: Quite often, moha – love, attraction, worldly ties – stops one from letting ‘the breeze’ blow in. Can you help? A: Yes, there is a dilemma here. There is no way out except to find out the cause of moha, how it can be controlled, and then control it. We teachers can help in a limited way, but ultimately, the work has to be done by the person himself. If help in personal sadhana is required, then one has to meet individually and discuss it because there is no single path or method that is suitable for everyone. Each person has a different background, a different mindset and is genetically different. So, one has to have satsang, which means one has to sit down and talk and listen. This is what happened during the Upanishadic period, where the teacher and the student talked and tried to understand each other and explored ways to find out how to overcome the problem. That sort of help, or association, can be provided by the teacher. Q6.: What is the middle point between moha and moksha? A: It depends on how serious and how evolved the person asking the question is. If the person is keen on moksha, or salvation then he is at the stage when he is really keen to get rid of moha or lust and attraction to material things, and he wants to get over it and achieve moksha. On the other hand, if he is not keen to achieve moksha, there is little purpose in an answer, is it not? In any case, that person is definitely caught between the pulls of moha and the search for moksha. He wants to attain moksha, for which he has to overcome moha. One cannot define a mid-point between the two. It depends on each individual and how much he aspires for moksha. There are several people who want to get moksha, but they are so caught up in the web of their mohas that they cannot. They find it too difficult. Yet it is better to be in that state than not to even think of moksha. When you say you wish to overcome moha, it means you have understood that there is a problem with moha. That is a positive step. It is actually the state of a seeker, a jijnasu, and it is an important step because from there one moves forward.

Q7.: Why couldn’t the young man who spoke to Swami Vivekananda say that he wanted to renounce his ignorance and not material things? A: One does not know the mental state of the young man when he came up with such a question! If he had said, ‘I want to renounce my ignorance,’ Swamiji would have probably asked him to get ready and begin to understand because ignorance goes only when knowledge comes in. Q8.: Could you please tell us something about the Gayatri Mantra? Can it be recited at night time as well? A: The Gayatri Mantra is the essence of the Vedas. The Mantra is: om bhur bhuva suvah tat savitur varenyam bhargo devasya dheemahi dhiyo yonah prachodayaat If one could explain Om and bhur bhuva suvah, we have explained the entire Vedanta. That is why it is called the Essence of the Vedas! Although it is not the intention here to explain the whole of the Gayatri, one can say that the reason the Gayatri is chanted is to clear your intellect and make it subtle enough to understand the higher mysteries of life. The other reason is that the regular chanting of the Gayatri definitely builds up a certain vibration which is very conducive to spiritual as well as material welfare. This is a personal experience. Perhaps one of the reasons why there is a downfall in the moral calibre of this country is because those who are given the Gayatri and asked to chant it have stopped doing so! Those who can see invisible things, who are clairvoyants, have actually seen certain vibrations taking place when one chants the Gayatri properly, even if one does not know the meaning. The effect of the chanting is that it not only emanates from the person who is chanting, it goes through the people who are listening as well. This is because the words and the rhythm have been set in such a fashion. Now the question – ‘can it be recited at night as well?’ Normally, the Gayatri is not chanted at night simply because it is a mantra which is a request to the Sun god to illumine the intellect. It is also chanted facing the Sun. But, for sadhaks who believe that the Sun which they address is the inner Sun of knowledge and illumination – with that attitude, perhaps, one can chant the Gayatri even at night. The Savitur need not be only the

physical manifestation, it can be the inner Sun which gives wisdom and light. Therefore, if one thinks of it in that way, there should be no bar in chanting the Gayatri at any time. Again, Gayatri need not be chanted loudly. It can be chanted mentally. Indeed, it is mostly chanted quietly. Even when the Gayatri is given to somebody, it is whispered in the ear. Q9.: Is there any reference to Purusha and Prakriti in any Upanishad? If there is, then where does Brahman stand in that scheme? A: Purusha has been referred to in the Vedas – for instance, in the Rig Veda, there is the Purusha Suktam – but Prakriti is not referred to directly in the Upanishads. Purusha and Prakriti, as such, are mainly referred to in the Sankhya Sutras of Kapila. In the Sankhya Pravanchana Sutra, for instance, Prakriti has been given a definition. It says, prakaroti iti prakriti – that means, ‘that which divides, that which creates duality, which creates division, is Prakriti’ and, Purusha is the unified power from which Prakriti emanates. In the Upanishads, there is reference to Purusha. In the Purusha Suktam of the Rig Veda, the Supreme Being is called Purusha, who is sahasraaksha, ‘He who has a thousand eyes.’ Sahasra does not necessarily mean ‘one thousand.’ The reference here is to the Supreme Divine Being who can see everything and is aware of everything. He is Omnipresent, Omnipotent and Omniscient. According to the Upanishads and the Vedas, Purusha is often a substitute word for the Brahman, the ‘Supreme Being.’ ‘That Purusha also resides in oneself.’ In this context, it refers to the ‘Self ’ and the ‘Self ’ is the atman; the atman and the Brahman are the same, or at least, linked together. So, the reference to the Purusha in the Vedas and the Upanishads is actually a reference to the Brahman. Q10.: After all this discussion on Brahman, you have said that one should experience one’s ‘Self.’ How is this brought about and what is the place of the teacher in this regard? A: This is a serious question. We have had so much discussion on the Brahman, but will it remain only at the theoretical level, the academic level, or the verbal level? Can one really experience this, which we are talking about? And, if we can, what is the role of the teacher in this search? The guide or the teacher is the one who points the way. He says, ‘This is the way you have to take – now, follow it.’ To find out and to experiment

with the methods given by the teacher, is the job of the seeker. The teacher cannot work for the seeker. He can be a catalyst, but the actual experience has to be gained by the seeker himself. For instance, suppose you are standing at a junction and a man comes up to you and asks, ‘Sir, where is this address I am looking for? How do I get there?’ You say, ‘Go straight, turn left ... that is the building.’ Now, what should he do? Should he proceed along the way shown to him? Or should he stay back and garland you saying, ‘Sir, you are the greatest teacher. You have shown me the way. Now I know all that I want to know.’ The function of the teacher is to show the way, and once the path is shown, the seeker should get ready to move on the path and not stay with the teacher. A true teacher would not like to be praised or flattered. He should say, ‘If you want the truth, do what I have asked you to do; perform what I have asked you to perform.’ In the Vedas, the Upanishads and the Agamas, the word for teacher is Guru. It is derived from gu and ru. Ru meaning Rudra, ‘the destroyer’ of gu, meaning darkness or the hidden. So, ‘One who destroys the darkness’ or ‘One who brings out what is hidden’ or ‘One who reveals the Truth.’ In Vedantic parlance, a Guru can be best illustrated by an example. It seems there were eleven people who went on an excursion. They crossed a stream, and when they reached the other side, they suddenly had a doubt whether anybody had been left behind. One person stood up and started counting. He counted and said, ‘There are only ten people here. There is one chap missing.’ Then another person in the group said, ‘This cannot be! I can see everybody here.’ Then he too counted and said, ‘It’s true! There are only ten! Who is missing?’ While this circus was going on, a person who had climbed a palm tree to tap toddy was watching them. He came down and said, ‘Don’t worry! I have counted. You are eleven’. The chap who counted everybody, forgot to count himself! The toddy-tapper is the Guru, you see, because he looked at the situation from a totally different point of view, reassured and corrected the perception of the group. He only made them aware. For that, a teacher was essential. This, in Vedantic terms, is the function of the teacher. Q11.: Is it by accident that the teacher appears in front of you? A: Well, what we call ‘accidents’ are things about which we are not aware, about which we do not know. Let us say there is a giant jigsaw puzzle; and

the person who makes the jigsaw puzzle, the one who draws the picture and paints it and then cuts it up into little pieces – he knows what the ultimate figure looks like. Suppose the pieces of the jigsaw puzzle are taken apart and the different pieces lie here and there. I pick up one piece in isolation. I see that it does not even have a regular geometrical shape, and say, ‘This is meaningless. What is this?’ If I can put all the pieces together, then I see that there is some meaning to it. And the one who has made the jigsaw puzzle knows what it is. If one is to find out the meaning of the jigsaw puzzle one has to have the same angle of vision as the creator of the jigsaw puzzle. I must be like the toddy-tapper, who stood outside and saw who was missing. When a person is ready for his spiritual progress, then the teacher definitely appears. It need not be one teacher. The Avadhoot had twenty four teachers. Even the bee was his teacher. There can be many teachers, but generally there is one person who is the guide. The only thing that one has to be very careful about is the choice of the guide. Of course, when one is ready, one will get the teacher. How and why does the teacher pick his student or the student pick his teacher? There is always a reason, though it is not known at the time! One does not have to run to the Himalayas in search of a Guru. One may do so out of great enthusiasm, but it is not necessary. One is drawn to the teacher at the right moment. The teacher will come – definitely! It has always happened that when the aspirant is ready, the teacher has always appeared. Either he goes to the teacher, or the teacher goes to him. It is no accident. Om Shantih! Om Shantih! Om Shantih!

he Upanishads form part of the Vedas. When we talk about the Vedas, it is generally the Samhita portions; Samhita, meaning, ‘the hymns’ of the Vedas, which are the Rig Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sama Veda and the Atharvana Veda. These are the four important Vedas that have been handed down to us from time immemorial. In fact, no one can say where they originated or how they came to us. They are known as shruti because it is said that they were ‘heard.’ Shruti means ‘through the ear.’ Shruti was heard by the wise rishis of ancient times who passed down the body of wisdom that takes us to the essence of all life and provides the answers to questions like – What is God? What is the human being? How is human life connected to God? And so on and so forth. The last portion of the Vedas is a section that is known as the Jnana Kanda, which means ‘the Wisdom Section.’ This is the section where the Upanishads come in. So they are basically discussions on the truths which have been given in the shruti. The Upanishads themselves are considered to be shruti. They bring us to an understanding, first theoretically and then actually, of what we call the ‘Supreme Being,’ Brahman or Atman or Ishwara. Now, the meaning of the word ‘Upanishad’ – Upa means ‘to move closer,’ ‘to go nearer’ and shad means ‘to sit down’ physically and also to settle down the mind. Two interpretations have been given: The first is, ‘to sit in front of the teacher.’ You can imagine the situation in ancient times where there would be a beautiful hermitage on the banks of a river beside the mountains, where the great rishi taught his students who sat around him. The students did not sit far away, so there was always a personal contact with the students. These are matters where personal contact is very important. So, the teacher and the students sat down close to each other, and the students listened to the truths that were being expounded by the teacher. There is the syllable ni that connects upa and shad. Ni indicates the level at which the person who ‘receives’ sits – a little ‘lower’ than the teacher. It does not mean the physical level. It indicates a psychological state of mind, where the disciple or the seeker acknowledges that he does not know. He supposes that his teacher, the rishi, knows, and therefore he sits down with humility. This is the meaning of ni – ‘to sit down at a lower level with great

humility.’ He sits down and listens to the teacher propounding the truths of the shruti and explaining them. This is the meaning of ‘Upanishad.’ When you say shad, ‘to sit,’ it means not only to physically sit down but it also means ‘the settling down of the mind’ which normally is attracted by all the activities of the material world and runs hither and thither like a monkey all the time. We must understand that the teaching of the Upanishad, specifically, is meant for those who have already gone through certain sadhanas and have acquired the capacity, relatively speaking, to still their minds and sit. They would have also acquired the humility to know that they do not know and are ready to listen. So, when all these activities come together, they form the subject matter of the Upanishads. One important point is that the Upanishads are often in the form of a dialogue between the teacher and the disciple, and they are profoundly clear after explanation. But somewhere along the line there has come about a misunderstanding that, since the Upanishads are in the Jnana Kanda or the intellectual part of the scriptures, one can find the truth, which the Upanishads express, through intellectual acrobatics. We must understand very clearly that the Upanishads do not claim or state that one can find the ‘Supreme Reality’ through intellectual analysis. Intellectual analysis is very necessary, the intellect is very important, but nowhere do the Upanishads say that through the workings of the brain alone can one find the ‘Supreme Being.’ In fact, the entire purport of the Upanishads is to make one understand that there is ‘something’ which is beyond the thinking brain, beyond the intellect, something which is much wider and larger in scope than our limited brain can comprehend. The Upanishads tell us how to open up the channels of communion with the Supreme. Many people think that the study of the Upanishads is an intellectual exercise. There are people who think that if you study the Upanishads, you will find God immediately. That is not true. In fact, by use of the intellect alone one cannot reach the ‘Supreme Being.’ The Kena Upanishad, one of the Upanishads of the Sama Veda, declares in unequivocal terms that, ‘That Supreme Being which you are seeking cannot be reached even by the mind.’ By ‘mind’ is meant our normal mind, which logically concludes, ‘one plus one is two,’ and so on. Seeking the ‘Supreme Being’ is something that comes about when the mind has completely settled down; when it has understood that no amount of

intellectual acrobatics is going to solve the problem. When the mind is in peace, then, actually, begins the journey. The Upanishads bring us to the beginnning of the journey. The Kena Upanishad says: yan manasaa na manute yena ahur mano matam tadeva brahma tvam viddhi nedam yad idam upaasate. Yan manasaa na manute – ‘That which the mind cannot conceive.’ Yen ahur mano matum – ‘But because of which the mind gets the capacity to function.’ Tad eva brahma tvam viddhi – ‘Understand that ‘That’ is the Supreme Being.’ Nedam yad idam upaasate – ‘Nothing that you consider here.’ It means that you can formulate nothing with your brain which can, in any way, describe that ‘Supreme being’ who is the very origin of the mind. Sometimes, when one learns the Upanishads and other such scriptures, one is filled with a subtle egotism, ‘Now that I have read all this, I have understood the Supreme Being.’ This is far from the truth. If that were so, then no sadhana would have been prescribed. These are the two important points – one is the intellectual understanding and the other is sadhana, which one has to practise after learning personally from a teacher. Even the great Shankaracharya who had said ‘jagat mithya,’ still prescribed sadhana, because without sadhana we can understand very little. One has to listen to the Upanishads carefully, for much of our thinking and understanding is prejudiced. We are so caught up in the attraction of the world and our senses that though we think that we think clearly, our thinking is, in fact, always prejudiced by our desires. So, we have to watch our mind and proceed carefully. The Mandukya Upanishad is a short Upanishad. It consists of just twelve verses or shlokas. Gaudapada has written a voluminous karika, or commentary on it. All the great acharyas, including Shankaracharya, Madhvacharya and Ramanuja, have written commentaries on it. It is a short Upanishad which deals with the subject that is so basic to our living and our understanding of life. It is called ‘Mandukya Upanishad’ because according to tradition, Varun Dev, the lord of the rains, took the

form of a manduka, a frog, and taught this Upanishad as Mandukya Maharshi. Manduka actually means ‘frog.’ Normally when we look at a frog, we think that it is a useless, insignificant little creature; it may even look funny or repulsive to us. The frog may be insignificant to us, but, when wisdom comes through the mouth of a frog, its external appearance is no longer important. Maturity and inner wisdom are more important than outward appearances. Another point is that the frog, lone among all creatures that we know of, passes through quite a metamorphosis through a cycle where it emerges from the egg, becomes a tadpole that swims around in the water, and discards its tail to become a frog. Then it begins to live both on land and in water. It is a great transformation that takes place. This is the first metamorphosis which we are taught in school. It is also, in some way, a reference to a spiritually advanced being or a rishi who in his complete spiritual understanding, has ‘discarded his tail.’ Like a frog that can live both in water and on land, a rishi is in two worlds at the same time – the material and the spiritual. If you have read some of the discussions in the books on Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, you will find an interesting incident mentioned. Sri Ramakrishna once said, ‘I am going to Calcutta. Though I don’t meet many people there, I will meet Keshab Chandra Sen.’ When he met Keshab Chandra Sen, he said, ‘Do you know why I have come to meet you? Not because you are the founder of the Brahmo Samaj, but because you are one of the few people whose tail has been discarded!’ Everybody wondered what ‘tail’ he was talking about. Remember, only when the tadpole’s tail is discarded does it becomes a full-fledged frog. So what he meant was, ‘You are no longer a tadpole, you are fully grown and can live in two worlds – here and there at the same time.’ Live in the world of the spirit, anchored in the world of the spirit, and yet carry on in this world. A beautiful example is that of the lotus, which grows in the water, taking all its sustenance from the mud underneath, yet not a drop of water will stick to its petals. So also, derive all your sustenance from the world, and yet remain unaffected by it. Some people think that it is not possible. One has to try!

If one remains trapped by the attractions of this world, it means one is not trying hard enough, and if that be so, it only means that one’s priorities are not yet decided – that is all. People have this approach – ‘We will work hard for anything,’ – for instance, a promotion or a fat bank balance, ‘but where spiritual development is concerned, a short-cut would be nice!’ No Upanishad, no religious teacher has said that we must renounce the world and live in isolation. It is so difficult in this Kaliyuga for a person to go away, sit in a cave and meditate. It is impossible because we carry our mind with us; we are not free from the mind which comes with us wherever we go. Even if we do go away, how do we find out whether we have progressed spiritually, sitting alone out there? Suppose one lives in isolation for three months and feels one has conquered anger. How can one know it as a fact? There is nobody to get angry with out there, except the walls of the cave. It is only when one comes out of the ‘cave’ and tries to get into a crowded bus and somebody gives him a painful shove, can one know whether one is really free of anger or not! So, these things can be tested only in society, in the midst of people. Of course, when one has performed all one’s life’s work and discharged one’s responsibilities, then one is free to go. But there is no point in running away prematurely, for trivial reasons. That is what is called ‘the vairagya of the monkey.’ I get upset with my wife, we have a big quarrel; so I renounce everything and go off to Benaras. This is not vairagya! Vairagya is something that comes from within after a great deal of introspection and maturity, and is very rare. One has to be very mature to be free; then one can physically go away somewhere. For most of us the ideal thing would be to live here and also to understand. As was said in the beginning, the Upanishads are part of the Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharvana Vedas. The Mandukya Upanishad belongs to the Atharvana Veda, the last of the four Vedas. It deals basically with the significance of aum. It begins with the description of what aum is, and then goes on to describe the basic experience of all human beings, irrespective of their caste, creed or religion. The basic experience all human beings have is that we are awake, we all dream, and we have deep sleep. These three states of consciousness and how they are connected with aum is the subject matter of this Upanishad. It

has only twelve shlokas. Yet, hundreds of pages have been written discussing these twelve shlokas. SHLOKA 1 aum ity etad aksharam idam sarvam tasyopa vyaakhyaanam bhutam bhavad bhavishyaditi sarvam aumkaara eva yacchaanyat trikaalaateetam tad apy aumkaara eva. Aum ity etad – The sound aum, ‘this syllable.’ Aksharam – ‘indestructible,’ that which remains forever. Kshara means, ‘that which can be destroyed’ and akshara means ‘that which cannot be destroyed.’ It also means ‘that which cannot be born,’ because anything which is born is destroyed at some point. Aum is ‘unborn,’ ‘forever, ‘eternal,’ ‘ever-existing.’ Idam sarvam – ‘That is all This,’ which means, nothing can be ruled out from the field of aum; everything is within its purview. ‘That indestructible akshara is everything.’ To make us understand this statement, it has to be interpreted. So, the teacher says, tasyopa vyaakhyaanam – ‘I am giving a commentary on this to make you understand what is meant by, ‘it is aksharam’ and ‘it is idam sarvam.’ Bhutam bhavad bhavishyaditi – ‘It is all that is past, present and future.’ All that existed, exists and is going to exist, sarvam omkaara eva – ‘All this is only aum.’ That Supreme sound, aum, is all that was, is and will be. That is the aum, which is the subject matter of discussion of this Upanishad. So, aum is time – past, present and future. There is something interesting here to note: as far as the human mind is concerned, the past is something which exists only in the form of a memory – it does not exist in reality anymore. When you say, ‘Yesterday I did such and such a thing,’ the act is over, finished, there is nothing left of it. What I can see is only the present reality. The future I cannot see, I can only speculate. This is the limitation of the human mind. It cannot live in the past, the present, and the future at the same time! It can think of the past, but thinking of the past is not living in the past. It is only a mental process, a memory. The only thing one is sure of, is the present. One is not sure of the future because it is speculation. Based on the past, through the present, one speculates on what the future could hold. One can only project the present

into the future and say, ‘This is what could be;’ which may or may not be. The only certainty that the human being can experience is the present. And every second, every moment of the present is going into the past. One says, ‘I am going to think of something ...’ and the moment I have thought about it, I store it in my memory. It has gone into the past! All of us live in this flow of the past through the present and into the future. This is the movement through which we live, and this is what gives us hope. Now, the ‘Supreme Being’ who is mentioned in the Upanishad, this aum is, bhutam bhavad bhavishyad iti sarvam: ‘It is the past, the present and the future’, all together at the same time! Sarvam – everything is included in it. It is something outside the limited scope of our comprehension – the past, the present and the future, all together, at the same time! Normally, when we say ‘past,’ we think of something that happened before, and when we think of the future, we think of something that is going to happen later. As for the Supreme aum, what has happened, what is happening and and what is going to happen is all known at the same time! We cannot conceive of such a situation. The human mind is simply incapable of it! We can only think of life and experience in terms of past, present and future. But the rishi of the Mandukya Upanishad says, Yacchaanyat trikaalaateetam tad apy aumkaara eva – there exists something which is beyond the trikaala – beyond the past, present and future, all that is aumkaara. There is nothing beyond aumkaara. Aum represents the ‘Supreme Being.’ The Supreme Brahman of the Upanishad is represented here and explained as – ‘that which is beyond the past, present and the future.’ As explained earlier, it is much beyond the capacity of the mind to think of ‘that’ which is beyond the past, present and future. We cannot conceive of this because all our experiences are based on the passage of time. On the one hand, it shows how insignificant we are. On the other hand, it tells us that since we are a spark of that ‘Supreme Being,’ we are really significant! It is both ways! Any Upanishad can be understood only after one has gone through a certain degree of sadhana. Without that, certain parts of it may appear a little too abstract. We must go into it carefully, slowly with mental preparation, and then try to understand.

Then the rishi confirms what has been said before: SHLOKA 2 sarvam hyetad brahma ayam atmaa brahma soyam atmaa chatushpaad Sarvam hyetad brahma – ‘All this is verily Brahman.’ There is nothing that is not Brahman, meaning, there is nothing that can be taken out and said, ‘This is not Brahman; this is separate from Brahman,’ because everything is included in that: past, present, future and that which is beyond past, present and future. Everything is included in this ‘Supreme Being’ who is expressed here as aum. The next sentence is one of the Mahavakyas. It has been variously interpreted. Ayam atma brahma: ‘This Self is Brahman.’ ‘Self ’ is not to be interpreted as ‘the limited self.’ ‘This Self ‘ means the atma, which is not an abstract ‘something’ but real living consciousness. We are not talking about an energy, like chemical energy or atomic energy, which does not have an intelligence of its own. We are talking about an intelligent energy; we are talking about an intelligent ‘Being.’ That very word, ‘atma’ is used here to denote that we are not talking about an abstraction or a state of mind. We are talking about a ‘Being.’ Only a ‘Being’ has atman. An inanimate object does not have an atman. So, this ‘Being,’ the aumkara, the Brahman, is not an abstract ‘something’ hanging in the air. It is not merely an idea. Somebody said that ‘God is a state of mind.’ God is not simply ‘state of mind.’ Probably in a certain state of mind one can have close communion with God – that is understandable. But a statement that ‘God is a state of mind’ is limited in its understanding . So, first the rishi says, Sarvam hy etad brahma – ‘All this is verily that Brahman.’ And then he says, Ayam atmaa brahma – ‘This atma is Brahman.’ That Supreme Reality, Brahman, is atma, which means, ‘It’ is a Conscious Being and not an abstract idea. Soyam atma chatushpaad – and this atma, this ‘Self,’ this real living ‘Being,’ who is beyond the past, the present and the future, has ‘four parts’ – chatushpaad. We will study the four parts and see how they are connected with the word aum.

Aum is divided into three syllables ‘A’ ‘U’ ‘M.’ One interpretation of aum is that ‘A’ represents the beginning of creation, ‘U’ represents preservation of that which has been created and ‘M’ represents the end of creation. So, aum is interpreted as creation, preservation and destruction. Actually, we must not call it ‘destruction’ but ‘regeneration,’ because only when the old is destroyed does the new come up! In this Upanishad, however, aum symbolizes the different states of our consciousness: the waking state, the dream state and the deep-sleep state. All of us experience these uniformly. This is something we cannot deny. We are awake, we dream and we sleep. This is common to all human beings. The Mandukya Upanishad identifies the sound ‘A’ with the ‘waking state’ – jagrita avastha; ‘U’ with the ‘dream state’ – swapna avastha; and ‘M’ with ‘deep sleep’ – sushupti. In addition to the three syllables of aum – ‘A,’ ‘U’ and ‘M,’ we have the ardha matra. This is the sound that comes after aum has been chanted. When we say aum, that last ‘... mmm ...’ is the ardha matra. The verse that follows is a description about that. SHLOKA 3 jagrita sthaano bahish prajnah saptaanga ekonavimshati mukhah sthula bhug vaishwanarah prathamah paadah. The first quarter of the four parts of that ‘Supreme Reality,’ the Brahman, is the jagrita sthaan. Its sphere of activity is the ‘waking state’ – jagrita. That means all of us who are awake are functioning because of the first quarter of that ‘Supreme Being.’ Without that, we will not be conscious of our waking state. The very consciousness and recognition that ‘we are awake’ is the first quarter of that ‘Supreme Reality,’ Brahman. The jagrita is its sphere of activity. And what is the sphere of activity in the waking state? How do we recognize that we are awake? We recognize objects, we see things, we hear, we taste, we are in contact with the world. That is the jagrita avastha – the state of wakefulness. So, the first quarter of that Supreme Brahman, that atman which we have described, is the ‘waking state.’ It functions in the waking state of all human beings and in the actualities of their every day experiences. And its function is ‘to recognize, to understand, to have knowledge of external objects’ – bahish prajnah.

This part of that ‘Supreme Being’ causes the waking state and facilitates the recognition of external objects. Such a ‘Supreme Being’ has saptaanga – ‘seven limbs.’ This is a description of the Purusha, the ‘Supreme Being’, as represented in the Agni Hotra. It is the visualization of that ‘Supreme Being’ as a Super-person. It is a symbolic description of the Supreme Being as in the Chandogya Upanishad, ‘That, whose head is the heavens; whose eyes are the sun; whose praana (life breath) is the air; whose middle portion is the mind; whose bladder is the waters of the earth; whose two feet are the earth, whose mouth is the fire of the Agni Hotra.’ This is a symbolic representation and, relating to that symbol, the rishi says that It has ‘seven limbs’ – seven angaas including fire, which is symbolized as the mouth of that ‘Supreme Being.’ It has ‘nineteen mouths’ – ekonavimshati mukhah. These are all descriptions of the ‘organs’ by which the first quarter of the ‘Supreme Being’ functions in the jagrita avastha or in the waking state. He recognizes the world and deals with it through the ‘nineteen mouths,’ meaning, ‘that by which the world is absorbed.’ This is not counted arithmetically – it is just to show how important the organs are and how they are related to the waking state of man’s existence. The ‘nineteen mouths’ are the five senses, the five organs of activity, the five breaths, the mind, the intellect, the consciousness and the ego. The five senses are: sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. The five organs of activity are: the organ of speech – vaak; the organs of action – the hands to do things; the organs of locomotion – the feet to move; the organs of generation, without which all evolution would come to a halt; the organs of excretion – to eliminate the toxic wastes. The five vital breaths are: prana, apaana, vyaana, udaana and samaana – different kinds of life currents. The manas – the mind – which is made up of feelings and emotions. The buddhi – the intellect – emotions and intellect are separated. The ahamkara – the ego – the feeling of being ‘myself ’, the basic feeling of ‘I am.’ When I wake up in the morning, before I open my eyes I feel, ‘I exist.’ Only if I exist does the world exist! When I go to sleep, what exists as far as I am concerned? Nothing! Of course, the world is there but it does not exist as long as I am sleeping! The chitta – conciousness – thus making a total of nineteen.

All these together make up what is mentioned here as the ‘nineteen mouths’ of that ‘Being,’ which represents the jagrita avastha, the waking state whose function is to cognize and co-relate with the physical world. And what does It enjoy? It enjoys the material objects; It experiences the material world and enjoys it. So It is called sthula bhukh – ‘That which enjoys material objects.’ It is called vaishwanara because It is ‘that which takes along all beings of the universe.’ It is that which leads all of us towards enjoyment. Due to it we all have the in-built tendency to enjoy. Therefore, It is called vaishwanara prathama paada – that is the first quarter of that ‘Supreme Being.’ Now, when we say ‘enjoy,’ we must go a little deeper into what we mean by it. All sane human beings have a desire to enjoy. There is nothing wrong with that. The desire to enjoy is our innate tendency because it is the characteristic of the ‘Supreme Being.’ The ‘Supreme Being’ has been defined as ‘Bliss’ in the Upanishads. Those who have evolved spiritually also experience this. It is the pramaana, or the proof that the essential characteristic of the ‘Supreme Being’ is ananda – Bliss! This is not merely because the Shruti says so but because of one’s anubhava, one’s experience. Sat Chit Ananda Murti, is one of the descriptions of the ‘Supreme Being.’ Sat means ‘Truth,’ ever-existing Truth’ because it is permanent, while everything else is temporary. It is called Chit because it is of the nature of ‘Consciousness.’ And it is Ananda because it is, by its very nature, full of ‘Bliss’! All human beings, deep down in their minds, are looking for ultimate happiness. This ‘looking for bliss’ is a common factor in all of us. We call it ‘the search for happiness.’ There is an innate longing for happiness in us. Every movement in civilization is towards that. Indeed, the very act of human creation is because of ‘Bliss’ and not just ‘wanting to procreate.’ But somewhere along the line, we find ourselves looking for it in the wrong place, in the wrong direction. We are not guided properly and have therefore not looked in the right direction. What is the right direction? First, we must be told, and we must understand, that we are all a ‘spark’ of that ‘Supreme Being.’ We must understand that the Bliss we are looking for can be found only in communication with that ‘Supreme Being’ because that ‘Supreme Being’ is, in its essence, Bliss!

Kabirdas illustrates this in his famous story about the musk-deer, which has kasturi or musk in a little bag behind its tail. In the breeding season, it exudes a lovely fragrance of kasturi. This poor deer goes around looking for the source of the fragrance all over the place, not knowing that it has only to redirect its attention to itself! So too, this fragrance is there in man, and the essence of that fragrance is the ‘Supreme Being.’ Not knowing the essence of that fragrance and its source, we look around for it! This is the mechanism that has been built by the ‘Supreme Being’ so that the world continues to evolve. We all look for happiness endlessly in the material world. ‘If I have one crore of rupees, then I would be happier with two crores! If I enjoy something once, I need more of it to enjoy!’ Some ‘realized’ people understand that this process of seeking happiness through external sources is unending. They have learnt this truth either by seeing others’ experiences or through their own. One does not have to put one’s own finger into the fire to know that it burns! All are looking for happiness, for bliss – there is nothing wrong with that. Only, they seek it in the wrong direction. Somewhere along the line we must ask ourselves, ‘Can a search for material happiness ever end?’ Bliss is the essential characteristic of the ‘Supreme Being’ which is inherent in all of us. We have only to turn around and go back to the source. And the source for every living being has to be only himself. It cannot be outside. Thus the message of the Upanishad is that the ‘Supreme Being’ is not something that is remote, far off. It is very near, close to you, within you, and It is of the nature of Bliss. Among the Sufis there is a saying – ‘He is nearer to you than your own jugular vein.’ Your jugular vein is the nearest part of you, nothing can be closer. ‘He is nearer to you than your own jugular vein.’ Even before we think, He knows! That which stimulates thought is itself the ‘Supreme Being’! We cannot take God for granted. We cannot go before the picture of God and say, ‘Look God! I am a good man, I have always prayed to you, why am I suffering?’ God knows what we are. We cannot be hypocrites and say, ‘Look, I don’t like this world, take me away!’ And when the time comes to be really ‘taken away,’ we get frightened and run for our lives!

There is a story of an old lady who used to go to the temple everyday and cry before the deity, ‘O Goddess, why don’t you take me away? What do I have to do now in this world? Everything is over...’ and so on. The priest of the temple got fed up of this lady coming and making a scene everyday. So one day he went and stood behind the many-armed deity. When the lady approached and said, ‘Take me away!,’ he raised his hands and said, ‘Come!’ She ran for her life screaming, ‘What do you mean? I have to look after my great grandson when he returns from school!’ The material and emotional pull of this world is unending! Sometimes we believe we are cursed by fate. But what we consider a curse may turn out to be a blessing. Not knowing the entire plan, the whole scheme of things, we get agitated. As time goes by we discover that this state of being ‘cursed’ or ‘blessed’ is not permanent. Then we listen to somebody telling us in a satsang, or we read a book or scripture that says, ‘There is ‘something’ permanent but it is not ‘this.’ There is something else that is very blissful. That is to know the Lord Himself, the ‘Supreme Being.’ You are a spark of that ‘Supreme Being’ and therefore, bliss is a part of your being! One can find the Truth through meditation, through understanding, through reading scriptures, through a teacher. Different religions give different ways. Different sadhanas have been prescribed for different kinds of people depending on the person, his field of activity, and the times he lives in. So, we have discussed the jagrita sthana – the first quarter of that supreme aum, which is represented by ‘A,’ whose duty or work is ‘to recognize’ external objects – bahish prajnah; whose sphere of activity is the waking state – jagrita avastha; who has seven limbs – saptaanga and nineteen mouths – ekonavimshati mukhah; who enjoys material objects – sthula bhukh; and who is known as vaishwanara. SHLOKA 4 swapna sthaano antah prajnah saptaanga ekonavimshati mukhah pravivikta bhukh taijaso dwitiyah paadah. This is the second quarter of that Supreme aum, which is ‘U.’ It is taijasa, which means, ‘conscious of the internal.’ Vaishwanara was ‘conscious of the external,’ whereas taijasa is ‘conscious of the inner.’ It illumines the inner. Its sphere of activity is swapna. It cognizes internally – swapna sthaano antah prajnah. It also has seven limbs – saptaanga –

because whatever the physical body has, the dream body has too. It has also ‘nineteen mouths’ by which it enjoys. It enjoys that which is subtle – pravivikta bhukh. Vaishwanara enjoys the gross objects, whereas taijasa enjoys the subtle ones. This subtle enjoyment is the second part – dwitiya paada – of that Supreme aum. In the discussions that follow, we will go into the second quarter – the dream, the third quarter – deep sleep, and then the fourth and most important – turiya, represented by the last part – ardha matra. When one has finished chanting aum, the sound that slowly disappears – that vibration, that part is called turiya. To repeat the salient points covered so far – The Mandukya Upanishad, like all other Upanishads, is a scripture meant for understanding the meaning of the ‘Supreme Reality.’ The Upanishads refer to it as ‘Brahman.’ What is its connection with us human beings who are called jeevatma? How are we related to that ‘Supreme Being’? What is it that the scriptures talk about regarding that ‘Supreme Being’? The Mandukya Upanishad is very short, consisting of only twelve shlokas. It takes up the discussion of the ‘Supreme Being’ as aum. The ‘Supreme Being’ is referred to in many places in the Vedas and the Upanishads as the pranava – aum. Considering the ‘Supreme Being’ as symbolized by aum, the rishi describes how aum is divided into four parts – ‘A,’ ‘U’ and ‘M’ being the three syllables that make aum, and the ‘... mmm ...’ vibration being the fourth part, each part symbolizing a particular function of the ‘Supreme Being.’ As the first shloka says, aum ityetad aksharam idam sarvam tasyopa vyaakhyaanam bhutam bhavam bhavishyaditi sarvam aumkaara eva yacchaanyat trikaalateetam tadapyo aumkaara eva. That supreme syllable ‘aum,’ which is a representation of the ‘Supreme Being’ is all this. Therefore, nothing is beyond the scope of that Supreme Being. Everything is in the ‘Supreme Being’ and the Supreme Being is in everything! All that is past, present and future is in the Supreme Being. This is the difference between the human and the Supreme, because the human being cannot think in terms of the past, present and future at the same time. We have only a memory of the past; we can only speculate about the future.

The past is a memory in the form of pictures, thought-forms. The future is imagination, again in the form of pictures, thought-forms. The only thing we know is the present. In contrast, the Supreme aum or Brahman, knows the present, past and the future at the same time! The human mind and the human brain cannot have a concept of this as it is beyond their capacity. The Upanishad also says that, apart from what is within the scope of time, meaning the past, present and future, anything which is beyond that, not conditioned by time, that is timeless, that also is the ‘Supreme Brahman,’ the supreme syllable aum. The second shloka says, ‘All this is verily Brahman’ – sarvam hyetad brahma. There is nothing that can be said to be ‘not Brahman.’ ‘Brahman’ is the term used by the Upanishad to mean ‘The Supreme Reality.’ The next sentence is ayam atma brahma – ‘This atma is Brahman.’ The word atma is introduced here to show that we are not talking about an abstraction; we are talking about a ‘Being’ – atma. So this Brahman, which is beyond time, is a ‘Being,’ not just an abstract idea or an ideal. ‘That atma is Brahman’ or ‘that Brahman is atma.’ Then, soyam atma chatushpaad: This atma, which is Brahman, is divided into four quarters or four parts. The first part is called, vaishwanara whose sphere of activity is jagrita avastha – the waking state. In this Upanishad, aum represents the ‘Supreme Being.’ The ‘A’ represents the first quarter or the waking state. Jagrita sthaano bahish prajnah – that means the quality or the capacity to recognize the objects in the outside world. It is a representation of the ‘Supreme Being’ as the viraat purusha with its head being the heaven, feet being the earth, and so on – they are the ‘seven limbs.’ It has ‘nineteen mouths’ which include the five sense organs, five organs of action, five vital breaths, the mind, intellect, consciousness and ego, the sense of ‘I-ness.’ It is called vaishwanara because it is that part of the ‘Supreme Being’ in the ‘wakeful state’ – jagrita sthaana who operates in the sphere of wakefulness ; who leads us all to the enjoyment of objects. That is the first part – prathama paada. So, the first part or the jagrita is conscious of the outside, the material world. It recognizes the external objects; it cognizes the outside world and deals with it.

The Upanishads deal with the common experiences of all human beings, irrespective of caste, creed or religion. We do not have to believe in God to know that we are awake, we dream and we have deep sleep. These three experiences are common to all! Deep sleep helps us to relax and forget everything about this world, which is why we feel refreshed when we wake up. The second part is called the ‘dream state.’ Swapna sthaano antah prajnah saptaanga ekonavimshati mukhah pravivikta bhukh taijaso dwitiyah paadah. The second part, which is represented by ‘U’ or ‘O’ sound of aum, is called taijasa. Taijasa means ‘conscious.’ The swapna avastha, the dream state, is also called taijasa because it is like a light that shines in a closed place. In a dream, our eyes are closed and so we do not see the outside light; but we do see light, we see the day, night and various other things. All this is illumined by the taijasa, the second part of the ‘Supreme Being.’ Although the ‘Supreme Being’ cannot be split up into parts, this is a convenient way of describing that the ‘U’ of aum symbolizes the dream state which is common to all human beings. Its sphere of activity is the dream state and its function is to recognize internal objects. It also has the ‘seven limbs’ and the ‘nineteen mouths’ and so on, because even in the dream state we enjoy, eat, drink and do various things. So all the organs are there, but in a different form, a more subtle form, and so it enjoys experiences of subtle objects as opposed to the gross objects that is enjoyed by the jagrita in the jagrita sthaana. Now, these dream experiences need not be dismissed as unreal. In fact, when the dream takes place, at that moment the dream state is as real as the waking state. Only when we wake up from the dream does it become unreal; otherwise it is as real as the reality of the outside world! When you are chased by a tiger in a dream, you are actually being chased by a tiger in that state. It cannot be doubted. When you wake up, your heart is still beating fast, you are sweating, your body is trembling. It has the same effect on the mind and the physical body as in the waking state. So it is as real in the dream state as it would be in the waking state! There is a little explanatory story in which the great sage Rajarishi Janaka had in which he was a beggar going around in rags with a begging

bowl, suffering a lot of misery and hunger. Then he wakes up and realizes he is in his palace, lying in his bed! He is confused. He has a question to ask the great sage Yajnavalkya, who is his Guru. He asks him, ‘Sir, please answer this question – am I a beggar or am I a king? Because, being a beggar was a very real experience! If my dream had stretched on for long and I had not waken up from that state, then I would have continued that beggar’s existence. Now that I have woken up I can say that it is a dream. So please tell me, what am I in reality? Where do I anchor myself?’ This is how the dream state is; it is real and it is an experience of the subtle world, the inner world of imagination and thoughts. Many a time, what is not fulfilled in our waking state may be fulfilled in the dream. Sometimes, bottled-up emotions and desires, long forgotten or suppressed, may surface in the form of dreams. This taijasa, or dream state, has a way of inventing its own world which is similar to day-dreaming. Sometimes, in the waking state, we sit down and imagine various things. At that time, most of our mind is in the jagrita sthaana and so we are able to recognize this activity as an imagination or visualization, but in swapna, the jagrita or the waking state is held in abeyance. It is ‘closed.’ So the swapna becomes real. Now, we move on to the third quarter of the four parts – deep-sleep. SHLOKA 5 yatra supto na kanchan kaamam kaamayate na kanchan swapnam pashyati tat sushuptam. sushupta sthaana eki bhutah prajnana ghana eva anandamay hy aananda bukh cheto mhukah praajnas tritiyah paadah. The third part of that ‘Supreme Being’ aum is called the prajna, which is identified with the sound ‘M’ of aum. It is identified with the last sound ‘M’ where in everything is ‘closed’ and absorbed in itself. When aum is chanted, it finishes with the closing of the mouth. If one wants to produce a fresh sound, the mouth has to be opened again. So, it represents the ‘closing up’ or the end of all activity, where both the waking-activity of the mind represented by ‘A’ and the dream-activity represented by ‘U’, are in abeyance. They are all drawn in, like a tortoise pulling in its head and

limbs. The energies that are operating, both in the physical world and the dream or the subtle world, have ceased to function; everything is ‘closed’ and absorbed in itself. That state is called sushupti. In that state, when one is fast asleep, one has no desire – kaama. One does not have any desire since there is nothing and nobody existing in that state to desire or to be desired. Everything is rolled-up, coiled-up! ‘It does not see any dreams.’ There is not even a desire for dreams. Tat sushuptam – that is called sushuptam. Sushuptasthaana eki bhutah – means all differences have ceased, all is rolled into one, there is only one. Differences between the ‘seer’ and the ‘seen’ have ceased; differences between the ‘subject’ and ‘object’ have ceased; it does not cognize anything. This is deep sleep. There is only one mass of consciousness. It is called prajna in this particular section. As jagrita it is called vaishwanara, as swapna it is called taijasa and as sushupti it is called prajna. So, as prajna in the sushupta avastha, is in absolute rest. There is no outward movement as was seen in vaishwanara in the jagrita avastha, and there is no inward movement as was seen in taijasa, in the swapna avastha. It is just enjoying itself – ananda bhukhah. It is an enjoyer of happiness. That is called prajna, and that is the tritiya paada – the third part, ‘M’ of the ‘Supreme Being,’ symbolized as aum. So, absolute bliss is being enjoyed in deep sleep. The only difference is that one is not even aware of the enjoyment of that Supreme Bliss. But there is enjoyment going on because, when we wake up, we always feel, ‘Ah! I had a wonderful sleep! It was very restful!’ Deep sleep is the greatest blessing that has been given to us. It is in this sushupta avastha that we go to rest finally, after a whole day of activity, and even after the dream state has ended. And because there is no outward or inward movement, there is no wastage of energy of any kind. There is also no differentiation between ‘me’ and ‘you’ because in deep sleep I am not aware of anything. Since there is no ‘I’ and ‘you,’ there is no duality. Since there is no duality, there is no tension, no insecurity, no friction. As long as there is duality, there is no rest, no peace. I might go to sleep clutching my safe-keys in my hand because I am afraid you may come and rob my safe, but when I am in deep-sleep it does not matter, because there is no discrimination and duality, there is no fear but absolute rest. So, when I wake up from deep sleep, I feel absolutely

refreshed. Jagrita, swapna and sushupti are all parts of that ‘Supreme Being.’ SHLOKA 6 aesha sarveshwara aesha sarvajnah aesho antaryaami aesha yonih sarvasya prabhavaapyayau hi bhutanaam. Which means, that ‘Being,’ who is in absolute bliss, who is free from all dualities, who is now in the state of sushupti, that ‘Being’ is really ‘The Lord of all’ – aesha sarveshwara. The rishi talks about that ‘Supreme Being’ as prajna. It is the ‘Lord of all.’ However, that ‘Being’ is beyond the mind, so we cannot conceive of it with our brains. But that does not mean that it is an abstract entity. A Lord cannot be an abstract entity. It is a ‘Being’ and that is why the word, sarveshwara – ‘the Lord,’ is used. You cannot use the term ‘Lord’ for magnetic energy or for nuclear energy! Aesha sarveshwara aesha sarvajnah – ‘It knows everything; The knower of All.’ It is Omniscient. It also means that when we say ‘I know’ we are mistaken. It is only the ‘Supreme Being’ who knows, and it is because our consciousness is an amsha, a part, of the ‘Supreme Being,’ that we know! Therefore, when we say, ‘I know,’ it is wrong. That is what the Upanishads have said. The Kena Upanishad for instance, says, ‘He who thinks he knows, knows not, and he who knows not, knows!’ This is not a riddle. It is to indicate that with our limited intellect, if we think we know the ‘Supreme Being,’ we are still groveling in darkness. When it is completely understood that it cannot be known, then it comes as a flash which is beyond our understanding. So it is this ‘Supreme Being’ who is the ‘Lord of all – the knower of all.’ It is also aesho antaryaami – our ‘inner controller.’ From this deep sleep, in which there is no outward or inward recognition, arises the waking-state; that consciousness, which was blissfully present without any duality, begins to take on the modes of duality; then life begins again, interaction begins again with the outside world. It is also aesha yonih – ‘The Source’ – the yoni of all creation. All creation proceeds from this; it is the beginning and the end of all beings. In the Bhagavad Gita also, when Krishna talks about the ‘Supreme Being’ as represented in Himself, He says, ‘Aham atma gudakesha sarva

bhutaakshya sthithahaa aham aadishcha madhyam cha bhutaanam antah eva cha.’ Arjuna is referred to as gudakesha which means, ‘the conqueror of sleep.’ That does not mean that Arjuna does not sleep! ‘Sleep’ here represents ‘ignorance’ – the ‘Sleep of ignorance.’ So, gudakesha is the one who is seeing, who is wide awake in knowledge. Krishna says, ‘Do understand, O Arjuna, my true essence ; do not mistake me for the body. In my true essence – aham aadishcha madhyam cha bhutaanam antah eva cha – I am the beginning, the middle and the end of everything!’ This Upanishad also calls It, sarvasya prabhavaapyayau hi bhutaanaam – ‘It is the beginning and the end of all beings.’ When we chant, ‘aum,’ there is a vibration that goes on and on. ‘aum....mm....mm...’ – That sound is represented in Sanskrit by a small crescent shape with a dot – it is not a letter; it is called ardha maatra. That represents the essence, the ‘Ultimate Reality’ from which all the other states come about. That is called turiya. And why has it been differentiated and given after sushupti? It is because turiya is the state or sphere of activity of the ‘Supreme Being’ which is not commonly experienced by all human beings. One in a million may experience turiya. It should not be mistaken that the ‘Supreme Being’ who is included in the three maatras of aum – ‘A,’ ‘U’ and ‘M’ – is only involved in the waking, dream and deep sleep states. True, the three maatras are the parts of that ‘Supreme Being.’ But the ‘Supreme Being’ is not made of these parts – it is beyond that. To prove that, turiya has been separated. It is ‘That’ which cannot be expressed by any word in any language. It is inexpressible. That ‘Supreme Being’ is represented by the last sound. For instance, when we strike the bell, it goes on and on and on. Nobody knows where it ends. The sound has not gone anywhere – it is still there, but its vibrations have become so subtle now, that the ear cannot sense it. There may be creatures that can still hear it, if they are sensitive to these subtle frequencies. Therefore, the sound is unending. That ‘unending sound’ symbolizes the turiya state of that ‘Supreme Being’ which cannot be grasped by the intellect. So, we should not think that the ‘Supreme Being,’ the Brahman of the Upanishad, is only confined to the states which we all experience and are aware of – the waking, dream

and deep sleep states. These states are only part of that ‘Supreme Being’ which also lies beyond these states. SHLOKA 7 na antah prajnam na bahish prajnam nobhayatah prajnam na prajnaanaghanam na prajnam naa prajnam. adrishtam avyavahaaryam agraahyam alakshanam achintyam avyapadeshyam ekaatma pratyayasaaram prapanchopashamam shaantam shivam advaitam chaturtham manyantey sa atmaa sa vijneyah. So turiya is represented as the fourth quarter of the ‘Supreme Being,’ as the ardha maatra – ‘that is to be known’ – sa vijneyah. It may sound like a contradiction because the Supreme Being has also been described as alakshanam achintyam agraahyam. Agraahyam means ‘that which cannot be grasped,’ yet the last words of this shloka are sa vijneyah – ‘that is to be known.’ How can one know ‘that which cannot be grasped?’ However, It is not a contradiction, as we will see. About turiya it was said, ‘It is not that which cognizes both internal and external objects.’ Note that it is not said ‘does not’; it is said ‘is not’ that which cognizes internal or external objects. It is not a mass of cognition like the sushupti. It is not cognitive, and yet not noncognitive. It is ‘unseen’ – adrishtam. ‘It cannot be seen,’ which means, the physical eyes cannot see it – like air, which we cannot see with our eyes and yet we know exists. It is avyavahaaryam – ‘That which cannot be spoken of,’ because words fail to explain what it is. There is not enough praise for it. There is no word by which it can be exactly described. It is beyond all words. It is agraahyam – ‘ungraspable.’ That means, it cannot be grasped either by the physical senses in the waking state, or in the dream state, nor can it be grasped in deep sleep. Therefore it is called ‘ungraspable.’ It is alakshanam – ‘without any distinctive marks.’ There is no ‘physical distinctive mark’ or lakshanam, by which it can be identified using our physical senses. It is achintyam –’unthinkable’ – which means, it does not fit into any of our thoughts or our ways of thinking. In fact, the actions of the ‘Supreme Being’ also cannot be fitted into our logical process of thinking. Our logical process is, ‘one plus one is two.’ Perhaps it is akin to the title of an old Hindi movie called Do Aur Do Panch – ‘two plus two is five’! If you read

higher Physics, perhaps you will understand this. In quantum physics we learn of the principle of uncertainty which states that the properties of a particle cannot be determined or known with certainty at the micro level. From the ‘absolute certainty’ of ignorance we arrive at the ‘uncertainty’ of knowledge – a great discovery, a great step forward! Here the Upanishad says, ‘It is agraahyam’ – ‘that which cannot be conceived of or grasped’ which means, however much we try to grasp it, our human brain is not capable of conceiving it. It is the essence of the knowledge of our own ‘Self.’ It is because of this essence that our ‘Self ’ is able to cognize, to be conscious and is able to act in the waking, dream and deep sleep states. It is into ‘That’ that the whole world is resolved when the world has completely disappeared, when all thinking and all desire are ‘closed up.’ What is our world? Our world is the desire-prompted movement of any living being towards happiness! This is our only movement in the whole of evolution. There is no other. Any discovery or progress always evolved to make man happier! When all movements have stopped and resolved in the turiya, in that ‘Supreme Being,’ then, That Is! That is the state when all desires have ceased, when all resolutions have gone except for one, to remain in that state, in that calmness. It is into that ‘Supreme Being’ that the whole mental, physical and psychological worlds are resolved. It is shaantam – absolute peace. That prajna is the height, the zenith of all peace. The Upanishad stresses that it is not an abstract idea but concrete, because: - It is shivam, it is ‘auspicious, benign, compassionate.’ - It is advaitam, it is ‘non-dual,’ which means that there is only one prajna, there is only one ‘Supreme Being.’ There is no duality. There may be other entities, other agents, but only one ‘Supreme Being’. You may call it by any name. There is an incident connected with one of the well-known Shankaracharyas of the Sringeri Peeth – Sri Chandrashekhar Bharati Swami. He was so deep into the actual experience of the spiritual ‘Truth’ that even the people inside the mutt – ashram, could not understand him. Some thought he was suffering from some mental disorder. One day, two men came to him and had a discussion. One man believed in the Lord as

Narayana – he was a Vaishnava; and the other believed in the Lord as Shiva – he was a Shaiva. The Acharya asked one man, ‘Tell me, is there one Supreme God or many?’ The man replied, ‘There is only one Supreme God.’ He then asked the other man, ‘What do you say?’ He said, ‘Yes, there is only one Supreme God, not many.’ The Acharya said, ‘So you both agree! Only, you call Him Shiva, and you call Him Narayana!’ ‘The first man said, ‘But, there is only one Supreme Being – Narayana, not Shiva!’ The other man protested, ‘No! No! It is Shiva and none other!’ The Acharya said, ‘Now listen! At this moment, in my present state, I see only the lotus feet of the Lord! All of us are in that state. So, let us continue with that and when we are advanced enough to see His face, then we can decide whether the namam (the caste mark worn on the forehead by orthodox Hindus) is horizontal or vertical!’ (Believers in Narayana have vertical caste marks, believers in Shiva have horizontal caste marks on their forehead). So, it is shaantam, shivam, advaitam. There is only ‘One,’ peaceful and compassionate; there is no duality in it. The wise men of old believe that this is the fourth part of that ‘Supreme Being.’ Sa atma – ‘that is the Self ’ – ‘the true Self ’. Sa vijneya – ‘that is to be understood,’ ‘that is to be known.’ All the above descriptions are pointers towards knowing the Self and so, if you see anything which does not conform to the description of prajna, then it cannot be the ‘Supreme Being.’ The psychological aspect is that it has to be always accompanied by shaantam – peace, absolute peace. The Sufis call it salaamat – absolute peace. SHLOKA 8 soyam atma adhyaksharam aumkaaraardhimatram paada maatra maatrascha paada akaara ukaara makaara iti. Which means: ‘this is the ‘Self,’ this is the atman, which is of the nature of the syllable aum; the quarters are its elements. The elements are the syllables ‘A,’ ‘U’ and ‘M.’ And this we have described. Thus the eighth shloka of the Upanishad summarises what has gone before. SHLOKA 9

jagrita sthaano vaishwanaro akaarah prathama maatra aapter adimatvad vaapnoti ha vai sarvaankaaman aadischa bhavati ya evam veda. The vaishwanara, the first quarter of the Supreme Being’ whose sphere of activity is the waking state, is represented by the letter ‘A, the first element. ‘A’ is derived from the root ‘ap,’ which means ‘to obtain.’ ‘A’ is also the first letter of the alphabet – akshara. ‘A’ is the first sound that anyone, including a dumb person, can make! So ‘A’ represents the jagrita avastha, the waking state or the first quarter of the ‘Supreme Being.’ ‘He who knows this, the one who understands this, fulfils all desires.’ The one who understands that all the activity of the waking state is just the first quarter of the ‘Supreme Being’ becomes the first, which means, he recognizes the first in himself. He obtains an immeasurable capacity to work and attain goals. He understands that the spark of the ‘Supreme Being’ which is within him, has vast capacities, which are beyond the concept of the limited human brain, and therefore ‘he becomes the first.’ That is one meaning. The other meaning is that by understanding that the waking state is after all only a small part of the ‘Supreme Being,’ he begins to think that it is better to understand the whole ‘Supreme Being’ who is all the four quarters! Whereas, by understanding only the waking quarter, he attains only the first step – one small part of the ‘Supreme Being.’ By understanding the Upanishad and realizing that this is only one quarter of that ‘Supreme Being,’ while the whole ‘Supreme Being’ is to be known in turiya, he becomes the first, he becomes the most eminent of all persons. SHLOKA 10 swapna sthaanas taijasa ukaaro dwitiya maatrotkarshaad ubhayat vaadvot karshati ha vaijnana santatim samaanascha bhavati naasya brahma vit kulay bhavati ya evam veda. The second quarter of the ‘Supreme Being’ whose sphere of activity is the dream state, is the taijasa. It is represented by the letter ‘U,’ which is the second element. It is the second because it is intermediate, between the first and the third. When we chant aum, the ‘A’ sound starts from the throat. Then we lengthen it to ‘U,’ when it comes to the middle of the tongue, and it is followed by ‘M,’ when it comes to the end of the mouth. So, it is intermediate.

‘U’ is the intermediate, and so it represents the intermediate. ‘He who knows this exults in the continuity of knowledge and he becomes equal.’ That means, by understanding that the dream state or taijasa is only the intermediate quarter of the ‘Supreme Being,’ he gains the knowledge in continuity, which means, he does not stop there; he continues to move until he reaches the understanding of sushupti. And then, from there, it is a step to turiya! Naasya brahma vit kulay bhavati ya evam veda. – ‘In his family is born no one who does not know the Brahman.’ That means, if one person in the family understands the different quarters of the ‘Supreme Being’ and experiences it through proper sadhana, under the guidance of a teacher, his whole family benefits. The Upanishads only talk about the Truth. In fact, the Upanishads are taught only to the aaptas, meaning, ‘those who are fit to receive it.’ A student was fit to receive it only after he had first gone through all the training that was necessary as a brahmachari, in the ancient gurukulas, or schools. For years, he had to study the shastras, chant the Gayatri, do intense sadhana and lead a pure life, until he came to the stage when the Upanishads could be taught to him. If such a person understands the import of this Upanishad, then, ‘in his family, no one is born who is not the knower of the Brahman’. But that is very rare. Theoretically, one can be a pundit and know a lot of Upanishads, but to understand the Upanishad means to experience it, and for that a teacher is necessary; one has to go through sadhana. In the period of intense study as a brahmachari, one’s mind and energies are completely focused on the indepth understanding of that subject. Only after that does one begin to realize the truth of the Upanishads. It is not that everyone should remain a brahmachari and become a sanyasi afterwards. One is allowed to become a grihasta and progress slowly. However, it is not so easy. Even in the Upanishads, you will find the disciple asks the teacher a question; the master answers. The disciple goes through it, thinks about it, and comes back with his conclusion. The master guides him with further questions and asks him to think well on what Brahman is. This process continues until the disciple eliminates everything and realizes what Brahman, the ‘Supreme Being,’ is.

In the family of such a realised person, ‘nobody will be born who is not a knower of Brahman.’ SHLOKA 11 sushuptasthaanah prajno makaarastritiya maatra miterapiterva minoti ha va idam sarvam apeetish cha bhavati ya evam veda. The third element ‘M,’ whose sphere of activity is the state of deep sleep is called prajna, the third quarter of the ‘Supreme Being.’ Now, ‘im’, which is the root of the sound ‘M,’ can either mean ‘to merge’ or ‘to measure.’ ‘To measure’ means ‘to measure the entire universe.’ There is a lovely story in the Puranas of Maha Vishnu, who in the Vaman Avatar, came to the demon-king Maha Bali and asked for a boon. He asked for as much land as would be covered by his three foot steps. Maha Bali agreed. The Lord took two steps, spanning the entire earth with one, and the entire sky with the other! Since there was no space left for the third footstep, Maha Bali offered his own head for the Lord to place His foot. That ‘Supreme Being’ who can measure everything out, is immeasurable Himself! The root im also means ‘to merge.’ Everything merges into It and becomes one whole. He who knows and understands this, also merges all unto himself. Sarvam apeetischa bhavati ya evam veda – ‘He who knows this, merges everything in himself and remains in absolute peace’. SHLOKA 12 amaatraschaturtho avyavahaaryam prapanchopashamaha shivo advaita evam aumkaara atmaiva samvishaty atmana atmaanam ya evam veda. The fourth part – the turiya – which has no elements, which cannot be spoken of, and into which the whole world is resolved, that aum is the ‘Self.’ Aum is auspicious, benign, non-dual. It is the ‘Real Self ’ of everything. ‘He who knows this, enters that ‘Supreme Self ’ with his ‘Self.’ He who knows this, realizes that the ‘Supreme Being’ is spread out in this world as sarvam, as everything, and yet It remains separate and untouched by anything in this world. There is a particular description used for this – achintya bheda abheda, which means ‘identity and duality together’. That is being ‘One’ and at the

same time, being different. This cannot be conceived by our brain. We can only think of either ‘being together’ or ‘not together.’ But the ‘Supreme Being’ is not like us. The ‘Supreme Being’ can be ‘together’ or ‘not together’ at the same time! That is Its uniqueness! Some people say ‘the Supreme Being has no form.’ Others say ‘the Supreme Being has form.’ If indeed the Supreme Being is infinite, allpowerful, how can we decide whether it has a form or not? We simply cannot decide! Lord Dakshinamurthi is depicted sitting with his legs folded and his hand in a particular pose, with the thumb meeting the forefinger, called the Chinmudra. Lord Dakshinamurthi is silent. He never speaks, but by this mudra he teaches. Those who understand, realize that it is a symbol which means that the ‘Supreme Self ’ depicted by the thumb, and the ‘Supreme Being’ depicted by the forefinger, are one and the same, because the two are joined to form a circle. They are not different. That ‘Supreme Being’ which is in me and that ‘Supreme Being’ which is in you, when we see both as one – ‘One whole’ – then, all that is left is Sat Chit Ananda depicted by the three extended fingers. Sat – meaning ‘the Truth’; Chit – meaning ‘absolute consciousness’; and Ananda – meaning ‘complete bliss,’ towards which all of us are moving. The tendency to enjoy and move towards happiness is an essential part of our soul, of our being. The only problem is that the search for this happiness is in the ‘wrong’ or ‘different’ direction. If only the direction can be changed and brought back to the source of all happiness, which is the ‘Supreme Being,’ then all problems and doubts will be resolved. Let me repeat the interesting story by Kabirdas about the kasturi mriga – the musk deer. The kasturi mriga has a small bag of kasturi, musk, somewhere behind its tail. During the breeding season when it exudes the fragrance of kasturi, the poor deer, not knowing where this fragrance emanates from, goes around searching for it everywhere until it gets all scratched and bleeding. This story puts the problem in a nutshell. The fragrance is in all of us. It is the source of all creation. Unlike the musk deer, we humans have become evolved; we can search and find the source of this fragrance. But we search for happiness in the material world until somebody points out, ‘Now, watch it! Halt, turn back! To find the Source from which all this comes, turn within!’ And then one turns within

and gradually learns to commune with the ‘Supreme Being.’ That is the aim of life! And to reach that aim one has to change direction. Like every high aim, the search for happiness within oneself requires sadhana, patience and hard work, because nothing can be achieved without that. Sadly, it is only in religious and spiritual matters that people want a short cut. For everything else, like making money or gaining fame, we are ready to work hard without any problem! But there is no short cut in spiritual matters! For spiritual development, one does not have to run away from day-to-day life. One can remain in the material world. With proper guidance, one can also advance spiritually. The search must be done with humility, because if we think we already know, then we are not going to learn anything. Soon, everybody can become a teacher. There is a beautiful book called the ‘Avadhoota Gita.’ It is a little abstract. What is interesting in that book is that the avadhoota says he has twenty-four Gurus. He says that he learns different things from different people, and also from other beings, including the bees. He says, ‘The honeybee too is my Guru, because it teaches me how to save for a rainy day.’ This honeybee reminds me of the ancient tradition, when monks had to beg from door to door for food. They used to gather just a handful from each house because they did not want to tax the householder. That particular mode of bhiksha was called madhukari which means collecting food like the bee which goes from flower to flower gathering nectar from here and there and putting it all together. What a lovely word, ‘madhukari’! Perhaps such bhiksha may also taste like honey! In those days, food was given with the proper attitude. Nowadays it would be difficult to find such householders – you could get the door slammed on your face! The Manu Smriti gives the code of conduct for the householder to follow in order to live ideally. It is interesting to note that when the food is ready, the head of the household is supposed to go out to the gate of the house and shout loudly three times, ‘Is anyone hungry here?’ The first person who responds to this should be invited home and fed; then the householder should eat what remains. It is such a wonderful principle. What an attitude it inspires! All this comes about when one realizes that the ‘Divine Supreme Being’ is innate in all beings. Then, the whole world becomes your family!

To sum up, the Mandukya Upanishad basically deals with the subject of aum and the three states of consciousness that are connected with aum, the ‘Supreme Being.’ Aum Shantih, Shantih, Shantih!

About the Author Sri M was born in Tiruvananthapuram, Kerala. At the age of nineteen and a half, attracted by a strange and irresistible urge to go to the Himalayas, he left home. At the Vyasa Cave, beyond the Himalayan shrine of Badrinath, he met his Master and lived with him for three and a half years, wandering freely, the length and breadth of the snow clad Himalayan region. What he learnt from his Master Maheshwarnath Babaji, transformed his consciousness totally. Back in the plains, he, as instructed by his Master, lived a normal life, working for a living, fulfilling his social commitments and at the same time preparing himself to teach all that he had learnt and experienced. At a signal from his Master he entered the teaching phase of his life. Today, he travels all over the world to share his experiences and knowledge. Equally at home in the religious teachings of most major religions, Sri M, born as Mumtaz Ali Khan, often says "Go to the core. Theories are of no use" Sri M is married and has two children. He leads a simple life - teaching and heading the Satsang Foundation, a charitable concern promoting excellence in education. At present he lives in Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh, just three hours from Bangalore. He may be contacted at: www.satsang-foundation.org or [email protected].

About the Book The Upanishads do not concern themselves with mere theories. They raise direct questions regarding the source of thought, the essence of our being and are as relevant today as they were 2000 years ago. The Isavasya proclaims the all-pervasiveness of this totality of consciousness which is here called Isha, the Lord, and urges one to let go the narrow and self-centered identity we are caught up in and rejoice in the flow of the infinite wholeness of Life. The word Kena means Who. This Upanishad concerns itself with the question of ones ID. Is there a separate I or is it merely a term used to describe the totality of cognizance. Is there an I beyond the limited, selfcentered ID? The Mandukya examines the same idea but in a different way, exploring the states of consciousness all human beings experience namely, the waking state, the dream state and the deep sleep state, and postulates that there is a common experiencer in all these states, a witness, not affected by the states and which is the totality of consciousness called Turiya represented by the Pranava, OM.

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