That is Fullness, this is Fullness, from Fullness comes Fullness.
When Fullness is taken from Fullness, Fullness remains.
BU V, 110
“Man is on pilgrimage to his atman,” says the Prince of the Advaitins. In this pilgrimage Man sets out to find the underlying oneness of all things and discovers, as it proceeds, the tool by which such a search is undertaken: consciousness. Oneness and consciousness are the two landmarks on the ascending way.
On the upward path Man does not cast a backward look. Like Arjuna, when put to the test by Drona, he does not even notice what is at his side; his eyes are fixed on the goal ahead.
The double title of this section is intended to encompass the first steps of this pilgrimage. The English title could be rendered by the traditional brahmajijnasa, 11 the desire to know Brahman, the thrust toward realization, the ascending way, or again in traditional terms mumukshutva, the state of existentially tending toward, wholeheartedly desiring to reach mukti, liberation, salvation. 12 This state is the necessary precondition and we may assume that this seed, this dynamism, is constitutive of our factual existence.
The Sanskrit title expresses the result of this search, the goal of the pilgrimage, brahmajnana, the knowledge of Brahman. 13 Knowledge here is obviously not a merely epistemic or abstract cognizance of a certain state of affairs, but the total jnana, the perfect and conscious realization of what Brahman is: the real, the truth, the One.
We take the saying of the Chandogya Upanishad as our first Utterance, for it is in its light that we find the true perspective for viewing all the others. Likewise, in the Decalogue of the Bible, the opening sentence, “I am Yahweh your God,” though not incorporated into any of the Ten Commandments, constitutes the background that makes them meaningful. Similarly, in the Indian context, the ten commandments or tenfold law of Manu, “Firmness, forgiveness, self-control, not stealing, inner and outer purity, sense mastery, insight, wisdom, truthfulness, and meekness,” 14 must all be understood as being both the manifestation of dharma and its fulfillment. Thus the four mahavakyas of the Upanishads make sense only if viewed against the background of this first Utterance, which affirms the uncompromising primacy of the One. Nothing short of the One can be ultimate truth. No kind of dualism or plurality can be the lasting and final foundation of all.
We may try to understand this insight by recalling its most striking formulation in one of the oldest Upanishads. This Upanishad, significantly enough, also contains the mahavakya which is considered the zenith of Upanishadic teaching. Furthermore, both these teachings are imparted to Shvetaketu by his own father Uddalaka Aruni, teacher of the famous Yajnavalkya.
The setting is delightful. 15 The young Shvetaketu, following the best Brahmanical tradition that Brahminhood is not just a privilege of birth, goes away for twelve long years to study the Vedas. Coming back puffed up with pride, after spending half of his total sum of years in academia, he is cross-examined by his father who asks him whether he knows how that which has not been heard becomes heard, that which has not been thought becomes thought, that which has not been understood becomes understood. The learned young man knows nothing of any such teaching.
This is an elegant way of saying that a new doctrine is about to be imparted, a doctrine unknown to the most famous Brahmanical school of the time. And yet it is the fundamental question of the human spirit in search of the infinite. In a period when information has reached its saturation point, when it is practically impossible to know and understand all the details of the constantly proliferating sciences and discoveries, when people begin to question the efficacy and even the possibility of a way out, of a comprehensive world view, then the Upanishadic “way in” of sitting quietly and trying to reach the roots of all things appears again in all its effectiveness. We cannot know and experience everything and yet we have a universal urge to do so. If there is any answer to such a quest it can come only from an attitude like that of the Upanishads.
But is there any means whereby we may hear, think, and know what is actually unheard, unthought, and unknown? 16 Is there an enlightenment that makes it possible to share in the light of things without actually having access to the things so illumined? Just as knowledge of clay, copper, or iron entails knowledge of everything that is made of clay, copper, and iron, all the rest being only accidental modifications, so by knowing the Ultimate, this teaching implies, we shall know all that is made out of it.
The three examples given to elaborate the answer, which some have seen as expressing the three constituents of matter (fire, water, and food), refer to clay, copper, and iron as the satya, truth or reality of all things made of clay, copper, or iron, all the rest being mere names and verbal distinctions. These three examples, of course, are intended only to point our minds in the right direction in order to find the right answer. They are intended to make us aware of the “material” cause as the most fundamental cause and of the “formal” cause as the secondary one. Or, following the metaphors of Yajnavalkya’s teaching to his wife Maitreyi, the sounds of a drum or a conch or the music of a lute are none of them really mastered until we take hold of the instrument and of the player. 17 Only in this way can we grasp the ungraspable, because we seize it before it is grasped, see in the uncarved block all its potentialities, seize all music at its root before it is played. It is undoubtedly going to be a silent music, an invisible statue. In other words, the Upanishadic seer leads us to consider the identity of things and not their diversity. It is a way of thinking based on the primacy of the principle of identity over against other ways of thinking based on the primacy of the principle of noncontradiction. We cannot stop at clay, copper, or iron but must go deeper and ask for that thing by knowing which all that is made of those three elements is also known. In this way we may eventually reach the One, whose nature still remains to be investigated.
After this introduction comes the central instruction regarding the one only without a second. There are, the text says, two opinions: one says that at the beginning this world was Being, one only without a second, and the other affirms, on the contrary, that at the beginning there was just Nonbeing, one only without a second. By closer examination, however, we discover that there is no contradiction in saying that Being on the one hand and Nonbeing on the other are one without a second, because the subject of both sentences is not Being or Nonbeing but idam, this, the nominative singular neuter of the demonstrative pronoun. We have already met this idam18 and discovered its existential character: it refers to whatever may come within the range of our actual or possible experience. This, that is, anything about which we may be able to think, this, which may constitute the goal of all our intentionality, this, says the text, is one only without a second. This, moreover, applies in all cases, even in the most disparate ones that can be conceived, such as the extremes of Being or Nonbeing at the beginning of all things. Idam, not being a concept, includes everything of which we can be aware. The phrases idam sarvam asi, you are all this, 19 and idam sarvam, all this, 20 do not need to be interpreted in a pantheistic vein. The idam to which Man is capable of pointing has already entered into relationship with him, which implies a certain epistemological communication and ontological communion.
This, the idam, whether you consider it to be at the beginning Being or Nonbeing, is one. Anything to which you can say this, idam, is, by this very fact, one. If anybody were to object that the idam is not one, the Upanishadic seers would reply that the purvapaksha, the opponent, says so precisely because he has mistaken the idam for a particular idea of it. Because he has identified the idam with his particular conception of it, it is no longer an idam that can be applied to everything and to every person who is capable of uttering idam sensibly. Idam is anything that can fall within the range of any possible human experience. There cannot be two idams in actual fact. The “second” one would be a mental object only and not that which stands at the “end” of our experience.
The ultimate object of any human experience is one, says our text, and adds immediately another essential point. This One, this ekam, is qualified in a very special way. It is in fact the qualifying word, advitiya, which renders the affirmation of oneness fruitful and rescues it from being a barren tautology.
The word advitiya or nondual has sometimes been considered to stem from a monistic world view, but this is not necessarily so. Even grammatically the word is painstakingly chosen to denote, not ekatva, kaivalya, ekatma, and the like, but a-dvaita, that is, negation of all duality. It is also appropriate that the word should be a negative qualification, for only in this way is it possible to qualify the eka without destroying its internal unity. Nothing positive is added to the One; it is only negatively qualified. The eka of this Utterance is indubitably without a second. This is a unique oneness, that oneness which has no second, which has no other one at its side, and most important, which in itself, in its very interior, is nondual. This is a fundamental affirmation.
It affirms, to begin with, that no dualism can ever satisfy the human mind or the human heart. It cannot satisfy the mind, for a reduction to unity is in fact the condition of intelligibility. It cannot satisfy any genuine experience of love, for love by its very nature tends to transcend any kind of separation.
It affirms, second, that it is not only our intellect and our will that tend toward the transcending of duality; in addition, our whole being cannot really be until it has reached unity with Being. The very acceptance of a plurality of beings implies a certain implicit postulation of Being. If there is to be a real distinction between beings, what is to make this distinction if not another being? Thus there would be a process ad infinitum, unless there is a Being in which beings, in one way or another, participate. We may remark in passing that we are postulating the essence and not the existence of such a Being.
It affirms, third, that the very negation of the duality of the One is what makes beings to be and to exist. This very negation creates the existential tension that gives, precisely, existence to beings. God and the world, to take a traditional example, cannot be two. We would ask immediately: “Two what?” The “being” embracing the two would be greater, better, and more comprehensive than God. Either we conclude that the concept of God is self-contradictory or that God and the world cannot be said to be two “anything.”
No monism can be true either; no monistic explanation of reality can ever be convincing, because in pure monism there is no place whatever for any explanation, no room for any kind of unfolding, metaphysical or even epistemological. No amount of subtlety can dispense with conceding some degree of reality to the “appearance,” to avidya, ignorance, to the vyavaharika, the phenomenal level, and the like. In other words, the fact that the One can appear as many, even if the appearance itself is declared an illusion, or that the appearance can be mistaken for reality, or that appearance has to be declared unreal, and thus error also nonexistent--this fact makes the monolithic block of an unqualified monism philosophically inconsistent.
The first Utterance represents the genuine middle way between monism and dualism. It posits the primacy of the One in an incontrovertible manner, so that advaita stands for a full and uncompromising Oneness. To call it a middle way may be misleading, if that is understood as a compromise. It is rather the only path between the Scylla of an absolute subject and the Charybdis of absolute objects. At the same time advaita makes room for pluralism, not as a competitor of the One, but as enhancement of effective oneness. It allows for a free interplay among all the tensions of existence, and yet does not dissolve the polarity of the real into irreconciliable parties with no interconnecting bridge. It says that reality is neither a monistic block nor a metaphysical apartheid leading to chaotic anarchy. It discovers a dynamism in the very heart of the One, which itself longs to be many and is desirous of offspring. Here we have the old coincidence of the divine with the cosmic and the human. We witness three moments of one and the same ultimate process: the divine giving himself up so as to be able to produce the world out of himself; the cosmos coming and exploding into beings once the procession from Nonbeing and Being is triggered off; man discovering the all-encompassing One and finding at the same time a place for himself in the advitiya of the oneness.
The cosmotheandric reality is neither a product of the mind (it would then be pure monism and would deny the reality of the “outer” world) nor a raw material independent of the mind (it would then be sheer atomistic plurality with no possible connecting links whatsoever), but the only one reality. This oneness is of a nondualistic nature; it is an Advaitic oneness, which here amounts to saying that it is real oneness and not imagined or merely “thought.” The Advaitic character of reality does not permit ultimate dichotomies between matter and spirit, thinker and thought, creator and created, and the like. Nor does it blur distinctions. On the contrary, it underlines them: the three worlds of the divine, the cosmic, and the human are differentiated, but not separated; they are three real dimensions of the one and the same reality, and it is precisely this three-dimensionality, as it were, which makes reality one.
Another of the given texts may provide the proper background for understanding the problem as it is seen and solved by the Upanishadic rishis. 21 The text, which comes at the very end of a long passage on the origins of everything, sums up the relation of Man with the rest of the world. Man is here seen not as a mere spectator of the universe, or even as a part of it in more or less mystical or mythical participation, but as an image, a mirror, an expression of the whole of the universe, as the whole reality not exactly in miniature (microcosm) but in reflection. Man is incomplete, says the text, until he realizes that the mind scattered everywhere, the wife desired outside, the people populating the earth, the sounds of the universe, and all the activity of the cosmos are his mind, speech, breath, eye, ear, body, and so on. “His” does not mean here private property but real belonging. We could speak of correspondence, of homologization, of reflecting, and the like, provided these items are rightly understood in the Upanishadic perspective. It is not that the body of Man is the whole universe or that the individual “contains” the whole, but that the whole of reality is present in every conscious and free, that is, personal, beam of it. The specular conception of reality does not make of Man the center of the universe; it makes of him an image, a reflection, of the entire reality.
The process of realization, of discovering the whole of reality and finding in it the role of Man, has four acts, the four acts of the theanthropocosmic drama. The four classical mahavakyas represent these four acts. Finally, the falling of the curtain, the resumption of all into the One, though not as it was “before” the Prelude, is represented by our sixth and final Utterance.
The drama is not only a display of the One, but also its “play” in order that the many may become and may realize oneness. All this is expressed in the ekam evadvitiyam. The nature of the nonduality that accomplishes the One without diminishing its oneness is the topic of our next question.
1 Many texts of the Rig Veda and Atharva Veda point toward the mysterious “One,” eka, which underlies and makes possible all multiplicity. We have seen them in Part I, in the context of the Origins, where the One is that which exists “before” any beginning and also that which comes to be. 22 Other hymns describe the One as symbolized in the cosmic Pillar. 23 In fact, the sages name in various ways that which is One (i; v).
We find in these texts two ways of speaking about the One: either we have a question, expressing a search and query (i); or we have an affirmation arising from a mystical experience (ii). Only he who “has seen” can properly speak about the One:
Vena has seen the Supreme, hidden in the cave,
wherein all things assume one single form. 24
After this experience, everything is perceived in its oneness (iv), and all numbers used to describe things are reduced to (the) one (vii), which with its dynamic immortality supports all things (iii). And yet this One, which other texts simply call “that” (viii), is not an abstract principle, not only a distant God, but the “guest of Men” (vi) and their guide (ix). Men are thus requested to offer hospitality to the One and to follow him (or it) on their path.
i) 6. Not understanding, and yet desirous to do so,
I ask the wise who know, myself not knowing:
who may he be, the One in the form of the Unborn,
who props in their place the six universal regions?
46. They call him Indra, Mitra, Varuna,
Agni or the heavenly sunbird Garutmat.
The seers call in many ways that which is One;
they speak of Agni, Yama, Matarishvan.
RV III, 54, 8-9
ii) 8. All beings they unite and separate.
They support the mighty Gods, but do not tremble.
The One is lord over all things, fixed or moving,
walking or flying--this whole multiform creation.
9. From adfar I perceive the Ancient One, the Father
of mighty power, the Generator, our connection,
singing the praise of whom the Gods, stationed
on their own broad pathway, go about their business.
RV III, 56, 2AB
iii) The One, without moving, supports six burdens.
The cows have gone to him, the highest Instance.
RV VIII, 58, 2
iv) Only One is the Fire, enkindled in numerous ways;
only One is the Sun, pervading this whole universe;
only One is the Dawn, illuminating all things.
In very truth, the One has become the whole world!
RV X, 114, 5AB
v) By their words the inspired sages impart
manifold forms to that Bird which is the One.
AV VII 21
vi) Assemble all, with prayer to the Lord of heaven,
He is the One, the all-pervading, the guest of men.
He, the ancient of days, abides in the present.
Him, the One, the many follow on their path.
AV XIII, 4, 12-21
vii) 12. Power entered within him.
He is the One, the Onefold, the only One.
13. In him all the Gods become unified.
14. Fame and glory, fruitfulness and fertility,
Brahman splendor, food and nourishment,
15. belong to him who knows this God as One only.
16. Not second or third or fourth is he called--
he who knows this God as One only.
17. Not fifth or sixth or seventh is he called--
he who knows this God as One only.
18. Not eighth or ninth or tenth is he called--
he who knows this God as One only.
19. He watches over all existent beings,
those that breathe and those that breathe not.
20. Power entered within him.
He is the One, the Onefold, the only One.
21. In him all the Gods become unified.
YV XXXII, 1-3
viii) 1. That, verily, is Agni.
The Sun is that,
the Wind is that,
the Moon is that.
That is the Light,
that is Brahman,
that is the Waters,
Prajapati is he.
2. All moments originated
from the Person like lightning,
no one has comprehended him,
above, across, or in the center.
3. There is no image of him
whose name is Great Glory.
TA III, 11, 1
ix) He who lives in us as our guide, who is one, and yet appears in many forms, in whom the hundred lights of heaven are one, in whom the Vedas are one, in whom the priests are one--he is the spiritual atman within the person.
i) 6. Form of the Unborn: ajasya rupa, rather, “under the symbol of the unborn.”
Six universal regions: i.e., three heavens and three earths Cf. RV III, 56, 2 (iii)
46. The seers call . . .: ekam sad vipra bahudha vadanti.
ii) 8. They: i.e., Heaven and Earth.
Multiform creation: vishunam vi jatam.
9. Connection: jami, paternal bond, the kinship with the universal Father.
iii) Six burdens: three earths and three heavens, or, acc. to Sayana, the six seasons (double months) of the year.
Cows: in later terms the shaktis or powers of the One, symbolized by cows in thc RV.
Instance: rita, truth, order.
The second half is somewhat obscure.
iv) This hymn is Valakhilya 10 (v. 2).
All things: idam sarvam, this all.
v) Cf. also RV VIII, 11, 8.
Inspired sages: viprah kavayah, the singing poets.
Impart manifold forms: bahudha kalpayanti, express in many ways.
Bird: suparna, the Sun, symbol of the One.
vi) This short hymn is addressed to the atman as deity, but tradition has also attributed it either to the Sun or to Yama.
Prayer: vacas
Lord of heaven: patim divah.
The second half is rather obscure.
vii) Cf. AV X, 8, 11; 25; 43-44 (§ VII 27).
12. Power: sahas.
13. Unified: ekavrt, simple, single, onefold.
14. Fruitfulness: ambhas.
Fertility: nabhas, lit. cloud, the humidity necessary for fertility.
viii) 1. All the Gods are simply that One, tat.
2. Moments: nimeshah, also twinklings (of the eye).
Person like lightning: vidyutah purusha.
3. Image: pratima, symbol, idol, icon.
Great Glory: mahad yashah.
ix) Spiritual: manasi, consisting of manas, mind, spirit.
2 One of the questioners of the great Yajnlavalkya, the “clever” Vidagdha, does not know the danger of asking questions without realizing their implications. And yet we owe to his searching spirit one of the most striking “reductions” of the multiplicity of Gods (i). He will not stop at anything before the One, the only One to which all powers, all Gods, can be ultimately reduced, which is both known (as prana, the breath of life) and unknown (as tyad, that). But, as if he had to demonstrate by his life that these questions are far from being rhetorical, his ignorance of the true Upanishadic purusha costs him his head. 25 The warning that Yajnavalkya had given to Gargi for her unrestrained questioning has here come true. 26 Vidagdha dies, probably because he did not understand that the atman is not another but the One only.
We have already introduced the central message of the Chandogya Upanishad (ii). The Katha Upanishad (iii), stating the oneness of atman in all beings, immanent and yet beyond, affirms also that it is only the realization of the One in oneself which can give joy and peace. This One is not an abstract principle but the very core of our experience, the atman. 27
The Shvetashvatara Upanishad (iv) adds to this understanding of the One only one word: God (deva), giving thus a theistic face to the transcendent Absolute.
The Mundaka Upanishad (v) gives an indication of how the undivided, imperceptible One can be perceived: by a purified mind, by grace, and by contemplation. That the One, which was in the beginning everything, is also that inner power in the cosmos and in the heart of Man, as well as in fire, is shown in the Maitri Upanishad (vi). In this as also in the following text (vii), it is a matter of personal discovery, of attaining the state where there is no “second,” but only the nonduality of the One.
i) 1. Then Vidagdha Shakalya asked him: “How many Gods are there, Yajnavalkya?”
He replied according to the Nivid, quoting the number mentioned in the Nivid of the All-Gods: “Three hundred and three and three thousand and three.”
“Yes,” he said, “but how many Gods are there really, Yajnavalkya?”
“Thirty-three.”
“Yes,” he said, “but how many Gods are there really, Yajnavalkya?”
“Six.”
“Yes,” he said, “but how many Gods are there really, Yajnavalkya?”
“Three.”
“Yes,” he said, “but how many Gods are there really, Yajnavalkya?”
“Two.”
“Yes,” he said, “but how many Gods are there really, Yajnavalkya?”
“One and a half.”
“Yes,” he said, “but how many Gods are there really, Yajnavalkya?”
“One.”
“Yes,” he said, “but which are those three hundred and three and three thousand and three?”
2. Yajnavalkya replied: “These are but their powers; there are only thirty-three Gods.”
“Which are these thirty-three?”
“The eight Vasus, eleven Rudras, and twelve Adityas make thirty-one; thus with Indra and Prajapati there are thirty-three all told.”
3. “Which are the Vasus?”
“Fire, the earth, wind, space, the sun, the sky, the moon, and the stars--these are the Vasus. In them is stored all treasure; hence they are called Vasus.”
4. “Which are the Rudras?”
“The ten breaths that are in man, and the atman is the eleventh. When they leave the mortal body, they cause men to weep. Because they cause men to weep, they are Rudras.”
5. “Which are the Adityas?”
“The twelve months of the year, these are the Adityas. They move onward, carrying along all that is; hence they are called Adityas.”
6. “Who is Indra? Who is Prajapati?”
“The thunder is Indra, the Sacrifice is Prajapati.”
“What is thunder?”
“Lightning.”
“What is sacrifice?”
“The victim.”
7. “Which are the six?”
“Fire, the earth, the wind, space, the sun, and the sky--these are the six, for these six are all.”
8. “Which are the three Gods?”
“The three Gods are the three worlds, for in them all those Gods exist.”
“Which are the two Gods?”
“Food and Life Breath.”
Which is the one and a half?”
“The one who blows.”
9. “About this God they say: as the one who blows [the air] is one only, why speak of one and a half? Because in him all this has developed, hence it is called one and a half.”
“Which is the one God?”
“Life Breath; he is Brahman, which they call ‘that” [tyad]."
CU VI, 1, 1-7; 2, 1-3
ii) 1, 1. Once there was Shvetaketu Aruneya. His father spoke to him:
“Shvetaketu, live a life of chastity and search for Brahman. For truly, no one in our family who is not learned should be called a Brahmin merely because of blood-relationship.”
2. So he left at the age of twelve [to study with a master]. He returned at twenty-four, having studied all the Vedas, arrogant, thinking that his learning had made him knowledgeable.
His father spoke to him:
3. “Shvetaketu, my dear, now that you are arrogant, thinking that your learning has made you knowledgeable, did you also ask for that instruction by which the unheard becomes heard, the unthought becomes thought, the unknown becomes known?”
“What, sir, is this instruction?”
4. “My dear, just as by one lump of clay all that is made of clay is known, the modification being only a name based on speech, the reality being nothing but clay;
5. “just as, my dear, by one vessel of copper all that is made of copper is known, the modification being only a name based on speech, the reality being nothing but copper;
6. “just as, my dear, by one pair of nail-scissors all that is made of iron is known, the modification being only a name based on speech, the reality being nothing but iron; this, my dear, is the instruction.”
7. “Certainly, my revered masters did not know this. For had they known it, how could they not have told me? But, sir, please tell it to me.”
“Well, my dear,” he said.
2, 1. “In the beginning, my dear, this was Being alone--one only, without a second. Some say, it is true, that in the beginning only Nonbeing was, one only, without a second; and that from that Nonbeing Being was born.
2. “But, my dear, how could it be this?” said he. “How could Being be born from Nonbeing? On the contrary, my dear, it was Being alone that was this in the beginning, one only, without a second.
3. “It thought: ‘Would that I might be many! Would that I might procreate!” It sent forth fire. This fire also thought: ‘Would that I might be many! Would that I might procreate!’”
KATH U V, 9-13
iii) 9. As fire which is one, on entering creation,
conforms its own form to the form of each being,
so also the One, the atman within all beings,
assumes all forms, yet exists outside.
10. As the wind, which is one, on entering creation,
conforms its own form to the form of each being,
so also the One, the atman within all beings,
assumes all forms, yet exists outside.
11. As the sun, the eye of the whole world, is not touched
by external blemishes seen by the eye,
so the One, the atman within all beings, is not touched
by the sufferings of the world. He remains apart.
12. The One, the Controller, the atman within all beings,
the One who makes his own form manifold--
the wise who perceive him established in themselves
attain--and no others--everlasting joy.
13. Permanent among the impermanent,
conscious among the conscious,
the One among the many, fulfiller of desires--
the wise who perceive him established in themselves
attain--and no others--everlasting peace.
SU VI, 10-13
iv) 10. May the One God who, in accordance with his nature,
covers himself like a spider with threads
spun out of matter, grant us union with Brahman!
11. The One God, hidden in all beings, all-pervading,
the atman existent within every being,
the surveyor of all actions, dwelling in all creatures,
the witness, the spirit, the unique, free from attributes.
12. The One, Controller of a passive multitude,
makes his one seed manifold.
The wise who perceive him within their own selves,
they, and they alone, have eternal joy.
13. Eternal among the eternal, conscious among the conscious,
the One among the many, fulfiller of desires,
the Cause discovered through inquiry and discipline--
having realized God, one is freed from all chains.
MUND U III, 1, 8
v) Eye cannot see him, nor words reveal him;
by the senses, austerity, or works he is not known.
When the mind is cleansed by the grace of wisdom,
he is seen by contemplation--the One without parts.
MAIT U VI, 17
vi) In the beginning this was Brahman, One and infinite, infinite in the East, infinite in the South, infinite in the West, infinite in the North, infinite above and below, infinite in every direction. For him there are, of course, no directions such as the East and so on, no across, no above, and no below.
Inconceivable is this supreme atman, immeasurable, unborn, inscrutable, unthinkable, he whose Self is [infinite] space. He alone remains awake when the universe is dissolved, and out of this space he awakens [again] the world consisting of thought. By him alone is all this thought [into being] and in him it dissolves again. His shining form is that which burns in the sun; it is the multiform light that shines in the smokeless fire and it is that which digests the food in the body. For thus it has been said:
He who dwells in the fire,
he who dwells in the heart,
he who dwells in the sun,
he is One.
The man who knows this,
he verily attains
the Oneness of the One.
KAIV U 23
vii) For me there is no earth, no water, and no fire.
For me there is neither wind nor ether.
The one who has discovered the supreme atman
dwelling in the heart, without parts, without a second,
the universal witness, neither being nor nonbeing,
attains the pure form of the supreme atman.
i) This text belongs to the series where Yajnavalkya is questioned by different seekers. Cf. BU III, 7-8 (§§ VI 5, VI 3).
1. Nivid of the All-Gods: a text on praise of the Vishvedevas.
Yes: aum. Cf. § VI 12.
2. Powers: mahimanah, manifestations of their power.
3. Treasure: vasu, which is essential for intelligibility, is omitted in some manuscripts. The sentence reads: idam sarvam vasu hitam. Vasu meaning also “good treasure,” this can be a plausible “etymology,” parallel to those of vv. 4 and 5.
4. They cause men to weep: rodayanti. Caus. of the root rud- with which the name Rudra is traditionally connected. Cf § II 29 on Rudra.
5. They move onward, carrying . . .: again a popular etymology of Aditya with the roots a-da and i- (yanti).
6. Victim: pashu, animal.
8. Food and Life Breath: anna and prana, the two powers sustaining life. Cf. §§ II 5, 6; 11.
The one who blows: or who purifies: pavate (the wind).
9. Developed . . .: adhyardhnot, again a pun with adhyardha (one and a half).
‘That’: tyad, that, the transcendent.
10-17. Cf. § VI 7.
21. Cf. § I 37.
24-25. Cf. § I 14.
26. Cf. § VI 5.
28. Cf. § VI 3.
ii) 1, 1. Life of chastity and search for Brahman: brahmacarya.
Brahman . . . because of blood-relationship: brahma-bandhu, used here in an ironical sense.
1, 3. By which the unheard . . .: yenashrutam shrutam bhavati, amatam matam, avijnatam vijnatam iti.
1, 4. The modification being only a name based on speech: vacarambhanam vikaro namadheyam. This sentence is frequently discussed.
2, 1. Being: sat.
Nonbeing: asat.
One only, without a second: ekam evadvitiyam, the famous fundamental sentence of the whole of the Upanishads.
2, 2. How can Nonbeing be the cause, the origin, or whatever, of anything and thus of Being? The question is not only fair but places Nonbeing in its proper perspective: one cannot deal with Nonbeing as if it were a being and apply to it the same rules of thinking. Sat and asat are not on the same level.
2, 3. The “many” desired by the One is not the multiplication of its oneness but its enhancement by growth and development.
iii) 6-7. Cf. § V 5.
8. Cf.§ V 17.
9. Fire: Agni, assuming all the forms of the objects it burns (wood, stone, etc.).
Conforms its own form . . .: rupam rupam pratirupo babhuva. Cf. RV VI, 47, 18 (§ II 4 Introduction) where the same expression is used for Indra, who assumes various forms.
Atman within all beings: sarva-bhutantar atman, the inner atman in all beings.
11. Is not touched: na lipyate, untainted, not stained. Cf. BU IV, 4, 23 (§ VI 6); IsU 2 (§ VII 6).
Sufferings of the world: loka-duhkha, “Weltschmerz.”
Apart: bahya, lit. outside (as in previous vv),
12. Cf. SU VI, 12 (iv).
Form rupa. Another version reads bija, seed.
Established in themselves: atmastha. If taken, as traditionally is done, in the singular: standing in the self, or in the body, or also self-subsistent. It refers then to the eka and not to the wise.
13. Cf. SU VI, 13 (iv).
Permanent: nitya, eternal.
Conscious: cetana.
14-15. Cf. § V 5,
iv) Cf. KathU V, 10-13 (iii).
7-9. Cf.§ I 28.
10. Matter: pradhana, primal nature (prakrti).
Union with Brahman: brahmapyaya, “entrance into Brahman.”
11. The unique: kevala, the alone, the only one, the absolute, the transcendent.
12. Passive multitude nishkriyanam bahunam, lit. of many inactive ones, he being the sole inspirer of activity in all beings.
13. Inquiry and discipline: samkhya-yoga.
Having realized God: jnatva devam.
Cf. § VI C and also SU I, 8; II, 15 (§ VI 11); IV, 16; V 13 (§ I 28), leitmotiv of this U.
16-19. Cf. I 28.
v) By the grace of wisdom: jnana-prasadena, by calmness of knowledge, by clearness of intuition.
One without parts: nishkala.
vi) Whose Self is [infinitej space: akashatma; cf. CU III, 14, 2 (§ VI 6).
World consisting of thought: idam cetamatram.
Is . . . thought: dhyayate or in him alone is all this contemplated.
vii) Universal witness: samasta-sakshi.
Pure form of the supreme atman: shuddham paramatma-rupam pure existence or nature of the paramatman.
How is it possible to discover the nonduality in the eka? How do we make room for the advitiya? This question amounts to asking: What is the nature of reality itself, or how is the One itself constituted so that there is a place for pluralism without destroying the unity? Is there anything that allows for movement, distinctions, life, without endangering the One? What kind of plurality can coexist with oneness? We can put the same question in a reflective manner and ask: What induces in Man this uncompromising longing for unity? What makes Man cling with such conviction to the ekam evadvitiyam? What is the nature of such nonduality?
The mahavakyas emerge out of and reflect the most fascinating search for the advitiyam, for that reflection of the One, for its manifestation, for its companion, a companion who, like an Indian wife, is not an independent partner but part and parcel of the husband, his prolongation and expression. Is there such a thing as ekam evadvitiyam? For it could well be that all this is a kind of transcendental fallacy of our mind alone.
The answer of the mahavakya is clear: consciousness and consciousness alone is able to assume multiplicity without endangering oneness. In the world of human experience, in point of fact, consciousness is the only power that embraces the manifold without losing its identity and unity. A multiplicity of thoughts as well as the many objects and contents of consciousness do not disrupt but rather reinforce the unity of consciousness. Consciousness is both one and also a unifying force. The overwhelming plurality of the world of our experience reverts to a unity in the recesses of our consciousness. Furthermore, consciousness itself is one and is not affected by a plurality of objects. Consciousness can be aware of the many without being split into multiplicity.
This process constitutes one of the most profound and revolutionary human experiences. It is perhaps this experience that makes Man really Man, not the awareness of things (which animals also possess) but the awareness of his own consciousness, in the first place, and of consciousness as such, at the end of the process. This process constitutes the history of this particular mahavakya. Herein is the discovery of a light in Man, of a power of synthesis, of the ultimate character of himself and of all things. Apart from consciousness, not only would Man have no knowledge whatsoever, but also things themselves would not be as they actually are. Irrespective of whether things are “outside” consciousness or whether to be is to be known (knowable), one fact is certain: only things that are known are as they actually are, for the knowledge of things modifies and transforms the things so known. Irrespective, again, of whether we postulate an identity or a difference between being and thought, the realm of consciousness is unquestionably the ultimate and more extensive one. Being over and above consciousness is a contradiction in terms, for by the very fact that we define “being” as the reality that transcends consciousness, we are including it in our consciousness of being; and this is true even if we call Nonbeing that pure transcendence. Any verbalization belongs to the realm of consciousness.
The important text containing this mahavakya offers a long list of terms, some of which are compounds of the central verbal root jna-, to know. It ends by saying that all these forms of knowing in one way or another are different names for consciousness, for ultimately everything is rooted in consciousness. 28
The discovery of pure consciousness represents a radical departure from the first natural movement of our being, mind, heart, senses, and so on. That is, it implies the reversion of the natural movement toward the object, toward the other, and it entails a direction toward the subject, toward the knower. Where there is duality, there you understand another, you think of and think the other; but by what do you understand the understander or think the thinker? 29 For you cannot see the seer, you cannot understand the understander and know the knower. 30 This is indeed a radical impossibility, for if by hypothesis you know the knower, it would cease by this very fact to be the knower and would have been converted into the known. Is there any way out of this impasse? The Upanishads tell us that there is a way out, although they prefer to call it a way in. But we must first learn the lesson of this mahavakya.
In the search for pure consciousness we have to eliminate any possible object. Schools of thought and of spirituality are founded with this aim in view. To reflect upon an object may indirectly give us a glimpse of how our consciousness operates, but it will not disclose to us the nature of consciousness. Pure consciousness is not reflective consciousness; it is thus not self-consciousness; it cannot be consciousness of consciousness. Where one sees nothing, understands nothing, there is the infinite. Pure consciousness is established in its own greatness or even not in it. 31 It has no support; it is self-illuminating and self-illumined. Nothing can be its object.
The texts are emphatic. Though one does not understand--how can you understand the understander?--it is by understanding that you understand that you do not understand. 32 The Upanishads are thoroughly consistent. There is no rhetoric here. These are sober statements:
It is not understood by those who understand.
It is understood by those who do not understand. 33
This Upanishad or instruction is to be taken literally, that is, as meaning what it says. 34 Our nonunderstanding is real, and is certainly a nonunderstanding of it, Brahman, but nevertheless it is already a certain understanding, it is an understanding that we do not understand and thus it is included in the sum total of our imperfect understanding: “not understood by those who understand.” But there is still more. Those who say that they know, certainly know, but they know only what they do know, which is very little. They truly know, but what they know is always the known, not the knower. The understanding of our ignorance is not the same thing as either infinite ignorance or blessed ignorance, which does not understand itself. They are doubly ignorant, for in addition they are conceited, thinking that their not-knowing is a superior form of knowledge. The Upanishads dismiss them altogether. In this realm there can be no pretense. The next point also is to be taken literally. “It is understood by those who do not understand,” not by those who understand that they do not understand it. These latter are the truly ignorant (knowers of their own ignorance). It is understood, on the contrary, by those who really do not understand in such a way that they do not even understand that they do not understand, much less think that they understand. To understand one’s own nonunderstanding is not true understanding; not to understand that one understands, that is, the nonunderstanding of the understander, is the true understanding. Innocence cannot be forged or feigned.
It is with the discovery that pure consciousness is not self-consciousness that the discourse on Brahman starts. Brahman is not the object of consciousness, or even the subject. Brahman is pure consciousness. Our mahavakya can be rendered by simply saying that “consciousness is” or by affirming “there is consciousness.” It is not said that consciousness is being or that being is consciousness. Pure consciousness has no support. Brahman is this nonsupport; Brahman is not a substance. Thus the understanding of Brahman does not allow for reflection, that is, for a second understanding of the understanding. If you really understand Brahman, you do not understand that you understand it (this would be a second awareness and by this very fact would furnish the proof that the first understanding of Brahman was not exhaustive). If you understand that you understand, then you do not understand Brahman, but only your own understanding (of it). Finally, if you do not understand (not if you pretend that you do not understand, but if you really do not understand), because there is nothing, no-thing to understand, then you really understand (Brahman). Needless to say, this is only absolutely true of Brahman. In any other instance we are no longer dealing with pure consciousness. Consciousness, then, is not a substance, but an action, an act. Brahman has no consciousness, and thus no self-consciousness. Brahman is consciousness.
This is the point to which this Great Saying leads us. From the bringing together of the epistemic and ontic questions effected by this mahavakya, there emerges a total vision of the universe. This mahavakya could be called the onto-epistemic principle.
We may attempt to explain this in another less technical way. Men have consciousness, they are conscious beings, but they are not (yet?) consciousness and much less pure consciousness. The sole consciousness that exists is an all-encompassing consciousness; it is Brahman whom Men do not need either to fear or even to love or care about, because that ontic or meta-ontic realm is simply there, or rather it is to such a degree pure reality that our acceptance or rejection of it is already included in it and is of no effect whatever. In the words of one Upanishad, which we already know, 35
That from which beings are born,
that by which, when born, they live,
that into which, when dying, they enter,
that you should desire to know:
that is Brahman.
This Brahman, source and end of everything, is not a separated “being,” is not merely at the beginning and end of the ontic pilgrimage: Brahman is consciousness. All beings are nothing but the reflections, the shadows, the thoughts, the objects, the creatures, of that pure consciousness. We are insofar as we are in and from Brahman. He is the ultimate Oneness of reality.
3 Brahman 36 is the culmination and the goal of the entire Vedic world, of its prayers, hymns, sacrifices, and of the aspirations contained in them. 37 Its superiority is foreshadowed in the Rig Veda 38 and the Atharva Veda 39 and affirmed in the Shatapatha Brahmana. 40 Nothing is prior to or beyond Brahman (i). It is Brahman that attracts the attention of all the truth seekers of the Upanishads and inspires their meditation and dialogue. Discussions about Brahman (brahmodya) are no longer part of sacrifice but become essential for the search after the Ultimate, the Imperishable, the Ground and Goal of everything (ii). The search for truth finds its fulfillment in Brahman, and hence truth is identified with Brahman and Brahman with truth (iv, vi). But Brahman is far more than a principle satisfying intellectual inquiry. It is the subtle center of our existence, that is, consciousness (cit), and also the ultimate joy and bliss (ananda) (iii). The later Vedantic definition of Brahman as sat (being), cit (consciousness), and ananda (bliss) is foreshadowed in the Upanishads in various ways (vi). But the stress is always on “knowing,” that is, on realizing the unknowable as it is hidden in one’s own heart, for to know it is to become it. And the goal of Upanishadic knowledge is nothing less than the attainment of this state of being which is the being of Brahman itself. 41
The Chandogya Upanishad describes the ascent of knowledge identifying Brahman step by step with different realities (v). Although the original order of terms may have been upset at places, there is a whole order of human values (not to speak of the everrecurring cosmic terms) which serve as stepping-stones in the ascent and are discarded only by the recognition of something greater transcending them. But even at lower degrees of wisdom the knower attains states of freedom or fulfillment of desires corresponding to his understanding of Brahman. Brahman does not fall from the sky as some incomprehensible revelation; it is discovered by going through the whole range of human realms of freedom. One stopping place in this list seems to be life itself (prana), but the ultimate freedom is found only in the infinite, in fullness. Brahman is neither this nor that; it is only the unlimited.
The quest for Brahman can never be the quest for an object (of knowledge); rather, it is the quest for the origin of the questioner himself (vii), for the “mind of his mind.” The Kena Upanishad averts all possible errors in the search for Brahman, keeping it apart from all possible objects of vision, speech, thought, or worship. That by which the mind is thought cannot possibly be thought by the mind.
The Mundaka Upanishad (viii) is more affirmative and calls Brahman the spiritual center of all the world, that toward which all beings strive as their very life.
i) 10. That is the greatest Brahman, for there is nothing greater than this. He who knows this becomes greatest and best among his own people.
11. Nothing is prior to this Brahman and nothing is beyond it. He who knows this Brahman as having nothing prior to it and nothing beyond it will be second to none among his own people.
BU III, 8
ii) 1. Then Vacaknavi said: “Revered Brahmins, I am going to ask him [Yajnavalkya] two questions. If he replies to me, none of you will ever be able to defeat him in debates about Brahman.” “Ask, O Gargi!”
2. She said: “As a warrior of the land of the Kashis or Videhas strings his loosened bow and takes in his hands two arrows, sharpened to pierce his enemies, likewise, O Yajnavalkya, I stand up before you with two questions. Tell me their answers.” “Ask, O Gargi!”
3. She said: “That, O Yajnavalkya, which is beyond the heaven, which is below the earth, which is between heaven and earth, which is called past, present, and future--in what is it interwoven? In what is its warp and woof?”
4. He replied: “That, O Gargi, which is beyond the heaven, which is below the earth, which is between heaven and earth, which is called past, present, and future--all this is interwoven in space as its warp and woof.”
5. She said: “Hail to you, O Yajnavalkya, who have answered my first question. Be prepared for the second one.” “Ask, O Gargi!”
6. She said: “That, O Yajnavalkya, which is beyond the heaven, which is below the earth, which is between heaven and earth, which is called past, present, and future--in what is it interwoven? In what is its warp and woof?”
7. He replied: “That, O Gargi, which is beyond the heaven, which is below the earth, which is between heaven and earth, which is called past, present, and future--all this is interwoven in space as its warp and woof.” “But in what is space interwoven? In what is its warp and woof?”
8. He replied: “That, O Gargi, the knowers of Brahman declare to be the Imperishable. It is neither gross nor subtle, neither short nor long, neither fire nor liquid, neither shade nor darkness, neither wind nor space. It is unattached, without taste or smell, without eyes or ears, wind nor space. It is unattached, without taste or smell, without eyes or ears, without speech or mind, without heat, without breath, without face, without any measure, without inside or outside. It neither eats nor is it eaten.
9. “In truth, O Gargi, it is by order of that Imperishable that the sun and the moon are fixed in their positions; it is by the order of that Imperishable, O Gargi, that heaven and earth are fixed in their positions; it is by the order of that Imperishable, O Gargi, that the seconds, the hours, the days and nights, the half months, the full months, the seasons, and the years are fixed in their positions; it is by order of that Imperishable, O Gargi, that the rivers flow, some in the East, others in the West from the white mountains, in their respective directions. It is by order of that Imperishable, O Gargi, that men praise almsgiving, the Gods the sacrificer, and the Forefathers the offering to the dead.
10. “He who, O Gargi, in this world offers sacrifice or practices asceticism for many, even for a thousand years, and yet does not know that Imperishable--all his efforts will be in vain. And he, O Gargi, who departs from this world without having known it is wretched. But he, O Gargi, who departs from this world having known that Imperishable is a knower of Brahman.
11. “It is in truth that Imperishable, O Gargi, who is not seen but is the seer, who is not heard but is the hearer, who is not thought but is the thinker, who is not known but is the knower. There is no other seer but him, no other hearer but him, no other thinker but him, no other knower but him. And it is that Imperishable which is the warp and the woof of space.”
12. She said: “Revered Brahmins, if you can avoid an argument with him at the price of paying him homage, then count yourself happy, for none of you can defeat him in debates about Brahman.” Thereupon Vacaknavi kept silent.
BU III, 9, 28
iii) Brahman is consciousness and joy,
the highest reward of the offerer of gifts
and of the one who stands still and knows.
BU V, 4, 1
iv) This, in truth, is that; this, indeed, was that, namely truth. He who knows that great, wonderful genius, the firstborn, as Brahman, the truth, overcomes these worlds and thus may overcome nonbeing also, he who knows that great, wonderful genius, the firstborn, as Brahman, the truth. For truth alone is Brahman.
CU VII, 1; 2, 2; 3-8; 10-18; 21-24; 26
v) 1, 1. “Instruct me, Sir.” Thus Narada approached Sanatkumara. The latter said: “Let me know what you know and I will tell you what is beyond that.”
1, 2. [Narada said]: “I know, sir, the Rig Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sama Veda, the Atharva Veda as the fourth; as the fifth [Veda], the Ancient Stories. [I know further] the Veda of Vedas, the ritual for ancestors, calculus, augural sciences, the knowledge of the signs of the times, dialectics, ethics and political sciences, sacred knowledge, theology, knowledge of the spirits, military science, astrology, the science of snakes and of celestial beings. This, sir, is what I know.”
1, 3b. [Sanatkumara] then said to him: “All that you have been saying is nothing but name.
1, 4. “Certainly, a name is the Rig Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sama Veda, the Atharva Veda as the fourth, [as well as] the Ancient Stories as the fifth, [and also] the Veda of Vedas, the ritual for ancestors, calculus, augural sciences, the knowledge of the signs of the times, dialectics, ethics and political sciences, sacred knowledge, theology, knowledge of the spirits, military science, astrology, the science of snakes and of celestial beings. All this is mere name. Meditate on the name.
1, 5. “He who meditates on name as Brahman, his freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of name, he who meditates on name as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than name?”
“Yes, there is something greater than name.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
2, 2. “He who meditates on the word as Brahman, his freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of the word, he who meditates on the word as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than the word?”
“Yes, there is something greater than the word.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
3, 1. “Mind, verily, is greater than word. In the same way as the human fist can grasp two fruits of amalaka or of kola or of aksha, so the mind grasps both word and name. When one by his mind puts into his mind: ‘I want to study the sacred hymns,” then he studies them, or, ‘I want to perform sacred actions,” then he performs them, or, ‘I want sons and cattle,” then he wants them, or, ‘I want this world and the other world,” then he wants them. Mind is verily the atman. Mind is verily the world. Mind is certainly Brahman. Meditate on Mind.
3, 2. “He who meditates on mind as Brahman, his freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of the mind, he who meditates on mind as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than mind?”
“Yes, there is something greater than mind.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
4, 1. “Purpose, verily, is greater than mind. When a man purposes something then he has it in mind and he says a word and gives it a name. It is in name that the sacred hymns become one as well as the sacred actions in the sacred hymns.
4, 2. “All these find their union in purpose, they have purpose as their self and are grounded in purpose. Heaven and earth came to be by purpose, wind and space came to be by purpose, water and fire came to be by purpose. Because these came into being, rain came into being. Because rain came into being, food came into being. Because food came into being, the vital breaths [of living creatures] came into being. Because the vital breaths came into being, the sacred hymns came into being. Because the sacred hymns came into being, sacred actions came into being. Because sacred actions came into being, the world came into being. Because the world came into being, everything comes into being. This is purpose. Meditate on purpose.
4, 3. “He who meditates on purpose as Brahman, he attains the worlds that he has willed; being stable he obtains stable worlds, being well established he obtains well-established ones, being unwavering he obtains unwavering ones. His freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of purpose, he who meditates on purpose as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than purpose?”
“Yes, there is something greater than purpose.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
5, 1. “Thought, verily, is greater than purpose, for when a man thinks then he purposes and has it in mind and he says a word and gives it a name. It is in name that the sacred hymns become one as well as the sacred actions in the sacred hymns.
5, 2. “All these find their union in thought, they have thought as their self and are grounded in thought. Therefore, if even a man who knows much does not think, they say of him that he is nobody, whatever he may know. For if he really knew, he would not be without thought. And even if a man who knows little thinks, people want to listen to him. For thought is verily the union of all these, the self and the ground of all these. Meditate on thought.
5, 3. “He who meditates on thought as Brahman, he attains the world he has thought; being stable he obtains stable worlds, being well established he obtains well-established ones, being unwavering he obtains unwavering ones. His freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of thought, he who meditates on thought as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than thought?”
“Yes, there is something greater than thought.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
6, 1. “Contemplation, verily, is greater than thought. For the earth, as it were, contemplates; the atmosphere, as it were, contemplates; heaven, as it were, contemplates; water, as it were, contemplates; the mountains, as it were, contemplate; Gods and men, as it were, contemplate. Therefore the one who attains greatness among men has, so to say, a share in contemplation. Small-minded people are quarrelsome, wicked, and slanderous, whereas the excellent have, so to say, a share in contemplation. Meditate on contemplation.
6, 2. “He who meditates on contemplation as Brahman, his freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of contemplation, he who meditates on contemplation as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than contemplation?”
“Yes, there is something greater than contemplation.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
7, 1. “Wisdom, verily, is greater than contemplation. For by wisdom one knows the Rig Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sama Veda, the Atharva Veda as the fourth, the Ancient Stories as the fifth, the Veda of Vedas, the ritual for ancestors, calculus, augural sciences, the knowledge of the signs of the times, dialectics, ethics and political sciences, sacred knowledge, theology, knowledge of the spirits, military science, astrology, the science of snakes and of celestial beings; heaven and earth, air and atmosphere, water and fire, Gods and men, animals and birds, grass and trees, wild beasts, worms, flies and ants, right and wrong, true and false, good and bad, pleasant and unpleasant, food and drink, this world and the other--all these are known by wisdom. Meditate on wisdom.
7, 2. “He who meditates on wisdom as Brahman, he attains the worlds of wisdom and of knowledge. His freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of wisdom, he who meditates on wisdom as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than wisdom?”
“Yes, there is something greater than wisdom.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it !”
8, 1. “Energy, verily, is greater than wisdom. For an energetic man makes a hundred wise men tremble. When a man is full of energy, he arises, and arising he serves [others], and while serving he worships. By worshiping he becomes a seer, a hearer, a thinker, an enlightened one, a doer, an understander. By energy is the earth established, by energy the atmosphere, by energy heaven, by energy the mountains, by energy are Gods and men established, by energy animals and birds, grass and trees, wild beasts, worms, flies and ants, by energy are the worlds established. Meditate on energy.
8, 2. “He who meditates on energy as Brahman, his freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of energy, he who meditates on energy as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than energy?”
“Yes, there is something greater than energy.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
10, 1. “Water, verily, is greater than food. Therefore, when there are no good rains, living beings are afraid that food will be scarce. But when there are good rains, living beings are happy [thinking], there will be much food. It is water in its different forms which is the earth, the atmosphere, heaven, the mountains, Gods and men, animals and birds, grass and trees, wild beasts, worms, flies and ants. All these forms are only water. Meditate on water.
10, 2. “He who meditates on water as Brahman, he obtains all desires and becomes fulfilled. His freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of water, he who meditates on water as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than water?”
“Yes, there is something greater than water.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
11, 1. “Radiance, verily, is greater than water. Therefore it seizes the air and heats the atmosphere. People say: it is hot, it is burning, it will rain. When the radiance has shown this sign first, the water is poured out. Then thunder rolls with lightning above and across [the sky]. Therefore they say: lightning flashes, it is thundering, it will rain. When the radiance has shown this first, the water is poured out. Meditate on radiance.
11, 2. “He who meditates on radiance as Brahman becomes radiant and attains radiant worlds, overcoming darkness. His freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of radiance, he who meditates on radiance as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than radiance?”
“Yes, there is something greater than radiance.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
12, 1. “Space, verily, is greater than radiance. For in space are the sun and the moon, lightning, the stars and fire. Through space one calls, through space one hears, through space one replies. In space one delights or one does not delight. In space one is born and into space one is born. Meditate on space.
12, 2. “He who meditates on space as Brahman, he attains the worlds of space and light, unimpeded and far-reaching. His freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of space, he who meditates on space as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than space?”
“Yes, there is something greater than space.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
13, 1. “Memory, verily, is greater than space. For even if many people were to gather but had no memory, they would not hear anything or think or understand. But if they remember, then they would hear and think and understand. Through memory one recognizes one’s sons and one’s cattle. Meditate on memory.
13, 2. “He who meditates on memory as Brahman, his freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of memory, he who meditates on memory as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than memory?”
“Yes, there is something greater than memory.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
14, 1. “Hope, verily, is greater than memory. For with hope enkindled, memory learns the sacred hymns and performs sacred actions, desires sons and cattle, this world and the other. Meditate on hope.
14, 2. “He who meditates on hope as Brahman, all his desires will be fulfilled through hope, his prayers will not be in vain. His freedom will extend to the limits of the realm of hope, he who meditates on hope as Brahman.”
“But, sir, is there anything greater than hope?”
“Yes, there is something greater than hope.”
“Then please, sir, tell me about it!”
15, 1. “Life, assuredly, is greater than hope. For just as the spokes are fixed in the hub, so everything is fixed in life. Life is sustained by the life breath, the life breath gives life, it gives life to life. Life is the father, life is the mother, life is the brother, life is the sister, life is the teacher, life is the knower of Brahman.
15, 2. “If one answers harshly to one’s father, mother, brother, sister, teacher, or to a Brahmin, people say: shame on you, you are killing your father, mother, brother, sister, teacher, you are a killer of a Brahmin.
15, 3. “But if life has departed from them and one gathers their bones with a stake and burns them completely, then people will not say, he is killing his father, mother, brother, sister, teacher, or he is a killer of a Brahmin.
15, 4. “All these [beings] are only life. He who sees, thinks, and understands it thus, he is a great speaker. If people tell him, ‘You are a great speaker; he should say, ‘I am a great speaker.” He should not deny it.
16. “But only the one who speaks the truth speaks better than others.”
“Let me, then, sir, speak the truth.”
“First you must desire to comprehend truth.”
“Sir, I do indeed desire to comprehend truth.”
17. “Only if one understands can one speak truth. Without understanding one cannot speak the truth, for only after having understood can one speak the truth. But one should desire to comprehend knowledge.”
“Sir, I do indeed desire to comprehend knowledge.”
18. “Only if one thinks can one understand. Without thinking one cannot understand, for only after having thought does one understand. But one should desire to comprehend thought.”
“Sir, I do indeed desire to comprehend thought.”
21. “Only if one performs sacred actions does one persevere. Without sacred actions one cannot persevere, for only by sacred actions does one persevere. But one should desire to comprehend sacred actions.”
“Sir, I do indeed desire to comprehend sacred actions.”
22. “Only if one attains happiness does one perform sacred actions. One does not perform sacred actions if one is unhappy, for only having attained happiness does one perform sacred actions. But one should desire to comprehend happiness.”
“Sir, I do indeed desire to comprehend happiness.”
23. “Fullness, indeed, is happiness. In something limited there is no happiness; only in fullness is there happiness. One should desire to comprehend fullness.”
“Sir, I do indeed desire to comprehend fullness.”
24, 1. “Where one does not see another, or hear another, or know another--that is fullness. But where one sees another, hears another, knows another--that is limitation. That which is fullness is immortal, but that which is limited is mortal.”
“In what, sir, is fullness established?”
“In its own greatness, or not even in greatness.”
24, 2. “What is called greatness on earth consists of cows and horses, elephants and gold, servants and wives, fields and houses. I do not speak of this,” he said, “for there one thing is depending upon another.”
26, 1. The man who sees in this way, who thinks in this way, who knows in this way--from his atman proceeds life, from his atman hope, from his atman memory, from his atman space, from his atman radiance, from his atman water, from his atman proceed the manifestation and disappearance [of the world], from his atman proceeds food, from his atman energy, from his atman wisdom, from his atman contemplation, from his atman thought, from his atman purpose, from his atman mind, from his atman the word, from his atman name, from his atman prayer, from his atman sacred actions, from his atman comes all this.
26, 2. On this there is a verse:
He who sees this does not see death;
he sees neither illness nor suffering.
He who sees this sees all that is,
he attains everything everywhere.
He is onefold, threefold, fivefold,
sevenfold, ninefold he becomes.
He is said to be elevenfold,
a hundred and elevenfold
and even twenty thousandfold.
The purity of food will procure the purity of the entire being. In purity of being will the whole tradition become firm. Tradition will liberate from all bondage.
To such a one [Narada] purified from all impurities, the blessed Sanatkumara shows the farther shore of darkness. He is called skanda, yes, he is called skanda.
TU II, 1
vi) Om. He who knows Brahman attains the Supreme. About this it has been said:
Brahman is truth, knowledge, and infinity,
hidden in the heart and in the highest heaven,
who thus knows Brahman obtains all desires,
he also obtains Brahman the wise.
From this atman originated space, from space air, from air fire, from fire water, from water the earth, from the earth the plants, from the plants food, and from food the person. This truly is the person that consists of the essence of food; this is his head, this, his right side, this, his left side; this is his self, this is his lower support.
KEN U I, 1-9
vii) 1. Impelled by whom does the mind dart forth?
Directed by whom does life start on its way?
Incited by whom is the word we speak?
Who is the God who directs eye and ear?
2. The ear of the ear, the mind of the mind,
the word of the word and the breath of breath,
the eye of the eye--the wise, once liberated,
depart from this world and become immortal.
3-4. Thither the eye does not reach, or speech or mind. We do not know or understand how this can be taught. It is other than the known and beyond the unknown. Thus we have learnt from the sages of old who explained it to us.
5. That which cannot be expressed by words
but that by which the word is expressed--
this is Brahman, understand well,
and not what is worshiped here as such.
6. That which cannot be thought by the mind,
but that by which, they say, the mind is thought--
this is Brahman, understand well,
and not what is worshiped here as such.
7. That which cannot be seen by the eye,
but that by which the eyes have sight--
this is Brahman, understand well,
and not what is worshiped here as such.
8. That which cannot be heard by the ear
but that by which the ear has hearing--
this is Brahman, understand well,
and not what is worshiped here as such.
9. That which cannot be breathed by breath,
but that by which the breath can breathe--
this is Brahman, understand well,
and not what is worshiped here as such.
MUND U II, 2, 1-2
viii) 1. Revealed and yet dwelling hidden in the cave
is that which is called the great Abode.
Whatever moves and breathes and blinks
is fixed therein. Know this as being
and also nonbeing, the desire of all hearts,
transcending knowledge, best beloved of every creature.
2. Burning as a flame and subtlest of the subtle,
in which are firmly fixed the worlds and all their peoples--
that is the imperishable Brahman. That is life
and word and spirit, the true, the immortal!
That, my friend, is to be known--know that!
i) Nothing is prior to: apurva, unpreceded, unparalleled, incomparable.
Nothing is beyond: a-para, rather than apara, having something after it.
ii) This Upanishad appears to be another, more elaborate version of the story told in BU III, 6, which ended with Yajnavalkya’s warning to Gargi not to question beyond the limit (atiprashna), otherwise her head would fall off. Cf. BU III, 9, 26 (§ VI 5).
1. Vacaknavi is the patronymic of Gargi.
Debates about Brahman: brahmodya; the Vedic brahmodya consists of riddles which have to be solved, the intellectual part of sacrifice, as it were. In the Upanishadic period these riddles developed into proper theological discussions.
2. Gargi’s attitude is more aggressive than searching. There are two kinds of dialogue in the U: the challenge by a partner who does not feel himself inferior to the questioned person, and the humble quest of a disciple at the feet of his master.
3. Warp and woof: tad otam ca protam ca, again the ancient image of weaving, referring to the texture of the universe.
4. Space: akasha, empty atmosphere as the state of everything.
8. Imperishable: akshara. What follows seems to be a description of nirguna brahman in Vedantic terms.
9. The Gods the sacrificer: yajamanam devah; the order seems to be reversed, but actually it reveals the interdependence of yajamana and devah.
Offering to the dead: darvi
10. His efforts will be in vain: antavad evasya tad bhavati, lit. his efforts will have an end, they will not be fruitful.
Wretched: krpana, miserable, pitiable.
11. Cf. BU III, 7, 23 (§ VI 5).
12. At the price of paying him homage: namaskarena, by bowing to him (without any further discussion).
iii) Consciousness: vijnana, knowledge.
Joy: ananda, bliss.
Brahman is the goal of both the active and the contemplative lives.
iv) Truth: satya, reality.
Wonderful genius: yaksha.
v) The concepts identified with Brahman are: naman, vac, manas, samkalpa, citta, dhyana, vijnana, bala, anna, apah, tejas, akasha, smara, asha, prana, satya, mati, shraddha, nishtha, krti, sukha, bhuman, atman.
1, 2. Ancient Stories: itihasa-purana, epic and ancient lore.
Veda of Vedas: vedanam Veda, i.e.; grammar.
Ritual for ancestors: pitrya, rites for the dead, the manes.
Calculus: rashi, mathematics, arithmetic, science of numbers.
Augural sciences: daiva, divination, sciences of portents, of divine exploits, mantics.
The knowledge of the signs of the times: nidhi, chronology, the science of time.
Dialectics: vakovakya, logic.
Ethics and political sciences: ekayana, politics, rules for behavior, worldly wisdom.
Sacred knowledge: deva-vidya, etymology and philology.
Theology: brahma-vidya, sacred wisdom, knowledge of the sacred texts, spirituality, and contemplation.
Knowledge of the spirits: bhuta-vidya, science of ghosts, demonology.
Military science: kshatra-vidya, knowledge of archery, of war, of rulership.
Astrology: nakshatra-vidya, astronomy, science of the stars.
Science of snakes and celestial beings: sarpa-devajana-vidya, the knowledge of serpents and half-gods or muses, man-gods (jana-deva).
According to commentators, all these are fine arts. A similar but shorter list appears in BU II, 4, 10 (§ VI 4); IV, 1, 2; IV, 5, 11. Most of the translations of these words rely on Shankara’s commentary.
1, 3a. Cf. § IV 6.
1, 4. Meditate on the name: nama upassva. Some translators prefer to explain the sentence in relation to the immediately following sa yo nama brahma iti upaste, i.e., “he who meditates [or considers] name [or the names] as Brahman.” In that case it would mean to take the right attitude or proper vision regarding the value of names. “Reverence or revere the name” is also a common translation.
1, 5. Freedom: kamacara, “movement at will.”
2, 1. Cf.§ I 14.
3, 1. When one by his mind puts into his mind: sa yada manasa manasyati, if one by his mind has a mind to . . .
Sacred hymns: mantras.
Sacred actions: karmani, sacrifices, rituals.
Mind is verily the atman. This sentence and the two following ones break the flow of the progressive teaching and may well be an interpolation.
4, 1. Purpose: samkalpa, conception, will, thought.
Become one: ekam bhavanti, i.e., the mantras (sacred hymns) are included in name as the karmani (sacred actions) in the mantras.
4, 2. Union: ekayanani, merge into, find their focal point, are centered (in purpose). Cf. BU II 4, 11 (§ VI 4).
Heaven and earth . . .: samakpatam dyavaprthivi; the phrase is repeated using the verb sam-kp- in its different forms.
5, 1. Thought: citta, intelligence, reflection.
5, 2. Want to listen: shushrushante, suggesting obedience and following.
6, 1. Contemplation: dhyana.
The earth, as it were, contemplates . . .: dhyayativa prthivi; the iva could be understood as “unconsciously, by nature,” i.e., by the restful being of all things Dhyana would then be the ecstatic, unreflective, unselfconscious attitude, while vijnana (7, 1) is the conscious understanding.
A share in contemplation: amsha. Human greatness is nothing but participation in the cosmic act of contemplation .
7, 1. Wisdom: vijnana, understanding, discernment.
Right and wrong: dharma, adharma.
8, 1. Energy: bala, strength, power, force.
Worships: upa- sad-, whence upanishad, to approach (a guru), to sit near, hence to revere, to worship. It is by sitting near the guru, after having served him, that a disciple becomes wise. He becomes a pupil, a man near to and familiar with wisdom.
9, 1-2. Cf. § II 11.
11, 1. Radiance: tejas, the brilliance or heat of the sun, fire. Cf § III A.
12, 1. Space: akasha, the atmosphere or ether. Akasha is the medium of sound.
13, 1. Memory: smara.
14, 1. Hope: asha, the driving force of religious and secular actions.
15, 1. Life: prana.
Life is the father . . .: these identifications obviously illustrate that all these people are sustained by prana.
15, 2. This and the following verse seem to say that life (prana) is not the body of a person but his soul. To speak harshly to one’s own people is to kill them, rather than the act of burning their dead bodies (v. 3).
15, 4. A great speaker: ativadin, a master of speech, a dialectician, a sophist. The word also has a pejorative meaning as in MundU III, 1, 4.
This passage is unlike all the previous ones in that Narada does not ask further, and yet the teaching proceeds deeper and deeper.
19-20. Cf. § I 37.
21. Sacred actions: karoti, krtva, krti, all forms of the verb kr-, to do, to act. The action is here not just any act, but the liturgical act, the sacrifice.
22. Happiness: sukha, bliss, pleasure, here more the internal joy of Man when in harmony with the entire universe.
23. Fullness: bhuman, infinity, plenitude of being.
Limited: alpa, lit. small.
24, 1. Where one does not see another: yatra nanyat pashyati, where one does not see anything else. Cf. BU IV, 3, 31; IV, 5, 15 (§ III 28).
25, 1-2. Cf. § VI 8.
26, 1. Prayer: mantrah, sacred hymns.
26, 2. Cf. MaitU V, 2, for the analogous idea of the manifold development of the atman.
Purity of food: ahara shuddhi.
Purity of the entire being: sattva-shuddhi.
The whole tradition . . .: dhruva smrtih. One could also translate smrti as memory.
All bondage: sarva-granthinam, all knots (of the heart, of doubts, of bondage).
Skanda: lit. he who jumps (to the further shore). Cf. MundU II, 2, 6 for the same sentence about the shore (§ VI 5).
vi) Truth: satya.
Knowledge: Jnana, intelligence correspondung to the cit of the later formulation sac-cid-ananda.
Infinity: ananta, which later was transformed into ananda, bliss.
Hidden in the heart: nihitam guhayam: cf. also KathU I, 14, (§ V 27); II, 20 (§ V 5); III 1; IV, 6-7 (§§ VII 40; 44); MundU II, 1, 10 (§ VI 7); III, 1, 7.
The wise:: vipashcit, intelligent.
Person . . . of the essence of food: purusho anna-rasa-mayah the lowest, material layer of the person. The text ends announcing: On this there is a shloka.
2. Cf. § II 11.
3-5. Cf. § VI 7.
6-7. Cf. § I 7.
8-9. Cf. § VI 7.
vii) 1. The interrogative pronoun kena (“by whom?”) has been adopted as the name of this U.
Life: prana, the first (prathama) among all organs; cf. CU I, 2, 7 etc. Word: vac; cf. AV X, 8, 33 (§ VII 27); AB II, 5 (VI, 5).
2. Wise: dhirah, i.e., those who know the replies to the questions of v. 1.
Once liberated: atimucya, once freed from the mere appearances furnished by the ear, mind, etc.
3. Cf. KathU VI, 12 (§ VI 9); TU II, 9 (§ VI 7).
4. Cf. IsU 10; 13 (§§ VII 21; 26).
viii) 1. Cf. AV X, 8, 6 (§ VII 27).
Revealed: avih, manifest.
Abode: pada, a word with many meanings: step, place, support, word, symbol, etc. Here the conception of the “third step of Vishnu” comes to mind, which, from the RV onward, means heaven or the supreme state (cf. § I 27).
Desire of all hearts: varenya (cf. the Gayatri mantra). Best beloved: varishtha, the highest. (Or, if one relates prajanam to param vijnanat, it would read: “beyond the knowledge of people, the highest.")
2. Life and word and spirit: prana, vac, manas, the triad representing Man.
3-4. Cf. § VI 12.
5-8. Cf. § VI 5.
9. Cf. § VI 11.
10-11. Cf. § III 6.
3 The long discourse of the proud Brahmin Drpta Balaki on Brahman (i) shows a trend of thought in the Upanishads whereby Brahman is supposed to be reached by identifying it with different cosmic and human manifestations of the purusha. As Ajatashatru, king of Kashi, confirms, to meditate on these various identifications is not just barren speculation. But none of these meditations is able to make Brahman known, and here ends the wisdom of the Brahmin. It is the Kshatriya who now has to teach the Brahmin, by taking his hand and showing him a sleeping man. Only direct experience can convey the ultimate message. The message is that consciousness does not depend on Man’s state of waking but that it is ever present in him, in whatever state he may be. For only out of consciousness arise vital breaths and with them the worlds and the Gods, and consciousness that is Brahman leads us to the discovery of the atman.
To grasp consciousness means to grasp the player of the instrument, and not its sounds, and yet consciousness remains ungraspable because it penetrates everything like salt in water (ii). Yajnavalkya’s instruction remains paradoxical for his wifeMaitreyi, and it is only in a paradoxical way that this truth is understood.
The following texts describe the direction we have to take in order to discover pure consciousness: we must seek not to understand the objects, but the subject, the speaker, the hearer, the thinker (iv). This subject cannot be treated as an object. Thus we arrive at the fundamental paradox of consciousness: its purity is destroyed by self-consciousness (v). Pure consciousness cannot be dualistic, but Advaitic knowledge is really ineffable (vi). Consciousness is not vac, the word, but that which permits the word to be.
i) 1. Drpta Balaki was a learned man of the Gargya family. He said to Ajatashatru of Kashi: “Let me expound Brahman to you.”
Ajatashatru said to him: “For such a speech I will give you a thousand [cows]. For people come running [to me], shouting, ‘Janaka, Janaka!” “
2. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is there in the sun, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as the all-surpassing, the head and the king of all beings. He who meditates on him thus becomes himself all-surpassing, the head and the king of all beings.”
3. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is there in the moon, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
style="margin-top: 1em;"Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as the great, white-robed king Soma. He who meditates on him thus, for him the Soma is daily poured out and poured forth. His food will not come to an end.”
4. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is there in lightning, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as the one full of radiance. He who meditates on him thus will become radiant and his offspring also will be radiant.”
5. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is there in space, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as the full and the immutable. He who meditates on him thus will attain fullness of offspring and cattle, and his people will not vanish from this world.”
6. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is in the mind, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as Indra Vaikuntha whose army is invincible. He who meditates on him thus will be victorious, invincible, and an overpowerer of his enemies.”
7. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is in the fire, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as the resistant one. He who meditates on him thus will become resistant, and his people too will become resistant.”
8. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is in the water, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as the beautiful one. He who meditates on him thus as the beautiful, will be approached only by what is beautiful, not by the ugly, and from him only the beautiful will be born.”
9. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is here in the mirror, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as the shining one. He who meditates on him thus becomes himself shining and his offspring will be shining. He will be more shining than those who approach him.”
10. Then Gargya said: “The sound that follows someone when he walks, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as life. He who meditates on him thus will attain his full life span in this world and he will not meet an untimely death.”
11. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is in the regions of space, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as the inseparable companion. He who meditates on him thus will have a companion and his company will not be separated from him.”
12. Then Gargya said: “The Person who consists of shadow, on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Oh, please do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as death. He who meditates on him thus will attain his full life span in this world and he will not meet an untimely death.”
13. Then Gargya said: “The Person who is here in the body [atman], on him do I meditate as Brahman.”
Ajatashatru said: “Do not tell me about him! I meditate on him as one who is endowed with a body [atman]. He who meditates on him thus will be endowed with a body and his offspring also will be endowed with a body.” After this Gargya kept silent.
14. Then Ajatashatru said: “Is this all?” “This is all,” replied Gargya. “With merely this much [Brahman] is not known,” observed Ajatashatru. Then Gargya said: “Let me come to you as a disciple.”
15. Ajatashatru said: “This is the wrong order of things that a Brahmin should approach a Kshatriya as a disciple, to learn about Brahman. Yet I desire to instruct you.”
He took his hand and they both got up. They approached a man who was asleep. Ajatashatru addressed him by the name: great, white-robed king Soma, but he did not get up. He woke him up with his hand and he got up.
16. Then Ajatashatru said: “When this man was asleep, where was his conscious spirit, whence did it return?” And Gargya did not know.
17. Then Ajatashatru said: “When this man was asleep, his conscious spirit, having assumed into himself by his consciousness the consciousness of all the life powers [pranah], was dwelling in the inner space within the heart. When he holds these [life powers], then a person is said to be asleep. When his breath is withheld, his speech is withheld, his eye is withheld, his ear is withheld, his mind is withheld.
18. “When he moves about in a dream, these are his worlds. There he becomes like a king or a great brahmin; he enters, so to say, on conditions high or low. And just as a king, taking his people, moves in his country as he wishes, so also this [person], taking his life powers, moves in his own body as he wishes.
19. “Now when he is in a state of deep sleep, when he does not know anything, then the seventy-two thousand arteries called hitah move from the heart to the pericardium. Entering into them, he rests in the pericardium. Just as a young man or a king or a great brahmin might rest, when experiencing extreme joy, so does he rest.
20. “As a spider, advancing, produces thread and as small sparks spring forth from fire, so from this atman spring forth all sense powers, all worlds, all Gods, all beings. This secret doctrine is the truth of the real. The vital breaths are the real; the atman is their truth.”
BU II, 4, 7-14
ii) 7. “Just as when a drum is beaten one cannot take hold of the external sounds, but when one takes hold of the drum or of the drum beater, one takes hold of the sounds also.
8. “Just as when a conch is blown one cannot take hold of the external sounds, but when one takes hold of the conch or of the conch blower, one takes hold of the sounds also.
9. “Just as when a lute is played one cannot take hold of the external sounds, but when one takes hold of the lute or of the lute player, one takes hold of the sounds also.
10. “As when a fire is lit with damp fuel, different clouds of smoke come forth, in the same way from this great Being are breathed forth the Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda, Atharva Veda, the epics and the Puranas, the sciences and the Upanishads, the verses, the aphorisms, the explanations and the commentaries. From this all these are breathed out.
11. “And just as the ocean is the one meeting place of all the waters, so the skin is the one meeting place of all kinds of touch, the nose is the one meeting place of all the smells, the tongue is the one meeting place of all the tastes, the eye is the one meeting place of all the forms, the ear is the one meeting place of all the sounds, the mind is the one meeting place of all the thoughts, the heart is the one meeting place of all knowledge, the hands are the one meeting place of all actions, the generative organ is the one meeting place of all delights, the anus is the one meeting place of all excretions, the feet are the one meeting place of all movements, the Word is the one meeting place of all the Vedas.
12. “Just as a lump of salt thrown into water dissolves and there is no means of taking hold of it, but from wherever one may take water, it is altogether salty, so, in truth, this great, infinite, unlimited Being is a compact mass of wisdom. [At death] one rises up from these elements [composing the body] and dissolves into them again, for after death there is no consciousness. This, my dear, is what I have to tell you.”
Thus spoke Yajnavalkya.
13. Maitreyi said to him: “With this you have confused me, saying that after death there is no consciousness.”
He replied: “I have not said anything confusing; what I say is for your instruction.”
14. “Where there seems to be a duality, there one smells another, one sees another, one hears another, one talks to another, one thinks of another, one knows another. But when all has become the atman alone, then by what and whom should one smell, by what and whom should one see, by what and whom should one hear, by what and to whom should one talk, by what and of whom should one think, by what and whom should one know? By what could one know that by which all this is known? By what is it possible to know the Knower?”
AU III
iii) 1. “Who is the one on whom we meditate as the atman? Which one is the atman?”
“He is that by which one sees, that by which one hears, that by which one smells scents, that by which one utters a word, that by which one distinguishes sweet from bitter.
2. “That which is the heart, moreover, is spirit, it is comprehension, perception, discrimination, knowledge, wisdom, intuition, stability, thought, intelligence, impulse, memory, imagination, purpose, life, desire, will--all these are different names of consciousness.
3. “He is Brahman, he is Indra, he is Prajapati and all these Gods. He is the five elements, earth, wind, space, water, light; he is all things that are combinations, as it were, of subtle elements, and all things that are born from a seed or from an egg or from a womb, from sweat or from a seedling; horses, cattle, men, elephants, whatever breathes on earth, whatever moves or flies or stands still-- all these are guided by wisdom and founded on consciousness. The world is guided by wisdom, it has its foundation in wisdom. Consciousness is Brahman.”
4. By means of this conscious atman [the sage] arose from this world. Then, having fulfilled all his desires in the heavenly world, he became immortal; yes, immortal he became.
>KAUS U III, 8
iv) It is not speech that one should seek to understand; one should know the speaker.
It is not scent that one should seek to understand; one should know the one who smells.
It is not the appearance [of things] that one should seek to understand; one should know the one who sees.
It is not sound that one should seek to understand; one should know the one who hears.
It is not the taste of food that one should seek to understand; one should know the one who tastes the food.
It is not action that one should seek to understand; one should know. the one who acts.
It is not joy and suffering that one should seek to understand; one should know the one who experiences joy and suffering.
It is not bliss, delight, and procreative power that one should seek to understand; one should know the one who experiences bliss, delight, and procreative power.
It is not movement that one should seek to understand; one should know the one who moves.
It is not the mind that one should seek to understand; one should know the one who thinks.
For all these ten degrees of existence depend upon consciousness, and the ten degrees of consciousness depend upon existence. Indeed, if there were no degrees of existence, there would be no degrees of consciousness, and if there were no degrees of consciousness, there would be no degrees of existence, for nothing whatever originates out of the one without the other.
In this there is no plurality. For just as the rim of a chariot wheel is fixed onto the spokes and the spokes are fixed onto the hub, so the degrees of existence are established on the degrees of consciousness, and the degrees of consciousness are established on life. This life is the conscious atman, blissful, ageless, immortal.
KEN U II, 1-3
v) 1. If you think that you know it well,
you know very little--just a form of Brahman,
the form that is in you or in the Gods.
Investigate, then, what you do not know.
2. I do not think that I know it well,
nor do I think that I know it not.
The one of us who knows it, knows;
he knows not that he does not know.
3. He by whom it is not conceived, by him it is conceived.
He by whom it is conceived, he does not know!
It is not understood by those who understand;
it is understood by those who do not understand!
MAIT U VI, 7
vi) Thus it has been declared:
When there is a dualistic consciousness, the atman hears, sees, smells, tastes, and touches all things and is conscious of it. When there is a nondualistic consciousness, it [the atman ] is free from effect, cause, and action; it is unutterable, unique, indescribable. What is it? It is ineffable!
i) Cf. KausU IV, 1-20 (§§ V 27; VI 5).
1. Kashi: today’s Varanasi (Benares).
Janaka, Janaka: King Ajatashatru may be compared with the illustrious king Janaka because of his generosity and his knowledge, by which he surpasses the Brahmin although he is a Kshatriya (v. 15).
2. Person . . . in the sun: asav aditye purushah, the cosmological definition of the purusha or Brahman.
Do not tell me about him: the verb sam-vad- (to converse) is used with the locative (etasmin).
All-surpassing: atishthah.
3. White-robed king Soma: pandara-vasah somo raja, one of the manifestations of the purusha as light (cf. BU II, 3, 6 (§ VI 7). The personification of the moon.
6. Indra Vaikuntha: cf. RV X, 47-50, where the name refers either to Indra or to a rishi. In RV X, 48, 11, Indra is also called aparajita (invincible).
7. Fire: Agni.
Resistant: vishasahi; cf. RV X, 166, 1.
8. Beautiful pratirupa, reflection (in the water).
10. Life: asu, vital life.
12. Person who consists of shadow: chayamayah purushah.
13. In this instance atman clearly refers to the body.
15. The teaching of the Brahmin is only theoretical, whereas that of the Kshatriya is practical.
Great, white-robed king Soma: a name of the purusha (cf. v. 3).
16. Conscious spirit: vijnanamayah purushah, lit. the Person consisting of consciousness.
19. State of deep sleep: sushuptah Cf. MandU 5.
20. Cf. MundU I, 1, 7 (§ I 7).
Secret doctrine: upanishad.
Vital breaths: pranah, sense powers.
The truth of the real: satyasya satyam. This translation points out the difference between the two satyas.
ii) Cf. § III 31 for BU IV, 5, 1-3 (similar to BU II, 4, 1-3).
4-6. Cf.§ VI 5
The similes of vv. 7-9 suggest that the atman is the instrument or its player, and the whole world is the sound or music (for the background cf. YV XXX, 19 [§ II 28]).
9. Lute: vina.
10. From this great Being: mahato bhutasya; cf. v. 12. Here not only the four Vedas but also all categories of contemporary literature are included in the direct “revelation.”
11. One meeting place: ekayana, one goal, resting place, etc.; cf. CU VII, 4, 2 (§ VI 3). Although it is not explicitly stated, the conclusion of this series is that the atman is the one goal of all the senses (indriyas). Cf BU I, 4, 7, CU VIII, 12, 4 (§ VI 6); etc.
12. Cf. BU IV, 5, 13; CU VI, 13 (§ VI 10).
Compact mass of wisdom: vijnanaghana, “mass of knowledge,” i.e., wisdom through and through. Cf. prajnanaghana in BU IV, 5, 13.
Consciousness: samjna.
13. Cf. BU IV, 5, 14, where Yajnavalkya adds that the atman is indestructible.
14. Cf. BU III, 4, 2 (§ VI 6); IV, 3, 7; IV, 4, 19 (§ VI 11).
Duality: dvaitam iva.
The atman is the subject and not the object of knowledge. Cf. BU IV, 5, 15 (§ III 28) for a parallel passage.
iii) 1. For the inquiry about the atman, cf. CU V, 11, 1, etc.
2. Heart: hrdaya.
Spirit: manas, mind.
The series of terms that follow are all forms of consciousness (prajnana): samjnana. ajnana, vijnana, prajnana, medha, drshti, mati, manisha, juti, smrti, samkalpa, kratu, asu, kama, vasha.
3. Combinations . . . of subtle elements kshudra-mishrani.
Guided by wisdom prajna-netram.
Founded on consciousness: prajnane pratishthitam. The terms prajna and prajnana suggest the meanings of consciousness, intelligence, and wisdom.
Consciousness is Brahman: prajnanam brahma, the mahavakya. Cf. TU II, 5 (§ VI 7).
4. The sage: Vamadeva, mentioned in AU II, 1, 5 (§ I 34).
iv) Speech: vac.
Appearance [of things]: rupa, form, shape.
Joy and suffering: sukha-duhkha.
Degrees of existence: bhuta-matrah, elements of being.
Consciousness: prajna.
The text stresses the interdependence of sense organs and their conscious agent.
No plurality: lit. not many.
Life: prana, breath of life.
Conscious atman: prajnatman.
v) 1. Form of Brahman: brahmano rupam.
That is in you . . .: yad asya tvam yad asya deveshu; tvam stands for tvayi. The pupil knows only the manifestation of Brahman in himself and in the Gods whom he worships.
What you do not know: another version reads manye vlditam (the student adding), “I think that I know it.”
2. naham manye suvedeti
no na vedeti veda ca
yo nas tad veda tad veda
no na vedeti veda ca.
3. yasyamatam tasya matam
matam yasya na veda sah
avijnatam vijanatam
vijnatam avijanatam.
Cf.§ VI A b.
4-5. Cf. § VI 11.
vi) Cf. BU II, 4 14 (ii).
Is conscious of it: knows it.
Cf. the Gayatri (Introduction) for the beginning of this text.
Nondualistic consciousness: (a) dvaitibhutam vijnanam (wisdom, knowledge).
Free from effect, cause, and action: karya-karana-karma-nirmuktam.
Unutterable: nirvacana, wordless, unpronounceable.
Unique: anaupamya, incomparable, unparalleled.
Ineffable: avacya, inexpressible, unspeakable.
Advaitic knowledge is ultimate and thus has no further point of reference; it is Brahman.