Upanisads: An Introduction

By Pranay Bin
The great landmark in the religious development of India is to be found in a group of books of
exceeding importance called the Upanisads. Upanisads are remarkable product of the Indian
religion. They are a contribution of supreme importance not only to the religious thought of
India, but have an exalted and abiding place in the religious literature of the world. Nevertheless,
this study seeks to proffer its basic concept, to discern what Upanisad is.
1. The Term Upanisad
The word Upanisds has been derived thus: Upa+ni+sad. Upa and ni are the prefixes to the root
sad. Upa means nearness or quickness. Ni means certainty. The root sad has two meanings- (1)
to attain and (2) to loosen or destroy. As the word Upanisad has been interpreted in two ways, it
is the knowledge by means of which the ignorance, which is the cause of attachment to the
world, is quickly and completely destroyed. Or it is the knowledge by means of which one can
quickly attain the Supreme Being, Brahman.1 Upanisads is also the search for what is true and
express numerous suggestions about it.
2. The Upanisad as the Vedanta
The word Vedanta is a compound word. It consists of two words, Veda and anta. Veda means
knowledge, and anta means end. Therefore, Vedanta means end of the Veda. The Upanisads
are the concluding portions of the Vedas. Chronologically they come at the end of the Vedic
period. As the Upanisads contain abstruse and difficult discussions of ultimate philosophical
problems, they were taught to the pupils at about the end of their course. Radhakrishnan states
that when we have Vedic recitations as religious exercises, the end of these recitals is generally
from the Upanisads.2 The chief reason why the Upanisads are called the end of the Veda is that
they represent the central aim and meaning of the teaching of the Veda. The content of the
Upanisads is Vedanta vijnanam, the wisdom of the Vedanta. The Samhitas and Brahmanas,
which are the hymns and the liturgical books, represent the karma kanda or the ritual portion,
while the Upanisads represent the jnana kanda, or the knowledge portion. The learning of the
hymns and the performance of the rites are a preparation for true enlightenment. However,
Upanisads describe to us the life of spirit, the same yesterday, today and forever.
3. The Mode of Preservation of Upanisads
The last sacred books, especially the Upanishads give glimpses of how this learning was
imparted, and it is easy to picture what took place. Max Mullers description is true of disciples
in the sacred colleges today, as it was of their procedures in the forest hermitages three thousand
years ago.
1
2

B. K. Chattopadhyaya, The Teachings of the Upanisads (Delhi: Oriental Book Centre, 2008), 7.
S. Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanisads (New Delhi: HarperCollins Publishers India Pvt Ltd., 1994), 24.

How then was the Veda learnt? It was learnt by every Brahman during twelve years of
studentship or Brahmacaya. This, according to Gautoma, was the shortest period, sanctioned
only for men who wanted to marry and to become Grhastha. Brahmanas who did not wish to
marry were allowed to spend forty years as students. The Pratisakhya gives us a glimpse in to the
lecture rooms of the Brahmanic Colleges. The guru, it is said, who has himself formerly been
a student, should make his pupils read. He himself takes his seat either to the east or north, or the
north-east. If he has no more than one or two pupils, they sit at his right hand. If he has more,
they place themselves according as there is room. They then embrace their master and say, Sir
read! The master gravely says, Om, i.e. Yes. He then begins to say a prasna (a question),
which consists of three verses. In order that no word may escape the attention of his pupils, he
pronounces all with the high accent, and repeats certain words twice, or he says so (iti) after
these words.
It does not seem as if several pupils were allowed to recite together, for it is stated distinctly that
the Guru first tells the verses to his pupil on the right, and that every pupil, after his task is
finished, turns to the right, and walks around the tutor. This must occupy a long time every day,
considering that a lecture consist of sixty or more prasnas, or of about 180 verses. The pupils are
not dismissed till the lecture is finished says, sir, the pupil replies yes, sir. He then repeats the
proper verses and formulas, which have to be repeated at the end of every reading, embraces his
tutor and is allowed to withdraw.
This quest for connections often occurred in small groups as disciples (sisyas) gathered around
a teacher and student were drawn largely from brahmana and ksatriya communities and both
were male and female. Indeed at least two women-Gargi Vacaknavi and Maitreyi-were
mentioned as serious students cum teachers.
4. Number of Upanisads
It is assumed that as many Upanisads as there were Vedic school, indeed the Muktika Upanisad
asserts, that there had been 21 schools of Rgveda, 1000 of the Samaveda, 109 of the Yajurveda
and 50 of the
Atharvaveda, it follows there form that there must have been
21+1000+109+50=1180 Upanisads. In reality, however, the state of things was much simpler, so
far as the number of the Sakhas, which, as we actually know, restrict for every Veda only few
Upanisads.3 At present only a few branches (10 branches) of the Vedas are available. The greater
portion has been lost in the course of time. As an instance of the loss of Vedic texts mention may
be made of the verses with which Upamanyu is stated to have worshipped the twin gods Asvinikumara in the Mahabharata, Adiparba, 3.57.68. These verses are not found in the Vedas. As
there was an Upanisad at the end of each branch, there ought to have been 1,180 Upanisads.
About 108 Upanisads are however available at the present time.4 Of the hundred and eight extant
3
4

Ibid., 2.
Chattopadhyaya, The Teachings of the Upanisads . . . , 10.

Upanisads, ten have come to be regarded as the cream of the Upanisadic teachings. They are as
follows: Sankara commented on eleven, Isa, Kena, Katha, Prasna, Mundka, Mandukya,
Taittiriya, Aitareya, Chanddogya, and Brhad-aranyaka.
5. Setting, Date and Form of Upanisads
There is complication to trace out the place of the origin of the Upanisads, since there is no direct
evidence or tradition to prove. Yet we can infer from the texts themselves. Scholars unanimously
agree that the Brahmanical sacrifice cult flourished in the region of the Ganga and Jamuna. It is
the region between present Delhi and Agra, and to the east thereof, the place where the tribes of
the Kurus and the Pancalas lived. From there the Aryan Indians and with them, their Vedic
culture started spreading, toward the north of the Ganga and towards the east, up to where Bihar
of today is placed. This whole land is considered as a holy land of Vedas. This same area is
considered as the land of the origin of the Upanisads. In the earlier Upanisads, the land of the
kurus and the Panchalas is mentioned.5 In the progressively later texts, the king of videha, Janaka
is referred to. However, the oldest of these Upanisads represented oral exchanges occurring
around the seventh century BCE. These included the Brhadaranyaka Upanisad centred perhaps in
the lower Gangetic basin and a product of the yajurveda school of Vedic hymnists. The most
commonly mentioned teacher in this school is Yajnavalkya. The other early set of dialogues is
that of the Chandogya Upanisad, centred perhaps northwest of the upper ganges in an area
brahminic writer referred to as Aryavrata. It was a product of Samaveda singers. Other
significant Upanisads representing reflections occurring by the sixth to fifth centuries BCE are
the Taittiriya, Aitareya, and Kausitaka Upanisadas. Such collections are the kena, Katha, Isa,
Svetasvatara and Mundaka Upanisads were probably products of the last few centuries BCE and,
among other things, expressed a more theistic orientation.6
The lesson of the guru to his pupil or sisyas were not public in the ordinary sense of the world: to
be practicable they naturally required quite, but the ritual text show us more than that: they bear
witness that certain texts of special importance were to be to the pupil in the forest, and not in the
normal place, the abode of the teacher.7
Most of the Upanisads are in dialogue form, including occasional records of great public debates
where many individuals competed for prizes.8 In order to substantiate we can take an instance
from the Brhadaranyaka Upanisad, where, Yajnavalkya, the winner of such debating contest at
which the prize was a thousand cows each with ten gold pieces on her horns, is a prominent
figure in the Upanisads. In the Chandogya Upanisad, the dialogue between Svetaketu and his
Mrinalini Vivek Manohar, The Earlier and Later Upanisads: A Comparative Study (Delhi: Bharatiya Kala
Prakashan, 2011), 2.
6
Fred W. Clothey, Religion in India: A Historical Introduction (London/New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis
Group, 2006), 31.
7
Arthur Berriedale Keith, The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanisads Part II (Delhi: Motilala
Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited, 1998), 489.
8
P.S. Daniel, David C. Scott and G.R. Singh, Religious Traditions of India (Delhi: ISPCK, 2011), 89.
5

father is another ample evidence of the form. In katha Upansad, explicitly we can trace the form
of dialogue between Nciketa and his father and Yama.9 This information makes clear the form of
Upanisad as dialogue.
6. Factors for Composition of Upanisads
When we pass from the Vedic hymns to the Upanisds we find that the interest shifts from the
objective to the subjective, from the outside world to the meditation on the significance of the
self. The human self contains the clue to the interpretation of the nature. The real at the heart of
the universe is reflected in the infinite depths of the soul. The Upanisads give in some detail the
path of the inner ascent, the inward journey by which the individual souls get at the ultimate
reality. The truth is within us. The different Vedic gods are envisaged subjectively. Making the
Man (purusa) their mortal house the god indwelt him.10 All these gods are in me.11 He is,
indeed, initiated, whose god within him are initiated, mind by mind, voice by voice. The
operation of the gods becomes an epiphany: This Brahma, verily, shines when one sees with the
eye and likewise dies when one does not see.12
In the Upanisads we find a criticism of the empty and barren ritualistic religion.13 Sacrifices were
relegated to an inferior position. They do not lead to final liberation; they take one to the world
of the Fathers from which one has to return to earth again in due course. 14 When all things are
Gods there is no point in offering to him anything, except ones will, ones self. The sacrifices
are interpreted ethically.15 Sacrifices become self denying acts like purusa-medha and sarvamedha which enjoin abandonment of all possessions and renunciation of the world. 16 For
example, the Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad opens with an account of the horse sacrifice (asvamedha) and interprets it as a meditative act in which the individual offers up the whole universe
and by the renunciation of the world attains spiritual autonomy in the place of earthy
sovereignty. In every homa the expression svaha is used which implies the renunciation of the
ego, svatvahnana.17
Samkhyayana Brahmana of the Rgveda says that the self is the sacrifice and the human soul is
the sacrifice, puruso vai yajnah, atma yajamanah. The observance of Vedic+ ritual prepares the
mind for final release, if it is in the right spirit.18

Manohar, The Earlier and Later Upanisads . . . , 174.

Atharvaveda XI. 8. 18
11
Jaiminiya Upanisad Brahmana I. 14.2.
12
Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanisads . . . , 49.
13
Ibid.
14
Ibid.
15
Ibid.
16
Ibid.
17
Yaska explains it thus: su aha iti va, sva vag aheti va, svam praheti va svahutam havir juhati iti va. Nirukta
VIII.2.
18
Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanisads . . . , 50.
9

10

Prayer and sacrifice are means to philosophy and spiritual life. While true sacrifice is
abandonment of ones ego, prayer is the explanation of reality by entering the beyond that is
within, by ascension of consciousness. It is not the theoretical learning.19
The Upanisad seers are not bound by the rules of caste, but extend the law of spiritual
universalism to the utmost bounds of human existence. The story of Satyakama Jabala, who,
though unable to give his fathers name, was yet initiated into spiritual life, shows that the
Upanisad writers appeal from the rigid ordinance of custom to those divine and spiritual laws
which are not of today or of yesterday, but live forever and of their origin known no man. The
words tat tvam asi are so familiar that they slide off our minds without full comprehension.20
The view that is generally held by the western scholars is that the authors of the Upanisads lost
faith in the efficacy of Vedic sacrifices and that they realized the conception of One god
discarding the conception of many gods which is to be found in the earlier Vedas. Thus Prof.
Macdonald writes, Though the Upanisads generally from a part of a Brahmanas they really
represent a new religion which is in virtual opposition to ritual or practical side.21 Winternitz
writes: while the Brahmins were pursuing their barren sacrificial science, other circles were
engaged upon those highest questions which were at last treated so admirably in the Upanisads.
From these hermits who were not originally connected with priestly caste preceded the forest
hermits and wandering ascetics.22 Max Muller writes: in these Upanisads the whole ritual or
sacrificial system of the Vedas is not only ignored but directly rejected as useless, nay as
mischievous. The ancient gods of the Vedas are no longer recognized.23
Deussen writes: the Atman doctrine is fundamentally opposed to the Vedic gods and the
brahmincal system of ritual.24 Robert Hume writes: no longer is worship or sacrifice or good
conduct the requisite of religion in this life or of salvation in the next. Knowledge secures the
latter and disapproves the former. The whole religious doctrine of different gods is seen to be
stupendous fraud by the man who has acquired metaphysical knowledge of the monastic unity of
the self and of the world in Brahman or Atman.25 Further he states that sacrifice and works of
merit towards hypostatized divinities are, in the light of metaphysical knowledge, seen to be
futile.26 Because the Upanisads makes it clear that there is One God (Brahman), the western
scholars have concluded the author of Upanisads did not like the existing practices and believe
on their minor gods. In addition to it, Upanisads provide the information that the aim of life is the
attainment of salvation through the knowledge of Brahman. Therefore, scholars might have not
believed in the efficacy of sacrifices in attaining heaven. On the other hand we found that minor
19

C.U. VII.1.2.3.
Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanisads . . . , 51.
21
Chattopadhyaya, The Teachings of the Upanisads . . . , 18.
22
Maurice Winternitz, History of Indian Literature (Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt Ltd., 1991), 237.
23
Chattopadhyaya, The Teachings of the Upanisads . . . , 18.
24
Ibid., 18-19.
25
Robert Earnest Hume, The Thirteen Principal Upanisads (London: Oxford University Press, 1931), 54.
26
Ibid., 54.
20

gods are not rejected. When Naciketa asks about Brahmajnana, Yama says that the gods also
desire to know Brahman (which shows that the conception of minor gods is not rejected in the
Upanisads). In the past gods wanted to know it.27 Again the Kathopanisad says All the minor
gods exist in Him (Brahman).28 With regard to sacrifice, the Mundakopanisad categorically
affirms the truth of the Vedic sacrifices: All this true, the rituals which were revealed to the
sages and which were connected with the Vedic mantras.29 Again we see that you should
constantly perform these sacrifices with the desire for attaining the ultimate truth. 30 However,
the entire Upanisdas do not supply the consistent opinion for origin of Upanisads. In spite of this,
there is also grappling issue that Upanisads are the end part of Vedas, so as they might have
perceived the nugatory of the sacrifices and started to provide an alternative means to achieve
salvation. Despite of the above mentioned reason, it is widely accepted among the Hindus that
Upanisads did not replace the Vedic religion and thought but supplemented the earlier religion.
7. The Relationship of Upanisads with Sruti Literature
The Vedas are four in number: the Rg, the Sam, the Yajur, and the Atharva. Each of these may
be regarded as consisting of four parts, the first three pertaining to rituals and sanctions, and the
last to knowledge, philosophic and transcendental. The four parts of each Vedas are as follows:
(1) the Samhitas, (2) the Brahmanas, (3) the Aranyakas, and (4) the Upanisads.
The Samhitas are the hymns and chants in praise of various gods, such as Vayu, Agni, Parjanya
(rain), Indra, Mitra etc. The hymns are sung in order that man may please the gods and thereby
receive from them the blessings of worldly goods such as health, wealth, power and fame. The
Brahmanas are manuals for performing various kinds of rituals and ceremonies as well as guides
for the conduct of everyday life. They describe in detail procedures for performing different
rituals for pleasing different gods, as well as the kinds of sacrifices to be offered to them; they
also lay down the rules of conduct and duties of men toward each other. It is worth pointing out
that undue emphasis of the Brahmanas on the performance of rites, ceremonies, and duties has in
course of time resulted in the degradation of religious consciousness: the mere chanting of
certain word, the performance of certain rites, and acting in certain ways have totally replaced
genuine religious consciousness. Thus empty utterance and mechanical gestures have themselves
come to be regarded as a constituting the core of religious life. From such degradation it is but a
short step to the emergence of an all-powerful priest class and therewith the rigid
institutionalization of religion. However, these remarks are not to be construed as implying that
the Bramahmans are wholly devoid of anything valuable. Indeed, they emphasize self-control
and exhort men to cultivate love, kindness, and charity toward all living beings, including
animals. Further, the Brahmans forbid murder, theft, greed, and jealousy. The Brahmans
therefore surly deserve to be commended for their lofty ethical teachings. Nevertheless, their
27

Chattopadhyaya, The Teachings of the Upanisads . . . , 21.

Ibid.
29
Ibid.
30
Ibid.
28

excessive emphasis on rituals and ceremonies did result in the gradual eclipse of genuine and
sublime religious consciousness.31
Like the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas deal with rites and ceremonies. But, unlike the Brahmanas,
they go beyond rites and ceremonies to remind man that true and liberating wisdom does not
consist in the mere performance of rites and ceremonies but in spiritual insight into ultimate
reality. The Aranyakas call upon men to inquire into and grasp the spiritual significance behind
the Vedic sanctions, rituals, and ceremonies. In other words, the Aranyakas are the transition
from the outward symbols to the inner reality. In this manner, the Aranyakas pave the path to the
Upanisads, the flower of the wisdom.32
8. Teachings of Upanisads
8.1. Brahman
In the Rgveda, the word Brahman means a hymn or incantation or a prayer. Gradually it
acquired the meaning-the power or potency of prayer.33 In the Atharvaveda, Brahman is always
portrayed as not only the power of the mantra but as the basic cosmic principle. Brahman is the
womb of existent and non-existent, the unity of the binding force of the world.34 Further, as the
Atharvaveda denotes the person who knows this Brahman as his atman has no need to fear
death, for this atman is complete in itself, self existent, wise and immortal.35 During the
sacrificial texts (Brahmanas), the Brahman was identified with various Vedic deities such as
Mitra, Vayu, Brhaspati and also with the sacrifice. The priest, the fire, the oblations and all the
rituals of sacrifice are identified with the Brahman. Brahman is the primal principle and the
guiding spirit of the universe; and is regarded as omnipotent. There is nothing more ancient and
brighter than the Brahman.36 In the Aranyakas, the conception of Brahman has become more or
less metaphysical. One who realizes it becomes emancipated. It is both Sat as well as Asat. It is
described as the truth, the knowledge, and the endless. From the Brahman, all animate and
inanimate objects have come forth, through whom these exist and wherein they merge.37 The
word Brahman, which, in the days of Rgveda, simply meant prayer; but during the progressive
period of thought has been provided numerous broader meaning and ultimate sense of Brahman,
can be traced in Upanisads.

31

Ramakrishna Puligandla, Fundamentals of Indian Philosophy (New Delhi: D.K. Printworld (P) Ltd., 2008), 211212.
32
Ibid., 212-213.
33
Manohar, The Earlier and Later Upanisads . . . , 25.
34
Singh, Religious Traditions of India . . . , 88.
35
Ibid.
36
Ibid.
37
Ibid., 25-16.

The story in Chandogya Upanisad38 explains how the world which has names and forms arises
from the subtle essence of pure being.
The Brahman as Reality(): The name of the Brahman is the True, states the Brahman as
Reality Chandogya Upanisad and explains that, it consists of three syllables sat (), ti (), yam
()- the that is the immortal. The that is the mortal. The , with one holds the two
together.39 But it is differently explained in Brhadaranyaka Upanisad.40 The first and the last
syllable are the truth and middle is untruth. However, it states that the Brahman is the reality of
the real. The source of all existing things, That which alone, in this reality is truly real.41
The Brahman as being (): in the Taittiriya Upanisad, where the verse says,
42 it is to be perceived that, it is not the absolute not-being, as compared with the

later concrete existence. Further it is said,

43

Consciousness (): P. Deussen opines that the nature of the soul, and in connection therewith
the nature of the God, is to be conceived as something analogous to human thought as reason,

38

According to a story in the Chandogya Upanisad when Svetaketu returned home after twelve years stay in the
hermitage, where he studied the Vedas; he became arrogant and considered himself to be a wise man. His father
inquired, what have you learned that you seem to think yourself so wise? do you know that which whence once
known, everything else becomes known? when you know iron, you know that all can be made out of iron, for
these are in essence nothing but iron; we can distinguish the iron vessels from iron only by their specific forms and
names. But whatever may be their forms and names, the true essence in them all, whether they may be needless
pans or handles, is nothing but iron. It is only that there are so many forms and names, what are these forms and
names without essence? It is the essence, the iron that manifests itself in so many forms and names. When this iron
is known, all that is made of iron is also known. It is the ineffable reality, the ultimate being, which is the essence
of everything else. Continuing the instruction further, the father asked the son to bring a fruit of nyagrodha tree
and ask him to break it. The son observed fine seeds in the fruit, when broken. Again the father asked him to break
one of those seeds; and the son observed that there was nothing at all in that seed. Then the father said to him,
...

my dear, that subtle essence which you do not perceive, from that very essence this great
nygrodha tree exists. VI.12.1-2
39

40

VIII.3b-5

Br. Up. V.5.1b. Swami Madhavananda, The

Brhadaranyaka Upanisad with commentary of Sankaracarya (Kolkata: Advaita Ashrama, 2011), 572.
41
... ... Br. Up. II.1.20b. Madhavananda, The Brhadaranyaka Upanisad . . . , 202.
42
Not being was this in the beginning, from that being arose. Taittiriya Upanisad II.7.1a
43
After he had created it, he entered into it, he entered into it and when he entered into it, he was the being and
beyond. Taittiriya Upanisad II.6.1

spirit or intelligence44 for e.g. , when Usasta asks Yajnavalkya, to explain this Brahman, which
cannot be perceived directly and the in dweller of all. He explains, You cannot see the seer of
seeing, hear the hearer of hearing, think the thinker of thinking. He is yourself which is in all
things. He who breaths in with your breathing, is the self of yours. The conception of atman,
implies that; the Brahman pervading all, and the Atman, the essence of a man is knowing
subject.
The Brahman as Bliss (): in the Upanisads, bliss does not appear as the attribute of the
Brahman, but the Brahman is bliss itself. In the Chadogya Upanisad, it is said that the Brahman
is joy (); 45 also the term denotes bliss.46 These are sheaths of the Atman are described
and when they are stripped off as a mere husks, the kernel can be perceived as anandamaya
Atman. This Atman consisting of bliss is described as, love is his head, joy his right side,
jousness as his left side, bliss his trunk, and the Brahman, his base.47 Here, Brahman is
described as the base of the Self consisting bliss. Further, the origin we may found that
Brhadaranyaka Upanisad also states that Brahman as bliss.48
Forms of Brahman ( ): the Maitri Upanisad states that there are two forms of the
Brahman, the manifest and unmanifest. That which is manifest is unreal and that which is
unmanifest is real; that is the Brahman.49 In the similar way Brhadaranyaka Upanisad50 states
the two forms. Radhakrisnan, in his commentary on the above verses mentions that, the form is
the effect and the formless is the cause.51 The Brahman being the Ultimate Reality,
encompassing all-the living and non-living things, at the same time, the very essence of the
things, and formless by itself. Radhakrishnan says the Brahman to be cause which is beyond
causality; only in the sense that without which nothing can exist. However Brahman is beyond
causality and no becoming touches the essential reality. The Isa Upanisad explains that the
manifest () and the unmanifest () are the two aspect of the supreme.52
44
45
46

Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanisads of the Veda (Delhi: Motilal Banarshidass Publishers Private Limited, 1997), 133.






... ..

47

..

.
Manohar, The Earlier and Later Upanisads . . . , 30.
49



... .

48

- ,
,
... Brahman has
two forms-gross and subtle, mortal and immortal, limited and unlimited, defined and undefined. Madhavananda,
The Brhadaranyaka Upanisad . . . , 228.
51
Radhakrishnan, The Principal Upanisads . . . , 817.
52

. Srisa Chandra Vasu,

The Upanisads Prasna, Isavasya, Kena, Katha Upanisad Volume I (New Delhi: Cosmo Publications, 2007), 11.
50

Brahman is the supreme Lord from whom everything has preceded and who is the source of all
energy. Thus Kena Upanisad, we find the query, by whose will and direct by whom the mind
works? By whose command the Pranas move? At whose direction speech is uttered?53 In
Brhadaranyaka Upanisad, he is described as the controller, the lord and the master of all. He is
the creator. He is the creator of the universe and the world belongs to Him. Yet, He is the
indweller, inner controller and He is the inmost self of all living beings.54 It shows that he is
beyond the ritual speculation as well as human and cosmos.
8.2. Atman ()
One of the commonest expressions for atman is prana, or breath, and several passages deal
with this prana or its relation to the organ self-speech, breath, sight, hearing and thought-which
correspond to the five natural forces-fires, wind, sun, the directions and the moon.55 The atman is
clear from the following passage:
As a lump of salt dropped into water dissolves with (its components) water, and no one is able to
pick it up, but from wheresoevers one takes it, it tastes salt, even so, my dear, this great, endless,
infinite Reality is but pure intelligence. (The Self) comes out (as a separate entity) from these
elements, and (this separateness) is destroy with them. After attaining (this oneness) it has no
more consciousness. This is what I say, my dear. So said Yajnavalkya.56

Atman is presented in all beings, irrespective of their place in the hierarchy. According to
Upanisads there is atman on the one hand and the Brahman on the other. Brahman is the
substance of all existence. Atman is the eternal, silent witness in all beings; it is the pure spirit,
all pervading. Further both atman and Brahman, being beyond names and forms, are
inexpressible and are to be experienced only on intuition. But the question rise here is that are
atman and Brahman two different realities, what is the relation between atman and Brahman? It
is identified that both atman and Brahman do not refers two different realities, but are two
different labels for one and the same unchanging reality underlying the changing world of
phenomena, external as well as internal. Brhadaranyaka Upanisad makes it very clear that I am

53
54

Manohar, The Earlier and Later Upanisads . . . , 32.

...

..
Singh, Religious Traditions of India . . . , 90.
56
,
55

56

... Madhavananda, The Brhadaranyaka Upanisad . . . , 255.

10

Brahman.57 The Upanisads recognized our atman our inmost individual being, as the Brahman,
the inmost being of universal nature and of all her phenomena, i.e. That art thou.
8. 3. Karma and Rebirth ()
The word karma samsara is derived from two different Sanskrit words. Karam which means
action, action is attached with kriya, vyaparm, chestitam, prabruti and karana, which helps us to
understand the meaning of karma as our tendency, action, activity, cause and attempt. These are
related to the human action, which produce the fruits or destiny. Samsara means world, if the
action is attached or entangled with world and dies a person, whose soul come back to the world.
Karma functions basically as a natural moral law of actions and consequences. All actions have
consequences and accrue karma, or the residue of action. Good actions accrue good karma and
bad actions accrue bad karma and this karma sticks with an individual from one birth to another,
determining the conditions of ones rebirth. In the Upanisads karma is treated as cumulative
effect of good and bad action that determines one birth, but it is also presented as secret doctrine
not to be taught every one. The Brhadaranyaka Upanisad presents karma as the actualization or
realization of ones actions: What it desires, it resolves; what it resolves, it works out; and what
it works out, it attains.58 An individuals desires, will, actions and experience are essentially
linked, and these are realized ultimately in each rebirth.
Belief in rebirth has persisted, at any rate, from the time of the Upanisads. It is a natural
development from the view of the Vedas and the Brahmanas and receives articulate expression in
the Upanisads. After the death of human body, what remains of the individual? With regard to
this Yajnavalkya replies to Artabhaga as,
Yajnavalkya, said he, when the vocal organ of a man who dies is merged in fire, the nose in air,
the eye in the sun, the mind in the moon, the ear in the quarters, the body in the earth, the ether of
the heart in the external ether, the air in the body in herbs, that on the head in trees, and the blood
and the seed are deposited in the water, where is then the man? Give me your hand, dear
Artabhaga, we will decide this between ourselves, we cannot do it in a crowded place. They
went out and talked it over. What they mentioned was also work, and what they praised there was
also work alone. (Therefore) one indeed becomes good through good work and evil work there
upon Artabhaga, of the line of Jaratkaru, kept silent.59

57

, ... Madhavananda, The

Brhadaranyaka Upanisad . . . , .

:
,
,
;


... Ibid., 495.

58

59

,
, :, , , : ,

, , , :, , ;
,
:,

11

;
:

The future of the soul is not determined but the soul has chances of acquiring merit and
advancing to life eternal. Until the union with the timeless Reality is attained, there will be some
form of life or other, which will give scope to the individual soul to attain enlightenment and to
eternal life. It is more explicitly described in IV.iv.4 of Brhadaranyaka Upanisad,
Just as goldsmith takes apart a little quantity of gold and fashions another-a newer and betterform, so does the self throw this body away, or make it senseless, and make another-a newer and
better-form suited to the manes or the celestial minstrels, or the gods, or Viraj, or Hiranyagarbha,
or other beings.60

When the self continues to desire and act, it reaps the fruit and comes again to this world for
performing the act. However, the doctrine of rebirth is conditioned by karma and the karma and
rebirth wrest mans destiny. Thus, a desire is the root cause of rebirth and karman forms the
connecting link between desire and rebirth.
8. 4. Moksa
Upanisad teaches not only karma samsara but there is concern of a persons moksa from
samsara. The word is derived from the Sanskrit word which means to release or free.
Here the term is being used as, to be released from rebirth. Freedom from ignorance and bondage
is to be attained here and now, in this life. He who attains the knowledge of Brahman, while still
in body existence is the jivamukta, the living free. He has conquered ignorance and delusion
once and for all as well as beyond birth and death and has attained immortality. Upanisads
suggest that release comes with knowledge of the Lord, who transcends both the perishable and
the imperishable. Knowledge of the lord, available by his prasada or grace comes through
dhyana, meditation, through knowing him as resident within ones self. Directing ones thoughts
and feelings to the all powerful and unchanging Lord, uniting with him through constant
meditation, one loses ones attachment to the world.61 In addition to it, Upanisads recommends
the fourfold discipline: (1) cultivation of moral purity as well as the disposition and will to seek
the liberating knowledge, namely, the knowledge of Brahman, of atman; (2) listening attentively
to a teacher as he expounds the Upanisadic truths; (3) reflecting upon the truths thus heard; and
(4) meditation.62 Human state of bondage is due to ignorance of his real being and true nature.
The moment a person start cultivating the moral purity, gradually it will lead to listen the truth,
which will help him to reflect on it and to meditate. Thereby one can attain the moksa.

:, : : ,

, :

60

... Madhavananda, The Brhadaranyaka Upanisad . . . , 255.

- -

- , , , ,

... Ibid., 494.

Singh, Religious Traditions of India . . . , 105.
62
Puligandla, Fundamentals of Indian Philosophy . . . , 225.
61

12

Conclusion
Unceasing motion is the natural characteristic of universe. In the similar way it is recognized that
there is shift or motion in the teachings in Hinduism. Upanisads are numerous in number, but
there are ten principal Upanisads, which have been emphasized. In the Sruti, The shift is taken
place from ritualistic (Karmakanda) portion of sacrificial text with philosophical (jnanakanda)
and intuitive portion. It seems that there is perception of worthlessness of the ritual and sacrifice
but does not condemned the Vedic practices rather it supplement. Therefore, Vedas are being
regarded as lower knowledge. Nevertheless, Vedas have been placed in above than the other
literature of Hinduism. Upanisads also contain teachings such as Brahman, Atman, Karmasamara
and moksa. Brahman and atman is identical, however atman or the self is in the clutches of
ignorance, therefore, attached with material things and unable to release from it. In order to get
rid from it, it is suggested by the Upanisads, especially cultivation of moral purity, knowledge of
Brahman and atman, reflection upon the truth which is heard and meditation. However,
Upanisads are immensely rational and metaphysical.

13

Bibliography
Chattopadhyaya, B. K. The Teachings of the Upanisads. Delhi: Oriental Book Centre, 2008.
Clothey, Fred W. Religion in India: A Historical Introduction (London/New York: Routledge
Taylor & Francis Group, 2006.
Daniel, P. S. David C. Scott and G. R. Singh. Religious Traditions of India. Delhi: ISPCK, 2011.
Deussen, Paul. Sixty Upanisads of the Veda Vol. I. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Private
Limited, 1997.
Hume, Robert Earnest. The Thirteen Principal Upanisads. London: Oxford University Press,
1931.
Keith, Arthur Berriedale. The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanisads Part II. Delhi:
Motilala Banarsidass Publishers Private Limited, 1998.
Madhavananda, Swami. The Brhadaranyaka Upanisad with commentary of Sankaracarya.
Kolkata: Advaita Ashrama, 2011.
Manohar, Mrinalini Vivek. The Earlier and Later Upanisads: A Comparative Study. Delhi:
Bharatiya Kala Prakashan, 2011.
Puligandla, Ramakrishna. Fundamentals of Indian Philosophy. New Delhi: D.K. Print world (P)
Ltd., 2008.
Radhakrishnan, S. The Principal Upanisads. New Delhi: Harper Collins Publishers India Pvt.
Ltd., 1994.
Vasu, Srisa Chandra. The Upanisads Prasna, Isavasya, Kena, Katha Upanisad Volume I. New
Delhi: Cosmo Publications, 2007.
Winternitz, Maurice. History of Indian Literature. Delhi: Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt
Ltd., 1991.

14