Sri Sadhguro Pahimam Parama Dayalu Rakshamam

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Dear Members

" Hindu Dharma " is a book published by Bharatiya Vidya

Bhavan which contains English translation of two volumes of the Tamil

Book " Deivatthin Kural " ; which is a collection of invaluable and

engrossing speeches of Sri Sri Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswathi

MahaSwamiji.

 

http://kamakoti.org/hindudharma/part5/chap30.htm

 

The Upanisads

 

The

Upanisads come at the close of the Aranyakas. If the Samhita is

the tree, the Brahmana the flower and the Aranyaka the fruit (i.

e. in its unripe stage), the Upanishads are the mellow fruit -

the final fruit or " phala " . The

Upanisads are to the seeker the direct means of realising the

non-difference between the jivatman (individual self) and the

Paramatman. The purpose of the Samhita and the Aranyaka is to

take us to this path of knowledge. Though a number of deities are

mentioned here and there in the Upanisads, the chief objective of

these texts is inquiry into the Ultimate Reality and the

attainment of the stage in which one becomes wise enough and

mature enough to sever oneself from all karma. It is on this

basis that the Vedas are divided into the karmakanda and the

jnanakanda, the part dealing with works and the part dealing with

knowledge [enlightenment]. The two are also spoken of as the

Purvamimamsa and the Uttaramimamsa respectively.

 

The

great sage Jaimini's sastra based on his inquiry into the

karmakanda is called Purvamimamsa. His teaching is that the

karmakanda, constituting the Vedic rites and duties, is itself

the final fruit of the scripture. Similiarly, Vyasa has in his

work, the Brahmasutra, inquired into the jnanakanda and come to

the conclusion that it represents the ultimate purpose of the

Vedas. The Upanisadic jnanakanda is small compared to the

karmakanda. The Jaiminisutra has a thousand sections

( " sahasradhikarani " ), while Vyasa's Brahmasutra has

only 192 sections. Just as the leaves of a tree far outnumber its

flowers and fruits, in the case of the Vedic tree the karmakanda

is far bigger than the jnanakanda.

 

In

other countries philosophers try to apprehend the Truth on an

intellectual plane. The Upanisadic inquiry is differnt, its

purpose being to realise inwardly the Truth perceived by the mind

or the intellect. Is it enough to know that halva is sweet? You

must ecperience its sweetness by eating it. How are the Upanisads

different from other philosophical systems? They (the Upanisads)

consist of mantras, sacred syllables, and their sound is instinct

with power. This power transforms the truths propounded by them

into an inward reality. The philosophical systems of other

countries do not go beyond making an intellectual inquiry. Here,

in the Vedas - in the karmakanda - a way of life is prescribed

for the seeker with actions and duties calculated to discipline

and purify him. After leading such a life and eventually

forsaking all action, all Vedic karma, he meditates on the truths

of the Upanisads. Instead of being mere ideas of intellectual

perception, these truths will then become a living reality. The

highest of these truths is that there is no differnce between the

individual self and the Brahman.

 

It

is to attain this highest of states in which the individual self

dissolves inseperably in the Brahman that a man becomes a

sannyasin after forsaking the very karma that gives him inward

maturity. When he is initiated into sannyasa he is taught four

mantras, the four [principal] mahakavyas. The four

proclaim the identity of the individual self (jivatman) with the

Brahman. When these mahavakyas are reflected upon through the

method known as " nididhyasana " , the seeker will arrive

at the stage of realising the oneness of the individual self and

the Brahman. The four mahavakyas occur in four differnt

Upanisads. Many are the rites that you have to perform, many are

the prayers you have to recite and many are the ways of life you

are enjoined to follow - all these according to the Samhitas and

Brahmanas. But, when it comes to achieving the highest ideal, the

supreme goal of man, you have no alternative to the Upanisads and

their mahavakyas.

 

" The

Brahman means realising the jnana that is the highest "

(Prajnanam Brahma): this mahavakya occurs in the Aitareya

Upanisad of the Rgveda. " I am the Brahman " (Aham

Brahmasmi) is the mahavakya belonging to the Brhadaranyaka

Upanisad of the Yajurveda. " That thou art " or " the

Paramatman and you are the one and the same " (Tat tvam asi)

is from the Chandogya Upanisad of the samaveda. THe fourth

mahavakya, " This Self is the Brahman " (Ayam Atma

Brahma), is from the Mandukya Upanisad of the Atharvaveda.

 

In

his Sopana Pancaka, which contains the sum and the substance of

his teachings, the Acharya urges us to chant the Samhitas (of the

Vedas), perform the duties laid down in the Brahmanas and,

finally, to meditate on the mahavakyas after recieving initiation

into them, the purpose being our oneing with the Brahman.

 

The

Vedas find their final expression in the Upanisads. Indeed, the

Upanisads are called " Vedanta " . They form the final

part of the Vedas in two ways. In each recension we have first

the Samhita, then the Brahmana which is followed by the Aranyaka,

the Upanisad coming at the close of the last-mentioned. The

Upanisads throw light on the meaning and the purpose of the Vedas

and represent the end of the scripture in more than one sense:

while their text forms the concluding part of the Vedas, their

meaning represents the Ultimmate Truth of the same. A village or

town has a temple; the temple has its gopuram; and the gopuram

has a sikhara over it. The Upanisads are the sikhara, the summit,

of our philosophical [and metaphysical] system.

 

" Upa-ni-sad "

means to " sit near by " . The Upanisads are the teachings

imparted by a guru to his student sitting by his side [sitting at

his feet]. You could also take the term to mean " that which

takes one to the Brahman " . " Upanayana " may be

interpreted in two ways: leading a child to his guru; or leading

him to the Brahman. Similiarly, the term Upanisad could also be

understood in the above two senses.

 

If

a student sits close to the teacher when he is recieving

instruction it means that a " rahasya " (a secret or a

mystery) is being conveyed to him. Such teachings are not meant

to be imparted to those who are not sufficiently mature and who

are not capable of cherishing their value. That is why in the

Upanisads themselves these words occur where subtle and esoteric

truths are expounded: " This is Upanisat. This is

Upanisat " . What is held to be a secret in the Vedas is

called a " rahasya " . In the Upanisads the term

" Upanisat " is itself used to mean the same.

 

(see Chapter 33 of this part, entitled " The Ten

Upanisads " )

JAYA JAYA SANKARA HARA HARA SANKARA

 

Thwameva Maathaa Cha Pithaa Thwameva Thwameva Bhandhuscha Sakhaa Thwameva

Thwameva Vidhyaa Dhravinam Thwameva Thwameva Sarvam Mama Dheva Dheva.