‘Sir, is there something better than mind ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than mind.’
‘Sir, tell it me.’
FourtTH KHANDA.
1. ‘Will? (sankalpa) is better than mind. For
when a man wills, then he thinks in his mind, then
he sends forth speech, and he sends it forth in a
name. Ina name the sacred hymns are contained,
in the sacred hymns all sacrifices.
2. ‘All these therefore (beginning with mind and
‘ The commentator explains this by saying that, without the instrument of the mind, the Self cannot act or enjoy.
* Sankalpa is elsewhere defined as a modification of manas. The commentator says that, like thinking, it is an activity of the inner organ. It is difficult to find any English term exactly corres- ponding to sankalpa. Rajendralal Mitra translates it by will, but it implies not only will, but at the same time conception, determina- tion, and desire.
VII PRAPATHAKA, 5 KHANDA, I. rir
ending in sacrifice) centre in will, consist of will,
abide in will. Heaven and earth willed, air and
- ether willed, water and fire willed. Through the
will of heaven and earth &c. rain wills; through
the will of rain food wills; through the will of food
the vital airs will; through the will of the vital airs
the sacred hymns will; through the will of the sacred
hymns the sacrifices will; through the will of the
sacrifices the world (as their reward) wills; through
the will of the world everything wills’. This is will.
Meditate on will.
3. ‘He who meditates on will as Brahman, he,
being himself safe, firm, and undistressed, obtains
the safe, firm, and undistressed worlds which he has
willed; he is, as it were, lord and master as far-as
will reaches—he who meditates on will as Brahman.’
‘Sir, is there something better than will ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than will.’ ‘Sir, tell it me.’
FirtH KHawpDa.
1. ‘Consideration (Aitta)* is better than will. For
when a man considers, then he wills, then he thinks
in his mind, then he sends forth speech, and he
1 This pdragraph is obscure. The text seems doubtful, for instance, in samak/patam, samakalpetém, and. samakalpatém. Then the question is the exact meaning of samk/ptyai, which must be taken as an instrumental case. What is intended is that, without rain, food is impossible &c. or inconceivable; but the text says, ‘ By the will of rain food wills,’ &c. Will seems almost to be taken here in the sense in which modern philosophers use it, as a kind of creative will. By the will of rain food wills, would mean, that first rain wills and exists, and afterwards the vital airs will and exist, &c.
* Kitta, thought, implies here consideration and reflection.
114 KHANDOGYA-UPANISHAD.
sends it forth in a name. In a name the sacred
hymns are contained, in the sacred hymns all
sacrifices.
2. ‘All these (beginning with mind and ending
in sacrifice) centre in consideration, consist of con-
sideration, abide in consideration. Therefore if a
man is inconsiderate, even if he possesses much
learning, people say of him, he is nothing, whatever
he may know; for, if he were learned, he would not be
so inconsiderate. But if a man is considerate, even
though he knows but little, to him indeed do people
listen gladly. Consideration is the centre, considera-
tion is the self, consideration is the support of all
these. Meditate on consideration.
3. ‘He who meditates on consideration as Brah-
man, he, being himself safe, firm, and undistressed,
obtains the safe, firm, and undistressed worlds which
he has considered; he is, as it were, lord and master
as far as consideration reaches—he who meditates
on consideration as Brahman.’
‘ Sir, is there something better than consideration ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than considera- tion.’
‘Sir, tell it me.’
SIXTH KHAwpaA.
1. ‘Reflection (dhydna)? is better than considera-
tion. The earth reflects, as it were, and thus does
the sky, the heaven, the water, the mountains, gods and men. Therefore those who among men obtain
" Reflection is concentration of all our thoughts on one object, ekagrataé. And as a man who reflects and meditates on the highest objects acquires-'thereby repose, becomes firm and immovable, so the earth is supposed to be in repose and immovable, as it were, by reflection and meditation.
Vii Prapathaka, 7 Khanda, 2. 115
greatness here on earth, seem to have obtained a
part of the object of reflection (because they show
a certain repose of manner). Thus while small and
vulgar people are always quarrelling, abusive, and
slandering, great men seem to have obtained a part
of the reward of reflection. Meditate on reflection.
2. ‘He who meditates on reflection as Brahman,
is lord and master, as it were, as far as reflec-
tion reaches—he who meditates on reflection as
Brahman.’ ’
‘Sir, is there something better than reflection ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than reflection.
‘Sir, tell it me.’
SEVENTH KHAwpaA.
1. ‘Understanding (vigfidna) is better than reflec-
tion. Through understanding we understand the
Rig-veda, the Yagur-veda, the Sdma-veda, and as
the fourth the Atharvaza, as the fifth the Itihdsa-
puraza?, the Veda of the Vedas, the Pitrya, the
Rasi, the Daiva, the Nidhi, the Vakovakya, the
Ekayana, the Deva-vidyA, the Brahma-vidya, the
Bhita-vidy4, the Kshatra-vidyé, the Nakshatra-vidya,
the Sarpa and Devagana-vidy4, heaven, earth, air,
ether, water, fire, gods, men, cattle, birds, herbs, trees,
all beasts down to worms, midges, and ants; what is
right and what is wrong; what is true and what is
false ; what is good and what is bad; what is pleas-
ing and what is not pleasing ; food and savour, this
world and that, all this we understand through under-
standing. Meditate on understanding.
2. ‘He who meditates on understanding as Brah- man, reaches the worlds where there is understanding
? See before, p. 109.
116 KHANDOGVA-UPANISHAD.
and knowledge’; he is, as it were, lord and master as far as understanding reaches—he who meditates on understanding as Brahman.’ ‘ Sir, is there something better than understanding? ‘Yes, there is something better than understanding.’ ‘Sir, tell it me.’
1. ‘Power (bala) is better than understanding.
One powerful man shakes a hundred men of under-
standing. Ifa man is powerful, he becomes a rising
man. If he rises, he becomes a man who visits
wise people. If he visits, he becomes a follower of
wise people. If he follows them, he becomes a
seeing, a hearing, a perceiving, a knowing, a doing,
an understanding man. By power the earth stands
firm, and the sky, and the heaven, and the moun-
tains, gods and men, cattle, birds, herbs, trees, all
beasts down to worms, midges, and ants; by power
the world stands firm. Meditate on power.
2. ‘He who meditates on power as Brahman,
is, as it were, lord and master as far as power
reaches—he who meditates on power as Brahman.’
‘Sir, is there something better than power ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than power.’
‘Sir, tell it me.’
NintH KHawpa.
1. ‘Food (anna) is better than power. Therefore
if a man abstain from food for ten days, though he
live, he would be unable to see, hear, perceive,
think, act, and understand. But when he obtains
" The commentator takes vigfidna here as understanding of sacred bocks, gfiana as cleverness with regard to other subjects.
Vii Prapathaka, 1i Khanda, I. 117
food, he is able to see, hear, perceive, think, act, and understand. Meditate on food.
2. ‘He who meditates on food as Brahman,
obtains the worlds rich in food and drink; he is.
as it were, lord and master as far as food reaches—
he who meditates on food as Brahman.’
‘Sir, is there something better than food ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than food.’
‘Sir, tell it me’
1. ‘Water (ap) is better than food. Therefore if there is not sufficient rain, the vital spirits fail from fear that there will be less food. But if there is sufficient rain, the vital spirits rejoice, because there will be much food. This water, on assuming dif- ferent forms, becomes this earth, this sky, this heaven, the mountains, gods and men, cattle, birds, herbs and trees, all beasts down to worms, midges, and ants. Water indeed assumes all these forms. Meditate on water.
2. ‘He who meditates on water as Brahman,
obtains all wishes, he becomes satisfied; he is, as
it were, lord and master as far as water reaches—
he who meditates on water as Brahman.’
‘Sir, is there something better than water ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than water.’
‘Sir, tell it me.’
ELEVENTH KHANDA.
1. ‘Fire (tegas) is better than water. For fire
united with air, warms the ether. Then people say,
It is hot, it burns, it will rain. Thus does fire, after
showing this sign (itself) first, create water. And
118 KHANDOGYA-UPANISHAD.
thus again thunderclaps come with lightnings, flash-
ing upwards and across the sky. Then people say,
There is lightning and thunder, it will rain. Then
also does fire, after showing this sign first, create
water. Meditate on fire.
2. ‘He who meditates on fire as Brahman,
obtains, resplendent himself, resplendent worlds,
full of light and free of darkness; he is, as it were,
lord and master as far as fire reaches—he who
meditates on fire as Brahman.’
‘Sir, is there something better than fire ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than fire.’
‘Sir, tell it me.’
1. ‘Ether (or space) is better than fire. For in
the ether exist both sun and moon, the lightning,
stars, and fire (agni). Through the ether we call,
through the ether we hear, through the ether we
answer’. In the ether or space we rejoice (when
we are together), and rejoice not (when we are
separated). In the ether everything is born, and
towards the ether everything tends when it is born ?.
Meditate on ether.
2. ‘He who meditates on ether as Brahman,
obtains the worlds of ether and of light, which are
free from pressure and pain, wide and spacious ?;
he is, as it were, lord and master as far as ether
reaches—he who meditates on ether as Brahman.’
‘Sir, is there something better than ether ?’
Cr Ra Up <e a. * The seed grows upwards towards the ether; not downwards. * Cf. Kath. Up. II, 11.
‘Yes, there is something better than ether.’ ‘Sir, tell it me.’
1. ‘Memory! (smara) is better than ether. There-
fore where many are assembled together, if they
have no memory, they would hear no one, they
would not perceive, they would not understand.
Through memory we know our sons, through
memory our cattle. Meditate on memory.
2. ‘He who meditates on memory as Brahman,
is, as it were, lord and master as far as memory
teaches—he who meditates on memory as Brahman.’
‘Sir, is there something better than memory ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than memory.’
‘Sir, tell it me.’
FouRTEENTH KHANDA.
1. ‘Hope (4s4) is better than memory. Fired
by hope does memory read the sacred hymns, per-
form sacrifices, desire sons and cattle, desire this
world and the other. Meditate on hope.
2. ‘He who meditates on hope as Brahman, all
his desires are fulfilled by hope, his prayers are
not in vain; he is, as it were, lord and master
as far as hope reaches—he who meditates on hope
as Brahman.’
‘Sir, is there something better than hope ?’
‘Yes, there is something better than hope.’
‘Sir, tell it me.’
+ The apparent distance between ether and memory is bridged over by the commentator pointing out that without memory every- thing would be as if it were not, so far as we are concerned.
120 KHANDOGYA-UPANISHAD.
1. ‘Spirit! (praza) is better than hope. As the
spokes of a wheel hold to the nave?, so does all
this (beginning with names and ending in hope) hold
to spirit. That spirit moves by the spirit, it gives
spirit to the spirit. Father means spirit, mother
is spirit, brother is spirit, sister is spirit, tutor is
spirit, Brahmaza is spirit.
2. ‘For if one says anything unbecoming to a
father, mother, brother, sister, tutor or Brahmaza,
then people say, Shame on thee! thou hast offended
thy father, mother, brother, sister, tutor, or a
Brahmaza.
4. ‘But, if after the spirit has departed from
them, one shoves them together with a poker, and
burns them to pieces, no one would say, Thou of-
fendest thy father, mother, brother, sister, tutor, or
a Brahmana.
4. ‘Spirit then is all this. He who sees this,
perceives this, and understands this, becomes an
ativadin®. If people say to such a man, Thou
1 Prana is used here in a technical sense. It does not mean simply breath, but the spirit, the conscious self (pragfidtman) which, as we saw, enters the body in order to reveal the whole variety of forms and names. It is in one sense the mukhya prama.