Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 17 (prashna 4)

Posted on April 12, 2026 by Ramesam

“Limb” (in Sanskrit kala) means a part, a ray.

For example, the moon has 16 limbs from the New Moon phase to the Full Moon. Just as the Full Moon is complete with all the 16 parts on the Full Moon day, PuruSa is also complete when the 16 limbs are present. The 16 limbs are:

स प्राणमसृजत प्राणाच्छ्रद्धा खं वायुर्ज्योतिरापः पृथिवीन्द्रियं मनः । अन्नमन्नाद्वीर्यं तपो मन्त्राः कर्म लोका लोकेषु च नाम च॥ — 6.4, prashna.

[Meaning: He created prANa; from prANa (He created) faith, space, air, fire, water, earth, organs, mind, food; from food (He created) vigor, self-control, mantras, rites, worlds and name in the worlds.]

The life-principle, faith, space, air, fire, earth, the senses, mind, matter, vigor, austerity, mantras, action, fields (areas of experience), and name (identity) — these sixteen arise from the partless Puruṣa. Though in reality without parts, the Puruṣa appears as though endowed with parts when manifested.

Among these sixteen, the life-principle (prāṇa) and the mind (manas) are especially significant. It may be said that the indivisible Self appears as if fragmented into many. Just as a sheet of glass shatters into pieces upon impact, so too the Self seems to break into multiplicity when “movement” arises. This apparent fragmentation is referred to as the “fall” (cyuti). Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 16 (prashna 3)

Posted on April 5, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 15 (prashna 2)]

Once prANa enters the body, it differentiates into various functional aspects. The Upanishad says:

पायूपस्थेऽपानं चक्षुःश्रोत्रे मुखनासिकाभ्यां प्राणः स्वयं प्रातिष्ठते मध्ये तु समानः । एष ह्येतद्धुतमन्नं समं नयति तस्मादेताः सप्तार्चिषो भवन्ति ॥ — 3.5, prashna.

[Meaning: He places apAna in the two lower apertures. prANa Himself, issuing out of the mouth and nostrils, resides in the eyes and ears. In the middle, however, is samAna, for this one distributes equally all the food that is eaten. From that issue out these seven flames.]

Thus, the one life-principle appears as many, assuming different roles within the body—while its source remains the same unmoving Self.

[Note: The gonads (2) + ears (2) + eyes (2) + the in-between (1) together constitute The Seven Flames. Fire is said to have seven tongues. The Sun (a form of Fire) is said to ride a chariot of seven horses.] Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 15 (prashna 2)

Posted on March 29, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 14 (prashna 1)]

The “mind” referred to in the kaTha Upanishad—when it declares that “by the mind alone is the Self attainable”—is not the ordinary mind we are familiar with. What we usually call the mind is entangled with name, form, and action. It knows objects by taking their shape, and therefore keeps changing along with them. This kind of ‘knowing’ is called vRtti-jnAna—knowledge through mental modifications.

A vRtti is simply a thought-wave, always in motion. The life-principle (prANa), being inert by itself, cannot function without the mind; and the mind, in turn, cannot operate without the light of Knowledge. Yet Knowledge itself never moves. It is ever steady. The movement we attribute to Knowing is therefore only an appearance, caused by the restless activity of the mind.

This leads to an important insight. Although the mind is the only available instrument for liberation, it cannot serve that purpose as long as it remains in constant motion. Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 14 (prashna 1)

Posted on March 22, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 13 (kaTha 4)]

PRASHNA UPANISHAD

The kaTha Upanishad teaches that only a properly refined and purified mind can serve as the instrument for liberation. The body, the life-principle (prANa), and even the sensory and motor organs are not adequate for this purpose. From this, we may also infer that no action (karma) can directly lead to liberation, since action necessarily involves the organs of activity. Therefore, the path of action, by itself, cannot culminate in liberation.

Though closely associated with the body, the mind is not intrinsically bound to it. It can function either in association with the body or independently of it. When there is conceptualization (savikalpa), the mind appears linked to the body. In a state of non-conceptualization (nirvikalpa), it aligns with brahman and is no longer confined by bodily association. The dream state illustrates this: the mind operates apart from the gross body and even disengages from the external world. In deep sleep, both the world and bodily identification are absent, yet the mind persists in an unmanifest form. Ultimately, in liberation, the mind itself is resolved completely.

At this stage, we must ask: what exactly is the goal to be achieved through disciplining the mind? Can Self-knowledge be regarded as a goal? Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 13 (kaTha 4)

Posted on March 15, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 12 (kaTha 3)]

Ignorance is nothing more than the perception of multiplicity — focusing on the “particulars” while overlooking the Universal. While our sensory perception is inherently inert, it is the inner Self that provides the illumination required to experience any object. As the kaTha Upanishad declares:

न तत्र सूर्यो भाति न चन्द्रतारकं नेमा विद्युतो भान्ति कुतोऽयमग्निः ।

तमेव भान्तमनुभाति सर्वं तस्य भासा सर्वमिदं विभाति ॥ – 2.2.15, kaTha.

[Meaning: There the sun does not shine, neither do the moon and the stars; nor do these flashes of lightning shine. How can this fire? He shining, all these shine; through his lustre all these are variously illumined. (Trans: Swami Gambhirananda).]

Because Consciousness is beginningless, the Upanishad reveals that there is, in truth, no death—only the body perishes. While all forms eventually cease, the Formless remains. High-level seekers, like Prahlada or Kuchela, grasp this Truth instantly.

For the seeker of average competency, the method involves a systematic inward withdrawal:

यच्छेद्वाङ्मनसी प्राज्ञस्तद्यच्छेज्ज्ञान आत्मनि ।
ज्ञानमात्मनि महतिनि यच्छेत्तद्यच्छेच्छान्त आत्मनि ॥ — 1.3.13, kaTha.

Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 12 (kaTha 3)

Posted on March 8, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 11 (kaTha 2)]

A strong yearning for liberation propels one towards proper utilization of the body. Shankara says in vivekacUDAmaNi:

दुर्लभं त्रयमेवैतद्देवानुग्रहहेतुकम् ।

मनुष्यत्वं मुमुक्षुत्वं महापुरुषसंश्रयः ॥ — verse 3, vivekacUDAmaNi.

[Meaning: Very rare indeed are these three things and happen only due to the utmost Grace of God—a human birth, a burning desire for liberation, and the blessed refuge of an illuminated sage.]

While a human body is granted without conscious effort, the latter two—aspiration and mentorship—require concerted will. To truly “live,” one must not simply drift toward a natural end dictated by destiny; rather, one must “die” to the ego intentionally before physical death. Shankara thus exhorts us to seek the company of the noble to ignite this internal transformation.

Following this preliminary foundation, the Katha Upanishad imparts the specific methodology for liberation: Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 11 (kaTha 2)

Posted on March 1, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 10 (kaTha 1)]

न साम्परायः प्रतिभाति बालं प्रमाद्यन्तं वित्तमोहेन मूढम् ।
अयं लोको नास्ति पर इति मानी पुनः पुनर्वशमापद्यते मे ॥ — mantra 1.2.6, kaTha upa.

[Meaning: The means of attaining the other world does not become revealed to the non-discriminating one who, deluded by wealth, has become negligent. He who thinks, ‘this world alone is and none else’ comes to my thraldom again and again. (Trans: V. Panoli).]

An immature and unreflective person cannot easily avoid the path of the merely pleasurable. The glitter of the world blinds him; fascination replaces discrimination. Captivated by possessions, distracted by sensory allurements, he drifts without awareness of where he is heading. A seeker of the Self, by contrast, must live with vigilance. Spiritual life is not sustained by occasional effort but by sustained alertness. Each moment must be lived with inward attention, for the least lapse gives entry to ignorance. When the light of Consciousness shines unobstructed, ignorance cannot stand; but the instant that light is veiled, even slightly, darkness spreads. Darkness is bondage; light is freedom. Darkness is death; light is life. Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 10 (kaTha 1)

Posted on February 22, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 9 (kena 4)]

kaTha Upanishad

अतिमुच्य धीराः प्रेत्यास्माल्लोकादमृता भवन्ति ॥ — 1.2, kena Upanishad.

[Meaning: The wise, having relinquished all false identifications, become immortal upon departing from this world.]

The kena Upanishad tells us that “A dead man becomes immortal after death.”

At first glance, what the kena says appears to be a paradox: it suggests that one must “depart” to become immortal. If we take this literally, it sounds as though a dead man becomes immortal — yet a dead man is no longer there to experience immortality. This apparent contradiction is the gateway to a deeper Vedantic truth.

kena Upanishad is actually pointing to a “solution” for the one thing we all struggle with: Freedom from the constant, grinding cycle of birth, death, and the misery in between — what the shAstra-s (texts) call samsAra.

Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 9 (kena 4)

Posted on February 15, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 8 (kena 3)]

The Upanishad continues:

यत्प्राणेन न प्राणिति येन प्राणः प्रणीयते ।
तदेव ब्रह्म त्वं विद्धि नेदं यदिदमुपासते ॥ — mantra 1.9, kena.

[Meaning: What none can breathe with the breath, but by which the breath is directed, know that alone as brahman, and not this they worship here. (Here the word ’prANa’ may also mean smell. In that case, the translation would be: What one smells not by the organ of smell, but by which the smell is directed towards its objects, know that alone as brahman.)]

The above mantra tells us that brahman is that very Sentience behind everything that “Is” and that “Goes on” in this world and not any idol that we worship. Practices such as worship, mantra repetition, and yoga are efforts to understand brahman without relinquishing name and form. But true Knowing lies in knowing without name and form. Only the formless and featureless can be omnipresent. Continue reading →

Quintessence of 10 Upanishads – 8 (kena 3)

Posted on February 8, 2026 by Ramesam

[Part – 7 (kena 2)]

The utilities that reach our homes offer a useful way to think about Consciousness (AtmA). Water and electricity come through their supply lines, and we access them using specific outlets — a tap for water, a socket for electricity. But these utilities are not produced by our house, nor can we keep them exclusively to ourselves. They are shared resources, available to all houses.

AtmA — Beingness-Consciousness — can be understood in much the same way. It is not generated by the body or the mind. It is already present: unmanifest, universal, and available everywhere. The body is like a house, while the mind and senses — the eyes, ears, nose, and so on — function like outlet points.

When Consciousness breathes, it appears as the life-principle (prANa). When it sees, it appears as the eye; when it hears, as the ear. In short, the same single power of Consciousness manifests as seeing in the eye, hearing in the ear, breathing in the life-principle, and thinking in the mind. Continue reading →

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