A Commentary on the Upanishads by Swami Nirmalananda Giri -13

A Commentary

on the Upanishads

by

Swami Nirmalananda Giri

A Commentary on the

Taittiriya Upanishad

Reflections On Brahman

In his translations of some upanishads Swami Prabhavananda omitted parts that

were in such obscure language that any attempt at translation would really only be

speculation. He also omitted very repetitious passages and those that dwelt with

matters irrelevant to the knowledge of Brahman and the Self. I think that if you get

complete translations of those you will see he was quite justified in this. Anyhow, I am

writing this to explain why in the references to the verses of this upanishad there will

be some jumping around.

Thou art indeed…

“Thou art indeed the manifested Brahman. Of thee will I speak. Thee will I

proclaim in my thoughts as true. Thee will I proclaim on my lips as true.” (Taittiriya

Upanishad 1:1:1)

This fervent profession of faith and fidelity seems quite simple, but when we

consider what it entails, it is a high aspiration indeed. It is also strikingly in contrast to

most of the upanishads, which continually insist on the transcendence of Brahman and

the impossibility of comprehending or speaking of It.

While typing in the forgoing sentence my memory reached back to a time of

blessed tranquility in the sacred city of Sukhtal in north India. Tradition says that the

supreme Master Sukhadeva, the illumined son of Vyasa, came to Sukhtal and taught

the dying King Parikshit the principles of Self-knowledge and liberation. Many

centuries later I was in Sukhtal at a spiritual gathering (Samyan Saptah) under the

aegis of Sri Ma Anandamayi. One of the great souls (mahatmas) also gathered there

was Sri Yogeshwar Brahmachari, a venerable saint of Bengal whom I had met and

visited with before. Every day he would be seated on the platform near Ma, sitting in

profound meditation, not moving for hours or even seeming to breathe. The exception

would be when he would give a daily talk on spiritual life. In the evening there would

be a question-and-answer session with people putting questions to the various

renowned spiritual leaders on the platform. One evening, right after a famous Vedantin

had given a rather lengthy answer to a question, Yogeshwar Brahmachari began to

speak forcefully. In a matter of moments the tranquil atmosphere was replaced by one

of anger and suppressed violence–toward him. It really felt like they were about to

physically attack and maul him, the only restraint being the presence of Ma

Anandamayi.

Naturally, the next morning found me seeking out Yogeshwar Brahmachari to find

what had taken place, since everything had been said in Hindi. I found him happily

ensconced in a cowshed (!) where he was sleeping on some straw placed on a stone

ledge. I was very aware that not one of the other savants sitting on the platform day

after day would have tolerated such humble and primitive surroundings. But

Brahmachariji was very happy, as he could cuddle and talk to the little calf that was

tethered nearby.

After some time of giving our latest news to each other, I questioned him about the

previous nights’ volcanic near-explosion. He laughed merrily and told me that he had

challenged and rebuked all the “big Advaitins (Non-dualists)” sitting there, demanding

to know why they harped all the time on the transcendence of God and ignored the

divine immanence. “Why do you keep telling these people who have so many worldly

involvements and problems that the world is unreal, that they should care nothing

about it, and that to do otherwise is ignorance? In all these days I have not heard even

one of you say just one piece of practical advice that would help them live their lives

and remember God. They have come here at great inconvenience and expense, leaving

their homes and work behind, seeking ways to keep from drowning in the world. And

you just tell them the world is no more than a dream and to forget it! How could they

forget it? How many children must they have to care for and how many debts and

obligations? What is wrong with you? Why can’t you tell them how to better their lives

and rise above their worries and fears? You expect them to honor and support you, but

what use are you to anybody? You should be ashamed!” He laughed and concluded:

“So their Non-dual ‘realization’ and philosophy went out the window and they got very

interested in a dualistic battle with me. If it had not been for Mataji being there I would

have gotten some blows!” The thought of the frail saint being assailed by the “big

Babas” who were as robust as their tempers, was not a happy one. But my dear friend

was quite content with the situation, being firmly committed to the good sense

embodied in this opening verse of the upanishad. What the Taittiriya Upanishad now

will do is balance out the very true, though one-sided, teachings of some of the other

upanishads regarding the nature of Brahman and the world.

Thou art indeed the manifested Brahman. First we must understand that the cosmos

is NOT Maya. Maya is the illusion in our mind as to the nature of the cosmos and our

relation to it. Maya is a product of our ignorance, it is our wrong seeing and acting. The

world “out there” is not Maya. Maya is the world “in here”–in our mind. Maya is the

product of ego. Once this inner veil has been destroyed, then we see the world as God

in manifestation. In reaction we then exult with the upanishadic sage, also saying:

“Thou art indeed the manifested Brahman!”

Of thee will I speak. This will consist of two ways of speaking: denying what the

world is not and affirming what the world is. We will speak of the reality of the world as

Brahman. We will also speak of the unreality in the minds of ignorant human beings

and explain its nature as delusion. Further, we will speak of the nature of the world as

an evolutionary ladder, and explain how it is used by the yogi as the means of freedom

and ascent.

Thee will I proclaim in my thoughts as true. We will see and know in our minds that

which is real in the world, always aware that it is not “the world” at all, but Divinity

Itself. This is a matter of knowing, not mere speaking or speculating.

Thee will I proclaim on my lips as true. And this truth will we both live and speak to

others. The important point here is that we must know before we speak. Otherwise

our words are just empty noise.

The true Knower revels in the affirmation expressed in this first verse.

Necessary Lessons

Protection

All sentient beings–not just humans–seek for security, for safety. “Shelter” means a

lot more than a place out of the rain. It is commonly said that there is safety in

numbers, but that it not true. There is only one assurance of safety, and the next verse

expresses it rightly: “May truth protect me, may it protect my teacher, may it protect

us both. May glory come to us both. May the light of Brahman shine in us

both.” (Taittiriya Upanishad 1:1:1, 1:3:1)

Satyam means truth, both relative and absolute, truthfulness, and Brahman Who is

The Truth. Obviously, this verse is referring mostly to Brahman, but simple truth in

the sense of accuracy and honesty is also implied. If Truth is possessed by both

student and teaching, then it only follows that renown (yashah) and the splendor of

Brahman (Brahma-varchasam) will accrue to them as well.

A lesson on Om

“Thou art Brahman, one with the syllable OM, which is in all scriptures–the

supreme syllable, the mother of all sound. Do thou strengthen me with true wisdom.

May I, O Lord, realize the Immortal. May my body be strong and whole; may my

tongue be sweet; may my ears hear only praise of thee. The syllable OM is verily thine

image. Through this syllable thou mayest be attained. Thou art beyond the grasp of

the intellect. Vouchsafe that I forget not what I have learned in the

scriptures.” (Taittiriya Upanishad 1:4:1)

This verse and those following are addressed to the Infinite, to Brahman, but there

is a purpose for opening with a declaration that Brahman and Om are the same: what is

going to be petitioned for can be attained through the japa and meditation of Om. We

should look at these verses in that context.

Thou art Brahman, one with the syllable OM, which is in all scriptures–the supreme

syllable, the mother of all sound. The more literal description is: “The Om that is the

most exalted in the Vedas, that pervades all words, and that emerged from the

immortal Vedas as their quintessence.” Om is the crown jewel of the Vedas–which

includes the upanishads. All sound, including humans speech, is contained in Om–is

actually a variation of the root-sound (mula shabda) that is Om. All words, then, are

permutations of Om. This indicates that the faculty of speech is the supreme faculty in

human beings, the one that most directly links them to their Divine Source–that

actually Om IS their Source. The quintessence of the Vedas is the Divine Vision which

is their very basis. And Om is identical to that Illumination. No wonder, then, that

Patanjali tells us that the japa and meditation of Om is the way to the highest

realization. (Yoga Sutras 1:28) Or that the Mundaka Upanishad urges us to “dismiss

other utterances.” (Mundaka Upanishad 2.2.5) We should let go of the chitter-chatter

of the mind and its irrelevant thoughts and constantly repeat Om. For the Mundaka

Upanishad says in the next part of the verse: “This [Om] is the bridge to immortality.”

Do thou strengthen me with true wisdom. True wisdom is knowledge of the True

(Sat), the knowledge of God. Nothing can impart such knowledge but God–and Om is

God. So It is the only way to that knowledge. Om is that “one thing which, when

known…all is known.”

May I, O Lord, realize the Immortal. Here, too, Om is the means. Swami

Gambhirananda renders this phrase: “May I be the receptacle of immortality.” If we

continually fill our consciousness with the invocation of Om we shall be vessels of

immortality, of Brahman.

May my body be strong and whole; may my tongue be sweet; may my ears hear only

praise of thee. Through Om even our external, material life becomes spiritually

glorified.

The syllable OM is verily thine image. Through this syllable thou mayest be attained.

There is no need for comment on this–what we need is experience of its truth through

our own spiritual practice.

Thou art beyond the grasp of the intellect. Vouchsafe that I forget not what I have

learned in the scriptures. Since the nature of Brahman–and therefore of Om, as well–is

beyond conception and words, it is only natural that we keep forgetting the Truth of

them both, just as Arjuna kept forgetting the true nature of Krishna. Since right now

we are not consciously established in the Being of Brahman/Om, the fact keeps

slipping away from us. For that reason we need to set the scriptural statements

regarding Om most firmly in our minds. (To help in this, see The Glories and Powers of

Om.) For the moment, at least, we need to let the sacred texts “remember” for us.

“Thou art the source of all happiness and of all prosperity. Do thou come to me as

the goddess of prosperity and shower thy blessings upon me. May the seekers after

truth gather round me, may they come from everywhere, that I may teach them thy

word.” (Taittiriya Upanishad 1:4:2) Om is the Manifester of all, so It is the source of all

abundance, spiritual and material. Lakshmi, the Goddess of Prosperity, is, like all the

other “gods,” a symbol of Om. As we see here, there is no fault in the yogi aspiring to

material fulfillment so he can have his mind free to be fixed on the awareness of God.

It is noteworthy that it is not only lawful to desire material welfare, we should also

desire to impart to worthy souls around us the truth of “Thy Word”–Om. We should all

to some extent be yogacharyas–teachers of yoga. We must share our spiritual wealth

with others. “Freely ye have received, freely give.” (Matthew 10:8)

“May I be a glory among men. May I be richer than the richest. May I enter into

thee, O Lord; and mayest thou reveal thyself unto me. Purified am I by thy touch, O

Lord of manifold forms. Thou art the refuge of those who surrender themselves to

thee. Reveal thyself to me. Make me thine own. I take my refuge in thee.” (Taittiriya

Upanishad 1:4:3) This says a lot:

May I be a glory among men. This is not a bid for fame as some translators think. As

Swami Prabhavananda understands, our desire must be to manifest glorious humanity

on our way to divinity. Even if no one knows we exist, we can still through our sadhana

be “a glory among men.” That is a worthy ambition, realized through Om.

May I be richer than the richest. This is done by possessing everything in Infinite

Consciousness. What is mere money–or even a mere universe–in comparison to that?

Om is Infinite Consciousness.

May I enter into thee, O Lord; and mayest thou reveal thyself unto me. “O Adorable

One, may I enter into Thee. O Venerable One, enter into me.” This is Gambhirananda’s

rendering. This is the great “Meeting of the Twain.” We unite with Om and Om unites

with us.

Purified am I by thy touch, O Lord of manifold forms.

“Om! This Syllable is Brahman. …With frequent application of this divine sound he

washes away the stains of the soul.” (Amritabindu Upanishad 20)

“The meditation on Om should not be discontinued. With this divine mantra one

should meditate many times for ridding himself of his own impurities.” (Amritanada

Upanishad 20)

“The Taraka-Nama [Om], annihilates all sins. The Supreme Brahman shines in him

who takes to this Taraka-Nama.” (Sannyasa Upanishad)

“The Pranava [Om] burns away sins;…Hence the Pranava removes all obstacles

and destroys all defects.” (Varaha Upanishad 5:68,71)

“The Pranava shall be recited and repeated by those who desire all their sins

annihilated.” (Shiva Purana, Vidyeshwarasamhita 17:15)

“Japa of Om purifies the mind.” (Shiva Purana)

“If the devotee repeats the Pranava he becomes pure.” (Shiva Purana,

Vidyeshwarasamhita 17:18)

“Just as the bow is the cause of the arrow’s hitting the target, so Om is the bow that

brings about the soul’s entry into the Immutable. For the soul when purified by the

repetition of Om gets fixed in Brahman with the help of Om without any hindrance,

just as an arrow shot from a bow gets transfixed in the target.” (Shankara, Commentary

on the Mundaka Upanishad)

Thou art the refuge of those who surrender themselves to thee. Om is the safe haven of

the sadhaka.

Reveal thyself to me. It is by the experiencing of Om in its higher and higher

(subtler and subtler) forms that It is fully revealed and united with in meditation.

Make me thine own. By ending all separation from Thee. Though we ask the divine

blessing for this, it is our effort that enables the Pranava to truly be The Word of Life

for us.

I take my refuge in thee. As they often say in India: Japa-Tapa; japa-tapa; japa-tapa. By

holding on to Om as “dear life” we enter into Life Itself.

A lesson on Brahman

Now Brahman is addressed in words of those that have crossed the sea of samsara

and entered the harbor of the Supreme Self. Rather than obscure them with

comments, I will give them just as they are for your inspiration.

“Thou art the Lord, immortal, self-luminous, and of golden effulgence, within the

lotus of every heart. Within the heart art thou revealed to those that seek

thee.” (Taittiriya Upanishad 1:6:1)

“He who dwells in thee becomes king over himself. He controls his wandering

thoughts. He becomes master of his speech and of all his organs of sense. He becomes

master of his intellect. Thou art Brahman, whose form is invisible, like ether; whose

Self is truth. Thou art perfect peace and immortality, the solace of life, the delight of

the mind. May I worship thee!” (Taittiriya Upanishad 1:6:2)

“Om is Brahman. OM is all. He who meditates on OM attains to

Brahman.” (Taittiriya Upanishad 1.8.1)

“Having attained to Brahman, a sage declared: “I am life. My glory is like the

mountain peak. I am established in the purity of Brahman. I have attained the freedom

of the Self. I am Brahman, self-luminous, the brightest treasure. I am endowed with

wisdom. I am immortal, imperishable.” (Taittiriya Upanishad 1.10.1)

A lesson on learning

To conclude the first part (adhyaya) of the upanishad, we are given a four-verse

exhortation to a student who is departing from the teacher’s house after the

completion of his study. It is fitting for all who are involved in “the world” or society to

any degree to take these words to heart. For without them we will lose our way,

however much we may have read and learned.

“Let your conduct be marked by right action, including study and teaching of the

scriptures; by truthfulness in word, deed, and thought; by self-denial and the practice

of austerity; by poise and self-control; by performance of the everyday duties of life

with a cheerful heart and an unattached mind.

“Speak the truth. Do your duty. Do not neglect the study of the scriptures. Do not

cut the thread of progeny. Swerve not from truth. Deviate not from the path of good.

Revere greatness.” (Taittiriya Upanishad 1:11:1) If we seriously intend to get anywhere

in spiritual life, these principles will guarantee our success–as surely as their neglect or

omission will guarantee our failure. Spiritual life is not a lark or a bit of spice to add to

life. And absolutely it is not some emollient to make a negative and foolish life

somehow tolerable. Many years ago at the beginning of the yoga boom sparked off by

the Beatles I began outlining a book to be called Is Yoga For You? My intention was to

warn people away from wasting their time with yoga if they intended to live a life

incompatible with yoga’s fundamental character. But I soon realized that it would be a

waste of time to write a book for spiritual idlers and dabblers who really would not care

whether they succeeded or failed–they just wanted a diversion and something to

impress others with, a topic for conversation. But now is the time for the facts to be set

forth. I hope the authority of the upanishads will carry sufficient weight.

Let your conduct be marked by right action. There could be many lists of what

constitutes right action, but the best is that of Patanjali the master yogi:

1) Ahimsa: non-violence, non-injury, harmlessness.

2) Satya: truthfulness, honesty.

3) Asteya: non-stealing, honesty, non-misappropriativeness.

4) Brahmacharya: sexual continence in thought, word and deed as well as

control of all the senses.

5) Aparigraha: non-possessiveness, non-greed, non-selfishness, nonacquisitiveness.

6) Shaucha: purity, cleanliness.

7) Santosha: contentment, peacefulness.

8) Tapas: austerity, practical (i.e., result-producing) spiritual discipline.

9) Swadhyaya: introspective self-study, spiritual study.

10) Ishwarapranidhana: offering of one’s life to God.

Ahimsa involves gentleness, kindness, mercy, and abstinence from taking life–a

matter that necessitates a vegetarian diet. Ishwarapranidhana is not just some noble or

sentimental vowing of our life to God, but a very real and practical manner of ordering

our life so that every moment brings us closer to God-realization, to union with God.

Including study and teaching of the scriptures. Being justly weary of being beaten

over the head by “The Word of God,” both Westerners and Middle-Easterners

naturally shy away from the idea of scriptural authority, whether the Torah, the Bible,

or the Koran. But they misunderstand the very motivation behind reverence for

scriptures in the East. Hinduism, Buddhism, and Taoism do not respect their spiritual

texts because of who has spoken them or written them down. Rather, the value of the

scriptures rest solely upon their practical value–nothing else. For them, a principle is

not true just because it is written in a holy book, rather it was written in the holy book

because it was the truth–a truth an can be put to the test and demonstrated to be true.

For example, water is not hydrogen and oxygen because a science book says so; the

book says so because it is true. The only reason we who follow Eastern religions quote

scriptures is because they say it so well–often much clearer than we could on our own.

The upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita are masterpieces of concise expression.

Worlds of meaning often lie within a single phrase, even a single word. The bottom line

is this: the Eastern scriptures WORK. For thousands of years multitudes have proven

in their own life that Patanjali’s list has practical value. And so can we. It is also our

duty to teach what we know to others who are sincere and qualified. Whether by

informal conversation, giving of books to read, or formal instruction, we must help

others as we have been helped.

By truthfulness in word, deed, and thought. It is so important to realize that truth is

not a verbal formula, but a way of life, a state of mind. We must live truthfully. Since

God is the ultimate truth, we must live “godly.”

By self-denial. Here, too, the East means something totally different from the

negative “mortification” of Western religion that is nothing more than an expression of

self-loathing, a declaration of human “vileness” rather than the divine nature we

“Orientals” know to be the truth of ourselves. In the East, “self-denial” means discipline

and control of the egoic impulses to indulgence and laziness. It means not slipping into

the morass of sensuality and selfishness. Basically it is ignoring the false ego to foster

the true Self, the Spirit.

And the practice of austerity. This is not “mortification” or “penance” either. Tapasya

is any practice which rouses up and expresses our inner virtue, which clears the way

for the revelation of our divine nature. It is not “self-denial” in the Western sense, it is

Self-affirmation through spiritual practices that produce results in freeing us from

ignorance and limitation.

By poise and self-control. I cannot recall ever hearing anyone exhort someone to

cultivate dignity, we are so obsessed with the “plain folks” syndrome that we equate

with democracy. How it can be considered a compliment to refer to someone as being

“comfortable as an old shoe” is quite beyond me–perhaps an indication of my Eastern

samskaras. The sadhaka should have dignity and even an intelligent reserve in dealing

with others. This should arise from respect, both for himself and for others. We need

not be artificial and put on airs, acting like “Lady Bottomley’s plush horse” (a favorite

expression of my father), but we should act with self-respect and awareness. (It was

called “circumspection” in a more sensible era.) Anyway, you get the idea.

By performance of the everyday duties of life with a cheerful heart and an unattached

mind. This is possible only for a yogi. Cheerfulness is a natural side-effect of valid yoga

practice. When you see a “yogi” that is not happy and optimistic, then either the yoga is

no good or it is not being practiced. I am not speaking of the manic behavior of some

“yogis” that were either cracked before they started yoga or the yoga cracked them. (I

am referring to those that laugh raucously at the slightest expression of humor, or

grin/smile all the time no matter what. These are the “yoga clowns” whose motto

seems to be “Happy, Happy, Joy, Joy.” I heard of a man who once remarked to some of

these yoga-hebephrenics: “You know, the way you all smile all the time is spooky.”

When they responded by grinning all the more he insisted: “No, I mean it–IT IS

REALLY SPOOKY!”) As they say: spot the looney.

Yoga promotes cheerfulness, but so does “an unattached mind”–it may be the

major factor. As the Gita says: “He puts aside desire, offering the act to Brahman. The

lotus leaf rests unwetted on water: he rests on action, untouched by action.” (Bhagavad

Gita 5:10)

Speak the truth. This is not easy, especially since you have to first know the truth.

Patanjali claims that a person who speaks absolute truth at absolutely all times will find

that whatever he says will come to be. This is discussed more fully in The Foundations

of Yoga. Here is an example from the first chapter of the first edition of Autobiography of

a Yogi available from Crystal Clarity Publishers:

“Another early recollection is outstanding; and literally so, for I bear the scar to this

day. My elder sister Uma and I were seated in the early morning under a neem tree in

our Gorakhpur compound. She was helping me with a Bengali primer, what time I

could spare my gaze from the near-by parrots eating ripe margosa fruit. Uma

complained of a boil on her leg, and fetched a jar of ointment. I smeared a bit of the

salve on my forearm.

“‘Why do you use medicine on a healthy arm?’

“‘Well, Sis, I feel I am going to have a boil tomorrow. I am testing your ointment on

the spot where the boil will appear.’

“‘You little liar!’

“‘Sis, don’t call me a liar until you see what happens in the morning.’ Indignation

filled me.

“Uma was unimpressed, and thrice repeated her taunt. An adamant resolution

sounded in my voice as I made slow reply.

“‘By the power of will in me, I say that tomorrow I shall have a fairly large boil in

this exact place on my arm; and your boil shall swell to twice its present size!’

“Morning found me with a stalwart boil on the indicated spot; the dimensions of

Uma’s boil had doubled. With a shriek, my sister rushed to Mother. ‘Mukunda has

become a necromancer!’ Gravely, Mother instructed me never to use the power of

words for doing harm. I have always remembered her counsel, and followed it.

“My boil was surgically treated. A noticeable scar, left by the doctor’s incision, is

present today. On my right forearm is a constant reminder of the power in man’s sheer

word.

“Those simple and apparently harmless phrases to Uma, spoken with deep

concentration, had possessed sufficient hidden force to explode like bombs and

produce definite, though injurious, effects. I understood, later, that the explosive

vibratory power in speech could be wisely directed to free one’s life from difficulties,

and thus operate without scar or rebuke.”

Do your duty. Dharma–here translated “duty”–is the way of life in accordance with

the deep wellsprings of our personality–karma and samskaras. These comprise our

fundamental nature, our prakriti. Through our personal dharma, our swadharma, we

most quickly unfold our inner potential and stimulate our spiritual consciousness. It is

so much more than a mere observance of “right and wrong,” “do and don’t.” So

important is dharma, that the Gita tells us: “It is better to do your own duty, however

imperfectly, than to assume the duties of another person, however successfully. Prefer

to die doing your own duty: the duty of another will bring you into great spiritual

danger.” (Bhagavad Gita 3:35) This is obviously a very serious matter

Do not neglect the study of the scriptures. This is not just a helpful hint, it is a major

spiritual principle. True dharma is a lifelong study, and dharma is perfectly expressed

in the eleven major upanishads (the Isha, Kena, Katha, Prashna

 

Om Tat Sat

                                                        

(Continued...) 

(My humble salutations H H Swami Nirmalananda Giri ji and   Hinduism online dot com for the collection)

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