World  Sacred  Scriptures

The Upanishads

147 quote(s)  | Page 4 / 6




H e is becoming one, he does not see, they say; he is becoming one, he does not smell, they say; he is becoming one, he does not taste, they say, he is becoming one, he does not speak, they say; he is becoming one, he does not hear, they say; he is becoming one, he does not think, they say; he is becoming one, he does not touch, they say; he is becoming one, he does not know, they say. The point of his heart becomes lighted up and by that light the self departs either through the eye or through the head or through other apertures of the body. And when he thus departs, life departs after him. And when life thus departs, all the vital breaths depart after him. He becomes one with intelligence. What has intelligence departs with him. His knowledge and his work take hold of him as also his past experience.


quote 3950  | 
Brihad-aranyaka Upanishad, IV, 4, 1-2, S. Radhakrishnan (editor and translator), The Principal Upanishads (New York: Harper & Row, 1951) pp. 269-70, 296 




I n the beginning, my dear, this was Being alone' one only
without a second. Some people say 'in the beginning this Was non-
being alone, one only; without a second. From that non-being, being
was produced.'

But how, indeed, my dear, could it be thus? said he [i.e., the
sage Uddalaka], how could being be produced from non-being? On the
contrary, my dear, in the beginning this was being alone, one only,
without a second.

It thought, May I be many, may I grow forth. It sent forth fire.
That fire thought, May I be many, may I grow forth. It sent forth water. . . .

That water thought, May I be many, may I grow forth. It sent forth food. . . .


quote 3935  | 
Chandogya Upanishad, VI, 2, 1-4, S. Radhakrishnan (editor and translator), The Principal Upanishads (New York: Harper & Row, 1953), PP. 151-2, 399, 447-9 




T he Sun is Brahman-this is the teaching. An explanation .thereof (is this). In the beginning this (world) was non-existent. It became existent. It grew. It turned into an egg. It lay for the period of a year. It burst open. Then came out of the eggshell, two parts, one of silver, the other of gold.
That which was of silver is this earth; that which was of gold is the sky. What was the outer membrane is the mountains; that which was the inner membrane is the mist with the clouds. What were the
veins were the rivers. What was the fluid within is the ocean.


quote 3934  | 
Chandogya Upanishad, III, 19, 1-2, S. Radhakrishnan (editor and translator), The Principal Upanishads (New York: Harper & Row, 1953), PP. 151-2, 399, 447-9 




T here was nothing whatsoever here in the beginning. By death indeed was this covered, or by hunger, for hunger is death. He created the mind, thinking 'let me have a self' (mind). Then he moved about, worshiping. From him, thus worshiping, water was produced. . . .
. . . .. That which was the froth of the water became solidified; that became the earth. On it he [i.e., death] rested. From him thus rested and heated (from the practice of austerity) his essence of brightness came forth (as) fire.
He divided himself threefold (fire is one-third), the sun one-third and the air one-third. He also is life [lit., breath] divided threefold, . . .


quote 3933  | 
Brihad-aranyaka Upanishad, 1, 2, 1-3, S. Radhakrishnan (editor and translator), The Principal Upanishads (New York: Harper & Row, 1953), PP. 151-2, 399, 447-9 




W hen the five senses and the mind are still, and the reasoning intellect rests in silence, then begins the highest path. This calm steadiness of the senses is called yoga. Then one should become watchful, because yoga comes and goes.


quote 3683  | 
Katha Upanishad, 6 




B y meditation on Him, by contemplation of Him, and by communion with Him, there comes in the end destruction of earthly delusion.


quote 3604  | 
Svetasvatara Upanishad, VI 




T he Immortal is veiled by the world. The Spirit of Life is the Immortal. Name and form are the world, and by them the Spirit is veiled.


quote 3603  | 
Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, I.6 




B ehold the glory of God in the universe and all that lives and moves on earth. Leaving the transient, find joy in the Eternal.


quote 3602  | 
Isha Upanishad, I.1 




W ords cannot describe the joy of the soul whose impurities are washed away in the depths of contemplation, who is one with the Atman, his own Self. Only those who experience this joy know what it is.

... As water becomes one with water, fire with fire, and air with air, so the mind becomes one with the infinite Mind and thus attains Freedom.


quote 3601  | 
Maitri Upanishad, VI.19-23; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




W hen a wise man has withdrawn his mind from all things without, and when his spirit has peacefully left all inner sensations' let him rest in peace, free from the movement of will and desire. ... For it has been said: There is something beyond our mind which abides in silence within our mind. It is the supreme mystery beyond thought. Let one's mind and subtle spirit rest upon that and nothing else.

... When the mind is silent, beyond weakness and distraction, then it can enter into a world which is far beyond the mind: the supreme Destination. ... Then one knows the joy of Eternity.


quote 3600  | 
Maitri Upanishad, VI.19-23; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




T he mind of man is of two kinds: pure and impure. It is impure when in the grip of worldly desire, and pure when free from such desire. ... If men thought of God as much as they think of the world, who would not attain liberation?


quote 3599  | 
Maitri Upanishad, VI.24; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




N ot even through deep knowledge can the Self be reached, unless evil ways are abandoned, and there is rest in the senses, concentration in the mind, and peace in one's heart.

... When the wise man rests his mind in contemplation on our God beyond time, who invisibly dwells in the mystery of things and in the heart of man, then he rises above both pleasures and sorrows.


quote 3598  | 
Katha Upanishad, II; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




H e is seen by a pure heart and by a mind whose thoughts are pure.
... When all desires that cling to the heart are surrendered, then a mortal becomes immortal, and even in this world he is one with Brahman.


quote 3597  | 
Katha Upanishad, IV ; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




T he man who surrenders his human will leaves sorrows behind, and beholds the glory of the Self by the grace of God.

... Not through much learning is the Atman reached, nor through the intellect and 'the sacred teachings. It is reached by those whom He chooses; to His chosen the Self reveals His glory.


quote 3596  | 
Katha Upanishad, II; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




W hen a man has seen the truth of the Spirit, he is one with Him; the aim of his life is fulfilled, and he is ever beyond sorrow.

... When a man knows God, he is free; his sorrows have an end, and birth and death are no more. When in inner union he is beyond the world of the body, then the third world, the world of the Spirit, is found, where man possesses all-for he is one with the ONE.


quote 3595  | 
Svetasvatara Upanishad, II,1; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




W hen awake to the vision of one's own Self, when a man in truth can say: "I am He," what desires could lead him to grieve in fever for the body?

... When a man sees the Atman, his own Self, the one God, the Lord of what was and of what shall be, then he fears no more.


quote 3594  | 
Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, IV.4.25; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




W hen a sage sees this great Unity, and realizes that his Self has become all beings, what delusion and what sorrow could ever approach him?


quote 3593  | 
Isha Upanishad, 1.7; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




H e cannot be seen by the eye, and words cannot reveal Him. He cannot be realized by the senses, or by austerity or the performance of rituals. By the grace of wisdom and purity of mind, He can be seen in the silence of contemplation.


quote 3592  | 
Mundaka Upanishad, III,1; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




H e is known by those who know Him beyond thought, not to those who imagine He can be attained by thought. ... If you think, "I know Him well," you do not know the Truth. You only perceive that appearance of Brahman produced by the inner senses. Continue to meditate.


quote 3591  | 
Kena Upanishad, II; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




E ven by the mind this truth is to be learned:
There are not many, but only ONE.


quote 3590  | 
Katha Upanishad, IV; based on Mascaro, Juan, 1965 




I n the beginning, there was only the Self. ... He reflected, and saw that there was nothing but Himself, whereupon he exclaimed, "I am" (Aham). Ever since, He has been known within as "I." Even now, when announcing oneself, one says, "I am …” and then gives the other name that one bears.

He was afraid. Even today, one who is alone is afraid. But then he realized, '"Since there is nothing else but myself, what is there to fear?" It is only from [the presence of] a second [entity] that fear need ever arise. However, he was still unhappy. Even today, one is unhappy when alone. He desired a mate. And so he took of the form of a being the size of a man and woman joined in a close embrace; and then He separated into two individuals: a man and a wife. Therefore, as the sage Yajnavalkya has declared, this body, by itself, is like half of a split pea. [In order to become whole again,] this empty space must be filled by a woman. The male [half] then embraced the female [half], and from that the human race arose.

But the female wondered: "How can he unite with me, whom he has produced from himself'? Well then, let me hide!" She became a cow; he became a bull and united with her, and from that cattle arose. She became a mare; he became a stallion. She an ass, he a donkey and united with her; and from that solid-hoofed animals arose. She became a goat, he a buck; she a sheep, he a ram and united with her; and from that goats and sheep arose. In this way, he poured forth all pairing creatures, down to the ants. Then he realized: "All this creation is actually myself; for I have poured forth all this." One who knows this truth realizes that he, himself, is truly the creator [living] within his own creation.


quote 3575  | 
Mundaka Upanishad, 3:1 




A s the rivers flowing east and west
Merge in the sea and become one with it,
Forgetting they were ever separate rivers,
So do all creatures lose their separateness
When they merge at last into pure Being.


quote 3225  | 
Chandogya Up. 10:1-2, pp. 184-185 in The Upanishads. Trans. Eknath Easwaran. Tomales, CA.: Nilgiri Press, 1987 




T he separate self dissolves in the sea of pure consciousness, infinite and immortal. Separateness arises from identifying the Self with the body, which is made up of the elements; when this physical identification dissolves, there can be no more separte self. This is what I want to tell you, beloved.


quote 3224  | 
Brihadaranyaka Up. Chapter 2, 4:12, p. 38 in The Upanishads. Trans. Eknath Easwaran. Tomales, CA.: Nilgiri Press, 1987 




W hat the sages sought they have found at last. No more questions have they to ask of life. With self-will extinguished, they are at peace. Seeing the Lord of Love in all around, Serving the Lord of Love in all around, they are united with him forever.


quote 3223  | 
Mundaka Up. 3:2:5, p. 117 in The Upanishads. Trans. Eknath Easwaran. Tomales, CA.: Nilgiri Press, 1987 




T he truth of the Self cannot come through one who has not realized that he is the Self. The intellect cannot reveal the Self, beyond its duality of subject and object. They who see themselves in all and all in them help others through spiritual osmosis to realize the Self themselves. This awakening you have known comes not through logic and scholarship, but from close association with a realized teacher.


quote 3222  | 
Katha Up. Part 1, 2:9, p. 85 in The Upanishads. Trans. Eknath Easwaran. Tomales, CA.: Nilgiri Press, 1987 



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