Samayasara OR Nature of Self

SR No.: 011119
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: A Chakravarti
Publisher: Bharatiya Gyanpith
Publication Year: 1950
Total Pages: 406
Language: English
Classification: Book_English
File Size: 38 MB

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much is certain that the Kshatriyas of the Upanishadic age were mainly engaged in the speculation about man and the universe whereas traditional sacrifices were still important to the priestly class. Perhaps this is not quite an accurate description. Even the priests could not escape the influences of this new thought. We see them therefore disturbed by this new discontent. They go about from place to place from thinker to thinker with the object of getting initiated into the new wisdom, the atma vidya. This craving for the Brahma vidya becomes almost universal. The whole age is thrown into feverish activity intellectually and every one desires to participate in the new knowledge-par excellence as against the earlier learning associated with ritualism. Like a pillar of light this new paravidya was leading the Aryans into the promised land of wonderful philosophical wisdom which constitutes the treasure of Aryan learning and to which all the later systems of Indian thought point out with pride as the source of authority and inspiration.
The meaning of 'Upanishad'-The term as used in the Brahmanas normally denotes the secrets of some word or text. But in the Brihadaranyaka it is already used in the plural as the designation of a class of writings no doubt actual existing. Thus the term came to be used to denote the writing containing the secret doctrine. The exact primary sense of the term is doubtful. The natural interpretation of the word adopted by Max Muller makes the word mean first a session of Pupils, hence the secret doctrine communicated to a select number of disciples. Secondly it is the title of a work on such a secret doctrine. Oldenberg traces the word to the original sense of worship. According to this interpretation Upanishad primarily means a secret form of worship. Deussen combines both these interpretations when he explains the meaning of the word. For him the word originally meant a secret word or a secret text. Then it came to refer to secret import of secret doctrine. This order of meaning is improbable as is suggested by McDonald. The term is explained by Sankara in his commentary as that which destroys ignorance or that which leads to the knowledge of Brahman. Indian writers use the term in the sense of secret doctrine or
SAMAYASARA