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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
[NOVEMBER, 1928
that in the next lines we find the young Brahman in the realm of Death, nay, even in the very palace of Yama, for whose wishes he at once asks. I have hesitatingly attributed the verse 1, 6 to Mrtyu suggesting that he be the bailiff of Yama; but I willingly admit that this is perhaps not strictly necessary, and that possibly Naciketas and Yama are the only speakers in the whole Upanişad.41 Of the (daivi)vak known to the Brahmana there is not the slightest trace in our text, nor is it necessary to assume its presence; the whole thing is probably the pure fancy of an author who had before him some verses very much like 1, 5-9 of the Upanişad.
Naciketas himself announces that he, a Brahman, enters every house42 like Agni Vais. vanara, the guest of all mankind, and proudly exhorts Yama to fetch him water. And he adds a sententious verse to remind the King of Death of the risks he is running by having had a Brahman in his house (for three nights, as we get to know from verse 1, 9) without offering him food. Yama, in real fright, now offers him to choose three boons. Naciketas first of all wishes that his father may greet him joyfully when he returns to his house, 43 Then he wants to know about the fire that leads to heaven, and Yama explains to him the Náciketa. fire, though we do not get to know its secret. This part, which Professor Geldner44 has quite aptly called the karmakanda ends with verse 1, 19. Thus far also goes the Brahmana episode, though there Naciketas in his third wish wants to know how to evade punarmstyu; and this is also done by means of the Naciketa-fire.
It is extremely probable that there was an old story-possibly in metrical form--of a young Brahman by name Naciketas, who was taught by Yama how to build the fires in & way that leads to the heaven of the Vedic gods. And by worship (updsana) of, and speculation upon, that fire he would also be able to ward off renewed death, i.e., to obtain immortal life in the heaven of bliss and sensual pleasures. 46
But in his third wish-punarmstyor me 'prajitim brühi—there was the point of start for & real Upanigadic treatise. In verse 1, 20 of our text Naciketas is made to ask what is the fate of the dead-not the dead in general, but the muktah, as Raghavendra and Deussen have already stated-but Yama does not want to reveal his great secret. He offers the boy all that any living man would set his heart's desire upon, last of all lovely girls and sensual pleasures; but Naciketas is steadfast, and at last Yama is forced to answer his question, and thus to explain the Brahman-Atman question. But he does not do it very willingly, and Naciketas time after time46 has got to exhort him to keep to the point.
Thus there begins in 1, 20 the real Upanişad, the jnanakanda 47, which consists of the whole of our text up to 6, 15, a verse that ends with the words etávad anusasanam.48 Most interpreters have thought that the original Upanisad finished with Valli 3, and that 4-6 were later additions. But even here Professor Geldner has seen more clearly and pointed out that there is a considerable stop after 3, 1549, but that the Upanişad by no means ends there. He seems to me to be wrong only in that, following Raghavendra, he attributes verse 4, 3 to Naciketas, which is unnecessary and does not improve the sense of the passage.
41 That this is the case in what is really the Upanişad (viz. from 1, 20 to 6, 15) is quite regular, cf, supra p. 202 sq.
42 It is possible that a verse like 1, 7 was known to the author of the Brahmana as the words parchi matyor grhån in iii, 11, 8, 2 seem to be a misinterpretation of grhan in our text.
43 This wish really comprises two, viz., that the father will be able to groot him, and that he himself will return to life. For there is no reason whatsoever for doubting that Nacikotan, whon ho arrives au the house of Yama, is physically dead. 14. Vedische Stud., iii, p. 154 n.
45 Cf. AV. iv, 34, 2 etc. 46 Cf. 2, 14 ; 5, 4. 14.
47 Ot. Geldner, 1.c. iii, p. 154 n. 48 The verse 6, 16, was taken from the Chand. Up. viii, 6, 6, and put in here by someone who had totally misunderstood the word granthaya) in 6, 15. The greater part of 6, 17 is taken from Suet. Up, iii, 13. Finally 6, 8 is a sort of late patch-work with wrong grammatical forms, and apparently added at a later time.
193, 15-16 are apparently later additiona in an epic style,
