Sambodhi 1989 Vol 16

Author(s): Ramesh S Betai, Yajneshwar S Shastri
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

Page 52

solutions are given by the Upanişads; on all these they have something positive to contribute, something that persists in the outlook of the Hindu even to-day, after inore than 2500 years. But in the Upanişads these are 10t questions to be discussed in isolation or independent of one another. They are interwoven with the central theme of the Upanişads, that is a wakening of man's consciousness to the innermost realies of life, his vision of the subjective Ātman and realization of the objective highest reality, i.e., Brahman, his experience of identity of Atman with Brabman and tlic consequent release and Ananda. Radhakrislunan lists the contribution of the upa nişadic thinking on all these questions, but every time these are in fusion with the central theme discussed above. The Upanişads are thus, unity in diversity (i) in the realm of the highest philosophical questions of life, and (ii) in the fusion of the thinking on these other questions with the central theme. Radhakrishnan here strikes at reality, his grasp is perfect, his understanding and interpretation of the Upanişads is sound and scholarly.
Teaching of the Upanişads
Radhakrishnan rightly stresses the fact that finding out the original teaching of the Upanişads and pin-pointing it to some fixed idcas is a task indeed. It is possible to arrive at the real teaching of the Upanişads, only with an unprejudiced and open in ind. Our mind in the present century is saturated with so many pre-conceived theories of Acāryas and we are at a loss to arrive at a fixed decision on the matter. Actually, all pre-conceived philosophical theories, very often poles apart, scek and find consistency in the authority and word of the Upanişads. We can arrive at the central teaching of the Upanişads only if we adopt the approach advised in an upanişadic statement
"Know what is unknown and forget what is known." This also speaks for the richness of the upanişadic thinking. But all the Upanişads, with their varied approaches and thinking have something common to contribute by way of teaching. Radhakrishnan claims to divest his mind of the later philosophical thinking and to interpret them from the viewpoint of the seers who composed these.
Problems
The Upanisads record the struggles, the Sadhanā of different nien aiming at spiritual perfection, their practices, and pursuits after thc reality of life, their attempt at knowing the infinite and the cternal. Naturally all problems move round this central struggle of man. This effort at higher