Brahmavidya is the specific theme of this Upanishad. It has
three sections: Siksha Valli, Ananda Valli or Brahma Valli, and
Bhrigu Valli. The latter two sections are very important for those
seeking Brahmajnana. In the Siksha Valli, certain methods to
overcome the obstacles placed in men's way by Devas and Rishis and
to acquire one-pointedness in mental exertions are detailed. This
Valli has twelve Anuvakas, or Sections. In the other two Vallis,
the same Instruction, the Vaaruni Vidya, is given, which leads to
Liberation and so they are practically one; for convenience of
study, it is dealt with in two Sections, that is all.
In the Siksha Valli, subjects like Samhitha, which are not
antagonistic to Karma, and like Upasana which are associated with
Karma are dealt with. These lead to Swaarajya. But, by these
alone, the complete destruction of Samsara or Flux will not be
accomplished. Upasana exists along with Desire. So, like Karma,
even Upasana cannot bring about Liberation. All this Flux, this
Samsara, is due to A-jnana; bondage is the result. So, when the
A-jnana is destroyed, then, the bonds loosen and Liberation is
attained. A-jnana is there, persisting, through natural causes. It
is just like the delusion that it is your train that is moving,
when the truth is your train is stationary and the train on the
adjacent rails is moving! Watch your train only and you know the
truth; watch the other train, and you are deceived. There is no
use seeking to know the cause of this delusion. Seek how to escape
from it. This A-jnana, which is the seed out of which Samsara
sprouts, can be destroyed only by Brahma-jnana. There is no other
method.
All that is caused, everything that is a result, is
short-lived; this is evident from the Sastras as well as
experience and reason. The Sastras speak of aspirants who
discarded even higher regions like Heaven, which are attainable by
persons who perform the prescribed rites; for Liberation is beyond
the reach of those who dwell therein. Heaven and hell are results
of actions, they are created objects and so they cannot be
eternal; they are conditioned by birth, growth, decay and death.
They do not exist from the very beginning; they were made; before
that act, they were not. That which once was not and later will
not be is as good as "not" even in the present. The fruit of Karma
shares this quality and so, it cannot grant eternal joy.
No effort can result in the creation of Akasa now; nothing can
produce anew what already exists. Moksha exists and is there
self-evident. It cannot be produced anew by any Karma. The moment
the A-jnana which hides it from experience disappears, that moment
you are liberated and you know your Reality; you are free from
bondage. Prior to that moment, you were free, but imagined you
were bound and you behaved as if you were bound. How then are you
to get rid of this idea that you are bound? By listening to the
teachings of the Vedas with faith therein. Then only can A-jnana
perish. That is the task which the Brahma Valli has placed before
itself, in this Upanishad.
It is in the nature of things that ignorance prompts men to
crave for plentiful fruits through the performance of actions.
Then, they become despondent that they only bind them more and do
not help to make them free. That craving for fruit, is hard to
shove off, though this fearful flux of growth and decay makes them
shiver in dread.
In this Upanishad, the three words, Sathyam, Jnanam, Anantham,
are meaningfully affixed to Brahmam, to explain its
characteristics. They are three distinct words, signifying
qualities seeking to mark out the One from the rest, the One
Brahmam from other types of Brahmam which have not these traits.
That is to say, Brahmam is not to be confused with anything that
is not Sathyam, Jnanam and Anantham. All that are limited by time,
space and objectivity are jada, material apparently different from
Brahmam. The characteristics of Sathyam, Jnanam, Anantham, help to
differentiate and distinguish from kindred and similar phenomena
the real Brahmam. Whichever Rupam a thing is determined to have,
if that rupa is unchanged, then it is referred to as Sathyam. If
that rupa undergoes change, then it is A-sathyam. Modification is
the sign of untruth; absence of modification is the sign of Truth.
Brahmam is Sathyam, that is to say, it has no modifications. It
is nithyam, it is unaffected by time. All that is not Brahmam ...
that is, Jagath, is subject to change. All objects are subject to
the triple process of the intellect: are known, the knower and
knowledge; hence, the intellect or Buddhi is spoken of as a guha
or cave, where the threefold process resides.
In the Taittiriya Brahmana as well as in this Upanishad, Dharma
too is treated elaborately. It has three forms: Kamya, Naimittika,
and Nithya. The Sastras seldom command that Karma has to be
pursued; there is no need to do so for karma comes naturally to
man. Kama (desire) is the prompter of such Karma and man gets
various fruits thereby. The Sastras teach only the ways of
directing this natural activity to ensure desirable objects.
The Upanishad exhorts you not to swerve from duties of learning
and teaching. "Swerve not from the true and the truth", it says.
"From the true, it will not do to swerve nor from Dharma nor from
welfare and well-being, nor from duties to Devas and Pitris. Treat
thy mother as God. What works are free from fault, they should be
resorted to, not others..." this is what the Upanishad teaches.
Listening, rumination and concentration are the three steps in
Realisation. Listening refers to Vedas, which have to be revered
in faith and learnt by heart from a Guru; this confers the
knowledge of the unknowable. Manana or Rumination is the Tapas
taught in the Bhriguvalli. By this process, the Brahma Atma
Swarupa can be fixed in the mind. Concentration helps the
development of single-minded attention on the Principle so
installed. In the two Vallis, Brahma and Bhrigu, Brahmavidya or
the discipline which ensures the Realisation of Brahmam is
expounded. The Brahmavalli teaches; the Bhriguvalli proves by
experience.
Bhrigu, the son of Varuna, tells him that Brahmam is Food,
Prana, the Senses, Manas, Vaak, etc. But, since the son soon
learns that these are not Brahmam he declares that Brahmam is that
from which these are born and by which they live and function. He
first believed that Annam or Food is Brahmam since all beings
exist on food but, later, he feels that Brahmam is much more
inclusive. He asks for direct teaching of the Real, the Brahmam.
Thereafter, he was told that Thapas is Brahmam, for it is that
by which Brahmam the Reality is known. He discovered by Thapas
that Vijnanam is Brahmam, for Vijnanam is that in which creatures
are born and it is that by which creatures live.
Thus it is announced that, of all disciplines and subjects of
study, the Brahmavidya is the most sacred, holy and esoteric.
Annam is not to be decried; that should be the vow of the Wise.
The vital airs are all Annam. The physical body is the gift of
Annam. The Prana or vital airs have the body as the vehicle. So,
Annam should not be slighted. That should be the resolution. The
waters in conjunction with the fire in the stomach become food. In
the water that comes down as rain the "fire" of lightning is
inherent. So, whoever is established in the Aapojyothi or the
Splendour of water is aware of the splendour of Annam and is
persuaded to revere it. Annam is the Guru, for it leads you on to
the knowledge of Brahmam. It should not therefore be treated with
disrespect. That must be observed just like a vow by the aspirant.
Since the physical body is the transformation of food, it has
an Annamayakosa: the vital airs form another sheath, the
Pranamaya. It weighs between good and bad, right and wrong in the
sheath of mind, or Manomaya-kosa. When it fixes upon a step, with
a purpose in view, it is the function of the Vijnanamayakosa. When
the joy of achievement is tasted, it is the Anandamayakosa that
functions.
To progress with Brahmic outlook, that you are Brahmam and not
the body etc., the Pranamaya is the first instrument. It is subtle
and separate and different from the body. It is activated by Vayu
and is saturated with it. It pervades and subsumes the entire
Annamayakosa. You can say that the Pranamaya is the soul of the
Annamaya, for it makes it function from head to foot. It cannot
survive without the Prana. It is the motive force; it has five
varieties: Prana, Apana, Vyana, Udana and Samana. By contemplating
that the Pranamaya is the Atma of the Annamaya, the notion that
the body is the Self will disappear. You rise from the gross to
the subtle. Prana is like the molten metal in the crucible. By
effort, the Pranamayakosa can be experienced.
Prana appears in the form of the breath. Prana activates the
head, Vyana the right, Udana the left, Samana the central and
Apana the lower parts of the body. The Prana moves from the heart
through the nerves of the face, the nose etc., and reaches the
head. From there, it motivates the various nerves flowing through
the body under different names with distinct functions. The Prana
that functions round the navel is, for example, called Samaana.
For the Mano-maya Kosa, the Yajurveda is the head; the Riks
form the right wing; Sama is the left wing, Brahmanas are the
soul; the Atharvanaveda is the tail. The Manthras of the Yajurveda
are used very much in Yagas; with them, food is offered
ceremonially in the sacrificial Fire. Hence, it is considered as
the Head. The sound of Yajus produces modifications which are
auspicious. That is the reason for the significance attached to
the other Vedas also. Thus all manthras become the causes of
mental modifications. These in turn illumine the splendour of the
Atma; thus the Vedas and the Mystery of their Syllables belong to
the Science of the Atma itself. The Vedas become, therefore,
eternally valuable and eternally existent. The Atharvana Veda
treats of various rites to win relief from evil forces and
ailments and so, it is described as the tail.
The Kosa thus described merges in the Vijnanamaya and later
into the Anandamaya and finally, the aspirant passes beyond even
that, into the region of pure Sath.