Invocation
Om. May we, O gods, hear with
our ears what is auspicious! May we, O worshipful gods, see with our
eyes what is good! May we, strong in limbs and body, sing your
praise and enjoy the life allotted to us by Prajapati!
Om. Peace! Peace! Peace!
Prasna Upanishad
Question I
1
Om. Sukesa, the Son
of Bharadvajaand Satyakama, the son of Sibiand Sauryayani, belonging
to the family of Gargaand Kausalya, the son of Asvalaand Vaidarbhi,
belonging to the family of Bhriguand Kahandhi, the Son of Katya—all
these, devoted to Brahman and firm in Brahman and seeking the
Supreme Brahman, approached, fuel in hand, the venerable Pippalada
with the thought that he would tell them everything about Brahman.
2
The rishi said to them: Stay
with me a year more, practising austerities, chastity and faith.
Then you may ask questions according to your desire. If we know we
shall tell you all.
3
Then Kabandhi, the son of
Katya, came to him and asked: Sir, whence are these creatures born?
4
To him the teacher said:
Prajapati, the Creator, was desirous of progeny. He performed
austerities and having performed austerities, created the pair, the
moon (rayi) and the sun (prana). He said to Himself: "These two
should produce creatures for Me in manifold ways."
5
The sun is, indeed, prana,
life; the moon is rayi, food. Food is, indeed, all this—what has
form and what is formless. Therefore everything having form is,
indeed, food.
6
Now the sun, when it rises,
enters the eastern quarter and thereby enfolds the living beings of
the east in its rays. And when it illuminates the southern, the
western, the northern, the lower, the upper and the intermediate
quarters—when it illuminates everything—it thus enfolds all living
beings in its rays.
7—8
That sun rises every day—the
sun, which is the soul of all creatures, the soul of all forms,
which is life and fire. This has been described by the following rik:
The wise know him who is in all forms, full of rays, all-knowing,
non-dual, the support of all life, the eye of all beings, the giver
of heat. There rises the sun, the thousand-rayed, existing in a
hundred forms, the life of all creatures.
9
The year, verily, is Prajapati
and there arc two paths thereof: the Southern and the Northern.
Those who perform sacrifices and engage in pious actions, as duties
to be done, win only the World of the Moon; verily they return
hither again. Therefore the rishis who desire off-spring travel by
the Southern Path. This Path of the Fathers is rayi, food.
10
But those who seek the Self
through austerity, chastity, faith and knowledge travel by the
Northern Path and win the Sun. The Sun, verily, is the support of
all lives. He is immortal and fearless; He is the final goal. Thence
they do not return. This path is blocked for the ignorant.
Concerning it there is the following verse:
11
Some call Him the father with
five feet and with twelve forms, the giver of rain and the dweller
in the region above the sky. Others, again, say that the world is
fixed in the omniscient Sun, endowed with seven wheels and six
spokes.
12
The month, verily, is
Prajapati. Its dark half, verily, is food, rayi; its bright half,
the eater, prana. Therefore some rishis perform sacrifice in the
bright half, some in the other half.
13
Day and night, verily, are
Prajapati. Of these, day is the eater, prana and night, the food,
rayi. Those who join in sexual enjoyment by day verily dissipate
life; but to join in sexual enjoyment by night is, verily, chastity.
14
Food, verily, is Prajapati.
From that comes semen; from semen are all these creatures born.
15
Those, therefore, who practise
this rule of Prajapati beget a pair. But Brahmaloka belongs to those
who observe austerity and chastity and in whom truth is firmly
established.
16
The stainless World of Brahma
belongs to those in whom there is no crookedness, no falsehood, no
deception.
Question II
1
Then Vaidarbhi,
belonging to the family of Bhrigu, asked him: Sir, how many gods
support the body of the created being? How many of these manifest
their power through it? And which one, furthermore, is paramount?
2
To the disciple he said:
Space, akasa, verily is that god—the wind, fire, water, earth,
speech, mind, eye and ear, as well. These, having manifested their
glory, said boastfully: "We support this body and uphold it."
3
To them prana, the chiefmost
said: "Do not fall into delusion. I alone, dividing myself into five
parts, support this body and uphold it." But they were incredulous.
4
Prana, out of pride, rose
upward, as it were, from the body. Now, when it rose upward all the
others rose upward also and when it settled down they all settled
down with it. As bees go out when their queen goes out and return
when she returns, even so did speech, mind, eye and ear. They, being
satisfied, praised prana.
5
It burns as fire, it is the
sun, it is the rain; it is Indra, it is the wind, it is the earth,
it is food. It is the luminous god. It is being and non-being; it is
immortality.
6
As spokes in the hub of a
wheel, all are fixed in prana, including the Rig-Veda, the Yajur-Veda,
the Sama-Veda, the kshattriyas and the brahmins.
7
As Prajapati thou movest about
in the womb; it is thou, indeed, who art born again. To thee, O
Prana, creatures bring offerings, to thee who dwellest in the body
with the organs.
8
Thou art the chief bearer of
oblations to the gods and the first offering to the departed
fathers; thou art the true activities of the rishis, of the
Atharvangiras.
9
Indra thou art, O Prana and
Rudra, too, in prowess. Thou art the Protector. Thou movest in the
sky; thou art the sun, the lord of lights.
10
When, O Prana, thou showerest
down rain, these creatures of thine are delighted, thinking there
will be as much food as they desire.
11
Thou art vratya, O Prana and
the Ekarshi Fire that devours the butter. Thou art the Supreme Lord
of all. We are the givers of the butter that thou consumest, O
Matarisva! Thou art our father.
12
That form of thine which
abides in speech, which abides in the ear, which abides in the eye
and which pervades the mind, make propitious. Go not away!
13
All that exists here is under
the control of prana and also what exists in heaven. Protect us as a
mother her sons; bestow upon us prosperity and wisdom.
Question III
1
Then Kausalya, the
son of Asvala, asked Pippalada: Sir, whence is this prana born? How
does it come into this body? How does it abide in the body after it
has divided itself? How does it depart? How does it support the
external and how the internal?
2
To him the teacher replied:
You are asking difficult questions; you must be exceedingly devoted
to Brahman. Therefore I will answer you.
3
This prana is born of Atman.
As a shadow is cast by a person, so this prana is, by Atman. Through
the activity of the mind it comes into this body.
4
As an emperor commands his
officials, saying; "Rule these villages or those," so this prana
employs the other pranas, each in its separate place.
5
Prana engages apana in the
organs of excretion and generation; he himself moves through the
mouth and nose and dwells in the eye and ear. In the middle is
samana; it distributes equally what has been offered as food in the
fire in the stomach. From this prana fire arise the seven flames.
6
The atman dwells in the heart,
where there are one hundred and one arteries (nadi); for each of
these there are one hundred branches and for each of these branches,
again, there are seventy-two thousand subsidiary vessels. Vyana
moves in these.
7
And then udana, ascending
upward through one of them, conducts the departing soul to the
virtuous world, for its virtuous deeds; to the sinful world, for its
sinful deeds; and to the world of men, for both.
8
The sun, verily, is the
external prana; for it rises, favouring the prana in the eye. The
deity that exists in the earth controls the apana of man. The space,
akasa, between heaven and earth is samana. The air is vyana.
9
Fire, verily, is udana;
therefore he whose fire has been extinguished goes out for rebirth,
with the senses absorbed in the mind.
10
Whatever one's thinking, with
that one enters into prana. Prana joined with fire, together with
the soul, leads to whatever world has been fashioned by thought.
11
The wise man who thus knows
prana does not lose his offspring and becomes immortal. As to this
there is the following verse:
12
He who knows the origin of
prana, its entry, its place, its fivefold distribution, its internal
aspect and also its external, obtains immortality; yea, he obtains
immortality.
Question IV
1
Next Sauryayani,
belonging to the family of Garga, asked: Sir, what are they that
sleep in man and what are they that remain awake in him? Which deity
is it that sees dreams? Whose is the happiness? In whom, again, are
all these gathered together?
2
To him Pippalada replied: O
Gargya, as the rays of the sun, when it sets, are gathered in that
luminous orb and again go forth when it rises, even so, verily, all
these—the objects and the senses—become one in the superior god, the
mind. Therefore at that time a man hears not, sees not, smells not,
tastes not, touches not, speaks not, grasps not, enjoys not, emits
not and does not move about. He sleeps—that is what people say.
3
The prana fires remain awake
in this city. Apana is the Garhapatya Fire and vyana, the
Anvaharyapachana Fire. And prana is the Ahavaniya Fire, so called
from being taken—since it is taken from the Garhapatya Fire.
4
Samana is so called because it
distributes equally the two oblations, namely, the out-breathing and
the in-breathing; it is the priest. The mind, verily, is the
sacrificer. Udana is the fruit of the sacrifice, because it leads
the sacrificer every day, in deep sleep, to Brahman.
5
There, in dreams, that god,
the mind, experiences glory. Whatever has been seen he sees again;
whatever has been heard he hears again; whatever has been
experienced in different countries and quarters, he experiences
again. Whatever has been seen or not seen, heard or not heard and
whatever is real or not real—he sees it all. He sees all, himself
being all.
6
When the jiva is overcome by
light he sees no dreams; at that time, in this body, arises this
happiness.
7—8
As a bird goes to a tree to
roost, even so, O friend, all this rests in the Supreme Atman:
Earth and its subtle counterpart, water and its subtle counterpart,
fire and its subtle counterpart, air and its subtle counterpart,
akasa and its subtle counterpart, the eye and what can be seen, the
ear and what can be heard, the nose and what can be smelt, the taste
and what can be tasted, the skin and what can be touched, the organ
of speech and what can be spoken, the hands and what can be grasped,
the organ of generation and what can be enjoyed, the organ of
excretion and what can be excreted, the feet and what is their
destination, the mind (manas) and what can be thought, the intellect
(buddhi) and what can be comprehended, the ego (ahamkara) and the
object of egoism, the memory (chitta) and its object, knowledge (tejah)
and its object, prana and what is to be supported.
9
He, verily, it is who sees,
feels, hears, smells, tastes, thinks and knows. He is the doer, the
intelligent self, the purusha. He is established in the Highest, the
imperishable Atman.
10
He who knows that imperishable
Being, bright, without shadow, without body, without colour, verily
attains the Supreme, the undecaying Purusha, O my good friend, he
who knows Atman becomes all-knowing, becomes all. About it there is
the following verse:
11
He, O friend, who knows that
imperishable Being wherein rests the intelligent self, together with
the gods, the pranas and the elements—he becomes all-knowing and
enters into all.
Question V
1
Then Satyakama, the
son of Sibi, asked Pippalada; Sir, if among men someone should here
meditate on the syllable AUM until death, which world, verily, would
he win thereby?
2
He replied: O Satyakama, the
syllable AUM is the Supreme Brahman and also the other Brahman.
Therefore he who knows it attains, with its support, the one or the
other.
3
If he meditates on one letter
(matra), then, being enlightened by that alone, he quickly comes
back to earth after death. The rik verses lead him to the world of
men. By practising austerity, chastity and faith he enjoys
greatness.
4
If, again, he meditates on the
second letter, he attains the mind and is led up by the yajur verses
to the intermediate space, to the Plane of the Moon. Having enjoyed
greatness in the Plane of the Moon, he returns hither again.
5
Again, he who meditates on the
Highest Person through this syllable AUM consisting of three
letters, becomes united with the effulgent Sun. As a snake is freed
from its skin, even so he is freed from sin.
6
The three letters of AUM, if
employed separately, are mortal; but when joined together in
meditation on the total Reality and used properly on the activities
of the external, internal and intermediate states, the knower
trembles not.
7
The wise man, meditating on
AUM, attains this world by means of the rik verses; the intermediate
world by means of the yajur verses; and that which is known to the
seers by means of the sama verses. And also through the syllable AUM
he realises that which is tranquil, free from decay, death and fear
and which is the Highest.
Question VI
1
Then Sukesa, the
son of Bharadvaja, said to Pippalada: Sir, Hiranyabha, the prince of
Kosala, once came to me and asked this question: "O son of
Bharadvaja, do you know the Person with sixteen parts?" I said to
the prince: "I do not know Him; if I knew Him, why should I not tell
you? Surely he who speaks what is not true withers away to the very
root; therefore I should not speak untruth." Then he silently
mounted his chariot and went away. Now I ask you: Where does that
Person dwell?
2
Pippalada said to him: That
Person—He from whom these sixteen parts arise—is verily here within
the body.
3
The Purusha reflected: "What
is it by whose departure I shall depart and by whose staying I shall
stay?"
4
He created prana; from prana
faith, space, air, fire, water, earth, the organs, mind, food; from
food virility, austerity, the Vedic hymns, sacrifice, the worlds;
and in the worlds He created names.
5
As these flowing rivers, bound
for the ocean, disappear into the ocean after having reached it,
their names and forms being destroyed and are called simply the
ocean—even so, these sixteen parts of the seer, whose goal is the
Purusha, disappear into the Purusha after having reached Him, their
names and forms being destroyed and are called simply the Purusha.
He becomes free of parts and immortal.
On this there is the following verse:
6
Know Him, the Purusha, who
alone is to he known and in whom the parts rest firm, like the
spokes in the nave of a wheel, that death may not affect you.
7
Pippalada said to them: Thus
far, indeed, I know the Supreme Brahman; there is nothing higher
than this.
8
And they, worshipping him,
said: Thou, indeed, art our father—thou who hast taken us across our
ignorance to the other shore.
Adoration to the supreme rishis! Adoration to the supreme rishis!
End of Prasna
Upanishad
The Peace Chant
Om. May we, O gods, hear with
our ears what is auspicious! May we, O worshipful gods, see with our
eyes what is good! May we, strong in limbs and body, sing your
praise and enjoy the life allotted to us by Prajapati!
Om. Peace! Peace! Peace!
