Chhandogya Upanishad
Invocation
Om. May the
different limbs of my body, my tongue, prana, eyes, ears and my strength and
also all the other sense—organs be nourished! All, indeed, is Brahman, as is
declared in the Upanishads. May I never deny Brahman! May Brahman never deny me!
May there never be denial on my part! May all the virtues described in the
Upanishads belong to me, who am devoted to Atman! Yea, may they all belong to me!
Om. Peace! Peace! Peace!
1
The
syllable Om, called the Udgitha, should be meditated upon; for people sing the
Udgitha, beginning with Om.
Now follows the detailed explanation of the syllable:
2
The essence of all these beings is the earth; the essence of the earth is water; the essence of water is plants; the essence of plants is a person; essence of a person is speech; the essence of speech is the Rig—Veda; essence of the Rig—Veda is the Sama—Veda; the essence of the Sama—Veda is the Udgitha which is Om.
3
That Udgitha (Om) is the best of all essences, the supreme, deserving the highest place, the eighth.
4
What, then, is the Rik? What is the Saman? What is the Udgitha? This is to be considered.
5
Speech, indeed, is the Rik; the vital breath (prana) is the Saman; the syllable Om is the Udgitha. Speech and the prana, or the Rik and the Saman, form a couple.
6
And that couple become united in the syllable Om. When a pair come together they fulfil each other’s desire.
7
He who knows this as stated above and meditates on the syllable Om, the Udgitha, becomes, indeed, a fulfiller of desires.
8
This syllable Om is used to give assent, for wherever one assents to something, one says Om (yes). Now, what is assent is gratification. He who knows this and meditates on the syllable Om, the Udgitha, becomes, indeed, a gratifier of desires.
9
By means of this syllable the threefold knowledge proceeds. When adhvaryu priest gives an order in a sacrifice, he says Om. When the hotri priest recites the hymn, he says Om. When the udgatri priest sings the Saman, he says Om. All this is done for the glory of the Imperishable Atman by the greatness of that syllable and by its essence.
10
It may be
contended that he who knows this true meaning of the syllable Om and he who does
not, perform the same sacrifice and therefore must reap the same fruit. But this
is not so. The results of knowledge and ignorance are different. Work that is
done with knowledge, faith and the Upanishad (i.e. meditation on the deities)
produces more powerful fruit.
This is, verily, the detailed explanation of the syllable Om.
1
When the gods and the demons, both offspring of Prajapati, fought with each other, the gods took hold of the Udgitha, thinking that with this they would vanquish the demons.
2
They (i.e. the gods) meditated on the Udgitha (Om) as the prana which functions through the nose. But the demons pierced it (i.e. the prana) with evil. Therefore with it (i.e. the breath) one smells both what is pleasant—smelling and what is foul—smelling. For the breath is pierced by evil.
3
Then they meditated on the Udgitha as speech. But the demons pierced it with evil. Therefore one speaks both truth and falsehood. For speech is pierced by evil.
4
Then they meditated on the Udgitha as the eye. But the demons pierced it with evil. Therefore one sees both what is sightly and what is unsightly. For the eye is pierced by evil.
5
Then they meditated on the Udgitha as the ear. But the demons pierced it with evil. Therefore one hears both what is worth hearing and what is not worth hearing. For the ear is pierced by evil.
6
Then they meditated on the Udgitha as the mind. But the demons pierced it with evil. Therefore one thinks both proper and improper thoughts. For the mind is pierced by evil.
7
Then they meditated on the Udgitha as the principal (mukhya) prana. But as a clod of earth hitting a stone is scattered, even so the demons were destroyed when they hit it.
8
As a clod of earth is scattered when hitting a stone, thus will he be scattered who wishes evil to one who knows this or who injures him; for he is a solid stone.
9
With this (i.e. the principal vital breath) one does not discern what pleasant—smelling and what is foul—smelling; for it is unsmitten by evil. Whatever a person eats or drinks with it (the principal vital breath) supports the other pranas. That is why they depart when, at the time death, it no longer supports them by eating and drinking. It opens the mouth at the time of death as if the dying man wished to eat.
10—13
Angira
meditated on the Udgitha as the principal prana. people call it (i.e. the prana)
Angiras, because it is the essence (rasa) of the limbs (anga).
Brihaspati meditated on the Udgitha as the principal prana. People call it (the
prana) Brihaspati, because speech is great (brihat) and it is the lord (pati) of
speech.
Ayasya meditated on the Udgitha as the principal prana. People call it (the
prana) as Ayasya; because it comes (ayate) from the mouth (asya).
Vaka, the son of Dalbhya, knew it (the prana); he became the udgatri priest of
the sacrificers dwelling in the Naimisha forest. By singing the Udgitha he
fulfilled all their desires.
14
He who
knows this as described above and meditates upon the imperishable Udgitha (Om)
obtains all his desires by singing the Udgitha.
So much for the Udgitha as meditates on with reference to the body.
1
Now is
described the meditation on the Udgitha with reference to the gods:
One should meditate on the Udgitha as the sun who gives warmth. When he (the
sun) rises he sings the Udgitha for the benefit of all creatures. When he rises
he destroys darkness and fear. He who knows this becomes the destroyer of
darkness and fear.
2
This prana and that sun are the same. This is warm and that is warm. This they call svara (what goes out) and that, pratyasvara (what returns). Therefore one should meditate on the Udgitha as this and that.
3
One should meditate on the Udgitha as the vyana. That which one breathes out is the prana and that which one breathes in is the apana. That which is the junction of the prana and the apana is the Vyana. This vyana is speech. Therefore when one utters speech one stops the prana and the apana.
4
That which is speech is the Rik. Therefore when a man utters a Rik he neither breathes out nor breathes in. That which is the Rik is the Saman. Therefore when a man sings a Saman, he neither breathes out nor breathes in. That which is the Saman is the Udgitha. Therefore when a man sings the Udgitha he neither breathes out nor breathes in.
5
And other works also which require strength, such as the kindling of fire by rubbing, running a race and stringing a strong bow, are performed without breathing out or breathing in. Therefore one should meditate on the Udgitha as the vyana.
6
One should meditate on the letters of the word Udgitha (i.e. ut, gi and tha). Ut is the prana, for a man rises (uttishthati) by means of the prana. Gi is speech, for speeches are called girah. Tha is food, for all this subsists (sthita) on food.
7
Ut is heaven, gi the mid—region and tha the earth. Ut is the sun, gi the air and tha fire. Ut is the Sama—Veda, gi the Yajur—Veda and tha the Rig—Veda. To him who thus meditates speech yields milk and milk is speech. He who knows this and meditates on the letters of the Udgitha becomes the possessor of food and the eater of food.
8
Next follows the fulfilment of prayers. One should thus meditate on the object one wishes to obtain through meditation: he (i.e. the udgatri priest) should meditate on the Saman with which he is going chant the praise.
9
He (the udgatri priest) should meditate on the Rik in which that Saman occurs, on the rishi to whom it was revealed and on the deity whom he is going to praise.
10
He (the udgatri priest) should meditate on the metre in which he is going to chant the praise; he should meditate on the hymn by which he is going to chant the praise.
11
He (the udgatri priest) should meditate on the quarter of space facing which he is going to chant the praise.
12
Finally, he (the udgatri priest) should meditate on himself and then on the object desired and chant the praise correctly. Thus will be quickly fulfilled for him the desire, desiring which he may offer the hymn of praise, yea, desiring which he may offer the hymn of praise.
1
The
syllable Om, called the Udgitha, should be meditated upon; for people sing the
Udgitha, beginning with Om.
Now follows the detailed explanation of this syllable.
2
The gods, afraid of death, entered upon the threefold knowledge. They covered themselves with the metrical hymns. Because they covered (acchadayan) themselves with the hymns, the hymns are called chhandas.
3
As a fisherman might observe a fish in shallow water, so death observed the gods in the Rik, the Yajus and the Saman. They too came to know this, rose from the Rik, the Yajus and the Saman and entered the Svara (Om) alone.
4
When a man has mastered the Rig—Veda he loudly utters Om; he does the same when he has mastered the Sama—Veda and the Yajur—Veda. The Svara is the syllable Om; it is immortal and fearless. The gods, by entering it, became immortal and fearless.
5
He who, knowing this, sings the praise of the syllable Om enters this same syllable, called the Svara, which is immortal and fearless. Having entered it, he becomes immortal as the gods are immortal.
1
Now, verily, that which is the Udgitha is the Pranava; that which is the Pranava is the Udgitha. Yonder sun is the Udgitha. It is the Pranava, because it moves along uttering Om.
2
Kaushitaki
in olden times said to his son: "I sang the praise of the sun regarding it as
one with its rays; therefore you are my only son. Meditate on the rays and the
sun as different from each another and you will have many sons."
So much with reference to the gods.
3
Now with
reference to the body:
One should meditate on the Udgitha as the principal prana, for (i.e. the prana)
moves in the body uttering Om.
4
Kaushitaki in olden times said to his son: "I sang the praise of the principal prana alone; therefore you are my only son. Meditate on the Udgitha as the manifold prana and you will have many sons."
5
Now, verily, that which is the Udgitha is the Pranava; that which is the Pranava is the Udgitha. He (i.e. the udgatri priest) who knows this, rectifies from the seat of the hotri priest any mistake committed by him (the udgatri priest), yea he rectifies it.
1
This earth is the Rik and fire is the Saman. This Saman (i.e. fire) rests on that Rik (i.e. the earth). Therefore the Saman is sung resting on the Rik. Sa is the earth, ama is fire; thus they (the earth and fire) are designated as Sama.
2
The mid—region is the Rik and the air is the Saman. This Saman (i.e. the air) rests on that Rik (i.e. the mid—region). Therefore the Saman is sung, resting on the Rik. Sa is the mid—region, ama is the air; thus they (the mid—region and the air) are designated as Sama.
4
The stars are the Rik and the moon is the Saman. This Saman (i.e. the moon) rests on that Rik (i.e. the stars). Therefore the Saman is sung, resting on the Rik. Sa is the stars, ama is the moon; thus they (the stars and the moon) are designated as Sama.
5
Now, the white radiance of the sun is the Rik and its blue intense darkness is the Saman. This Saman (i.e. the darkness) rests on that Rik (i.e. the radiance). Therefore the Saman is sung, resting on the Rik.
6—7
Sa is the
white radiance of the sun, ama is its blue intense darkness; thus they (the
radiance and the darkness) are designated as Sama.
Now, the golden person who is seen in the sun, who has a golden beard and golden
hair, who is golden to the very tips of his nails—his eyes are like a lotus
flower, red as the rump of a monkey.
His name is Ut, for he has risen (udita) above all evil. He, too, who knows this
rises above all evil.
1
Now with
reference to the body:
Speech is the Rik and the prana is the Saman. This Saman (the prana) rests on
that Rik (speech). Therefore the Saman is sung, resting on the Rik. Sa is speech,
ama is the prana; thus they (speech and the prana) are designated as Sama.
2
The eye is the Rik and the atman is the Saman. This Saman (the atman) rests on that Rik (speech). Therefore the Saman is sung, resting on the Rik. Sa is the eye, ama is the atman; thus they (the eye and the atman) are designated as Saman.
3
The ear is the Rik and the mind is the Saman. This Saman (the mind) rests on that Rik (the ear). Therefore the Saman is sung, resting on the Rik. Sa is the ear, ama is the mind; thus they (the ear and the mind) are designated as Sama.
4
Now, the white radiance of the eye is the Rik and its blue intense darkness is the Saman. This Saman (darkness) rests on that Rik (radiance). Therefore the Saman is sung, resting on the Rik. Sa is the white radiance of the eye, ama is its blue intense darkness; thus they (the radiance and the darkness) are designated as Sama.
5
Now, the person who is seen in the eye is the Rik, he is the Saman, he is the Uktha, he is the Yajus, he is Brahman. The form of this person in the eye is the same as the form of that person in the sun. The joints this person in the eye are the same as the joints of that person in the sun; the name of this one (Ut) is the same as the name of that one.
6
He is the lord of the worlds which spread beneath that (i.e. the eye) and also of all the wishes of men. Therefore all who sing to the vina sing of him and from him they obtain wealth.
7
He who, knowing this (i.e. the Udgitha), sings the Saman, sings both. Through that (i.e. the person in the sun) he obtains the world beyond that (i.e. the sun) and the wishes of the gods.
8—9
Likewise,
through this (i.e. the person in the eye), he obtains the worlds that spread
beneath that (i.e. the eye) and all the wishes of men.
Therefore an udgatri priest who knows this may say to the sacrificer for whom he
acts as priest:
"What desire of yours shall I fulfil by singing?"
For he who, knowing this, sings the Saman is able to fulfil wishes through his
singing of the Saman, yea, through his singing of the Saman.
The Story of the Pravahana (I)
1
There were three men versed in the Udgitha: Silaka the son of Salavat, Chaikitayana of the line of Dalbhya and Pravahana the son of Jivala. They said: "We are indeed versed in the Udgitha. Let us have a discussion of the Udgitha."
2
"Let it be so," they said and sat down. Then Pravihana the son Jivala said: "Revered Sirs, you speak first and I shall listen to what the two brahmins have to say."
3
Then Silaka
the son of Salavat said to Chaikitayana of the line Dalbhya: "Well, may I
question you?"
"Do ask," he said.
4—5
"What is
the support of the Saman?"
"Tone (svara)," he replied.
"What is the support of tone?"
"The prana (vital breath)," he replied.
"What is the support of the prana?"
"Food," he replied. "What is the support of food?"
"Water," he replied.
"What is the support of water?"
"Yonder world (heaven)," he replied.
"What is the support of yonder world?"
"Let no one carry the Saman beyond the heavenly world. We place the Saman in the
heavenly world, for the Saman is praised as heaven."
6
Then Silaka the son of Salavat said to Chaikitayana of the line of Dalbhya: "O Dalbhya your Saman is not firmly established. If at this time anyone who knew the support of the Saman were to say: ‘Your head shall fall off;’ surely your head would fall off."
7
"Well then,
revered Sir, let me learn it from you," said Chaikitayana.
"Learn it," replied Silaka.
"What is the support of that world?"
"This world," he replied.
"What is the support of this world?"
"Let no one carry the Saman beyond this world, which is its support.
We place the Saman in this world as its support, for the Saman is praised as the
support (i.e. this world)."
8
Then said
Pravahana the son of Jivala: O son of Salavat, your Saman (i.e. this earth) has
an end. If at this time anyone who knew the support of the Saman were to say:
‘Your head shall fall off,’ surely your head would fall off."
"Well then, let me learn this from you, revered Sir," said Silaka.
"Learn it," said Pravahana.
The Story of Pravahana (II)
1
"What is
the support of this world?" asked Silaka.
"The akasa," said Pravahana. "For all these beings are created from the akasa
and return to the akasa. The akasa is greater than these; therefore the akasa is
the supreme support."
2
This is the
Udgitha (Om), the most excellent; this is endless.
He who, knowing this, meditates on the Udgitha obtains the most excellent life
and wins the most excellent worlds.
3—4
Atidhanvan
the son of Sunaka, having taught this Udgitha to Udarasandilya, said: "As long
as any of your descendants know this Udgitha, their life shall be the most
excellent in this world and likewise in the other world."
He who thus knows the Udgitha and meditates on it—his life shall be the most
excellent in this world and likewise in the other world, yea, the other world.
The Story of Ushasti (I)
1
When the crops of the Kurus were destroyed by thunderstorms, Ushasti the son of Chakra, with his child—wife, lived in a deplorable condition in the village of a man who owned an elephant.
2
He (Ushasti) begged food from the owner of the elephant, who was eating some wretched beans. He (the owner of the elephant) said: "I have nothing but what is set before me."
3
Ushasti
said: "Give me these."
He gave the beans and said: "Here is some water left over from my drinking."
Ushasti said: "If I drink this, I will then be drinking what has been left by
another."
4
The owner
of the elephant said: "Were not those beans also left over and therefore unclean?"
Ushasti replied: "I should not have lived if I had not eaten them; but I can get
water wherever I like."
5
Having himself eaten, Ushasti gave his wife what was left. But she, having eaten before, took them (i.e. the beans) and put them away.
6
Next morning, on awaking, he said: "Alas, if I could get even little a to eat, I might earn some money. The king over here is going to perform a sacrifice; he would choose me for all the priestly offices."
7
His wife said to him: "Here, my husband, are the beans." After eating them, he went to the sacrifice that was about to be performed.
8
He saw there the assembled udgatri priests and sat near them in place where they would sing the hymns. He said to the prastotri priest:
9
"O prastotri priest, if without knowing the deity that belongs to Prastiva, you sing the Prastiva, your head will fall off"
10—11
In the same
manner he addressed the udgatri priest: "O udgatri priest, if without knowing
the deity that belongs to the Udgitha, you sing the Udgitha, your head will fall
off."
In the same manner he addressed the pratihartri priest: "O pratihartri priest,
if without knowing the deity that belongs to the Pratihara, you sing the
Pratihara, your head will fall off."
They all stopped performing their duties and sat in silence.
The Story of Ushasti (II)
1
The
sacrificer said to him (Ushasti): "I should like to know who you are, revered
Sir."
"I am Ushasti the son of Chakra," he replied.
2
He (the sacrificer) said: "Revered Sir, I looked for you to perform all these priestly offices, but not finding you, Sir, I have chosen others."
3
"But now,
Sir, please take up all the priestly offices."
"So be it," said Ushasti, "but let these priests, with my permission, sing the
hymns of praise. You will, however, give me as much wealth as you give them."
"So be it," said the sacrificer.
4
Thereupon the prastotri priest approached him and said: "Sir, you said to me: ‘O prastotri priest, if without knowing the deity that belongs to the Prastava, you sing the Prastava, your head will fall off.’ Which is that deity?"
5
Ushasti said: "The prana is that deity. For all these beings merge in the prana alone and from the prana alone do they rise. This is deity which belongs to the Prastava. If without knowing him you chanted the Prastava after having been cursed by me, your head would have fallen off."
6
Then the udgatri priest approached him and said: "Sir, you said to me: ‘O udgatri priest, if without knowing the deity that belongs to the Udgitha, you sing the Udgitha, your head will fall off.’ Which is that deity?"
7
Ushasti said: "The sun is that deity. For all these beings praise the sun which is high up. This is the deity which belongs to the Udgitha. If without knowing him you had chanted the Udgitha after having been cursed by me, your head would have fallen off."
8
Then the pratihartri priest approached him and said: "Sir, you said to me: ‘O pratihartri priest, if without knowing the deity that belongs to the Pratihara, you sing the Pratihara, your head will fall off.’ Which is that deity?"
9
Ushasti said: "Food is that deity. For all these beings take food and live. This is the deity that belongs to the Pratihara. If without knowing him you had chanted the Pratihara after having been cursed by me, your head would have fallen off."
1
Now follows
the Udgitha of the dogs:
One day, Vaka the son of Dalbhya, or as he was also called, Glava son of Mitra,
went forth to study the Vedas.
2
A white dog appeared before him. Other dogs, gathering around, said to him (i.e. the white dog): "Revered Sir, please sing for us, so we may obtain food; we are hungry."
3
He (the white dog) said to them: "Come to me here tomorrow morning." Vaka the son of Dalbhya, or as he was also called, Glava son of Mitra, kept watch.
4
Just as the priests move along, holding to one another, when they are about to sing praises with the Vahishpavamana hymn, so did the dogs move along. Then they sat down and uttered the syllable Him.
5
Om. Let us
eat! Om. Let us drink! Om. Let the sun, who is the luminous deity (deva), the
giver of rain (Varuna), the lord of creatures (Prajapati), bring food here!
Now a prayer to the sun: O lord of food, bring food here, bring it here. Om.
1
This Earth is verily the syllable hau; the air is the syllable hai; the moon is the syllable atha; the self is the syllable iha; the fire is the syllable i.
2
The sun is the syllable u; the invocation is the syllable e; the Visve-devas are