Concerning Three Brahmans
I. In the city of Devikota, there is a Brahman, Vedasharma by name. In the season of the equinox, he received a vessel of rice.… Read More »Concerning Three Brahmans
Oriental Department Papers
Chandogya Upanishad 4:4-9 (Teachers Other Than Human)
[Translation] Satyakama the son of Jabala addressed his mother Jabala thus: I am going to dwell with a teacher, in the service of the Eternal.… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 4:4-9 (Teachers Other Than Human)
The Sorrows of Damayanti
Thereon Damayanti, seeing King Nala, ruler of men, thus distraught, his thoughts wrapped up in the play, herself not distraught though full of fear and… Read More »The Sorrows of Damayanti
The Dream of Ravan
I. A Mystery Many conjectures have been offered as to the source and authorship of this curious and wonderful book, which appeared in the first… Read More »The Dream of Ravan
The Tale of a Tiger
Once on a time, as I passed through the Southern Forest, I beheld An old Tiger who had taken a bath, covering his paw with… Read More »The Tale of a Tiger
Chandogya Upanishad 4:1-2 (An Old Legend)
[Translation] Janashruti, the grandson of Janashruta, was full of faith, a giver of many gifts, bestowing much cooked food. He caused many houses of refuge… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 4:1-2 (An Old Legend)
Nala and the Gods (Mahabharata)
And when the king of the Nishadhas had been chosen by the daughter of Bhima, the lords of the worlds in their brightness departing beheld… Read More »Nala and the Gods (Mahabharata)
“Vita Brevis”
Whither are gone the great lords of the earth, with their might of chariots and armies? The earth, that witnessed their departure, stands even today.… Read More »“Vita Brevis”
Chandogya Upanishad 3:12-16 (Heart, Will, Life)
[Translation] The divine Song, verily, is all their being, whatsoever there is; and the Word is the divine Song. The Word, verily, enounces and guards… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 3:12-16 (Heart, Will, Life)
King Nala’s Rivals
[Translation] When a fair time had come, and a lucky day and hour, King Bhima called the lords of the earth to the choosing. Hearing… Read More »King Nala’s Rivals
The Great Deep
For the Waters were in the beginning, when fire had perished from the face of the world; and all things, fixed and moving, and all… Read More »The Great Deep
The Songs of the Master
I. In the Bhagavad Gita, first translated and best known of all the Sacred Books of the East, there is much of profound value for… Read More »The Songs of the Master
Chandogya Upanishad 3:1-11 (Honey for the Gods)
[Translation] That sun is honey for the bright powers; the heaven is the curved support of it; the mid-world is the comb; the beams are… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 3:1-11 (Honey for the Gods)
The Soul and the Self
The oneness of the soul with the Self is already a fact, and not a thing that requires a further effort to bring about; and… Read More »The Soul and the Self
Chandogya Upanishad 2:22-24 (The Mysteries of Sound 3)
[Translation] I select and assign the different notes of the chant. The animal note is the up-singing of the Fire-lord. The undefined note is the… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 2:22-24 (The Mysteries of Sound 3)
The Prince and the Woodman
A certain prince, born under an evil star, was cast out from the city, and fed by a certain woodman. So he came to think:… Read More »The Prince and the Woodman
Chandogya Upanishad 1:8-2:21 (The Mysteries of Sound 2)
[Translation] Three, verily, were skilled in the up-singing Shilaka Shalavatya, Chaikitayana Dalbhya, Pravahana Jaivala. They said: In the up-singing, indeed, are we skilled; let us… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 1:8-2:21 (The Mysteries of Sound 2)
The Warrior
Seership is of the Self; actor-ship, of the powers. For, as the great King, even without being engaged himself, becomes the warrior, through his army… Read More »The Warrior
Chandogya Upanishad 1:1-7 (The Mysteries of Sound 1)
Note: It will be advisable to study the Commentary that follows, before reading this translation. [Translation] OM: let a man draw near to this imperishable… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 1:1-7 (The Mysteries of Sound 1)
An Answer
A question has been asked about the meaning of the frequent references to the Vedas; whether they have any settled correspondences, as for instance in… Read More »An Answer
Aitareya Upanishad (Father, Mother and Son)
[Translation] Self was here verily in the beginning; nothing else opposing at all. He beheld, saying: Let me now put forth worlds. He put forth… Read More »Aitareya Upanishad (Father, Mother and Son)
The Dream of Life
Dream, wherein the Self is mirrored, has two, powers,—to extend and to envelope; enveloping the habitual self and its world, it extends a new self… Read More »The Dream of Life
Taittiriya Upanishad 3 (The Lotus of the Sage Bhrgu)
III. [Translation] Invocation Om. May That guard us two—teacher and pupil; may That save us two; may we two do the work with valor; may… Read More »Taittiriya Upanishad 3 (The Lotus of the Sage Bhrgu)
Taittiriya Upanishad 2 (The Lotus of the Bliss of the Eternal)
II.[Translation] The knower of the Eternal obtains the supreme; therefore this is declared: Real, wisdom, endless is the Eternal; he who knows that, hid in… Read More »Taittiriya Upanishad 2 (The Lotus of the Bliss of the Eternal)
The Song of the Self
Nor earth nor water, fire nor liquid air, Nor ether, nor the powers, nor these in one; Undifferentiated, in dreamless perfect test, That, the One,… Read More »The Song of the Self
The Noble Eightfold Path
I. There are two extremes, Brothers, that he who has renounced should shun. On the one side, the constant following after things that appeal to… Read More »The Noble Eightfold Path
Taittiriya Upanishad 1 (The Lotus of the Teaching)
I. [Translation] Om Bless us Mitra; bless us Varuna; bless us Aryaman; bless us Indra, Vrhaspati; bless us wide-stepping Vishnu. Obeisance to the Eternal; obeisance… Read More »Taittiriya Upanishad 1 (The Lotus of the Teaching)
Lovers of the East: Henry Thomas Colebrooke (1765-1837)
A satirical critic of our orientalists once said that their capacity, like the Word divine in the heavens, had three grades: they could edit a… Read More »Lovers of the East: Henry Thomas Colebrooke (1765-1837)
The Races of Ancient India
Of the Brahmans, white is the color; of the Kshattriyas, red; of the Vaishyas, yellow is the color; of the Shudras, black. There was no… Read More »The Races of Ancient India
Lovers of the East: Sir William Jones (1746-1794)
We have seen how Anquetil Duperron, a Lover of the East, brought to Europe the first seed of Indian Wisdom after years of toil and… Read More »Lovers of the East: Sir William Jones (1746-1794)
The Mother of the Vedas (Gayatri)
The Gâyatri, the most sacred Indian verse, the Mother of the Vedas, is taken from the third of the ten cycles of hymns, the cycle… Read More »The Mother of the Vedas (Gayatri)
The Earliest Races
[I.] At the beginning of the formative period, in the first of the four ages, the Evolver put forth beings. The beings, which I told… Read More »The Earliest Races
Lovers of the East: Anquetil Duperron (1731-1805)
Who opened the doors of the east to the west? Who brought to the west the light of the east? Who were the ministers of… Read More »Lovers of the East: Anquetil Duperron (1731-1805)
The Hymn of the Spirit
Thousand-headed is Spirit, thousand-eyed, thousand-footed; he wrapping the world altogether, overpassed it by a space of ten fingers. Spirit verily is all this, what has… Read More »The Hymn of the Spirit
Mundaka Upanishad (The Two Wisdoms)
I. [Translation] The Evolver first of the bright ones came into being, the maker of the whole, the guardian of the world. He taught the… Read More »Mundaka Upanishad (The Two Wisdoms)
Isha Upanishad (By The Master)
[Translation] By the Master is to be covered all, whatever moving thing there is in the world. By this renouncing thou shalt enjoy; nor grudge… Read More »Isha Upanishad (By The Master)
Tattva Bodha (Shankara’s Catechism)
Introductory In the “Awakening to the Self” [Atma Bodha], and, still more, in the “Crest-Jewel of Wisdom”, Shankara the Teacher uses many words in a… Read More »Tattva Bodha (Shankara’s Catechism)
Kena Upanishad (By Whom?)
[Translation] By whom commanded does the mind go forth? By whom compelled does the first life go forth? By whom commanded do they put forth… Read More »Kena Upanishad (By Whom?)
Chandogya Upanishad 6:8-16 (First Principles 2)
[Translation] Aruna’s son Uddalaka addressed his son Shvetaketu, saying: —Learn from me, dear, the reality about sleep. When a man sinks to sleep, as they… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 6:8-16 (First Principles 2)
True Friendship
He who transgresses and despises modesty, who says—I am a friend but undertakes nothing for his friend, know that he is no friend. Whoever uses… Read More »True Friendship
Atma Bodha (The Awakening to the Self)
This awakening to the Self is recorded for those whose inner darkness has been worn away by strong effort, who have reached restfulness, from whom… Read More »Atma Bodha (The Awakening to the Self)
Chandogya Upanishad 6:1-7 (First Principles 1)
[Translation] There lived once Shvetaketu, Aruni’s grandson; his father addressed him, saying: —Shvetaketu, go, learn the service of the Eternal; for no one, dear, of… Read More »Chandogya Upanishad 6:1-7 (First Principles 1)
The Birth of the World-Egg
The universe was wrapped in darkness, unseen, unnamed, unthinkable, unknowable, in dreamless sleep. Then the Self-being, the unmanifested Master, manifested this universe and its powers;… Read More »The Birth of the World-Egg
The Meaning of OM
Mandukya Upanishad The unchanging Om is the All. Its expansion is, what has been, what is, what shall be. And what is beyond the three… Read More »The Meaning of OM
Esoteric Teaching (Rig Veda, i. 164, 45)
The most ancient declaration of Esoteric Teaching in the Sacred Books of India is probably this verse from the earliest and oldest of the ten… Read More »Esoteric Teaching (Rig Veda, i. 164, 45)
The Four Duties of a Dervish
The faith of Islam, the latest of the world-wide religions, is also, in many things, the most materialistic and dogmatic. The Semite peoples, Hebrew or… Read More »The Four Duties of a Dervish
Sankara, the Teacher
The Upanishads, Buddha, and Sankara: these are the three great lights of Indian wisdom. The Upanishads far away in the golden age; in the bright… Read More »Sankara, the Teacher
Buddha’s Method
“If a Bhikshu should desire, brethren, by the complete destruction of the three bonds to become purified, to be no longer liable to be reborn… Read More »Buddha’s Method
Vivekachudamani (Crest-Jewel of Wisdom)
First Steps on the Path Prologue (Verses 1–15) I bow before Govinda, the objectless object of final success in the highest wisdom, who is supreme… Read More »Vivekachudamani (Crest-Jewel of Wisdom)
The Heritage of the Brahmans
It is said that long ago, in the childhood of the world, the senses were so fine that we could hear the growing of the… Read More »The Heritage of the Brahmans
Prashna Upanishad (A Vedic Master)
[I.][Translation] These men, Sukesha Bharadvaja, Shaivya Satyakama, Sauryayani Gargya, Kaushalya Ashvalayana, Bhargava Vaidharbhi, and Kabandhi Katyayana, bent on the Eternal, following the Eternal, were seeking… Read More »Prashna Upanishad (A Vedic Master)
The Great Upanishads
“From every page of the Upanishads, deep, original, lofty thoughts step forth to meet us while a high and holy earnestness breathes over all. This… Read More »The Great Upanishads