Rating *****

320 pages
published by Nilgiri Press
ISBN 0915132397

"What is that by knowing which all things are known?"
"What makes my mind think, my eyes see, my tongue speak, my body live?"
What happens when this body dies?"

With such questions begin the Upanishads, the wellspring of India's loftiest philosophies and faith. Some thousand years old, they do not explain or develop a line of argument in the modern sense. They are darshana, "something seen", and the reader is expected not only to listen to the words but to realize them: that is, to make their truths an integral part of character, conduct, and consciousness.

For the last thousand years, ten Upanishads offered in this book in modern English have been considered as "principal Upanishads" on the authority of Shankara, an eighth-century mystic who reawakened India to its spiritual heritage. Included in the book is the Shvetashvatara Upanishad for its great beauty and four Yoga Upanishads to represent later traditions.

Easwaran's introduction to this volume covers the background of the Upanishads, their key ideas, and their practical relevance to us today. In so doing he provides an overview of the central ideas of Hinduism and Indian Philosophy. Short introductions to each Upanishad, notes, and a concluding essay have been provided by Michael N. Nagler, Professor of Classics and Comparative Literature at the University of California, Berkeley.

From the table of Contents:

• Introduction
• Brihadaranyaka Upanishad - The Forest of Wisdom
• Manukya Upanishad - Consciousness and its Phases
• Kena Upanishad - Who moves the World?
• Katha Upanishad - Death as Teacher
• Mundaka Upanishad - Two Modes of Knowing
• Aitareya Upanishad - The Microcosm of Man
• Taittiriya Upanishad - From Food to Joy
• Prashna Upanishad - The Breath of Life
• Chandogya Upanishad - Song and Sacrifice
• Isha Upanishad - The Inner Ruler
• Shvetashvatara Upanishad - The Faces of God
• Tejabindu, Amritabindu, Atma, Paramahamsa (Four Minor Upanishads)
  - Droplets of Wisdom
• Afterword - Reading the Upanishads by Michael N. Nagler
• Glossary

«You are what your deep, driving desire is.
As your desire is, so is your will.
As your will is, so is your deed.
As your deed is, so is your destiny.»
- Brihad. IV.4.5.

Eknath Easwaran was a writer, lecurer and professor of English literature and came to the United States in 1959 on the Fulbright exchange program. He moved to Berkeley, California in 1960, where he founded the Blue Mountain Center of Meditation.

Last Updated Thursday, December 31, 1998