Chhāṇdogya Upanishad | Part IV

There once lived [a king named] Jānaśruti,
who was a great-grandson of Janaśruta.
He bestowed his gifts with respect, gave away liberally,
and cooked much food [for the hungry].
He built rest-houses everywhere with the thought
that people everywhere would eat his food.

One night some flamingos were flying along.
One flamingo said to another:
“Hey! Ho! Short-sighted, Short-sighted!
The radiance of Jānaśruti,
the great-grandson of Janaśruta, has spread to the sky.
Do not touch it, lest it should burn you.”

The other replied:
“Say, who is this person about whom you have spoken
as though he were like Raikva, the man with the cart?”

“What sort of person is this Raikva, the man with the cart?”

[The short-sighted flamingo replied:]
“As [in a game of dice],
when the krita is won, the lower ones also are won,
so whatever merits people acquire all accrue to that Raikva.
As Raikva I describe him, too, who knows what Raikva knows.”

Jānaśruti the great-grandson of Janaśruta
overheard this [conversation].
Immediately after getting out of bed,
he said to his attendant:
“Friend, did you speak of me
as though I were Raikva, the man with the cart?”
“What sort of person is Raikva, the man with the cart?”
“As [in a game of dice],
when the krita is won, the lower ones also are won,
so whatever merits people acquire all accrue to that Raikva.
As Raikva I describe him, too, who knows what Raikva knows.”

The attendant searched for him
and returned without finding him.
Then the king said to him: “Listen,
where a knower of Brahman is to be searched for,
look for him there.”

[After proper search] the attendant came upon a person
who, lying underneath his cart, was scratching an itch.
[Humbly] he took his seat near him and said:
“Revered Sir, are you Raikva, the man with the cart?”
“Oh yes, I am he,” he answered.
Then the attendant returned,
saying to himself: “I have found him out.”

Then Jānaśruti the great-grandson of Janaśruta
took with him six hundred cows,
a necklace, and a chariot with mules,
and went to Raikva and said:

“Raikva, here are six hundred cows,
a necklace, and a chariot with mules.
Pray, revered Sir, teach me the deity whom you worship.”

To him the other said:
“Ah, may the necklace and the chariot
remain with you, O Sudra, along with the cows.”
”Thereupon Jānaśruti the great-grandson of Janaśruta
took with him a thousand cows, a chariot with mules,
a necklace, and his own daughter, too,
and went to Raikva.

Jānaśruti said to him:
“Raikva, here are a thousand cows, a necklace,
a chariot with mules, this wife,
and this village where you shall dwell.
Revered Sir, teach me!

Then considering her (the princess)
as the door for imparting knowledge, Raikva said:

“O Sudra! You brought these [cows and other presents; this is good].
But you will make me speak now only through this means (i.e. the princess).”
These are the villages named Raikvaparna,
in the country of Mahāvrishas, where Raikva lived.

Now Raikva said to the king:

“Verily, Vāyu (the air) is the swallower (samvarga).
For when fire goes out it is indeed swallowed by the air.
When the sun sets it is swallowed by the air.
When the moon sets it is swallowed by the air.

“When water dries up it is swallowed by the air.
For indeed the air absorbs them all.
So much with reference to the gods.

“Now with reference to the body:

Verily, the prāṇa is the swallower.
When a man sleeps,
speech goes into the prāṇa, sight goes into the prāṇa,
hearing goes into the prāṇa, and the mind goes into the prāṇa.
For indeed the prāṇa absorbs them all.

“These are the two swallowers:
the air among the gods, the prāṇa among the senses.”

Once Śaunaka of the line of Kapi,
and Abhipratārin the son of Kakshasena,
were being waited upon at their meal,
when a Brahmachārin begged food of them.
They did not give him anything.

He said:

“One God, Prajāpati, swallowed the four great ones.
He is the Guardian of the world.
O descendant of Kapi, O Abhipratārin,
mortals do not see Him
though he abides in manifold forms.
Verily, this food
has not been given to Him to whom it belongs.”

Śaunaka of the line of Kapi, pondering on those words,
went to the brahmachārī [and said]:
“He is the self of the gods, the creator of all beings,
with unbroken teeth, the eater, the truly wise one.
They speak of His magnificence as great,
because without being eaten,
He eats even what is not [common] food.
O brahmachārī, we meditate upon this [Brahman].”

Then he said [to the attendants]: “Give him food."

They gave [food] to him.

Now these five
(i.e. the eater vāyu, and fire, the sun,
the moon, and water, which are its food)

and those five
(i.e. the eater prāṇa, and the organs of speech,
the eye, the ear, and the mind, which are its food)

make ten.

These together constitute the krita
(the highest throw in a game of dice).
[On account of this similarity of ten,]
these ten are the food in the [ten] quarters,
and further, they are Virāt, the eater of food,
by which all this becomes seen.

All this he sees, and the eater of food he becomes,
who knows this, yea, who knows this.

Once upon a time, Satyakāma the son of Jabālā
addressed his mother and said:
“[Revered] Mother, I wish to become a brahmachārī.
Of what ancestry am I?”

She said to him:

"I do not know, my child, of what ancestry you are.
In my youth I was preoccupied with many
[household] duties and with attending [on guests]
when I conceived you.
I do not know of what ancestry you are.

I am Jabālā by name, and you are Satyakāma.
So you may speak of yourself
as Satyakāma Jabālā (the son of Jabālā).

He [came to] Gautama the son of Haridrumata and said:
“Revered Sir, I wish to live with you as a brahmachārī.
May I approach you, Sir [as a pupil]?”

Gautama said to him:
“Of what ancestry are you, dear friend?”
Satyakāma said:
“I do not know, Sir, of what ancestry I am.
I asked my mother about it, and she replied:
“In my youth I was preoccupied with many
[household] duties and with attending [on guests]
when I conceived you. I do not know of what ancestry you are.
I am Jabālā by name, and you are Satyakāma.”

I am therefore, Sir, Satyakāma Jabālā.”

Gautama said:
“None but a [true] Brahmin would thus speak out.
Fetch the fuel, dear friend; I shall initiate you.
You have not departed from truth.”
He initiated Satyakāma.
Having separated out four hundred
lean and weak cows [from his herd],
he said: “Dear friend, go with these.”
Driving them away [toward the forest], Satyakāma said:
“I shall not return until they become a thousand.”

He lived a number of years [in the forest].
When the cows had become a thousand...

The Bull [of the herd], addressing him, said:
“Satyakāma!”
“Revered Sir!” Satyakāma replied.
The bull said:
“Dear friend, we have become a thousand,
take us to the teacher's house.

“I will declare to you one foot of Brahman.”
“Declare it, Revered Sir.”
The bull said to him:
“The east is one quarter, the west is one quarter,
the south is one quarter, the north is one quarter.
This, dear friend, is one foot of Brahman,
consisting of four quarters,
and this foot is called Prakāśavat (shining).

“He who knows this and meditates
on the foot of Brahman consisting of four quarters as shining,
becomes shining on this earth. He conquers shining worlds
—he who knows this and meditates on the foot of Brahman
consisting of four quarters as shining.”

[The Bull further said:]
"Agni (fire) will declare to you another foot of Brahman.”

Satyakāma then, when it was the morrow,
drove the cows [in the direction of the teacher’s house].
And when they came together toward evening,
he lighted a fire, penned the cows, laid fuel [on the fire],
and sat down behind the fire, facing the east.

Agni (fire), addressing him, said: "Satyakāma!”
“Revered Sir!” Satyakāma replied.

"Dear friend, I will declare to you
one foot of Brahman.”
"Declare it, revered Sir.”
Agni said to him:
“The earth is one quarter, the sky is one quarter,
heaven is one quarter, the ocean is one quarter.

This, dear friend, is one foot of Brahman,
consisting of four quarters,
and this foot is called Anantavāt (endless).

"He who knows this and meditates
on the foot of Brahman consisting of four quarters as endless,
becomes endless on this earth. He conquers endless worlds
—he who knows this and meditates on the foot of Brahman
consisting of four quarters as endless.”

[Agni further said:]
“A Hamsa (swan) will declare to you another foot”

Satyakāma then, when it was the morrow,
drove the cows [in the direction of the teacher’s house].
And when they came together toward evening,
he lighted a fire, penned the cows, laid fuel [on the fire],
and sat down behind the fire, facing the east,

Then a swan flew to him and said: "Satyakāma!”
"Revered Sir!” Satyakāma replied.

“Dear friend, I will declare to you
one foot of Brahman.”

"Declare it, revered Sir.”

The swan said to him:

"Fire is one quarter, the sun is one quarter,
the moon is one quarter, lightning is one quarter.

This, dear friend, is one foot of Brahman,
consisting of four quarters,
and this foot is called Jyotiṣmatī (luminous).

"He who knows this and meditates
on the foot of Brahman consisting of four quarters as luminous,
becomes luminous on this earth. He conquers luminous worlds
—he who knows this and meditates on the foot of Brahman
consisting of four quarters as luminous.

[The Swan further said:]
"A Madgu (diver-bird) will declare to you another foot.”

Satyakāma then, when it was the morrow,
drove the cows [in the direction of the teacher’s house].
And when they came together toward evening,
he lighted a fire, penned the cows, laid fuel [on the fire],
and sat down behind the fire, facing the east.

Then a diver-bird flew to him and said: "Satyakāma!”
“Revered Sir!” Satyakāma replied.

“Dear friend, I will declare to you one foot of Brahman.”
“Declare it, revered Sir.”
The diver-bird said to him:

“The prāṇa is one quarter, the eye is one quarter,
the ear is one quarter, the mind is one quarter.

This, dear friend, is one foot of Brahman,
consisting of four quarters,
and this foot is called Āyatanavat (having support).

“He who knows this and meditates on the foot of Brahman
consisting of four quarters as Āyatanavat,
possesses a support (i.e. home) on this earth.
He conquers the worlds which offer a home

—he who knows this
and meditates on the foot of Brahman
consisting of four quarters as Āyatanavat.”

Satyakāma reached the teacher’s house.

The teacher said to him: “Satyakāma!”
“Revered Sir!” Satyakāma replied.

The teacher said:
“Dear friend, you shine like one who knows Brahman.
Who has taught you?”
“Others than men,” he replied.
“But I wish, revered Sir,
that you alone should teach me.”

“For I have heard from persons like your good self
that only knowledge which is learnt from a teacher (āchārya)
leads to the highest good.”

Then he (Gautama) taught him the same knowledge.
Nothing whatsoever was left out,
yea, nothing whatsoever was left out.

Upakosala the son of Kamala
dwelt as a brahmachārī (religious student)
with Satyakāma the son of Jabālā.
He tended his [teacher’s] fires for twelve years.
Satyakāma allowed his other pupils to return to their homes
[after they had finished their Vedic studies]
but did not allow Upakosala to depart.

Then his wife said to him:

“This brahmachārī, practising austerities,
has intelligently tended your fires.
Give him instruction lest the fires should blame you.”

The teacher, however, went away on a journey without teaching him.

The brahmachārī out of [mental] grief began to fast.
Then the teacher’s wife said to him:
“Brahmachārī, why do you not eat?”
He said:
“There are in a man [like me] many desires
directed to various objects.
I am full of sorrows. I will not eat.”

Thereupon the fires said among themselves:
“This brahmachārī, practising austerities,
has intelligently tended us. Come, let us teach him.”

They said to him:

“The prāṇa is Brahman,
ka (joy) is Brahman,
kha (the ākāśa) is Brahman.”

He said: “I understand that the prāṇa is Brahman,
but I do not understand ‘joy’ (ka) and ‘the ākāśa’ (kha).”

They said:
“What is joy (ka) is the ākāśa (kha),
what is the ākāśa (kha) is joy (ka).”

They taught him the prāṇa (i.e. Brahman) and the ākāśa related to it.

Next the Gārhapatya Fire taught him:
“The earth, fire, food, and the sun [are my forms].
The person that is seen in the sun—I am he, I am he indeed.

“He who, knowing this, meditates [on the fire]
frees himself from sinful actions,
obtains the World [of the Gārhapatya Fire],
reaches his full age, and lives brightly.
His descendants do not perish.
We support him in this world and in the other
who, knowing this, meditates [on the fire].”

Then the Anvahārya (Southern) Fire taught him:
“Water, the quarters, the stars, and the moon [are my forms].
The person that is seen in the moon—I am he, I am he indeed.

“He who, knowing this, meditates [on the fire]
frees himself from sinful actions,
obtains the World [of the Anvahārya Fire],
reaches his full age, and lives brightly.
His descendants do not perish.
We support him in this world and in the other
who, knowing this, meditates [on the fire].”

Then the Āhavaṇiya Fire taught him:
“The prāṇa, the ākāśa, heaven, and lightning [are my forms].
The person that is seen in lightning—I am he, I am he indeed.

“He who, knowing this, meditates [on the fire]
frees himself from sinful actions,
obtains the World [of the Āhavaṇiya Fire],
reaches his full age, and lives brightly.
His descendants do not perish.
We support him in this world and in the other
who, knowing this, meditates [on the fire].”

Then they (i.e. all the fires) said:
“Upakosala, dear friend,
thus we have taught you the knowledge of ourselves
and the knowledge of the Self.
But the teacher will teach you the way.”

The teacher returned and said to him: “Upakosala!”

He replied: “Revered Sir!”

“Dear friend, your face shines
like that of one who knows Brahman.
Who has taught you?”

“Who should teach me, Sir?”
Here he conceals [the fact], as it were.
And he said [pointing to the fires]:

“For this reason they are of this form now,
though they were of a different form before.”

“Dear friend, what did they teach you?”

“This,” Upakosala replied
[and repeated some of what the fires had told him].

The teacher said:

“They told you, dear friend, only about the worlds,
but I shall tell you [about Brahman].
As water does not cling to the lotus leaf,
so no evil clings to one who knows this.”

Upakosala said to him: “Revered Sir, please tell me.”

He said:
“The person that is seen in the eye—that is the Self.
This is the immortal, the fearless, this is Brahman.
That is why,
if one drops melted butter or water in the eye,
it flows away on both sides.

“The seers call him Sanyadvāma,
for all blessings (vāma) go towards him (samyanti).
All blessings go towards him who knows this.

“He is also Vāmani,
for he carries to living beings (nayati) all blessings (vāma).
He who knows this carries all blessings.

“He is also called Bhāmani,
for he shines (bhati) in all the worlds.
He who knows this shines in all the worlds.

“Now, whether or not they perform
the funeral rites for such a person,
he goes to light, from light to day,
from day to the bright half of the moon,
from the bright half of the moon to the six months
during which the sun goes to the north,
from [those] months to the year, from the year to the sun,
from the sun to the moon, from the moon to lightning.

There a person who is not a human being
meets him and leads him to Brahman.
This is the Path of the Gods (Devayāna),
the path leading to Brahman.
Those who travel by it
do not return to the whirl of humanity,
yea, they do not return.”

Verily, He who moves along (i.e. the air) is the sacrifice;
for he, moving along, purifies everything.
And because, moving along, he purifies everything, he is the sacrifice.
Of that sacrifice, the mind and speech are the [two] ways.

The Brahma priest purifies one of the two
(i.e. the mind) by his mind.

The other (i.e. speech) is purified
through words by the hotri priest,
the adhvaryu priest, and the Udgātri priest.

If the Brahma priest, after the Prātaranuvāka hymn has begun
and before the recitation of the Paridhāniya hymn,
[breaks his silence and] speaks,
he purifies only one of the ways (i.e. speech),
but the other (i.e. the mind) is injured.

As a man walking on one leg,
or a carriage going on one wheel, is injured,
likewise the sacrifice is injured.

Following the injury to the sacrifice,
the sacrificer too is injured.
By performing [the defective] sacrifice
he becomes more sinful.

But if the Brahma priest,
after the Prātaranuvāka hymn has begun
and before the recitation of the Paridhāniya,
does not [break his silence and] speak,
he purifies both the ways,
and neither of them is injured.

As a man walking on two legs
or a carriage going on two wheels
goes on [without obstacle],
likewise the sacrifice goes on [without obstacle].
Following the success of the sacrifice,
the sacrificer too fares well.
Having performed the sacrifice he becomes better.

Prajāpati brooded over the worlds;
from them, thus brooded over, he squeezed the essences:
agṇi (fire) from the earth, vāyu (air) from the mid-region,
and Āditya (the sun) from heaven.

He brooded over these three deities;
from them, thus brooded over,
he squeezed the essences.

The Rik-verses from fire,
the Yajus-verses from the air,
and the Saman-verses from the sun.

He brooded over the threefold knowledge (i.e. the three Vedas);
from them, thus brooded over, he squeezed the essences:

Bhuḥ from the Rik-verses,
Bhuvah from the Yajus-verses,
and Svaḥ from the Sāman- verses.

If the sacrifice is injured with regard to the Rik-verses,
one should then offer a libation in the Gārhapatya Fire,
saying: “Bhuh Svāhā!”

Thus is healed the injury with regard to the Rik-verses
by means of the essence and the power of the Rik-verses themselves.

If the sacrifice is injured with regard to the Yajus-verses,
one should then offer a libation in the Southern (Dakshiṇā) Fire, saying:
“Bhuvah Svāhā!”

Thus is healed the injury with regard to the Yajus-verses
by means of the essence and the power of the Yajus-verses themselves.

If the sacrifice is injured with regard to the Sāman-verses,
one should then offer a libation in the Āhavaṇiya Fire,
saying: “Svaḥ Svāhā!”

Thus is healed the injury with regard to the Saman-verses
by means of the essence and the power of the Sāman-verses themselves.

As one binds gold by means of borax, and silver by means of gold,
and tin by means of silver, and lead by means of tin,
and iron by means of lead, and wood by means of iron or leather,

Likewise one heals any injury done to the sacrifice
with the power of these worlds, these gods, and these three Vedas.
That sacrifice is well healed
in which there is a Brahma priest who knows this.

That sacrifice is inclined to the north
in which there is a Brahma priest who knows this.
And with regard to such a Brahma priest,
there is the following gatha:
“Wherever it is injured, thither he (the Brahma priest) goes.”
The silent Brahma alone, as one of the priests,
protects the sacrificer, as a mare protects a warrior.
Because the Brahma priest who knows this
protects the sacrifice, the sacrificer, and all the priests,
one should therefore make a person who knows this the Brahma priest,
and not one who knows it not, yea, not one who knows it not.