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The Upanishads are Hindu philosophical works written in late Vedic Sanskrit that served as the foundation for subsequent Hindu philosophy. They are the most recent section of the Vedas, Hinduism’s oldest texts, and deal with meditation, philosophy, consciousness, and ontological knowledge; older sections deal with mantras, benedictions, rites, ceremonies, and sacrifices. The Upanishads describe a vast range of “rites, incarnations, and esoteric knowledge” leaving from Vedic ritualism and interpreted in many ways in succeeding commentarial traditions, making them among the most important texts in the history of Indian religions and culture. The Upanishads are the most well-known of all Vedic literature, and their different concepts, interpreted in numerous ways, influenced Hinduism’s subsequent traditions.
The Mahavakyas are the Upanishads‘ “Great Sayings,” as defined by the Advaita school of Vedanta, with maha meaning “great” and vakya meaning “sentence.” Mahavakyas are typically thought to be four in number.
- प्रज्ञानम् ब्रह्म (prajñānam brahma): The Rig Veda’s Aitareya Upanishad says, “Prajnana is Brahman.”
- अयम् आत्मा ब्रह्म (ayam ātmā brahma): The Mandukya Upanishad of the Atharva Veda says, “This Self (Atma) is Brahman.”
- तत् त्वम् असि (tat tvam asi): “You are That,” according to the Sama Veda’s Chandogya Upanishad.
- अहम् ब्रह्म अस्मि (aham brahmāsmi): The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad of the Yajur Veda says, “I am Brahma.”
The four principal Mahavakyas
Though there are numerous Mahavakyas, four of them are frequently referred to as “the Mahavakyas,” one from each of the four Vedas. Other Mahavakyas include:
- ekam evadvitiyam brahma – Brahman is one, without a second (Chandogya Upanishad)
- so ‘ham – I am that (Isha Upanishad)
- sarvam khalvidam brahma – All of this is brahman (Chandogya Upanishad 3.14.1)
- etad vai tat – (Katha Upanishad)
The four [main] mahavakyas are taught as four mantras to those who are initiated into sannyasa in Advaita Vedanta, “to reach this greatest of states in which the individual self melts inseparably in Brahman.” The four Upanishadic assertions demonstrate the true identity of the person (jivatman) as sat (the Existent), Brahman, and consciousness, according to the Advaita Vedanta school. All Upanishads have the same subject matter and substance, according to Vedanta tradition, and all Upanishadic Mahavakyas communicate this one universal message in the form of succinct and simple sentences. Mahavakya evolved to imply “discourse” in later Sanskrit use, particularly discourse on a philosophically elevated topic.
prajñānam brahma
The Rig Veda’s Aitareya Upanishad 3.3 says:
1. What is the nature of this self (atman)? – this is how we honour.
2. Who is the self among these? Is it by this that one sees? Or hears? Smells, for example… But they are different types of cognition.
3. Brahman, Indra, and all the gods are involved. It’s… the earth, wind, space, water, and lights… It’s everything with a pulse… Knowledge is the eye of everything, and it is built on knowledge. Knowledge is the world’s eye, and knowledge is its basis. Brahman is aware.
“Prajnanam is Brahman,” most interpretations claim. Some versions state “Brahman is Prajnanam,” especially “Brahman is Prajnanam,” which means “The Ultimate Reality is knowledge (or consciousness).” According to Sahu,
Prajnanam iti Brahman – wisdom is the Self. Prajnanam refers to the intuitive truth which can be verified/tested by reason. It is a higher function of the intellect that ascertains the Sat or Truth/Existent in the Sat-Chit-Ananda or truth/existent-consciousness-bliss, i.e. the Brahman/Atman/Self/person […] A truly wise person […] is known as Prajna – who has attained Brahmanhood itself; thus, testifying to the VedicMaha Vakya (great saying or words of wisdom): Prajnanam iti Brahman.
And according to David Loy,
The knowledge of Brahman […] is not intuition of Brahman but itself is Brahman.
ayam ātmā brahma
- The Atharva Veda’s Mandukya Upanishad 1-2:
OM – this entire world is one syllable! Here’s a more detailed explanation. The past, present, and future are all simply OM; and whatever is beyond the three periods is likewise simply OM – - because this brahman is the Whole. This [brahman] is this self (tman), and this [brahman] is this self (tman) with four quarters.
Sanskrit text
सर्वं ह्येतद् ब्रह्मायमात्मा ब्रह्म सोऽयमात्मा चतुष्पात् ॥ २ ॥
sarvaM hyetad brahmAyamAtmA brahma so.ayam atma chatuShpAt
- sarvam hyetad – everything here, the Whole, all this
- hi – (is) certainly
- brahma – Brahman
- ayam – this
- atma – Atman, self, essence
- brahma – Brahman
- sah ayam atman – “this very atman”
- chatuShpAt – “has four aspects”
While most translations split the statement into separate pieces, Olivelle’s version incorporates a variety of terms with different meanings:
- “This brahman is the Whole,” says sarvam hyetad brahma(सर्वं ह्येतद् ब्रह्मा).
- “Brahma ayam atma(ब्रह्मायमात्मा)” translates to “Brahman is Tman.”
- Brahman sah ayam atman(ब्रह्म सोऽयमात्मा ) “Brahman is this (very) self,” says the Hindu.
The Mandukya Upanishad asserts several times that Om is atman, as well as that turiya is atman. In his Mandukya Karika, Gaudapadas Advaita Vedanta is based on the Mandukya Upanishad.
tat tvam asi
In the discussion between Uddalaka and his son Svetaketu in the Chandogya Upanishad 6.8.7. It comes at the end of a part and is repeated as a refrain at the end of successive sections:
[6.2.1] This planet was just what is present in the beginning, son – one only, without a second. [6.2.3] And it had this thought: “Allow me to multiply. Allow me to reproduce.” [6.8.3] It can’t exist without a foundation. [6.8.4] Look for the root in the existence. My son, the existent is the source of all these animals; the existent is their resting place, their basis. The purest essence here is what makes up the self of the entire world; it is the truth; it is the self (atman).
In ChU.6.8.12 it appears as follows:
‘Bring a banyan fruit.’
‘Here it is, sir.’
‘Cut it up.’
‘I’ve cut it up, sir.’
‘What do you see here?’
‘These quite tiny seeds, sir.’
‘Now, take one of them and cut it up.’
‘I’ve cut it up, sir.’
‘What do you see there?’
‘Nothing, sir.’‘This finest essence here, son, that you can’t even see-look how this gigantic banyan tree stands here because of that finest essence.’ Believe me, my son: the greatest essence here is what makes up the world’s self; it is the truth; it is the self (atman). And you, Svetaketu, are like that.
Tat Tvam Asi is commonly translated as “Thou art that,” “That art thou,” “You are that,” “You are it,” or “You are it,” though Brereton and others argue that the correct translation is “In that way [=thus] are you, Svetaketu,” or “That is how you are”:
- Tat – “it,” “that”; or alternatively “thus,” “in that way,” or “that is how.” With the suffix -tva, an absolutive derivation from tat can be formed: tattva, ‘thatness,’ ‘principle,”reality,’ or ‘truth’; compare tathata, “suchness,” an absolutive derivation from tatha – ‘thus,”so,’ such’, but with the suffix -ta, not -tva.
- tvam – you, thou
- asi – you are
The common translation of “you are that” is inaccurate, according to Brereton, and should be rendered as “In that way [=thus] are you, Svetaketu.” According to Brian Black, “Because the pronoun tat (that) is neuter, it cannot be used with the masculine tvam (you). Thus, if the intended meaning was “you are that,” the sentence should read sa tvam asi.” According to Brereton, tat tvam asi is best translated as “in that way you are.” According to Brereton, the refrain “That you are” originated in Ch.U.6.12, from whence it was copied into subsequent verses. That is, “the very nature of all creation as penetrated by [the finest essence],” which is also the nature of Svetaketu, as stated in ChU.6.8.12:
The verse begins by stating that the tree develops and survives because of an unseen essence. In the refrain, it is said that everything, including the entire planet, exists because of such an essence. This essence is the truth since it is eternal and genuine. It is the self, because everything revolves around it. Finally, Uddalaka personalises the instruction. Svetaketu should have the same attitude toward himself. This essence, which is his final actuality and genuine being, pervades him, the tree, and the entire universe.
Lipner has misgivings about Brereton’s interpretation, writing that “Brereton accepts that the philosophical significance of the line may be reflected by the translation “That you are,” were “that” to refer to the ultimate Being (sat/satya).”
aham brahmāsmi
The Shukla Yajurveda’s Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 1.4.10 has the phrase “I am Brahman”:
[1.4.1] This planet started off as a single body (atman) formed like a man. When he glanced around, he only saw himself. ‘Here I am!’ was the first thing he uttered, and the name ‘I’ was born from it. [1.4.9] ‘Since people believe that understanding brahman will enable them to become the Whole, what did brahman know that enabled it to become the Whole?’ [1.4.10] This cosmos used to be simply brahman, and it only knew itself (atman), believing, “I am brahman.” As a result, it became known as the Whole. When a man understands that he is a brahman in this way, he becomes the entire world. Even the gods are powerless to stop him from becoming their very self (atman).
- Aham (अहम्) – literally “I”
- Brahma (ब्रह्म) – entire or always-full
- Asmi (अस्मि) – “Am,” as in “to be,” is the first-person singular present tense of the verb.
Aham Brahmasmi can be interpreted as “I am the Absolute” or “My identity is cosmic,” but it can also indicate “you are a component of god like any other element.”
Sankara explains in his comment on this passage that Brahman is not the conditioned Brahman (saguna); that a transitory entity cannot be eternal; that knowledge about Brahman, the infinite all-pervading entity, has been forbidden; that knowledge of non-duality alone dispels ignorance; and that resemblance meditation is only an idea. He also says that the word Aham Brahmaasmi is the mantra’s meaning.
Non-duality and plurality, he says, are only contradictory when applied to the Self, who is everlasting and without parts, but not to the consequences, which have parts. The aham in this remarkable term is extreme openness, not closedness as a pure mental concept. The entire temporal cosmos is regarded by the ignorant as a distinct entity between Brahman and aham-brahma (duality).
