THE KENA UPANISHAD(continued)

CONTRIBUTED BY

VIJAYA RAMAKUMAR

AND

VAIDEHI NARASIMHAN

¢¹t£y:  KÎf:    PART   TWO
 
y¢d    mÓysE    s¤vEdE¢t    dB#mEva¢p    n¥n|    Ïv|    vEÏT    b#'NaE    ãpm¯ ,
ydÞy   Ïv|   ydÞy   dEvEÝvT   n¤    m£maÞymEv    tE    mÓyE    ¢v¢dt|   ,  1  ,  
y¢d   if
mÓysE   (you) think
s¤vEd  i¢t   (I) know it well
dB#m¯   very little
ev   indeed
A¢p   perhaps
n¥n|   surely
Ïv|   you
vEÏT   have knowledge
b#'N:   of Brahman
ãpm¯   form
yt¯   what
AÞy   if This (Brahman)
Ïv|   you
yt¯   what
AÞy   its
dEvEx¤   in the devas
n¤   indeed
AT   now
m£maÞym¯   to be ascertained
ev   still
tE   for you
mÓyE   I think
¢v¢dt|   (I have) understood (Brahman)

Preceptor   :   If   you   think   you   have   known   Brahman,   then   you
know   little.   For   what you   see   manifested   of   Brahman   is   but   little. 
Therefore   you   should   enquire   further. Disciple   :   I   think   I   have 
  understood   Brahman  
nah|    mÓyE    s¤vEdE¢t    naE    n    vEdE¢t    vEd    c    ,
yaE    nÞt¹Ed    t¹Ed    naE    n    vEdE¢t    vEd    c    ,   2   ,
n   not
Ah|   I
n   mÓyE   do not think
s¤vEd     know well
i¢t   thus
n   not
n   vEd   I do not know
i¢t   thus
vEd   c   I know too
y:   who
n:   Among us
n   u   n   vEd   as the not unknown
tt¯   that
vEd   knows
vEd   i¢t   as the known
vEd   knows
c   and

I   do   not   think   I   know   well.    Yet I   do   not   think   I   do   not 
  know.   He   who   comprehends It   both   as   Known   and   Unknown, 
  knows   It.
yÞyamt|    tÞy    mt|    mt|    yÞy    n    vEd    s:    ,
A¢våOat|    ¢vjanta|    ¢våOatm¢vjantam¯    ,   3   ,  
yÞy   to whom
Amt|   is unknown
tÞy   to him
mt|   is known
mt|   it is known
yÞy   whose
n   not
vEd   knows
s:   he
A¢våOat|   is unknown
¢vjanta|   to the wise
¢våOatm¯   is known
A¢vjantam¯   to the ignorant
 
He   who   understands   It   does   not   conceive   It.   And   he   does 
  not understand   It,   who conceives   It.   To the wise it is unknown
and to the ignorant  it is known.  
p#¢tbaED¢v¢dt|    mtmm¦tÏv|    ¢h    ¢vÓdtE    ,
AaÏmna    ¢vÓdtE    v£yI|    ¢vïya    ¢vÓdtE{m¦t|      ,   4   ,
p#¢tbaED¢v¢dt|   who intuits It in and through all changes of the mind
mtm¯   opinion
Am¦tÏv|   immortality
¢h   truly
¢vÓdtE   attains
AaÏmna   through the Atman
¢vÓdtE   attains
v£yI|   strength
¢vïya   Through the knowledge of the higher Self
¢vÓdtE   obtains
Am¦t|   immortality

He   who   understands   it   by   intuition,   through   every   mental   state,
 obtains   strength from   the   Atman,   and   through   knowledge,   he
attains   immortality.
ih    cEdvEd£dT    sÏym¢Þt    n    cE¢dhavEd£Ómht£    ¢vn¢¾:      ,
B¥tEx¤    B¥tEx¤    ¢v¢cÏy    D£ra:    p#EÏyaÞmaÚlaEkadm¦ta    Bv¢Ót    ,  5  ,  
ih   in this world
cEt¯   if
AvEd£t¯   has known
AT   then
sÏym¯   true life
A¢Þt   is
n   AvEd£t¯   has not known
cEt¯   then
mht£   great
¢vn¢¾:   great loss
B¥tEx¤   B¥tEx¤   in all beings
¢v¢cÏy   having realised
D£ra:   the wise
p#EÏy   departing
AÞmat¯   laEkat¯   from senselife (or from this world)
Am¦ta:   immortal
Bv¢Ót   become

He   who   has   realised   It   here   in   this   world,   is   liberated   here 
  itself .  He  who  has  not  realised  suffers  a  great  loss. Seeing   the  
Atman   in every   being,   the wise one  rises   above   a   life   bound  
by   the   senses   and   attains   immortality.
  


i¢t   ¢¹t£y:  KÎf:      Thus ends the second chapter.
 
t¦t£y:     KÎf:    PART   THREE
 
b#' h dEvE×yaE ¢v¢jÂyE tÞy h b#'NaE    ¢vjyE    dEva    Amh£yÓt    ,
t    eEXÓtaÞmakmEvay|    ¢vjyaE{ÞmakmEvay|    m¢hmE¢t    ,   1   ,  
b#'   Brahman
h   it is said
dEvE×y:   for the gods
¢v¢jÂyE   won a victory
tÞy   b#'N:   of that Brahman
¢vjyE   in the victory
dEva:   gods
Amh£yÓt   h   became elated
tE   they
eEXÓt   thought
AÞmakm¯   ours
ev   verily
Ay|   this
¢vjy:   victory
AÞmakm¯   ours
ev   indeed
Ay|   this
m¢hma   greatness
i¢t   thus
 
It   is   said   that   Brahman   once   helped   the   gods   by   vanquishing 
 the   demons. The   gods   thought   that   they   had   won   the   victory
  themselves,   and   the   credit   was   theirs.  
t¹Wxa|    ¢vjåOaW    tE×yaE    h    p#aѤbIB¥v    ,
t°    Ûyjant    ¢k¢md|    yX¢m¢t    ,   2   ,  
tt¯   that feeling of vain gloriousness
exa|   their
¢vjåOaW   knew
tE×y:   to them
p#aѤrbB¥v   overcame
tt¯   that
n   Ûyjant   did not know
¢km¯   what
id|   this
yXm¯   adorable spirit
i¢t   thus

Brahman   knew   their   vain   thoughts   and   appeared   before   them.
   But   the   gods   did   not understand   who   this   adorable   Spirit   was.
tE{¢g"mb#¤vn¯ , jatvEd , et¢¹jan£¢h ¢kmEtïX¢m¢t tTE¢t .  3  .  
tE   They (the gods)
A¢g"m¯   to Agni
Ab#¤vn¯   spoke as follows :
jatvEd:   O Jatavedas (meaning allknowing since
¢km¯   ett¯   yXm¯   i¢t   what is this spirit
ett¯   this
¢vjan£¢h   find out
tTa   yes
i¢t   so be it (said Agni)

The   gods   asked   Agni   to   find   out   who   the   adorabale   Spirit
 was,   and   Agni   agreed.
td×yd#väOm×yvdÏkaE{s£Ïy¢g"vaI  AhmÞm£Ïyb#v£ÇjatvEda    va    AhmÞm£¢t    ,   4   ,  
tt¯   to that
A×yd#vt¯   ran towards
tm¯   him
A×yvdt¯   asked
k:   who
A¢s   are you ?
i¢t   thus
A¢g":   Agni
vW   verily
Ahm¯   I
AÞm£   i¢t   am
Ab#v£t¯   said
jatvEda:   Jatavedas
Ahm¯   I
A¢Þm   am
i¢t   so
 
Agni   went   to   the   Spirit,   who   asked   him   who   he   was.   Agni
 replied,   "I   am Agni,  the   All-Knowing from birth"
 
t¢Þmg¤|ÞÏv¢y   ¢k|   v£yI¢mÏyp£dg¤|   svI|   dhEy|   y¢dd|   p¦¢TÛya¢m¢t ,   5   ,  
t¢Þmn¯   Ïv¢y   In you
¢k|   what
v£yIm¯   power (dwells)
i¢t   thus (he asked)
idm¯   this
svI|   all
dhEy|   I can burn
yt¯   whatever
id|   this
p¦¢TÛyam¯   on earth
i¢t   so (he said)

The   Spirit   asked   Agni   what   power   he   possessed.   Agni   said
 he   could   burn   up whatever   there   was   on   earth.  
tÞmW t¦N| ¢ndDavEtêhE¢t tѤpp#Eyay svIjvEn t° SSak dÂD¤|
s    tt    ev    ¢nvv¦tE    nWtdSk|    ¢våOat¤|    ydEtïX¢m¢t    ,   6   ,  
tÞmW   before him
t¦N|   straw
¢ndDaW   put
ett¯   this
dh   burn
i¢t   u?va   thus ( saying)
tt¯   that (straw)
upp#Eyay   approached
svIjvEn   with all force
tt¯   that
n   SSak   was unable
dÂD¤|   to burn
s:   He (Agni)
tt:   thence
ev   at that moment itself
¢nvv¦tE   ev   returned
nWtdSk|   could not
¢våOat¤|   find out
yt¯   who
ett¯   this
yXm¯  spirit
i¢t   thus
 
The   Spirit   placed   a   straw   before   him   and   said   "Burn   it".  
Agni   strived  with all his might  but   failed.   He returned   to   the  
Gods   and   said   he   could   not   find   out   who   that   adorable
 Spirit   was.  
AT vay¤mb#¤vÓvayvEt¢¹jan£¢h ¢kmEïX¢m¢t    tTE¢t    ,  7  ,
AT   thereafter
vay¤m¯   to Vayu
Ab#¤vn¯   (the gods) said
vayaE   O Vayu
ett¯   this
¢vjan£¢h   find out
¢km¯   who
ett¯   this
yXm¯   i¢t   adorable spirit
tTa   i¢t   yes, so

Then   the   gods   said   to   Vayu,   "O   Vayu,   find   out   who   this
  adorable   Spirit   is" .  Vayu   agreed.
 
td×yd#väOm×yvdÏkaE{s£¢t    vay¤vaI    AhmÞm£Ïyb#v£Ómat¢ráa    va    AhmÞm£¢t    ,   8   ,  
tt¯   that
A×yd#vt¯   ran to
tm   Him
A×yvdt¯   (the spirit) asked
k:   who
A¢s   i¢t   are you
vay¤:   Vayu
vW   verily
Ahm¯   I
AÞm£   i¢t   am
Ab#v£t¯   he replied
mat¢ráa   one who moves through the sky
va   verily
Ahm¯   I
A¢Þm   am
i¢t   thus

Vayu   went   before   the   Spirit   who   asked   him  who   he   was.
 Vayu   replied   that   he   was   Vayu, the   king   of   the   air.
 
t¢Þmg¤|  ÞÏv¢y ¢k| v£yI¢mÏyp£dg¤|   svImadd£y y¢dd| p¦¢TÛya¢m¢t    ,   9   ,
t¢Þmn¯   Ïv¢y   In thee
¢k|   what
v£yIm¯   power
i¢t   thus
id|   svIm¯   All these
Aadd£y   I can blow away
yt¯   id|   whatever
p¦¢TÛyam¯   on earth
i¢t   so (he replied)
 
The   Spirit   asked   what   power   he   possessed,   and   Vayu   replied
  that   he   could blow   away   anything   on   earth.  
tÞmW    t¦N|    ¢ndDavEtdadÏs¯vE¢t ,  tѤpp#Eyay    svIjvEn ,
t°    SSakadat¤| ,  s    tt ev   ¢nvv¦tE    nWtdSk|    ¢våOat¤|
ydEtïX¢m¢t    ,   10   ,  
tÞmW   before him
t¦N|   straw
¢ndDaW   placed
ett¯   this
AadÏs¯v   blow up
i¢t   thus (saying)
tt¯   that
upp#Eyay   (he) approached
svIjvEn   with all force
tt¯   That
n   SSak   was unable
Aadat¤|   to take up
s:   he
tt:   thence
¢nvv¦tE   ev   returned
n   ASk|   was not able
¢våOat¤|   to know
yt¯   who
ett¯   this
yXm¯   adorable spirit
i¢t   thus

The   Spirit   placed   a   straw   before   Vayu   and   asked   him   to  
blow   it   away.   Vayu tried   but   failed.   He   returned   to   the   gods
   and   said   he   could   not   find   out who   the   adorable   Spirit   was.
 
ATEÓd#mb#¤vÓmGv°Et¢¹jan£¢h ¢kmEtïX¢m¢t    tTE¢t ;
td×yd#väOÞma¢äOraEdDE    ,   11   ,  
AT   thereafter
iÓd#m¯   to Indra (chief of gods)
Ab#¤vn¯   said
mGvn¯   O Maghavan (lit.,Worshipful,
ett¯   this
¢vjan£¢h   find out
¢km¯   what
ett¯   this
yXm¯   the adorable spirit
i¢t   thus (spoke Indra)
tt¯   That
i¢t   thus
tTa   be it so
A×yd#vt¯   he ran
tÞmat¯   From him
¢traEdDE   (It) disappeared

Then   the   gods   said   to   Indra,   the   chief   of   the   gods,    "O 
 Meghavan, find   out   who   this   adorable   Spirit   is".   Indra   agreed
 and   went   to   see  the   Spirit.   But   the   Spirit   disappeared   from   view.
s    t¢Þm°EvakaSE    ¢ÞæOymajgam    bh^SaEBmanam¤ma|
hWmvt£gq|    tagq|    haEvac   , ¢kmEtïX¢m¢t    ,   12   , 
s:   He (Indra)
t¢Þmn¯   in that
ev   AakaSE   very sky (very spot)
¢ÞæOym¯   female
Aajgam   perceived as come
bh^SaEBmanam¯   very lovely
umam¯|   Uma (Durga)
hWmvt£|   decked in gold
ta|   Her
h   uvac   asked
¢km¯   who
eEtt¯   this
yXm¯   adorable spirit
i¢t   was
 
At   that   spot,   he   found   Uma,   the   beautiful   daughter   of   the
Mountain   Himavat.   He  asked   her   "Who   was   this   adorable   Spirit?"
i¢t    t¦t£y:     KÎf:    Thus ends the third chapter.

                
ct¤TI:    KÎf:      PART   FOUR
 
sa    b#'E¢t    haEvac  b#'NaE    va    et¢¹jyE    mh£yÒv¢m¢t ;
ttaE    hWv    ¢vda·kar    b#'E¢t    ,   1   ,  
sa   Uma Haimavati
b#'   Brahman
i¢t   verily
h   uvac   replied
b#'N:   of Brahman
ett¯   this
¢vjyE   in the victory
mh£yÒvm¯   you bask in glory
i¢t   indeed
tt:   From that
h   ev   alone
¢vda·kar   he knew
b#'   Brahman
i¢t   thus

  "That   was   Brahman , this was the victory of Brahman on which you
exult "   she   told   Indra.   Then   alone   did   Indra   realise   that the
 Spirit   was   Brahman.
 
tÞma¹a etE    dEva    A¢ttra¢mvaÓyaÓdEvaÓyd¢g"vaIy¤¢rÓd#ÞtE    ,
/En°E¢d¾|    pÞpS¤IÞtE    /Ent¯p#TmaE    ¢vda·kar    b#'E¢t    ,   2   ,  
tÞmat¯   therefore
vW   indeed
etE   these
dEva:   gods
A¢ttram¯   iv   are superior
AÓyan¯   others
dEvan¯   gods
yt¯   since
A¢g": vay¤:   iÓd#:   Agni, Vayu and Indra
tE   of your group
¢h   truly
ent¯   this (Brahman)
nE¢d¾|   close
pÞpS¤I:   touched indeed
tE   they
¢h   for
ent¯   this (spirit)
p#Tm:   first
¢vda·kar   knew
b#'   Brahman
i¢t   thus

Thus,   the   gods   Agni, Vayu   and   Indra,  excel   the   other   gods,
because   they came   close   to   knowing   Brahman
tÞma¹a    iÓd#aE{¢ttra¢mvaÓyaÓ;dEvan¯    ;
s    /En°E¢d¾|    pÞpSI    s    /Ent¯p#TmaE    ¢vda·kar    b#'E¢t   ,  3  ,  
tÞmat¯   therefore
vW   indeed
iÓd#:   Indra
A¢ttram¯   iv   is greater
AÓyan¯   other
dEvan¯   gods
s:   He
¢h   for
ent¯   this
nE¢d¾|   nearest (Brahman)
pÞpSI   touched
s:   he
¢h   for
ent¯   this
p#Tm:   first
¢vda·kar   knew
b#'   Brahman
i¢t   thus

And   Indra   excels   all   the   other   gods   as   he   was   the   first
to   know   Brahman.  
tÞyWx    AadESaE    ydEtd    ¢vï¤taE    Ûyï¤tda 3   
it£n¯Óym£¢mxda|b: 3 iÏy¢DdWvm¯    .   4   .  
tÞyW   of It (of Brahman)
ex:   this
AadES:   description
yt¯   ett¯   that which
¢vï¤t:   of the lightning
Ûyï¤tt¯   Aa   u   lightning
Óym£¢mxd i¢t   it¯   Aa    lo! that which one makes one wink
i¢t   A¢DdWvtm¯|   as regards the gods or cosmic powers

Such   then   is   the   description   of   Brahman.   In   the   context   of
   his   cosmic   manisfestation    it   is   He   who   illuminates   the  
lightning   and   even   makes   you   wink.
 
ATaÒyaÏm||    ydEtéÅCt£v    c    mnaE{nEn   
cWtѤpÞmrÏyB£ßN|    sÄðÚp:    ,   5   ,  
AT   then
AÒyaÏmm¯|   with regard to His description from
yt¯   ett¯   That is
gÅC¢t   iv   c   knows
mn:   mind
AnEn   because of this Brahman
c   also
ett¯   this (world)
upÞmr¢t   recollects
AB£ßN|   ever
sÄðÚp:   imagines

In   His   manifestation   within   the   Self,   it   is   He   who   enables
  the   mind   to   know   the external   world,   to   remember   and   to   imagine.
 
t¼    t¹n|    nam    t¹n¢mÏy¤pa¢stÛy|   s    y     
eEtdEv|    vEda¢BhWngq|    svaI¢N    B¥ta¢n    s|vaÉC¢Ót    ,   6  
tt¯   that (Brahman)
h   t¹n|   (lit. adorable as being the Atman of all)
nam   known
t¹nm¯   i¢t   as adorable as being the Atman of all
upa¢stÛy|   should be meditated upon
s:   he
y:   who
eEtt¯   this (Brahman)
ev|   thus
vEd   knows
en|   this (worshipper)
svaI¢N   all
B¥ta¢n   beings
A¢Bs|vaÉC¢Ót   love

Brahman   is   known   as   Tadvanam,   and   should   be   worshipped
 as   the   Atman of   all   living   beings.   He   should   be   thus   meditated
  upon,   and   he   is   loved   by   all  who   know   him   thus.
up¢nxd||    BaE    b#¥h£Ïy¤³a    t    up¢nxd¯      b#a'£|
   vav    t    up¢nxdmb#¥mE¢t    ,7   ,  
up¢nxdm¯|   upanisad
BaE:   Sir,
b#¥h£   tell us
i¢t   so
u³a   having been told
up¢nxt¯   upanishad
tE   to you
b#a'£|   of Brahman
vav   indeed
tE   to you
up¢nxdm¯   upanishad
m   we have told
i¢t   so (he replied)

  Sir,   impart   to   me   the   saving   knowledge. The   saving   knowledge,
   which   is   the   knowledge   of   Brahman has   been   imparted   to   you.  
tÞyW tpaE dm: kmIE¢t p#¢t¿a vEda: svaIHqga¢n    sÏymaytnm¯    ,   8   ,  
tÞyW   its ( of the upanishad)
tp:   Austerity
dm:   restraint
kmI   i¢t   all actions
p#¢t¿a   feet (on which its stands)
vEda:   the vedas
svaIHga¢n   all the Vedangas
sÏym¯   truth
Aaytnm¯   abode

Austerity,   restraint,   dedication   are   the   foundations   of   this   saving
  knowledge. (the   Upanishad) Truth   resides   here.  
yaE    va    etamEv|    vEdaphÏy    paÔmanmnÓtE    ÞvgIE    laEkE
   ÇyEyE    p#¢t¢t¿¢t    p#¢t¢t¿¢t    ,   9   ,  
y:   who
va   verily
etam¯   this (upanishad)
ev|   thus
vEd   knows
AphÏy   having quelled
paÔmanm¯   sin
AnÓtE   endless
ÞvgI   laEkE   in Brahman (or in blissful heaven)
ÇyEyE   the highest, the greatest
p#¢t¢t¿¢t   resides
p#¢t¢t¿¢t   resides

He   who   has   this   knowledge   is   established   in   It. All   that   is
 infinite,   and   blissful  rests   in   Brahman, rests in Brahman .
 
i¢t    ct¤TI:    KÎf:    Thus   ends   the   fourth   chapter
 
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