The Mandukya Upanishad: An Exposition

by Swami Krishnananda

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The Upanishads are regarded as the highest reaches ever achieved in the history of mankind. The greatness of these discoveries is in the unique approach of the Masters, adopted in plumbing the depths of Reality. Man usually looks outward, looks inward, or looks upward in search of the knowledge of the world, of him and of the mystery of creation. This has been the realistic, idealistic and theistic ways not having taken man to his intended destination.

Unfortunately for man, Reality has managed to remain transcendent to every one of these approaches, for it is not outside, not inside, not above. It is everywhere, at all times, and in everything. Such a Being, that Reality is, cannot obviously be the object of any individual's exclusive enterprise which is always interested in placing it in the position of an object, whether of perception or of understanding, a situation which is naturally repellent to its nature. Materialistic science, theoretical philosophy and religious tradition have all, thus, been standing examples of the ultimate failure of the human individual in knowing or contacting reality.

The Upanishads are an outstanding exception to these usual human approaches to Reality. They fathomed the rock bottom of being, as such, from all angles of approach, external, internal as well as transcendent,-and brought together in a single comprehension the Adhibhautika, Adhyatmika and Adhidaivika viewpoints in their intuitional with the Great Mystery of Life. The Mandukya Upanishad is the crest-jewel in the entire range of spiritual literature. The exposition presented here embodies a marvelous uniqueness.

Table of Contents:

• Publisher's Preface
• The Mandukyopanishad
• The Pranava or Omkara
• The Individual and the Absolute
• The Universal Vaisvanara
• The Mystery of Dream and Sleep
• Consciousness and Sleep
• The God of the Universe
• The Transcendent Presence
• The Atman as the Pranava.

About the Author:

Swami Krishnananda was born on the 25th of April, 1922 into a highly religious and orthodox Brahmin family, and was given the name Subbaraya. At an early age, he had become very well versed in the Sanskrit language and its sacred texts. The longing for seclusion pulled him to Rishikesh, where he arrived in the summer of 1944 and met Swami Sivananda, who initiated the young Subbaraya into Sannyasa on the sacred day of Makara Sankranti, the 14th of January, 1946, and gave him the name Swami
Krishnananda.

Swami Krishnananda is a highly respected philosophical writer, especially on metaphysics, psychology and sociology. Swamiji's books are known the world over as excellent presentations of answers to the daily questions that arise in the day-to-day confrontations of a human being. Swami Krishnananda was the General Secretary of The Divine Life Society from 1961 until 2001. Swamiji was a direct disciple of His Holiness Swami Sivananda, founder of this Institution. Swamiji attained Mahasamadhi in 2001.