Katha Upanishad with Shankara’s Commentary

by S. Sitarama Sastri | 1928 | 23,822 words

The Katha Upanishad is a collection of philosophical poems representing a conversation between the sage Naciketas and Yama (god of death). They discuss the nature of Atman, Brahman and Moksha (liberation). The book is made up of six sections (Valli). This commentary by Shankara focuses on ‘Advaita Vedanta’, or non-dualism: one of the classical ort...

हँसः शुचिषद्वसुरान्तरिक्शसद्धोता वेदिषदतिथिर्दुरोणसत् ।
नृषद्वरसदृतसद्व्योमसदब्जा गोजा ऋतजा अद्रिजा ऋतं बृहत् ॥ २ ॥

ham̐saḥ śuciṣadvasurāntarikśasaddhotā vediṣadatithirduroṇasat ।
nṛṣadvarasadṛtasadvyomasadabjā gojā ṛtajā adrijā ṛtaṃ bṛhat ॥ 2 ॥

2. As mover, he dwells in heaven; as pervader, in inter-space; as fire, in the altar; as guest, in a house; he dwells in man, dwells in betters, dwells in truth and dwells in the akas. He is all that is born in water, all that is born of earth, all that is born of sacrifices and all that is born of mountain; true and great.

 

Shankara’s Commentary:

Com.—And he the atman does not live in the city of one body alone; but he lives in all cities. How hamsah ] one who moves; suchishat ] dwelling in heaven as the sun. Vasuh, one who animates all; dwells in the inter-space, as wind; hota ] fire, according to the sruti ‘fire indeed is hota;’ Vedishat ] dwelling in Vedi or earth, according to the srutis ‘ this Vedi is the supreme nature of earth,’ etc. Atithih ] somah. Duronasat ] dwelling in Durona, i.e., vessel; or a Brahmin dwelling in the house (Durona) as a guest (atithih); nrishat ] dwelling in men; Varasat ] dwelling in betters, i.e., the Devas. Ritasat dwelling in rita, i.e., truth or sacrifice; Vyomasat dwelling in Vyoma, i.e., akasa, Abjah ] those born in water, in the form of conch, mother of pearl, whale, etc.; gojah ] those born of the earth in the form of corn, grain, etc.; ritajah, those born in the form of appendages ta sacrifice; adrijah ] those born of mountains in the form of rivers, etc.; though the atman of all, he is ritam, i.e., of unchanging nature. Brihat, great, being the cause of all; even when the sun alone is described by the mantra, even then, from the fact that the sun is accepted as atman in his nature, there is no conflict in this commentary. The meaning of the mantra is that the atman of the universe is only one and all-pervading and there is no difference in the atman.

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