Kena Upanishad with Shankara’s Commentary
by S. Sitarama Sastri | 1905 | 13,003 words
The Kena Upanishad is a collection of philosophical poems discussing the attributes of Brahman: the unchanging, infinite universal spirit. Brahman is further proposed as the cause for all the forces of nature, symbolized as Gods. This commentary by Shankara focuses on ‘Advaita Vedanta’, or non-dualism: one of the classical orthodox philosophies o...
Verse 34
योवा एतामेवं वेदापहत्य पाप्मानमनन्ते स्वर्गे लोके ज्येये प्रतितिष्ठति प्रतितिष्ठति ॥ ३४ ॥
yovā etāmevaṃ vedāpahatya pāpmānamanante svarge loke jyeye pratitiṣṭhati pratitiṣṭhati || 34 ||
34. He who knows this thus, having shaken off all sin, lives firmly seated in the endless, blissful and highest Brahman. He lives firmly seated. (34)
Shankara’s Commentary:
Com.—‘This’ means ‘the knowledge of Brahman as explained in ‘keneshitam’, etc., and highly eulogised in the text ‘Brahmaha Devebhyo,’ etc., and the source of all knowledge. Although it has been already said that by such knowledge one attains immortality, the fruit of the knowledge of Brahman is again stated at the end. ‘Sin’ means ‘the seed of Samsara whose nature is ignorance, desire and karma’ ‘Anante’ means ‘boundless.’ ‘Svarye loke’ means ‘in the Brahman who is all bliss’ and not ‘in heaven because of the adjunct ‘boundless.’ It may be said that the word ‘boundless’ is used in its secondary sense. Therefore the Sruti adds: ‘Jyeye,’ ‘highest of all.’ The purport is that he is firmly seated in the unconditioned Brahman, i.e., does not again revert to Samsara [worldly existence].
॥ इति केनोपनिषदि चतुर्थः खण्डः ॥
|| iti kenopaniṣadi caturthaḥ khaṇḍaḥ ||
Here ends the Fourth Part.
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Thus ends the Commentary of Sri Sankara Charya.
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Thus ends the Upanishad.
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