Concept of Mind in the Major Upanishads
by Gisha K. Narayanan | 2018 | 35,220 words
This page relates ‘The Psychological aspects in the Kaushitakibrahmanopanishad’ of the study on the concept of Mind as found in the Major Upanishads: the philosophical backbone of the four Vedas. This study explores the various characteristics and psychological aspects of the mind (described by the Seers of ancient India thousands of years ago) including awareness (samjna), understanding (vijnana) and knowledge (prajnana).
9. The Psychological aspects in the Kauṣitakibrāhmaṇopaniṣad
This Upaniṣad states that all sense organs get merged into one. Otherwise nobody can transmit his ideas in his own way. Among the sense organs, mind has the highest power. The relation between the body and the soul is well explained by the Kauṣītakī-brāhmaṇa-upaniṣad It is said that the soul is the master of all bodily actions. It is the Lord. It is just like a razor which is placed in the razor case, or fire in the fire hearth.
Similarly the conscious self pervades the body upto the very hairs and nails.
yathā kṣuraḥ kṣuradhāre eva hitaḥ syāt viśvambhare vā viśvambharakulāya evamevaiva prajñā ātmedaṃ śarīramātmānamanupraviṣṭa ālobhyaḥ ānakhyebhyaḥ || [1]
This Upaniṣad says that there is no difference between the self or consciousness or Atman and prāṇa. It is just as in a car the circumference of a wheel is placed on the spokes, and the spokes on the nave. Thus these objects are placed on the subjects and these subjects are placed on the prāṇa.
That prāṇa indeed is the self of the consciousness, it is immortal:
na hi anyatarato rūpaṃkiñcanasiddhyet, no etannānā, tadyathā rathasyāreṣu nebhirarpito nābhāvarā arpitā | evamevaitābhūtamātrāḥ prajñāmātrāsvarpitā prajñāmātrāḥ prāṇo'rpitāḥ sa eṣa prāṇā eva prajñātmā || [2]
According to R. D. Ranade,
“The variation in the conception of the path of the Gods is regarded as the varieties of psychological reflections in this Upaniṣad. It is the conception of the path of God. When a soul comes to the path of God, he first goes to the world of Fire, then Wind, Varuṇa, Sun, Indra, Prajāpati and finally the world of Brahman. When such a soul has reaches the world of Brahman, He directs his attendants to the Sun towards the soul and receives him with all glory which is due to him alone. The soul reaches the Ageless River, five hundred celestial damsels move towards the soul and they do correlate the soul with all the ornaments which are due to Brahman. The soul, knowing the Brahman comes and crosses the paths merely by the motion of the mind”.[3]
The Kauṣītakī-brāhmaṇa-upaniṣad clearly mentions the law of ‘karma’. The soul takes on the body of a moth, fish, lion, bird, serpant or a man or any one of the other creatures who have their own karma and knowledge.[4]
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
Kauṣītakī-brāhmaṇa-upaniṣad-4.20
[2]:
Ibid -3.8
[3]:
R.D. Ranade-Constructive Survey of Indian Philosophy, P-163-164