Message of the Upanishads - the sacred text of the Indian religion - Hinduism

The major Indian religions are Hinduism and Islam. Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism are also represented but not in any great numbers.

I would like to present on this page some of the essential concepts of Hinduism – one of the major Indian religions. The verses presented are from the Upanishads, which contain the essence of Hindu philosophic thought.

Speaking of this world, the manifested Universe the Upanishads say:

The Invisible (Brahman) is the full; the visible (the world) too is the full. From the full (Brahman) the Full (the Universe) has come. The Full (Brahman) remains the same, even after the full (the visible Universe) Has come out of the FULL (Brahman).

The Universe is manifested through the Brahman, which represents wholeness. A second theme of the Upanishads is the striving of Man to find Union with this wholeness – with the Brahman. It is this search for meaning, which motivates man. Victor Frankl, in his book – Man's search for meaning – says that this search for meaning (or our striving to be whole) is one of the major motivators of Man's behavior, along with the desire for food, clothing, sex and companionship.

According to the Upanishads, the Brahman is the cause the ground the goal of the Universe. The Brahman is eternal, the manifested Universe is impermanent. If we can see the eternal in the midst of the non eternal we shall understand the real nature of the Universe. A wave rises in the ocean, exists for a moment and then ceases to exist. It is of the ocean, was never separate from the ocean and will return in the end to the ocean. The manifestations of the Universe, the objects in the outer world that we see around us are the waves, which are transitory. No lasting happiness is to be found by possessing these objects as one never knows when the objects of the real world will cease or change.

Hence we are led to the next step to lasting happiness – which is renunciation. The Upanishads tell us to renounce the momentary in order to gain that which is eternal – The Brahman. The Bhagvad Gita – another sacred text of Hinduism, one of the major Indian religions – tells us to do our duty without being attached to the results. This is because the results will always be transitory, fleeting and these sacred texts guide us to that which is eternal.

The Bhagvad Gita says:

Work (done with selfish desire) is far inferior, O Arjuna, to that done with detached reason. Take refuge in detached reason. Small minded are they who are motivated by selfish results.

The quality of detachment, of not caring for results, of not caring what becomes of us in future but always seeking to do one's duty is one of the greatest gifts of all philosophy – whether eastern or otherwise. It is what Hinduism, one of the major Indian religions tells us to aspire to. We are advised not to take our selfish desires as our guide, but to seek to do our duty. Most of the great saints - whether of Indian religions or otherwise - revolutionaries and persons who have benefited mankind have had this common characteristic – they have done what they felt they had to do without caring what the results would mean for them personally.

This quality of detachment can be cultivated by a study of the Upanishads - the sacred text of the one of the major religions of India, Hinduism. A good book is The Message of the Upanishads by Swami Ranganathananda of the Ramakrishna Mission.

Studying the Upanishads - the sacred text of Hinduism, one of the major Indian religions - demands an inquiring and seeking mind. In the beginning – study of the Upanishads was restricted to a select few – the Hindu monks and it was regarded as a secret. In the present day the study of the Upanishads has been thrown open to all, not just in India but all other countries. But in one respects the Upanishads still remain a secret. The depth of meaning contained in them cannot be uncovered except through strong effort. In the words of one of the Upanishads, butter is present in milk, but it needs churning to bring it out. So is the truth hidden in experience; it has to be churned out by inquiry and deep meditation. What is needed is earnestness. We cannot saunter into truth seeking; the leisurely attitude, which flings questions about God and Truth at random, not even waiting for an answer will not do. It requires effort.