Chandogya Upaniṣad

Selections from Chapter 8

śānti-mantra
अाप्यायन्तु ममाङ्गािन वाक् प्राणश्चक्षश्ु श्रोत्रमथो
बलिमिन्द्रयािण च सवार्िण | सवर्ं ब्रह्मौपिनषदम् |माहं ब्रह्म
िनराकुयार्म्| मामा ब्रह्म िनराकरोत् |
अिनराकरणमस्त्विनराकरणं मे अस्तु | तदात्मिननरते य
उपिनषत्सु धमार्स्ते मिय सन्तु | ते मिय सन्तु || ओं शािन्त:
शािन्त: शािन्त: |

om āpyāyantu mamāngani
vākprānaścakṣuḥ śrotramatho
balamindriyāṇi ca sarvāṇi sarvam
brahmaupaniṣadam māham brahma
nirākuryām mā mā brahma nirākarot
anirakaraṇamastu anirakaranaṃ me astu
tadatmani nirate ya upaniṣatsu dharmāste
mayi santu te mayi santu Om śāntiḥ śāntiḥ
śāntiḥ
Grace my limbs with strength. May my speech, vital
force, eyes, ears and all my senses expand in
capacity. The Upanishads declare that all is
Brahman. May I never deny Brahman and may
Brahman never deny me. Let there be no rejection
of Brahman for me. May all the virtues cited in the
Upanishads reside within me, the one who is
devoted to the self.

ya ātmā ‘pahatapāpmā vijaro

vimṛtyurviśoko vijighatso ‘pipāsaḥ
satyakāmaḥ satyasaṅkalpaḥ so
‘nveṣṭavyaḥ sa vijijñāsitavyaḥ sa
sarvāgṁśca lokānāpnoti sarvāgṁśca
kāmānyastam ātmānamanuvidya vijānātīti
ha prajāpatiruvāca (1)
The ātman that is free of pāpa, free of old age,
death, sorrow, hunger and thirst, lover of the truth,
having unbinding desires, is the one to be
enquired into, which one must desire to know. The
one who has sought after the ātman and
understands it obtains all desires and all worlds.
taddhobhaye devāsurā anububudhire te
hocurhanta tamātmānam anvicchāmo
yamātmānamanviṣya sarvāgṁśca
lokānāpnoti sarvāgṁśca kāmānitīndro
haiva devānām abhipravavrāja virocano
‘surāṇām tau hāsamvidānāveva samitpāṇī
prajāpatisakāśam ājagmatuḥ (2)
Both devās and asurās heard this, and said: We
shall seek the self, by looking into which all worlds
and all desires are gained.” Indra from among the
devās and Virocana from the asurās set forth and
both, without communicating with each other,
approached Prajāpati with fuel sticks in hand.
tau ha dvātrigṁśatam varṣāṇi
brahmacaryamūṣatustau ha
prajāpatiruvāca kimicchan tau avāstamiti
tau hocaturya ātmā‘pahatapāpmā vijaro
vimṛtyurviśoko vijighatso ‘pipāsaḥ
satyakāmaḥ satyasaṅkalpaḥ so
‘nveṣṭavyaḥ sa vijijñāsitavyaḥ sa
sarvāgṁṣca lokānāpnoti sarvāgṁśca
kāmān yastam ātmānamanuvidya vijānātīti
bhagavato vaco vedayante
tamicchantāvavāstamiti (3)
They both dwelt there as brahmacārins for thirty-
two years. Then Prajāpati said unto them: “Desiring
what end have you dwelt here?” They replied “A
saying of yours they repeat -- ‘The ātman that is free
of pāpā, free of old age, death, sorrow, hunger and
thirst, the lover of sat, the manifester of desires, is
the one to be enquired into, which one must desire
to know. The one who has sought after the ātman
and understands it obtains all desires and all
worlds.’ It is with the purpose of knowing this that
we have dwelt here.”
tau ha prajāpatiruvāca ya eṣo’kṣiṇi puruṣo
dṛśyata eṣa ātmeti hovāca
etadamṛtamabhayam etadbrahmeti
yo’yaṃ bhagavo’psu parikhyāyate
yaścāyamādarśe katama eṣa ityeṣa u
evaiṣu sarvepvanteṣu parikhyāyate iti
hovāca (4)
Prajāpati said unto them: “The person seen in the
eye is indeed the ātman I spoke of, the immortal
and fearless Brahman. ” “O Revered One, is it the
one perceived in the water, or the one perceived in
the mirror? Which one is it?” (Prajāpati replied) “It
is the one that is perceived within all these.”

udaśarāva ātmānamavekṣya yadātmano

na vijānīthastanme prabrūtamiti tau
hodaśarāve ‘vekṣāñcakrāte tau ha
prajāpatiruvāca kim paśyatha iti tau
hocatuḥ sarvamevadamāvām bhagava
ātmānam paśyāva ālomabhya ā
nakhebhyaḥ pratirūpamiti (1)
“Look at yourselves in this cauldron of water, and
then come and ask me what you do not understand
of the self.” Prajāpati asked them: “What do you
see?” They replied: “O Revered One, we see
ourselves just as we are, down to the hair and nails
--a very pretty picture.”

tau hocaturyathaivedamāvām
bhagavaḥ sādhvalaṅkṛtau suvasanau
pariṣkṛtau sva evamevemau bhagavaḥ
sādhvalaṅkṛtau suvasanau pariṣkṛtāvityeṣa
ātmeti hovāca etadamṛtamabhayametad
brahmeti tau ha śāntahṛdayau
pravavrajatuḥ (3)
They responded, “Just as we are, clean, well
adorned, and well-dressed, so are these
(reflections) clean, well adorned, and well-dressed.”
He (Prajāpati) said: “That is the ātman, the
immortal, fearless Brahman.” They both went away
satisfied (with the teacher’s answer).

tau hānvīkṣya prajāpatiruvācā

nupalabhyātmānamananuvidya vrajato
yatara etadupaniṣado bhaviṣyanti devā vā
‘surā vā te parābhaviṣyantīti sa ha
śāntahṛdaya eva virocano ‘surāṅjagāma
tebhyo haitāmupaniṣadam
provācātmaiveha mahayya ātmā paricarya
ātmānam eveha mahayannātmānam
paricaranubhau lokāvavāpnotīmam
cāmum ceti (4)
Prajāpati, seeing them leave, said: “Without having
understood, without having known the self, they
both depart. Whoever of the two, the devās or the
asurās think this to be the essence of the teaching
will be destroyed.” Now, indeed with a mind that
was resolved, Virocana went to the asurās and
taught this “upaniṣad” to them: “The self alone is to
be worshipped; the self alone is to be served. It is
only by woshipping the self and by serving it that
one gains both this world and the next.”

ya ete brahmaloke tam vā etam devā

ātmānamupāste tasmātteṣāgm sarve ca
lokā āptāḥ sarve ca kāmāḥ sa sarvāgṁśca
lokānāpnoti sarvāgṁśca
kāmānyastamātmānamanuvidya

vijānātīti ha prajāpatiruvāca
prajāpatiruvāca (6)
Then Prajāpati declared: “Indeed the devaās,
abiding as Brahman, contemplate upon the self.
Therefore, they gain all the worlds and desires. One
who has enquired into and understands the self
gains all desires.