Upanishads (Müller) — IV. The Kaushîtaki-Brâhmana-Upanishad

The Upanishads, Part 1 (SBE01): Introduction to the Upani... | Internet Sacred Text ArchiveSacred Texts Hinduism Index Previous Next Buy this Book at Amazon.com *The Upanishads, Part 1 (SBE01)*, by Max Müller, [1879], at sacred-texts.com ## IV. ## THE KAUSHÎTAKI-BRÂHMA*N*A-UPANISHAD. THE Kaushîtaki-upanishad, or, as it is more properly called, the Kaushîtaki-brâhma*n*a-upanishad, belongs, like the Aitareya-upanishad, to the followers of the Rig-veda. It was translated into Persian under the title of Kokhenk, and has been published in the Bibliotheca Indica, with *S*aṅkarânanda's commentary and an excellent translation by Professor Cowell. Though it is called the Kaushîtaki-brâhma*n*a-upanishad, it does not form part of the Kaushîtaki-brâhma*n*a in 30 adhyâyas which we possess, and we must therefore account for its name by admitting that the Âra*n*yaka, of which it formed a portion, could be reckoned as part of the Brâhma*n*a literature of the Rig-veda (see Aitareya-âra*n*yaka, Introduction, p. xcii), and that hence the Upanishad might be called the Upanishad of the Brâhma*n*a of the Kaushîtakins 2. From a commentary discovered by Professor Cowell it appears that the four adhyâyas of this Upanishad p. xcix were followed by five other adhyâyas, answering, so far as we can judge from a few extracts, to some of the adhyâyas of the Aitareya-âra*n*yaka, while an imperfect MS. of an Âra*n*yaka in the Royal Library at Berlin (Weber, Catalogue, p.20) begins, like the Aitareya-âra*n*yaka, with a description of the Mahâvrata, followed by discussions on the uktha in the second adhyâya; and then proceeds in the third adhyâya to give the story of *K*itra Gâṅgyâyani in the same words as the Kaushîtaki-upanishad in the first adhyâya. Other MSS. again adopt different divisions. In one MS. of the commentary (MS. A), the four adhyâyas of the Upanishad are counted as sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth (ending with ityâra*n*yake navamo 'dhyâya*h*); in another (MS. P) the third and fourth adhyâyas of the Upanishad are quoted as the fifth and sixth of the Kaushîtakyâra*n*yaka, possibly agreeing therefore, to a certain extent, with the Berlin MS. In a MS. of the *S*âṅkhâyana Âra*n*yaka in the Royal Library at Berlin, there are 15 adhyâyas, 1 and 2 corresponding to Ait. Âr. 1 and 5; 3-6 containing the Kaushîtaki-upanishad; 7 and 8 corresponding to Ait. Âr. 3 1. Poley seems to have known a MS. in which the four adhyâyas of the Upanishad formed the first, seventh, eighth, and ninth adhyâyas of a Kaushîtaki-brâhma*n*a. As there were various recensions of the Kaushîtaki-brâhma*n*a (the *S*âṅkhâyana, Kauthuma, &c.), the Upanishad also exists in at least two texts. The commentator, in some of its MSS., refers to the various readings of the *S*âkhâs, explaining them, whenever there seems to be occasion for it. I have generally followed the text which is presupposed by *S*aṅkarânanda's Dîpikâ, and contained in MSS. F, G (Cowell, Preface, p. v), so far as regards the third and fourth adhyâyas. According to Professor Cowell, Vidyâranya in his Sarvopanishadarthânubhûtiprakâ*s*a followed the text of the commentary, while Sankarâkârya, if we may trust to extracts in his commentary on the Vedânta-sûtras, followed the other text, contained in MS. A (Cowell, Preface, p. v). p. c The style of the commentator differs in so marked a manner from that of *S*aṅkarâ*k*ârya, that even without the fact that the author of the commentary on the Kaushîtaki-upanishad is called *S*aṅkarânanda, it would have been difficult to ascribe it, as has been done by some scholars, to the famous *S*aṅkarânanda. *S*aṅkarânanda is called the teacher of Mâdhavâ*k*ârya (Hall, Index, p. 98), and the disciple of Ânandâtma Muni (Hall, Index, p. 116). I have had the great advantage of being able to consult for the Kaushîtaki-upanishad, not only the text and commentary as edited by Professor Cowell, but also his excellent translation. If I differ from him in some points, this is but natural, considering the character of the text and the many difficulties that have still to be solved, before we can hope to arrive at a full understanding of these ancient philosophical treatises. ### Footnotes xcviii:2 A Mahâ-kaushîtaki-brâhma*n*a is quoted, but has not yet been met with. xcix:1 See Weber, History of Sanskrit Literature, p. 50. Next: V. The Vâgasaneyi-Samhitâ-Upanishad