Chandogya Upanishad:

The Chanters' Teaching:

Book I Part I


The Chandogya Upanisad belongs to the Samaveda, and contains much technical information for the use of the Udgatr priests who are responsible for the Udgitha, or loud chanting of that Veda, at the sacrifice. Chandogya means 'of the Chandogas' or chanters of the Vedic metres, from chandas, 'metre', + gai-, to sing.

OM. May my limbs, speech, breath, eye, ear, strength and all senses grow strong. Everything is the brahman of the Upanisads. May I not reject brahman. May brahman not reject me. May there be no rejecting. May there be no rejecting of me.1 May all the dharmas which are in the Upanisads be in me, who delight in the self. May they be in me.

OM. Peace, peace, peace.

Book One

1.1

1. One should contemplate Upas-, contemplate or worship something as a symbol of something else, as in BU 11.1. There is a hint of a pun here, since aksara, as well as 'syllable', can also mean 'imperishable'. the syllable OM as the Udgitha, for one sings aloud (ud-gai-) OM. To explain further:

2. The earth is the essence of all beings, the waters the essence of earth, plants the essence of the waters, a man (purusa) the essence of plants, speech the essence of a man, the re the essence of speech, the saffian the essence of the re, the Udgitha the essence of the saman.

3. This, the Udgitha, is the final essence of essences,Rasatama, literally, 'essence-est. 'Quintessence' would have been appropriate but for its connotations of 'fifth', where this is the eighth in the sequence. the supreme, the ultimate, the eighth.

4. It has been debated: 'Which, which is the rc? Which, which is the saman? Which, which is the Udgitha?

5. Speech is the re. Breath is the saman. The syllable OM is the Udgitha. This is a couple-speech and breath, and re and saman.

6. This couple come together in the syllable OM. When two come together as a couple, they fulfil one another's desire.

7. The one who, knowing this, contemplates the syllable as the Udgitha becomes a fulfiller of desires.

8. It is the syllable of assent, for when one assents to something one says 'OM'. Assent is accomplishment, and the one who, knowing this, contemplates the syllable as the Udgitha becomes an accomplisher of desires.

9. By it the threefold knowledge Rgveda, Yajurveda, and Samaveda exists: one sounds OM, one praises OM, one chants aloud OM, The ways of chanting that are appropriate to the three Vedas.for reverence of the syllable with its greatness and essence.

10. So both do it, the one who knows this and the one who does not know. But knowledge and ignorance are different. What one does with knowledge, faith, the inner meaning (upanishad), is more powerful.

This is the explanation of the syllable.

1.2

1. When the gods and the demons, both descendants of Prajapati, strove together, the gods took up the Udgitha, thinking, 'With this we will overcome them.'

2. They contemplated the breath in the nose as the Udgitha. The demons pierced it with evil. That is why one smells with it both the sweet-scented and the foul-smelling, because it was pierced with evil.

3. Then they contemplated speech as the Udgitha. The demons pierced it with evil. That is why one speaks with it both truth and falsehood, because it was pierced with evil.

4. Then they contemplated the eye as the Udgitha. The demons pierced it with evil. That is why one sees with it both what should be seen and what should not be seen, Or, the beautiful and the ugly. This version of the story seems not to differentiate between the two pairs, (a) good and evil, and (b) pleasant and unpleasant. Presumably, because consciousness is flawed one can (a) do wrong and (b) experience what is unpleasant, (b) being the result of (a). because it was pierced with evil.

5. Then they contemplated the ear as the Udgitha. The demons pierced it with evil. That is why one hears with it both what should be heard and what should not be heard, because it was pierced with evil.

6. Then they contemplated the mind as the Udgitha. The demons pierced it with evil. That is why one imagines with it both what should be imagined and what should not be imagined, because it was pierced with evil.

7. Then they contemplated the breath which is in the mouth as the Udgitha. The demons, attacking it, perished, as one attacking a solid rock would perish.

8. The one who wishes ill for and is hostile to the one who knows this perishes as one attacking a solid rock perishes, for he is a solid rock.

9. With it The breath in the mouth one does not discern the sweet-scented or the foul-smelling, for it is free from evil: what one eats and drinks with it protects the other breaths. At the end, when one does not find it, one departs: for at the end, they say, one has one's mouth open.

10. Angiras contemplated it as the Udgitha: indeed, folk consider it to be Angiras because it is the essence (rasa) of the limbs (ahga).

11. So Brhaspati contemplated it as the Udgitha: indeed, folk consider it to be Brhaspati because speech is brhati and it is its lord (pati).

12. So Ayasya contemplated it as the Udgitha: indeed, folk consider it to be Ayasya because it goes (ayate) from the mouth (asya).

13. So Baka Dalbhya knew it. He became the Udgatr of the people of the Naimisa forest, and used to sing into being all their desires.

14. The one who, knowing this, contemplates the syllable as the Udgitha becomes a singer-into-being of all desires. So much regarding oneself.

1.3

1. Now regarding deities:

One should contemplate the one who gives heat The sun as the Udgitha. Rising, it sings aloud (ud-gai-) to creatures. Rising, it destroys darkness and fear. The one who knows this becomes a destroyer of darkness and fear.

2. This one and that one The Udgitha and the sun are the same. That one is hot and this one is hot (usna). Folk call this one 'svara', and that one 'svara', 'pratyasvara'. Svara (1) from svr-, to sound (or, in some senses, to shine); svara (2),
apparently a variant of svar, sky, sun (as in the vyahrti, SVAH);
pratyasvara from prati-a-svr; to shine (or sound) back towards. So one should contemplate this one and that one as the Udgitha.

3. One should contemplate the between-breath (vyana) as the Udgitha. When one breathes out, that is the out-breath {prana): when one breathes in, that is the in-breath (apana). The meeting-point of the out-breath and the in-breath is the between-breath. What the between-breath is, speech is. So one utters speech while neither breathing out nor breathing in.These must surely be the meanings of prana, apana, vyana and their related verbs here.

4. What speech is, the re is. So one utters the re while neither breathing out nor breathing in. What the re is, the saman is. So one sings the saman while neither breathing out nor breathing in. What the saman is, the Udgitha is. So one sings the Udgitha while neither breathing out nor breathing in.Each part of the saman is sung in one breath.

5. Whatever other works there are that require effort, such as rubbing to light a fire, running a race, or drawing a strong bow, one does while neither breathing out nor breathing in. For this reason one should contemplate the between-breath as the Udgitha.

6. One should contemplate the syllables of Udgltha, 'ud, gi, tha'. The breath is ud, since one rises up (ut-tha-) by means of the breath. Speech is gi, since folk call speech 'voice' (gir). Food is tha, since all this rests (stha-) on food.

7. Sky is ud, middle-air is gi, earth is tha. The sun is ud, air is gi, fire is tha. The Samaveda is ud, the Yajurveda is y, the Rgveda is tha.

Speech gives milk, the milk of speech, for him, and he becomes a possessor of food, an eater of food-the one who, knowing these things, contemplates the syllables of UdgTtha, 'ud, gi, tha'.

8. Now the fulfilment of hopes:

One should contemplate the refuges, as they are called. One should go for refuge to the saman verse which one is about to chant.

9. One should go for refuge to the re verse on which it is based; to the Rsi to whom it belongs; and to the deity to whom one is about to chant.

10. One should go for refuge to the metre in which one is about to chant; to the hymn sequenceSterna (from stu; praise), a sequence of verses sung by the Udgatr and his assistants. from which one is about to chant.

11. One should go for refuge to the direction towards which one is about to chant.

12. Finally, taking refuge in oneself {atman), one should chant without carelessness, reflecting on one's desire. So whatever desire one may have while chanting is quickly fulfilled: whatever desire one may have while chanting. As often in the Chandogya, the end of a topic is marked by the repetition of the last few words.

1.4

1. One should contemplate the syllable OM as the Udgitha, for one sings aloud OM. To explain further:

2. The gods, fearing Death, entered into the threefold knowledge. They covered themselves with the metres. It is because they covered (chad-) themselves with them that the metres are called metres (chandas).

3. Death saw them there, in the re, sdman and yajus, as one might see a fish in water. Realizing this, they went up out of the re, sdman and yajus, and entered into the sound (svara).

4. When one receives a re verse, one sounds OM: so with a sdman, and so with a yajus. This sound is what the syllable is: it is immortal, fearless. By entering it the gods became immortal, fearless.

5. The one who, knowing this, reverberates (pra-nu-) the syllable enters into the syllable, the sound, the immortal, the fearless. By entering it, he becomes immortal as the gods are immortal.

1.5

1. What the Udgitha is, the reverberation (pranava) is: what the reverberation is, the Udgitha is. So the sun is the Udgitha: it is the reverberation, since it moves with the sound OM.

2. I sang only of the one: that is why I have just you,' said KausTtaki to his son. 'You must reflect on its rays, then you will have many.'I.e. sons

So much regarding deities.

3. Now regarding oneself:

One should contemplate the breath in the mouth as the Udgitha, since it moves with the sound OM.

4. 'I sang only of the one: that is why I have just you,' said KausTtaki to his son. 'You must sing of the breaths as abundance, thinking "I will have many".'

5. What the Udgitha is, the reverberation is: what the reverberation is, the Udgitha is. Knowing this, even if the Udgitha is badly sung, one puts it right again from the Hotr's seat. One puts it right again.

1.6

1. This earth The earth is the re: fire is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re. This is so: fire is ama.  The comparisons here depend on the fact that a saman, or verse of the Samaveda, is usually adapted from a re, or verse of the Rgveda. Hence 'saman'.

2. Middle-air is the re: air is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re. Middle-air is so: air is ama. Hence 'saman'.

3. Sky is the re: the sun is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re. Sky is sa: the sun is ama. Hence 'saman'.

4. The constellations are the re: the moon is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re. The constellations are sfl: the moon is ama. Hence 'saman'.

5. The white light of the sun is the re: the blue light, deeper than black, is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re.

6. The white light of the sun is so: the blue light, deeper than black, is ama. Hence 'saman'. The person made of gold who is seen within the sun, with golden beard, golden hair, all golden to the nail-tips,

7. Has eyes like the monkey-face lotus.Kapyisa pundarika, a lotus resembling a monkey's face (kapi+asan), or,
according to Sankara (who derives asa from as-, to sit), a monkey's
behind. The resemblance is said to be one of colour, making this a
reddish tawny lotus instead of a white one-the normal meaning of
pundarika. Perhaps this is a folk name of some specific plant. His name is Ud.  According to Van Buitenen, the use of Ud as the name of a divine being in the sun is 'not just derived from the first syllable of
udg'itha, but also from  a mystical interpretation: 'Looking high up beyond darkness at the higher light we have gone to the sun, god among gods, the higher light'. The composer of the present passage takes Ud as a name, rather than as 'high up'. Van Buitenen quotes,  where the Rgvedic verse is interpreted in the same way. He has risen (udita) above all evils. The one who knows this rises above all evils.

8. The re and the saman are his minstrels. Gesna would seem to mean 'one who desires to sing', a desiderative form from gai-, 'to sing', which fits the context here. Sankara interprets it as 'finger-joints'. Hence 'Udgitha'; hence, indeed, 'Udgatr', since he is Ud's singer (gatr). 'He rules over the worlds which are beyond that, and over the desires of the gods. Iti at the end of this sentence suggests that it is a quotation.

So much regarding deities.

1.7

1. Now regarding oneself:

Speech is the re: breath is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re. Speech is sa: breath is ama. Hence 'saman'.

2. The eye is the re: the self is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re. The eye is sa: the self is ama. Hence 'saman'.

3. The ear is the re: the mind is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re. The ear is sa: the mind is ama. Hence 'saman'.

4. The white light of the eye is the re: the blue light, deeper than black, is the saman. So the saman is carried on the re. When the saman is sung it is carried on the re. The white light of the eye is so: the blue light, deeper than black, is ama. Hence 'saman'.

5. The person who is seen within the eye-that is the re; that is the saman; that is the Uktha; that is the yajus; that is brahman. This one's form is that one's form;23 this one's minstrels are that one's minstrels; this one's name is that one's name.

6. 'He rules over the worlds which are below this, and over the desires of human beings.' Those who sing to the lute sing of him, and so are rewarded with wealth.

7. The one who, knowing this, sings the saman sings of both. Through that one he gains the worlds which are beyond that, and the desires of the gods.

8. Through this one he gains the worlds which are below this, and the desires of human beings. Therefore the Udgatr who knows this should say,

9. 'What desire of yours should I sing into being?': for the one who, knowing this, sings the saman has the power of singing desires into being: the one who sings the saman.




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