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THE UPANIS: ADIC STORY AND THE HIDDEN VIDY A;
PERSONALITY AND POSSESSION IN THE
BR: HADARAN :
YAKOPANIS: AD
1. For many generations, the Upanis. adic literature has attracted atten-
tion mostly because of its “philosophy” and speculations about man’s
metaphysical core and its relation with the Absolute. However, the
Upanis. ads contain so much which cannot, generally speaking, count
as abstract, speculative speech-acts. Such are the numerous stories of
the Upanis. ads. These stories have traditionally been taken to be the
mere “occasion” for the exposition of the Upanis. adic vidya. Although
destined for inferiority in relation to the wonderful, bold and imagi-
native mystical and metaphysical theories and visions, the Upanis. adic
story may itself sometimes contain a “hidden vidya” of some interest.
Such is the case, we argue, of the story about Yajn~avalkya and the
sages who questioned him in the course of the competition initiated by
Janaka, the king of Videha.
2. The underlying theme – the“hidden vidya” – of the entire third
section of Br. hadaran. yakopanis. ad is Yajn~avalkya’s personality, and the
nature and meaning of his self-confidence and self-transformation. This
vidya competes with the one explicitly present in Yajn~avalkya’s abstract
and beautiful speeches. The story contains references to the “recurring
awakening” of this sage, in the course of his seeking answers to the
questions addressed to him.
3. The most conspicuous feature of the story is Yajn~avalkya’s
outstanding self-confidence. Yajn~avalkya’s teachings are embedded
within the story about his self-possession during a fateful competition.
The opening scene of the story brings to light most clearly the under-
lying theme of the narrative. Janaka, the king of Videha, held a big
sacrifice in which many gifts were given to the brahmins. The spiritual
king had a desire for knowledge aroused in him. He asked (himself)
about the brahmin most well-versed in the Veda (anuc anatama).
He then
put aside one thousand cows with gold on their horns. He addressed
the brahmins assembled there: “Let the best brahmin (brahmis. .tha)
take these cows.” The brahmins present did not dare speak (te ha
brahman. a na dadhr. s. uh. ). Then came forth Yajn~avalkya and ordered
Journal of Indian Philosophy 26: 373–385, 1998.
c 1998 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.
374 YOHANAN GRINSHPON
his disciple Samasrava to take the cows home. Yajn~avalkya does not
wait for the end of the forthcoming competition. He seemingly con-
siders his superiority a fait accompli. The other sages are frustrated
and angry at Yajn~avalkya; “how come he says he is the best brahmin?”
(te ha brahman . as cakrudhuh. . katham no brahmis. th. o bruv ıteti). One
of the sages, Asvala, dared address Yajn~avalkya directly. “You say,
Yajn~avalkya, indeed, that you are the best brahmin among us” (tvam nu
khalu no yaj n~avalkya brahmist. h. o ‘s ıti). This statement seems to express
an obvious sense of challenge and threat.1 Yajn~avalkya’s response to
Janaka’s official Hotr. is breathtaking indeed: “Let the best brahmin be
honored. We just wanted the cows” (namo vayam kurmo
. brahmis. .thaya
go-kam a eva vayam . sma iti).
4. Yajn~avalkya beats Asvala.2 He knows the relevant connections
(upanis. ad) whereby the yajamana attains immortality and transcends
time. Did he have this knowledge at his disposal even before Asvala’s
questioning? Or, did he rise to the occasion and discover this truth in
the course of a self-transforming quest after the “right answer”? We are
not sure about the answers to such questions. In the case of Asvala’s
questions, we do not have a good enough clue.
4.1 But there are other cases, more revealing in this respect. The most
conspicuous ones are Yajn~avalkya’s encounters with Bhujyu Lahyayani
(BU 3.3) and Uddalaka Arun
. i (BU 3.7). In these cases, it is obvious that
the Upanis. adic definition of the situation is such that Yajn~avalkya does
not know the answers when he is asked by his opponents. However, he
seems to know his potential for finding truth. This knowledge could
be the source of his truly outstanding self-confidence.
5. The two great exponents of the Upanis. adic tradition, Yajn~avalkya
and Uddalaka Arun 3
. i, meet and bitterly confront each other, according
to a remarkable episode related in the most “classical among all the
Upanis. ads”,4 the Br. hadaran. yakopanis. ad. In BU 3.7.1 Uddalaka tells
of an occurrence of the distant past, when he was apparently much
younger. He and some of his brahmin-colleagues were travelling in
the country of Madra, eager for Vedic knowledge. The host’s wife was
possessed by a Gandharva (gandharva-gr. hıta), a non-human being by
the name of Atharvan a Kabandha. The sages were apparently taking
.
advantage of the presence of the supra-human source of knowledge;
they addressed him, and he responded. The Gandharva then introduced
two questions: What is “the string on which this world and the next, as
well as of all beings, are strung together?”5 “Who is the inner controller
(antar-yamin)?” The sages present at the host’s house did not know.
The narrative suggests that they also could not know the answers to
THE UPANIS
: ADIC STORY AND THE HIDDEN VIDYA 375
ing to receive knowledge from a Ks. atriya, they are interested in subtle
questions of meaning and significance pertinent to the sacrifice – and
in particular the agnihotra – and they are open to questions concerning
subtle matters such as the nature of the Self, etc.17
5.5 Uddalaka and Yajn~avalkya share some of their spiritual interests
as well as – most likely – much of their knowledge. They are represented
as essentially equal, the two prominent personalities of the Upanis. adic
literature. “Who, expounding the Absolute, can stand much higher than
Yajn~avalkya? Who can transcend Uddalaka Arun
. i’s ‘That are thou’ as
the final answer to the question ‘what is man?’?”18
5.6 The encounter of Yajn~avalkya and Uddalaka, as it is told in the
BU 3.7, is thus of obvious interest. The meeting of these two heroes
is particularly attractive to follow, since the rare meeting of such
philosophers could serve as an occasion for the Upanis. adic authorities
to explore some of the more important topics in the mental world
which Uddalaka and Yajn~avalkya share. Such a topic is the origins of
knowledge possible for man. In this context, Yajn~avalkya’s personality
and self-confidence are particularly significant. The Upanis. adic story,
we argue, is an indispensable means to bring home the “hidden vidya”
about man’s potential for self-transformation and truth.
6. The entire narrative that unfolds in the third section of the
Br. hadaran. yakopanis. ad is a combination of a dramatic story with some
of the most impressive mystico-philosophical reflections on the human
condition and its transcendence. The series of encounters between
Yajn~avalkya and his opponents and colleagues19 is the occasion for
some of the most beautiful expressions of the Upanis. adic vidya. The
two components of the Vedanta-text, the vidya and the narrative which
provides the occasion for its exposition or transmission, are mostly
distinguishable. Janaka’s address to the assembled brahmins about the
most learned brahmin, the sages’ submissive (or reluctant) silence,
Yajn~avalkya’s boastful (or assertive) taking away of the cows, Asvala’s
rise to challenge Yajn~avalkya, the sub-stories of the various encounters
of Yajn~avalkya with the sages – including Bhujyu’s and Uddalaka’s
telling of their journey to Madra – the meeting of the brahmins – in the
past – with the Gandharva, Uddalaka’s threat to Yajn~avalkya, etc. are
all parts of the “story”. The Upanis. adic teaching which Yajn~avalkya
imparts in the course of his being questioned by the brahmins is the
vidya.
6.1 But is the clear-cut distinction between vidya and “story” always
fully justified? How are the narrative and the “philosophical speech”
related?
THE UPANIS
: ADIC STORY AND THE HIDDEN VIDYA 377
7.5 In the ChU 4.1 we find the story of Janasruti, a pious, very
generous man. He has built many hospices, thinking “people are going
to eat my food everywhere”. One night, he overhears two geese talking
about himself and a certain person by the name of Raikva-of-the-cart.
Though the geese think very highly of Janasruti, they consider Raikva
much superior, in particular because of his knowledge. Now, Janasruti
sends his charioteer away to look for Raikva. Finally he is found under
his cart, scratching his itches. He declines presents such as cows and
riches. However, he is fascinated by Janasruti’s wife’s face, and is
willing to teach Janasruti the vidya.
The vidya, in this case, concerns
the two “gatherers”, the wind and the breath, into which everything
dissolves. This story, although complex and attractive to the point of
almost overshadowing the vidya expounded by Raikva, is still within
nkara
the limits set by Sa _ to the Upanis. adic story. The reader of the
story wishes to be acquainted with Raikva’s vidya, the knowledge which
makes Raikva so outstanding and worthy of the arduous and costly
search for him.
7.6 In the KauU 3.1 there is the story of Pratardana, who asks Indra
to choose a boon for himself. Indra declines Pratardana’s request. He
insists that a superior should not choose a boon intended for an inferior.
Pratardana says he renounces the boon altogether. Indra changes his
mind, and suggests – not without some characteristic arrogance – that
Pratardana should know him (Indra). “When a man perceives me,
nothing that he does – whether it is stealing, or performing an abortion,
or killing his own father or mother – will ever make him lose a single
hair of his body. And when he has committed a sin, his face does
not lose its colour”.22 Having demonstrated thus the high benefits of
knowing him, Indra proceeds to teach Pratardana the vidya.
7.7 Indeed, the choice of the examples brought forth by Sa nkara
_ is
commensurate with his theory of the Upanis. adic story as it was outlined
above (according to BSBh 3.4.23–24). The stories are complex enough
and interesting as narratives, and yet the transmission of the vidya
can qualify as the climax of the entire text. Moreover, the stories do
promote some eagerness in the reader’s mind to know the – always
somewhat secret and hard to obtain – vidya. The urgency to know and
the renunciation of worldly riches on Maitreyı’s part do help to create
a certain predisposition in the listener’s mind. The art of story-telling
seems to stimulate the growth of the right frame of mind in the recipient
or the reader. Even information of seemingly lesser significance could
be presented as conducive to the build-up of the occasion for an efficient
transmission of vidya. Thus, the Maitreyı-story presents the other wife
THE UPANIS
: ADIC STORY AND THE HIDDEN VIDYA 379
9.3 The underlying theme – the “hidden vidya” – of the entire third
section of Br. hadaran. yakopanis. ad is Yajn~avalkya’s personality and –
implicitly – self-transformation. This vidya competes with the explicit
one visibly present in Yajn~avalkya’s abstract and beautiful speeches.
The astonishing fact and thus center of the story is that Yajn~avalkya
knows, not what he knows. Can Yajn~avalkya know truths such as that
about the string upon which all the creatures are strung? Can he know
the inner controller? Can he find out the place to which the Parıks. its
had gone?28 Can he tell the atman 29 in clear-cut, direct and descriptive
terms? Can he know how many gods there are?30 Can he know how
the yajamana overcomes death and reaches beyond time?31
9.4 The questions addressed to Yajn~avalkya are interesting indeed.
The vidya expressed in the answers is not commonplace. Yajn~avalkya’s
exposition of the secret of immortality and nature of the Self, the
peculiar difficulty – or impossibility – of approaching the Self, etc., in
BU 3, are among the most beautiful in the Upanis. adic literature. And
yet, given the structure and features of the story, the “primary”, explicit
vidya is of secondary importance. Yajn~avalkya’s power of finding truth
is the center of the story.
10. Each encounter of Yajn~avalkya’s with his brahmin-colleagues
involves a story and a vidya. Some of the sub-stories seem to fit Sa nkara’s
_
definition of the Upanis. adic story. These are the cases in which the
brahmin who is Yajn~avalkya’s colleague seeks to be enlightened, to
know something he does not know. Thus, for example, the encounter
of Yajn~avalkya with Artabh aga (BU 3.2) includes a very short teaching
(vidya)
and a story. Artabh aga asks about the fate of man after he dies.
Yajn~avalkya says that this is a secret, not to be told in the presence
of all the others. Yajn~avalkya and Artabh
aga exit. Now comes the
exposition of the vidya. Yajn ~avalkya tells a certain truth about karma.
A man becomes good by good deeds, and bad by bad deeds (pun. yo vai
pun. yena karman. a bhavati, papah . papeneti). Obviously, the sub-story
of Artabh aga’s secretive meeting with Y ajn~avalkya may be seen as an
occasion for the transmission of the vidya. The listener is motivated
and prepared for an enhanced openness and reception of the vidya,
_
much in accordance with Sankara’s definition of the Upanis. adic story.
Other sub-stories seem significantly different. Obviously, Uddalaka’s
encounter with Yajn~avalkya is such a case.
10.1 Thus, there are apparently some sub-stories in which
Yajn~avalkya’s party to the dialogue knows the answer, and some in
which he does not (in the latter cases, he truly seeks knowledge rather
than Yajn~ avalkya’s defeat). It seems likely, that the hostile opponents
THE UPANIS
: ADIC STORY AND THE HIDDEN VIDYA 383
He, apparently, can seek and find truth “by himself”. This capability of
Yajn~avalkya’s is the underlying theme of the entire BU 3. And thus,
nkara,
unlike the stories selected by Sa _ the circumstances of knowledge-
transmission become more important than the vidya transmitted. The
story reflects on Yajn~avalkya as a revolutionary sage of the Upanis. adic
culture.
13. The nature of the knowledge is – in correspondence with the
nature of the “knower” – also transformed. Rather than being “given”,
it is “discovered” and “found”. Such self-discovered knowledge inspires
confidence and assertiveness on the part of this boastful knower,
Yajn~avalkya. Unlike Sa nkara’s
_ definition of the Upanis. adic story as
subservient to a given, pronounced and abstract vidya, the story of
Uddalaka, the possessed woman and Yajn~avalkya is suggestive of a
vidya embedded in the story itself. The story of BU 3 contains this
hidden vidya about the possible transition (transformation) of one great
sage from being dependent on some external source for truth into being
self-possessed and self-confident.
NOTES
1
As Sankara a (BUBh 3.2).
comments: plutir bhartsanarth
2
BU 3.1.
3
This seems to be the only verbal exchange between Yajn~avalkya and Uddalaka
in the Upanis. ads.
4
H. Oldenberg, The Doctrine of the Upanis. ads and the Early Buddhism. Trans. by
S.B. Srotrı, rep. 1991, p. 40.
5
See P. Olivelle, Upanis. ads, p. 41.
6
Sankara suggests, that one of Yajn~avalkya’s interrogators, Bhujyu Lahyayani, thinks
that since the Gandharva is a supra-human (divya) being, one who had not received
this knowledge from such a source cannot know certain truths. The Gandharva told
the brahmins secrets inaccessible to humans, and since Yajn~avalkya had not been
present at the moment, he cannot know these truths (sa ca gandharvah. sarvam
asmabhyam abravıt. Tena divyebhyo maya labdham . jn~anam.
Tat tava nasti. Ato
nigr. hıto ‘sıty abhiprayah
. ).
7
tac cet tvam n~avalkya sutram
. yaj avidvam. s tam
. cantar-y
aminam
. brahma-gavir
udajase murdha te vipatis. yati.
8
This is how Sankara interprets Uddalaka’s bitter remonstration to Yajn~avalkya’s
praise of himself (“I know, I know”) (veda vedeti atm anam
. slaghayan).
Sankara
paraphrases Uddalaka’s harsh words as: What is all this boast for? You should rather
show your wisdom by deed (kim tena garjitena? Karyam darsaya).
9
Uddalaka is the spiritual hero of the Chandogyopanis. ad, an offshoot of the Sama-
Veda. Yajn~avalkya is the outstanding sage of the “White (sukla) Yajurveda, of which
the Br.hadaran. yakopanis. ad is an offshoot. See P. Olivelle, Upanis. ads, p. 31.
10
See SB 11.4.1. Some brahmins of northern India identify Uddalaka as a particularly
gifted brahmin, who could undermine their authority. They choose one of them to
be the leader in the forthcoming brahmodya.
THE UPANIS
: ADIC STORY AND THE HIDDEN VIDYA 385
11
After Uddalaka answers 31 questions, his interrogator (Sauceya) asks 10 more
questions.
12
The questions presented to Uddalaka in this context focus on the “meaning” of the
details of the agnihotra. Thus, Sauceya asks about the “real nature” or significance of
the cow, the calf, the milk, spoon, etc. and also of the significance of the sacrificer’s
motions such as the pouring of water, wiping the spoon or looking in a certain
direction.
13
See W. Halbfass, Tradition and Reflection, 1991, pp. 323–28.
14
ChU 6.1.1.
15
SB 11.6.1.
16
According to ChU 5.3-10 and BU 6.2.
17
For a comparison of the teaching of Yajn~avalkya and Uddalaka, see Th.J. Hopkins,
The Hindu Religious Tradition, pp. 42–45.
18
P.D. Mehta, Early Indian Religious Thought, 1956, p. 87.
19
The eight persons who meet Yajn~avalkya according to the story in BU 3 differ
in their attitude to their rival, Yajn~avalkya. Some are apparently hostile (Asvala,
Bhujyu, Uddalaka, Sakalya). Others are more accepting (Artabh agı, Gargı). Others
(Us. asta Cakrayan. a, Kahola Kausitakeyi) seem to challenge Yajn~avalkya but to be
willing to receive important – and new – teaching from him.
20
BSBh 3.4.24: tatra tatra samnihit
abhir ekavakyat a dr. syate prarocanopayogat
pratipatti-saukaryopayogac ca.
21
Thibaut’s translation of BSBh 3.4.23.
22
P. Olivelle, Upanis. ads, p. 216.
23
Thibaut’s translation of BSBh 3.4.23.
24
ChU 6.
25
KathU.
26
The case of BU 3.2, where Yajn~avalkya reveals to Artabh aga the secret of karma
is different. See below.
27
See BU 3.9.
28
This is Bhujyu’s question to Yajn~avalkya, according to BU 3.3.1-2.
29
See Us. asta Cakrayan. a’s demand for such a description in BU 3.4.
30
See Sakalya’s famous questions in BU 3.9.
31
See Asvala’s question in BU 3.1.
32
As to Gargı Vacaknavı (BU 3.6 and BU 3.8), I am not sure. But it seems likely
that she is a judicious sage, who undergoes a change of heart (transformation), from
being one of Yajn~avalkya’s challengers (BU 3.6) to being a sage who recognizes
his greatness (BU 3.8).
33
BU 3.8.
34
BU 3.4.
35
BU 3.5.
36
We do not know how – according to the story-telling – Yajn~avalkya tapped his
own resources.
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