We present here some of the principal pillars of ancient spiritual wisdom and philosophy. These texts should not be linked with any religious identity as whatever they contain is absolute and pure wisdom and represents the height of achievements, far superior to modern science. And that this is our common heritage – of universal mankind. We have tried to be selective so as to make it interesting and useful to a common man. If it appeals someone, he can find his way ahead himself. We have avoided texts like 'Vedas as it is' as they, besides being voluminous, are beyond understanding of a common man. Rather, we have incorporated essence of Vedas in the form of Vedanta, its three parts being Bhagavad-Gita, Upanishads and Brahma-Sutra. Hope you will find it useful, your feedback and suggestions are always welcome.
Bhagavad Gita means "Song of the Spirit," the divine communion of truth-realization between man and his Creator, the teachings of Spirit through the soul - that should be sung unceasingly. The underlying essential truths of all great world scriptures can find common amity in the infinite wisdom of the Gita's mere 700 concise verses. Read the words of wisdom, imbibing and contemplating over meaning of every verse which has power to sprout a spring of enlightenment transforming one’s life.
Read Bhagavat Geeta with detailed commentary and explanations. Such is the glory and importance of this divine book, it is worth reading and rereading it with different commentaries.
Again, an abbreviated version for those who have time constraints. It keeps the spirit of the divine message intact and just 60 pages can help turn your life giving it meaning and a sense of fulfilment.
The message of the Gita, writes Sri Aurobindo (a great Indian exponent of spiritual philosophy) in this work, "is the gospel of the Divinity in man who by force of an increasing union unfolds himself out of the veil of the lower Nature, reveals to the human soul his cosmic spirit, reveals his absolute transcendences, reveals himself in man and in all beings. The potential outcome here of this union, this divine Yoga, man growing towards the Godhead, the Godhead manifest in the human soul and to the inner human vision, is our liberation from limited ego and our elevation to the higher nature of a divine humanity”.
The Upanishads, a part of the Vedas, are ancient Sanskrit texts that contain some of the central philosophical concepts and ideas of Hinduism, some of which are shared with religious traditions like Buddhism and Jainism. Among the most important literature in the history of Indian religions and culture, the Upanishads played an important role in the development of spiritual ideas in ancient India, marking a transition from Vedic ritualism to new ideas and institutions. Of all Vedic literature, the Upanishads alone are widely known, and their central ideas are at the spiritual core of Hindus. Here is the complete version of all 108 Upanishads in plain English, translated to keep the spirit of original texts intact. Glossary can be referred to in concluding pages.
The Brahma sutras (Sanskrit: ब्रह्मसूत्र) is a Sanskrit text, attributed to Badarayana, estimated to have been completed in its surviving form some time between 450 BCE and 200 CE. The text systematizes and summarizes the philosophical and spiritual ideas in the Upanishads. It is one of the foundational texts of the Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy along with the Principal Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita. The Brahma sutras consists of 555 aphoristic verses (sutras) in four chapters.These verses are primarily about the nature of human existence and universe, and ideas about the metaphysical concept of Ultimate Reality called Brahman. The first chapter discusses the metaphysics of Absolute Reality, the second chapter reviews and addresses the objections raised by the ideas of competing orthodox schools of Hindu philosophies as well as heterodox schools such as Buddhism and Jainism, the third chapter discusses epistemology and path to gaining spiritually liberating knowledge, and the last chapter states why such a knowledge is an important human need.
The Puranas form a very important branch of the sacred literature of India. They enable us to know the true purpose of the ethics, philosophy and religion of Vedas. They are the frameworks of the Dharma-Sastras, without which the life force of the Vedas cannot function with effect. The Puranas were written, according to Indian tradition, with the object of popularizing the ‘Truths’ taught in the Vedas. These Truths are presented in relation to specific personages and to the events of their lives. The Puranas describe the historic evolution of the mankind in course of time. They describe the eternal cycle of Creation, Destruction and Recreation of the world, which constitute a fundamental concept in all the Puranas. Besides, the Puranas reflect in detail the contemporary life and thought of the society.
In the deep there is a greater deep, in the heights a greater height. Sooner shall man arrive at the borders of infinity than at the fullness of his own being. For that being is infinity, is God - I aspire to infinite force, infinite knowledge, infinite bliss. Can I attain it? Yes, but the nature of infinity is that it has no end. Say not therefore that I attain it. I become it. Only so can man attain God by becoming God. But before attaining he can enter into relations with him. To enter into relations with God is Yoga, the highest rapture and the noblest utility. There are relations within the compass of the humanity we have developed. These are called prayer, worship, adoration, sacrifice, thought, faith, science, philosophy. There are other relations beyond our developed capacity, but within the compass of the humanity we have yet to develop. Those are the relations that are attained by the various practices we usually call Yoga. We may not know him as God, we may know him as Nature, our Higher Self, Infinity, some ineffable goal. It was so that Buddha approached Him; so approaches him the rigid Adwaitin. He is accessible even to the Atheist. To the materialist He disguises Himself in matter. For the Nihilist he waits ambushed in the bosom of Annihilation.
After a glance at all 108 Upanishads, it will be immensely useful to go deeper and peep into a few of them. Presented here is a detailed commentary of Swami Krishnanand on eight most prominent Upanishads. Experience the beauty of insightful commentary.
Essays on Philosophy and Yoga consists of short works in prose written by Sri Aurobindo between 1909 and 1950 and published during his lifetime. All but a few of them are concerned with aspects of spiritual philosophy, yoga and related subjects.
Note: We have given above material collecting from different sources, primarily web world. We have taken utmost care not to violate any Copyright © 2021 law. Further, we are not making any commercial use of any of these texts, directly or indirectly. Our primary motive is making people aware of this ancient wisdom and thus propagation of the same. Objections, if any, may please be communicated and the same will be properly resolved.
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