Kenopanishad-All-Verses
Kenopanishad Introduction
The Kenopanishad is a profound philosophical text from the Samaveda, exploring the nature of Brahman (the ultimate reality) and the relationship between consciousness and the mind. It begins with the question, “By whose will does the mind think, the eyes see, and the senses function?” The Upanishad reveals that Brahman, the source of all perception and cognition, is beyond human comprehension and sense experience. It teaches that the true self (Atman) is identical with Brahman, which can only be realized through direct experience and inner knowledge, not through intellectual inquiry. The text emphasizes that understanding Brahman brings liberation, and it concludes with a story illustrating how even the gods rely on the higher power of Brahman, highlighting humility and the limitations of human and divine faculties.
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Invocation
॥ अथ केनोपनिषत् ॥
ॐ आप्यायन्तु ममाङ्गानि वाक्प्राणश्चक्षुः
श्रोत्रमथो बलमिन्द्रियाणि च सर्वाणि ।
सर्वं ब्रह्मौपनिषदं
माऽहं ब्रह्म निराकुर्यां मा मा ब्रह्म
निराकरोदनिराकरणमस्त्वनिराकरणं मेऽस्तु ।
तदात्मनि निरते य
उपनिषत्सु धर्मास्ते मयि सन्तु ते मयि सन्तु ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
oṃ āpyāyantu mamāṅgāni vākprāṇaścakṣuḥ
śrotramatho balamindriyāṇi ca sarvāṇi .
sarvaṃ brahmaupaniṣadaṃ
mā’haṃ brahma nirākuryāṃ mā mā brahma
nirākarodanirākaraṇamastvanirākaraṇaṃ me’stu .
tadātmani nirate ya
upaniṣatsu dharmāste mayi santu te mayi santu .
oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ ..
May my limbs, speech, vital force (prana), eyes, ears, strength, and all senses be nourished.
All this (the manifest universe) is the Brahman described in the Upanishads. May I never deny Brahman. May Brahman never deny me. May there be no denial at all. Let there be no denial for me.
May all the virtues described in the Upanishads reside in me, who is absorbed in the Atman (Self). May they reside in me.
ॐ केनेषितं पतति प्रेषितं मनः
केन प्राणः प्रथमः प्रैति युक्तः ।
केनेषितां वाचमिमां वदन्ति
चक्षुः श्रोत्रं क उ देवो युनक्ति ॥ १॥
kena prāṇaḥ prathamaḥ praiti yuktaḥ .
keneṣitāṃ vācamimāṃ vadanti
cakṣuḥ śrotraṃ ka u devo yunakti .. 1..
वाचो ह वाचं स उ प्राणस्य प्राणः ।
चक्षुषश्चक्षुरतिमुच्य धीराः
प्रेत्यास्माल्लोकादमृता भवन्ति ॥ २॥
vāco ha vācaṃ sa u prāṇasya prāṇaḥ .
cakṣuṣaścakṣuratimucya dhīrāḥ
pretyāsmāllokādamṛtā bhavanti .. 2..
न विद्मो न विजानीमो यथैतदनुशिष्यात् ॥ ३॥
na vidmo na vijānīmo yathaitadanuśiṣyāt .. 3..
इति शुश्रुम पूर्वेषां ये नस्तद्व्याचचक्षिरे ॥ ४॥
iti śuśruma pūrveṣāṃ ye nastadvyācacakṣire .. 4..
तदेव ब्रह्म त्वं विद्धि नेदं यदिदमुपासते ॥ ५॥
tadeva brahma tvaṃ viddhi nedaṃ yadidamupāsate .. 5..
तदेव ब्रह्म त्वं विद्धि नेदं यदिदमुपासते ॥ ६॥
tadeva brahma tvaṃ viddhi nedaṃ yadidamupāsate .. 6..
तदेव ब्रह्म त्वं विद्धि नेदं यदिदमुपासते ॥ ७॥
tadeva brahma tvaṃ viddhi nedaṃ yadidamupāsate .. 7..
तदेव ब्रह्म त्वं विद्धि नेदं यदिदमुपासते ॥ ८॥
tadeva brahma tvaṃ viddhi nedaṃ yadidamupāsate .. 8..
तदेव ब्रह्म त्वं विद्धि नेदं यदिदमुपासते ॥ ९॥
॥ इति केनोपनिषदि प्रथमः खण्डः ॥
tadeva brahma tvaṃ viddhi nedaṃ yadidamupāsate .. 9..
.. iti kenopaniṣadi prathamaḥ khaṇḍaḥ ..
यदि मन्यसे सुवेदेति दहरमेवापि var दभ्रमेवापि
नूनं त्वं वेत्थ ब्रह्मणो रूपम् ।
यदस्य त्वं यदस्य देवेष्वथ नु
मीमाँस्यमेव ते मन्ये विदितम् ॥ १॥
nūnaṃ tvaṃ vettha brahmaṇo rūpam .
yadasya tvaṃ yadasya deveṣvatha nu
mīmām̐syameva te manye viditam .. 1..
यो नस्तद्वेद तद्वेद नो न वेदेति वेद च ॥ २॥
yo nastadveda tadveda no na vedeti veda ca .. 2..
अविज्ञातं विजानतां विज्ञातमविजानताम् ॥ ३॥
avijñātaṃ vijānatāṃ vijñātamavijānatām .. 3..
आत्मना विन्दते वीर्यं विद्यया विन्दतेऽमृतम् ॥ ४॥
ātmanā vindate vīryaṃ vidyayā vindate’mṛtam .. 4..
न चेदिहावेदीन्महती विनष्टिः ।
भूतेषु भूतेषु विचित्य धीराः
प्रेत्यास्माल्लोकादमृता भवन्ति ॥ ५॥
॥ इति केनोपनिषदि द्वितीयः खण्डः ॥
na cedihāvedīnmahatī vinaṣṭiḥ .
bhūteṣu bhūteṣu vicitya dhīrāḥ
pretyāsmāllokādamṛtā bhavanti .. 5..
.. iti kenopaniṣadi dvitīyaḥ khaṇḍaḥ ..
ब्रह्म ह देवेभ्यो विजिग्ये तस्य ह ब्रह्मणो
विजये देवा अमहीयन्त ॥ १॥
vijaye devā amahīyanta .. 1..
तद्धैषां विजज्ञौ तेभ्यो ह प्रादुर्बभूव तन्न व्यजानत
किमिदं यक्षमिति ॥ २॥
taddhaiṣāṃ vijajñau tebhyo ha prādurbabhūva tanna vyajānata
kimidaṃ yakṣamiti .. 2..
किमिदं यक्षमिति तथेति ॥ ३॥
kimidaṃ yakṣamiti tatheti .. 3..
अहमस्मीत्यब्रवीज्जातवेदा वा अहमस्मीति ॥ ४॥
ahamasmītyabravījjātavedā vā ahamasmīti .. 4..
दहेयं यदिदं पृथिव्यामिति ॥ ५॥
daheyaṃ yadidaṃ pṛthivyāmiti .. 5..
तदुपप्रेयाय सर्वजवेन तन्न शशाक दग्धुं स तत एव
निववृते नैतदशकं विज्ञातुं यदेतद्यक्षमिति ॥ ६॥
tadupapreyāya sarvajavena tanna śaśāka dagdhuṃ sa tata eva
nivavṛte naitadaśakaṃ vijñātuṃ yadetadyakṣamiti .. 6..
किमेतद्यक्षमिति तथेति ॥ ७॥
kimetadyakṣamiti tatheti .. 7..
अहमस्मीत्यब्रवीन्मातरिश्वा वा अहमस्मीति ॥ ८॥
ahamasmītyabravīnmātariśvā vā ahamasmīti .. 8..
सर्वमाददीय यदिदं पृथिव्यामिति ॥ ९॥
sarvamādadīya yadidaṃ pṛthivyāmiti .. 9..
तदुपप्रेयाय सर्वजवेन तन्न शशाकादातुं स तत एव
निववृते नैतदशकं विज्ञातुं यदेतद्यक्षमिति ॥ १०॥
tadupapreyāya sarvajavena tanna śaśākādātuṃ sa tata eva
nivavṛte naitadaśakaṃ vijñātuṃ yadetadyakṣamiti .. 10..
तदभ्यद्रवत्तस्मात्तिरोदधे ॥ ११॥
tadabhyadravattasmāttirodadhe .. 11..
हैमवतीं ताँहोवाच किमेतद्यक्षमिति ॥ १२॥
॥ इति केनोपनिषदि तृतीयः खण्डः ॥
haimavatīṃ tām̐hovāca kimetadyakṣamiti .. 12..
.. iti kenopaniṣadi tṛtīyaḥ khaṇḍaḥ ..
सा ब्रह्मेति होवाच ब्रह्मणो वा एतद्विजये महीयध्वमिति
ततो हैव विदाञ्चकार ब्रह्मेति ॥ १॥
tato haiva vidāñcakāra brahmeti .. 1..
ह्येनन्नेदिष्ठं पस्पर्शुस्ते ह्येनत्प्रथमो विदाञ्चकार ब्रह्मेति ॥ २॥
hyenannediṣṭhaṃ pasparśuste hyenatprathamo vidāñcakāra brahmeti .. 2..
ह्येनन्नेदिष्ठं पस्पर्श स ह्येनत्प्रथमो विदाञ्चकार ब्रह्मेति ॥ ३॥
hyenannediṣṭhaṃ pasparśa sa hyenatprathamo vidāñcakāra brahmeti .. 3..
इतीन् न्यमीमिषदा३ इत्यधिदैवतम् ॥ ४॥
itīn nyamīmiṣadā3 ityadhidaivatam .. 4..
चैतदुपस्मरत्यभीक्ष्णँ सङ्कल्पः ॥ ५॥
caitadupasmaratyabhīkṣṇam̐ saṅkalpaḥ .. 5..
हैनꣳ सर्वाणि भूतानि संवाञ्छन्ति ॥ ६॥
hainagͫ sarvāṇi bhūtāni saṃvāñchanti .. 6..
उपनिषदमब्रूमेति ॥ ७॥
upaniṣadamabrūmeti .. 7..
सत्यमायतनम् ॥ ८॥
satyamāyatanam .. 8..
लोके ज्येये प्रतितिष्ठति प्रतितिष्ठति ॥ ९॥
॥ इति केनोपनिषदि चतुर्थः खण्डः ॥
loke jyeye pratitiṣṭhati pratitiṣṭhati .. 9..
.. iti kenopaniṣadi caturthaḥ khaṇḍaḥ ..
ॐ आप्यायन्तु ममाङ्गानि वाक्प्राणश्चक्षुः
श्रोत्रमथो बलमिन्द्रियाणि च सर्वाणि ।
सर्वं ब्रह्मौपनिषदं
माऽहं ब्रह्म निराकुर्यां मा मा ब्रह्म
निराकरोदनिराकरणमस्त्वनिराकरणं मेऽस्तु ।
तदात्मनि निरते य
उपनिषत्सु धर्मास्ते मयि सन्तु ते मयि सन्तु ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥
śrotramatho balamindriyāṇi ca sarvāṇi .
sarvaṃ brahmaupaniṣadaṃ
mā’haṃ brahma nirākuryāṃ mā mā brahma
nirākarodanirākaraṇamastvanirākaraṇaṃ me’stu .
tadātmani nirate ya
upaniṣatsu dharmāste mayi santu te mayi santu .
oṃ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ ..
All this (the manifest universe) is the Brahman described in the Upanishads. May I never deny Brahman. May Brahman never deny me. May there be no denial at all. Let there be no denial for me.
May all the virtues described in the Upanishads reside in me, who is absorbed in the Atman (Self). May they reside in me.
Kenopanishad
The Kena Upanishad or Kenopanishad (Kenopaniṣat) (also known as the Talavakara Upanishad) elucidates the concept of nirguna (qualityless) Brahman (absolute or ultimate reality) and establishes the oneness of Atman (Self) and Brahman. Kena literally means “by whom?”, “from what cause?”, or “whence?”. The word Upanishad is derived from upa meaning near, ni, meaning down, and sad, which means to sit. The idea communicated here is that a student (or group of students) sit near a teacher to receive knowledge and instruction about Truth which overcomes all illusion and ignorance.
The Kena Upanishad begins with the questions of a student who is perplexed about the real cause of existence of the world, and how one might acquire this knowledge about the cause of the world. The teacher responds by establishing Brahman as ultimate reality, and clarifying that Brahman is understood by some as Saguna Brahman and by others as Nirguna Brahman. Saguna Brahman is absolute reality when it is identified with the qualities of being a creator (and sometimes also the sustainer and destroyer) of all existence. On this view, absolute reality is believed to have a form, and is usually referred to and worshipped as God or Isvara. The Upanishad goes on to clarify that the real cause of all existence is nirgunaBrahman– a cause that is itself uncaused, has no form, and is only knowable by transcending all categorical and conceptual knowledge and experience.
In the Kenopanishad, Brahman is presented as both knowing and what is known. It is a kind of pure knowledge without any content, in which the subject/object distinction is dissolved, unknowable and inexpressible through ordinary cognition. Brahman is initially understood to be the only worthy goal of all true knowledge, and then the Upanishad states that Nirguna Brahman can only be completely known when one is able to overcome all forms of categorization. The Upanishad goes on to state that knowledge of Nirguna Brahman is the state in which Atman, the self and Brahman, become one. (This idea of oneness between Atman and Brahman forms the foundation of the Advaita Vedantaschool of Indian philosophy).
The Kenopanishad concludes by elaborating on the state of moksha and emphasizes that all human beings can come to know their Self as Brahman. This knowledge will lead the Self to immortality by uniting with Brahman, thereby eliminating all illusion and culminating all thought in pure knowledge.
Unlike other Upanishads, the Kena Upanishad consists of both poetry and prose. It is divided into four sections, and consists of 13 verses and 21 prose paragraphs in total.
Other Shlokams
Ishavasya All Verses
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Ishavasya Upanishad
The Isha Upanishad is embedded as the final chapter of the Shukla Yajurveda and is one of the shortest Upanishads, with 18 verses. It is the very first Upanishad in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads.
Katha Upanishad
The Katha Upanishad is embedded in the last 8 sections of the Krishna Yajurveda. It has two chapters divided into three Vallis each. It is a Mukhya upanishad and listed as #3 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads.
Kathopanishad All Verses
The Katha Upanishad is a collection of philosophical poems representing a conversation between the sage Naciketas and Yama (god of death). They discuss the nature of Atman, Brahman and Moksha (liberation). The book is made up of six sections…
Kena Upanishad
The Kena Upanishad is embedded inside the last section of the Talavakara Brahmanam of the Samaveda. It is a Mukhya upanishad and listed as #2 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads.
Mundaka Upanishad
The Mundaka Upanishad is embedded is embedded in the Atharva Veda. It is a Mukhya upanishad and listed as #5 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads.
Prashna Upanishad
The Prashna Upanishad is embedded is embedded in the Atharva Veda. It is a Mukhya upanishad and listed as #5 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads.
Prashnopanishad-All-Verses
The Prashnopanishad (Prashna Upanishad) is a key philosophical text within the Indian spiritual tradition, part of the larger body of literature known as the Upanishads.
Taittiriya Upanishad
The Taittiriya Upanishad is one of the primary Upanishads, as part of the Yajur Veda. It says that the highest goal is to know the Brahman, for that is Truth. It is divided into three sections, 1) the Siksha Valli, 2) the Brahmananda Valli and 3)…
Kenopanishad-All-Verses – deity_Keno – Kenopanishad – Full text with meaning, audio and translation from Sanskrit to English, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil and more