Brahman

muṇḍaka upaniṣad - tṛtīya muṇḍaka, prathama kāṇḍaḥ

(Mundaka Upanishad - Third Mundaka, First Khanda in English (IAST))

From Atharva Veda

This profound segment of the Mundaka Upanishad, attributed to the Vedic sages, explores the philosophical nature of the individual soul and the Supreme Divine through the iconic metaphor of two birds perched upon the same tree. It serves as a foundational text in Vedanta, illustrating the transition from worldly suffering to spiritual liberation. By contemplating these verses, the seeker learns to transcend the cycle of sorrow and delusion. Reciting and internalizing this wisdom is believed to grant the practitioner deep metaphysical clarity, intellectual detachment, and ultimate realization of the eternal, non-dual Self.

|| tṛtīya muṇḍake prathamaḥ khaṇḍaḥ ||
dvā suparṇā sayujā sakhāyā samānaṃ-vṛ~kṣa-mpariṣasvajāte |
tayoranyaḥ pippalaṃ svādvattyanaśnannanyo abhicākaśīti || 1||
samāne vṛkṣe puruṣo nimagno-'nīśayā śocati muhyamānaḥ |
juṣṭaṃ-ya~dā paśyatyanyamīśamasya
mahimānamiti vītaśokaḥ || 2||
yadā paśyaḥ paśyate rukmavarṇaṃ
kartāramīśa-mpuruṣa-mbrahmayonim |
tadā vidvā-npuṇyapāpe vidhūya
nirañjanaḥ paramaṃ sāmyamupaiti || 3||
prāṇo hyeṣa ya-ssarvabhūtairvibhāti
vijānan vidvā-nbhavate nātivādī |
ātmakrīḍa ātmaratiḥ kriyāvā-
neṣa brahmavidāṃ-va~riṣṭhaḥ || 4||
satyena labhyastapasā hyeṣa ātmā
samyagjñānena brahmacaryeṇa nityam |
antasśarīre jyotirmayo hi śubhro
ya-mpaśyanti yatayaḥ, kṣīṇadoṣāḥ || 5||
satyameva jayate nānṛtaṃ
satyena panthā vitato devayānaḥ |
yenākramantyṛṣayo hyāptakāmā
yatra ta-thsatyasya parama-nnidhānam || 6||
bṛhacca tad divyamacintyarūpaṃ
sūkṣmācca ta-thsūkṣmataraṃ-vi~bhāti |
dūrā-thsudūre tadihāntike ca
paśyatsvihaiva nihita-ṅguhāyām || 7||
na cakṣuṣā gṛhyate nāpi vācā
nānyairdevaistapasā karmaṇā vā |
jñānaprasādena viśuddhasattva-
statastu ta-mpaśyate niṣkalaṃ
dhyāyamānaḥ || 8||
eṣo-'ṇurātmā cetasā veditavyo
yasmi-nprāṇaḥ pañcadhā saṃ​vi~veśa |
prāṇaiścittaṃ sarvamota-mprajānāṃ
yasmin viśuddhe vibhavatyeṣa ātmā || 9||
yaṃ-yaṃ~ loka-mmanasā saṃ​vi~bhāti
viśuddhasattvaḥ kāmayate yāṃśca kāmān |
ta-ntaṃ-lo~ka-ñjayate tāṃśca kāmāṃ-
stasmādātmajñaṃ hyarcayet bhūtikāmaḥ || 10||
|| iti muṇḍakopaniṣadi tṛtīyamuṇḍake prathamaḥ khaṇḍaḥ ||

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