Death & the hereafter

Bṛhad-Āraṇyaka-Upaniṣad
4.4

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Translation: Nikhilānanda

[Yājnavalkya continued:] “Now, when that self becomes weak and unconscious, as it were, the organs gather around it. Having wholly seized these particles of light, the self comes to the heart.

When the presiding deity of the eye turns back from all sides, the dying man fails to notice colour.

sa yatrāyam ātmābalyaṃ nyetya saṃmoham iva nyeti |

athainam ete prāṇā abhisamāyanti |

sa etās tejomātrāḥ samabhyādadāno hṛdayam evānvavakrāmati |

sa yatraiṣa cākṣuṣaḥ puruṣaḥ parāṅ paryāvartate |

athārūpajño bhavati || BrhUp_4,4.1 ||

[The eye] becomes united [with the subtle body]; then people say: ‘He does not see.’ [The nose] becomes united [with the subtle body]; then they say: ‘He does not smell.’ [The tongue] becomes united [with the subtle body]; then they say: ‘He does not taste.’ [The vocal organ] becomes united [with the subtle body]; then they say: ‘He does not speak.’ [The ear] becomes united [with the subtle body]; then they say: ‘He does not hear.’ [The mind] becomes united [with the subtle body]; then they say: ‘He does not think.’ [The skin] becomes united [with the subtle body]; then they say: ‘He does not touch.’ [The intellect] becomes united [with the subtle body]; then they say: ‘He does not know.’

The upper end of the heart lights up, and by that light the self departs, either through the eye or through the head or through any other part (aperture) of the body.

And when the self departs, the vital breath follows, and when the vital breath departs, all the organs follow.

Then the self becomes endowed with a particular consciousness and passes on to the body to be attained by that consciousness.

Knowledge, work, and past experience follow the self.

ekībhavati na paśyatīty āhuḥ |

ekībhavati na jighratīty āhuḥ |

ekībhavati na rasayatīty āhuḥ |

ekībhavati na vadatīty āhuḥ |

ekībhavati na śṛṇotīty āhuḥ |

ekībhavati na manuta ity āhuḥ |

ekībhavati na spṛśatīty āhuḥ |

ekībhavati na vijānātīty āhuḥ |

tasya haitasya hṛdayasyāgraṃ pradyotate |

tena pradyotenaiṣa ātmā niṣkrāmati |

cakṣuṣṭo vā mūrdhno vānyebhyo vā śarīradeśebhyaḥ |

tam utkrāmantaṃ prāṇo 'nūtkrāmati |

prāṇam anūtkrāmantaṃ sarve prāṇā anūtkrāmanti |

savijñano bhavati |

saṃjānam evānvavakrāmati |

taṃ vidyākarmaṇī samanvārabhete pūrvaprajñā ca || BrhUp_4,4.2 ||

And just as a leech moving on a blade of grass reaches its end, takes hold of another, and draws

itself together towards it, so does the self, after throwing off this body, that is to say, after making it unconscious, take hold of another support and draw itself together towards it.

tad yathā tṛṇajalāyukā tṛṇasyāntaṃ gatvānyam ākramam ākramyātmānam upasaṃharati |

evam evāyam ātmedaṃ śarīraṃ nihatyāvidyāṃ gamayitvānyam ākramam ākramyātmānam upasaṃharati || BrhUp_4,4.3 ||

And just as a goldsmith takes a small quantity of gold and fashions [out of it] another—a newer and better—form, so does the self, after throwing off this body, that is to say, after making it unconscious, fashion another—a newer and better—form, suited to the Manes, or the gandharvas, or the gods, or Virāj, or Hiranyagarbha, or other beings.

tad yathā peśaskārī peśaso mātrām apādāyānyan navataraṃ kalyāṇataraṃ rūpaṃ tanute |

evam evāyam ātmedaṃ śarīraṃ nihatyāvidyāṃ gamayitvānyan navataraṃ kalyāṇataraṃ rūpaṃ kurute |

pitryaṃ vā gāndharvaṃ vā daivaṃ vā prājāpatyaṃ vā brāhmaṃ vānyeṣāṃ vā bhūtānām || BrhUp_4,4.4 ||

That self is indeed Brahman; it is also identified with the intellect, the mind, and the vital breath, with the eyes and ears, with earth, water, air, and ākāśa, with fire and with what is other than fire, with desire and with absence of desire, with anger and with absence of anger, with righteousness and unrighteousness, with all—it is identified, as is well known, with this (i.e. what is perceived) and with that (i.e. what is inferred). According as it acts and according as it behaves, so it becomes: by doing good it becomes good, and by doing evil it becomes evil. It becomes virtuous through virtuous action, and evil through evil action.

Others, however, say that the self is identified with desire alone. As is its desire, so is its resolution; and as is its resolution, so is its deed; and whatever deed it does, that it reaps.

sa vā ayam ātmā brahma vijñānamayo manomayo prāṇamayaś cakṣurmayaḥ śrotramayaḥ pṛthivīmaya āpomayo vāyumaya ākāśamayas tejomayo 'tejomayaḥ kāmamayo 'kāmamayaḥ krodhamayo 'krodhamayo dharmamayo 'dharmamayaḥ sarvamayaḥ |

tad yad etad idaṃmayo 'domaya iti |

yathākārī yathācārī tathā bhavati |

sādhukārī sādhur bhavati |

pāpakārī pāpo bhavati |

puṇyaḥ puṇyena karmaṇā pāpaḥ pāpena |

atho khalv āhuḥ |

kāmamaya evāyaṃ puruṣa iti |

sa yathākāmo bhavati tatkratur bhavati |

yatkratur bhavati tat karma kurute |

yat karma kurute tad abhisaṃpadyate || BrhUp_4,4.5 ||

Regarding this there is the following verse:

‘Because of attachment, the [transmigrating] self, together with its work, attains that result to which its subtle body or mind clings. Having exhausted [in the other world] the results of whatever work it did in this life, it returns from that world to this world for [fresh] work.’

Thus does the man who desires [transmigrate]. But as to the man who does not desire—who is without desire, who is freed from desire, whose desire is satisfied, whose only object of desire is the Self—his organs do not depart. Being Brahman, he merges in Brahman.

tad eṣa śloko bhavati --

tad eva saktaḥ saha karmaṇaiti liṅgaṃ mano yatra niṣaktam asya |

prāpyāntaṃ karmaṇas tasya yat kiñceha karoty ayam |

tasmāl lokāt punar aity asmai lokāya karmaṇe |

iti nu kāmayamānaḥ |

athākāmayamāno yo 'kāmo niṣkāma āptakāma ātmakāmo na tasya prāṇā utkrāmanti |

brahmaiva san brahmāpyeti || BrhUp_4,4.6 ||

”Regarding this there is the following verse:

‘When all the desires that dwell in his heart are got rid of, then does the mortal [man] become immortal and attain Brahman in this very body.’

Just as the slough of a snake lies, dead and cast away, on an ant-hill, even so lies this body. Then the self becomes disembodied and immortal Spirit, the Supreme Self (Prana), Brahman, the Light.”

Janaka, Emperor of Videha, said: “I give you, venerable Sir, a thousand cows.”

tad eṣa śloko bhavati --

yadā sarve pramucyante kāmā ye 'sya hṛdi śritāḥ |

atha martyo 'mṛto bhavaty atra brahma samaśnuta iti |

tad yathāhinirlvayanī valmīke mṛtā pratyastā śayīta |

evam evedaṃ śarīraṃ śete |

athāyam aśarīro 'mṛtaḥ prāṇo brahmaiva teja eva |

so 'haṃ bhagavate sahasraṃ dadāmīti hovāca janako vaidehaḥ || BrhUp_4,4.7 ||

Regarding this there are the following verses:

‘The subtle, ancient path stretching far away has been touched (reached) by me; nay, I have realized it myself. By this path the wise, the knowers of Brahman, move on to the celestial sphere (Liberation) after the fall of this body, having been freed [even while living].’

tad ete ślokā bhavanti --

aṇuḥ panthā vitataḥ purāṇo māṃ spṛṣṭo 'nuvitto mayaiva |

tena dhīrā apiyanti brahmavidaḥ svargaṃ lokam ita ūrdhvaṃ vimuktāḥ || BrhUp_4,4.8 ||

‘Some speak of it as white, [others as] blue, grey, green, or red. This path is realized by a knower of

Brahman and is trod by whoever knows Brahman, has done good deeds, and is identified with the Supreme Light.’

tasmiñ śuklam uta nīlam āhuḥ piṅgalaṃ haritaṃ lohitaṃ ca |

eṣa panthā brahmaṇā hānuvittas tenaiti brahmavit puṇyakṛt taijasaś ca || BrhUp_4,4.9 ||

‘Into blinding darkness enter those who worship ignorance; into a greater darkness than that, as it were, enter those who are devoted to knowledge.’

andhaṃ tamaḥ praviśanti ye 'vidyām upāsate |

tato bhūya iva te tamo ya u vidyāyāṃ ratāḥ || BrhUp_4,4.10 ||

‘Cheerless indeed are those worlds covered with blinding darkness. To them after death go those people who are ignorant and unwise.’

anandā nāma te lokā andhena tamasāvṛtāḥ |

tāṃs te pretyābhigacchaty avidvāṃso 'budhā janāḥ || BrhUp_4,4.11 ||

‘If a man knows the Self as I am this, then desiring what and for whose sake will he suffer in the wake of the body?’

ātmānaṃ ced vijānīyād ayam asmīti puruṣaḥ |

kim icchan kasya kāmāya śarīram anu saṃjvaret || BrhUp_4,4.12 ||

‘Whoever has realized and intimately known the Self, which has entered this perilous and perplexing place (the body), is the maker of the universe; for he is the maker of all. [All] is his Self, and he, again, is indeed the Self of all.’

yasyānuvittaḥ pratibuddha ātmāsmin saṃdehye gahane praviṣṭaḥ |

sa viśvakṛt sa hi sarvasya kartā tasya lokaḥ sa u loka eva || BrhUp_4,4.13 ||

‘Dwelling in this very body, we have somehow realized Brahman; otherwise we should have remained ignorant and great destruction would have overtaken us. Those who know Brahman become immortal, while others only suffer misery.’

ihaiva santo 'tha vidmas tad vayaṃ na ced avedir mahatī vinaṣṭiḥ |

ye tad vidur amṛtās te bhavanty athetare duḥkham evāpiyanti || BrhUp_4,4.14 ||

‘When a person following [the instructions of a teacher] directly beholds the effulgent Self, the Lord of all that has been and will be, he no longer wishes to hide himself from It.’

yadaitam anupaśyaty atmānaṃ devam aṅjasā |

īśānaṃ bhūtabhavyasya na tato vijugupsate || BrhUp_4,4.15 ||

‘That under which the year with its days rolls on-upon that immortal Light of all lights the gods meditate as longevity.’

yasmād arvāk saṃvatsaro 'hobhiḥ parivartate |

tad devā jyotiṣāṃ jyotir āyur hopāsate 'mṛtam || BrhUp_4,4.16 ||

‘That in which the five groups of five and the ākāśa rest, that very Ātman I regard as the Immortal Brahman. Knowing that Brahman, I am immortal.’

yasmin pañca pañcajanā ākāśaś ca pratiṣṭhitaḥ |

tam eva manya ātmānaṃ vidvān brahmāmṛto 'mṛtam || BrhUp_4,4.17 ||

‘They who know the Vital Breath (Prāna) of the vital breath (prāna), the Eye of the eye, the Ear of the ear, the Mind of the mind, have realized the ancient, primordial Brahman.’

prāṇasya prāṇam uta cakṣuṣaś cakṣur uta śrotrasya śrotram manaso ye mano viduḥ |

te nicikyur brahma purāṇam agryam || BrhUp_4,4.18 ||

‘Through the mind alone is Brahman to be realized. There is in It no diversity. He goes from death to death who sees in It, as it were, diversity.’

manasaivānudraṣṭavyaṃ neha nānāsti kiṃ cana |

mṛtyoḥ sa mṛtyum āpnoti ya iha nāneva paśyati| BrhUp_4,4.19 ||

‘Unknowable and constant, It should be realized in one form only. The Self is free from taint, beyond the ākāśa, birthless, infinite, and unchanging.’

ekadhaivānudraṣṭavyam etad apramayaṃ dhruvam |

virajaḥ para ākāśād aja ātmā mahān dhruvaḥ || BrhUp_4,4.20 ||

‘The intelligent seeker of Brahman, learning about the Self alone, should practise wisdom (prajnā). Let him not think of too many words, for that is exhausting to the organ of speech.’

tam eva dhīro vijñāya prajñāṃ kurvīta brāhmaṇaḥ |

nānudhyāyād bahūñ chabdān vāco viglāpanaṃ hi tad iti || BrhUp_4,4.21 ||

That great, unborn Self, which is identified with the intellect (vijnānamaya) and which dwells in the midst of the organs, lies in the ākāśa within the heart. It is the controller of all, the lord of all, the ruler of all. It does not become greater through good deeds or smaller through evil deeds. It is the lord of all, the ruler of all beings, the protector of all beings. It is the dam that serves as the boundary to keep the different worlds apart. The brāhmins seek to realize It through the study of the Vedas, through sacrifices, through gifts, and through austerity which does not lead to annihilation. Knowing It alone one becomes a sage (muni). Wishing for this World (i.e. the Self) alone, monks renounce their homes.

The knowers of Brahman of olden times, it is said, did not wish for offspring [because they thought]:

‘What shall we do with offspring—we who have attained this Self, this World?’ They gave up, it is said, their desire for sons, for wealth, and for the worlds, and led the life of [religious] mendicants.

That which is the desire for sons is the desire for wealth, and that which is the desire for wealth is the desire for the worlds; for both these, indeed, are but desires.

‘This Self is That which has been described as Not this, not this.

It is imperceptible, for It is not perceived; undecaying, for It never decays; unattached, for It is never attached; unfettered, for It never feels pain and never suffers injury.

‘Him [who knows this] these two thoughts do not overcome: For this I did an evil deed, and For this I did a good deed. He overcomes both. Things done or not done do not afflict him.’

sa vā eṣa mahān aja ātmā yo 'yaṃ vijñānamayaḥ prāṇeṣu |

ya eṣo 'ntar hṛdaya ākāśas tasmiñ chete |

sarvasya vaśī |

sarvasyeśānaḥ |

sarvasyādhipatiḥ |

sa na sādhunā karmaṇā bhūyān |

no evāsādhunā kanīyān |

eṣa sarveśvaraḥ |

eṣa bhūtādhipatiḥ |

eṣa bhūtapālaḥ |

eṣa setur vidharaṇa eṣāṃ lokānām asaṃbhedāya |

tam etaṃ vedānuvacanena brāhmaṇā vividiṣanti yajñena dānena tapasānāśakena |

etam eva viditvā munir bhavati |

etam eva pravrājino lokam icchantaḥ pravrajanti || BrhUp_4,4.22 ||

This has been expressed by the following Rig verse:

‘This is the eternal glory of Brahman: It neither increases nor decreases through work. [Therefore] one should know the nature of That alone. Knowing It one is not touched by evil action.’

Therefore he who knows It as such becomes self-controlled, calm, withdrawn into himself, patient, and collected; he sees the Self in his own self (body); he sees all as the Self. Evil does not overcome him, but he overcomes all evil. Evil does not afflict him) but he consumes all evil. He becomes sinless, taintless, free from doubts, and a true Brahmana (knower of Brahman). This is the World of Brahman,

O Emperor, and you have attained It.” Thus said Yājnavalkya.

Janaka said: “Venerable Sir, I give you the empire of Videha and myself, too, with it, to wait upon you.”

tad etad ṛcābhyuktam --

eṣa nityo mahimā brāhmaṇasya na karmaṇā vardhate no kanīyān |

tasyaiva syāt padavittaṃ viditvā na lipyate karmaṇā pāpakeneti |

tasmād evaṃvic chānto dānta uparatas titikṣuḥ samāhito bhūtvātmany evātmānaṃ paśyati |

sarvam ātmānaṃ paśyati |

nainaṃ pāpmā tarati |

sarvaṃ pāpmānaṃ tarati |

nainaṃ pāpmā tapati |

sarvaṃ pāpmānaṃ tapati |

vipāpo virajo 'vicikitso brāhmaṇo bhavati |

eṣa brahmalokaḥ samrāṭ |

enaṃ prāpito 'sīti hovāca yājñavalkyaḥ |

so 'haṃ bhagavate videhān dadāmi mām cāpi saha dāsyāyeti || BrhUp_4,4.23 ||

That great, unborn Self is the eater of food and the giver of wealth. He who knows this obtains wealth.

sa vā eṣa mahān aja ātmānnādo vasudānaḥ |

vindate vasu ya evaṃ veda || BrhUp_4,4.24 ||

That great, unborn Self is undecaying, immortal, undying, fearless; It is Brahman (infinite). Brahman is indeed fearless. He who knows It as such becomes the fearless Brahman.

sa vā eṣa mahān aja ātmājaro 'maro 'mṛto 'bhayo brahma |

abhayaṃ vai brahma |

abhayaṃ hi vai brahma bhavati ya evaṃ veda || BrhUp_4,4.25 ||

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