Upanishad 13: In English rhyme

By Munindra Misra

Upanishads are prime portions of the Vedas, They are the foundational theological discourses of Hindu traditions called Vedanta or the conclusion of the Vedas.

Upanishad 13 in English rhyme comprises of the Narad Parivrajaka and the Chhandogya Upanishad written in English rhyme with the original Sanskrit text.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Munindra Misra
• Release date: Apr 17, 2024

Book preview

Narad Parivrajaka Upanishad

Source: Atharva-Veda

Dedicated to

Invocation

Om!

Lord!

May we hear with our ears what auspicious be,

May we see with our eyes what auspicious be;

May we, offering praise to gods with our bodies,

Enjoy life, which gods pleased granted us truly;

May Indra of great fame well-disposed to us be,

May the all-knowing Sun God gracious to us be;

May Garud, misery remover, pleased with us be,

May Brihaspati ever grant us all the prosperity.

OM! PEACE! PEACE! PEACE!

Let peace be in environment and me!

Let peace be in forces acting on me!

Let there be Peace totally completely!

Om!

English rhyme

First

In realms beyond, where time and space entwine,

Narad, ascetic gem, did freely roam,

His rounds encompassing all three worlds divine,

Sanctifying sacred sites, a pilgrim’s home,

His mind, a vessel pure, devoid of strife,

He soared above, detached from mortal woes,

Yet, gazing down, he glimpsed the human life,

Despair in every corner, suffering that flows,

Within himself, he sought the truth profound,

And there, in Naimisha’s hallowed forest glade,

Where saints and sages gathered, wisdom-crowned,

He touched the earth, his celestial flight delayed,

His songs, like fragrant flowers, filled the air,

Of Vishnu’s deeds, both still and ever-moving,

Sthavara and Jangama, notes so rare,

Kindling devotion, hearts to heaven grooving,

Sa, ri, ga, ma, pa, dha, ni—the sacred scale,

Arousing dispassion, worldly bonds unbound,

For Narad, the seeker, truth would prevail,

As sages rose to greet him, wisdom’s sound,

Revered Sir, they asked, their voices clear,

"Son of Brahma, tell us, for the world’s release,

What path leads to liberation, far and near?

Speak, O Narad, grant our Atmas sweet peace,"

In sacred threads and Vedic lore arrayed,

Twice-born, initiated, his path well-trod,

Forty rites completed, life’s tapestry displayed,

From marriage’s dawn to the Aptoryama’s nod,

Twelve years, a student, learning’s flame ablaze,

Serving the preceptor, devotion’s sweet refrain,

Then householder years, life’s intricate maze,

And Vanaprastha’s solitude, wisdom to gain,

Brahmacharya’s fourfold duties embraced,

Householders’ six, Vanaprastha’s sacred art,

Each stage fulfilled, life’s symphony traced,

Disciplines woven, Brahmavidya’s chart,

Desire, a distant echo, thought, word, and deed,

Latent yearnings quenched, enmity dissolved,

Peaceful, self-controlled, the seeker’s creed,

Paramahamsa’s flight, liberation evolved,

When body’s veil discarded, spirit freed,

Rebirth’s chains shattered, moksha’s sweet kiss,

Thus spoke Narad, sage of ancient creed,

Upanishad’s whisper, eternal bliss,

- Sanskrit

श्री नारदपरिव्राजकोपनिषत्

पारिव्राज्यधर्मपूगालङ्कारा यत्प्रबोधतः ।

दशप्रणवलक्ष्यार्थं यान्ति तं राममाश्रये ॥

ॐ भद्रं कर्णेभिः श‍ृणुयाम देवाः ॥

भद्रं पश्येमाक्षभिर्यजत्राः ॥

स्थिरैरङ्गैस्तुष्टुवाꣳसस्तनूभिः ॥

व्यशेम देवहितं यदायुः ॥

स्वस्ति न इन्द्रो वृद्धश्रवाः ॥

स्वस्ति नः पूषा विश्वदेवाः ॥

स्वस्ति नस्तार्क्ष्यो अरिष्टनेमिः ॥

स्वस्ति नो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु ॥

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥

परिव्राट्त्रिशिखी सीताचूडानिर्वाणमण्डलम्

दक्षिणा शरभं स्कन्दं महानारायणाद्वयम् ॥

अथ कदाचित्परिव्राजकाभरणो नारदः सर्वलोकसंचारं कुर्वन्नपूर्वपुण्यस्थलानि पुण्यतीर्थानि तीर्थीकुर्वन्नवलोक्य चित्तशुद्धिं प्राप्य निर्वैरः शान्तो दान्तः सर्वतो निर्वेदमासाद्य स्वरूपानुसन्धानमनुसन्धय नियमानन्दविशेषगण्यं मुनिजनैरुपसंकीर्णं नैमिषारण्यं पुण्यस्थलमवलोक्य सरिगमपधनिस- संज्ञैर्वैराग्यबोधकरैः स्वरविशेषैः प्रापञ्चिक- पराङ्मुखाइर्हरिकथालापैः स्थावरजङ्गमनामकै- र्भगवद्भक्तिविशेषाइर्नरमृगकिंपुरुषामरकिंनर- अप्सरोगणान्संमोहयन्नागतं ब्रह्मात्मजं भगवद्भक्तं नारदमवलोक्य द्वादशवर्षसत्रयागोपस्थिताः श्रुताध्ययनसम्पन्नाः सर्वज्ञास्तपोनिष्ठापराश्च ज्ञानवैराग्यसम्पन्नाः शौनकादिमहर्षयः प्रत्युत्थानं कृत्वा नत्वा यथोचितातिथ्यपूर्वकमुपवेशयित्वा स्वयं सर्वेऽप्युपविष्टा भो भगवन्ब्रह्मपुत्र कथं मुक्त्युपायोऽस्माकं वक्तव्य इत्युक्तस्तान्स होवाच नारदः सत्कुलभवोपनीतः सम्यगुपनयनपूर्वकं चतुश्चत्वारिंशत्- संस्कारसम्पन्नः स्वाभिमतैकगुरुसमीपे स्वशाखाध्ययन- पूर्वकं सर्वविद्याभ्यासं कृत्वा द्वादशवर्षशुश्रूषा- पूर्वकं ब्रह्मचर्यं पञ्चविंशतिवत्सरं गार्हस्थ्यं पञ्चविंशतिवत्सरं वानप्रस्थाश्रमं तद्विधिवत्क्रमान्निर्वर्त्य चतुर्विधब्रह्मचर्यं षड्विधं गार्हस्थ्यं चतुर्विधं वानप्रस्थधर्मं सम्यगभ्यस्य तदुचितं कर्म सर्वं निर्वर्त्य साधनचतुष्टयसम्पन्नः सर्वसंसारोपरि मनोवाक्काय- कर्मभिर्यथाशानिवृत्तस्तथा वासनैषणोपर्यपि निर्वैरः शान्तो दान्तः संन्यासी परमहंसाश्रमेणास्खलितस्वस्वरूप- ध्यानेन देहत्यागं करोति स मुक्तो भवति स मुक्तो भवतीत्युपनिषत् ॥

इति प्रथमोपदेशः ॥ १॥

Second

In Naimisha’s sacred grove, where sages dwell,

Saunaka and others, hearts aflame with quest,

They turned to Narad, their voices swell,

Revered Sir, reveal renunciation’s best,

Narad, sage of wisdom, eyes aglow,

Spoke, "From Brahma’s lips, the truth we seek,

To Satyaloka’s realm, together we go,

Where Paramesthin reigns, both mild and meek,"

They bowed, eulogized, in reverence they stood,

Before the ancient seer, omniscient and wise,

Preceptor, Father, Narad’s words withstood,

Share the secret lore that within you lies,

Brahma, eyes closed, in Samadhi’s embrace,

He sensed their longing, worldly ills they bore,

My son, he said, "I’ll weave the cosmic grace,

Viratpurusha’s hymn, Upanishads’ core,"

Listen well, he urged, "to asceticism’s art,

A secret path, veiled in mystic rhyme,

For in these verses, life’s essence imparts,

The stages of mendicants, through endless time,"

O Narad, listen well, born of noble kin,

Initiated into Vedic lore’s sacred stream,

To the good preceptor, your heart’s desire within,

Bow, serve, and share your longing’s gleam,

Twelve years of learning, branches wide,

Personal service woven through each day,

Then, with consent, a worthy bride,

Householder’s path, life’s vibrant play,

Evils shunned, a son to carry forth,

Twenty-five years, family’s legacy secure,

Vanaprastha’s solitude, wisdom’s worth,

Bathing thrice daily, rituals pure,

Wild grains sustain, desires unseen,

Purity of mind, ego’s flames consumed,

Forty sacraments, attachments lean,

Fourfold discipline, the seeker groomed,

Such a Atma, rich in renunciation’s art,

Deserves to embrace moksha’s sweet kiss,

Thus spoke the Upanishad, etching its part,

In the tapestry of existence, eternal bliss,

- Sanskrit 2

द्वितीयोपदेशः

अथ हैनं भगवन्तं नारदं सर्वे शौनकादयः पप्रच्छुर्भो भगवन्संन्यासविधिं नो ब्रूहीति तानवलोक्य नारदस्तत्स्वरूपं सर्वं पितामहमुखेनैव ज्ञातुमुचितमित्युक्त्वा सत्रयागपूर्त्यनन्तरं तैः सह सत्यलोकं गत्वा विधिवद्ब्रह्मनिष्ठापरं परमेष्ठिनं नत्वा स्तुत्वा यथोचितं तदाज्ञया तैः सहोपविश्य नारदः पितामहमुवाच गुरुस्त्वं जनकस्त्वं सर्वविद्या- रहसज्ञः सर्वज्ञस्त्वमतो मत्तो मदिष्टं रहस्यमेकं वक्तव्यं त्वद्विना मदभिमतरहस्यं वक्तुं कः समर्थः ।

किमितिचेत्पारिव्राज्यस्वरूपक्रमं नो ब्रूहीति नारदेन प्रार्थितः परमेष्ठि सर्वतः सर्वानवलोक्य मुहूर्तमात्रं समाधिनिष्ठो भूत्वा संसारातिनिवृत्यन्वेषण इति निश्चित्य नारदमवलोक्य तमाह पितामहः ।

पुरा मत्पुत्र पुरुषसूक्तोपनिषद्रहस्यप्रकारं निरतिशयाकारावलम्बिना विराट्पुरुषेणोपदिष्टं रहस्यं ते विविच्योच्यते तत्क्रममतिरहस्यं बाढमवहितो भूत्वा श्रूयतां भो नारद विधिवदादावनुपनीतोपनयानन्तरं तत्सत्कुलप्रसूतः पितृमातृविधेयः पितृसमीपादन्यत्र सत्सम्प्रदायस्थं श्रद्धावन्तं सत्कुलभवं श्रोत्रियं शास्त्रवात्सल्यं गुणवन्तमकुटिलं सद्गुरुमासाद्य नत्वा यथोपयोगशुश्रूषापूर्वकं स्वाभिमतं विज्ञाप्य द्वादशवर्षसेवापुरःसरं सर्वविद्याभ्यासं कृत्वा तदनुज्ञया स्वकुलानुरूपामभिमतकन्यां विवाह्य पञ्चविंशतिवत्सरं गुरुकुलवासं कृत्वाथ गुर्वनुज्ञया गृहस्थोचितकर्म कुर्वन्दौर्ब्राह्मण्यनिवृत्तिमेत्य स्ववंशवृद्धिकामः पुत्रमेकमासाद्य गार्हस्थ्योचित- पञ्चविंशतिवत्सरं तीर्त्वा ततः पञ्चचिंशतिवत्सरपर्यन्तं त्रिषवणमुदकस्पर्शनपूर्वकं चतुर्थकालमेकवारमाहार- माहरन्नयमेक एव वनस्थो भूत्वा पुरग्रामप्राक्तनसञ्चारं विहाय निकारविरहिततदाश्रितकर्मोचितकृत्यं निर्वर्त्य दृष्टश्रवणविषयवैतृष्ण्यमेत्य चत्वारिंशत्संकार- सम्पन्नः सर्वतो विरक्तश्चित्तशुद्धिमेत्याशासूयेर्ष्याहङ्कारं दग्ध्वा साधनचतुष्टयसम्पन्नः संन्यस्तुमर्हतीत्युपनिषत् ॥

इति द्वितीयोपदेशः ॥ २॥

Third

Narad, seeker of truth, inquired of old,

"Lord Brahma, what is renunciation’s call?

Who, entitled, may worldly bonds unfold?

Speak, O sage, unveil life’s mystic thrall,"

Brahma, the ancient, his gaze serene,

Began to weave wisdom’s sacred thread,

Listen well, he said, "with hearts keen,

For renunciation’s path lies just ahead,"

Eunuch, fallen, deformity’s plight,

Women, deaf, and children small,

Dumbness, heresy, imperial might,

Religious students, their fate enthrall,

Vaikhanasa, Haradvija, hired guide,

Prepuce-less men, fire’s sacred flame,

Though dispassion blooms, they’re denied,

Vedic texts elude, their rightful claim,

Yet ascetics, already on moksha’s quest,

Paramahamsas, highest flight,

They tread the path, their Atmas at rest,

In renunciation’s glow, eternal light,

He who shields others, fear’s embrace,

As he seeks refuge, protection’s plea,

Law books declare, in wisdom’s grace,

A mendicant monk, boundless and free,

The hour, a fragile bridge,

Where breath wavers, teetering—

Not in the sun’s zenith or moon’s embrace,

But at life’s edge, where shadows deepen,

Sorely Afflicted, they call it,

When the body’s vessel cracks,

And the Atma, unshackled, hovers—

A bird seeking its celestial nest,

In this emergency, a cosmic whisper:

Renounce, it murmurs, with sacred hymns,

Praisamantras weave the tapestry of release,

Guiding the seeker toward freedom’s door,

Liberation, not in grand temples,

But in the quiet chamber of the heart,

Where the vital breath, like a fading star,

Dissolves into eternity’s embrace,

In twilight’s hush, when shadows cling,

The sorely afflicted, hearts aflame,

They seek the path where mantras sing,

Renunciation’s call, a sacred name,

No difference found, in Praisa’s verse,

Affliction’s touch, the seeker’s plea,

Each mantra blooms, a cosmic universe,

Religious acts, their eyes on eternity,

Without a mantra, rituals fade,

Ashes remain, devoid of flame,

Hold fast, O seeker, the words arrayed,

For mantras weave life’s sacred aim,

In direst need, the ritual abridged,

Mantras echo, sans elaborate rite,

Ahitagni’s disillusion, world’s veil fringed,

Prapatya’s waters, moksha’s flight,

Mental or spoken, Praisa’s refrain,

Prajapatya’s fire, or waters’ flow,

Choose well, O seeker, life’s sacred gain,

Else fall from virtue’s path, we know,

When all objects fade, desire’s last breath,

Sanctioned by unseen hands, renunciation’s art,

Or else, the fall awaits, the Atma’s sweet death,

In letting go, we find our truest part,

In twilight’s hush, when shadows cling,

The sorely afflicted, hearts aflame,

They seek the path where mantras sing,

Renunciation’s call, a sacred name,

No difference found, in Praisa’s verse,

Affliction’s touch, the seeker’s plea,

Each mantra blooms, a cosmic universe,

Religious acts, their eyes on eternity,

Without a mantra, rituals fade,

Ashes remain, devoid of flame,

Hold fast, O seeker, the words arrayed,

For mantras weave life’s sacred aim,

In direst need, the ritual abridged,

Mantras echo, sans elaborate rite,

Ahitagni’s disillusion, world’s veil fringed,

Prapatya’s waters, moksha’s flight,

Mental or spoken, Praisa’s refrain,

Prajapatya’s fire, or waters’ flow,

Choose well, O seeker, life’s sacred gain,

Else fall from virtue’s path, we know,

When all objects fade, desire’s last breath,

Sanctioned by unseen hands, renunciation’s art,

Or else, the fall awaits, the Atma’s sweet death,

In letting go, we find our truest part,

In the silence of the Atma, a truth unfolds,

I am the indestructible, the non-dual whole,

Vasudeva, Vishnu, their essence enfold,

Firmly rooted, the mendicant’s sacred goal,

Peace, quiescence, purity’s embrace,

Truth’s unwavering gaze, contentment’s balm,

Straightforwardness, devoid of worldly chase,

Possessions shed, false airs find their calm,

No evil whispers, in thought or deed,

Towards all beings, compassion’s sweet refrain,

The mendicant’s path, where love takes heed,

A heart unburdened, free from worldly stain,

Tenfold virtues, dharma’s sacred art,

Contentment, forgiveness, senses’ rein,

Non-stealing, purity, humility’s chart,

Truth’s unwavering light, an even plane,

Past pleasures fade, future’s dreams untold,

Neither longing nor exultation’s sway,

Within, without, senses’ reins hold,

Emancipation’s breath, life’s final ray,

In the quietude of renunciation’s dawn,

The Paramahamsa, clad in humble attire,

A pair of loincloth, patched, the cold withdrawn,

And a single staff, his Atma’s sacred fire,

No more adornments, comfort’s soft embrace,

For excess veils the path, the Atma’s true quest,

To Raurava’s depths, misguided space,

Or rebirth as beasts, in ignorance’s nest,

Patched and dyed, a garment’s humble grace,

Strung from discarded cloth, yet pure and clean,

The Paramahamsa walks, vision’s trace,

On liberation’s road, where truth is seen,

Household bonds released, kin and wife,

Vedic branches severed, sacrificial thread,

Alone he journeys, veiled from worldly strife,

In rain or sun, the seeker’s path widespread,

Passion, anger, pride, and greed unbind,

Egotism consumed, the mine erased,

He views clod, stone, and gold, all combined,

Injuring none, desires’ flames effaced,

Pride and ego yield, self-knowledge blooms,

Desire’s flames quenched, the senses’ sway,

For attachment harms, like fire’s consuming fumes,

Restraint alone leads to moksha’s day,

Desires, like fire, fed by indulgence’s feast,

Increase, unyielding, their insatiable plea,

But he who conquers senses, joy and grief released,

Is known as Paramahamsa, forever free,

In purity of speech and mind, he walks,

Reaping Vedanta’s fruits, the Upanishads’ song,

Ever guarded, ever pure, where wisdom talks,

The Paramahamsa, where truth belongs,

Honors, like poison, he shuns away,

Nectar lies in disregard, sweet and pure,

The illused, soundly sleeps, at dawn’s first ray,

The insulter, grief-bound, his fate obscure,

Abusive tongues, he bears with patient grace,

Never returning anger, but gentle still,

Untrue words, he shuns, their worldly chase,

Seven gates closed, desires’ flames to quell,

Supreme light within, quiescence found,

Desires fade, blessings left behind,

Seeking bliss, the Self his only ground,

Mendicant’s path, where truth unwinds,

Bones and tendons, flesh and blood entwined,

Skin’s frail cover, urine, faeces, decay,

Old age’s touch, affliction’s grip unkind,

This body, impermanent, he