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From the Mundaka-upanishad comes India's national emblem and motto "Satyameva Jayate" "Truth alone triumphs"
yenākramantyṛṣayo hyāptakāmā
yatra tat satyasya paramaṃ nidhānam
FIRST KHANDA.
[...] but the higher knowledge is that by which the Indestructible (Brahman) is apprehended.'
'That which cannot be seen, nor seized, which has no family and no caste, no eyes nor ears, no hands nor feet, the eternal, the omnipresent (all-pervading), infinitesimal, that which is imperishable, that it is which the wise regard as the source of all beings.'
'As the spider sends forth and draws in its thread, as plants grow on the earth, as from every man hairs spring forth on the head and the body, thus does everything arise here from the Indestructible.'
The Brahman swells by means of brooding (penance); hence is produced matter (food); from matter breath, mind, the true, the worlds (seven), and from the works (performed by men in the worlds), the immortal (the eternal effects, rewards, and punishments of works).'
SECOND KHANDA.
Manifest, near, moving in the cave (of the heart) is the great Being. In it everything is centred which ye know as moving, breathing, and blinking, as being and not-being, as adorable, as the best, that is beyond the understanding of creatures.
That which is brilliant, smaller than small, that on which the worlds are founded and their inhabitants, that is the indestructible Brahman, that is the breath, speech, mind; that is the true, that is the immortal. That is to be hit. Hit it, O friend!
Having taken the Upanishad as the bow, as the great weapon, let him place on it the arrow, sharpened by devotion! Then having drawn it with a thought directed to that which is, hit the mark, O friend, viz. that which is the Indestructible!
Om is the bow, the Self is the arrow, Brahman is called its aim. It is to be hit by a man who is not thoughtless; and then, as the arrow (becomes one with the target), he will become one with Brahman.
In him the heaven, the earth, and the sky are woven, the mind also with all the senses. Know him alone as the Self, and leave off other words! He is the bridge of the Immortal.
He moves about becoming manifold within the heart where the arteries meet, like spokes fastened to the nave. Meditate on the Self as Om! Hail to you, that you may cross beyond (the sea of) darkness!
He who understands all and who knows all, he to whom all this glory in the world belongs, the Self, is placed in the ether, in the heavenly city of Brahman (the heart). He assumes the nature of mind, and becomes the guide of the body of the senses. He subsists in food, in close proximity to the heart. The wise who understand this, behold the Immortal which shines forth full of bliss.
The fetter of the heart is broken, all doubts are solved, all his works (and their effects) perish when He has been beheld who is high and low (cause and effect)
In the highest golden sheath there is the Brahman without passions and without parts. That is pure, that is the light of lights, that is it which they know who know the Self.
The sun does not thine there, nor the moon and the stars, nor these lightnings, and much less this fire. When he shines, everything shines after him; by his light all this is lighted.
That immortal Brahman is before, that Brahman is behind, that Brahman is right and left. It has gone forth below and above; Brahman alone is all this, it is the best.
Mahanirvana Tantra Tantra of the Great Liberation
Chapter 13 -Installation of the Devata
PARVATI, the Mother of the three worlds, Her mind engrossed with thoughts for the purification of men polluted with the impurities of the Kali Age, humbly asked Mahesha, the Deva among Devas, who had thus spoken of the essence of all the Nigamas, which is the seed of heaven and final liberation (as follows):
Shri Devi said:
How should the form of Mahakali be thought of, She who is the Great Cause, the Primordial Energy, the Great Effulgence, more subtle than the subtlest elements?.
It is only that which is the work of Prakriti which has form. How should She have form? She is above the most high. It behoves thee, O Deva! to completely remove this doubt of mine.
Shri Sadashiva said:
Beloved! I have already said that to meet the needsof the worshippers the image of the Devi is formed according to Her qualities and actions.
As white, yellow, and other colours all disappear in black, in the same way, O Shailaja! all beings enter Kali.
Therefore it is that by those who have attained the knowledge of the means of final liberation, the attributeless, formless, and beneficent Kalashakti is endowed with the colour of blackness.
As the eternal and inexhaustible One image of Kala and soul of beneficence is nectar itself, therefore the sign of the Moon is placed on her forehead. As She surveys the entire universe, which is the product of time, with Her three eyes – the Moon, the Sun, and Fire – therefore she is endowed with three eyes
As She devours all existence, as She chews all things existing with her fierce teeth, therefore a mass of blood is imagined to be the apparel of the Queen of the Devas (at the final dissolution).
As time after time She protects all beings from danger, and as She directs them in the paths of duty, her hands are lifted up to dispel fear and grant blessings
As She encompasses the universe, which is the product of Rajoguna, she is spoken of, O Gentle One! as the Devi who is seated on the red lotus, gazing at Kala drunk with intoxicating wine and playing with the universe. The Devi also, whose substance is intelligence, witnesseth all things
It is for the benefit of such worshippers as are of weak intelligence that the different shapes are formed according to the attributes (of the Divinity.
Shri Devi said:
What merit does the worshipper gain who makes an image of the Great Devi of mud, stone, wood, or metal, in accordance with the representation described by Thee for the salvation of humanity, and who decks the same with clothes and jewels, and who, in a beautifully decorated house, consecrates it?.
O Lord! out of Thy kindness for me, reveal this also, with all the particular rules according to which the image of the Devi should be consecrated.
Thou hast already spoken of the consecration of Tanks, Wells, Houses, Gardens, and the images of Devas, but Thou didst not speak in detail
I wish to hear the injunctions relating to them from thy lotus-mouth. Out of thy kindness, speak, O Para-meshana! if it pleases Thee.
Shri Sadashiva said:
O Parameshvari! this supreme essence about which Thou hast asked is very mysterious. Do thou, therefore, listen attentively.
There are two classes of men – those who act with, and without, a view to the fruits of action. The latter attain final liberation. I am now speaking of the former.
Beloved! the man who consecrates the image of a Deva goes to the region of such Deva, and enjoys that which is there attainable.
He who consecrates an image of mud stays in such region for ten thousand kalpas. He who consecrates an image of wood stays there ten times that period. In the case of the consecration of a stone image the length of stay is ten times the latter period, and in the case of the consecration of a metal image it is ten times the last-mentioned period.
Listen to the merit which is acquired by the man who, in the name of any Deva, or for the attainment of any desire, builds and consecrates and gives away a temple made of timber and thatch and other materials, or renovates such a temple, decorated with flags and images of the carriers of the Deva
He who gives away a thatched temple shall live in the region of the Devas for one thousand koti years.
He who gives away a brick-built temple shall live a hundred times that period, and he who gives away a stone-built temple, ten thousand times the last-mentioned period.
Adya! the man who builds a bridge or causeway shall not see the region of Yama, but will happily reach the abode of the Suras, and will there have enjoyment in their company.
He who dedicates trees and gardens goes to the region of the Devas, and lives in celestial houses surrounded by Kalpa trees in the enjoyment of all desired and agreeable enjoyments.
Those who give away ponds and the like for the comfort of all beings are washed of all sins, and, having attained the blissful region of Brahma, reside there a hundred years for each drop of water which they contain.
Devi! the man who dedicates the image of a Vahana for the pleasure of any Deva shall live continually in the region of such Deva, protected by Him
satyameva jayate nānṛtaṃ
satyena panthā vitato devayānaḥyenākramantyṛṣayo hyāptakāmā
yatra tat satyasya paramaṃ nidhānam
excerpts from the Mundaka-upanishad
FIRST KHANDA.
[...] but the higher knowledge is that by which the Indestructible (Brahman) is apprehended.'
'That which cannot be seen, nor seized, which has no family and no caste, no eyes nor ears, no hands nor feet, the eternal, the omnipresent (all-pervading), infinitesimal, that which is imperishable, that it is which the wise regard as the source of all beings.'
'As the spider sends forth and draws in its thread, as plants grow on the earth, as from every man hairs spring forth on the head and the body, thus does everything arise here from the Indestructible.'
The Brahman swells by means of brooding (penance); hence is produced matter (food); from matter breath, mind, the true, the worlds (seven), and from the works (performed by men in the worlds), the immortal (the eternal effects, rewards, and punishments of works).'
SECOND KHANDA.
Manifest, near, moving in the cave (of the heart) is the great Being. In it everything is centred which ye know as moving, breathing, and blinking, as being and not-being, as adorable, as the best, that is beyond the understanding of creatures.
That which is brilliant, smaller than small, that on which the worlds are founded and their inhabitants, that is the indestructible Brahman, that is the breath, speech, mind; that is the true, that is the immortal. That is to be hit. Hit it, O friend!
Having taken the Upanishad as the bow, as the great weapon, let him place on it the arrow, sharpened by devotion! Then having drawn it with a thought directed to that which is, hit the mark, O friend, viz. that which is the Indestructible!
Om is the bow, the Self is the arrow, Brahman is called its aim. It is to be hit by a man who is not thoughtless; and then, as the arrow (becomes one with the target), he will become one with Brahman.
In him the heaven, the earth, and the sky are woven, the mind also with all the senses. Know him alone as the Self, and leave off other words! He is the bridge of the Immortal.
He moves about becoming manifold within the heart where the arteries meet, like spokes fastened to the nave. Meditate on the Self as Om! Hail to you, that you may cross beyond (the sea of) darkness!
He who understands all and who knows all, he to whom all this glory in the world belongs, the Self, is placed in the ether, in the heavenly city of Brahman (the heart). He assumes the nature of mind, and becomes the guide of the body of the senses. He subsists in food, in close proximity to the heart. The wise who understand this, behold the Immortal which shines forth full of bliss.
The fetter of the heart is broken, all doubts are solved, all his works (and their effects) perish when He has been beheld who is high and low (cause and effect)
In the highest golden sheath there is the Brahman without passions and without parts. That is pure, that is the light of lights, that is it which they know who know the Self.
The sun does not thine there, nor the moon and the stars, nor these lightnings, and much less this fire. When he shines, everything shines after him; by his light all this is lighted.
That immortal Brahman is before, that Brahman is behind, that Brahman is right and left. It has gone forth below and above; Brahman alone is all this, it is the best.
Mahanirvana Tantra
Chapter 13 -Installation of the Devata
Shri Devi said:
How should the form of Mahakali be thought of, She who is the Great Cause, the Primordial Energy, the Great Effulgence, more subtle than the subtlest elements?.
It is only that which is the work of Prakriti which has form. How should She have form? She is above the most high. It behoves thee, O Deva! to completely remove this doubt of mine.
Shri Sadashiva said:
Beloved! I have already said that to meet the needsof the worshippers the image of the Devi is formed according to Her qualities and actions.
As white, yellow, and other colours all disappear in black, in the same way, O Shailaja! all beings enter Kali.
Therefore it is that by those who have attained the knowledge of the means of final liberation, the attributeless, formless, and beneficent Kalashakti is endowed with the colour of blackness.
As the eternal and inexhaustible One image of Kala and soul of beneficence is nectar itself, therefore the sign of the Moon is placed on her forehead. As She surveys the entire universe, which is the product of time, with Her three eyes – the Moon, the Sun, and Fire – therefore she is endowed with three eyes
As She devours all existence, as She chews all things existing with her fierce teeth, therefore a mass of blood is imagined to be the apparel of the Queen of the Devas (at the final dissolution).
As time after time She protects all beings from danger, and as She directs them in the paths of duty, her hands are lifted up to dispel fear and grant blessings
As She encompasses the universe, which is the product of Rajoguna, she is spoken of, O Gentle One! as the Devi who is seated on the red lotus, gazing at Kala drunk with intoxicating wine and playing with the universe. The Devi also, whose substance is intelligence, witnesseth all things
It is for the benefit of such worshippers as are of weak intelligence that the different shapes are formed according to the attributes (of the Divinity.
Shri Devi said:
What merit does the worshipper gain who makes an image of the Great Devi of mud, stone, wood, or metal, in accordance with the representation described by Thee for the salvation of humanity, and who decks the same with clothes and jewels, and who, in a beautifully decorated house, consecrates it?.
O Lord! out of Thy kindness for me, reveal this also, with all the particular rules according to which the image of the Devi should be consecrated.
Thou hast already spoken of the consecration of Tanks, Wells, Houses, Gardens, and the images of Devas, but Thou didst not speak in detail
I wish to hear the injunctions relating to them from thy lotus-mouth. Out of thy kindness, speak, O Para-meshana! if it pleases Thee.
Shri Sadashiva said:
O Parameshvari! this supreme essence about which Thou hast asked is very mysterious. Do thou, therefore, listen attentively.
There are two classes of men – those who act with, and without, a view to the fruits of action. The latter attain final liberation. I am now speaking of the former.
Beloved! the man who consecrates the image of a Deva goes to the region of such Deva, and enjoys that which is there attainable.
He who consecrates an image of mud stays in such region for ten thousand kalpas. He who consecrates an image of wood stays there ten times that period. In the case of the consecration of a stone image the length of stay is ten times the latter period, and in the case of the consecration of a metal image it is ten times the last-mentioned period.
Listen to the merit which is acquired by the man who, in the name of any Deva, or for the attainment of any desire, builds and consecrates and gives away a temple made of timber and thatch and other materials, or renovates such a temple, decorated with flags and images of the carriers of the Deva
He who gives away a thatched temple shall live in the region of the Devas for one thousand koti years.
He who gives away a brick-built temple shall live a hundred times that period, and he who gives away a stone-built temple, ten thousand times the last-mentioned period.
Adya! the man who builds a bridge or causeway shall not see the region of Yama, but will happily reach the abode of the Suras, and will there have enjoyment in their company.
He who dedicates trees and gardens goes to the region of the Devas, and lives in celestial houses surrounded by Kalpa trees in the enjoyment of all desired and agreeable enjoyments.
Those who give away ponds and the like for the comfort of all beings are washed of all sins, and, having attained the blissful region of Brahma, reside there a hundred years for each drop of water which they contain.
Devi! the man who dedicates the image of a Vahana for the pleasure of any Deva shall live continually in the region of such Deva, protected by Him
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