Brihadaranyaka Upanishad Ch.1.4 Lecture 34 on 17 May 2026

Full Transcript (Not Corrected)

Opening Invocation

ॐ पूर्णमदः पूर्णमिदं पूर्णात् पूर्णमुदच्यते

पूर्णस्य पूर्णमादाय पूर्णमेवावशिष्यते

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः

OM PŪRṆAMADAḤ PŪRṆAMIDAM PŪRṆĀT PŪRṆAMUDACYATE PŪRṆASYA PŪRṆAMĀDĀYA PŪRṆAMEVA VAŚIṢYATE OM ŚĀNTI ŚĀNTI ŚĀNTIH

OM That Brahman is infinite, and this universe is also infinite. The infinite proceeds from the infinite. Taking the infinitude of the infinite universe, it remains as the infinite Brahman alone.

OM Peace, Peace, Peace be unto all.

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The Discussion in the Gurukula

There was a great discussion in a sacred Gurukula, the students. Real seekers of Brahman have started a discussion. What is Brahman? What did our Acharya teach us, and how can we implement and progress and realise that I am Brahman.

Recap: Duties of a Householder

So in our last class, with regard to that in the 17th mantra, last mantra in the fourth section, we were discussing about that. What are the duties of a householder? That is to say, who is a householder? Anybody who thinks "I am the body and mind," he is a householder. Such a person's desires will be confined only to the satisfaction of the body, of the mind, and at best he wants to have higher happiness by going to higher lokas called svargalokas. Varieties and degrees of happiness is described there of such the 6 higher lokas according to Hindu division.

The Fourteen Lokas

Hindus have divided every state of experience anybody can go through into 14 lokas, starting with this earthly world bhūloka. There are upper 6 lokas. 6 lokas plus our earth where we are that form half of the world, and below us there are 6 lokas or 7 lokas. Total 14 lokas are there. Now the point is we are very fortunate to live in this earthly world, because this is called karma bhūmi. Other worlds higher or lower, they are considered as only to exhaust our karma phala – either puṇyam or pāpam. We will be going to those lokas either to experience higher happiness and thereby exhaust our puṇyam, or go down to the lower lokas and exhaust our pāpams. But one has to come back to this earthly world to do sādhanā.

Two Desires of an Evolved Person

So here is a person who is involved, who has also evolved into a human being – not an uncouth, uncultured human being – but has awakened to some higher faculties, and he realized human life is precious. Such a person can cherish two desires.

1. Temporary happiness: I want to be happy in this world or higher lokas. But after experiencing for some time again and again through a lot of labor, such a person realizes what I want is not temporary, which is ephemeral, which is lasting for only a very short time.
2. Permanent happiness: That is the second category of people, of which the Gita beautifully describes: out of 1,000,000 people, perhaps one person awakens to the fact that spiritual life, godly life is the only life worth living.

Prescriptions for the Householder

So there is such a householder, and he thinks "I am the body and mind." He has faith in the scriptures, and the scriptures describe higher lokas. So he says, "I want to be happy in this world as well as in the higher worlds." For such a person, the scriptures prescribe certain things, actions to be done according to one's caste (we say, though it is not a good word actually), and according to one's stage in life – varṇa dharma and āśrama dharma.

So we presume this person is a good person, and he goes to the teacher, spends several years, learns all about life, comes back, and he has unfulfilled desires pertaining to the body and mind. Such a person performs; he desires, "I want to perform this ritual." For that, the Vedas tell us that you require 5 things.

The Fivefold Necessities (pāṅktam)

What are the 5 things?

1. The performer himself: He himself should be of young age, capable age, capable of undertaking this yajña ritual.
2. His wife: He must have his wife. You may be wondering why such a person should require a wife. Because a person imbued with worldly desires will be thinking: if I get a woman, a wife, then not a free life. But a duly married wife, then the rightful actions can be discharged, duties can be discharged.
3. The son
4. Human wealth: money, animals, servants, and many other objects for the performance of yajña, yāga, etcetera.
5. Divine wealth: He must have control of mind, a deep faith in God, etcetera.

This is called pāṅktam. Pāṅktam means a group of 5. So through that he has to discharge his varṇa dharma and āśrama dharma, which have to be discharged through the proper performance of pañca mahāyajñas – 5 great removals of debts, of which we have discussed in the past and yesterday also.

So first is himself called yajamāna, second is wife called patnī, third is the son, fourth is human wealth (money, animals, servants, and many other objects for the performance of yajña, yāga, etcetera), and he must have control of mind, a deep faith in God, etcetera – that is called divine wealth. So yajamāna (the performer, sacrificer), his wife, his son, human wealth, and divine wealth – all these 5 are indispensable if a person wants to properly discharge all the pañcamahāyajñas.

From Ritual to Upāsana

We presume such a person does it throughout life, throughout many lives, and he slowly awakens, he becomes evolved. Then amṛtatvamicchan. So:

उत्तिष्ठत जाग्रत

Uttiṣṭhata jāgrata – arise, awake, approach learned ones, sit humbly at their feet and serve them, please them, ask them, "What type of life should I lead?"

तद्विद्धि प्रणिपातेन परिप्रश्नेन सेवया | उपदेक्ष्यन्ति ते ज्ञानं ज्ञानिनस्तत्त्वदर्शिनः ||

Tadviddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā | Upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ jñāninastattvadarśinaḥ ||

So this evolved person says, "I have done physically all those things. Now from external ritual I want to progress into higher action that is called upāsana." Such a person now turns his mind, and the Upanishad or the Veda tells us. But the Upanishad also tells us that as wrong as a person doesn't get married, doesn't get a son or sons, performs all the yajñāś, yāgāś, he cannot evolve. That is why I mentioned yesterday the appropriate duties apportioned to one's own caste and to one's own stage of life. They are called one's āśrama dharmas, and due discharge of these dharmas inevitably does certain things.

Closing Prayer

ॐ जननीं शारदां देवीं रामकृष्णं जगद्गुरुम् ।पादपद्मे तयोः श्रित्वा प्रणमामि मुहुर्मुहुः

Om Jānānāṃ Śāradāṃ Devīṃ Rāmakṛṣṇaṃ Jagadgurum Pada Padme Tayo Śṛtvā Praṇamāmi Muhur Muhuh

May Rāmakṛṣṇa, Holy Mother, and Swami Vivekānanda bless us all with Bhakti.

Jai Rāmakṛṣṇa!