Upadesa Sahasri (A Thousand Teachings of Adi Sankara) Rare Book

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About The Book

Adi Sankara has been acknowledged the world over as the foremost exponent of the non-dual philosophy of the Upanishads. Apart from his exhaustive commentaries on the principal Upanishads. Bhagavat Gita, the Brahma Sutra and Vishnu Sahasranamam, he is also the author of innumerable hymns and prayers. In UPADESA SAHASRI he expounds the non-duality of the Self (Brahman) for the enlightment of the seeker after liberation. It consists of two parts. The verse section establishes this non-duality while the prose section indicates the manner in which the teacher should instruct the deserving pupil and is in the form of a dialogue. Both sections add up to a profound discourse on the non-duality of Brahman, for the benefit of the seeker after liberation from transmigratory existence.

About The Author

Dr. V. Narasimhan (born 1919) is a graduate (Sanskrit second language) of the Madras University holding the Master of Arts, Master of Science and the Doctor of Philosophy degrees. As a student of the Madras Christian degrees. As a student of the Madras Christian college, he was keenly interested in philosophy and won the Korah Eapen prize for scripture knowledge.

He worked as a scientist and Professor of Science and Technology fro several years in India and abroad and was the author of several papers and a book entitled Building Physics. After retirement his entitled Building Physics. After retirement his interest in philosophy and metaphysics was again kindled and to appreciate Indian philosophy better, he studied Sanskrit further under the guidance of Swami Prasannathmananda and Shri Gopala Desikan for several years.

"UPADESA SAHASRI" of Adi Sankara is the quintessence of the Upanishads, wherein Adi Sankara expounds the concept of non-duality for the benefit of the seeker after liberation. Commentaries on this text are available only in Sanskrit. Dr. Narasimhan undertook this work of providing an English version of the text, with verse by verse notes, to make available for a non-sanskrit knowing reader a gist of the Sanskrit commentaries.

Foreword

The Vedas, the basic scriptures of Hinduism, have got two parts. The first part, the ritualistic section, prescribes a religious life style for all. This will help in maintaining social harmony as well as in the material and spiritual growth of the individual. The second part, the philosophical section, prescribes a life of self-enquiry. Known as Vedanta (the last portion of the Vedas) or Upanishad (Self-knowledge, the destroyer of ignorance), this portion helps the spiritual seeker in the discovery of the Truth of oneself, which happens to be the Truth of the world and God. Self discovery puts an end to all emotional struggles, intellectual questions and spiritual quests of the individual. This is called Moksha (Freedom from all struggles).

This Vedantic teaching has been preserved and propagated through a preceptor - disciple - lineage (Guru-sishya-parampara). These traditional masters have, now and then, presented this great teaching in their own works in a comprehensive, systematic form. Upadesa Sahasri, is one such great text, attributed to one of the greatest traditional master, Adi Sankaracharya.

The text Upadesa Sahasri, in Sanskrit, has some Sanskrit commentaries which are accessible only to a few who know the language. The present work is an English commentary which closely follows the Sanskrit commentaries. This will be of great help for those lay students of Vedanta who do not have access to the Sanskrit commentaries.

Dr. V. Narasimhan, the author, is a keen student of Vedanta who has been learning the scriptures under me and others for the last few years. I congratulate him on successfully completing this great work and hope that this will benefit the students of Vedanta.