Yajnavalkya

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Yajnavalkya
Advaita
Religious career
Disciples
Influenced by
  • Aruni
Influenced
HonorsRishi

Yajnavalkya or Yagyavalkya (

Yajnavalkya Smriti, Yoga Yajnavalkya and some texts of the Vedanta school.[6][7] He is also mentioned in various Brahmanas and Aranyakas.[6]

Biography

The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad is dated at c. 700 BCE.[4][8] Staal notes that though the name Yajnavalkya is derived from yajna, which connotes ritual, Yajnavalkya is referred to as "a thinker, not a ritualist".[1]

Yājñavalkya was the pupil of Uddālaka Āruṇi, whom he defeated in debate.[9]

In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, a set of dialogues portrays Yajnavalkya as having two wives, one Maitreyi who challenges Yajnavalkya with philosophical questions like a scholarly wife; the other Katyayani who is silent but mentioned as a housewife.[10] While Yajnavalkya and Katyayani lived in contented domesticity, Maitreyi studied metaphysics and engaged in theological dialogues with her husband in addition to "making self-inquiries of introspection".[10][11] In contrast to the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, the epic Mahabharata states Maitreyi is a young beauty who is an Advaita scholar but never marries.[12]

The figure of Yajnavalkya is considered by Scharfstein as one of the

Advaita (non-duality of Atman and Brahman).[13] The ideas attributed to him for renunciation of worldly attachments have been important to Hindu sannyasa traditions.[14]

Texts

Yajnavalkya is associated with several major ancient texts in Sanskrit, namely the

Dharmasastra named Yājñavalkya Smṛti, Vriddha Yajnavalkya, and Brihad Yajnavalkya.[6] He is also mentioned in the Mahabharata and the Puranas,[15][16] as well as in ancient Jainism texts such as the Isibhasiyaim.[17]

Another important and influential Yoga text in Hinduism is named after him, namely Yoga Yajnavalkya, but its author is unclear. The actual author of Yoga Yajnavalkya text was probably someone who lived many centuries after the Vedic sage Yajnavalkya.[18] Ian Whicher, a professor of Religion at the University of Manitoba, states that the author of Yoga Yajnavalkya may be an ancient Yajnavalkya, but this Yajnavalkya is not to be confused with the Vedic-era Yajnavalkya "who is revered in Hinduism for Brihadaranyaka Upanishad".[19]

According to

Vishwanath Narayan Mandlik, these references to Yajnavalkya in other texts, in addition to the eponymous Yoga Yajnavalkya, may be to different sages with the same name.[16]

Ideas

On karma and rebirth

One of the early expositions of karma and rebirth theories appears in the discussions of Yajnavalkya.[20]

Now as a man is like this or like that,
according as he acts and according as he behaves, so will he be;
a man of good acts will become good, a man of bad acts, bad;
he becomes pure by pure deeds, bad by bad deeds;

And here they say that a person consists of desires,
and as is his desire, so is his will;
and as is his will, so is his deed;
and whatever deed he does, that he will reap.

Max Muller and Paul Deussen, in their respective translations, describe the Upanishad's view of "Soul, Self" and "free, liberated state of existence" as, "[Self] is imperishable, for he cannot perish; he is unattached, for he does not attach himself; unfettered, he does not suffer, he does not fail. He is beyond good and evil, and neither what he has done, nor what he has omitted to do, affects him. (...) He therefore who knows it [reached self-realization], becomes quiet, subdued, satisfied, patient, and collected. He sees self in Self, sees all as Self. Evil does not overcome him, he overcomes all evil. Evil does not burn him, he burns all evil. Free from evil, free from spots, free from doubt, he became Atman-Brâhmana; this is the Brahma-world, O King, thus spoke Yajnavalkya."[22][23]

On spiritual liberation

The section 4.3 of the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad is attributed to Yajnavalkya. It has a dialogue between Janaka and Yajnavalkya exploring the nature of the Atman in different states of consciousness and existence, including wakefulness, dream, deep sleep, death, migration, and final liberation. It discusses the premises of moksha (liberation, freedom), and provides some of its most studied hymns. Paul Deussen calls it, "unique in its richness and warmth of presentation", with profoundness that retains its full worth in modern times.[24]

On the light of man

When asked by King Janaka,"What is the light of man?" he replies, "The sun, O King; for, having the sun alone for his light, man sits, moves about, does his work, and returns." Then the king asks, "When the sun sets, what is the light of man?" He replies, "The moon indeed is his light; for, having the moon alone for his light, man sits, moves about, does his work, and returns." Then the king asks, "When the sun has set, O Yajnavalkya, and the moon has set, what is the light of man ?" He replies, "Fire indeed is his light; for, having fire alone for his light, man sits, moves about, does his work, and returns." Then the king asks, "When the sun has set, O Yajnavalkya, and the moon has set, and the fire is gone out, what is then the light of man?" He replies, "Sound indeed is his light; for, having sound alone for his light, man sits, moves about, does his work, and returns. Therefore, O King, when one cannot see even one's own hand, yet when a sound is raised, one goes towards it." Then the king asks, "When the sun has set, O Yajnaavalkya, and the moon has set, and the fire is gone out, and the sound hushed, what is then the light of man?" He replies, "The Self indeed is his light; for, having the Self alone as his light, man sits, moves about, does his work, and returns."[25]

On Self

He describes the self by a series of negations and says it is not, not (neti, neti) - not graspable, not destructible, not attached, not disturbed by anything good or bad done by himself. He then says, he who knows this truth remains "controlled, at peace, patient and full of faith" and "everyone comes to be his self" and "he becomes the self of everyone"[26][27]

On Dreams

Yajnavlkya believed that dreams are active projections of the self. To him, this is evidence that dreaming shares the creative nature of Reality in itself.[28]

On love and soul

The Maitreyi-Yajnavalkya dialogue in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad states that love is driven by "love for oneself (ātman),"[29] and discusses the nature of Atman and Brahman and their unity,[30] which forms the core of later Advaita philosophy.[31] The dialogue has survived in two manuscript recensions from the Madhyamdina and Kanva Vedic schools. Although they have significant literary differences, they share the same philosophical theme.[32]

This dialogue appears in several Hindu texts; the earliest is in chapter 2.4 – and modified in chapter 4.5 – of the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, one of the principal and oldest

Sruti (vedic texts of Hinduism), as a means to knowledge of the Brahman and Atman.[37] He adds, that the pursuit of self-knowledge is considered important in the Sruti because the Maitreyi dialogue is repeated in chapter 4.5 as a "logical finale" to the discussion of Brahman in the Upanishad.[38]

Concluding his dialogue on the "inner self", or soul, Yajnavalkaya tells Maitreyi:[33]

One should indeed see, hear, understand and meditate over the Self, O Maitreyi;
indeed, he who has seen, heard, reflected and understood the Self – by him alone the whole world comes to be known.

— Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 2.4.5b[39]

On Dharma

In Yajnavalkya Smriti, Yajnavalkya emphasizes the plurality of dharma, drawing from multiple sources including the Vedas, recollections, righteous conduct, self-satisfaction, and desire rooted in right intention. He introduces the idea that fulfilling desires with the right intention is part of dharma, a departure from previous texts. Yajnavalkya emphasizes the significance of gift-giving (dana) and yoga in dharma, considering them central practices. He suggests that those who understand the self hold superior knowledge of dharma. Yajnavalkya categorizes dharma into three divisions, covering everyday life, royal conduct, and extraordinary circumstances. He recognizes that not all dharma originates from Vedic sources; some are derived from worldly customs or enforced by rulers.[40]

See also

References

  1. ^ ., Quote: "Yajnavalkya, a Vedic sage, taught..."
  2. ^ Olivelle 1998, pp. 3, 52–71.
  3. ^ a b Ben-Ami Scharfstein (1998), A comparative history of world philosophy: from the Upanishads to Kant, Albany: State University of New York Press, pp. 9-11
  4. ^ a b Olivelle 1998, p. xxxvi with footnote 20
  5. .
  6. ^ a b c I Fisher (1984), Yajnavalkya in the Sruti traditions of the Veda, Acta Orientalia, Volume 45, pages 55–87
  7. .
  8. .
  9. ^ Macdonell, Arthur Anthony; Keith, Arthur Berriedale (1912). Vedic Index of Names and Subjects. Vol. II. John Murray. p. 189.
  10. ^ a b Pechilis 2004, pp. 11–15.
  11. ^ John Muir, Metrical Translations from Sanskrit Writers, p. 251, at Google Books, page 246–251
  12. ^ John Muir, Metrical Translations from Sanskrit Writers, p. 251, at Google Books, pp. 251–253
  13. .
  14. .
  15. ^ White 2014, pp. xiii, xvi.
  16. ^ a b Vishwanath Narayan Mandlik, The Vyavahára Mayúkha, in Original, with an English Translation at Google Books, pages lvi, xlviii–lix
  17. ^ Hajime Nakamura (1968), Yajnavalkya and other Upanishadic thinkers in a Jain tradition, The Adyar Library Bulletin, Volume 31–32, pages 214–228
  18. ^ Larson & Bhattacharya 2008, pp. 476–477.
  19. , pages 27, 315–316 with notes
  20. .
  21. ^ Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 4.4.5-6 Berkley Center for Religion Peace & World Affairs, Georgetown University (2012)
  22. , pages 475-507
  23. ^ Max Muller, Brihadaranyaka Upanishad 4.3-4, Oxford University Press, pages 161-181 with footnotes
  24. , page 482
  25. ^ Müller, F. Max (Friedrich Max) (1879–84). The Upanishads. Princeton Theological Seminary Library. Oxford, The Clarendon press. pp. 162–163.
  26. .
  27. ^ Olivelle 1998, p. 52.
  28. .
  29. ^ Olivelle 1998, p. 28.
  30. ^ Hino 1991, pp. 94–95.
  31. ^ Brereton 2006, pp. 323–345.
  32. ^ Brereton 2006, pp. 323–45.
  33. ^ a b Marvelly 2011, p. 43.
  34. ^ Hume 1967, pp. 98–102, 146–48.
  35. ^ Hino 1991, pp. 5–6, 94.
  36. .
  37. ^ Hino 1991, pp. 54–59, 94–95, 145–149.
  38. ^ Hino 1991, p. 5.
  39. ^ Deussen 2010, p. 435.
  40. ^ Yajnavalkya 2019, p. xxvi-xxviii.

Bibliography

External links