Taittiriya Upanishad Bhashyam
सत्यं ज्ञानमनन्तमानन्दं ब्रह्म सर्वशक्त्येकम् ।
सर्वैर्देवैरीड्यं विष्ण्वाख्यं सर्वदैमि सुप्रेष्ठम्।।
The Taittiriyopanishad belongs to Krishna (Black) Yajur Veda. It forms the 7th - 9th chapters of the Taittiriiya Aranyaka. The popular Narayana Upanishad is the 10th chapter of this Aranyaka. Lord Brahma listened to this Upanishad from Lord Sri Vishnu present in the Sun. He in turn taught this Upanishad to Lord Varuna. Sage Bhrigu learned this from his father Varuna and extolled the Lord with these mantras. In these mantras the majesties of the five-fold forms of the Lord - Annamaya, Pranamaya, Vignanamaya, Manomaya, Anandamaya are stated. Pleased by this, the Lord bestowed upon him eternal devotion and knowledge.
Taittiriyopanishad Bhashya
Sri Madhwacharya has composed a scholarly commentary on the Taittiriya Upanishad. It would not be inappropriate if we say that without the help of Acharya’s Bhashya the Upanishad would lead to several misunderstandings. There would have been no clarity about the concepts. We would have been left with a whole lot of unanswered questions.
Devata and Rishi
At the outset, as it is a hallmark of each of his Bhashyas, Sri Acharya reveals the Rishis, and Devata of the Upanishad. While Lord Sri Vishnu is the foremost Rishi, Lord Brahma, Lord Varuna and Sage Bhrigu are also the Rishis of this Upanishad. Lord Sri Narayana is the Devata. Contradiction in the invocatory verse In the opening verse of the Upanishad, the Rishi salutes Mitra, Varuna, Vayu and other deities. If Lord Sri Vishnu is also the Rishi of this Upanishad, then will it not be inappropriate for him to salute Lord Vayu and others who are inferior to Him? To this Sri Madhwacharya gives a beautiful clarification. Lord Sri Vishnu taught these verses to Lord Brahma not as his own words but as the words of Sage Bhrigu. This amounts to saying that Sage Bhrigu has extolled Lord Vayu and others by these verses. As Lord Sri Vishnu has only mentioned Sage Bhrigu’s words in his teachings to Lord Brahma there is no contradiction.
The Three Vallis
This Upanishad contains three chapters viz., Siksha Valli, Brahma Valli and Bhrigu Valli, the first chapter being the bulkiest among the three. The excellences of the Bhashya can be noted in all these chapters.
Siksha Valli
The Siksha Valli deals with Vedic Phonetics. This reference is not merely from the point of view of grammar, but more significantly from the spiritual angle.
Six Aspects of Brahma Vidya
At the very beginning of the Sikshavalli the Upanishad puts forth six aspects of learning for a Brahma Jignasa Aspirant. Sri Madhwacharya has presented manifold interpretations of each of these six aspects as under -
- Varna - This word refers to the Supreme God, who is known by each of the Varnas (Syllables), who is the indweller of the Varnas and one who inspires the phonetic actions of producing sounds.
- Svara - This word refers to the Supreme God, who is known by each of the Svaras (Vedic Accents), who is the indweller of the Svara and one who inspires the phonetic actions of uttering the Svaras.
- Matra - This word refers to the Supreme God, who bestows knowledge, who protects those who recite the Vedic Mantras, who is known by each of the Matras (Metrical Units), who is the indweller of the Matras, and one who inspires the phonetic actions of producing the Matras.
- Balam - This word refers to the Supreme God, who is an epitome of energy, who is behind the efforts to produce the sounds.
- Saama - This word refers to the Supreme God, whose forms are all non-different, who is present in the conjunctions of the syllables, who inspires the actions to pronounce the conjunctions.
- Santana - This word refers to the Supreme God, who is eternal, who dwells in the series of syllables in a word.
Siksha Valli Bhashya
The salient features of Sri Madhwacharya's Bhashya in Siksha Valli are as follows -
- The five Adhikaranas spoken of in the Siksha Valli viz., Adhiloka, Adhijyautisha, Adhividya, Adhipraja and Adhyatma are contemplated by Lord Brahma as the abodes of Lord Sri Narayana, Lord Sri Vasudeva, Lord Sri Sankarshana, Lord Sri Pradyumna and Lord Sri Aniruddha respectively as under
- Adhiloka - Narayana
- Adhijyothisha - Vasudeva
- Adhividya - Sankarshana
- Adhipraja - Pradyumna
- Adhyatma - Aniruddha
- Each of these is further divided into four parts which are governed by the Vyuha forms of the Lord as under
- Adhiloka
- Prithvi - Narayana Vasudeva
- Dyu - Narayana Sankarshana
- Akasha - Narayana Pradyumna
- Vayu - Narayana Aniruddha
- Adhijyautisha
- Agni - Vasudeva Vasudeva
- Aditya - Vasudeva Sankarshana
- Aap - Vasudeva Pradyumna
- Vaidyutah - Vasudeva Aniruddha
- Adhividyam
- Acharya - Sankarshana Vasudeva
- Antevasi - Sankarshana Sankarshana
- Vidya - Sankarshana Pradyumna
- Pravachanam - Sankarshana Aniruddha
- Adhiprajam
- Maata - Pradyumna Vasudeva
- Pita - Pradyumna Sankarshana
- Praja - Pradyumna Pradyumna
- Prajananam - Pradyumna Aniruddha
- Adhyatmyam
- Manushyottama - Aniruddha Vasudeva
- Mukti Yogya - Aniruddha Sankarshana
- Vak - Aniruddha Pradyumna
- Marana - Aniruddha Aniruddha
- Adhiloka
- The four forms Lord Sri Vasudeva, Lord Sri Sankarshana, Lord Sri Pradyumna and Lord Sri Aniruddha are present in the Purva Varna, Uttara Varna, Sanshi (Join) and Sandhana (The act of joining the letter) of the Samhita.
- In this Bhashya Sri Acharya has given great detail about the Vyahritis and their deeper meanings.
- In Loka, Jyoti, Prana and Veda He is present with four forms viz., Aniruddha, Pradyumna, Sankarshana, Vasudeva present in each of the Vyahritis - Bhuhu, Bhuvaha, Svaha and Mahaha respectively. All Vyahruti Pratipadya forms of the Lord (4*4=16) and the aspects they govern are as follows -
- bhUH - Aniruddha - Aniruddha -> Bhoomi
- bhuvaH - Aniruddha - Pradyumna -> Antariksha
- svaH - Aniruddha - Sansarshana - Swarga
- mahaH - Aniruddha - Vasudeva -> Aditya
- bhUH - Pradyumna - Aniruddha -> Agni
- bhuvaH - Pradyumna - Pradyumna -> Vayu
- svaH - Pradyumna - Sankarshana -> Aditya
- mahaH - Pradyumna - Vasudeva -> Chandramas
- bhUH - Sankarshana - Aniruddha -> Rigveda
- bhuvaH - Sankarshana - Pradyumna -> Samaveda
- svaH - Sankarshana - Sankarshana -> Yagna
- mahaH - Sankarshana - Vasudeva -> Brahma Shabda Vachya
- bhUH - Vasudeva-Aniruddha -> Prana-Urdhvaloka Devata
- bhuvaH - Vasudeva-Pradyumna -> Apana-Adhama-Daitya
- svaH - Vasudeva-Sankarshana -> Vyana-Jeeva Prerana
- mahaH - Vasudeva - Vasudeva -> Anna - Upajeeva
- Quoting a rare text called Vyahriti Saara, he interpreted the word Vyahriti to mean the four Vedas, Mahabharata, Purana and the complete Pancharatra text. They are called so because they give correct knowledge about the Lord. Another interpretation is also given. They are called Vyahritis because they bring God closer to the devotee.
- These Vyahriti forms of the Lord form a special conglomeration in which Lord Sri Narayana becomes the whole whereas Lord Sri Aniruddha, Lord Sri Pradyumna, Lord Sri Sankarshana and Lord Sri Vasudeva become His different body parts. Lord Sri Aniruddha becomes the head, Lord Sri Pradyumna becomes the two shoulders, Lord Sri Sankarshana becomes the two feet. Lord Sri Vasudeva becomes the middle portion of the body. Though all these forms of the Lord are non-different from each other yet they sport in this way. The Aniruddha, Pradyumna, Sankarshana and Vasudeva forms of the Lord.
- In all the six sets each consisting of five locations (Paankta Shatka) the Lord is present with his Narayana, Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha forms.
- The reason for uttering the syllable OM in all activities is uniquely revealed in this Bhashya. As OM refers to Lord Sri Vishnu conveying His supremacy and completeness, uttering OM amounts to doing actions to propitiate Him.
- Difference between Rita and Satya - in Sanskrit both the words Rita and Satya usually have the same meaning. But Sri Madhwacharya has showed in his Bhashya how these two words are used in the same context with different meanings in this Upanishad. Valid knowledge is called Rita. Doing actions or speaking according to true knowledge is called Satya.
- The importance of Svadhyaya Pravachana (Learning and Discourse) is highlighted. Even while performing other tasks learning and discourse should be continued. Hence they have a very special place as per the Bhashya of Sri Madhwacharya.
- The Bhashya also reveals that the celestials act like mortals when they take birth on the earth and do not exhibit or utilize their super powers. This is as per the scriptural injunction - "Thou salt follow the human code of conduct when born as human".
- The Bhashya clarifies that the Panchadhikarana-Abhimanitva mentioned in this Upanishad also applies to Lord Vayu. Some people think that there was no need to salute Lord Vayu at the beginning and end of this Upanishad as there is no reference to Lord Vayu in the Upanishad at all. But that question was answered by Sri Madhwacharya by revealing that Lord Vayu is very much extolled in this Upanishad as the Panchadhikarana Abhimani. Hence saluting him becomes very much appropriate.
Brahma Valli
In this chapter the knowledge about the Brahman is given. By knowing the Brahman one enjoys great bliss along with Lord Brahma. The Brahma Valli also talks about the creation of five elements viz., Akasha, Vayu, Agni, Aapa, and Prithvi. There is also a detailed description of the Annamayadi forms of the Lord. In the Bhashya Sri Acharya meticulously substantiated how the suffix "Mayat" is used in the sense of "Prachurya" as opposed to "Vikara" as put forth by other commentators.
Varuna's Question and Brahma's intelligent answer
Who will be able to reach the God? An Aparoksha Jnani or Non-Aparoksha Jnanis? If the former is true, will all Aparoksha Jnanins reach him or only a few. If all of them reach Him, would all of them attain him completely or only a few. Lord Brahma gave a one lettered answer "U" meaning "Yes" to all the there questions. Acharya has clearly shown in his Bhashya as to how only one "Yes" can be an answer to all the three questions. For each of the above three questions, the first option is selected by the questioner himself by saying "if the former is true". To this Lord Brahma said yes meaning only Aparoksha Jnanis reach God. If that is true, will all of them reach or only few? To this Brahma's reply "Yes" still holds good meaning all of them reach God. Would all of them reach completely? Lord Brahma's answer "Yes" holds good here as well. Hence only one "yes" successfully answered all the three questions.
Bliss in Moksha
The most attractive aspect about our Vedic Scriptures is that they have given us the concept and picture of a state free from the fear of death and sorrow. It is called Moksha - an everlasting blissful state without an iota of sorrow; a state where every wish of ours is fulfilled at the very instance. The bliss experienced in the sate of liberation is completely out-of-theworld experience. There is nothing in this world that can match that bliss. Yet, to generate interest in Moksha, an attempt is made in the Brahma Valli to quantify such bliss by comparing it with the highest happiness that one can possible get in this mundane world. Sri Madhwacharya, in his Bhasya, explains how this Upanishadic revelation silences the claims of several philosophical schools that there will be identity and equality in the state of liberation. He also takes this opportunity to explain in detail with valid proofs that each soul is unique and that the difference between the souls is intrinsic to the soul's nature.
There is a popular belief that the passage "Asat va idam agra asit" says that nothing existed at the time of the Pralaya. But Sri Madhwacharya in his Bhashya, beautifully explains how the Upanishad calls Lord Sri Narayana as Asat. Lord Sri Narayana is known as Asat as he is not reachable by anyone. From Him, the Vasudeva form of the Lord manifested.. Hence Lord Sri Vasudeva is known as Sat.
Bhrigu Valli
In this chapter, divine experience obtained by Sage Bhrigu is narrated. He was taught by his father Varuna about God Realization. He realized the Annamayadi forms in succession and reached the respective forms.
Eight forms of Lord realized by Sage Bhrigu 1. Anna 2. Prana 3. Chakshush (Seeing) 4. Srotra ( Hearing) 5. Manas 6. Vignana (Jnana Swarupa) 7. Ananda 8. Vak
Conclusion
Sri Madhwacharya's Taittiriya Bhashya is a great repository of esoteric meanings collected from several forgotten treasures. We come to know that Sri Acharya has extensively collected and preserved several such works which otherwise would have been burnt, eaten by termites or thrown into the waters.
Even during his time, several texts were already lost and the mankind did not even know the names of such texts some of which were original commentaries to Srimad Bhagavata and Gita. Out of compassion towards mankind, Sri Acharya has quoted several such texts from his memory and included them in his Sarvamoola texts.
One may wonder how a person could know so much? Sri Acharya has revealed that he is the third incarnation of the omniscient Lord Vayu who incarnates by the order of Lord Sri Narayana as Hanuma, Bhima and Madhwa in the Treta, Dvapara and Kali Yugas respectively. The three forms are very much extolled in the Balittha Sukta of Rigveda. Who else can demonstrate such command and completeness over all the scriptures?
The mankind should be very much indebted to him for his contributions to knowledge. We can only fold our hands with deep devotion and humbly fall at his feet.
पूर्णागण्यगुणोदारधाम्ने नित्याय वेधसे ।
अमम्दानन्दसान्द्राय प्रेयसे विष्णवे नमः।