https://indianpedia.org/index.php?action=history&feed=atom&title=Kena_UpanishadKena Upanishad - Revision history2026-07-31T15:58:20ZRevision history for this page on the wikiMediaWiki 1.45.4https://indianpedia.org/index.php?title=Kena_Upanishad&diff=142208&oldid=previmported>Subhobrata Chakravorti at 15:12, 26 August 20212021-08-26T15:12:46Z<p></p>
<p><b>New page</b></p><div>{{short description|One of the ancient Sanskrit scriptures of Hinduism}}<br />
[[File:Kena Upanishad 1.1 to 1.4 verses, Samaveda, Sanskrit, Devanagari.jpg|thumb|upright=1.25|''Kena Upanishad'' manuscript page, verses 1.1 to 1.4, from ''Samaveda'' (Sanskrit, Devanagari script)]]<br />
{{Upanishads}}<br />
{{italics}}<br />
The '''Kena Upanishad''' ({{IAST|Kenopaniṣat}}) is a [[Vedic Sanskrit]] text classified as one of the primary or [[Mukhya Upanishads]] that is embedded inside the last section of the ''Talavakara Brahmanam'' of the [[Samaveda]].<ref>Johnston, Charles (1920-1931), The Mukhya Upanishads, Kshetra Books, {{ISBN|9781495946530}} (Reprinted in 2014)</ref><ref name=pauldeussenintro>Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120814684}}, pages 207-213</ref> It is listed as number 2 in the [[Muktikā]], the canon of the 108 Upanishads of [[Hinduism]].<br />
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The Kena Upanishad was probably composed sometime around the middle of the 1st millennium BCE. It has an unusual structure where the first 13 are verses composed as a metric poem, followed by 15 prose paragraphs of main text plus 6 prose paragraphs of epilogue.<ref name=pauldeussenintro/> [[Paul Deussen]] suggests that the latter prose section of the main text is far more ancient than the poetic first section, and Kena Upanishad bridged the more ancient prose Upanishad era with the metric poetic era of Upanishads that followed.<ref name=pauldeussenintro/><br />
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Kena Upanishad is notable in its discussion of [[Brahman]] with attributes and without attributes, and for being a treatise on "purely conceptual knowledge".<ref name=pauldeussenintro/> It asserts that the [[four causes#Efficient cause|efficient cause]] of all the gods, symbolically envisioned as forces of nature, is Brahman.<ref name=pauldeussenintro/> This has made it a foundational scripture to Vedanta school of Hinduism, both the theistic and monistic sub-schools after varying interpretations. The Kena Upanishad is also significant in asserting the idea of "Spiritual Man", "Self is a wonderful being that even gods worship", "Atman (Self) exists", and "knowledge and spirituality are the goals and intense longing of all creatures".<ref name=pauldeussenintro/><ref>Charles Johnston, The Mukhya Upanishads: Books of Hidden Wisdom, (1920-1931), The Mukhya Upanishads, Kshetra Books, {{ISBN|978-1495946530}} (Reprinted in 2014), [http://www.universaltheosophy.com/pdf-library/Kena%20Upanishad_Johnston.pdf Archive of Kena Upanishad]</ref><br />
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==Etymology==<br />
''Kena'' (Sanskrit: केन) literally means, depending on the object-subject context, "by what, by whom, whence, how, why, from what cause".<ref name=mmwdict>[http://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/scans/MWScan/tamil/index.html Kena] Monier-Williams' Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Cologne Digital Sanskrit Lexicon, Germany</ref> This root of ''Kena'', in the sense of "by whom" or "from what cause", is found the inquisitive first verse of the Kena Upanishad as follows,<br />
{{Verse translation|italicsoff=y|<br />
'''केने'''षितं पतति प्रेषितं मनः<br />
'''केन''' प्राणः प्रथमः प्रैति युक्तः <nowiki>।</nowiki><br />
'''केने'''षितां वाचमिमां वदन्ति<br />
चक्षुः श्रोत्रं '''क''' उ देवो युनक्ति <nowiki>॥ १ ॥</nowiki><ref>[https://sa.wikisource.org/wiki/केनोपनिषद् Kena Upanishad] Verse 1, Wikisource</ref><br />
|attr1=Kena Upanishad 1.1|<br />
Sent by '''whom''', flies out thither the mind?<br />
Harnessed by '''whom''', roves thither the first breath?<ref>The slight re-ordering of words here is per [[Max Muller]], see Max Muller, [https://archive.org/stream/upanishads01ml#page/146/mode/2up Talavakara Upanishad], The [[Sacred Books of the East]], Volume 1, Oxford University Press, page 147</ref><br />
'''Who''' sends out the speech which we speak?<br />
'''Who''' is the [[Deva (Hinduism)|Deva]] (deity, god) that harnesses the ears and eyes?|attr2=Translated by [[Paul Deussen]]<ref name=pauldeussen11>Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120814684}}, pages 209-210</ref>}}<br />
<br />
The Kena Upanishad belongs to the [[Jaiminiya Upanishad Brahmana|Talavakara Brahmana]] of Sama Veda, giving the etymological roots of an alternate name of ''Talavakara Upanishad'' for it, in ancient and medieval era Indian texts.<ref name=pauldeussenintro/><ref name=gprasadji>[https://archive.org/stream/kena-upanishad00xxxxuoft#page/n7/mode/2up Kena Upanishad] G Prasadji (Translator), Delhi, pages 1-34</ref><br />
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The Kena Upanishad is also referred to as the Kenopanishad ({{lang-sa|केनोपनिषत्}}, {{IAST|Kenopaniṣat}}).<br />
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==Chronology==<br />
The chronology of Kena Upanishad, like other Vedic texts, is unclear and contested by scholars.<ref name=stephenphillips>Stephen Phillips (2009), Yoga, Karma, and Rebirth: A Brief History and Philosophy, Columbia University Press, {{ISBN|978-0231144858}}, Chapter 1</ref> All opinions rest on scanty evidence, an analysis of archaism, style and repetitions across texts, driven by assumptions about likely evolution of ideas, and on presumptions about which philosophy might have influenced which other Indian philosophies.<ref name=stephenphillips/><ref>[[Patrick Olivelle]] (1996), The Early Upanishads: Annotated Text & Translation, Oxford University Press, {{ISBN|978-0195124354}}, Introduction Chapter</ref><br />
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Phillips dates Kena Upanishad as having been composed after Brihadaranyaka, Chandogya, Isha, Taittiriya and Aitareya (pre-6th century BCE), but before Katha, Mundaka, Prasna, Mandukya, Svetasvatara and Maitri Upanishads, as well as before the earliest Buddhist Pali and Jaina canons.<ref name=stephenphillips/><br />
<br />
Ranade<ref>RD Ranade, [https://archive.org/stream/A.Constructive.Survey.of.Upanishadic.Philosophy.by.R.D.Ranade.1926.djvu/A.Constructive.Survey.of.Upanishadic.Philosophy.by.R.D.Ranade.1926#page/n47/mode/2up A Constructive Survey of Upanishadic Philosophy], Chapter 1, pages 13-18</ref> posits a view similar to Phillips, with slightly different ordering, placing Kena chronological composition in the third group of ancient Upanishads. [[Paul Deussen]] considers Kena Upanishad to be bridging a period of prose composition and fusion of poetic creativity with ideas.<ref name=ssharma>S Sharma (1985), Life in the Upanishads, {{ISBN|978-8170172024}}, pages 17-19</ref> Winternitz considers the Kena Upanishad as pre-Buddhist, pre-Jaina literature.<ref name=ssharma/><ref>M Winternitz (2010), History of Indian Literature, Vol 1, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120802643}}</ref><br />
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The text is likely from about the middle of 1st millennium BCE. Many of the ideas found in Kena Upanishads have more ancient roots. For example, the ideas in verse 2 of Kena Upanishad are found in the oldest Brihadaranyaka Upanishad's chapter 4.4, as well as the second oldest Chandogya Upanishad's chapter 8.12.<ref name=pauldeussen11/><br />
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==Structure==<br />
Kena Upanishad has three parts: 13 verses in the first part, 15 paragraphs in the second part, and 6 paragraphs in the epilogue. These are distributed in four ''khaṇḍas'' (खण्ड, sections or volumes). The first Khanda has 8 verses, the second has 5 verses. The third Khanda has 12 paragraphs, while the fourth khanda has the remaining 9 (3 paragraphs of main text and 6 paragraphs of the epilogue).<ref name=pauldeussenintro/><ref name=gprasadji/><br />
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The first two Khandas of Kena Upanishad are poems, the last two are prose, with one exception. Paragraph 9 is prose and structurally out of place, which has led scholars to state that the paragraph 9 was inserted or is a corrupted version of the original manuscript in a more modern era.<ref name=pauldeussenintro/> Another odd structural feature of Kena Upanishad's poetic Khandas is verse 3, which has 8 lines (typically marked as 3a and 3b), while all other poetic verses in the first two sections are only 4 lines of mathematical metric construction.<br />
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There are some differences in the positioning of Kena Upanishad in manuscripts discovered in different parts of India. It is, for example, the ninth chapter of Talavakara Brahmana in south Indian manuscripts and as mentioned in the ''Bhasya'' (commentary) by Shankara,<ref name=maxmullerintro>Max Muller, [https://archive.org/stream/upanishads01ml#page/n95/mode/2up Talavakara Upanishad], The Sacred Books of the East, Volume 1, Oxford University Press, pages LXXXIX-XCI</ref> while the Burnell manuscript of sections of Sama Veda<ref>First published in Basel, Switzerland in 1878</ref> places it in the tenth ''Anuvaka'' of the fourth chapter (inside Jaiminia Brahmana).<ref>Hanns Oertel, [https://www.jstor.org/stable/592357 Extracts from the Jāiminīya-Brāhmaṇa and Upanishad-Brāhmaṇa, Parallel to Passages of the Çatapatha-Brāhmaṇa and Chāndogya-Upanishad], Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 15 (1893), pages 233-251</ref><br />
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The Kena Upanishad is accepted as part of Sama Veda, but it is also found in manuscripts of Atharva collection. The difference between the two versions is minor and structural - in Sama Veda manuscripts, the Kena Upanishad has four sections, while the Atharva manuscripts show no such division into sections.<ref>Eduard Roer, [https://www.shemtaia.com/SKT/PDF/Upanishads/roerkenaeng.pdf Kena Upanishad], in A Collection of Oriental Works, Bibliotheca Indica, Vol. XV, No. 41 and 50, Asiatic Society of Bengal, page 77</ref><br />
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==Contents==<br />
{{Hindu scriptures |expanded=Upanishads}}<br />
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===Nature of knowledge - First khanda===<br />
The Kena Upanishad opens by questioning the nature of man, the origins, the essence and the relationship of him with knowledge and sensory perception.<ref name=pauldeussen11/> It then asserts that knowledge is of two types - empirical and conceptual. Empirical knowledge can be taught, described and discussed. Conceptual axiomatic knowledge cannot, states Kena Upanishad. Pure, abstract concepts are learnt and realized instead wherein it mentions that the highest reality is Brahman.<br />
<br />
{{Quote|<br />
<poem><br />
"There the eye goes not,<br />
speech goes not, nor the mind.<br />
We know not, we understand not,<br />
how one would teach it?<br />
<br />
Other is it indeed than the known,<br />
and more over above the unknown.<br />
Thus from the forbearers,<br />
the doctrine has been transmitted to us.<br />
</poem><br />
|Kena Upanishad 1.3a and 1.3b, Translated by Woodburne<ref name=pauldeussen11/><ref name=aswoodburne>A. S. Woodburne, The Idea of God in Hinduism, The Journal of Religion, Vol. 5, No. 1 (Jan., 1925), pages 57-58</ref>}}<br />
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In verse 4, Kena Upanishad asserts that Brahman cannot be worshipped, because it has no attributes and is unthinkable, indescribable, eternal, all present reality. That what man worships is neither Atman-Brahman nor the path to Atman-Brahman. Rather, Brahman is that which cannot be perceived as empirical reality. It is that which "hears" the sound in ears, "sees" the view in eyes, "beholds" the words of speech, "smells" the aroma in breath, "comprehends" the meaning in thought. The Atman-Brahman is in man, not that which one worships outside.<ref name=pauldeussen11/><br />
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Woodburne interprets the first ''khanda'' of Kena Upanishad to be describing Brahman in a manner that "faith" is described in [[Christianity]].<ref name=aswoodburne/> In contrast, [[Adi Shankara|Shankara]] interprets the first khanda entirely as monistic.<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/KenaUpanishadWithShankaraBhasyaAndAnandagiriTika/KenaUpanishad-shankaracharyaBhashya-AnandagiriTika#page/n1/mode/2up Kena Upanishad with Shankara Bhasya and Anandagiri Tika], Anandashrama Sanskruta Grantavali, New Delhi (in Sanskrit), pages 1-94</ref><br />
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===Self-awakening is the source of inner strength - Second khanda===<br />
The second khanda of Kena Upanishad starts with prose paragraph 9 that inserts a theistic theme, asserting that the worshipping of Brahman, described in the first khanda, is deception<ref name=pauldeussen21011/> because that is phenomenal form of Brahman, one among gods. Verses 10 to 13, return to the poetic form, and the theme of what knowing Brahman is and what knowing Brahman is not.<ref name=pauldeussen21011>Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120814684}}, pages 210-211</ref> Verses 12 and 13 of Kena describe the state of self-realization ([[moksha]]), stating that those who are self-awakened gain inner strength, see the Spiritual Oneness in every being, and attain immortality.<ref name=pauldeussen21011/><ref>Robert Hume, [https://archive.org/stream/thirteenprincipa028442mbp#page/n357/mode/2up Kena Upanishad], Thirteen Principle Upanishads, Oxford University Press, page 337</ref><ref>Max Muller, [https://archive.org/stream/upanishads01ml#page/148/mode/2up Talavakara Upanishad], The Sacred Books of the East, Volume 1, Oxford University Press, pages 148-149</ref> Charles Johnston refers to the state as the "Spiritual Man".<ref>Charles Johnston, [http://www.universaltheosophy.com/pdf-library/Kena%20Upanishad_Johnston.pdf "By Whom" - Kena Upanishad], Theosophical Quarterly 1921-1922, pages 111-115 and 225-232, Kshetra Books, {{ISBN|9781495946530}} (Reprinted in 2014)</ref><br />
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{{Quote|<br />
<poem><br />
He, in whom it [Atman-Brahman] awakes, knows it<br />
and finds immortality<br />
That he is itself, gives him strength<br />
That he knows it, gives immortality.<br />
<br />
He, who found it here below, possesses the truth,<br />
For him who has not found it here, it is great destruction,<br />
In every being, the wise being perceives it,<br />
and departing out of this world, becomes immortal.<br />
</poem><br />
|Kena Upanishad 2.12 - 2.13, Translated by [[Paul Deussen]]<ref name="pauldeussen21011"/>}}<br />
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===Allegory of three gods and one goddess - Third and Fourth khandas===<br />
The third section of Kena is a fable, set in prose unlike the first two poetic sections. The fable is an allegory, states Paul Deussen.<ref name=pauldeussen208>Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120814684}}, page 208</ref> The allegory is, states the theosophist Charles Johnston, a "delicious piece of Sanskrit prose, fascinating in its simple style, and one of the deepest passages in all of Upanishads".<ref>Charles Johnston, The Mukhya Upanishads: Books of Hidden Wisdom, (1920-1931), The Mukhya Upanishads, Kshetra Books, {{ISBN|978-1495946530}} (Reprinted in 2014), [http://www.universaltheosophy.com/pdf-library/Kena%20Upanishad_Johnston.pdf Archive of Kena Upanishad - Part 3, page 230]</ref><br />
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<blockquote style="background-color:none;margin-right:5em;margin-left:0em;border-left:solid 8px #ccc;padding:1.5em"><br />
The fable begins by asserting that in a war between gods and demons, the Brahman won victory for the gods.<ref name=pauldeussen34>Paul Deussen, Sixty Upanishads of the Veda, Volume 1, Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-8120814684}}, pages 211-213</ref><ref name=charleskenaprose>Charles Johnston, Kena Upanishad in The Mukhya Upanishads: Books of Hidden Wisdom, (1920-1931), The Mukhya Upanishads, Kshetra Books, {{ISBN|978-1495946530}} (Reprinted in 2014), [http://www.universaltheosophy.com/pdf-library/Kena%20Upanishad_Johnston.pdf Archive of Kena Upanishad - Part 3 as published in Theosophical Quarterly, pages 229-232]</ref> The gods, however, praised themselves for the victory, saying, "Of us is this victory, of us is this might and glory". The Brahman noticed this. It revealed itself before the gods, who did not recognize and know it. The gods said, "what is this wonderful being?" They delegated god [[Agni]] (fire) to go discover who this wonderful being is.<br />
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Agni rushed to Brahman. The Brahman asked, "who are you?". Agni replied, "I am Agni, knower of beings". Brahman asked, "if so, what is the source of your power". Agni replied, "I am able to burn whatever is on earth." The Brahman then laid a piece of grass before Agni, and said, "Burn this, then." Agni rushed to the grass and tried his best to burn it. He failed. He turned back and returned to the gods. Agni told the gods, "I am unable to discover what this wonderful being is". The gods then nominated god [[Vayu]] (air) to go, and "explore, O Vayu, what this wonderful being is".<br />
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Vayu rushed to Brahman. The Brahman asked, "who are you?". Vayu replied, "I am Vayu, I am ''Matarisvan'' (what fills the aerial space around mother earth,<ref name=pauldeussen34/> mover in space<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/kena-upanishad00xxxxuoft#page/19/mode/2up Kena Upanishad] Mantra 8, G Prasadji (Translator)</ref>)". Brahman asked, "if so, what is the source of your power". Vayu replied, "I am able to carry or pull whatever is on earth." The Brahman then laid a piece of grass before Vayu, and said, "Carry this, then." Vayu rushed to the grass and tried his best to lift and carry it away. He failed. He turned back and returned to the gods. Vayu told his fellow gods, "I am unable to discover what this wonderful being is". The gods then turned to god [[Indra]] (lightning, god of might) to go, and "explore, O mighty one, what this wonderful being is". "So be it", said Indra.<br />
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Indra went to Brahman. There, in the place of Brahman, he found a beautiful woman with knowledge. Her name was [[Parvati|Umã]]. Indra asked Uma, "what is this wonderful being?"<br />
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Goddess Uma replied, "that is the Brahman; that is the one who obtained victory, though gods praise themselves for it". Indra then knew.<br />
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The tradition holds that Agni, Vayu and Indra are elevated above all other gods, respected first in ceremonies and rituals, because these three "met" and "experienced" the Brahman first. Indra is most celebrated because he "knew" Brahman first, among all gods.<br />
<br />
– Translations by Deussen<ref name=pauldeussen34/> and by Johnston<ref name=charleskenaprose/><br />
</blockquote><br />
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Johnston states, as does the Hindu scholar [[Adi Shankara]], that this simple story is loaded with symbolism.<ref name=charleskenaprose/> The Brahman, the three gods selected from numerous Vedic gods, and choice of the one goddess from many, the goddess ''Umã'' revealing spiritual knowledge about Brahman rather than the Brahman itself,<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/kena-upanishad00xxxxuoft#page/23/mode/2up Kena Upanishad] Mantra 12, G Prasadji (Translator), pages 23-26</ref> as well the phrasing of the type "the wonderful being",<ref name=pauldeussen34/> are all allegorically referring to the spiritual themes of the Upanishads. Agni embodies fire, and symbolizes "natural self, with vital fire in all beings and everything". Vayu embodies space that envelops empirical existence, symbolizes "mental self, akin to thoughts about everything".<ref name=charleskenaprose/> Indra embodies lightning, light and illumination, thus symbolizing "causal conscious self, with light of truth that discerns correct knowledge from incorrect". The Brahman is Atman, the Eternal.<ref name=charleskenaprose/> The war between gods and demons is symbolism for the war between good and evil. ''Devas'' themselves are allegorical reference to sensory and intellectual capabilities of man, with the war symbolizing challenges a man faces in his journey through life.<ref>S Sharvananda, Kena Upanishad, Upanishad Series No. 2, Madras (1920), pages 2, 31-37</ref> Kena Upanishad's allegory is suggesting that empirical actions, such as destruction by fire or moving a being from one place to another, does not lead to "knowing the essence of the subject, the wonderful being". The Upanishad is allegorically reminding that a victory of good over evil, is not of manifested self, but of the good, the eternal, the Atman-Brahman.<ref name=charleskenaprose/><br />
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===Epilogue - Fourth khanda===<br />
The epilogue in Kena Upanishad is contained in the last six paragraphs of the text. It asserts the timelessness and awareness of Brahman to be similar to moments of wondrous "Ah!!" in life, such as the focussed exclamation one makes upon witnessing lightning flash in the sky, or the focussed "Ah!!" recollection of a knowledge in one's mind of a memory from past.<ref name=pauldeussen208/> The goal of spiritual knowledge, of self awareness, is wonderful, characterized by an "intense longing" for it in all creatures, states Kena Upanishad.<ref name=pauldeussen208/> The knowledge of Atman-Brahman is ''Tadvanam'' (transcendental happiness, blissfulness).<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/kena-upanishad00xxxxuoft#page/31/mode/2up Kena Upanishad] Mantra 6, G Prasadji (Translator), pages 32-33</ref><br />
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In the final paragraphs, Kena Upanishad asserts ethical life as the foundation of self-knowledge and of Atman-Brahman.<br />
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{{Quote|<br />
तसै तपो दमः कर्मेति प्रतिष्ठा वेदाः सर्वाङ्गानि सत्यमायतनम् <nowiki>॥ ८ ॥</nowiki><br />
<br />
[[Tapas (Sanskrit)|Tapas]],<ref>Meditation, Penance, Inner heat, See: WO Kaelber (1976), "Tapas", Birth, and Spiritual Rebirth in the Veda, History of Religions, 15(4), pages 343-386</ref> [[Temperance (virtue)#Hinduism|Damah]],<ref>Self-restraint, see: M Heim (2005), Differentiations in Hindu ethics, in William Schweiker (Editor), The Blackwell companion to religious ethics, {{ISBN|0631216340}}, pages 341-354</ref> Work - these are the foundations, the Vedas are the limbs of the same, the [[Satya|Truth]] is its fulcrum.<br />
|Kena Upanishad, 4.8 (paragraph 33)<ref name=pauldeussen34/>}}<br />
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==Reception==<br />
[[Adi Shankara]] wrote two commentaries on Kenopanishad. One is called ''Kenopaniṣad Padabhāṣya'' and the other is ''Kenopaniṣad Vākyabhāṣya''.<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/KenaUpanishadWithShankaraBhasyaAndAnandagiriTika/KenaUpanishad-shankaracharyaBhashya-AnandagiriTika#page/n1/mode/2up Kena Upanishad with Shankara Bhasya and Anandagiri Tika] Anandashrama Sanskruta Grantavali, New Delhi (in Sanskrit), pages 1-94</ref><ref>[https://archive.org/stream/upanishadssrisan00sita#page/36/mode/2up Isa Kena and Mundaka Upanishads with Shankara's commentary] SS Sastri (Translator), pages 36-89</ref> In his commentary on the third ''khanda'' of Kena Upanishad, Shankara equates Atman-Brahman with Ishvara-Parameshvara.<ref name=bradley/> This equality is repeated by Shankara in Brihadaranyaka Upanishad Bhasya in verses III.7.3 and IV.4.15, in the Bhasya on Chandogya Upanishad's verses I.1.1 and V.18.1, Katha Upanishad's Bhasya on hymn 11.2.13.<ref name=bradley>Bradley Malkovsky [https://www.jstor.org/stable/1206747 The Personhood of Śaṁkara's "Para Brahman"], The Journal of Religion, Vol. 77, No. 4 (Oct., 1997), pages 541-562</ref><br />
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Anandagnana also wrote a commentary on Kena Upanishad. Till late 19th century, the commentary of Shankara and Anandagnana were the only implied source of the existence of Kena Upanishad, as original manuscripts of Upanishad were believed to have been lost, after [[Dara Shikoh]] published a Persian translation of it.<ref name=maxmullerintro/> This changed in 1878, when Burnell found a manuscript and later published it.<ref name=maxmullerintro/> The French scholar [[Abraham Hyacinthe Anquetil-Duperron|Anquetil Duperron]] published a Latin translation from the Persian translated version with the title ''"Kin"'', while Windischmann and others published a German translation of the Kena Upanishad.<ref name=maxmullerintro/> Colebrooke, Poley, Weber, Roer and Gough are among the scholars who have discussed it.<ref name=maxmullerintro/><br />
<br />
George Haas includes a reading of Kena Upanishad, along with other primary Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita, as essential to understanding the "wonderful old treasures of Hindu theosophic lore".<ref>George C.O. Haas, [https://www.jstor.org/stable/593610 Recurrent and Parallel Passages in the Principal Upanishads and the Bhagavad-Gītā], Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 42 (1922), pages 1-43</ref><br />
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[[Edward Washburn Hopkins]] states that the aphoristic mention of "tapo dammah karma" in closing prose parts of Kena Upanishad suggests that ethical precepts of Yoga were well accepted in Indian spiritual traditions by the time Kena Upanishad was composed.<ref>E. Washburn Hopkins, [https://www.jstor.org/stable/592436 Yoga-Technique in the Great Epic], Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 22 (1901), pages 333-379</ref> Similarly, Shrimali cites Kena Upanishad, among other ancient Sanskrit texts, to state that knowledge-seeking and education system was formalized by 1st millennium BCE in India, highlighting among many examples, the question-answer structure of first ''khanda'' of Kena Upanishad.<ref>Krishna Mohan Shrimali (2011), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/41289405 Knowledge Transmission: Processes, Contents and Apparatus in Early India], Social Scientist, Vol. 39, No. 5/6 (May–June 2011), pages 3-22</ref><br />
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Fred Dallmayr<ref name=fred/> cites Kena Upanishad's opening lines to state that Upanishads' primary focus is Atman-Brahman (Self), in Hindu theosophy. These opening lines state,<br />
<br />
{{Quote|<br />
सर्वं ब्रह्मौपनिषदं<ref>[https://sa.wikisource.org/wiki/केनोपनिषद् Kena Upanishad Prelude in Sanskrit] Wikisource</ref><br><br />
Brahman is all of which the Upanishads speak.<br />
|Kena Upanishad Opening Lines<ref name=fred>Fred Dallmayr (1997), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/1399877 International Vedānta Congress in Madras: A Report], Philosophy East and West, Vol. 47, No. 2 (Apr., 1997), pages 255-258</ref>}}<br />
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David Stoll composed "Sonata for 2 Pianos" in 1990 inspired by the opening verses of Kena Upanishad.<ref>Guy Rickards (2002), Tempo New Series, Cambridge University Press, No. 222 (Oct., 2002), [https://www.jstor.org/stable/946530 page 53]</ref><br />
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==References==<br />
{{reflist|2}}<br />
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*[[S. Radhakrishnan]]. ''[[The Principal Upanishads (book)|The Principal Upanishads]]''. George Allen and Unwin. London. 3rd imprn. 1969<br />
*''Eight Upanishads''. Vol.1. With the commentary of [[Sankaracharya]]. Tr. Swami Gambhirananda. Advaita Ashrama. Calcutta. 1957<br />
*[[Sri Aurobindo]], ''The Upanishads'' [http://www.sriaurobindoashram.info/Contents.aspx?ParentCategoryName=_StaticContent/SriAurobindoAshram/-09%20E-Library/-01%20Works%20of%20Sri%20Aurobindo/-12_The%20Upanishad_Volume-12]. [[Sri Aurobindo Ashram]], [[Pondicherry (city)|Pondicherry]]. 1972.<br />
*''Keno Upanishad''[http://www.chinmayapublications.org/detail.php?id=&prodid=AU06] Swami Chinmayananda. Chinmaya Mission.<br />
* {{cite book|last=Upadhyaya|first=Ganga Prasad (translation)|title=Kena-Upanishad|year=1904|publisher=Sarvadeshik Arya Pratinidhi, Delhi |ol=7227162M}}<br />
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==External links==<br />
{{wikisourcelang|sa|केनोपनिषद्|Kena Upanishad (Sanskrit)}}<br />
; Text and Translation<br />
* [https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/kena-upanishad-shankara-bhashya/index.html The Kena Upanishad with Shankara’s Commentary] Translated by S. Sitarama Sastri, online ebook<br />
* [https://www.wisdomlib.org/hinduism/book/kena-upanishad-madhva-commentary The Kena Upanishad with Madhva’s Commentary] Translated by Srisa Chandra Vasu<br />
* [https://archive.org/stream/thirteenprincipa028442mbp#page/n355/mode/2up Kena Upanishad] Robert Hume (Translator), Oxford University Press, pages 335-340<br />
* [https://archive.org/stream/upanishads01ml#page/144/mode/2up Talavakara or Kena Upanishad] Max Muller (Translator), Oxford University Press, pages 147-153<br />
* [https://www.shemtaia.com/SKT/PDF/Upanishads/roerkenaeng.pdf Kena or Talavakára Upanishad] Eduard Roer (Translator), Bibliotheca Indica, Volume 15, No. 41 and 50, pages 75–88<br />
* [http://www.universaltheosophy.com/legacy/movements/ancient-east/vedic-india/kena-upanishad/ Kena Upanishad] Multiple translations (Raja Ram Mohun Roy, Johnston, Nikhilānanda)<br />
* [https://sanskritdocuments.org/doc_upanishhat/kena.html?lang=sa Kena Upanishad in Sanskrit]<br />
* [http://www.bharatadesam.com/spiritual/upanishads/kena_upanishad.php Kena Upanishad] Another archive of Nikhilānanda translation<br />
* [http://www.celextel.org/upanishads/sama_veda/kena.html Kena Upanishad] Vidyavachaspati V. Panoli (Translator)<br />
* [http://www.san.beck.org/Upan1-Kena.html Kena Upanishad] Sanderson Beck (Translator)<br />
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; Recitation<br />
* [http://gaana.com/#!/albums/kena-upanishad Kena Upanishad recited by Pt. Ganesh Vidyalankar (with instrumental music)]<br />
* {{librivox book | title=Kena Upanishad}}<br />
'''Resources'''<br />
* [http://vedantahub.org/kena-upanishad/ Video/Audio classes, Reference texts, Discussions and other Study material on Kena Upanishad at Vedanta Hub]<br />
{{Hindudharma}}<br />
{{Indian Philosophy|state=collapsed}}<br />
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{{Mukhya Upanishads}}<br />
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[[Category:Upanishads]]<br />
[[Category:Sanskrit texts]]</div>imported>Subhobrata Chakravorti