Upanishads - Paul Deussen (essay date 1906)
Paul Deussen (essay date 1906)
SOURCE: Deussen, Paul. “Introduction to the Philosophy of the Upanishads.” In The Philosophy of the Upanishads, translated by A. S. Geden, pp. 1-50. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1906.
[In the following excerpt, Deussen provides an overview of the Upanishads, discussing their history, composition, and ideological principles.]
I. THE PLACE OF THE UPANISHADS IN THE LITERATURE OF THE VEDA
1. THE VEDA AND ITS DIVISIONS
It will be remembered that our earlier investigations led to a classification of Vedic literature into four principal parts, which correspond to the four priestly offices at the Soma sacrifice; these are the Rig, Yajur, Sâma, and Atharvaveda, each of which comprises a Samhitâ, a Brâhmana, and a Sûtra. The Brâhmana (in the wider sense of the term) is then further divided by the exponents of the Vedânta into three orders, which as regards their contents are for...
[The entire page is 16971 words long]
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