The Maa.n.duukya Upani.sad belongs to the Atharvaveda and may be placed in a much later period of Vedic Sanskrit literature. It is the shortest of the Vedic Upani.sads, consisting of twelve verses. It is concerned with showing the relationship between the elements "a", "u", and "m" of the syllable AUM or O.m and the three states of ordinary human consciousness: waking, dreaming, and dreamless sleep. These three states are referred to in this Upani.sad as Vi'sva, Taijasa, and Praaj~na respectively. The Maa.n.duukya Upani.sad is also concerned with describing the nature of Atman which is discerned in the fourth state--the turiiya. This state is related to the word O.m from which all states and all syllables (or elements) emerge. Just as all possible vocal sounds--from velars to labials, vowels to consonants--are potentially present in O.m, likewise are all states of consciousness potentially present in (and emerge from) the turiiya, the Fourth. Along with showing the relationship of the word O.m and its components to the four states of consciousness, the Maa.n.duukya Upani.sad also appears to expound the doctrine of non-duality (advaita) of the Brahman-Atman. Hence, it holds a central place in Advaita Vedaanta philosophy and is regarded by the Muktikaa Upani.sad (I:27) as being sufficient by itself to lead one to liberation. Its description of advaita doctrine is further expanded upon by Gau.dapaada ('Sa'nkara's grand-teacher) who is responsible for writing a Kaarikaa on this Upani.sad. This Kaarikaa is, according to S. Radhakrishnan, "the first systematic exposition of Advaita Vedaanta" (_The Principal Upani.sads_. Edited and translated by S. Radhakrishnan. Atlantic Highlands: Humanities Press, 1992. p. 693). I have included both a transliteration of the original text (based on the Classical Sanskrit (CS) Standard) and my translation which came about from a fifth semester Sanskrit course. My translation is more literal than the one by Swami Gabhirananda (published by the Sri Ramakrishna Math, India), which I find to be more of an interpretation than a strict translation. (Besides the translation done by Swami Gabhirananda, the only other translation that I am aware of is one done in French: _Mandukya upanisad et Karika de Gaudapada._ Edited and translated by Emile Lesimple. Paris: Adrien-Maisonneuve, 1944). I hope that the literalness of my translation, however, does not greatly hinder the clarity and readability of the text. In providing this text to other scholars and Sanskrit enthusiasts, I would like to thank Brad Gaylord for his insights and Professor Susan Tripp for helping me through the text and proofreading my translation. Any errors, misrepresentations, and inaccuracies that remain in this translation are solely the responsibility of the author. Please feel free to distribute the text and my translation provided that the files are not changed and that no fees are charged. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Files: mandread.txt Readme file for the Maa.n.duukya Upani.sad mandread.csx Same as above but in CS format mandengl.csx English translation of Maa.n.duukya Upani.sad mandsnsk.csx Transliteration of the Maa.n.duukya Upani.sad (in CS format) N.B. On the Roman Sanskrit version of the Maa.n.duukya Upani.sad and KOrikO, I have, in keeping with the standards of transliteration, used the apostrophe sign for the avagraha. If you have any questions or comments, please notify the author. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jeff Samuels University of Colorado samuels@ucsu.colorado.edu ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- end of file.