The Upanishads: A Complete Guide

2017 | Essays

The Upanishads are among the most sacred foundational scriptures in the Hindu religion. Written from 800 BCE onward and making up part of the larger Vedic corpus, they offer the reader 'knowledge lessons' on life, death, and immortality. While they are essential to understanding Hinduism and Asian religions more generally, their complexities make them almost impenetrable to anyone but serious scholars of Sanskrit and ancient Indian culture. This book is divided into five parts: * The Historical and Cultural Background of the Upanishads * Composition, Authorship, and Transmission of the Upanishads * Religion and Philosophy in the Upanishads * The Classical Upanishad texts * The Later Upanishad text The chapters cover critical issues such as the origins of the Upanishads, authorship, and redaction as well as exploring the broad religious and philosophical themes within the texts. The guide analyses each of the Upanishads separately, unpacking their contextual relevance and explaining difficult terms and concepts.

The Upanishads: A Complete Guide is a unique and valuable reference source for undergraduate religious studies, history, and philosophy students and researchers who want to learn more about these foundational sacred texts and the religious lessons in the Hindu tradition.

Signe Cohen (Author)