The Wise Beggar- Upanishad

Introduction

The Chhandogya Upanishad was one of the oldest Upanishads which comprised eight chapters. This Upanishad emphasized several philosophies like knowledge of good and evil, connection with space, the universe as a whole and oneness with Paramathma, etc. At that moment people's lives began to change. People's thinking has also changed. they wanted to discover the mystery of life or the truth of human life. In addition, some of them wanted to know about sacrifices and life after death.

They began to believe in the existence of two souls, such as the atman and the Paramatma. Atman is the soul of the individual while the Paramatma is the soul of the universe. Later they realized that atman and Paramatma were both the same. Some of their thoughts were also recorded in Upanishads.

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At the same time, Buddhism was originating in ancient India, where Gautam Buddha was there to answer their questions. He gave lessons on the secrets of life. He told people that problems and suffering are part of life. These problems are caused by the unbridled desires of the people. This can be overcome with the journey of life over time. Man must be kind and respectful to everyone including animals as well. There are various stories of understanding the truths that the Buddha intended to teach us. These stories are known as the story of the Buddha.

The story of the wise beggar is one of the most famous among all. In this article, we will discuss the story in detail and the consequences of the story.

History in The Story

Long ago there were two saints named Shaunaka and Abhipratarin. They were both used to meditating in the area. They were worshipers of a god named Vayu or a spirit god. He is also known as the god of the universe. People believed that there is a universal god among all living things. After worshipping the god, the saints sat down to receive their food. Suddenly, a beggar came to the saints. He told the saints to give him food. But the saints were not ready to feed the beggar. And then the saint, Shaunaka said that they would not give him their food and told him to leave. Afterward, the beggar asked them who they were worshiping.

Then the saint, Abhipratarin replied to the beggar that they worshipped the spirit god, Vayu. The beggar said that if they were worshipping a god of spirits, they should know that he existed in all the world. Then the saints answered that they knew that the spirit of God was in the universe and that is why he was known as the god of the universe. Then the beggar said that if the god Vayu was full of the whole world it is also full of him. Thus, he was also a part of the universe. The saints said that the beggar actually spoke the truth. The beggar then told the saints if they were not sharing a meal with him, which means that they were actually denying food to the god of the universe. The saints understood what the beggar wanted to tell them. They realized that they were making the wrong decision. Then both sages Shaunaka and Abhipratarin decided to share their food with the beggar.

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With knowledge and faith, the beggar arranged food for himself. With this conviction, the beggar made two learned sages that their preaching is different from their actions. Here we can learn a lesson about sharing things with the needy and the words and deeds must be the same. People should be kind to everyone and share their food too. Moreover, being generous, kind, serving others, etc actually defines personality.

Learnings From Story

In the ancient world, people first explored information using a thesis which is a statement of opinion. Second, an objection is a reaction that contradicts or contradicts the thesis of the thesis. Third, the synthesis is known as the dialectical method of assessing information. In this article, we have learned that a person cannot find information in a book. The book is also written using ideas from the human brain. Knowledge and ideas from our brain are a great way to overcome any situation in our lives. The more you develop your personal knowledge, the more you can explore the world. A person with little knowledge gets old as the plough ox gets old. His flesh is increased and his wisdom does not increase. As a wise beggar, he used his ingenuity and was able to obtain food for the wise.

Conclusion

The moral of the story can be interpreted as bringing the things into action which we believe in rather than just merely believing and not practicing. Like the beggar made two saints realize if they believe in the universal soul, that universal soul will help the beggar to get the food.

Chhandogya Upanishad is one of the largest Upanishadic compounds and has eight Prapathakas, each of which contains many volumes, and each volume contains many verses. The volumes are a motley collection of stories and themes. In the first prapathaka, there is Om's song, the essence of it all, language structure, and cosmic literature. In the second prapathaka, the importance of the chants is described. Brahman is the sum of all that exists, and Madhu Vidya is the main part of the third prapathaka. In the fourth part, the story of Satyakama and Samvargavidya is described. Next, in the fifth and sixth prapathaka, the existence of atman and Brahmans are described. From foreign knowledge to internal knowledge, Narada education on continuous meditation, etc are there in the seventh prapathaka. Lastly, in the eight prapathakas of chhandogya Upanishad, the compact knowledge of atman is given. As part of the Samaveda-focused poetry and songwriting, the uplifting theme of the Upanishad is the importance of speech, language, hymns, and songs in one's search for knowledge and salvation, in metaphysical structures, questions, and practices.

FAQs

Q1. What are Upanishads?

Ans. The Upanishads are the ancient religious scriptures of Hindus, which are part of the later Vedic texts. The word Upanishad literally means ‘’sitting down” which refers to that in the Vedic period the pupils used to sit under a tree near their enlightened gurus to receive an education.

Q2. Name some of the Upanishads of the Vedic Age.

Ans. Some of the Upansishads of the Vedic period are:Brihadaranyaka, Taittirya, Aitareya, Kaushitaki, Mundaka, Parsana, Katha, Kena and Chhandogya etc.

Q3. When were Upanishads were written? Which is the first Upanishad?

Ans. Upanishads were written from the 5th century BCE to the 2nd century BCE. The first Upanishad wasBrihadaranyaka.

Q4. What was the main belief of these Upanishads?

Ans. Upanishads include the thoughts of thinkers, who sought to find answers to answer for philosophical questions. They felt that the Universe comprised something permanent that even death could not end. The individual soul, atman, and the Universal soul, brahman, together formed this ‘permanence’.

Q5. Who were Upanishadic thinkers?

Ans. Upanishadic thinkers were mainly Brahmins, saints, and rajas and very rarely women such as Gargi.