<p>The Upanishads, the storehouse of knowledge and profundity of Indian philosophical thinking have much to say on what constitutes true wisdom and the qualities of a wise man.<br /><br /></p>.<p> A brief study of these thoughts, as enunciated by a few of the main Upanishads would throw more light on the same. The basic premise is founded on the truth that there is only one higher power that controls everything in this universe, which dwells and inheres in all things sentient and insentient. <br /><br />The very opening lines of the Isavasya Upanishad declare that the Lord encompasses everything in this changing world and the wise one is he who enjoys by renouncing greed and not by coveting another man’s wealth. <br /><br />Seeing the Lord in himself and in all other beings is the mark of a realized person. He knows the difference between the true or permanent (that which is eternal) and the false or impermanent, which disappears in time. Only the wise man who knows this difference can traverse the cycle of life with equanimity, keeping away from deceitful sin. <br /><br />The Kenopanishad says, “the wise man knows that mere intellectual talk about God and divinity is useless. It is a matter of experience, of realizing that divinity is beyond the grasp of the senses. One who thinks that he knows everything does not know at all.<br /><br /> The Kathopanishad says that a wise man knows that just like a ear of corn ripens, falls and is reborn, so is man’s life too.” Further it says, “both the good and the pleasing come to man. The wise man considers them carefully and chooses the good in preference to the pleasing. Only the stupid choose the pleasing for temporary gains.<br /><br /> Fools consider themselves learned while remaining steeped in ignorance, going about boasting of themselves like blind men staggeringly following another blind man. Wisdom cannot be attained through empty talk, not through just intellectual power and vast learning. <br /><br />Only he who follows the path of scriptural sayings and the words of a learned teacher and makes efforts to rein in his senses, look inwards and to put into practice his knowledge attains wisdom.<br /><br /> This path is arduous, like treading on the sharp edge of a sword, but the reward in the end is truly great. Only the immature run after sensory and outward pleasures”. <br /><br />The Prashnopanishad says, “the wise man understands that God manifests himself as life force. When there is life, all the other sense organs function. When life departs, all senses too move away, like bees in a hive that stay with the King and move out with him when he moves out. <br /><br />Like spokes attached to the hub of a wheel, everything is attached to life, i.e, God. Just as the rivers finally merge into the ocean, everything in the universe becomes one with the great cosmic power in the end”. <br /><br />The Mundakopanishad cautions, “wise men understand that only faith and good actions confer good, not rituals”. </p>
<p>The Upanishads, the storehouse of knowledge and profundity of Indian philosophical thinking have much to say on what constitutes true wisdom and the qualities of a wise man.<br /><br /></p>.<p> A brief study of these thoughts, as enunciated by a few of the main Upanishads would throw more light on the same. The basic premise is founded on the truth that there is only one higher power that controls everything in this universe, which dwells and inheres in all things sentient and insentient. <br /><br />The very opening lines of the Isavasya Upanishad declare that the Lord encompasses everything in this changing world and the wise one is he who enjoys by renouncing greed and not by coveting another man’s wealth. <br /><br />Seeing the Lord in himself and in all other beings is the mark of a realized person. He knows the difference between the true or permanent (that which is eternal) and the false or impermanent, which disappears in time. Only the wise man who knows this difference can traverse the cycle of life with equanimity, keeping away from deceitful sin. <br /><br />The Kenopanishad says, “the wise man knows that mere intellectual talk about God and divinity is useless. It is a matter of experience, of realizing that divinity is beyond the grasp of the senses. One who thinks that he knows everything does not know at all.<br /><br /> The Kathopanishad says that a wise man knows that just like a ear of corn ripens, falls and is reborn, so is man’s life too.” Further it says, “both the good and the pleasing come to man. The wise man considers them carefully and chooses the good in preference to the pleasing. Only the stupid choose the pleasing for temporary gains.<br /><br /> Fools consider themselves learned while remaining steeped in ignorance, going about boasting of themselves like blind men staggeringly following another blind man. Wisdom cannot be attained through empty talk, not through just intellectual power and vast learning. <br /><br />Only he who follows the path of scriptural sayings and the words of a learned teacher and makes efforts to rein in his senses, look inwards and to put into practice his knowledge attains wisdom.<br /><br /> This path is arduous, like treading on the sharp edge of a sword, but the reward in the end is truly great. Only the immature run after sensory and outward pleasures”. <br /><br />The Prashnopanishad says, “the wise man understands that God manifests himself as life force. When there is life, all the other sense organs function. When life departs, all senses too move away, like bees in a hive that stay with the King and move out with him when he moves out. <br /><br />Like spokes attached to the hub of a wheel, everything is attached to life, i.e, God. Just as the rivers finally merge into the ocean, everything in the universe becomes one with the great cosmic power in the end”. <br /><br />The Mundakopanishad cautions, “wise men understand that only faith and good actions confer good, not rituals”. </p>
