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             Six Maha Vakyas or Great Sayings from Upanishads



                                                   Introduction

                                 The basic teachings of the Upanishads are
                                 summed up in six great sayings (Mahavakyas).
                                 These are----

                                 "I am Brahman" (Aham Brahmasmi). This states
                                 the identity of the inmost consciousness of the
                                 individual with that of the supreme Divine. The
                                 ultimate truth of Vedic knowledge is not that
                                 some great savior is God or the Lord or that
                                 such and such a God or name and form of God is
                                 the supreme. It is not the worship of a person,
                                 book, image or idea. It is not even the worship
                                 of God. The Upanishads say that whatever we
                                 worship as truth apart from ourselves destroys
                                 us. They teach that our own Self is the true
                                 Divinity, that it is the presence of the
                                 absolute within our heart and all the universe.

                                 "The Self is Brahman" (Ayam Atma Brahma). This
                                 also states the identity of the soul with the
                                 Absolute but in a more objective and less
                                 direct manner. Not only is our Self the Divine.
                                 It is the same Self in all beings that is the
                                 same Absolute truth.

                                 "That thou art" (Tat tvam asi). Whatever we see
                                 or think about we are that. Not only is the I
                                 That, the You is also That. We are that
                                 ultimate I and Thou in all. The consciousness
                                 in the other is also the Divine.

                                 "Intelligence is Brahman" (Prajnanam Brahma).
                                 Our discernment of truth is the truth itself.
                                 It indicates that the Divine intelligence is
                                 present within us and has the power to return
                                 us to the Divine. Our inmost intelligence is
                                 that supreme intelligence through which we can
                                 merge into the Absolute.

                                 "The Universe is Brahman" (Sarvam Khalvidam
                                 Brahma). The entire universe is the Divine,
                                 which includes our self. The Divine is not only
                                 the consciousness principle in you and I, it is
                                 also the being principle in all things. It is
                                 the ultimate object as well as the inmost
                                 subject in all beings. It is one and all and
                                 all in one.

                                 "He am I" (So'ham). This shows the identity of
                                 the self with the Divine Lord inherent within
                                 the natural movement of our breath. "So" is the
                                 natural sound of inhalation, "ham" of
                                 exhalation.

                                 These are statements of the identity of the
                                 individual consciousness with the Absolute or
                                 Divine reality. They all derive from and merge
                                 into Om (AUM), the Divine Word of "I am all".

                                 ------------------------------------------------
                                 Source David Frawley : From the River or Heaven


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