chapter 3 The First and Most Authentic Books on Earth🔗

Upaniṣads are the first books ever written on Planet Earth. When the Ṛṣis disappeared, these Universal Truths were expressed by Existence. Apauruṣeyatva, authorlessness authenticates the power of these Truths making Upaniṣads the most authentic scriptures.

In any truth, any concept, any theology, the more the person is present in that theology, the more it is useful only for him, not for the Whole, not for the humanity or the society. Less the individual is present, more the truth, the concept, the theology, the philosophy is useful for the humanity, for the Whole. The individual's influence should only be for the sake of enriching, never for the sake of establishing the person's identity.

History is always written by the people who won the wars. That is why no history is factual, 'as it happened.' Only when the author's individual vested interests, fear and greed to certain ideologies disappear, only then the history becomes factual, whole, useful for the whole Universe, the whole humanity.

History written by the people who do not have any vested interests is called Purāṇas. Purāṇas are more factual than any history written by the people with vested interests. Don't read any book where the author is heavily present. If the author has disappeared within him and he does not have any vested interests, fear or greed for an ideology, then 'read that person', not just his books. Read that person's very life! Be around him and learn, you will catch the Truth.

Even if the author wants to establish his name, there is a corruption, a reason, a vested interest, a fear or greed. Sometimes authors don't use their own name, but use some popular person's name, because they want that popular identity to protect their work. Only when the individual is absent, his personal vested interest, fear and greed disappears, dissolves, he becomes a pure channel for the Existence to sing its own Existence.

Apauruṣeyatva. Upaniṣads are Existence's songs about Its Existence. Existence's songs about Its Existence! Upaniṣads are so extraordinary that no one can claim their ownership.

Human beings from the beginning of humanity, have built so many cities all around the Planet Earth. But even after all this work, can we claim ownership for the Planet Earth? No! It is too big to claim ownership. Natural disasters and calamities are again and again Nature's legal notice to us saying, 'Just because you built so many cities, don't claim ownership.' These great Truths revealed in the Upaniṣads are too big. Just because through you, It got revealed, you cannot claim ownership. It is foolishness to claim ownership for a country because you found the sea-route for that country. Just because you have found that Earth is round, you cannot claim ownership for Earth.

The Truths revealed in these Upaniṣads are too vast, too big! Ṛṣis not only did not want to claim ownership, they did not even want to leave their name as the authors. Those few beings who raised themselves to vibrate in the very frequency of the Cosmos, the Brahman, they actually disappeared into That! When they disappeared into That, whatever Truths they received, whatever Truths expressed through them, that got recorded as Upaniṣads. Those Ṛṣis understood that only when they disappeared, these Truths were expressed. That is why they very clearly decided not to own those Truths even by claiming authorship.

For a milk-man, who runs a small gośāla (cow-shed) with a few cows for his livelihood, asking him to give all the milk to pour on a deity as abhiśekam (sacred bath) is the biggest sacrifice; because that is the fruit of his whole life's effort. Same way, a writer giving up his name and authorship, without mentioning his name—Apāuruṣeyatva—is the biggest sacrifice! If you are an author, a writer, you will understand this; especially, the sacrifice of the Upaniṣadic Ṛṣis, after expressing such lofty ideas.

Any dust that digests the Upaniṣads, will sit as Mahādeva; it will become Mahādeva! Any śava (dead body) digests the Upaniṣads, it will become Śiva (eternal life)!

The strength, energy, enthusiasm, excitement, life, knowledge, bliss, intelligence, the way all these gets infused into you, Upaniṣads can make any śava into Śiva. It can make you, It can make anybody into Mahādeva, Śiva.

This very Apāuruṣeyatva, authorlessness makes Upaniṣads the most authentic scriptures. When the historian's individual vested interest disappears, history becomes truthful, factual. When the scientist's vested interest disappears, science becomes Universal and useful. There is nothing scientific about any scientific experiments. Most of the scientific researches now are aimed towards proving some ideas, concepts which are useful for the person funding the experiments and researches. The conclusion is already arrived at and then researches are conducted, without exploring the hypothesis. A real research, investigation should explore the hypothesis. When the vested interest enters, the Truth dies. Nowhere the satya (truth) is the goal. Very rarely people stumble upon the Truth. If you want the Truth, go behind the scientists who do not have anybody funding them for any vested interests.

This Apauruṣeyatva, authorlessness authenticates the power of these Truths, because the Ṛṣis are not even interested in establishing their name; forget about for-profit, non-profit interest. When you are overwhelmed by the greatness of the Truth, you will understand, you cannot own It. You will know that the Truth is much bigger than you. You are standing on the Truth, not the Truth on you.

The great Ṛṣis discovered that these Truths are Universal, they should not be corrupted by identifying them with any individual. Your opinions about the individuals always affect the words they utter. Some of the greatest Truths uttered by Swāmi Vivekānanda are Universal; but the moment you decide, 'he is a Hindu monk', you don't listen to him, the whole Universe does not listen to him; only Hindus listen to him. Your opinions about some people shut your listening to some of the great Truths they revealed. The Upaniṣadic Ṛṣis don't even want that kind of damage to happen to the Upaniṣads, the damage of the author's image getting super-imposed on the ideas. What a magnanimous sacrifice of these Upaniṣadic Ṛṣis!

If you tell a business man, 'Don't show your face anywhere. Just make money', he will be very happy to give up anything for money. But he won't give up money because he built his whole personality on that. Same way, a politician will give up money to be in the limelight because he built his whole life on that. An author will give up his food, sleep, money, everything, but not the authorship, because only on that, he built his whole life. But here, you have the greatest authors.

Upaniṣads are the first books ever written on Planet Earth! Here are the authors of the first book. What a maturity! Tyagarājas, the kings of sacrifice. As long as the Upaniṣadic ideas are alive, they will keep Planet Earth alive, existing. So, not only Upaniṣads are the first books ever written, Upaniṣads will also be the last books on the Earth, because only as long as these Truths survive, the Earth will survive. If these Truths are gone, Earth will go!

After the atrocities of human beings, still if this Planet Earth is left alive, it is only to keep these Upaniṣadic truths alive, because only human beings on Planet Earth have these great Truths with them. Neither the devatas, gods nor the asuras, demons, it is only the human beings who are hardwired to receive and radiate these great Truths.

Science becomes complete when the scientist gets dissolved into the Truth of the science. And Upaniṣadic Ṛṣis are the ultimate example! They are the highest perfected beings, the highest perfected Siddhas.

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