Studies the doctrinal beliefs of Karma and reincarnation from the viewpoint of advaitin.

Karma and Reincarnation; The Vedantic Perspective

Religion & Spirituality

Swami Muni Narayana Prasad

Hinduism

D.K. Printworld

India has millennia-long tradition of spirituality and metaphysical thought. In its worldview, the Absolute/Supreme Reality defies all verbal descriptions though it is visualizable in countless ways. The Upanishads, accordingly, are diverse expressions of the one vision of this very Reality. The Mundaka, however, holds a special place in the writings of the genre: not because of its emphasis on shraddha (belief) often in ones guru, but primarily for its vehement denunciation of the Vedic ritualism. Which perhaps explains why sannyasins (the renunciate monks) treat this Upanishad as a spiritual authority for the way of life they have chosen to live. Here is a brilliant, critical interpretation in contemporary idiom of the Mundaka Upanishad, showing how a seeker can cogitate/meditate upon the Supreme Reality or, in other words, how one can have the transcendental experience of cosmic Consciousness. The book looks afresh at some of the perpetually puzzling questions that Mundaka addresses questions, like for instance: What is the nature of Brahman, the one Casual Reality? How can a seeker know it? Who can be eligible for its knowledge? Offering an indepth, analytical commentary on this time-honoured text, Swami Muni Narayana Prasad presents at once appropriate metaphors, analogies and, these besides, backgrounds to the varying contexts that not only elucidate various philosophical terms and concepts in all their underlying shades of meanings, but also provides rich insights into this Upanishad. Complete with the original Sanskrit text and its Roman transliteration, this work is a must for all keen on discovering the essential meaning of the Upanishadic thought and meditating upon wisdoms ineffable core.

Mundaka Upanisad

D.K. Printworld (P) Ltd.

Man has always been perplexed with the now and hereafter of his worldly existence. The enigma, called life, with all its attendant uncertainties and everyday strifes and irritants, continues to defy experimental/realistic investigation despite all the exciting advances in science. We still age, we still die. We are as mortal as ever. Life remains a mystery. And death remains, in Shakespearean phraseology, the undis-covered country . A masterpiece among the writings of its genre, Katha Upanishad attempts to unravel the mystery of death though, in its totality, it is an insightful exposition of brahmavidya: Knowledge of the Absolute/Supreme Reality. In a well-devised dialectical situation, the Upanishad shows how a young seeker, calling upon Yama, none other than the God of Death himself, insists on knowing the secret of all secrets , with specific questions, like: What is death? Why people fear death when they know it to be inevitable? What happens at death? And what, if anything, continues to exist after death, and how? the questions which the deity answers, amidst widely-ranged wisdom teachings . Swami Muni Narayana Prasad here offers a lucid English version of this time-honoured Upanishad, together with exhaustive commentary, the original Sanskrit text and its Roman transliteration. Written at a time when the profoundly symbolic Vedic yajnas/rituals had degenerated into crass priestcraft, the Katha Upanishad not only has its historical importance, but counts among the landmark writings that have shaped India s heritage of spirituality and philosophic thought.

Katha Upanisad

Kenopanishad is one of the major Upanishads containing the quintessence of the teachings of the ancient Indian seers. It represents their spiritual quest to apprehend the nature of the Ultimate Being and comprises the yearning for the wisdom that explains the relation of human life to the world and the reality. The beauty of this Upanishad is greatly enhanced by the dialogue between the disciple and the preceptor, through which it continues its quest. Swami Muni Narayana Prasad, the renowned scholar on the Upanishadic tradition, renders a superbly novel analysis of this difficult text in the light of the modern man's need for value and spiritual security making a strikingly beautiful synthesis between the ancient and the modern. Presenting the teachings of Kenopanishad in the backdrop of the recent developments in the area of physics, chemistry, biology and psychology is no mean task and constitutes the exclusiveness of this book. The disciplines of science in the pursuit of the basic truth stumble at some invisible and unconceptualisable Reality, which may be another name for mysticism. Through very cogent arguments the author has successfully vindicated that mysticism is a corollary to scientific investigation and not opposed to it. The author's prolonged association with the Upanishadic thought along with the insight he received from the works of his preceptors Narayana Guru and Nataraja Guru makes the commentaries of this text stimulating and unique. The original Sanskrit text along with the Roman transliteration and English paraphrasing enhance the value of this monumental commentary.

Kena Upanishad: With the Original Text in Sanskrit and Roman Transliteration

"Shankara, Ramanuja and Madhva are considered the three acaryas of South India who commented on the three basic texts of Vedanta, that is, the Upanishads, the Brahma-Sutras and the Bhagavad-Gita, and therefrom originated the three major schools within the Vedanta fold -- Advaita, Vishishtha advaita and Dvaita respectively. This volume is concerned with the philosophy of the famous saint-teacher Narayana Guru and his perspectives on the philosophies of the three acaryas. The book uses the philosophy of Narayana Guru as the guide to study and compare the philosophies of the acaryas. It begins with the life sketches of the three acaryas and discusses their philosophies, especially the various specific viewpoints they maintained and the points on which they disagreed. It explores the ideas of the acaryas on avidya and maya, atomicity of the self, consciousness and the self, tat tvam asi, karma and reincarnation and the ultimate liberation. It also scrutinises their use of terms like that of atha which literally means now then . It examines the perception of Narayana Guru vis-a-vis the particular philosophical positions in a unified manner. It also contains the full text, transliteration and translation of the original Vedanta-Sutras of Narayana Guru. The volume will interest students and scholars who are engaged in advanced studies on the philosophy of Vedanta, and persons keen on acquainting themselves with the philosophy of Narayana Guru."

Three Acharyas and Narayana Guru

The atman (soul), in the Eastern belief system, is eternal, immortal. The phenomenon of (physical) death is, thus, nothing but its disembodiment and its reincarnation in a new body. And what determine as atman s choice of a new body is the law of karma the merits and demerits of one s actions in the present life. The notions of karma and reincarnation constitute the fundamental tenets of Indian thinking; though these, like many other doctrinal beliefs, are hard to prove/disprove in purely rationalistic or even empirical terms. Swami Muni Narayana Prasad looks afresh at these age-old doctrinal beliefs from the viewpoint of an Advaitin (non-dualist), developing stimulating insights from his studies of the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita the Brahma Sutras and, these besides, the works of his mentor: Narayana Guru. Contextually, among other questions, his book also dwells on Ultimate Reality, Birth and Death, and the Two Paths: Devayana (the path of gods) and Pitriyana (the path of manes), which either the souls take to after death.

Karma and Reincarnation: The Vedantic Perspective

DK Printworld

The ocean of philosophical insight hiding in the words and story of Jesus Christ has influenced and charged millions of people and are still inspiring. The teaching and philosophy discerned across the four Gospels According to Matthew, Mark, Luke and John have stirred the philosophical perspective of Muni Narayana Prasad and it paved the way for him making a Gospel commentary in the light of Indian philosophy, Advaita Vedanta. In his scholarly attempt, the author has brought an apocryphal Gospel of Thomas too into its ambit.  Though the words of wisdom revealed by Jesus across these Gospels differ in language and style from Indian Vedanta, they reveal the same wisdom or supreme happiness that the Vedanta philosophy talks about. In this book, the author has attempted to explain the wisdom found in one cultural frame of reference as found in the other. That is, the teachings of Jesus Christ are elucidated in terms of the characteristics of Advaita Vedanta. Jesus, seen across these Gospels, always maintains his position of an enlightened seer (rishi). Thus the author calls him a sad-guru.  The author contends that from the Gospel accounts one may perceive, in Jesus's life and words, the same absolutist vision that underlies the teachings of Advaita Vedanta. Echoing interreligious harmony, the author invites the non-Christians to visit the great enlightened guru in Jesus and the Christians to imbibe the spirit of Advaita Vedanta in Jesus's teachings.  A must-collect, the book should find favour with the spiritual gurus, philosophers, and all progressive-thinking persons across religions.

Christ the Guru: A Vedantic Key to the Gospels

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