Kaṭha Upaniṣad 40

40

triṇāciketas triḥkṛtvā nāciketo 'gniś cito yena sa triṇāciketas tadvijñānatadadhyayanatadanuṣṭhānavān vā / tribhir mātṛpitrācāryair etya prāpya sandhiṃ sandhānaṃ sambandhaṃ mātrādyanuśāsanaṃ yathāvat prāpyety etat / tad dhi prāmāṇyakāraṇaṃ śrutyantarād avagamyate "yathā mātṛmān pitṛmān" (BĀU 4,1.2) ity ādeḥ / vedasmṛtiśiṣṭair vā pratyakṣānumānāgamair vā / tebhyo hi viśuddhiḥ pratyakṣā / trikarmakṛt ijyādhyayanadānānāṃ kartā taraty atikrāmati janmamṛtyū / kiñ ca brahmajajñaṃ brahmaṇo hiraṇyagarbhāj jāto brahmajaḥ, brahmajaś cāsau jñaś ceti brahmajajñaḥ sarvajño hy asau / taṃ devaṃ dyotanāñ jñānādiguṇavantam īḍyaṃ stutyaṃ viditvā śāstrato, nicāyya dṛṣṭvā cātmabhāvenemāṃ svabuddhipratyakṣāṃ śāntim uparatim atyantam ety atiśayenaiti / vairājaṃ padaṃ jñānakarmasamuccayānuṣṭhānena prāpnotīty arthaḥ ///1,1.17 //

Shankara’s Commentary:
Com.—Again he praises Karma; the three-fold Nachiketas, i.e., he by whom the Nachiketa fire has been kindled thrice; or, he who knows, studies and performs in, the Nachiketa fire. United with the three, i.e., who united with his mother, father and preceptor, i.e., having duly received instruction from them; for, that such instruction is a source of authority, is inferred from other Srpitis, such as ‘he who has a mother’ and ‘he who has a father,’ etc. or, the three may refer to ‘direct perception,’ ‘inference’ and ‘agamas or to ‘the vedas,’ ‘the Smritis’ and ‘good men’; for, knowledge of virtue from these sources is an obvious fact. Doing the threefold karma, i.e., performing sacrifices, reciting the vedas, and making gifts. Whoso does these, crosses or travels beyond birth and death; again Brahmajagnam: Brahmaja means born of Brahma, i.e., Hiranyagarbha; he who is born of Brahma and is omniscient is Brahmajagnah. Devam, so called because shining, i.e., having the qualities of knowledge, etç. Idyam, worthy of praise. Knowing such fire, from the Sastras and having realised him as his own atman, one attains this absolute renunciation which is realized in his intellect. The meaning is that one attains the place of the virat, by the continued practice of Upasana and Karma.