Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.s10.t6.3

v1.c7.s10.t6.3

The Sanskrit term Upanishad translates to “sitting down near”, referring to the student sitting down near the teacher while receiving esoteric knowledge. There are over 200 Upanishads, which collectively reflect some of the very basic theories of Indian philosophy and religion as evolved over a lengthy period of time. Among this voluminous body of texts, only a dozen or so are considered relatively significant or influential: