A Constructive Survey of Upanishadic Philosophy c2.9.2

c2.9.2

Dogmatic statements such as this about the teachings of Upanishads come merely out of taking partial views about a subject. This is also illustrated in Oltramare’s accusation against the Upanishads in his “L’Histoire des Idées théosophiques dans l’Inde” that “in affirming the identity of the Universal and the Individual Soul, from which follows necessarily the identity of all souls, the Upanishads have not drawn the conclusion—Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (p. 137). True that the Biblical expression “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” is not to be found in the Upanishads; but it would be bold on the part of any writer on Upanishadic Philosophy to affirm that the sentiment is not present in the Upanishads. What else is the meaning of that Upanishadic dictum yasmin sarvāṇi bhūtāni ātmaivābhūd vijānataḥ (Īśa 7), except that a Sage, who has realised the Ātman, must see the Ātman in all human beings, must, in fact, regard all human beings as living in a Kingdom of Ends?