Introduction to Āraṇyaka and Upaniṣad Literature

In the previous chapters, the various rivers as found in the different Brāhmaṇas are discussed at length. Now, in this chapter, different rivers will be focused which are scattered in the Āraṇyakas and the Upaniṣads.

The third stage of development in the field of Vedic literature is marked by the Āraṇyakas. This literature is important for the discussion regarding the mysticism or symbolism of the sacrifices. The word Āraṇyaka means what is produced in the forest. According to Sāyaṇācārya,^[1] the Āraṇyakas are so called because these were to be read in the forest. Those people who desired permanent bliss would retire to the forests shunting the transitory pleasure of the world. Āraṇyakas were meant to give a preliminary training to those who desire eagerly for the liberation from the bond of birth and rebirth. As a part of the Brāhamaṇa, they occupy the position of a distinct category of literature due to their content and language.

The Āraṇyakas or the ‘Treaties of the forest’ are a class of works intermediate between the Brāhmaṇas and the Sūtras. They contained the meditations of forest–ascetics on god, creation or the universe and on mankind. The philosophy of ancient India is embedded in these works. The main contents of these Āraṇyakas are no longer rules for the performances of the sacrifices but the mysticism and symbolism of sacrifice and priestly philosophy. It deals with the theosophical speculations which represent Jñanakāṇḍa of the Vedic thought. The Āraṇyaka texts are virtually an admission of the correct performance of a compulsory ritual that had developed to enormous proportions in the Brāhmaṇa period. The Āraṇyakas do not lay down rules for the performance of the sacrifices nor do they comment on the ceremonial in the Brāhmaṇa style. They are mainly devoted to an exposition of the mysticism and symbolism of the sacrifice. The concluding portions or appendices are so secret that they would spell danger if taught to the uninitiated and had therefore, to be learnt in the forest and not in the village.