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The Upanishads for Beginners: What They Are and Why Yogis Read Them

The Upanishads for Beginners: What They Are and Why Yogis Read Them

Sahil Thakur
3 hours ago
5 min read

If you've heard a teacher mention the Upanishads and nodded along without being sure what they are, you're in good company. This guide explains the Upanishads' meaning in plain words: where they come from, the big ideas, how they connect to Om and to yoga, and how to start reading without getting lost.

Key takeaways

  • The Upanishads are the final layer of each of the four Vedas, which is why they're called Vedānta, "the conclusion of the Vedas" (Britannica).

  • The earliest ones are generally dated to about 700–500 BCE; others came later, and texts called "Upanishad" kept being written for centuries.

  • They don't present one unified doctrine. A key strand links ātman (the self) with brahman (the single reality behind everything).

  • The short Māṇḍūkya Upanishad is entirely about Om.

  • "108 Upanishads" is a traditional list, not a count; the "principal" Upanishads are usually counted as 10 to 13.

The student and the fig (an original poem)

Break the fruit, the teacher says. I break it. Seeds, small as dust. Break a seed. I break it. Nothing, I tell him. I see nothing. And from that nothing, he says, this whole tree stands. I look up. Leaves. Light. I'm still looking.

Inspired by a teaching story in the Chāndogya Upanishad 6.12; the wording here is our own.

The Upanishads in one paragraph

The Upanishads are a group of ancient Sanskrit texts, some in prose and some in verse, that ask the biggest questions: What is the self? What is reality? What happens in sleep and at death? Many take the form of conversations between teachers and students, kings and sages, husbands and wives. They are some of the oldest philosophical texts in India, and later schools of Indian thought, including yoga, drew on them heavily.

Where they sit: Vedas, Upanishads, Gita, Sutras

Each of the four Vedas (Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda and Atharvaveda) has four layers: hymns (Saṃhitā), ritual prose (Brāhmaṇa), the Āraṇyakas, and finally the Upaniṣads. Because they come at the end, they're called Vedānta (vay-DAHN-tuh), "the end" or "conclusion" of the Vedas (Britannica).

Dating is given in ranges, and scholars disagree. The first group, including the Bṛhadāraṇyaka and Chāndogya, is generally dated between 700 and 500 BCE and thought to come before the Buddha. A second group, including the Kaṭha, Muṇḍaka and Māṇḍūkya, is dated later, around 300–100 BCE (Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy). Be wary of anyone who gives a single date or calls them "5,000 years old".

The Bhagavad Gita and Patanjali's Yoga Sutras (see our post) both came later and draw on Upanishadic ideas. Later Vedānta teachers treated three texts as their foundation: the Upanishads, the Brahma Sutra and the Bhagavad Gita.

What does the word mean? You'll often read that upaniṣad means "sitting down near" a teacher. Scholars such as Patrick Olivelle now say that isn't how the texts use the word. In the texts it means a hidden "connection" or "equivalence", and in some passages a "secret teaching".

Big ideas in plain words: Atman and Brahman

Two words come up again and again. Ātman (AHT-mun) is the unchanging core of a person, the self. Brahman (BRUH-mun) is the single principle behind the whole universe. A central teaching in several Upanishads is that the two are one: what you are, at the deepest level, is what everything is (Britannica).

The famous phrase tat tvam asi, "you are that", comes from a father teaching his son in the Chāndogya Upanishad (chapter 6). Interestingly, that passage never uses the word brahman; reading it as "the self equals brahman" is a later interpretation, especially by the philosopher Śaṅkara (around 700 CE).

The Upanishads aren't a single system. Different schools composed different texts, and some teachings disagree. They also include rituals for very practical goals. Later teachers read them in different ways: Śaṅkara as non-dual, Rāmānuja as qualified non-dual, and Madhva as dualist (IEP). That variety is part of what makes them worth reading.

Om and the Mandukya Upanishad

The Māṇḍūkya Upanishad is tiny: just twelve short sections. It begins by saying that the syllable Om is this whole world: past, present, future, and whatever lies beyond time. It then maps the sounds of Om, a-u-m, onto waking, dreaming and deep sleep, and describes a "fourth" state beyond all three, later called turīya (too-REE-yuh) (Hume's 1921 translation, Internet Archive). If you've chanted Om in class, this is one of its oldest explanations. (Our post on Om goes deeper.)

Early yoga in the Upanishads

Yoga students will find some of the earliest written descriptions of their practice here. The Kaṭha Upanishad (3.3–13; 6.7–11) and the Śvetāśvatara Upanishad (2.8–11) describe controlling the senses, regulating the breath and sitting steadily, and the later Maitrī Upanishad discusses yoga at length, with parallels to the Yoga Sutras (IEP).

Where to start: our suggestion

There's no official "beginner's list". Here's our suggestion. The tradition itself gives a reading order: in the later Muktikā Upanishad, Rāma tells Hanumān that the Māṇḍūkya alone is enough, and if not, to read ten (Īśa, Kena, Kaṭha, Praśna, Muṇḍaka, Māṇḍūkya, Taittirīya, Aitareya, Chāndogya and Bṛhadāraṇyaka), then thirty-two, then one hundred and eight (Aiyar's 1914 translation, Internet Archive). That's where the famous "108" comes from. It's a traditional list, not a count: there are hundreds of texts with "Upanishad" in the title.

For yoga students, we'd suggest starting with the Māṇḍūkya (for Om), then the Kaṭha (a moving story about a boy who questions Death, and an early picture of yoga), then the Īśa, which is only eighteen verses.

How to read without getting lost

  1. Read short. One section a day is plenty.

  2. Use a translation with notes. Hume's 1921 translation is free online; newer translations are clearer.

  3. Note verse numbers, so you can compare translations.

  4. Read aloud. Many of these texts were passed on by ear.

  5. Don't force one meaning. Write down your questions; they're the point.

  6. Read with others. A study group or teacher helps enormously.

A gentle note: who should be careful

This is a reading guide, but if it leads you to chant Om or sit for meditation, keep it gentle and at an easy volume. If meditation stirs up strong feelings, or you're going through a hard time, pause and talk with a teacher, doctor or therapist. Yoga and meditation are not a substitute for medical or mental-health care.

FAQ

How many Upanishads are there?

Hundreds of texts carry the name. The traditional list has 108, and the "principal" Upanishads are usually counted as 10 to 13, depending on the source.

How old are the Upanishads?

The earliest are generally dated to about 700–500 BCE, and others came centuries later. Scholars give ranges rather than a single date.

Do I need to know Sanskrit?

No. Good English and French translations exist. Learning a few key words, like ātman, brahman and Om, helps.

Where can I ask questions about these texts?

Message us any time. We're happy to suggest a translation or a place to start.

Read the texts with us

If you'd like to talk about where to start, message us at breathe@theyogshala.org or call 514-575-0009. You can also read about our Yogshala 200-hour Hatha Teacher Training, January 5 to April 18, 2027, in person in Montréal-Ouest and online. Certification is issued by Yogshala. See the details.

Message us about the January training: the Yogshala 200-hour Hatha Teacher Training starts January 5, 2027.

With warmth,

Sahil

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