Theos-Talk Archives (December 2008 Message tt00252)

Dear friends

My views are:

The Secret Doctrine, was and is also known as AtmaViyda, The Upanishads, The Great Mystery, BrahmaVidya.


In the Wikipedia we have the following about the Upanishads:


UPANISHADS
*** Etymology***
"The Sanskrit term upaniáad derives from upa- (nearby), ni- (at the proper place, down) and sad, that is "sitting down near" a teacher in order to receive instruction[4] - "laying siege" to the teacher, as Schayer puts it.[5] Monier-Williams adds that "according to native authorities upanishad means 'setting to rest ignorance by revealing the knowledge of the supreme spirit');..."[6] A gloss of the term upaniáad based on Shankara's commentary on the Kaáha and BáhadÄraáyaka Upanishads equates it with ÄtmavidyÄ, that is "knowledge of the Self", or BrahmavidyÄ "knowledge of Brahma".[citation needed] Other dictionary meanings include "esoteric doctrine" and "secret doctrine".
Fundamental meaning of the term upa refers to Upper or elevation something which is at a higher level. The meaning of upa as nearby is a more commonly used word. With its fundamental meaning it represents that upanishad means taking the consciousness to the upward highness. This is actually the root for English word Up, Hindi word Upar (meaning:at the top)."


THE UPANISHADS IN THE QURAN:
"The Vedas became known outside of India when the Upanishads were translated from Sanskrit. At first, they were translated into Persian. This was done as a result of Emperor Akbar's liberal religious attitude. [14] The prince Shah Jehan, who was influenced by the Emperor and shared Akbar's viewpoint, had an eldest son named Dara Shikoh. Shikoh was, like his father, a liberal Muslim and wrote a book that attempted to reconcile Islam with Hinduism. In 1640, Dara Shikoh visited Kashmir and met pandits, who told him about the Upanishads. Later, he invited pandits from Benares to come to Delhi, which was under Persian control, in order to assist him in translating the Upanishads. In 1657, the translation of the Upanishads into Persian was completed. In his translation, known by the name Sirr-e-Akbar (The Greatest Mystery), he states at the Introduction that the work referred to in the Qur'an as the "Kitab al-maknun" or the hidden book is none other than the Upanishads. Two years later, in 1659, his brother Aurangzib, who was a strict Muslim, had him executed under the Sharia law as an apostate from Islam. This may have been a pretext, because Shikoh had been the eldest son and Aurangzib ascended the throne after Shikoh's execution.[15]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Upanishads

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GEBER the ALCHEMIST (Abu Musa JÄbir ibn HayyÄn, d.815 )
"Jabir was taught chemistry by Imam Jafar Alsadiq a.s. Jaber is mostly renowned for his contributions to chemistry. He emphasised systematic experimentation,[43] and did much to free alchemy from superstition and turn it into a science.[44] He is credited with the invention of over twenty types of now-basic chemical laboratory equipment,[45] such as the alembic[46] and retort,[47] and with the discovery and description of many now-commonplace chemical substances and processes â such as the hydrochloric and nitric acids, distillation,[20] and crystallisation[4] â that have become the foundation of today's chemistry and chemical engineering.[20][48]

He also paved the way for most of the later Islamic alchemists, including al-Kindi, al-Razi, al-Tughrai and al-Iraqi, who lived in the 9th-13th centuries. His books strongly influenced the medieval European alchemists[48] and justified their search for the philosopher's stone.[49][50]"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geber

And his mentor Jaffar al Sadiq was also known as the ruler in the adventure about Aladdin.

Ja'far al-Sadiq
"The foremost Islamic alchemist, Abu Musa Jabir ibn Hayyan, known in Europe as Geber, was Ja'far Al-Sadiq's most prominent student. Ja'far Al-Sadiq was known for his liberal views on learning, and was keen to debate with scholars of different faiths and of different beliefs."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ja%27far_al-Sadiq



M. Sufilight

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