Into that which is smaller than the atoms || On Mundaka Upanishad (2021)

यदर्चिमद्यदणुभ्योणु च यस्मिन्ल्लोकाऽनिहिता लोकिनश्च ।

तदेतदक्षरं ब्रह्म स प्राणस्तदु वाङ्मनः तदेतत्सत्यं तदमृतं तद्वेद्धव्यं सोम्य विद्धि ॥

yadarcimadyadaṇubhyoṇu ca yasmiɱllokā’nihitā lokinaśca tadetadakṣaraṃ brahma sa prāṇastadu vāṅmanaḥ tadetatsatyaṃ tadamṛtaṃ tadveddhavyaṃ somya viddhi

That which is the Luminous, that which is smaller than the atoms, that in which are set the worlds and their peoples, That is This, Brahman immutable: life is That, it is speech and mind. That is This, the True and Real, it is That which is immortal: it is into That that thou must pierce, O son, into That penetrate.

~ Verse 2.2.2

✥ ✥ ✥

Acharya Prashant (AP): The Upanishads are very practical conversations. They do not merely present theories that the mind can accumulate and get fattened with. Instead, they guide the mind regarding the very meaning of life, the purpose of life, and the identity of the living one.

Visualize a bunch of young students sitting in front of the seer. In this one verse, the sage has given them a way to live. “It is into That that you must pierce, O son, into That penetrate. Only That will make life worth living. All else is not even worthy of mention.” What is…