Although this is the last Upanishad I will review it was one of the favorites of Swami Prabhavananda. Swami Prabhavananda was a famous Indian philosopher, monk, author and religious teacher in the early 20th century.
This particular Upanishad focuses on how to properly meditate for becoming one with Brahman (God). It also discusses the importance of Om, Maya, the mind and the body for that union. This is the only scripture of the Upanishads which mentions a wheel as applied to birth, death, and rebirth. The wheel is mentioned twice in the scripture and stresses the importance of freeing one's self from its grip in order to become immortal.
The scripture is relatively short but at the end there are 175 lines of poetic verses giving praise to Brahman. I can easily imagine how it could be used as a mantra.
The instructions on how to meditate in order to realize God are rather straight forward as follows:
Where you meditate must be free from disturbing noises and "pleasing to the eye and quieting to the mind." The correct posture is very important when meditating. You must sit upright with the chest, neck, and head in straight alignment. The senses and the mind must be focused on the lotus of the heart. By uttering "OM," concentration and focus will deepen so that pure consciousness becomes distinct from ordinary consciousness which usually pervates the mind.
By meditating on the Infinite, the Absolute, you will lose the illusion (Maya) that you are the body and the mind. You will become one with God. Birth, death, and rebirth will be no more and Inner Reality will be realized.
I would like to discuss the aspects of pur awareness in more detail in the next post.
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