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25-526: The Nirvana Upanishad describes the sannyasi (renouncer), his character and his state of existence as he leads the monastic life in the Hindu Ashrama tradition. The Upanishad is notable for not mentioning any rites of passage, qualifications or discussion of the sannyasi's life before renunciation. It just describes the Sannyasi, his external state, his inner state. The Upanishad asserts that

50-609: A mark of his admiration for the language, is one of the distinguished roll of Europeans who — often with lyrical admiration — participated in the scholarly Western discovery of Sanskrit and Hinduism that took place in British India itself, Germany, France and England. Paul Deussen was born on 7 January 1845 in Oberdreis , Neuwied in the Rhine Province , one of eight children of a clergyman of modest means. He became

75-540: A student, and lifelong devotee, of the German philosopher Schopenhauer, and of the philosophy of Kant ; and he became a friend of Friedrich Nietzsche. Deussen was educated at Bonn , Tübingen and Berlin Universities between 1864 and 1881, writing his dissertation on Plato's philosophy. Deussen was appointed Privatdocent (1881-7) and Extraordinarius (1887-9) at the university of Berlin, and Ordinarius (1889–1919,

100-404: Is his staff (walking stick). Happiness is his sandals. Union with the truth, the perfect is his monastery. The primordial Brahman is self-knowledge. A solitary place is his monastery of bliss. The non-dual Being and Bliss is his divinity. The soundless is his mantra. His own nature is his liberation. — Nirvana Upanishad (Abridged, Tr: Patrick Olivelle) The Nirvana Upanishad

125-557: Is written in Sutra -style. A Sutra means "string, thread", and in Indian literary traditions, it also refers to an aphorism or a collection of aphorisms in the form of a condensed manual or text. Each sutra is like a theorem distilled into few words or syllables, around which "teachings of ritual, philosophy, grammar or any field of knowledge" can be woven. This Upanishad deals with Vedanta philosophy. The aphoristic style implies that

150-474: The Muktika canon, narrated by Rama to Hanuman , it is listed at number 47. The universe of Sannyasi The sky is his belief. His knowledge is of the absolute. Union is his initiation. Compassion alone is his pastime. Bliss is his garland. The cave of solitude is his fellowship. His teaching:   Hamsa abides in the heart of every being. Fortitude is his patched garment. Investigation

175-578: The 1st-millennium BC), before it was compiled and classified as an Upanishad. This text was likely composed in the centuries around the start of common era. Gavin Flood dates the Sannyasa Upanishad s like Nirvana Upanishad to the first few centuries of the common era. This text has been sometimes titled as Nirvanopanishad in manuscripts. In the Telugu language anthology of 108 Upanishads of

200-662: The Advaita Vedanta tradition. Buddhadasa, a Thai Buddhist, in a commentary on Nirvana between two Indian religions, states that the Upanishad's view is that an eternal, uncreated Atman exists. In contrast, states Buddhadasa, there is no Atman terminology in Buddhism. Bibliography Ashrama (stage) Traditional Āśrama ( Sanskrit : आश्रम ) is a system of stages of life discussed in Hindu texts of

225-542: The Upanishad. The verse 36–37 of the text asserts a position reverse of the Sunyavada of Buddhism , states Olivelle, where the Hindu sannyasi does not accept void-emptiness as ultimate reality, but believes Atman-Brahman as the ultimate reality. The primordial Brahman, states sutra 40 of the text, is self-knowledge for the renouncer. The sannyasi finds home when he is in union with truth and perfection, states sutra 38 of

250-798: The Vedanta has been reprinted several times: he uses the Brahmasutra and – rather less — Adi Shankara's commentary on it, as the structure for his exposition. His scholarship has been described as immense, perceptive, and meticulous. Mahinder Gulati refers to him as an Orientalist and Sanskrit scholar. Paul Deussen's name is thus linked with George Boucher, Sir William Jones and Sir John Woodroffe in British India, Anquetil-Duperron and Eugène Burnouf in France, Heinrich Roth , Franz Bopp , Friedrich von Schlegel and Max Müller in Germany, in

275-494: The absolute. The text asserts that the life of the sannyasi is of reflection, not rituals. Jnana-kanda (knowledge section of the Vedas) is the scripture of the sannyasi , states the Upanishad, and not the section on Karma-kanda (rituals section of the Vedas). He is marked by fearlessness, fortitude, equanimity, a conduct that is both respectful of others and his own wishes, he does not revile others nor find faults in others, states

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300-587: The ancient and medieval eras. The four asramas are: Brahmacharya (student), Gṛhastha (householder), Vanaprastha (forest walker/forest dweller), and Sannyasa (renunciate). The Asrama system is one facet of the Dharma concept in Hinduism . It is also a component of the ethical theories in Indian philosophy, where it is combined with four proper goals of human life ( Purushartha ), for fulfilment, happiness and spiritual liberation. Moreover, since

325-434: The first three Asramas must devote itself solely to a specific goal of life ( Purushartha ). The fourth stage of Sannyasa is different, and the overwhelming consensus in ancient and medieval texts is that Sannyas stage of life must entirely be devoted to Moksha aided by Dharma . Dharma is held primary for all stages. Moksha is the ultimate noble goal, recommended for everyone, to be sought at any stage of life. On

350-434: The four Asramas of life are a form of personal and social environment, each stage with ethical guidelines, duties and responsibilities, for the individual and for the society. Each Asrama stage places different levels of emphasis on the four proper goals of life, with different stages viewed as steps to the attainment of the ideal in Hindu philosophy, namely Moksha. Neither ancient nor medieval texts of India state that any of

375-793: The four asramas can be seen as the framework of an influential life-span model, they are also part of an indigenous developmental psychology which from its ancient beginnings until today has shaped the orientations and goals of many people, especially in India. The four asramas system aimed to integrate renunciation into Brahmanical society around the fourth century BCE. Initially, it offered young adults four lifelong paths post-vedic initiation: Brahmacharya (student), Gṛhastha (householder), Vanaprastha (forest walker/forest dweller), and Sannyasa (renunciate). Documented in early Dharmasutras (2nd-3rd centuries BCE), it allowed free choice among these paths, which were viewed as permanent vocations. The term asrama

400-480: The life of the sannyasi is of reflection, not rituals, dedicated to Jnana-kanda (knowledge section of the Vedas ), finding home when he is in union with truth and perfection. Self-knowledge is his journey and destination, a solitary place his monastery of bliss. The composition date or author of Nirvana Upanishad is unknown, but its sutra -style suggests that it originated in the sutra text period (final centuries of

425-660: The original system presented in the early Dharmasutras the Asramas were four alternative available ways of life, neither presented as sequential nor with age recommendations. The Asramas system is one facet of the complex Dharma concept in Hinduism. It is integrated with the concept of Purushartha , or four proper aims of life in Hindu philosophy, namely, Dharma (piety, morality, duties), Artha (wealth, health, means of life), Kama (love, relationships, emotions) and Moksha (liberation, freedom, self-realization). Each of

450-682: The other two, the texts are unclear. With the exception of Kamasutra , most texts make no recommendation on the relative preference on Artha or Kama, that an individual must emphasise in what stage of life. The Kamasutra states, The life span of a man is one hundred years. Dividing that time, he should attend to three aims of life in such a way that they support, rather than hinder each other. In his youth he should attend to profitable aims ( artha ) such as learning, in his prime to pleasure ( kama ), and in his old age to dharma and moksha . Paul Deussen Paul Jakob Deussen ( German: [ˈpaʊl ˈjaːkɔp ˈdɔʏsn̩] ; 7 January 1845 – 6 July 1919)

475-442: The text can be interpreted with multiple meanings, is full of metaphors and allegories, and its sutras implicitly refer to Hindu scriptures. "The sky is his belief" in its third sutra for example, states Patrick Olivelle , is a metaphor for consciousness, spanning everything visible yet indivisible; it also means that the sannyasi is not enslaved to any specific doctrine but instead follows his own consciousness, his own conception of

500-550: The text may have been a memory aid that went with the glossary sections of the 108 Upanishads, namely the Sarvasara Upanishad and Niralamba Upanishad . Patrick Olivelle concurs with Deussen and considers this Upanishad as an early text in the Sutra tradition of Hinduism. The text, state Olivelle, has a distinct Advaita Vedanta of Hindu philosophy flavor, like most Sannyasa Upanishads, but this may be because major Hindu monasteries of 1st millennium AD belonged to

525-438: The text. Self-knowledge is his journey and destination. His state is of an entranced mind, solitude his monastery. He is virtuous, he knows no fear, no delusions, no grief, no anger, no selfishness, no egotism. He contemplates on the true nature, silence is his mantra, he conducts himself as he pleases, his own nature is his liberation, translates Olivelle. The text is obscure, states T.M.P. Mahadevan , while Paul Deussen states

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550-769: The year of his death), at the University of Kiel . Until 1919, Deussen continued to edit the Schopenhauer Yearbook, as well as working on an edition of Schopenhauer's works. It was when he attended a lecture at the University of Bonn by Professor Christian Lassen (1800-1876), expounding the Shakuntala , that Deussen was fired by Sanskrit and Hinduism. Deussen's first publication (1877) was published in English as The Elements of Metaphysics in 1894. It

575-526: Was a German Indologist and professor of philosophy at University of Kiel . Strongly influenced by Arthur Schopenhauer , Deussen was a friend of Friedrich Nietzsche and Swami Vivekananda . In 1911, he founded the Schopenhauer Society ( Schopenhauer-Gesellschaft ). Professor Deussen was the first editor, in 1912, of the scholarly journal Schopenhauer Yearbook ( Schopenhauer-Jahrbuch ). Deussen, who Sanskritised his name to "Deva-Sena" as

600-621: Was coined to describe these lifestyles, particularly those of exceptional Brahmins dedicated to austerities and rituals. Under the Asrama system, the human lifespan was divided into four periods. The goal of each period was the fulfilment and development of the individual. The classical system, in the Āśrama Upanishad , the Vaikhanasa Dharmasutra and the later Dharmashastra , presents these as sequential stages of human life and recommends ages for entry to each stage, while in

625-493: Was followed by the translations of The Sutra of the Vedanta in 1906; The Philosophy of the Upanishads also in 1906; and The System of the Vedanta in 1912. His visit to India in 1904 was published in English as My Indian Reminiscences in 1912. However, his autobiographical papers, edited by his daughter Erika (1894-1956) and published in German in 1922, have so far not been translated into English. Deussen's System of

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