Kena Upanishad
A short Samaveda Upanishad in four sections (two in verse, two in prose). Opens with the profound question: By whom (Kena) is the mind impelled? It reveals that Brahman is the unmanifest power behind all the senses and faculties — the unseen Seer, the unheard Hearer.
- The Kena Upanishad takes its name from its first word: Kena — "By whom?" — the opening question that drives the entire text.
- It belongs to the Talavakara (Jaiminiya) Brahmana of the Samaveda and is sometimes called the Talavakara Upanishad.
- The first two sections (in verse) present the philosophical teaching: Brahman is not what the mind thinks, not what the eye sees — it is the power by which all faculties function.
- The third and fourth sections (in prose) narrate the parable of Brahman appearing as a Yaksha (mysterious being) to test the gods — only Uma Haimavati (Brahman-wisdom) can identify it.
- The core teaching: Brahman is "unknown to those who know it, known to those who do not know it" — meaning the ordinary intellect cannot grasp Brahman; only pure awareness knows.
- Shankaracharya's commentary is authoritative; he identifies this as a text about Nirguna Brahman — Brahman without attributes.
Structural Organization
Example: Kena Upanishad 1.3 → Khanda 1, Mantra 3 (It is not known by those who know it)
Key Topics
Key Figures
Key Texts & Works
Featured Shlokas
By Whose Will Does the Mind Go Forth?
Kena Upanishad · Chapter Khanda 1 · Verse 1
केनेषितं पतति प्रेषितं मनः केन प्राणः प्रथमः प्रैति युक्तः । केनेषितां वाचमिमां वदन्ति चक्षुः श्रोत्रं क उ देवो युनक्ति ॥ १ ॥
keneṣitaṃ patati preṣitaṃ manaḥ kena prāṇaḥ prathamaḥ praiti yuktaḥ | keneṣitāṃ vācam imāṃ vadanti cakṣuḥ śrotraṃ ka u devo yunakti || 1 ||
By whose will does the mind go forth? By whose command does the first breath move? By whose will do people utter this speech? What god directs the eye and the ear?
The Ear of the Ear, the Mind of the Mind
Kena Upanishad · Chapter Khanda 1 · Verse 2
श्रोत्रस्य श्रोत्रं मनसो मनो यद् वाचो ह वाचं स उ प्राणस्य प्राणः । चक्षुषश्चक्षुरतिमुच्य धीराः प्रेत्यास्माल्लोकादमृता भवन्ति ॥ २ ॥
śrotrasya śrotraṃ manaso mano yad vāco ha vācaṃ sa u prāṇasya prāṇaḥ | cakṣuṣaś cakṣur atimucya dhīrāḥ pretyāsmāl lokād amṛtā bhavanti || 2 ||
That which is the ear of the ear, the mind of the mind, the speech of speech, the life of life, the eye of the eye — the wise, freed from the senses and departing this world, become immortal.
Not What the Eye Sees — That Is Brahman
Kena Upanishad · Chapter Khanda 1 · Verse 3
न तत्र चक्षुर्गच्छति न वाग्गच्छति नो मनः । न विद्मो न विजानीमो यथैतदनुशिष्यात् ॥ ३ ॥
na tatra cakṣur gacchati na vāg gacchati no manaḥ | na vidmo na vijānīmo yathaitad anuśiṣyāt || 3 ||
The eye does not go there, nor speech, nor the mind. We do not know It; we do not understand how It can be taught.
Different from the Known, Beyond the Unknown
Kena Upanishad · Chapter Khanda 1 · Verse 4
अन्यदेव तद्विदितादथो अविदितादधि । इति शुश्रुम पूर्वेषां ये नस्तद्व्याचचक्षिरे ॥ ४ ॥
anyad eva tad viditād atho aviditād adhi | iti śuśruma pūrveṣāṃ ye nas tad vyācacakṣire || 4 ||
That is different from the known; and also It is above the unknown. Thus we have heard from the ancients who explained it to us.