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The Upanishads are generally considered to be
108 although their exact number is not known. Of these ten are
considered important for which Shankaracharya wrote commentary. The exact date
of the Upanishads is not known. The oldest of them
were probably composed around 1500 BC or earlier while others
were composed at various times in the post Vedic period all the
way upto the medieval period. The earliest Upanishads were non
sectarian while some of the later Upanishads, like the
Svetasvatara Upanishad, are clearly sectarian because they identify
a divinity like Vishnu or Siva as Brahman or the Supreme Self. The oldest known
Upanishads are the Aitareya, the Kausitaki, the Taittiriya, the
Chandogya, the Brihadaranyaka and some parts of the Kena
Upanishad. Many rishis and
sages played an important role in preserving the Upanishads for
posterity. Chief among them were Mahidasa, Aitareya, Raivka,
Sandilya, Satyakama Jabala, Jaivali, Uddalaka Aruni, Svetaketu,
Bharadvaja, Gargyayana, Pratardana, Balaki, Ajatashatru and
others. 1 The Upanishads have been translated by many scholars
into various languages. We are presenting below links to some of
these translations which are available on the internet -
Jayaram V
Internal Links
1. The Indian Philosophy,
Volume 1 by S.Radhakrishnan
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