Sages and Wisdom in the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 19225998 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Yurii Zavhorodnii (0000-0001-8460-1636, Institute of Software Systems, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 2026 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2026-03-31 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The World of the Orient (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1608-0599 • E-ISSN: 1682-5268 |
| Publisher | National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Co. LTD Ukrinformnauka) (Publications) (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.15407/orientw2026.01.218 |
| OpenAlex | W7155058880 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 9 |
The paper analyses the figure of the sage who plays a leading role in the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad. In addition to Śvetāśvatara, the sages in the ancient Indian text are not only other nameless ascetic persons, but also manifestations of the Absolute Reality (Brahman, Savitar, Rudra). The interaction exists between representatives of these two worlds and ontologies. Human sages are oriented towards Absolute Reality, while its representatives respond to them. This orientation requires special training and is aimed at a profound transformation of a person. As a result, such a person gains the ability to comprehend absolute knowledge, get rid of the imperfect world and become immortal. The Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad focuses mainly not on everyday or empirical existence, but on wisdom as the knowledge of the primary causes and primary principles of all that exists, as the knowledge of the main goal of the human being, as the secret and true knowledge. Since the wisdom of ascetics is based on, and transmits the primordial superhuman wisdom (Sophia Perennis), there is a reason to speak of a hierarchy of wisdom, of the subordination of human wisdom to a higher Wisdom. The Upaniṣad contains concise polemical motifs that are an important evidence of other speculative positions that coexist (and compete?) with wise Śvetāśvatara’s doctrine. Lexemes denoting sages are present in each section of the text, in its first and last stanzas. This indicates that the figure of the sage plays an important role in the compositional concept of the entire Upaniṣad, being one of its central and recurring themes. Internal and external quotations draw special attention in the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad. With regard to external quotations from earlier authoritative Vedic texts, their presence legitimises the text of the Upaniṣad itself, making it canonical and sacred. Whereas internal quotations serve as examples of the author’s conscious position, emphasising important innovative aspects of his doctrine. Thus, the doctrine of wise Śvetāśvatara is characterised by a unique combination of traditional and innovative knowledge as epistemological positions, hence, it receives the special name of “Vedānta”
Absolute (philosophy) · Argument (complex analysis) · Asceticism · Hierarchy · Imperfect · Set (abstract data type) · Employee Welfare and Language Studies · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Thoreau and American Literature
| Highly cited | No |
|---|