The Upanishads: Refinding the Source
Saturday July 9, 2016
An introductory talk followed by readings and discussion at The October Gallery in London, with Elizabeth Roberts
The Upanishads are the mystical and philosophical wisdom of the sacred scriptures of Ancient India. They call us to the discovery of a realm deep within ourselves which is our native state.
Also known as Vedanta – the end or goal of the Vedas – the Upanishads provide the basis for the subsequent religions of Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism and present the inner teachings of yoga, namely direct realisation of and union with the Divine, recognised as the ground of being, including one’s own.
The tremendous equation ‘The Self is Brahman’ (Tat tvam asi – thou art That) is the central discovery of the Upanishads. Nothing less can satisfy the heart than this reunion, which the Upanishads describe as sat-chit-ananda: absolute reality, pure awareness, unconditioned joy.
All this is full, all that is full,
From fullness, fullness comes.
When fullness is taken from fullness,
fullness still remains.
– ISHA UPANISHAD
You are what your deep
driving desire is.
As your desire is, so is your will
As your will is, so is your deed
As your deed is, so is your destiny
– BRIHADARANYAKA UPANISHAD
Elizabeth Roberts, BA Oxon. M.Phil. is a yoga teacher, a Yoga Philosophy tutor, and an Ayurvedic Educator and Practitioner. She has also taught literacy and philosophical enquiry in community and adult education.
Address: The October Gallery, 24 Old Gloucester Road, London, WC1N 3AL.
Tickets available at the door. £10 / 5 (concessions)
Enquiries: London@beshara.org
