Gopala Tapani Upanishad

Gopāla-tāpanī Upanishad is a Sanskrit text, and 1 of the later Upanishad attached to the Atharvaveda.[2][3] The Gopāla-tāpanī is one of the four Tāpinī Upanishads (Nṛsiṁha, Rāma, Tripurā and Gopāla).[3]

Gopalatapani
mukhya upanishad
Devanagari	गोपालतापिन्युपनिषत्
IAST	Gopālatāpanī
Title means	Surrender to Krishna
Date	Uncertain, 8th to 6th century BCE
Type	Vaishnava
Linked Veda	Atharvaveda
Chapters	9[1]

The Upanishad belongs to the Tandya school of the atharvaveda.[1] Like the gopal tapani Upanishad is an anthology of texts that must have pre-existed as separate texts, and were edited into a larger text by one or more ancient Indian scholars.[1] The precise chronology of gopal tapani Upanishad is uncertain, and it is variously dated to have been composed by the 8th to 6th century BCE in India.[2][4][5]

It is one of the largest Upanishadic compilations, and has eight Prapathakas (literally lectures, chapters), each with many volumes, and each volume contains many verses.[6][7] The volumes are a motley collection of stories and themes. As part of the poetic and chants-focussed atharvaveda, the broad unifying theme of the Upanishad is the importance of speech, language, song and chants to man's quest for knowledge and salvation, to metaphysical premises and questions, as well as to rituals.[1][8]

The gopaltapani Upanishad is notable for its lilting metric structure, its mention of ancient cultural elements such as musical instruments, and embedded philosophical premises that later served as foundation for Vedanta school of Hinduism.[9] It is one of the most cited texts in later Bhasyas (reviews and commentaries) by scholars from the diverse schools of Hinduism.

Date

Farquhar dates it to have been composed after Nṛsiṁha-tāpanī Upanishad, which he estimates to be complete by the 7th century.[2] He states that the first of the Tāpanīya Upanishads is believed to be the Nṛsiṁha, which served as the model for the others which took this name.[2] But it is not sure whether the text was of 7th century because it has no mention in Shankara's works. The Gopalatapani text was extensively commented by the 16th-century scholar Jiva Goswami placing the two limits on its composition century.[4] The 14th-century scholar Vidyaranya commented on Tapani series of Upanishad, so it is possible the text existed by then.[2]

The meaning of the series name

ॐ

The wise and enlightened sages declare
that the pleasure potency
of God, Sri Radha, and all living beings
are also contained in Om.

—Gopalatapani Upanishad, II.56[5]

The Sanskrit word tāpanīya in the context of these Upanishads is not clear. The word is found in four different forms: tapanīya, tāpanīya, tāpinī, tāpanī. Tāpanī is the most common form used in titles and references, but this appears to be an abbreviated form of the more correct tāpanīya, which appears in the texts themselves. According to Monier-Williams verdict we should assume tāpanīya ("gold") to be the name of a school of the Vājaseyani Saṁhitā that produced the four Upanishads bearing this name. This assumes that they come from a common source something disputed by others, who believe that the three other works were written on the model of the Nṛsiṁha-tāpanī as a result of the success enjoyed by that work in bringing legitimation a particular ancient tradition containing Nṛsiṁha mantra.[6] Deussen reads tapanīya,[6] which means "that which must be heated" or "gold". It also has the meaning of "self-mortification".

The process of self-purification is often compared to smelting gold, which is heated repeatedly in fire to remove any impurities. Deussen thus explains the term is as follows: "Tapanam (austerity) is burning pain-suffering or ascetic self-sacrifice; Nṛsiṁha-tapanam thus means ascetic self-surrender to Nṛsiṁha. Therefore Nṛsiṁha-tapanīya Upanishad is "the doctrine concerning the ascetic surrender to Nṛsiṁha."[6]

Early commentaries

Narayana

I am imperishable. I am omkara that never grows old, dies or knows fear. I am immortal. I am verily the fearless Brahman. Therefore I am liberated and indestructible.

Brahman is pure existence, the universal form and light. He is all pervasive, and one without a second, but through māyā he becomes fourfold.

—Gopalatapani Upanishad V.52-V.53[7]

• Prabodhānanda Sarasvati [8]
• Jīva Goswami commentary
• Viśvanātha Cakravarti commentary

Early books quoted in

Verses as reference: used in Krishna Sandarbha by Jiva Goswami

Verses as reference: used in Hari Bhakti Vilasa by Gopala Bhatta Goswami

Recent editions and commentaries

• Kṛṣṇadāsa Kusuma Sarovarawala’s edition (Kusuma Sarovarawala is only used for commenting on the text of the Upanishaad itself)[9]
• Bhakti Srirupa Siddhāntī Mahārāja edition and comments
• B.V. Tripurari edition and comments
• Kuśakratha dāsa’s English translation

Concordance of different editions and commentaries

Pūrva

Tripurari	Vishvanatha Cakravarti	Prabodhānanda Sarasvati	Jiva Goswami commentary	Kuśakratha dāsa's English translation	Kṛṣṇa Sandarbhua by Jiva	Hari Bhakti Vilasa by GBG
1	1	1	1	1
2	2	2	2	2	82	1.160
3	3-6	3	3-6	3	82	1.160
4	7	4	7	4		1.160
5	8-9	5	8-9	5		1.160
6	10	6	10	6		1.160
7	11	7	11	7		1.160
8	12	8	12	8	187	1.160
9	12	9	13	9
10	12	10	14	9
11	12	11	15	10	153
12	13	12-14	16	11-12	153
13	14	15	17	13	153
14	15	16	18	14		1.161
15	16-17	17	19	15		1.161
16	18	18	20	16		1.162
17	19	19	21	17
18	20	20-22	22	18-19
19	21	23	23	20		1.163
20	22	24	24	21		1.164
21	23	25	25	22		1.165
22	24	26	26	23	64	1.166
23	25	27	27	24		1.167
24	26	28	28	25	106	1.168
25	26-27	29-32	29	26-28	64	1.169
26	28	33-36	30	29-30	83	1.169
27	29	37-38	31	31		1.172
28	30	39-40	32	32-33		1.172
29	31	41-42	33	34	93
30	32	43	34	35		1.173
31	33	44	35	36		1.174
32	34	45	36	37		1.175
33	35	46	37	38		1.176
34	36	47	38	39
35	37	48	39	40
36	38	49	40	41
37	39	50	41	42	99,106,153
38	40	51	42	43
39	41	52	43	44
40	42	53	44	45
41	43	54	45	46
42	44	55	46	47
43	45	56	47	48
44	46	57	48	49
45	47	58	49	50
46	48	59	50	51
47	49	60	51	52-53		1.177
48	50	61	52	54	82	1.178

'Uttara

Tripurari	Vishvanatha Cakravarti	Prabodhānanda Sarasvati	Jiva Goswami	Kuśakratha dāsa's English translation	Kṛṣṇa Sandarbhua by Jiva Goswami
1	1	1	1	1
2	1	2	2	2-3
3	2	3	2	4
4	3	4	3	5
5	4	5	4	6
6	4	6	4	7
7	5	7	5	8
8	6-7	8-9	6-7	9
9	7	10	7	10
10	8	11-12	8	11
11	9	13	9	12
12	10	14	10	13
13	11	15	11	14	177
14	12-13	16	12	15
15	13	17	13	16-19
16	14-15	18	14-15	20
17	16	19	16	21
18	17	20	17	22
19	18-20	21-24	18-20	23
20	21	25	21	24
21	22	26	22	25-26
22	23	27	23	27
23	24	28-31	24	28	99
24	25-27	32-35	25-27	29-32
25	28	36	28	33-34
26	29	37-38	29	35-36	106
27	30	39-40	30	37-38	106, 177
28	31	41	31	39-40	106
29	32	42-43	32	40
30	33	44	33	41	172
31	34	45	34	42	106
32	35-36	46-47	35-36	43-45	106
33	37	48	37	46
34	38	49	38	47
35	39	50	39	48a	106
36	40	50	40	48b	106
37	41	51	41	49a
38	42	52	42	49b
39	43	53	43	50
40	44	53-58	44	51-53	87,153
41	45	59	45	54
42	46	60	46	55
43	47	61	47	56
44	48	62-63	48	57-58
45	49	64	49	59
46	50	65	50	60
47	51	66	51	61
48	52	67-68	52	62
49	53	69	53	63
50	54a	70	54	64
51	54b	71-73	55	65
52	54c	73	56	66
53	54d	74	57	67
54	55	75	58	68
55	56	76	59	69
56	57	77	60	70
57	58	78-79	60-61	71-72
58	59	79	61	73-74	106
59	60	80a	62	75	106
60	61	80b	63	76	106
61	62	80c	64	77
62	63	80d	65	78
63	64	81	66	79
64	65	82	67	80
65	66	83	68	81
66	67	84	69	82	82
67	68	85	70	83
68	69	86	71	84
69	70	87	72	85
70	71	88	73	86-87
71	72	89	74	88-89
72	73	90	75	90
73	74	91	76	91
74	75	92	77	92
75	76	93-94	78	92-93
76	77	95-96	79	94
77	78	97-98	80	95
78	79	98-99	81	96-97
79	80	100	82	98
80	81	101	83	99
81	82	102	84	100
82	83	103	85	101
83	84	104	86	102
84	85	105	87	103
85	86	106	88	104
86	87	107	89	105
87	88	108	90	106
88	89	109	91	107
89	90	110	92	108
90	91	111	93	109
91	92	112	94	110
92	93	113	95	111
93	94	114	96	112
94	95	115	97	113
95	96	116	98	114
96	97	117	99	115
97	98	118	100	116
98	99	119	101	117
99	100	120	102	118

References

1. Hattangadi 2000.
2. Farquhar 1920, p. 266.
3. Tinoco 1997, p. 88.
4. Tripurari 2004, pp. 3-4, 8-11 with footnotes.
5. Steven Rosen (2006), Essential Hinduism, Praeger, ISBN 978-0275990060, page 218
6. Deussen, P. (1980). Sixty Upanishads of The Veda, trans. VM Bedekar and GB Palsule. Delhi. ISBN 0-8426-1645-4.Vol II, pp. 809-888. He has translated the Rāma Pūrva and Uttara-tāpinī and the Nṛsiṁha Pūrva and Uttara-tāpinī Upanishads.
7. Tripurari 2004, pp. 154-155.
8. Tripurari, Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī: From Benares to Braj" in the Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies. Vol LV, Part 1, 1992, pages 52-75
9. Kṛṣṇadāsa Bābājī, Kusumasarovara, Radha Kund: Gaurahari Press, 1955

Bibliography

• B. V. Tripurari (2004). Gopala-tapani Upanisad. Audarya Press. ISBN 1-932771-12-3.
• Deussen, Paul (1 January 2010). The Philosophy of the Upanishads. Cosimo, Inc. ISBN 978-1-61640-239-6.
• Deussen, Paul; Bedekar, V.M. (tr.); Palsule (tr.), G.B. (1 January 1997). Sixty Upanishads of the Veda. Motilal Banarsidass. ISBN 978-81-208-1467-7.
• Farquhar, John Nicol (1920). An outline of the religious literature of India. H. Milford, Oxford university press. ISBN 81-208-2086-X.
• Hattangadi, Sunder (2000). "गोपालतापिन्युपनिषत् (Gopalatapani Upanishad)" (PDF) (in Sanskrit). Retrieved 16 January 2016.
• Tinoco, Carlos Alberto (1997). Upanishads. IBRASA. ISBN 978-85-348-0040-2.
• Tripurari, BV (Translator) (2004). Gopala-tapani Upanisad (PDF). ISBN 978-1932771121.

Further reading

• B. V. Tripurari (2004). Gopala-tapani Upanisad. Audarya Press.
• Narang, S. (1984). The Vaisnava Philosophy According to Baladeva Vidyabhusana. Nag Publishers.