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Description of Heart in Upanishads
Description of Heart in Upanishads
Description of Heart in Upanishads
dr.manmohan acharya
The human heart has always become curious to know about the heart. The word
Heart means a hollow muscular organ of human body, which keeps the circulation of
blood by rhythmic contraction and dilatation[1]. It also means the center of person’s
thought and emotions, the vital bodily functions and the seat of thought and intellectual
operation,eg, Mind[2]. Hurt in Sanskrit means the heart. The exact etymological meaning
of hrt is ‘ harati hriyate va visayaih iti hrt[3]’.According to some Lexicons like
Amarakosa Hurt and Hrudaya are identify the same meaning. ‘Chittam tu cheto hrdayam
svantam hrn manasam manah’[4].Bharata , a famous commentator of Amarakosa
speaks vukkam, agramansam, hrdayam and hrt as synonymous to each other.
‘Bukkagramansam hrdayam hrditi ctvari hrdaye. Kecit bukkat prthagev hrdayantargate
mansavisese padmakare hrdayadi dvayamahuh. Dhatoh anekarthatvat’. Hurt or heart
basically provides two meanings. One is physical and another is psychic.
Hrdaya(m) the word itself defines the heart according to the Upanishadic
reference. Esha Prajapatiryad Hrdaymetad Brahmaitad sarvam tadetat tryaksaram
Hrdayamiti , Hr ityekamaksaram abhiharantyasmai svascanye ca ya evam veda , Da
ityekamaksaram dadatyasmai svascanye ca ya evam veda, Yamiti ekamaksarameti
svargam lokam ya evam veda[5].These three syllables represent three verbs – hr is to
collect, da is to donate and (in) ya is to move. So, which collects, distributes and moves is
hrt[6].Though the word Heart is used in so many contexts in Vedic and Upanisadic
scriptures , the scholas admit only two, such as i.Uro hrdayam and ii. Siro
hrdayam[7]. But taking the definitition given by Brhadaranyaka Upanishad in to
consideration, we get three important meanings,eg, i.Physical heart(Uro hrdayam), ii.
Psychic heart(Siro hrdayam) and iii. Spititual heart(Para hrdayam)
Which collects and distributes blood, and gets the body moving is Uro-hrdayam Cardio
Which collects and distributes knowledge and gets the mind moving is Siro hrdayam Mind
Which collects and distributes the matter and gets the life moving is Parahrdayam , Soul
URO-HRDAYAM ( Cardio) :
The heart is a hollow muscular organ where blood and air are blowing[8].It
vertebrates keeps up the circulation of the blood by rhythmic contraction and
dilatation[9]. It is otherwise known as Kardia or Cardio. Hrdayam in Vedic or vedantic
description also identifies the above physical phenomenon of heart. Hence the scholars of
Ayurveda identically name it as Uro-hrdayam[10]. As the existence of life could be
realized through the heart, so it is compared with a Hiranmaya kosa or golden treasury by
the seers of Atharvaveda[11]. Hrdayam is the only way for blood circulation of a
body[12].
SIRO-HRDAYAM (BRAIN):
Ayurveda opines hrdayam as chetanadhisthanam because both the cardio and mind are
inter-connected. A physical heart has no function without the brain or it’s psychic action.
On the other hand the brain is no more active, when the cardio is damaged.This theory of
complementary action was known to the Vedic seers,so they accepted hrdaya as the seat
of mind or manas37 . Hr-da-ya by etymological interpretation means the mind as it collects(hr) and
distributes(da) knowledge and gets the mind moving(ya) . Since the brain has direct nexus with Cardio
and mind it can be known as Sirohrdayam. In Brhadaranyaka Upanisad it is told that the
passions and desires some times enter into the Heart of the individual. When Heart
discards and destroys those material desires man reaches immortality38. Acharya
Sankara in his commentary connotes Heart as Buddhi. Here the word Heart is no doubt a
Psychic Concept. It is written in some Upanisads that – Kama eva yasya ayatanam
hrdayam loko manorjyotiryo vai tam purusam vidyat sarvasyatmanah parayanam sa vai
vedito syat. In this context Hrdaya is a light. Hrdayen budhya psyati iti Samkarah. This
Hrdaya is described as the Light of Mind, Light of Death, Light of Water-god and Light
of Prajapati. In Kathopanisad it is explained that if a manisi purifies himself by his hearty
mind, he becomes immortal and touches salvation(2/3/9).
[4] Amarakosah
[5] Br.Ar.Upanishad,5/3/1.
[11] Ibid
14 Ibid
17 Trisikhabrahmanopanisad,144
19 Sandilya Upanisad,1/15
22 Yogasikhopanisad, 6/18
25 Amrta nadopanisad, 27
26 Dhyanabindu,55-56
27 Ibid
28 Ibid
32 “One of the five vital airs in the body , which is defused through the whole body”
33 Kathopanisad, 2/3/3
35 Dhyanabindupanisad,23,
Kaivalyopanisad,1/6
Maitreyopanisad,1/4/8
36 Varahopanisad, 5/20-23
Sivasamkalpasuktam