Kena Upanishad
The Kena Upanishad or “By Whom [Kena] Upa-
nishad,” takes its name from its first words, which
ask the question, Who impels mind, breath and
speech? Its subsidiary name, the Talavakara Upa-
nishad, is from the Talavakara BRAHMANA of the
SAMA VEDA, in which this Upanishad is sometimes
found. The answer to the initial question is found
in the second stanza: “That which is the hearing
of the ear, the thought of the mind, the voice of
speech and also the breathing of breath, and the
sight of the eye” is the thing by which everything
comes about.
This short Upanishad, with about 34 stanzas,
tells a story (vss. 14–28) about the gods’ first
encounter with the BRAHMAN. They approached
the unknown being to see whether they could
overpower it, but all were defeated. INDRA himself
could not overcome it, but on his way back the
goddess Uma told him that the being was brah-
man. He passed on this information to the rest of
the gods, and was recognized as the greatest of the
gods because of this knowledge. Uma somehow
does not get the credit.
Further reading: Sri Aurobindo, Kena Upanishad (Pon-
dicherry: Sri Aurobindo Ashram, 1952); S. Radhakrish-
nan, The Principal Upanishads (Atlantic Highlands, N.J.:
Humanities Press, 1994).
Keshavadas, Sant (1934–1997) advaita
Vedanta teacher
A prolific writer, composer, and international
teacher, Sant Keshavadas founded the Temple of
Cosmic Religion to advance his belief in the mys-
tical unity of all religions.
Sant Keshavadas was born on July 22, 1934,
on the Hindu holy day of Ekadashi, in Bhadragiri,
a small village near Mysore in southern India. He
was named Radha-Krishna by his parents, Ven-
kataramana Pai and Rukmini Bai, At his birth, a
priest cast his horoscope and predicted that the
child would spread the devotion of God around
the world. At age 11, he received a mystical vision
of Lord VISHNU, which inspired him to sing the
word of God wherever he went in order to spread
sanatana DHARMA “the eternal way”—a synonym
for Hinduism—across the world.
In 1956, Radha-Krishna earned a B.A. from
Mahatma Gandhi Memorial College, and two
years later he received an L.L.B. at the Udipi Law
College. After graduation he married Srimathi
Rama Mataji, who joined him in his mission and
helped him establish an ashram in Bangalore,Sant Keshavadas (1934–1997), prominent teacher of
Vedanta philosophy and yoga, known for his entranc-
ing music and storytelling (Courtesy Temple of Cosmic
Religion, Oakland)Keshavadas, Sant 233 J