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Skanda Upanishad or Skandopanishad () is one of the 108 Upanishads of Hinduism, written in Sanskrit. It is classified as a Samanya (general) Upanishad and is associated with the Krishna Yajurveda, one of the 32 listed Upanishads under it.
The Upanishad is told in first person by Kartikeya (Skanda), the Hindu god of war and the son of Shiva. While the Upanishad states that Skanda is the ultimate reality called Brahman, he is also described as consciousness, Atman (soul, self), and Shiva as well by the text.
The text emphasizes there is no difference between Vishnu and Shiva – the gods of Vaishnavism and Shaivism respectively, that they are one, as are all gods. The ideal worship, states the Upanishad, is to see one's innermost self as not different from Skanda, Shiva, Vishnu and Brahman.
Skanda says that jiva (a living being) is Shiva. Just as before husking, it is paddy and after husking, a grain is rice, similarly bound by karma, it is a jiva and when liberated from karma, it becomes Shiva. Skanda then pays his respects to Shiva, who is a form of Vishnu and Vishnu, who is a form of Shiva. Further, Vishnu is said to dwell in the heart of Shiva and vice versa. Shiva and Vishnu are the one and the same.
The Skanda Upanishad further compares the body to the temple and the jiva (life-force) to Shiva. Like old flower offerings are cast away from the temple, ajnana (ignorance, absence of jnana) should be thrown out from the body. God be worshipped by the thought that one is same as Him, which is jnana. Dhyana (meditation) should be to rid the mind of objects. Bathing is removing the dirt in the mind. Cleanliness is control over the senses. One must consume the drink of Brahman. One must live on alms and in a solitary place alone and realize the Advaita Vedanta of the Soul and Brahman. Thus, one attains emancipation (moksha).
A prayer in first person follows. Obeisance is offered to the Supreme Light, wishing for prosperity and longevity. Vishnu as Narasimha and Shiva as Mahadeva are addressed. The hymn declares that by their grace, people realize the incomprehensible Brahman, which transcends thoughts, is unmanifest and infinite and indestructible, but takes the form of the deities, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.
The Skanda Upanishad ends with the hymn:
This hymn originates from the Rig Veda and appears in other Upanishadic texts like Aruneya Upanishad, Nrisimha Tapaniya Upanishad, Vasudeva Upanishad and Muktika Upanishad.
The unity and sameness of Vishnu and Shiva, gods of the rival Hindu sects of Vaishnavism and Shaivism respectively, in the text are also emphasized. This identification of the two gods is said an attempt of syncretism of the warring sects, similar to the icon of Harihara, the combined form of Vishnu and Shiva.
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