Why did PM Modi gift a copy of the first edition of ‘Ten Principal Upanishad’ to Joe Biden? What is the story of Yeats and its spread to western countries

Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted US President Joe Biden a special, handcrafted, beautiful sandalwood box with intricate carvings of flora and fauna that underscores the experience as well as the values ​​and respect for Indian tradition. Apart from this, the Prime Minister also presented a copy of the first edition of the English translation of the book based on the 10 principles of the Upanishads to President Biden. The book was co-authored by Biden’s favorite poet William Butler Yeats and Purohit Swami. The book reflects a shared appreciation for Indian spirituality and the iconography of Gurudev Rabindra Nath Tagore. The book was published in 1937 and is one of Yeats’ last works. A copy of the first edition of the book, The Ten Principal Upanishads, published by M/s Faber & Faber Ltd., London and printed at the University Press Glasgow, has been gifted to President Biden, the government said in a press statement. Yeats’s appreciation of Indian spirituality ran deep and he was deeply influenced by the Upanishads and other ancient schools of thought from India. Yeats had a deep fascination for India and was deeply influenced by Indian spirituality.

A copy of the first edition of the Upanishad was presented to Biden

Yeats had a strong interest in Indian spirituality and was greatly influenced by the Upanishads and other ancient legends of India. Yeats published an English translation of the Indian Upanishads in collaboration with Purohit Swami in 1937. A series of translations and collaborations between the two authors continued into the 1930s and was one of Yeats’ last works. A copy of the first edition of the book The Ten Principal Upanishads, published by ‘M/s Faber & Faber Ltd’ of London and printed at the University Press Glasgow, has been presented to President Biden. What are the Upanishads and why are they important? Let us tell you through this report what is the relation of WB Yeats with Hinduism.

What are Upanishads?

The Upanishads are one of the four important texts in Hinduism that compile each of the Vedas together. In this book, the inter-relationship between Bragm i.e. the nature of the divine entity and the soul has been explained philosophically and scientifically. It is said that the Upanishads are the root of all Indian philosophy. Then whether they are Vedant, Samkhya, Jain or Buddhist. The ancient Hindu sacred text teaches how the “individual self (atman)” finds the ultimate reality (Brahman) through an inner spiritual journey. From the middle of the 5th century to the 2nd century BCE, 13 famous Upanishads were composed, including the Brihadaranyaka, Chandogya, Taittiriya, Aitareya, Kaushitaki, Kena, Katha, Isa, Shvetashvatara, Mundaka, Prashna, Mandukya and Maitri. Apart from these there are hundreds of other Upanishads as well.

Importance of Upanishads

According to the Britannica article, the Upanishads present a vision of an interconnected universe with a single, unifying principle behind the apparent diversity in the universe, any manifestation of which is called Brahman. The article states that the Upanishads say that this Brahman resides in the eternal original soul of man.

How did the Upanishads spread to the western countries?

Dara Shikoh, the eldest son of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal, had a keen interest in world religions. According to media reports, Dara, who lived from 1615 to 1659, translated the Bhagavad Gita and 52 Upanishads from Sanskrit to Persian. As The New Indian Express reports, Dara’s translation was discovered in 1775 by a French resident at the court of Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula of Awadh, who sent a copy to Anquetil Duperron, a popular French traveler and translator. The German philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer was deeply influenced by the Upanishads after reading the book. He believed that deep, original and sublime thoughts arise from each sentence of the Upanishads. In the whole world, there is no study so beneficial and so advanced as that of the Upanishads. Famous American poets Ralph W. Emerson, Walt Whitman and Henry David Thoreau are credited with popularizing this Hindu religious text in America.

WB Yeats and Hinduism

Many of the works of Irish poet and playwright Yeats promote ideas from Hindu spiritual texts. Bailey Betic wrote in the paper ‘Yates, WB, India, and Rabindranath Tagore’ that it was his friend and fellow poet AE, the pseudonym of George William Russell, who introduced Yeats to the Upanishads. Yeats was also greatly inspired by the teachings of Mohini Mohan Chatterjee.