Upanishads
The Upanishads ("Sittings Near [a Teacher]") is part of the Hindu Shruti; these religious scriptures primarily discuss philosophy and "cosmic reality"; they also contain transcripts of various debates. There are 123 books argued to be part of the Upanishads; however, only 13 are accepted by all Hindus. Prominent topics, which are discussed within these texts, are those regarding Atman and Brahman.
The term, Upanishad, is derived from the Sanskrit words upa (near), ni (down) and s(h)ad (to sit), i.e., sitting down near; implying the act of listening to a spiritual teacher. The Upanishads are sometimes argued to be a part of the Vedas; and are thus known as Vedenta ("End of the Veda").
The oldest and longest of the Upanishads are the Brihad-Aranyaka and the Chandogya from about the 7th century B.C. Initially there were over two hundred Upanishads but only fifteen were considered important by the philosopher Shankara. The Upanishads were not fully recorded until 1656, at the order of Dara Shakoh.
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