Chapter 1Note

Commentary on the Isha Upanishad while he was working on it. He began with a two-tier division: “Chapters” and sections. Later he introduced a superior division, the “Part”, and began calling the lowest-level divisions “Chapters”. The interme- diate divisions, earlier called “Chapters”, became known as “Books”. The numbering of these divisions is neither consis- tent nor complete. The table on the opposite page shows the structure as marked by Sri Aurobindo in the manuscript and printed in the text and, italicised and within square brackets, how it would be if the final three-tier division were applied consistently throughout. In the right margin are indicated the places where the discussions of the first six verses begin. The other twelve verses were not discussed.

[Part I] [No title] [Book I ] Chapter I. The Law of Renunciation. [Chapter] I. God All and God Everywhere [Start verse 1] [Chapter] II. Isha, the Lord. [Chapter] III. Isha and His Universe. [Chapter] IV. God in Man and in all Creatures [Chapter] V. Selflessness, the Basic Rule of Karma-Yoga [Chapter] VI. The Philosophical Justification of Altruism [Chapter] VII. The Meaning of Renunciation [Book II ] Chapter II. Salvation through Works [Chapter] I [No title] [Start verse 2] [Chapter] II. Vairagya. [Chapter] III. One Road and not Three. [Chapter] IV. The denial of salvation by works [Chapter] V. Mukti and the Jivanmukta. [Chapter] VI. Suicide and the other World. [Start verse 3] [Chapter] VII. Retrospect Part II Karmayoga; the Ideal [Book III ] Chapter IV. The Eternal in His Universe I. Eternal Truth the Basis of Ethics / I / The Root of Ethical Ideals Chapter I. Brahman. [Start verse 4] Chapter II. Spiritual Evolution in Brahman Chapter III. Psychical evolution — downward to matter Chapter IV. Psychical Evolution — Upward to Self. [No Chapters V or VI ] [Chapter] VII. Elemental Evolution. [Chapter] VIII. Matariswan and the Waters. [Chapter] IX. Spirit and Matter [Chapter] X. [No title] [Chapter] XI. [No title] [Chapter] XII. [No title] [Start verse 5] Book [IV ] III. [No title] Chapter I. [No title] [Start verse 6] [Chapter] II. Ethics in primitive society. Chapter III. Social Evolution. Chapter IV. The place of Religion in ethics.