This text was taken from Haridas Shastri's edition of Sadhana-dipika (q.v.), where it is quoted in full. This text has been cited in Prameya Ratnavali and elsewhere, but it is no doubt a very late text. See Radhopanisat for further information.

Jagat (2002)

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Keywords: Purusa-bodhini, Sruti, Purusha, Bodhani, Radhopanisat, Upanishad, Upanisad, Sadhana, Dipika

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Additional notes from the editors' research and selected discussion forum contributions.

The following is an excerpt from an article written by Dr Fakir Mohan Das entitled "The History of Sri Sri Radha Krsna Worship in Orissan Culture":

http://veda.harekrsna.cz/encyclopedia/tattvas1.htm

In Ujjvala Nilamani Srila Rupa Goswami cites the Gopala Tapani Upanisad and the Rg Parisista to show the authenticity of the worship of Srimati Radharani: gopalottaratapinyam yad gandharveti visrutah radhet rk parisiste ca, etc.

From the Vedic literature we come to know that Sri Radharani is referred to as 'Gandharvi' in the second part of the Gopal Tapani, and as 'Radha' in the Rg Parishistha.'

Srila Vishvanath Cakravarti Thakur and Baladev Vidyabhushan have stated in their commentaries on Gopala Tapani Upanisad that this tapani of the Atharva Veda, Paippalada branch, was previously being recited by the brahmanas of Gujarat and Orissa. Although presently there are no brahmanas of the Atharva Veda Paippalada branch found in Gujarat, thousands of this lineage are still living in the vicinity of the village Remuna, the birth place of Srila Baladev Vidyabhushan, and in other places of Orissa. In the absence of any help from ancient manuscripts, the original text of the Paippalada Samhita can be reconstructed even today from the tradition, which the village reciters still carry with them unimpaired. In this area some rare Paippalada Samhita manuscripts have been found along with a number of hitherto unknown manuals of special Paippalada rites which give an insight into the social, religious and cultural traditions of Paippaladiyans found in the tapani literature.

In the 18th century, Srila Baladeva Vidyabhushan has quoted the Purusa-bodhini Sruti, Purusottama Tapini, in his Prameya Ratnavali in connection with the worship of Sri Sri Radha Krsna in the Vedic period. Vaishnava poets like Anandi of Nilachala Dhama and Narahari Cakravarti of Sri Khanda, Bengal, have quoted from the Purusa-bodhini Sruti to establish the authentic nature of the worship of Sri Sri Radha Krsna and Gauranga Mahaprabhu.

Later in the 18th century, Srila Radha Krsna Goswami, the disciple of Haridas Pandit (who was the grand-disciple of Gadadhar Pandit Goswami of Puri), published four prapathakas (chapters) of the Purusa-bodhini sruti in his Sadhana-dipika. Thakur Bhaktivinode of village Chotimangalpur in Kendrapara District, Orissa, also collected the Sri Caitanya Upanisad of the Paippalada branch from Pandit Madhusudan Das of Sambalpur, Orissa, publishing it in 1887. In 1901 Mahamahopadhyaya Sadashiva Kavyakantha of Puri published some additional chapters of this Sruti. In 1966 we collected all twelve prapathakas of this Purusa-bodhini Sruti from different parts of Orissa and published them from our Sri Bhaktivinode Library in Baripada.

The four chapters found in this edition are sometimes refered to as chapters 7-10. This has led to confusion. Are there six other chapters to this work?

The following statement is found in Bhagiratha Jha's Gopala-tapani commentary:

tad etad upaniSad-bhAgaH saptama-prapAThakam Arabhya dazama-prapAThaka-paryanta iha prakRta-vAkyArthasya sukha-bodhAya paThitaH | sA ceyaM puruSArtha-bodhiny-upaniSat atharva-vede pippalAda-zAkhAyA brAhmaNa-bhAge gopAla-tApinyA saha tasyaivottarArdhatayA paThyate iti siddhAnta-ratna-taT-TIkA-kRto baladeva-vidyAbhUSaNAH | gopAla-tApiny-upaniSat pippalAda-zAkhAyAM paThyate iti tu sundara-bhaTTa-nArAyaNa-bhaTTAdayaH sarve taT-TIkA-kRtaH | evaM ca paJca-prapAThakAtmikA paJcAdhyAyAtmikA vA gopAla-pUrva-tApinI, SaNDa-catuSTayAtmaka-prapAThakaikottara-tApinIti SaSTha-prapAThaka-paryantA samagra-gopAla-tApanI | saptama-prapAThakAd Arabhya dvAdazatama-prapAThaka-paryantA puruSa-bodhinIty evaM sampadyate iti yuktaM tasyAH gopAla-tApiny-artha-samavetatvam | tasyA atra dazama-prapAThaka-paryanta-bhAga uddhRtaH | zeSa-pAThaka-dvayaM—yat tasya pIThaM hiraNyASTa-palAzam ambujam ity atra paThiSyAmIti |

In short, according to Baladeva Vidyabhushan in the Siddhanta-ratnam, the six segments of the Gopala Tapani (five in Purva, one alone in the Uttara) form the first six portions of the Atharvana Upanishad, the four chapters of the Purusha-bodhini form is its sequel.