Aum
May there be well-being in all,
May there be peace in all,
May there be fulfilment in all,
May there be prosperity and auspiciousness in all.
Aum peace, peace, peace.
Brhadāranyak Upanishad
Circa 2700 BCE
From Sanskrit, written in Roman:
Aum
Sarvéshām svastir bhavatu,
Sarvéshām shāntir bhavatu,
Sarvéshām pūrnam bhavatu,
Sarvéshām mangalam bhavatu.
Aum shānti shānti shāntih:
A brief background?
The Upanishads are ancient Indian scriptures and texts dating about 3000 BCE, and followed the Ved(a)s, which existed sometime 6000–5000 BCE. Passed down orally as hymns, through generations, they were recorded in their present (written) form much later.
Of all the Upanishads discovered thus far, reference is largely drawn to one hundred and eight such texts, of which ten (some say eleven) are considered the more significant of all. One of these, the Brhadāranyak Upanishad, is stated to be one of the oldest and most important, and considered the greatest in extent and thematic perspective.
The word “Brhadāranyak” means The Book of the Great Forests. It speaks of the Ātmā, (the Soul, or Self; permanent and all-pervading truth and reality), as too of the metaphysical. The aspects of spirituality, non-duality and karma that inform the way of life that is Hinduism, are largely enunciated here. Buddhism too finds its origins in Hinduism, and therefore in the Upanishads.
The essence of this write is in the first paragraph; please stay with that.
There are many versions wrt dates mentioned above, and numerous reasons provided thereto, but they all more or less converge in the stated eras. The rest of the text is to provide you with a context and a backdrop. Do try to not get caught up with the Sanskrit pronunciations, for the moment, that is. Unless, of course, you are a scholar of the language. Limitations of the common English script do not allow for accurate representation of Sanskrit. For the moment though, do know that (a) is silent, and ā is pronounced aa.
Love and respect.
Lion~
