Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad
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- Catalogue identifier
- kali-0120
- Alternate titles and import identifiers
- KALI-0120; mundaka_muller_1884
- Author or attribution
- Traditional Sanskrit Upanishad; translated by F. Max Müller
- Record type
- Book
- Language
- English
- Date / edition
- 1884
- Source / repository
- Clarendon Press
- Access
- Open access
- Subjects
- Kali Library Research Catalogue; Ancient Scriptures and Primary Texts; Philosophy, Theology, and Comparative Religion
Description and curator notes
The Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad distinguishes forms of knowledge and considers the limits of sacrificial works, the search for a teacher, knowledge of Brahman and liberation. Its opening teaching passes through a description of correctly performed fire offerings before arguing that ritual alone cannot provide the highest realization. At 1.2.4, Müller translates Kālī as “black” and Karālī as “terrific”: they are two of seven named tongues of sacrificial fire. This is an important lexical and religious comparison for a Kali collection, but the verse does not itself identify these flames with the later goddess Kali or establish a continuous history of her worship. The complete Upanishad allows the verse to be read within its argument rather than detached as a supposed account of goddess origins. The final division describes the knower of Brahman, the dissolution of limiting forms and the transmission of the teaching, ending with homage to the highest rishis. This record covers the entire six-section Muṇḍaka translation within Müller's larger Upanishads, Part II, not a separately printed volume or all the Upanishads in that collection.
KALI-0120 — Kali Library Research Catalogue.
Access and reliability assessments below are supplied by the curator's 4–5 November 2026 research release, not a new independent verification.
Author / attribution: Traditional Sanskrit Upanishad; translated by F. Max Müller
Publication: Clarendon Press · 1884
The Sacred Books of the East, volume XV: The Upanishads, Part II. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1884. Muṇḍaka translation is a complete work embedded in this collection.
Format / language: Historical book / primary devotional or interpretive source · English; original: Sanskrit
Composition / textual history: Ancient Sanskrit text; precise composition date not established by this access audit.
Identifier: mundaka_muller_1884
Kali relevance: Ancient occurrence of Kālī and Karālī as names of fire tongues at 1.2.4; explicitly a comparison, not proof of the identity or antiquity of the later goddess.
Context: Kālī and Karālī are fire-tongue names here. Keep this textual occurrence distinct from the later goddess and from modern devotional identifications.
Subjects: Ancient Scriptures and Primary Texts; Philosophy, Theology, and Comparative Religion
Evidence / reliability: Freely accessible complete historical text; interpretive and historical claims should be compared with modern scholarship.
Access / rights: Complete text checked 2026-11-04. Historical text and translation are public domain in the United States; observe host transcription terms and local law for reuse.
Source and alternate access links:
Read complete text: https://sacred-texts.com/book/the-upanishads-part-ii/i-1-2
Alternate / related form: https://sacred-texts.com/hin/sbe15/index.htm
Source access
Read or locate the original source at Clarendon Press
Rights and reading conditions
Complete text checked 2026-11-04. Historical text and translation are public domain in the United States; observe host transcription terms and local law for reuse. This library links to the source and does not reproduce its full text.
Citation
Traditional Sanskrit Upanishad; translated by F. Max Müller. Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad. Clarendon Press · 1884.
This page supplies catalogue metadata and links. It does not reproduce the underlying source text. Historical, religious, healing and interpretive claims belong to the cited sources, not to an independent verification by this catalogue.