ABSTRACT
The Mahanarayana Upanisad is rarely included among the classical Upanisads, probably because neither of the great commentators Sankara or Ramanuja composed a commentary to the text. The Mahanarayana Upanisad is sometimes ascribed to the Taittiriya school of the Black Yajurveda, and sometimes to the Atharvaveda. The main focus of this Upanisad is on the personal deity. This deity takes the form of the atman inside each person. The connections between the Mahanarayana Upanisad and theistic Saiva texts such as the Svetasvatara Upanisad and the Kaivalya Upanisad are evident. Brahman is described as a personal being, rather than an abstract principle in the Mahanarayana Upanisad. The Mahanarayana Upanisad is rich in quotations from Vedic texts. Many verses from the Rgveda, Yajurveda, and Atharvaveda are included, as well as verses from the Katha, Svetasvatara, and Mundaka Upanisads. There is general agreement that the Mahanarayana Upanisad was likely composed a short time after the "principal" Upanisads commented on by Sankara.
