ABSTRACT
Saiva Upanisads, or Upanisads devoted to the god Siva, began to flourish after the composition of the Svetasvatara Upanisad. The Kaivalya Upanisad is a short Saiva Upanisad, composed in verse, formally affiliated with the Atharvaveda. The teachings of the Kaivalya Upanisad are presented by the god Brahma to the sage Asvalayana. Asvalayana is associated with one of the sakhas of the Rgveda, and his presence in the text imparts a sense of ancient Vedic authority to the Upanisad. The Upanisad in sixteen prose sections gets its name from a type of rosary, aksamala, used in the devotional repetition of mantras. The text is affiliated with the Rgveda, but this association appears to be a mere formality; there is nothing in the text itself to suggest a connection to the Rgveda. The text of the Upanisad is a dialogue between Rudra and the other gods.
