Svetasvatara Upanishad is a post-Buddhist Upanishad and is one of the older, primary Upanishads. It is related to the technical terms of the Samkhya philosophy and the Yoga philosophies. It mentions the name of Kapila, though Samkara believes that the name refers to Hiranyagarbha, who is brown or gold coloured. The Fifth Chapter of Svetasvatara Upanishad has 14 verses that discusses about the real Self or the Brahman that resides within the heart of all living beings.
1st - 5th Verse
Within the immutable, infinite Supreme Brahman remain hidden the two elements: knowledge and ignorance. Ignorance leads to worldliness and knowledge and to Immortality. It is the Brahman who controls both knowledge and ignorance. The non dual Brahman, rules over every position; and controls all forms and all sources. He is the beginning of everything, filled with knowledge the omniscient Hiranyagarbha. At the time of the creation the Lord spreads out individual nets in different ways and then at the time of the cosmic dissolution withdraws them into the great prakriti. He also creates the body and senses, both individual and collective and their controllers also and thus exercises His overlordship. As the sun shines, illumining all the quarters, above, below and across so also God, controls all objects.
6th - 10th Verse
The Brahman is the cause of all and who enables all things to function according to their nature. He is concealed in the Upanishads, the secret part of the Vedas. Brahma knew Him who can be known only from the evidence of the Vedas.
The jiva endowed with gunas, performs action, seeking its fruit; and again, it reaps the fruit of what it has done. The jivas assumes all forms and is led by the three gunas. The ruler of the pranas, roams about following the three paths, according to its deeds. The jiva possesses both volition and egoism. It is endowed with the qualities of both buddhi and Atman. It is not female, it is not male, nor is it neuter. Whatever form it takes, with that it becomes united.
11th - 14th Verse
The embodied soul takes diverse forms in various places by means of desires, contact, attachment and delusion. The embodied soul, by means of good and evil deeds committed by itself, assumes many forms. By virtue of its actions and also of such characteristics of the mind as knowledge and desire, it assumes another body for the enjoyment of suitable objects. He who knows the Lord, who is without beginning or end, who is the Creator of all things and is endowed with many forms is released from all his fetters. Those who know Him can be realised by the cycle of birth and death.
