SOURCE: Mehta, Rohit. Introduction to The Call of the Upanishads, pp. 1-9. Bombay, India: Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 1970.

In the following essay, Mehta provides an introduction to the Upanishads and discusses their value in the modern age.

The cultural and spiritual heritage of India is both vast as well as rich. But there is nothing sectarian or regional about it. It is so universal in its appeal and so catholic in its approach that it belongs to the whole world. Its setting is no doubt Indian, but its content is such as to cover all aspects of human life, irrespective of geographical units and historical expressions. It is both universal and timeless and, as such, applies to peoples of all ages and of all countries. It may be asked what indeed is the source from where such vast and rich heritage has come into existence—a heritage that has...