Nachiketas

A primary character in the Kathka
Upanishad, a speculative philosophical
text considered one of the later upanishads. In the text, the boy Nachiketas is
the seeker of ultimate wisdom. In a fit of
anger his father curses him to be given
to Death; Nachiketas obediently goes to
the house of Death to give himself up.
He waits for three days at Death’s door,
but receives none of the hospitality due
to a brahmin guest. When Death returns
he is disturbed to discover that his guest
has been neglected. To atone for the
lapse, Death offers Nachiketas three
boons. With his first two, Nachiketas
wishes to return to his father and to
understand the meaning of a particular
sacrificial ritual. With the final boon he
asks what happens to a person after the
death of the body. Death first tries to
evade the question, then tries to bribe
Nachiketas with other gifts. When the
boy holds firm in his resolve, Death
begins to reveal his secrets. This discourse makes up the bulk of the text.
Death’s secrets focus mainly on the
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Nachiketas
reality of the Self (atman), its eternal
and indestructible nature, and the difficulties in truly knowing it. The Self is
portrayed as the ultimate truth, and to
know it is to know the only thing that
really matters.