Isha Upanishad — The Lord Is in All
The Isha Upanishad's 18 verses synthesize the Vedantic vision — Brahman pervades all existence, the practitioner can enjoy the world without attachment, and the path of knowledge and the path of action need not be opposed.
The Isha Upanishad (also Ishavasyopanishad — 18 verses) is one of the shortest major Upanishads and perhaps the most syncretic — its opening verse synthesizes the Vedantic worldview in one sentence: 'Isha vasyam idam sarvam yat kincha jagatyam jagat — All this — whatever exists in this changing universe — is to be pervaded by the Lord.' Everything is saturated with Brahman/Ishvara — there is nowhere that God is not. The second verse presents the ethical corollary: 'Tena tyaktena bhunjithah — Enjoy what is given up (offered to God)' — not renunciation of the world but its enjoyment with the recognition that it belongs to God. The text continues with teachings on Brahman's simultaneity of movement and stillness, nearness and distance, and the complementary roles of Avidya (relative knowledge) and Vidya (absolute knowledge). Mahatma Gandhi said this was his favorite Upanishad and that if all other Hindu texts were destroyed, the Isha alone would be sufficient to regenerate Hinduism.
Isha vasyam idam sarvam — All this that exists in this moving world is to be covered (pervaded) by the Lord.
Mahatma Gandhi's daily practice of reciting the Isha Upanishad — and his interpretation of verse 2 ('enjoy what is given up') as a foundation for non-possessive, service-oriented life — demonstrates how a single Upanishadic text can generate an entire practical ethics and political philosophy.
Isha Upanishad