[ Excerpt from The Science of Yoga, page 320 ]
The Upanishads are the "books of the VEDAS," traditionally 108 in number. They are the spiritual realisations of the Rishis and Sages, based upon their first-hand experiences of reality and the real identity and the nature of individual consciousness, which was then revealed from guru to disciple.
They are explanations of the mystical concepts of the VEDAS revealed in more concrete and less abstract form. These texts, and primarily a smaller number of between 12 and 14 of them which are accepted by the orthodox tradition, are the principle field of study within the traditional school of spirituality in India known as vedanta (literally; "end of the VEDAS").
The various UPANISHADS were written at different times. Some of the 108 individual volumes may be as old as 3,000 to 5,000 years and others are much more recent.
The BRAHMA SUTRAS of Baadarayana is a collection of aphorisms, possibly composed in the early centuries A.D., which systematize the whole teachings of the UPANISHADS. Other lesser known yoga scriptures include the Yoga Upanishads...
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