The Chandogya Upanishad is one of the older, "primary" Upanishads commented upon by Shankara. It is a Mukhya Upanishad, associated with the Samaveda. It figures as number 9 in the Muktika canon of 108 Upanishads. It is part of the Chandogya Brahmana which has ten chapters. The first two chapters of the Brahmana deal with sacrifices and other forms of worships. The other eight constitute the Chandogya Upanishad.

Though there are more than one hundred Upanishads, ten are principal. These are known as Dashopanishads and known for their philosophical depth and because Adi Shankara wrote commentaries on them.

Along with Brhadaranyaka Upanishad the Chandogyopanishad is an ancient source of principal fundamentals for Vedanta philosophy. Considering number of references made to this Upanishad in Brahma sutras indicates special importance of this Upanishad in Vedantic philosophy. Important spritual practices like Dahara vidya, Shandilya vidya, etc. are its speciality.

 

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