one of a class of speculative treatises in Sanskrit literature, 1805, from Sanskrit upa-nishad, literally "a sitting down beside." From upa "near to" (from PIE root *upo "under," also "up from under," hence also "over") + ni-shad "to sit or lie down," from ni "downward" (from PIE *ni-, see nether) + -sad "sitting," from PIE root *sed- (1) "to sit."