Muktikā

The Muktikā (Sanskrit: "deliverance") refers to the canon of 108 Upaniṣads found in Telugu language version of Muktika Upanishad. The date of composition of each is unknown, with the oldest probably from about 800 BCE and the youngest probably composed after the 15th-century CE. The Principal Upanishads were composed in the 1st millennium BCE, most Yoga Upanishads composed probably from the 100 BCE to 300 CE period, and seven of the Sannyasa Upanishads composed before the 3rd century CE.

The Canon

The canon is part of a dialogue between Rama and Hanuman. Rama proposes to teach Vedanta, saying "Even by reading one verse of them [any Upanishad] with devotion, one gets the status of union with me, hard to get even by sages." Hanuman enquires about the different kinds of "liberation" (Mukti, hence the name of the Upanishad), to which Rama answers that "the only real type [of liberation] is Kaivalya".

The list of 108 Upanishads is introduced in verses 26-29:

Some scholars list ten as principal – the Mukhya Upanishads, while most consider twelve or thirteen as principal, most important Upanishads (highlighted).