Glories of India (Culture and Civilization)

by Prasanna Kumar Acharya | 1952 | 182,042 words

This book, “Glories of India on Indian Culture and Civilization”, emphasizes the importance of recognizing distinct cultural traits across different societies. The historical narrative of Indian civilization highlights advancements in agriculture, medicine, science, and arts, tracing back to ancient times. The author argues for the need to understa...

Introduction to the Vedas

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The word Veda means 'knowledge', the knowledge par excellence, the sacred and religious knowledge. It does not imply one single literary work like the Koran of the Muslims, nor a complete collection of books compiled at some particular tine like the Bible of the Christians or the Tripitaka of the Buddhists. It is on the other hand "a whole great iterature" which developed in the course of many centuries. On account of its great age and contents it was finally declared as 'sacred knowledge and divine revelation. Throughout at least 3,000 years millions of Hindus have workei on the word of the Veda as the word of God, and that the Veda has given them their standard of thought and feeling." Professor Winternitz declares that "as the oldest Inic-European literary monument, a prominent place in the history of world literature is due to the Veda." The Vedic literature consists of three different classes of literary works. The Samhitas are 'collections' of hymns, prayers, incantations, bene fictions, sacrificial formulas and litanies. Brahmanas deal with theolgical matters like observations on sacrifice and the practical significance of the separate sacrificial rites and ceremonies. The Aranyakas in the forest texts of the Brahmanas contain the meditations of forest hermits and ascetics on God, the world, and the mankind. The Upanishads thereof deal with the secret doctrines and contain a good deal of the oldest Indian philosophy. There is another class of works connected with the Vedas. They are not considered as revealed and known as the Sutras or manuals on ritual. Of these the Srauta-sutras contain rules for the performance of the great sacrifices. The Grihya-sutras contain directions for the simple ceremonies anl

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sacrifical acts of daily life at birth, marriage, death and so on. The Dharma-sutras are the cldest law books and deal with spiritual and secular laws. The Kalpa-sutras combine the Srauta and Gribya sutras. There once existed a large number of Samhitas originated in different schools of priests and singers. Many of these 'collections' were, however, nothing but slightly divergent recensions (sakha or branch) of one and the same Samhiti. Four Samhitas are in existence preserved in one or more recensions, which differ clearly from each other The Rigveda Samhita exists in the recension of Sakala school. It consists of 1028 hynins (suktas) divided into ten Mandala or eight Ashtaka. The majority of the cldest hymns are found in Mandala II to VII which are known as the family books because each is ascribed to a particular family of singers or seers, viz.. Gritsamada, Visvan.itra, Vamadeva, Atri, Bharadvaja and Vasishtha. Book VIII is ascribed to the race of Kanvas and Angirasas. The Anukramanis (Vedic index) gives the names of the seers names of the seers of every single hymns of Books I, IX and X; this list contains the names of women also. Book IX dedicated to Soma contains exclusively hymns which glorify the drink of Soma. The latest hymns are found in Books I and X which are composed of very diversified elements. The Khilas are supplenient; the eleven Balakhilya hymns are found at the end of Book VIII. The antiquity of the Rigveda is indicated by its language and geographical and cultural conditions of the time Aryans still domiciled the river land of the Indus. The songs refer to battles with the Dasy us or aborigines. The famous river Ganga in the east was still unknown. The lotus flower was not yet a subject of metaphors. The fig tree Nyagrodha was still missing Rice is not yet mentioned. The prayer for cattle and horses Mertion is made of wood-workers and metal workers including carpentel, carriage-builder, cabinetmaker and smiths. Shipping is mentioned. Trade was carried on in which oxen and ornaments were the medium of exchange. Despite extensive trade and commerce, and agricultural and industrial workers there was yet no caste-division although in a late hymn Book X Brahman, Kshatriya, Vaisya and Sudra are mentioned. Certain hymns refer to incest, seduction, occurs. cf The

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conjugal unfaithfulness, forced abortion, deception, theft an robbery. The Aryans are shewn as an active, joyful and warlike people of both simple and polished habits and of the effiminate, ascetic and pessimistic trait which grew later in Indian literature. Yaska of about B. C. 400 explained in his Nirukta the Vedic verses on which Sayana in the 14 th century A. D. wrote his commentary. 'As works of poetic art the hymns deserve a prominent deserve a prominent place in the world literature'. The word 'Saman' implies melodies. The melodies of Samaveda were looked upon as possessing magic power. The Sama-Vidhana Brahmana prescribes various Saman for magic purposes. The recitation of the Rigveda and Yajurveda is stopped at the 'tones of Saman and noise made by donkeys, wolves, jackals, owls, weeping, musical instruments, and chanting of Saman.' Thus Sama-veda is important for the history of music. Of the traditional 1000 Samkitas of the Sama-veda only three exists, viz, the recensions of Ranayaniyas, Kauthamas and Jaiminiyas. It comprises 1810 verses of which 261 are repeated twice. Thus of the total of 1549 verses all but 75 are taken from books VIII and IX of the Rigveda. These 75 also are pieced together out of sundry verses of the Rigveda. There are however some divergent readings in the Samaveda. It consists of two parts, Archika and Uttara-Archika. The emotional melody is prescribod for the former part and singing at sacrifices for the latter. Archika consists cf 585 verses wherefrom melody or tune proceeds and Uttara-Archika contains 400 Samans or chants, that is, songs, tune and melody. There are songs to be sung in the village (grama-geya-gana) and forest songs. (aranya-gana) The metre is mostly Gayatri and partly Pragatha which is a combination of Gayatri and Jagati. The word Yajus implies sacrificial prayer. Hence Yajurveda is the prayer book. It is formed partly of prose formulas which are rhythmical and poetical and partly of verses. Single verses but not the whole hymns are taken from the Rigveda but there are different readings. Prayer refers to offerings only to Agni, Indra, etc., under numerous epithets like Sata Rudra as mentioned

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in Bcok XVI, while prayer is made the wife of the priest, Adhvaryu joins the husband being tied together by a rope, There are spells also and the mystic formulas like svaha, svadha, vashat, om, bhuh, bhuvab, etc., as in the Katha-upanishad (11-16) are found used for the first time. The later Tantras also use such mystic formulas. Thus this Veda shows the origin, development and significance of prayer, science of religion, origin of prose, source of Upanishads, and Brahamanas. Panini refers to 101 schools of this Veda, five of which exist an are ascribed to the seers Kathaka, Kapisthala, Maitrayaniya, Taittiriya Taittiriya of the Black section ani Vajasanevi of the White section. The former section is called Black (krishna) because there is a mixture of Mantra (hymn) and Brahmana (commentary). The White (sveta) section contains only Mantras consisting of prayer and sacrificial formulas. It has 40 sections of which last 15 are of late origin. The first two deal with prayer to New and Full Moon sacrifices (dasapurnamasa) and oblations to fathers (pitripinda). Section III refers to prayer to daily fire cult (Agnihotra) and season (chaturmasya). Sections IV to VIII deal with Soma and animal sacrifices, IX and X refer to the Vajapeya (drink of strength) and Rajasuya sacrifices; XI to XVIII describe fire altars (agni-chayana) made of 10800 bricks laid in various order; XIX to XXI deal with Sautramani sacrifices to Asvin, Sarasyati, Indra, etc.; XX to XXV describe the horse sacrifice (asvamedha); XXVI to XXXI are Khilas or supplementary to prayers; XXX deals with human sacrifice (purushamedha); XXXI contains version of the Purusha-sukta of the Rigveda, XXXII refers to the secret doctrine (upanishad) of the human sacrifice; XXXIII to XXXIV deal with all other sacrifices (sarvamedha) of which XXXIV refers to all the secret doctrines (sarva-kalpa-upanishad); XXXV refers to funeral prayers; XXXVI to XXXIX and XL contain the secret doctrine of God, the Isa-upanishad. The Black Black Yajurveda is the same for the first Thus the sacrificial characteristics of this Veda is clear. half. : a The word Atharva implies holy magic and Angiras det otes hostile magic. The Atharva-Veda Veda of Atharvans and Angiras and Angiras priests. is the

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It consists of 31 hymns comprising 6,000 verses divided into 20 books. The whole of the 20 th book and about one-seventh of the rest are taken literally from the Rigve la. Books 1 to XIV in prose is of the Brahmana style. Books II, IV, V and VII contain theosophical hymns at the beginning. Book XIV contains only marriage prayers, and Bcok XVIII only funeral hymns Metres are like those of the Rigveda but language show later trait The lateness of this Veda is further indicated by the mention of animals like the tiger of eastern countries, of four castes, of gods like Agni, Indra, etc., being represented as demonkillers; theosophy and cosmogony of the later age. But Professor Winternitz would place this Veda before the Samaveda and Yajurveda. Here the purpose of the hymns appear to be to appease demons, to bless friends, and to curse enemies. The importance lies in taking more practical steps for worldly good. Thus songs and spells are used to remove diseases like fever and cough of which symptoms are described. This is the oldest system of medical science. Prayars are, however, made for health and long life; and benediction is sought for farmer, shepherd and merchant. There are formulae and spells for cleansing from guilt and sin. There are also spells for the restoration of love and harmony between husband and wife, and for success of marriage. There are songs and charms for sacrifices also. The philosophy and cosmogony of this Veda are of the same type as of the Upanishads • The Rigveda has been recognised as the earliest literature of the world. The chronology of the other Vedas is, however, uncertain. General consensus of opinion is that the Samaveda, the Yajurveda and the Atharvaveda followed in crier the Rigveda. No precise dating of the Vedas is possible. The main three sources of information, riz. Archaeological, Geological and Astronomical, do not help in ascertaining the Vedic age. No antiquities of the Vedic age have yet been discovered. Of the Geological evidence reference to the sea, land, mountains, rivers, plants, etc, do not show any clue. It appears that when the Indo-Aryans came here India was of the same geological and geographical conditions as it is now. Regarding the

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Regarding the Astronomical evidence mention of certain constellation which takes place periodically might have helped to ascertain the vedic age. But the astronomical passages of the Vedic texts admit of various interpretation. However correct the astronomical calculations may be, owing to ambiguous interpretation Bala Gangadhara Tilak's theory referring to the existence of the Rigveda in B. C. 6000 has not been accepte by many scholars. Of the internal historical facts mention of the Vedic gols in cuneiform inscriptions and the relationship of Vedic antiquity to the Aryan or Indo-Iranian and Indo-European period is also uncertain. Most divergent and contradictory conclusions have been drawn from them. Nevertheless the relations between ancient India and Western Asia or Asiaminor point to the Vedic culture being traced back at least to the second millennium B. C. as stated by Professor Winternitz. But the linguistic facts shewn by a comparison of the language of the Veda and that of the Zind Avesta and that of the classical Sanskrit literature do not yield any positive results. The surest evidence in this respect is still the fact that Parsva, Mahavira, and the Buddha presuppose the entire Veda as a literature to all intents and purposes completed. Thus the end of the Veda must be earlier than the seventh or sixth century B. C. The development of the whole of this great literature must have taken at best 2000 years. Thus Professor Winternitz concludes that "We shall have to date the beginning of this development about 2000 or 2500 B. C. and the end of it between 750 and 500 B. C." This conclusion is suggested and supported by the Mchenjo-daro discoveries of the chalcolithic or mixed stone and metallic age between B. C. 3250 and 2750. Clear literary references in the Vedas to the articles of food, clothes, ornaments of precious metals, house and furniture, and to the agricultural and industrial implements and objects show the later and improved period. On the basis of the same conclusions scholars have allotted the period of B. C. 2500 to 1500 as the time when the Vedic hymns were composed and the next 500 years till B. C. 1000 for the compilation of the hymns into the four Vedas and for the growth of the commentaries known as the Brahmanas. During the third and last period of the Vedic age covering some. 38

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years and ending B C. 750 developed the early Sutra class of literature written in unaccented words resembling the classical Sanskrit style.

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