Commentaries or Bhāṣhyās on the ‘Vedās’ (contd.)
Swāmi Dayānanda Saraswati - (1824 – 1883):
He was an important Hindu religious scholar, reformer and the founder of the Ārya Samāj, ‘Society of Nobles’, a Hindu reform movement, founded in 1875. Denouncing ritualistic worship prevalent in Hinduism at that time, he worked towards reviving Vedic ideologies.
Swāmi Dayānanda interpreted and affirmed that the Veda is a book of knowledge. He put forth a monotheistic religious view and held that some of the modern scientific truths could be derived from a right and true understanding of the Vedās.
Sri Aurobindo on Swāmi Dayānanda:
“The third Indian contribution is older in date, but nearer to my present purpose. It is the remarkable attempt by Swāmi Dayānanda, the founder of the ‘Ārya Samāj’, to re-establish the Veda as a living religious Scripture. Dayananda took as his basis a free use of the old Indian philology which he found in the ‘Nirukta’. Himself a great Sanskrit scholar, he handled his materials with remarkable power and independence. Especially creative was his use of that peculiar feature of the old Sanskrit tongue which is best expressed by a phrase of Sāyaṇā’s – the “multi-significance of roots”. We shall see that the right following of this clue is of capital importance for understanding the peculiar method of the Vedic Riṣhis.
Dayānandā’s interpretation of the hymns is governed by the idea that the Vedās are a plenary revelation of religious, ethical and scientific truth. Its religious teaching is monotheistic and the Vedic gods are different descriptive names of the one Deity; they are at the same time indications of His powers as we see them working in Nature and by a true understanding of the sense of the Vedās we could arrive at all the scientific truths which have been discovered by modern research.”
Such a theory is, obviously, difficult to establish. The Rig Veda itself, indeed, asserts that the gods are only different names and expressions of one universal Being who in His own reality transcends the universe; but from the language of the hymns we are compelled to perceive in the gods not only different names, but also different forms, powers and personalities of the one Dēva. The monotheism of the Veda includes in itself also the monistic, pantheistic and even polytheistic views of the cosmos and is by no means the trenchant and simple creed of modern Theism. It is only by a violent struggle with the text that we can force on it a less complex aspect.
That the ancient races were far more advanced in the physical sciences than is as yet recognised, may also be admitted. The Egyptians and Chaldeans, we now know, had discovered much that has since been rediscovered by modern Science and much also that has not been rediscovered. The ancient Indians were, at least, no mean astronomers and were always skillful physicians; nor do Hindu medicine and chemistry seem to be of a foreign origin. It is possible that in other branches also of physical knowledge they were advanced even in early times. But the absolute completeness of scientific revelation asserted by Swami Dayānanda will take a great deal of proving”.
Sri Aurobindo – (1872 – 1950):
One amongst the many significant contributions of Sri Aurobindo was his setting forth an esoteric meaning of the Vedās. The Vedās were considered by some to be composed by a barbaric culture worshiping violent Gods. Sri Aurobindo was convinced that this was due to non-grasping of Vedic symbolism, both by Occidental and Oriental scholars. He strongly believed there was a hidden spiritual meaning in the Vedās. He viewed the Rig Veda as a spiritual text written in a symbolic language in which the outer meaning was concerned with ritualistic sacrifices to the gods, and the inner meaning, which was revealed only to initiates, was concerned with an inner spiritual knowledge and practice, the aim of which was to unite in consciousness with the Divine.
Eminent among the learned and occupied with severe austerities, the revered Sri Aurobindo, came upon a new path quite unexpectedly. He explains in clear terms how he came upon the Veda (‘The Secret of the Veda’, Chapter 4, Page 34).
“Like the majority of educated Indians I had passively accepted without examination, before myself reading the Veda, the conclusions of European Scholarship both as to the religious and as to the historical and ethnical sense of the ancient hymns. In consequence, following again the ordinary line taken by modernised Hindu opinion, I regarded the Upanishads as the most ancient source of Indian thought and religion, the true Veda, the first book of Knowledge. The Rig Veda in the modern translations which were all I knew of this profound Scripture, represented for me an important document of our national history, but seemed of small value or importance for the history of thought or for a living spiritual experience.
My first contact with Vedic thought came indirectly while pursuing certain lines of self-development in the way of Indian Yoga, which, without by knowing it, were spontaneously converging towards the ancient and now unfrequented paths followed by forefathers. At this time there began to arise in my mind an arrangement of symbolic names attached to certain psychological experiences which had begun to regularise themselves; and among them there came the figures of three female energies, Ila, Saraswati, Sarama, representing severally three out of the four faculties of the intuitive reason,- revelation, inspiration and intuition. Two of these two names were not well known to me as names of Vedic Goddesses, but were connected rather with the current Hindu religion or with old Puranic legend, Saraswati, goddess of learning and Ila, mother of the lunar dynasty. But Sarama was familiar enough. I was unable, however, to establish any connection between the figure that rose in my mind and the Vedic hound of heaven, who was associated in my memory with the Argive Helen and represented only an image of the physical Dawn entering in its pursuit of the vanished herds of Light into the cave of the Powers of darkness. When once the clue is found, the clue of the physical Light imaging the subjective, it is easy to see that the hound of heaven may be the intuition entering into the dark caverns of the subconscious mind t prepare the delivery and out-flashing of the bright illuminations of knowledge which have there been imprisoned. But the clue was wanting and I was obliged to suppose an identity of name without any identity of the symbol.”
Thus, the secret that lay hidden in the Veda stood revealed to him though his mind was never given to the search of the meanings of the mantrās. All these happened when he was absorbed in Yoga with his eyes turned within. Since then, he came to have an abiding interest in the inquiry into the meaning of the Vedās. Having found the secret of the Veda, the great Sage spoke out truths, even though impenetrable, regarding the Riks, the Riṣhis and the Gods for the enlightenment of the enquiring minds, in accordance with his vision.
References
1. ‘ The Light of Veda – A Practical Approach ’ – by Sri T.V.Kapāli Sastry
2. ‘ A New Light on the Veda ’ – by Sri T.V.Kapāli Sastry
(Originally written in Sanskrit under the name ‘Siddhānjana – Bhūmika’, translated into English by Sri M.P.Pandit and thoroughly revised by the author himself, in 1952. Published by Sri Aurobindo Kapali Sastry Institute of Vedic Culture, Bangalore. (SAKSI)).
3. ‘ Agni in the Rig Veda ’ - by Dr R.L.Kashyap
4. ‘ Why read the Rig Veda ’ – by Dr R.L.Kashyap
to be continued……
- Krishnamurthy (chamathu2003@yahoo.co.uk)
Swāmi Dayānanda Saraswati - (1824 – 1883):
He was an important Hindu religious scholar, reformer and the founder of the Ārya Samāj, ‘Society of Nobles’, a Hindu reform movement, founded in 1875. Denouncing ritualistic worship prevalent in Hinduism at that time, he worked towards reviving Vedic ideologies.
Swāmi Dayānanda interpreted and affirmed that the Veda is a book of knowledge. He put forth a monotheistic religious view and held that some of the modern scientific truths could be derived from a right and true understanding of the Vedās.
Sri Aurobindo on Swāmi Dayānanda:
“The third Indian contribution is older in date, but nearer to my present purpose. It is the remarkable attempt by Swāmi Dayānanda, the founder of the ‘Ārya Samāj’, to re-establish the Veda as a living religious Scripture. Dayananda took as his basis a free use of the old Indian philology which he found in the ‘Nirukta’. Himself a great Sanskrit scholar, he handled his materials with remarkable power and independence. Especially creative was his use of that peculiar feature of the old Sanskrit tongue which is best expressed by a phrase of Sāyaṇā’s – the “multi-significance of roots”. We shall see that the right following of this clue is of capital importance for understanding the peculiar method of the Vedic Riṣhis.
Dayānandā’s interpretation of the hymns is governed by the idea that the Vedās are a plenary revelation of religious, ethical and scientific truth. Its religious teaching is monotheistic and the Vedic gods are different descriptive names of the one Deity; they are at the same time indications of His powers as we see them working in Nature and by a true understanding of the sense of the Vedās we could arrive at all the scientific truths which have been discovered by modern research.”
Such a theory is, obviously, difficult to establish. The Rig Veda itself, indeed, asserts that the gods are only different names and expressions of one universal Being who in His own reality transcends the universe; but from the language of the hymns we are compelled to perceive in the gods not only different names, but also different forms, powers and personalities of the one Dēva. The monotheism of the Veda includes in itself also the monistic, pantheistic and even polytheistic views of the cosmos and is by no means the trenchant and simple creed of modern Theism. It is only by a violent struggle with the text that we can force on it a less complex aspect.
That the ancient races were far more advanced in the physical sciences than is as yet recognised, may also be admitted. The Egyptians and Chaldeans, we now know, had discovered much that has since been rediscovered by modern Science and much also that has not been rediscovered. The ancient Indians were, at least, no mean astronomers and were always skillful physicians; nor do Hindu medicine and chemistry seem to be of a foreign origin. It is possible that in other branches also of physical knowledge they were advanced even in early times. But the absolute completeness of scientific revelation asserted by Swami Dayānanda will take a great deal of proving”.
Sri Aurobindo – (1872 – 1950):
One amongst the many significant contributions of Sri Aurobindo was his setting forth an esoteric meaning of the Vedās. The Vedās were considered by some to be composed by a barbaric culture worshiping violent Gods. Sri Aurobindo was convinced that this was due to non-grasping of Vedic symbolism, both by Occidental and Oriental scholars. He strongly believed there was a hidden spiritual meaning in the Vedās. He viewed the Rig Veda as a spiritual text written in a symbolic language in which the outer meaning was concerned with ritualistic sacrifices to the gods, and the inner meaning, which was revealed only to initiates, was concerned with an inner spiritual knowledge and practice, the aim of which was to unite in consciousness with the Divine.
Eminent among the learned and occupied with severe austerities, the revered Sri Aurobindo, came upon a new path quite unexpectedly. He explains in clear terms how he came upon the Veda (‘The Secret of the Veda’, Chapter 4, Page 34).
“Like the majority of educated Indians I had passively accepted without examination, before myself reading the Veda, the conclusions of European Scholarship both as to the religious and as to the historical and ethnical sense of the ancient hymns. In consequence, following again the ordinary line taken by modernised Hindu opinion, I regarded the Upanishads as the most ancient source of Indian thought and religion, the true Veda, the first book of Knowledge. The Rig Veda in the modern translations which were all I knew of this profound Scripture, represented for me an important document of our national history, but seemed of small value or importance for the history of thought or for a living spiritual experience.
My first contact with Vedic thought came indirectly while pursuing certain lines of self-development in the way of Indian Yoga, which, without by knowing it, were spontaneously converging towards the ancient and now unfrequented paths followed by forefathers. At this time there began to arise in my mind an arrangement of symbolic names attached to certain psychological experiences which had begun to regularise themselves; and among them there came the figures of three female energies, Ila, Saraswati, Sarama, representing severally three out of the four faculties of the intuitive reason,- revelation, inspiration and intuition. Two of these two names were not well known to me as names of Vedic Goddesses, but were connected rather with the current Hindu religion or with old Puranic legend, Saraswati, goddess of learning and Ila, mother of the lunar dynasty. But Sarama was familiar enough. I was unable, however, to establish any connection between the figure that rose in my mind and the Vedic hound of heaven, who was associated in my memory with the Argive Helen and represented only an image of the physical Dawn entering in its pursuit of the vanished herds of Light into the cave of the Powers of darkness. When once the clue is found, the clue of the physical Light imaging the subjective, it is easy to see that the hound of heaven may be the intuition entering into the dark caverns of the subconscious mind t prepare the delivery and out-flashing of the bright illuminations of knowledge which have there been imprisoned. But the clue was wanting and I was obliged to suppose an identity of name without any identity of the symbol.”
Thus, the secret that lay hidden in the Veda stood revealed to him though his mind was never given to the search of the meanings of the mantrās. All these happened when he was absorbed in Yoga with his eyes turned within. Since then, he came to have an abiding interest in the inquiry into the meaning of the Vedās. Having found the secret of the Veda, the great Sage spoke out truths, even though impenetrable, regarding the Riks, the Riṣhis and the Gods for the enlightenment of the enquiring minds, in accordance with his vision.
References
1. ‘ The Light of Veda – A Practical Approach ’ – by Sri T.V.Kapāli Sastry
2. ‘ A New Light on the Veda ’ – by Sri T.V.Kapāli Sastry
(Originally written in Sanskrit under the name ‘Siddhānjana – Bhūmika’, translated into English by Sri M.P.Pandit and thoroughly revised by the author himself, in 1952. Published by Sri Aurobindo Kapali Sastry Institute of Vedic Culture, Bangalore. (SAKSI)).
3. ‘ Agni in the Rig Veda ’ - by Dr R.L.Kashyap
4. ‘ Why read the Rig Veda ’ – by Dr R.L.Kashyap
to be continued……
- Krishnamurthy (chamathu2003@yahoo.co.uk)
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