RE SAma vEda

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SRI RAM ASKED

>>WOULD ANYBODY KNOW THE SPECIAL SIGNIFICANCE WHY LORD >>KRISHNA WOULD

ASSOCIATE

>>HIMSELF WITH SAMA VEDA, HE QUOTE >>IN THE GEETHA THAT MAONG THE VEDAS HE IS

SAMA!! OR IS

>>IT THAT SRIMAN NARAYANA IS A SAMA VEDI??

 

About the Samaveda, I was also pondering few days back about AMONG THE VEDAS

I AM (KRISHNA) SAMA, BUT WHY ? The mantras in the Rig and Sama are much

the

same (may be atleast 75% similar),butthe difference in the chanting is

enormous.

The power of the Vedic mantras is also in the recitation- the vibrations shall

we say. These vibrations are quite different between each of the Vedas and the

most difference is in the Sama style. It is stretched more, perhaps

moremusical.

Sama style has always been acclaimed for melody. We have heard stories of how

Ravana used to please Shiva with Sama gana. There is also another popular

sloka

also used for Gita dhyanam which says that

 

"YAM Brahma Varuna+Indra Rudra Marutha: stunvanti Divyai sthavai:

Vedai sanga pada kramopanishadai: GAYANTI YAM SAMAGAH

Dhynavastitha tadgathena manasa pashyanti YAM yoginah

yasyaantham na viduh sura sura ganah DEVAYA tasmai namah"

YAM and DEVAYA here refer to Vishnu.

 

Sriram also said:

WHY LORD >>KRISHNA WOULD ASSOCIATE >>HIMSELF WITH SAMA VEDA

>>IT THAT SRIMAN NARAYANA IS A SAMA VEDI??

 

This part I would not put the way Sriram has put it. This may give a wrong

impression that Krishna is putting down the other Vedas or not recognizing

them.

However, that is not so. Elswhere in the Gita, Krishna says:

Rig-Sama-Yajur eva cha(He is Rig, Sama and Yajur)

 

Vedaischa sarvaih ahameva vedyah, Vedanta Krit Veda videva cha aham

 

All the vedas(including Atharva) speal about Him only and

He is the author of all the Vedas (Four vedas,all knowledge)

 

Krishna is obviously associated with all the Vedas. It is just that among them

he chooses Sama veda (perhaps for the above said reason, ie., musical). Same

way

He says that among Pandavas he is Arjuna- this does not mean that he has

nothing

to do with the rest of the Pandavas. Just like we say among the works of

Kalidasa it is Abhijnana Shakuntalam, likewise Gitanjali among Tagore works-

etc.

 

By the way when is Samaveda Upakarmam and is the procedure different from the

Rig and Yajur Upakarmams. I have heard that the Sama Vedis do not have the

Kamokarshee japam, is it true?

 

-K. Sreekrishna