A Dialogue on Hinduism - Chapter 1 of 13 -- Post

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Chapter 1 of 13 of "A Dialogue on Hinduism,"

By Sri. V.N. GOPALA DESIKAN,

Published by Sri Visishtadvaita Research Centre, C/O Sri

Ahobila Mutt, 66, Dr. Rangachari Road, Madras 600 018, 1990

 

If you find this series informative please make a donation

of $25 to Sri Ahobila Mutt. These donations are fully

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your check out to Sri Ahobila Mutt and send mail it to Sri

Ahobila Mutt, C/O Mr. Jagannath Bharadwaj , 5539

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The posts in this series are likely to be long.

Therefore, please print these posts and read them

at your leisure.

 

Typos, if any, are more than likely mine. Please

let me know if you find any.

 

 

-- P. Dileepan

 

 

 

====Start of Chapter 1 of 13 from Sri Gopala Desikan's book=======

 

Chapter 1

Vedas and Sastras

 

Q. Daddy, you have been saying that we, of the

younger generation, should. learn the greatness and

glory of our ancient religion and philosophy. Now

that I am having my summer holidays with lots of

free time, why don't you tell me about our

philosophy in a simple way, which I can

understand?

 

A. I am glad that you are showing interest in our

system of philosophy and our religion.

 

You start asking questions and I shall answer. I

think this will make it more interesting.

 

Q. What is the basic authority (pramana) for Hindu

religion and philosophy?

 

A. The Vedas are the basic, fundamental authority.

 

Q. What is the meaning of the word Veda?

 

A. Veda, in Sanskrit, means that which gives

knowledge.

 

Q. Is there any other name for Veda?

 

A. Veda is also called Sruti.

 

Q. What is the meaning of the word Sruti?

 

A. Sruti means that which is heard (through your

ears). The Vedas were originally taught by Lord

Narayana to Brahma orally. From thereon the

Vedas came down from the Guru to the students

orally only. The Guru teaches the Vedas to the

students. Thus the student hears the Veda from the

teacher.

 

Q. Are Vedas known by any other names, apart from

Sruti?

 

A. They are also called Nigama and Amnaya.

 

Q. What is the meaning of these words?

 

A. Nigama means a settled text or work, which is

handed down from the Guru to the student from

time immemorial.

 

Amnaya means what is learnt by the student, by

frequent repetition of the text; and also by

frequently thinking over the same.

 

Q. Who composed the Vedas?

 

A. The Vedas have not been composed by anybody,

not even by God Himself The Veda, are eternally

existent. Even God did not create or make the

Vedas. Narayana has only taught the Vedas to

Brahma and then down the line. Hence Vedas are

called Apaurusheya not authored or made by

anyone, including God.

 

Q. How do you explain that the Vedas have not been

authored by anybody; including God?

 

A They are actually the breath of God. That is, after

each deluge (pralaya), when the world is created,

God Narayana remembers the Vedas and teaches

them to Brahma and then it comes down the line.

That is why, we say they are not made by anybody

including God, but are self existent.

 

Q. How many Vedas are there?

 

A. There are four Vedas. They are called: Rig Veda,

Yajur Veda, Sama Veda and Atharva Veda.

 

Q. Who divided the Vedas into four, as stated above?

 

A. Vyasa edited the Vedas and divided them?

 

Q. On what basis did Vyasa divide the Vedas into

these four?

 

A. The Vedas were divided into four, to suit the Vedic

rituals or karmas. There are four persons (Ritviks)

who are prominent in the performance of rituals.

 

Q. What are the names of these four persons

(Ritviks)? How are they connected with the four

Vedas?

 

A.

 

1. The person, whose function is to recite praises of

God and prayers to Him, sitting in one place, is

called Hota.

 

The Hota's function and Mantras are given in Rig

Veda.

 

2. The person, who is engaged in the actual

performance of the ritual, from the beginning to

the end, is called Adhvaryu.

 

The necessary mantras and the functions of the

Adhvaryu are given in Yajur Veda.

 

3. The person who sings Samans (musical notes),

sitting in another place, is called Udgata.

 

The Udgata's functions and the Sama Ganas are

given in Sama Veda.

 

4. The general supervisor of the rituals is called

Brahma.

 

The Brahma's functions and the Mantras are given

in Atharva Veda.

 

The Vedas are also broadly divided as Mantras.

and Brahmanas.

 

Q. What do the Mantras talk about?

 

A. The Mantras are in three forms, as Rik, Yajus and

Sama.

 

The Rik mantras are in praise of God and prayers

to God.

 

The Yajur Mantras give detailed formulas for the

rituals.

 

The Sama Mantras are only Rik Mantras, set to

music.

 

Q. Are these Mantras in prose form or poetry form?

 

A. The Rik Mantras are in poetry form. Yajur

Mantras are in prose form. Sama Mantras are

Riks, set to musical tones.,

 

The Atharva Veda contains both verses (poetry)

and prose.

 

This much idea is enough for the present regarding

Mantras.

 

Q. Please explain the other part, namely Brahmanas.

 

A. The Brahmanas are in prose form. Their main aim

is to prescribe the rituals in detail and also praise

the glory of the Devas.

 

Q. How are the Brahmanas divided?

 

A. Brahmanas are again divided into two parts: Vidhi

and Arthavada.

 

Q. What do these talk about?

 

A. Vidhi portions give command to do a thing, to

perform rituals. Arthavada generally praises the

rituals, the glory of Devas and also points out their

weaknesses. They also contain stories to illustrate

the points.

 

Q. What is the relative importance of these different

portions?

 

A. Portions connected with rituals are called

Karmakanda. Generally, they teach how rituals

like various yagas are to be done. They are also

called Purvakanda.

 

Portions dealing with philosophy and knowledge

of Brahman are called Jnanakanda or Brahma

kanda.

 

So, Mantras and Brahmanas come under

Karmakanda. Upanishads are called Jnanakanda.

But, knowledge of Brahman and Philosophy are

also discussed in Mantras and Brahmanas.

 

Q. What is the meaning of the word Sastra?

 

A. Sastra in Sanskrit means that which gives teaching,

instruction or command.

 

Q. What are the Sastras?

 

A. The Vedas are the most important sastras. There is

no sastra higher than the Veda. Then we have

Sruti, Itihasa, Purana and Agama, about which we

will discuss later.

 

Q. I have also heard of Samhita and Aranyaka. What

are these?

 

A. Modern thinkers divide Vedas into four portions,

as follows:

 

Samhita

Brahmana

Aranyaka, and

Upanishads.

 

Samhita denotes collection of Mantras.

 

Brahmanas have already been described earlier.

 

Aranyakas are texts, which were recited in

hermitages in forests.

 

Upanishads contain philosophical thoughts, in the

form of discussions and explanations.

 

Q. Why are Upanishads called Jnana Kanda or

Brahma Kanda?

 

A. They talk about realisation of God, how to attain

salvation. Since they speak about realising

Brahman or the ultimate reality the Upanishads are

called Brahma Kanda. Since they give us

knowledge about attaining salvation, they are also

called Jnana Kanda.

 

The Upanishads are also called Veda Siras, i.e., the

head of the Veda. When we say the head, we

mean the most important part of the Veda.

 

 

Q. What is the difference between Brahma and

Brahman? Are both the same?

 

A. No. Brahma is the fourfaced one, who came from

the lotus, out of the navel of Lord Narayana.

 

Brahman means one who is great and hence

denotes the Supreme Being or the Ultimate

Reality.

 

Q. Talking about Upanishads, how many Upanishads

are there?

 

A. People say that there are more than a hundred

Upanishads, but only some of the Upanishads are

accepted authoritatively by all sections of the

Hindus. The important ones are called

Dasopanishad, i.e, the ten Upanishads. These ten

Upanishads are accepted as authority and quoted

by ancient philosophers like Sankara, Ramanuja

and Madhva.

 

Q. What are the ten Upanishads?

 

A The ten Upanishads are:

 

Isavasya Upanishad, Kena Upanishad, Kata

Upanishad, Prasna Upanishad, Mundaka

Upanishad, Mandukya Upanishad, Taittiriya

Upanishad, Aitareya Upanishad, Chandogya

Upanishad, Brihadaranyaka Upanishad.

 

Q. Are there any other important and accepted

Upanishads?

 

A. We have Svetasvatara Upanishad, Kaushitaki

Upanishad, Subala Upanishad and Maha Narayana

Upanishad. Actually, Maha Narayana Upanishad

forms part of Taittiriya Upanishad. But some

scholars refer to it as a separate Upanishad by the

name Maha Narayana Upanishad.

 

Q. From which of the Vedas do these Upanishads

come?

 

A. Aitareya Upanishad is in Rig Veda. Isavasya

Upanishad, Kata Upanishad, Taittiriya Upanishad

and Brihadaranyaka Upanishad are in Yajur Veda.

Kena Upanishad and Chandogya Upanishad are

from Sama Veda.

 

Prasna Upanishad, Mundaka Upanishad and

Mandukya Upanishad are all in Atharva Veda.

 

Q. I have heard of Vedangas. What are the Angas or

subsidiaries of the Vedas?

 

A. There are six such Angas (parts or limbs) of

Vedas. These are 1) Sikaha, 2) Vyakarana, 3)

Chandas, 4) Jyotisha, 5) Nirukta, and 6) Kalpa.

 

Q. Can you tell me what the six Veda Angas talk

about?

 

A. I shall relate them to you briefly.

 

1) Siksha explains the proper pronunciations of

the Vedas.

 

2) Vyakarana explains the grammar of the

Vedic words.

 

3) Chandas explains the metres of the various

Riks.

 

4) Jyotisha helps in deciding the proper time

for the performance of the various rituals.

 

5) Nirukta gives the meanings of difficult

words in the Vedas.

 

6) Kalpa describes the proper method of

performing the various rituals mentioned in

the Vedas.

 

These six angas of the Vedas help in a proper

understanding of the Vedas. They also help in the

performance of the various rituals or the yagas

(yagnas), prescribed by the Vedas.

 

Q. How are these six Vedangas divided?

 

A. They can be divided into two groups:

 

1) Those which are connected with the text of

the Vedas Siksha, Vyakarana, Chandas.

 

2) Those which are connected with the

meaning of Vedas Jyotisha, Nirukta, Kalpa.

 

Q. After the Vedas 'and Vedangas, what are the

important texts or authorities for us?

 

A. Next comes Smriti. Smriti helps us in

understanding the various injunctions and truths

propounded in the Vedas.

 

Q. How many Smritis are there?

 

A. The Smritis are many in number and even an exact

definition of Smriti is perhaps not available. Many

of the Smritis are also not available now and are

lost to humanity.

 

The more important Smritis are: Manu Smriti.

Parasara Smriti, Yagnavalkya Smriti, Harita Smriti

and Sandilya Smriti. Some say there are 20

Smritis and some others say that there are 57

Smritis. Anyhow, what I have mentioned above

are the more important ones.

 

Q. What do these Smritis talk about?

 

A. The Smritis describe the codes of conduct for

mankind in day to day life; how they should

conduct themselves; and for any wrong doings,

what are the punishments or atonements

(prayaschitta) to be undergone. The Smritis can be

considered as elaborating or explaining the Karma

Kanda of the Vedas.

 

Q. What are Itihasas?

 

A. Ramayana and Mahabharata are called Itihasas.

 

Q. Are they considered very sacred?

 

A. They are considered as sacred as the Vedas

themselves. The Mahabharata is called the Fifth

Veda.

 

Q. How many Puranas are there?

 

A. There are 18 Puranas.

 

These are sub-divided into three a sets or groups.

The first set of six Puranas are authoritative,

sacred. These are called Sattvika Puranas.

 

The second set of six Purana are of medium

quality, i.e. the whole thing cannot be accepted as

true. These are called Rajasa Puranas.

 

The third set of six Puranas cannot be taken as

perfectly valid. Only some portions of them,

which are not opposed to Vedas, can be taken as

authoritative. These are called Tamasa Puranas.

 

Q. Please tell me the Puranas that fall in these three

groups.

 

A.

 

1. The first set of six Puranas which are most sacred

(Sattvika Puranas) are as follows:

 

Vishnu Purana

Bhagavatam

Narada Purana

Padma Purana

Varaha Purana

Garuda Purana

 

2. The second set of six Puranas, which are not

wholly authoritative, (Rajasa Puranas) are:

 

Vamana Purana

Brahma Purana

Markandeya Purana

Bhavishya Purana

Brahmanda Purana

Brahma Vaivarta Purana

 

3. The last set of six Puranas, which are not very

authoritative (Tamasa Puranas) are:

 

Matsya Purana

Kurma Purana

Agni Purana

Linga Purana

Siva Purana

Skanda Purana.

 

Q. How do you accept these as authorities or

Pramana?

 

A. The basic rule is that the Vedas are the ultimate

authority or Pramana. So, in the Puranas,

whichever does not conflict or contradict the Veda,

can be taken as authority.

 

Q. What are Agamas?

 

A. The Agamas accept the authority of Vedas. The

Agamas prescribe idol worship in the place of

rituals like Yagas, mentioned in the Vedas. They

prescribe the methods of idol worship.

 

Q. How are the Agamas divided?

 

A. The Agamas are predominantly divided into Saiva,

Sakta and Vaishnava Agamas. Agamas mainly

talk about construction of temples; the rules for

installation and consecration of the deities in the

temples; and the methods of performing pujas in

the temples.

 

The Vaishnava Agamas identify Brahman as

Vasudeva. We will discuss this further later.

 

Q. What are the Vaishnava Agamas?

 

A. The Vaishnava Agamas are: Pancharatra Agama

and Vaikhanasa Agama

 

Q. Which Agama do our Vaishnavite temples follow?

 

A. Some temples follow Pancharatra Agama and

some temples follow Vaikhanasa Agama. This is

only by tradition and custom.

 

Q. Why is Vaikanasa Agama so called?

 

A. It is so called, because it was first taught by

Vikhanas rishi to a group of disciples. Sage

Vikhanasa is stated to have been created by Lord

Narayana Himself. It is also stated that he was

created by Brahma.

 

Q. Why is Pancharatra Agama so called?

 

A. Lord Narayana taught this Agama for five nights to

five rishis. Hence, it is called Pancharatra Agama

(Pancharatra means five nights)

 

Q. How are these Pancharatra Agamas divided?

 

A. These are divided into Samhitas.

 

Q. What are these Samhitas?

 

A. There are more than 100 Samhitas. I will give you

the more important ones. Sattvata Samhita,

Paushkara Samhita, Jayakhya Samhita. These

three are considered more important and are called

three gems (Ratna traya).

 

We have also Ahirbudhnya Samhita, Padma

Samhita, Parameswara Samhita and Lakshmi

tantra.

 

Q. What is Mimamsa?

 

A. The Mimamsa consists of two parts. The first part

is called Purva Mimamsa or Karma Mimamsa.

The second part is called Uttara Mimamsa or

Brahma Mimamsa.

 

Q. What is Karma Mimamsa?

 

A. Karma Mimamsa is dealt with by Jaimini in 16

chapters or Adhyayas. They contain short

statements or aphorisms. They clarify doubts

regarding rituals mentioned in the Vedas and also

clarify doubts about the general conduct. They

interpret the Vedic texts in Karma Kanda.

 

Q. What is Brahma Mimamsa?

 

A. Brahma Mimamsa is dealt with in Brahma Sutras.

This is propounded by Sage Badarayana or Vyasa.

This contains short statements or aphorisms,

clarifying doubts in the Vedic text. Brahma

Mimamsa interprets the Vedic text of Jnana Kanda

or Brahma Kanda.

 

Q. What is the importance of Brahma Sutra?

 

A. Brahma Sutra is considered very sacred and

important. It helps in clarifying and explaining

.difficult passages in the Upanishads.

 

Q. Who have written commentaries on Brahma Sutra?

 

A. This being one of the most important texts, many

philosophers have written detailed commentaries.

We have the commentaries by Sankara, Ramanuja,

Madhva, besides many others like Nimbarka and

Vallabha.

 

Q. How many chapters are there in the Brahma Sutra?

 

A. We have four chapters or Adhyayas in the Brahma

Sutra. Each of the four chapters consists of four

parts or padas. There are 545 Sutras or aphorisms.

 

Q. Please tell me, broadly, the contents of the four

chapters of the Brahma sutra.

 

A. The first chapter shows that Brahman is the sole

cause of 1) creation of this world, 2) sustenance of

this world, and also 3) destruction of this world.

 

The second chapter discusses some of the

objections in this regard put forth by other schools

and proves that Brahman is both the material cause

and the instrumental cause for this world. (We will

discuss this in detail later).

 

The third chapter describes the means or methods

of attaining Brahman, i.e. salvation.

 

The fourth chapter talks of salvation: what is

meant by salvation and the glory of salvation.

 

Q. What are the most important texts or books which

explain the Vedanta philosophy?

 

A. There are three texts or books which explain the

Vedanta philosophy and so they are called

Prasthana Traya. They are:

 

1. Upanishads

2. Brahma Sutra

3. Bhagavad Gita

 

These are the most sacred texts. All philosophers

have written commentaries on these, trying to

prove that these three books support their theory.

 

Q. Which is the most important portion in the Vedas?

 

A. The Purusha Sukta is the most important.

 

Q. Which is the most important Smriti?

 

A. Manu Smriti is considered the most important.

 

Q. What about the Puranas? Which is considered the

most important?

 

A. The Vishnu Purana is considered most sacred and

important of the Puranas. It is called Puranaratna.

 

Q. Which is the most important portion in the

Mahabharata?

 

A. Bhagavad Gita is the most important,

 

Q. What are the various systems of philosophy?

 

A. The systems of philosophy in India can be broadly

divided into Nastika schools and Astika schools.

 

Q. What is the Nastika school?

 

A. The Nastika school does not accept the authority of

Vedas. They only adopt logic and reasoning.

 

Q. What is the Astika School?

 

A. The Astika school accepts the authority of Vedas

primarily and also uses reasoning and logic.

 

Q. What are the various systems of philosophy,

coming under the Nastika school?

 

A. These are Charvaka system, Buddhism and

Jainism.

 

Q. What are the systems coming under Astika

School?

 

A. We have Sankhya, Yoga, Nyaya, Vaiseshika,

Mimamsa, besides the Vedanta system.

 

Q. What is the Vedantic system of philosophy?

 

A. There is no specific single system of philosophy

called the Vedantic system. Advaita,

Visishtadvaita and Dvaita are the most well known

of the Vedantic systems.

 

Q. What are the other systems of philosophy?

 

A. These are:

 

1. Charvaka system

2. Jainism

3. Buddhism

4. Sankhya system

5. Yoga system

6. Nyaya system

7. Vaiseshika system

8. Mimamsa system

 

Q. Who propounded these systems of philosophy?

 

A. Buddhism was propounded by Gautama Buddha

and Jainism by Mahavir Jain. The Vaiseshika

system was propounded by Kanada and the Yoga

system by Brahma. However, modern belief is that

the Yoga system was founded by Patanjali. The

Sankhya system was propounded by Kapila, the

Nyaya system by Gautama or Akshapada. The

Mimamsa system was advocated by Jaimini.

 

Q. What are the important principles of these systems

of philosophy?

 

A. We will discuss this at a later stage.

 

======End of Chapter 1 of 13 from Sri Gopala Desikan's book=======