RigVeda and the Indian Systems of Approach to the One

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Dear List Members,

 

Here is posting NO. 9.

 

Best wishes,

 

-- Himanshu

 

 

 

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RigVeda and Indian Systems of Approach to the One :

(notes from selfstudy - svaadhyaaya)

 

IX : Mantras Containing Seeds of Vijnanavada

 

--------------------------- Himanshu B. Dave

 

aha.m raa.s.trii sa.mgamanii vasuunaa.m cikitu.sii prathamaa yaj~niyaanaam |

taam maa devaa vy adadhu.h purutraa bhuuristhaatraam bhuury aave"sayantiim ||(3)

 

mayaa so annam atti yo vipa"syati ya.h praa.niti ya iim "s.r.noty uktam |

amantavo maa.m ta upa k.siyanti "srudhi "sruta "sraddhiva.m te vadaami || (4)

[RV X-125-3,4]

 

{I am the empress. I, knowing Brahman non-separate from me, collector of

various wealth, am the most important amongst the gods fit for yajna. I am

present in all the things existing [in form of illusion]. I have entered in

all the things born. Gods, staying in many places, whatever they do, they do

for me. (3)}

 

{Whatever beings are able to eat, see, breath or hear speech -- they do so

due to me only. Those who do not know my this form are condemned to a lowly

existence due to that ignorance. O learned one! I am telling you the

Ultimate Truth, which is obtainable only by Shraddha; listen --- (4)}

 

These are next two mantras from Vaak, daughter of Ambhrini. See what words

she has used to describe her exhilarated state of mind!

I am Empress -- raa.s.trii -- I preside over all that is this Universe;

know Brahman non-separate from me -- cikitu.sii; having paramaatmaa

saak.saatkaara.h;

collector of wealth -- vasuunaa.m sa.mgamanii -- obtain for the yajamaana

the wealth in form of Self-realization;

the most important amongst gods who are to be worshipped by yajna --

prathamaa yaj~niyaanaam

I exist in all things existing -- bhuuristaatraam; in inanimate objects;

I have entered in all things born -- bhuuri aave"sayantiim; as jiiva in

animate beings;

v-----------------------------

Concept of yajna is central to Vedas. Here only a very brief note is given.

Basically yajna means any procedure which leads to either :

(i) transformation of information/existence at certain level of reality to a

finer or higher level, i.e. abstraction; OR

(ii) transformation of information/existence at certain level to grosser

level or lower level of reality, i.e. detailing;

 

For example, a group of people building a village road, This physical

activity is abstracted by saying that they are building a communication

link, or at a still higher level, building a path to their upliftment. If

they are doing the work with such idea in mind, they are doing yajna.

 

Yajna can be in the reverse direction also, for example, when an artist

visualizes a painting (a higher level activity) and then actually paints it

(lower or gross activity), he is doing a yajna.

^-----------------------------

The second mantra says, whatever a person accepts as input (annam), or sees

clearly (vipa"syati), breaths, etc., in short any activity he does, it is

done due to Vaak only. Those who do not know this are condemned to a lowly

existence. Scriptures specify three kinds of existences for a human being :

(i) one who follows path of knowledge (including Knowledge); saatvika aayu;

(ii) one who follows path of valid activities; raajasika aayu;

(iii) those who simply exist, like animals, tamasika aayu; they take birth,

do just enough activities for lowly existence, procreate and die.

Scripture says, following the first two paths is acceptable, the third is a

lowly path, to be avoided.

 

Vaak is going to tell us something, but that will be in next posting.

-oOo-

 

In this posting we try to point out some of the mantras in RigVeda which

have a seed of Vijnanavada. Very roughly, Vijnanavada says that the world

exists only as a set of perceptions of the illusory objects, in our mind.

No perceptions, no World. It is quite near to Advaita, especially Ajatavada,

except the important difference that Advaita propounds a basis, Brahman, as

the Ultimate Reality, something that exists independently of the mental

perceptions (i.e. an observer), while Vijnanavada does not accept any such

basis. No observer, nothing exists as a final reality. The line between the

two is rather fine. Here I am tempted to tell a story about a Chinese

philosopher (from memory, so it can be slightly inaccurate) :

 

There was a female disciple of sage Chung Tzu, who was entrusted the job of

fetching water for the Ashram of the master, from hights of a mountain. For

many years she continued this service (remember the story of "svetaketu ?),

without the master instructing her. Every day she would watch impassively

the dance of reflection of sun-light on the water in the pails, while

bringing the water.

 

One day, while coming down the mountain, she stumbled, the wooden pails on

the bamboo fell and broke, water was spilt. Like a flash she had Realization

-- no water surface, no reflection of sun-light, no sun's image, sharp or

distorted. It is said that master Chung Tzu had not to instruct her further.

 

So that is Vijnanavada for you. The problem that Advaitins find is : where

did the Sun go?

 

In fact, some of the mantras that we have already seen can be interpreted as

supporting Vijnanavada.

 

We start by considering the folowing mantra from Mandala I, sukta 1, by

..r.si madhucchandas of vi"svaamitra family :

 

 

agnir hotaa kavikratu.h satya"s citra"sravastama.h | devo devebhir aa gamat ||

[RV I-1-5] [i-1-1-5]

 

{May Agni, who offers oblations, who attains knowledge, he who is true,

renowned and divine, come here with the gods. (5)}

 

attains knowledge -- kavikratu.h -- a name for Agni, having visionary

thoughts; extracts knowledge to more abstract levels;

who is true -- satya.h -- Agni represents the Reality, all that is perceived

is Agni only;

offers oblations -- hotaa -- Agni, itself a deva, is also a Hota, a "priest"

who offers oblations (havi) to the higher levels of Self;

agnirvai devaanaam hotaa [aitareya br. 3-14]

renowned -- citra"sravastama.h -- renowned due to various famous acts;

come here -- aa gamat -- come, be present, in my sacrifice, yajna;

 

Agni offers havi in form of knowledge, attains the knowledge and is true --

this shows that all the knowledge that we can get is due to Agni only. As

Agni is activity of the brain at various levels of Vaak (and especially at

madhyamaa level), we know the perceived World via Agni, movements of mind,

only.

 

 

Now consider the following mantra from Mandala X, sukta 45 by .r.si

vatsapri.h addressed to Agni :

 

vi"svasya ketur bhuvanasya garbha aa rodasii ap.r.naaj jaayamaana.h |

vii"du.m cid adrim abhinat paraaya~n janaa yad agnim ayajanta pa~nca ||

[RV X-45-6] [X-4-3-6]

 

{The manifester of all, the origin of the world, Agni, as soon as born,

fills Heaven and Earth. He breaks the solid cloud as he moves forward,

when the five classes of men praise him. (6)}

 

ketu.h -- indicator by which something is known, manifester, a means of

knowledge;

bhuvanasya -- of the created world; Sayanacharya says udakasya -- of the

mass of "waters" that constitute these world perceptions;

garbha.h -- origin, germ, seed;

rodasii -- Heaven and Earth, the total perceptions of a man, including both

the surface level and higher levels of awareness;

ap.r.naat -- filled up (fills up);

jaayamaana.h -- as if born, created or manifested;

paraayan -- going ahead, forward or far; going towards higher levels of

abstraction;

vii"dum cit -- firm, solid; difficult to penetrate or see through;

adrim -- a stone, a cloud; but here ignorance about true nature of Self;

abhinat -- broken (breaks), penetrates;

panca janaa.h -- five [classes] of people; the four "priests" Hota etc. plus

Indra, Ego of the yajamaana;

agnim ayajanta -- worshipped or sacrificed to Agni;

 

6. A means of knowledge about all, the origin of the World, Agni, i.e. the

total brain activities, constitute the total World perceptions. When the

five -- four "priests" (Hota, Adhvaryu, Udgata and Brahma) and Ego --

sacrifice via Agni, as it goes to higher levels of awareness penetrates the

cloud of ignorance which is difficult to break.

 

The word bhuvana indicates that the world is known only through its

perceptions.

 

 

Let us consider next the following mantra fro Mandala I, sukta 19, by .r.si

medhaatithi of ka.nva family :

 

nahi devo na martyo mahas tava kratu.m para.h | marudbhir agna aa gahi ||

[RV I-19-2] [i-5-2-2]

 

{Neither god nor man has power over a rite for you, who is mighty. Come

here, Agni, with Maruts. (2)}

 

martya.h -- mortal, man;

maha.h -- mahata.h, mighty;

kratum -- (to) rite; the process of perceiving the World;

marudbhi.h -- with Maruts; as explained in the previous posting, Maruts are

basic messages via which various regions of brain (devaa.h)

work;

 

Whatever information processing is available at manu.syaloka.h (p.rthivii)

gross level thinking, or devaloka.h (antarik.sa.h), highest level thinking,

can not go beyond what is propvided by Agni -- the Vaak as a group and Maruts,

the basic messaging system. This being so, all our perceptions of the World

depend upon these "movements of mind".

 

Let us consider the following mantra by .r.si diirghatamas, Mandala I, sukta

164 :

 

ya ii.m cakaara na so asya veda ya ii.m dadar"sa hirug in nu tasmaat |

sa maatur yonaa pariviito antar bahuprajaa nir.rtim aa vive"sa ||

[RV I-164-32]

 

{He who has made [this] is not aware of it. He who has seen it, has it

also verily hidden [from him]. He, while still enclosed in his mothers womb,

is subject to many births and has entered upon evil. (32)}

 

 

As the last mantra in this posting, let us consider the following by .r.si

diirghatamas :

 

tasyaa.h samudraa adhi vi k.saranti tena jiivanti pradi"sa"s catasra.h |

tata.h k.saraty ak.sara.m tad vi"svam upa jiivati ||

[RV I-164-42]

 

{From her the clouds shed plenty of rain and then [the people of] four

quarters live. Then the moisture spreads and universe exixts. (42)}

 

people of the four quarters - pradi"sa.h catasra.h - the functions and

regions of the brain during the four states jaagrata,

svapna, su.supti and soma (meditative state);

from her ... rain -- tasyaa.h samudraa adhi vi k.saranti -- rain means bliss

or flow of information/knowledge; "clouds" are pockets

of such thoughts or concept formation related to some

particular subject; as these are defined in terms of

vaak at various levels, that is why it is said "her

clouds" tasyaa.h samudraa;

the moisture spreads -- "vegitation" is the brain neurons or individual

signals, carried by them; the "rain" spreads amongst

them, means these signals carry information/knowledge;

the universe exists -- the whole of world perception depends upon these

signals, the "rain" -- flow of information; whatever we

know or perceive about this World is due to this "rain".

 

The summary is : the perceived Universe is existing due to activity of our

brain.

 

Considering the mantras given above (any many more with similar meanings), I

wonder why they say that Vijnanavadis reject Vedas.

 

With that we come to the end of this posting.

 

..o bhadra.m no apivaataya mana.h |

 

-- Himanshu