Maya in the Vedas: Understanding the Hymns:

[Guest guest]

kenji,

 

i have decided to follow your valuable advice.

 

For the time being , i am going to simply read your posts on vedas

here and listen to Ravi shankar's composition on vedas at

www.musicindia.com and also listen to Yesudoss's cd on RG veda. Once

my eyes learn to feast on the rich fare you are presenting and my

ears get used to hearing the melodious vedic chants, my mind will be

able to absorb all these sublime truths much better. I think that is

the best way to go. (for a simplistic person like me)

 

Yes i did explore and found out there are quite a few links on the

vedas including the ones you have mentioned.

 

i discarded the one by Griffith and shri Aurobindo altogether . I

found them confusing. There is one by Sanderson beck as well.

 

so, let me be content with reading your excellent exposition and

get a feel for the real thing and then may be i may be ready to read

the Original .

 

" That One breathed by itself without breath, other than it there has

been nothing." (Rg veda)

 

 

with warmest regards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

advaitin, ken knight <anirvacaniya> wrote:

>

> --- "V. Krishnamurthy" <profvk> wrote:

> > In RV IV.58 where you have quoted the

> > 6th rik, I am

> > interested in the 3rd rik:

>

> Namaste Professor,

> This is the promised follow up to the earlier mail.

> I see this sUkta as being a perfect example of the

> vision of the One flowing into the 'many' and

> reuniting although it has never been in parts.

> Particularly this is through the flow of inspirational

> though and speech. You may remember that I have often

> written, on this site, of the 'sweetness' of Sruti and

> here it begins the first Rk. The poet calls out for

> inspiration from 'That One', for the uncovering from

> 'the depths' of The Word' which will manifest as words

> (mantra), cows, in the heart/mind of the poet.

> The immense power of the inspired word (the buffalo)

> sounds in the 'place of ritual'. This mighty sound, in

> Rk 3, eneters into the ritual activity which

> essentially in within the heart/minds of the

> participants in the physical event. I would say that

> at this level it is an undivided sound, a 'roar' in my

> experience, maybe at the level of pashyanti although

> this is a later concept in the four levels of speech.

> For the purposes of giving meaning that sound has to

> divide into syllables and words and phrases etc. That

> is how I understand Rk 3. Then comes the 'meaning'

> enacted and expereinced in the ritual process before

> the final verse so beautifully re-unites the parts in

> the whole:

> 'The universe depends upon thy power and might within

> the sea, within the heart, over the surface of the

> floods.'

>

> You know professor, I sit in awe at the feet of these

> poets, tears well up in the sharing of the beauty of

> their vision.

>

> Now back to Rk 3. Griffith and Wilson were dependant

> upon Sayana so you get from them accordingly a rather

> adhibhaudika interpretation. ( Incidentally, I have

> been in contact with the author of the Flaez site and

> found that he follows the Geldner/Sayana literal

> interpretation of the Rks. No spiritual insight at

> all, most disappointing, but what wonderful work he

> has done for us in setting up this site.)

> I am copying for you below the footnotes of Griffith

> of Rk3 and then Wilson.

>

> Hopefully we can talk some more on this and also the

> use of the flaez site.

>

> Thank you for giving me something follow up, its the

> only way I can learn,

>

> Ken Knight

>

> I am giving you the details of the metre and to whom

> the sUkta is dedicated:

> RgVeda IV 58.3

> Deity Agni, Surya,waters,cows or ghrita

> Metre

> Trishtup: 4 padas 11 syllables

> 11. JagatI 48 syllables 4 padas 12 syllables each 2

> padas per line

> Griffith Footnote

> 3 Four are his horns the four horns of Agni as

> identified with sacrifice are said by Sayana to be the

> four Vedas, and, if identified with Aditya, the four

> cardinal points. The three feet are, in the former

> case, the three daily sacrifices, in the latter,

> morning, noon, and evening. The two heads are, in the

> former case, the Brahmaudana and the Pravargya

> ceremonies, in the latter, day and night. Similarly,

> the seven hands are explained, alternatively, as the

> seven metres of the Veda or the seven rays of the Sun

> ; and the triple bond as the Mantra, Kalpa, and

> Brahmana, prayer, ceremonial, and rationale, of the

> Veda, or the three regions, heaven, firmament, and

> earth. The Steer is, either as sacrifice of Aditya,

> the pourer down of rewards, and the loud roaring is

> the sound of the repetition of the texts of the Veda.

> Mahidhara's explanation differs from that of Sayana.

> The four horns are priests ; or nouns, verbs,

> prepositions, and particles ; the three feet are the

> Vcdas, or the first, second, and third persons, or the

> past, present, and future tenses; the two heads are

> two sacrifices, or the agent and object ; the seven

> hands are the metres or the cases of the noun;

> and the three bonds are the three daily sacrifices,or

> the singular, dual, and plural numbers.

>

> Wilson translation and comment.

> 4.058.03 Four are his horns; three are his feet; his

> heads are two, his hands are seven; the triple-bound

> showerer (of benefits) roars aloud; the mighty deity

> has entered among men. [This verse is preferentially

> applied to Agni, identified either with yajn~a or with

> A_ditya; the four horns of the yajn~a are the four

> vedas; of A_ditya, the four cardinal points of the

> horizon; the three feet of yajn~a are the three daily

> sacrifices; of A_ditya, morning, noon, evening; the

> two heads of yajn~a are two particular ceremonies

> termed brahmaudanam and pravargya; of A_ditya, day and

> night; the seven hands of yajn~a are the seven metres;

> of A_ditya, the seven rays, or the six seasons and

> their aggregate, or the year, the seventh; the term

> vr.s.abha phala_na_m var.sita_, the rainer of rewards,

> applies to yajn~a and A_ditya; so does roraite, he

> roars, implying the noise made by the repetition of

> the mantras of the vedas; the three bonds of yajn~a

> are: mantra, kalpa and bra_hman.a, the prayer, the

> ceremonial; the rationale of A_ditya, the three

> regions, earth, mid-air and heaven; another view is to

> limit vr.s.abha ka_ma_nam vars.ita_ to yajn~a; the

> four horns are the priests: the hota_, udga_ta_,

> adhvaryu and brahma_; the three feet are the three

> vedas; the two heads the havirdha_na and pravargya

> rites; the hands are the seven priests, or seven

> metres; the three bonds the three daily sacrifices;

> Nirukta 13.7 applies the verse to yajn~a].

>

>

>

> =====

> `From this Supreme Self are all these, indeed, breathed forth.'

>

>

>

>

>

>

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