kANDa r^iShi-s and their significance

[Guest guest]

Respected elders,

 

Every year, during the upAkarma observance, we offer gratitude and homage to

the kANDa R^iShi-s associated with our particular veda shAkhA. In

particular, for the kR^iShNa yajur veda taittirIya shAkhA, we chant the

following mantra-s during the kANDa r^iShi tarpaNam:

 

(i) prajApatim kANDarshim tarpayAmi

(ii) sOmam kANDarshim tarpayAmi

(iii) agnim kANDarshim tarpayAmi

(iv) viSvAn devAn kANDarshIn tarpayAmi

(v) sAmhitIr devatA upanishadas tarpayAmi

(vi) yajnikIr devatA upanishadas tarpayAmi

(vii) vAruNIr devatA upanishadas tarpayAmi

(viii) brahmANaGM svayambhuvam tarpayAmi

(ix) sadasaspatim tarpayAmi

 

It is my understanding that the first four lines above refer to the 4 kANDa

r^iShi-s - prajApati, soma, agni and vishvedevAH. However, I am unsure about

the following questions and would be grateful to learn from knowledgable

elders in this forum:

 

1. BhagavAn veda vyAsa is the compiler and editor of the 4 veda-s. However,

the fact that we remember the 4 kANDa r^iShi-s every year during upAkarmA

and utsarjana indicates that they must have played a momentous role in the

transmission of the veda-s. In addition, between upanayana and vivAha

samskAra, every brahmacAri is enjoined to perform the catvAri veda vratAni

to propitiate each kANDA r^iShi before commencing the study of the

associated saMhitA portion. What is the specific contribution of the kANDa

r^iShi-s that earns them this high place of honor in the vaidika saMpradAya?

 

2. Since the taittirIya saMhitA consists of 7 kANDa-s, what is the division

(mapping) of these 7 kANDa-s amongst the 4 kANDa r^iShi-s?

 

3. During the upAkarma observance, we perform *nava* kANDa r^iShi tarpaNa.

Who are the remaining 5 r^iShi-s whom we worship thus? What is the

significance of propitiating them?

 

4. Moreover, in the prayoga associated with these tarpaNa mantra-s, we seem

to differentiate in the manner of pouring water - the first 7 being r^iShi

tIrtha, the 8th being brahma tIrtha and the 9th being deva tIrtha. Why this

distinction and what is its origin?

 

5. We perfrom tarpaNam by wearing the sacred thread as a garland (nivItam).

What is the significance behind this?

 

 

I would be very grateful for your kind elucidation of this matter. If I have

erred in my understanding as stated above, I would appreciate being

corrected by the esteemed members of this forum.

 

 

With respectful namaskAram-s,

Ramesh

[Guest guest]

Dear members,

This message is posted on behalf of a friend.

sincerely,

arun

 

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Re: kANDA r^iShi-s and their significance

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Sri:

 

asmath gurubhyO namaha

 

asmath parama gurubhyO namaha

 

asmath sarva gurubhyO namaha

 

Dear Sri Ramesh and other aasthikas,

 

adiyen would like to offer a few more points to the discussion.

 

Readers will be more familiar with the divison of the

 

samhita-bhagam of the Krishna Yajur Veda (KYV)

 

into Seven kANDams as follows:

 

I Darsa-Purna-Maasa

 

II Pasu Vidhanam

 

III Neuna Karma-Vidhanam

 

IV Agni-Chiti-Anga Mantra-Patha-Abhidhanam(Agni-Chayana Mantras)

 

V Ukhya-agni-kathanam

 

VI soma-mantra-brahmana-nirupanam

 

VII AshwamEdhA-gata mantrAnam abhidanam

 

The other classification, followed by Bodhayana, Hiranyakesin

 

and Apastambha mahArishi-s, is the ArshEya-pAtA-kramam.

 

This classification, splits the text of the Samhita/Bramhana/Aranyaka

 

into Five kANDA-s - each kANDA named after the rshI who played the

 

major role in the collection of the MantrAs and BrahmanAs - prajApati,

 

Soma, Agni, Visvedeva and Svyambhuva.

 

Five KhAndA-a of ArshEya-pAtA-kramam of KYV, along with the

 

"subjects" covered:

 

I prAjApatyAnI:

 

1.paurodasika

 

2.yAjamAnA

 

3.hOtArah

 

4.hautrA

 

5.pitra-mEdhA

 

II saumyam

 

1. AdhvaryAva

 

2. grahAh

 

3. dAkshinAnI

 

4. samishta-yajugaMshI

 

5. Avabhrta-yajugMshI

 

6. vAjapEya

 

7. SukriyAni

 

8. savAh

 

III Agneyam

 

1. agni-Adheya

 

2. agnihOtrA

 

3. agni-upasthana

 

4. agni-chayanA

 

5. sAvitrA

 

6. nAchiketA

 

7. chatur-hOtrA

 

8. vaisva-srjam

 

9. arunA-kEtu-chayanA

 

IV vaisvadEvam

 

1. rAja-sUyA

 

2. pasu-bandhA

 

3. ishtyAha

 

4. nakshtra-isthI

 

5. Diva-syEnayah

 

6. apAgha

 

7. sattrAyanA

 

8. upa-homAh

 

9. sUktanI

 

10. aupAnuvAkya

 

11. yAjyAh

 

12. ashwamAdhA

 

13. purusha-mEdhA

 

14. sautrAmanI

 

15. achidrAni

 

16. pasu-Hautra

 

17. upanishadah

 

V svyambhuvam kANDam

 

1. svAdhyAyA brAmhaNa

 

---The sUtrakArA-s of KYV - Bodhayana, Hiranyakesin and

 

Apastambha rishi-s have all addressesed the

 

upakarma/utsarjana ceremonies in varying levels of detail-

 

---Apasthambha-grhya-sUtram III.8:

 

upAkaraNe samApanE cha rishiryah pragyAyatE (1)

 

sadaspatir-dvitIyaha(2)

 

---hiraNyakEsin-grhya-sUtram Prasna I, patala 2, Section 8:

 

In the context of the vratha-s observed by the

 

bramhachArI-student at the beginnig and completion of

 

the study of a kANDA:

 

"… na tvEvavrathah syath| kANDopakaraNE kANDa-visargE cha|

sadasaspathimadbhutahm priyam-indrasya kamyam |

 

sanim medhA-mayA-sisham | svAhA | iti kANDa-rshIr-dvitIyah…"

 

---hiraNyakEsin-grhya-sUtram Prasna II, patala 8, Section 18:

 

"aThAth upakaraNothsarajanE vyAkhyAsyAmaH...."

 

The rishi recommends the fortnight that precedes the Sravana

 

full-moon, under Hasta nakshatra or on the full-moon

 

day itself for the annual course of opening ceremony of study.

 

vyAhritI oblations are to be made to the rishi-s of the kANDAs,

 

or to the names of the kANDAs, to the sAvitrI (gAyatrI mantrA),

 

to the rg-vEda, to the yajur-vEda, to the sAma-vEda, to

 

the atharvana-vEda, and to sadaspati:

 

"…agnimupsamAdhAya vyahritiparyantam krtvA kANDa-rshI juhOti|

 

prajApatyE kANDarshayE svAhA| sOmAya kANDarshayE svAhA|

 

agnayE kANDarshayE svAhA| visvEbhyo devEbhyah kANDarshayE svAhA|

 

svaymbhuvE kANDarshayE svAhA| iti kANDarshayah kANDanAmAni

 

vA sAvitrI rg-vEdam yajur-vEdam sAma-vEdam-atharvana-vEdam

 

sadasaspathimiti|"

 

 

Having thus offered oblations, one should repeat the

 

first three anuvAkA-s, or the beginnings of all kANDA-s.

 

hiraNyakEsin goes on to describes the time and procedure for the utsarjana

ceremony.

 

Regarding the position on the yagnopvitham while offering rshI tarpanam:

 

"…niVItin uttharat udIchin-pravaN udakagrairdarbhai: prAgapavargANyAsanAni

kalpayanti visvAmitrAy jamadagnyE bharadvAjAy gouthmAyAtraAyE vasishTAya

kashyapAy.."

 

---bodhAyanA-grhya-sUtram Prasna III, adhyAyA-s I and II are on similar

lines to the description given by hiraNyakEsin, but much more elaborate,

This is very similar to that description given by hiraNyakEsin. Oblations to

yagnIkI-devatA, sAmhtI-devata, varuNI-devat are specifically mentioned in

this text. The ArshEya-pAtA-kramam listed out above, is also found here.

 

The shikshavalli that expounds samhitopasana is called "sAMhitI", the

anandavalli and bhriguvalli are called "vAruNI" as the were taught by

varuNa. The mahAnArAyanOpanishad is well known as "yaajniki upanishad" –

Bhagavan Narayana, well known by the name Yagna,is the seer, and this

upanishad expounds the "yagna" of the form of the worship of the Supreme

Lord.

 

[wrt to the question on placement of the yagnopavitham while offering

libation, Prasna II, AdhyAyA II of bodhAyanA-grhya-sUtram says … aTha vai

bhavati nivItammanushyaNAM prachInAvItaM pitrnAM upavItam dEvanAM iti| ...]

 

The kANDa rshI tarpana varies according to the shAkhA. For the KYV, there

are 4 kANDa-rshI-s, 3 upanishad devatas, 1 svAdhyAyA brAmhaNa, 1 Lord of the

assembly (sadaspati) – a total of 9 tarpanas are to be offered.

 

The sAma-vEdins offer around 275 tarpana-s – including the sapta-rshI-s,

the teachers of the sAmA, pravachana kartArA, sacred rivers, the

vamsa-brAmhaNa, devataa-s, and pitarah.

 

This lineage of rshi-s through whom the sAma-vEda has ben passed is dealt

with in the vamsa-brAmhaNa of the sAma-vEda. The vamsa-brAmhaNa says that

brAmhan learnt the sAma-sampradaya from none because he is "svyambhU", ie.

SvayambhAtavidyA, as Sayana explains – the knowledge revealed itself to Him.

 

 

Perhaps, this explanation can be applied to the svyambhuvam kANDam

(svAdhyAyA brAmhaNa) of the KYV as well.

 

At the conclusion, adiyen would like to reiterate this sentence from Sri

Vijayaraghavan Swamin's article,

 

(http://www.ramanuja.org/sv/rituals/upakarma/significance.html)

 

"The main purpose of the Upakarma function is to offer prayers and express

our gratitude to those rishis who gave us the Vedas -- the rishis through

whom the Vedic mantras were revealed."

 

The compassionate rshi-s and acharya-s (at the behest of the most merciful

Lord Sriman Narayana) have combined, compressed, and shortened many of the

mandatory karmas just for our "convenience". UpAkarmA and UtsarjanA signify

the beginning and conclusion of the study of one's shAkhA of the Veda. The

veda-adhyAyanam is the most important part of the ceremonies. Yet, we teach

our children that upakArmA just means "thread-changing ceremony", that

reciting veda is only for "vadyars" and not for us "highly-educated

professionals" and thus totally abandon the study of Veda.

 

Let us take a resolution during this upAkarmA/utsarjanA day as well as on

gAyatri-japam-day that within the next year each one of us will attempt to

learn atleast one sooktam or even one anuvakam of our own shAkha from a

qualified teacher! Purusha-suktam, upanishad, vedaarambham,

veda-sattumurrai, tamil vedam are all great to start with.

 

munnivvulaguezhum irul mandiyunna

 

munnivarodu daannavargaL thisaippa - vandhu

 

pannulagai naal-veda porulai-yellaam

 

parimugamaay aruliya emparaman kaanmin,

 

(Periya Tirumozhi 7.8.2)

 

All errors above are due to adiyEn's ignorance.

 

srimate sri lakshmi-hayavadana parabramhane namaha!

 

ramanuja dasan.

 

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