Ekam pancsa bhutam

ekam panca bhuta prapacam vadanti

ekam sristi panca bhuta prapanca drsti
panca bhuta prapancam drsti ekam srsti
panca bhuta prapancam mithyam vivaharam eka meva advsitam
ekam panca bhuta prapacam vadanti

An Overview of Sanatana Dharma

And they do not accept akasha as a mahabhuta or a primordial element, which .... is
one ekam sad vipra bahudha vadanti agnim yamam matariswanam ahuh ....
Purana is said to speak of five subjects (Panca Lakshana): the creation and ...
An Overview of Sanatana Dharma
Table of Contents
1 Introduction to Sanatana Dharma
2 Vedic Knowledge
1 Texts and treatises
2 Overview of Scriptures
3 Vedas
4 Vedangas
5 Upangas
6 Upavedas
7 Darsanas
8 Smritis
9 Agamas
3 Vedic Religion
1 Schools of Spiritual Philosophy (Vedanta)
2 Paths to Salvation
3 Shanmatas (Religions)
4 Core Concepts
1 Principle of Transcendence
2 Worship
3 Devata
4 Mantra
5 Yajna
6 Consciousness Studies
7 Hindu View of Patriotism
5 Individual and Social Life
1 Dharma
2 Karma
3 Purushartha

4
5

Women
Other Institutions

6 Popular Religion
1 Temples
Appendix I Collectivism

Divya Kataksham | Spiritual commentaries. Om Tat Sat!

hadekam Param Tharaka Brahma Roopam, Bhajeham, Bhajeham ...
Namasthe, Namasthe Samastha Prapancha, Prabhoga .... Sadananda
Meede Prabhu Pancha Vakthram. 2. I pray that Lord ..... Om Bhuta-pataye
namaha. Om Sthanane ..... Imam hi nithya meva muktha muthamothamam
sthavam, Padan ...

tejobindu upanisad yatra cinmatrakalana

kalpana sarvabhutanam brahmadinam nimesatah |. kalasabdena nirdistam

... nisedhanam prapancasya recakakhyah samiritah | .... idam ca sarvam
cinmatramayam chinmayameva hi || 25|| ..... sparsam rupam rasam
gandham kosah panca manobhavah | .... ekam brahma dvayam brahma
moho brahma samadikam |

Lord Vishnu | Divya Kataksham

Sarva bhutantarAtmanam Vishnumeva yajanti te || (Santi Parva 355.24) ...
A. Srinivasa Raghavan explains the Panca Maha Yajnas further: ... to the
fire, Bhuta Yajna involving in offering a portion of the daily meal to all
creatures, and .... Sri Adi Sankara explains this as 'Jnaanamuttamam iti
etat Savisheshanam ekam Naama; ...

SRI VIDYA And SRICHAKRA. - Telugu Bhakti

fifteen lettered mantra-pancadasi. The triangle is ..... Tvagadi dhatus are

in panca bhutas. Panca pranas ... ekam nityam vimalamacalam
sarvadhisakshibhutam.

Sanskrit - Sri Ramana Maharshi

raman.asya-tyadbhuta kat.hina mauna tapassama-dhiyogena ... na-ham |
sabdasparsa ru-pa rasa gandha-khya-n pancha vishya-n pr.thakpr.thag ....
samarpita-ya-m sr.n.khala-ya-m sa cha yatha- ta-meva-nyadvastu ...
dvividam vartate | ekameva manah. ... vasagam yada- tadatadasubhamiti vyavahriyate | prapancha.
]Have

Faith in God, the only True Friend

permeated by the Pancha Bhutas (five elements own good and not for
putting one to trouble. ... Therefore, Prapancha means the vast the truth
underlying God's creation. .... Ekam Eva Adviteeyam ... Twameva
Bandhuscha Sakha Twameva,

Soundarya Lahari Sloka - 35

Twameva swaatmaanam parinamayitum viswa vapushaa ... The whole
prapanca is panca-bhoota-atmaka. ... "Ekam eva adwiteeyam" Brahma .
Soundarya Lahari Sloka - 35
[the Devi who resides in the six aadhaara cakraas]
[Kshaya Roga Nivritti]
Manastwam vyoma twam marudasi marutsaarathi-rasi
Twamaapa-stwam bhoomi-stwayi parinataayaam na hi param

Twameva swaatmaanam parinamayitum viswa vapushaa

Cidaanandaakaaram sivayuvati-bhaavena bibhrushe
Manah - [as] mind [in aajnaacakra]
twam - you [shine]
vyoma - [in visuddhi cakra as] aakaasa tatwa
twam - you alone are there shining forth
marudasi - in anaahata as vaayu tatwa [you alone are there shining forth]
marutsaarathi-rasi - in swaadhisthaana you are shining forth as agni
tatwa.
Twam - you [alone] are
aapah - the jalatatwa [in manipooraka]
twam - you [alone] are the
bhoomih - the earth tatwa [in moolaadhaara]
twayi parinataayaam - since you have got converted [vivarta] as the
prapanca
na hi - there is not anything [other than]
param - you the paraasakti or the pure consciousness.
Twameva - you are alone
swaatmaanam - your shape
parinamayitum - for getting vivarta
viswa vapushaa- as the prapanca
Cidaanandaakaaram - the aananda roopa cit roopa
sivayuvati-bhaavena - due to the bhaavana as paramasivas partner
bibhrushe - accept
Oh! Chit Sakti Swarupi Goddess supreme!
Mind is yourself;
aakaasa is also yourself;
vaayu is also yourself;
agni is also yourself;
water is also yourself;
earth is also yourself;
you are appearing due to vivarta or parinaama as everything, and
there is nothing other than yourself;
you alone are appearing as prapanca and
as Paramasiva and Paramasiva bhattarika Paarvati.
Oh ! kundalini sakti devi! You are acting as the manastatwa in the aajnaa
cakra;
You are acting as the vyomah or aakaasa in the visuddhi cakra;
You are acting as the air or vaayu-tatwa in the anaahata cakra;
You are acting as the water or jala-tatwa in the manipooraka cakra;
You are acting as the fire or agni-tatwa in the swaadhisthaana cakra;
You are acting as the earth or bhoomi-tatwa in the moolaadhaara cakra;
You are the causal paraa sakti and
you alone are the kaarya prapanca and
there is nothing other than you anywhere.
You, the brahma swaaroopa siva-tatwa are alone taking the form of
sadaasiv mahishi.

Sruti says
Patisca patnee scaabhavatamm
According to the pramaana Sarvatra pancabhootani shashtham kincana vidyate
The whole prapanca is panca-bhoota-atmaka.
The panca-bhoota sookshma roopa are the tanmaatraas of the prithivyaadi
i.e.,
of the earth, water, air, fire and aakaasa.
All these tanmaatraas are devis parinaama.
Tasyaam parinataayaam tu nakincidavasishyate
Tribhyah pureti vyutpatyaah
Tripura Sundari is the only one present before Triputi.
Vaamakeswari tantram says as
Kabaleekrita nisseshatatwagraamaswaroopinee
Sruti says
Parasya sakatirvividhaiva srooyate maayaa ca vidyaa ca swaameva
bhavati.
Yoga vaasishtha says
Chidvilaasah prapancoyam
Sruti says
"Sarvam khalwidam brahma"
"Neha naanaasti kincana"
"Mayaa maatram idam dwaitam"
"Ekam eva adwiteeyam"
Brahma sootra says
"Aatmakriteh parinaamaat"
Smriti says
"Mithyaa jagat adhishthaanaah"
this sloka refers about the similarity between the andaanda and
pindaanda
that is, the vyashti and samshti or the individual and the whole world.
Sivaroopi brahmatatwa and the kundalini are same. If vaasanaas are
removed both
become one and is called as paraananda or paramaananda or
brahmaananda.
Catussati says

"Tripuraa paramaasaktiraadyaajaataa maheswaree

Sthoola sookshma swabhaavena trailokyotpatti maatrukaa
Kabaleekrita nisseshatatwa graamaswaroopini
Yasyaam parinataayaam to na kincidavasishyate"
Abhirami andaadi refers :"Paarum punalum kanalum vengaalum padar visumbum
oorum urugu chuvaioli ooroli onrupadac cerum
talaivi sivakaama sundari ceeradikke caaruntavamudai
yaarpadai yaata dhanamillaiye"
Mooka panca satee 1-18 says :dharanimayeem dharanimayeem bhavanamayeem
gagana dahana hotrumayeem
ambumayee-mindumayee-mampaamanukampamaadi-maameekshe

1. Introduction to Sanatana Dharma

Sanatana Dharma is a comprehensive system of life, consisting of religion, spiritual
philosophy and knowledge system, social and political setup.
Goals
Simply put, the goal of Sanatana Dharma is Moksha, liberation. It aims at mukti for
every individual, and all the methods it prescribes are towards that goal. Fulfillment
of the purposes of life is the mean to it. However, phenomenal world is diverse, and
hence there are diverse means to fulfilling the purpose of life.
Premises
According to Sanatana dharma, each being is potentially divine. Realization is about
unveiling the divinity. God, who created the universe, is not different from it He
exists unmanifest, but entire creation is also a part of Him. He exists essentially, in
each particle and phenomenon of creation.
Each being, through its cycles of birth and death, is evolving towards the same goal,
according to Sanatana Dharma. So the equality and inequality are apparent, and not
essential. These differences are because of the diversity in methods, and
differences in the stages and phases through which each being is going at any point
of time.
Windows
However, there are multiple windows to Truth that describe the eternal, its relation
to the universe and the concept of liberation. These are called Darsanas. They are
six and listed as Nyaya, Vaiseshika, Sankhya, Yoga, Purva Mimamsa and Uttara
Mimamsa. They differ in whether there is a creator-God different from the eternal,
what causes binding and what causes liberation etc, but they all have common
stand on things like there is eternal (Purusha), who is actually liberated, but appears
to be bound by the play of Nature (Prakriti). They are also common in that their goal
is liberation. They all advocate righteousness and devotion as means to liberation,
though they suggest different methods. They are also common in that they take
Veda as the authority.
Schools
There are also multiple schools that describe the relation of individual and universal
soul, the concept and nature of liberation. These are called schools of spiritual
philosophy or Vedanta and they are Advaita, Dwaita, Visistadwaita etc.
Darsanas and schools of Vedanta are often grouped together, for they address some
common subjects. They also commonly believe in the concepts like karma and
rebirth.
Religion
Hinduism is actually a set of religions, all believing in common authority the Veda.
Sanatana Dharma can be broadly called Vedic religion. Each religion has a theology.
However they are all not separate theologies, but different interpretations of
theologies present in the texts Veda and the Puranas. They also take relevant
sets/portions of rituals, codes prescribed in sruti and in smritis, and from Agamas.

Smarta is the religion, where any of the major deities is worshipped and there is
no specific leaning to any of them. Literally smarta means following smritis.
Then there are six major religions, Saiva, Vaishnava, Sakta, Ganapatya, Saura and
Kaumara, which treat deities Siva, Vishnu, Sakti-the mother Goddess, Ganapathi,
Surya and Kumara Swamy as supreme Godhead respectively.
Purposes
There are four goals of life to fulfill which one should work Dharma, Artha, Kama
and Moksha. That is, Righteousness, generation of wealth/production, fulfillment of
desires and salvation. The first three are means to the last.
Paths
There are three paths to salvation. One is of devotion (bhakti) where an individual
through devotion for God, attains moksha. This is prescribed for the heart-being.
Worship is his method. Devotion means, bliss and love goals.
The second is of knowledge (jnana), where one sublimates his lower being through
gaining knowledge. This is for the intellect-being. Study/thought is his method.
Curiosity is his means, Truth goal.
The third is of works (karma), where one through fulfillment of responsibilities as an
individual and then serving fellow beings, attains moksha. This is for the social
being. Service is his method. Selflessness is his means, infinity and permanence
goal.
Thus truth-beauty-permanence, the three aspects of eternal are the goals of these
three paths. They are inter-mixing and overlapping paths, with each of them leading
to and merging in the others.
Scriptures
The root of Sanatana Dharma is the Veda. The Veda is said to be classified before
the beginning of Kali Yuga (about 3100 BC according to traditional version), by
Vyasa, into four Rig, Yajus, Sama and Atharva. Each Veda has three portions,
Samhita (hymns to gods), Brahmana (ritual portion), Aranyaka (philosophy portion).
There are two major streams of literature, which developed from the Veda and base
their authority on it. One of them is the smriti literature, where entire literature is
classified into 18 abodes or mahasthanas. They are the four Vedas, six Vedangas
(sastras to understand the Veda, literally the parts of Veda), four Upangas
(consisting of dharma viz codes of conduct etc and logic) and four Upavedas (arts
and sciences). Then there are six darsanas or windows to truth. The second stream
is the Agama literature, consisting of Mantra, Yantra and Tantra.
However these are not mutually exclusive streams, and there are many aspects like
underlying spiritual philosophy, mantras, some procedures for rituals that are
common.
Veda
|

|____ Vedic and Smriti literature

|
|____ Vedangas (six)
|
|____ Upangas (4)
|
|____ Upavedas (4)
|
|____ Darsanas (6)
|
|____ Agama literature
|____ Tantra
Scope and Definition
What classifies one as belonging to or outside the fold of Sanatana Dharma, is not
as straight forward as answering what classifies one as belonging to or outside the
fold of any particular community.
Sanatana Dharma, as it means, is the eternal law hence anyone by definition is
included in it. It does not classify people as followers and non-followers, believers
and non-believers and so on. Thus by definition, it is universal and all-inclusive. This
is because it talks of the natural and universal order or law, and not of the universe
as seen by any particular seer.
However, when seen in a social context there do exist many classifications. The
people belonging to the civilization of Bharata share a common cultural and social
base; they differ in philosophy and few social aspects. The first such division is
Vedic-Unvedic.
Accepting the authority of Veda is the primary criterion, for defining a person as
belonging to Veda mata. And this covers all the branches, such as srauta, smarta,
Tantric and so on. However, there are further classifications in this: There are
schools that hold Atharva vedins as unvedic. There are schools that hold some
Tantras as unvedic. And so on. However, with all the philosophical and religious
differences, they all share one cultural-social base.
The schools that do not hold Veda as a primary authority are called Unvedic.
Bauddha and Jaina, though they believe in salvation (having their own versions of
Nirvana and Kaivalya respectively) are thus called Unvedic. They do not however
call the Veda as false knowledge. Bauddha and Jaina also share the same
civilizational and philosophical base, and the worldview as Vedic religion. Hence
they are very much parts of the Bharatiya Civilization.
However it should not be understood in the sense that Veda is to be taken as an
authority. Veda is taken as a Pramana or a source and reference for validation of
knowledge. And a school that does not accept Veda as pramana, implies that it does
not believe in statements other than those that could be validated through other
means of knowledge. There are acceptable pramanas under each school, like
pratyaksha, anumana, upamana and so on which could be translated as
(perception, logic, comparison, etc.). And the knowledge that could not be validated
by these, according to Vedic religion, is to be taken as valid, if it finds validation in
the Veda. The reasoning given for this by the followers of Vedic religion is that Veda
is knowledge of the eternal and contains that knowledge which cannot be validated.
So something that cannot be validated can exist and still be accepted as true is

the premise. And this pramana was not listed first; in fact it was listed after
pratyaksha and so on, to imply that you do not need the pramana of Veda for
something that can be validated through direct means. According to Unvedic
darsanas like Bauddha, only the knowledge that could be validated by pratyaksha
and anumana is to be taken as valid. Thus, the difference is purely at a
philosophical level, and not really at a religious level. Therefore we could see there
are a lot of similarities in the religious practices of all these schools, such as Tantric
and other methods. However, high level philosophical differences had social
implications, such as accepting the Vedic social order or Varna-Ashrama dharma.
Still, they all shared the same cultural-civilizational base. However, it was easy to
assimilate them in the social order for they did not create a new social order, and
they were not different socio-cultural systems.
Thus the Vedic-unvedic became a slightly different classification, Astika - Nastika.
There are two criteria that make one an Astika or having astikya: believing in Vedas
pramanya, and following varna-ashrama dharma. The belief in Veda translating as
Astikya borrows sense from the above explanation, of something that cannot be
validated can exist and still be accepted as true.
Accepting God or Iswara, has never been a criterion in classifying something as
Astika or Vedic or Hindu for that matter. Owing to the differences in approach and
diversity in worldviews, accepting the existence of God has always been a matter of
choice and ones philosophy. Diversity in attribution of supremacy to God, religious
practices, philosophical traits, none of these matter in classifying something as
Vedic-Unvedic.
However, Carvaka differs greatly from all other systems including Bauddha and
Jaina they accept pratyaksha (sense-perception) as the only pramana. Every other
school, Vedic or Unvedic accepts at least two pramanas. And they do not accept
akasha as a mahabhuta or a primordial element, which all other schools accept.
Akasha is the element which is both the origin of all the other elements and listed
as an element (in its unmanifest form). This causes all other differences such as
treating body as self, not accepting rebirth and so on. In this, Carvaka comes very
close to the western materialistic thought pattern. For this reason, not only did
Carvaka have a different philosophical but also an entirely different social style
emanating from an entirely alien worldview which is incompatible with all the other
schools.
However, all other Bharatiya peoples, including tribal, should be called as sharing
the same philosophical base. Either by their practices, or by their goals, their origin
lies in the same.
Any philosophy that came from outside, or developed independently in Bharata and
came in contact with Sanatana Dharma, has been assimilated in its comprehensive,
all-inclusive system.
However, the ones that are not assimilated are the exclusivist ideologies like
Abrahamic religions. In a way, they are as philosophically and socially incompatible
with Sanatana Dharma as Carvaka was at one time.

So any other school is, technically speaking, belonging to or related to Sanatana

Dharma. One one hand there are schools like Shanmatas that are part of it, and on
the other hand there are schools like Bauddha that have origin in it but are
outgrowths from it.
Knowledge System
Hindu knowledge is a continuum, with knowledge of all kinds religion, philosophy,
sciences and arts share one base. The most integrated and well developed structure
of knowledge can be found in this system.
In philosophy, truth is seen as multidimensional space, with facts as points in the
space. Any domain or area of study is a matrix of such points, which is a set of
interrelated facts consistent with each other. Any interdisciplinary study is an
overlap/intersection of such sets. However, any such overlap will lose out many
points while taking those that are relevant. Also as we keep specializing more the
granularity of facts keeps growing. Any general fact can be presented as a set of
specific facts, some of which are always ignored mostly because of relevance
though occasionally by error. Thus, as facts become more and more specific their
completeness comes down, as they no more accurately apply to the bigger domain
but only to a part of it. This is one of the dangers of specialization. The best way
to avoid this is to have one single matrix at the highest level from which all the
disciplines evolve, and share a base.
This is exactly what is done in the traditional Indian knowledge system. This is the
knowledge of the impersonal, universal and eternal, the highest form of truth. This
is the base from which all other forms of knowledge, religious or scientific evolve.
Thus religious and scientific knowledge share the same philosophical base or
worldview, and are therefore non-contradicting. In fact they enhance each other and
are complementary. The various layers of knowledge that appeal to various levels
and aspects of human consciousness - emotional, intellectual, psychic etc, come
from the same origin and convey the similar ideas, thus affecting an integrated and
comprehensive system for mans evolution.
Spirit of Sastras
Sastra is a study of the phenomena of universe through specific means for a specific
purpose.
Different kinds of knowledge can be differentiated based on the nature of facts, and
the valid modes of explanations in those. For instance in modern science there are
four valid explanations: deductive, probabilistic, teleological and genetic. Last two
are valid in life sciences, and not in physical sciences. For instance if we say ice
floats on water because of anomalous expansion, we can explain it as "anomalous
expansion of water between -4 to 4 degrees is the reason", as well as "because of
this water is covered with ice in lakes in frozen conditions and this is how wateranimals survive. So this is a way of nature to help those beings". The first is valid in
physics, and the second being teleological, is valid in life sciences. Such reasoning
is often also allowed in philosophy, following theories like nature's intelligence.
For this reason Philosophy and science are two compartments in modern knowledge
system. But traditionally, knowledge is seen as one single continuum. For instance if

we look at the smritis - Vedangas, Upavedas and Upangas; Upavedas are exclusively
arts and sciences. Of these, gandharvaveda is purely art, dhanurveda is both art
and science, and Ayurveda is a science. And specifically Ayurveda goes by all four
explanations including genetic and teleological, but Rasa Sastra does not go by the
latter ones. So we recognise that there are different types of knowledge and they
differ in the explanations. But the differential factor is we realize that irrespective of
explanations, facts and concepts have to be borrowed across these subjects.
So the sciences are grouped under a different class, but they are in the same
hierarchy of knowledge so we realize that it is the purpose of the branch of
knowledge that differentiates but not the knowledge as such.
If we find a statement in a philosophical text like an Upanishad or a darsana, we are
not likely to find its scientific explanation (as relevantly considered valid in a
particular branch of science) in that place. Just the way we do not find a
mathematical, formalistic explanation for Purnamadah in Isa Upanishad. But since
we know that our philosophical texts are not detached from and in fact form both
basis and purpose for scientific texts, we are likely to find its scientific application
wherever it is relevant. The application of the philosophical concept is the use of
zero and infinity in mathematics, which no other civilization could do.
Similarly, application of the philosophical concept of holism helped a medicinal
theory like Ayurveda.
Application of the philosophical concept of happiness and principle of
transcendence helped an economic theory that says "desires are like burning fire,
the way is to transcend them and not to multiply or fulfill them" in contrast to a
modern economic theory that says "only growth of economy comes through desires
and their multiplication". This has huge social implications, and determines how
content, moral and happy the people of a society would be.
At the same time, scientific explanations are found in appropriate places. The
explanations used in various subjects depend on the nature and purpose of the
knowledge. Zero is not defined or explained in mathematical texts the same way it
is in a philosophical text. Eclipses are not explained in a Purana the same way they
are explained in an astronomical text. They are explained in relevant ways, with
necessary deductions. Ex. Purana says Rahu and Ketu swallow Sun and Moon, while
Aryabhatiya says eclipses are caused by the shadows of earh and moon. It may be
probably said that Aryabhatiya is too recent a text, but we can find the foundation
of the logic in much older Jyotisha which says Rahu and Ketu are chaya grahas
(shadows) and do not have behavior of their own.
Sastra- Art and Science
However, the word sastra is representative of both art and science forms. Some
sastras are sciences, while some are art-forms. However the art-forms too, are
called sastras, both because their origin is based on sastra and because their
pursuit is a well laid path. There is no clear line between art and science. In fact as
said the pursuit of science is an art and the pursuit of art is a science. Independent
of subject, the pursuit of science and art involve creativity. Though there are
differences in the acceptable methods and approaches in each sastra, and though

there are differences in the states and levels of consciousness that validate truth,
both science and art aim at Truth. Truth is for experimental verification in science
and for experiential verification in art. However it is human consciousness that
perceives the truth, and the laws of science and art are relative to mans experience
of the world and not the world as it is. This understanding is the basis of sastras,
both sciences and arts.
Each art form is a study in consciousness, apart from aesthetics. Natya sastra is a
study in mudras and abhinaya. Sangeeta is a study in nada and swara. Sculpture is
a study in Iconometry and abhinaya. But all these, are studies not only in
themselves, they are studies in how each of these lead to happiness. There are two
primary aspects in art forms experience of the artist, and its expression. A
performance or a piece of art is an expression of the artists experience. And pursuit
of art is the means to the experience, as it is founded in a profound study of the
way abhinaya or nada are to be pursued in order to attain to the highest
experience. Thus any traditional art-form is a comprehensive pursuit of happiness.
Thus, truth and beauty are the aspects that science and art are aiming at. However
in the Hindu philosophy truth and beauty are two indivisible aspects of The
Permanent the divine. Thus science and art are simply two approaches, with the
same goal, described in two different ways. There is beauty in truth and there is
truth in beauty. This is the outlook that makes sciences and art-forms run into each
other, aiding each other and advancing each other.
Sabda
Sabda (sound) is a concept where we can clearly observe the evolution of various
sastras from one base. Sabda is the tanmatra of akasa (the sky). In the five
elements Akasa represents brahman. Thus Sabda is eternal. The study of eternal
word is mantra sastra. Mantra is word. It has multiple aspects, and the study of each
aspect evolved as a sastra. The two aspects of word are sabda (sound-form) and
pada (verbal form). The former has two aspects, dhvani (sound) and swara (tone).
The latter has four aspects, akshara (alphabet, syllables and their arrangement),
artha (meaning semantics.), vyakarana (syntax, order and arrangement of words)
and chandas (arrangement of syllables). Each of these aspects is a sastra. The
sound-energy root is beeja. Its study is mantra. Swara has two aspects again, their
study being Siksha (phoenetics) and Nada (Sangeeta-music). The word aspect is
another study. It has alphabet. Arrangement of alphabet/syllables is Chandas.
Arrangement of alphabet into words and the study of meaning of word is Nirukta.
Grammar of the language formed with words is Vyakarana.
Brahman
|
|
Sabda Akasa
|
|____ Dhvani
|
|____ Dhvani (vibration)
|
|
|____ Beeja (Mantra Energy)
|
|____ Swara

|
|
|____ Pada

|____ Swara (Siksha)

|____ Nada (Sangeeta)
|____
|____
|____
|____

Akshara (Alphabet/syllable)
Artha (Nirukta)
Vyakarana
Chandas

Individual and Social Life

There are a set of institutions that drive individual and social life in Sanatana
Dharma. They are:
Dharma determinant of righteousness or right action
Ashrama four stages of life through which individual attains fulfillment and serves
goals of life
Vivaha Vyavastha marriage, the basic building block of society
Varna an abstraction based on various functions performed by men in the society.
Jati an autonomous endogamous cultural unit.

2. Vedic Knowledge
2.1 Texts and Treatises
2.2 Overview of Scriptures
There are 18 mahasthanas in the vedic knowledge system. Mahasthana is an abode
of knowledge. They are the four Vedas, four Upavedas, six Vedangas and six
Upangas. Apart from these we have six Vedic Darshanas.
2.3 Vedas
Veda is the highest authority in Hindu knowledge system and the authority of all
other scriptures are based on the authority of the Veda. Vedas are four Rig, Yajur,
Sama and Atharva. Rigveda contains prayers to Gods (Riks are the mantras).
Yajurveda has methods to use Riks for sacrifices (Yajus-Yajna). Sama Veda introduces
musical notes. Atharva Veda gives ways to make life successful, and contains
methods to fulfill what can be called material aspirations.
Each Veda has three sections - Samhita, Brahmana and Aranyaka. Samhita has
prayers or Suktas. Brahmana has sacrificial methods. Aranyaka has Mantras and
methods that are practiced in the forests (that is, not for grhasthas). Upanishads
normally appear in the last part of Aranyaka and deal with spiritual philosophy.
Some Upanishads are exceptions and appear in Samhita and Brahmana too. Thus
Upanishad, as it appears in the last part of the Veda, is called Vedanta. There are
108 Upanishads and 10 of them are famous. Since Upanishads mostly philosophical
they are found in prose. But there are Upanishads like Taittireeya and Ganapathi
Atharva seersha that have svara.
These four sections are mapped to the four Ashramas. A brahmacari is supposed to
study the Samhita. Grhastha is supposed to follow the Brahmana. Vanaprasthi is
supposed to follow Aranyaka. Sanyasi is supposed to contemplate on the
Upanishads.
The Rigveda samhita (1.164.46) itself indicates that Truth is one ekam sad vipra
bahudha vadanti agnim yamam matariswanam ahuh (meaning Truth is one, but
the learned refer to it in different names like agni, yama, matariswan). But the
concept that there is a single Parabrahman and that all Gods are Its forms, is more
clearly visible towards the Vedanta (Upanishads). Its implications can be seen in
later sections, especially when we discuss Darshanas and Puranas.
Veda literally means knowledge. Traditionally the following features are attributed to
the Veda:
1.
Veda is anantha (infinite). Only an infinitesimal portion of it is revealed to
humans.
This can be understood in the sense that knowledge is infinite. However, Veda is the
knowledge of Brahman, the True, Absolute and the Infinite. And the essence of Veda
is said to be understood if one knows the infinite, i.e., opens up to the infinite Self.
Realizing the infinite through any single mantra/sukta of the Veda is equivalent to
understanding the essence of any other mantra and the entire Veda. Thus it is said
know the One (Brahman) by which everything else is known.

2.
Veda is anadi, having no beginning or end. It said to exist eternally; it is called
the breath of Paramatma. This is a poetic expression, this does not literally mean
paramatma has a breath but just the way breath exists with a person's life similarly
veda exists with God/creation. While the modern view is that Rigveda is the oldest,
it is only in compilation that it is possibly older. Rigveda itself mentions Yajurveda
and Samaveda. For instance Purusha sukta (RV 10.90) says "Tasmaat yagnaat sarva
hutaH, RucaH-samaani jagnire, chandaagmsi jagnire tasmaat, yajus
tasmaadajaayata".
3.
Veda is apourusheya, not authored by humans. The seers are said to reveal
veda mantras to the world, they are called drastas.
Rigveda (Samhita 1.164.45) says catvari vak parimita padani tani vidur brahmana
ye minishinah, guha trini nihita neengayanti turiyam vaco manushya vadanti,
meaning vak exists in four forms and the learned know of them. Three are hidden
and the fourth is what men speak. Vak (literally word, but meaning veda mantra
here) is said to exist in four forms - para, pasyanti, madhyama and vaikhari. Para is
the eternal form of vak. Pasyanti is when a seer envisions the mantra. Madhyama is
when it descends into mind plane. Vaikhari is the expression. Thus the Veda
mantras exist eternally, they are only revealed to the world by the seers.
Though there are four Vedas, there are alternate recitations in each Veda. These are
called "pathantaram"s. Based on these, various branches exist in each Veda, each
of them is called a Veda sakha.
There are various methods of chanting the Veda, like ghana and jata.
Rigveda: The mantras in Rigveda are called Riks. Rigveda has 10 mandalas, 1028
suktas and 10170 riks in the whole. Each sukta is a collection of riks on a devata
and each mandala has many suktas. The samhita portion of Rigveda contains
suktas alone and all suktas are addressed to devatas like Agni, Vayu, Vishnu, Rudra,
Mitra, Varuna, Pushan, Aryaman.
The major Upanishads found in Rigveda sakhas are Aitareya and Kaushitaki.
Yajurveda: As the name suggests, Yajurveda deals with Yajna, sacrifice. It applies
riks and gives procedures and mantras for sacrifices.
There are two major sakhas in the Yajurveda, Sukla and Krishna. Krishna Yajurveda
sakha is also called Taittireeya sakha. Samhita of Sukla Yajurveda is called
Vajasaneya samhita and that of Krishna Yajurveda is called Taittireeya samhita.
Brahmana of Sukla Yajurveda is called the Satapatha brahmana. In the Krishna
Yajurveda, there is an overlap between samhita and brahmana portions and lays
down the procedures for sacrifices. This can be understood in the light that
brahmana is the sacrificial code and Yajurveda combines this with riks. Many
sacrifices like Darsapurnamasa, Vajapeya, Somayaga, and Aswamedha are found in
Yajurveda.
There is a special place for lord Rudra in the Krishna Yajurveda, and Rudra suktam is
found in the middle of Taittireeya Samhita. It has 7 kandas and the fourth kanda has
9 chapters. Namakam is the 5th chapter and while Chamakam 7th chapter of the

fourth kanda. This is because Rudra is the presiding deity of Yajnas and Yajurveda
deals with Yajnas.
The major Upanishads found in Yajurveda are Brihadaranyaka, Maitri, Isa, Taittiriya,
Svetasvatara and Katha.
Samaveda: Samaveda puts the riks in musical notes. The musical notes in
samaveda are said to be the origin of traditional musical octet.
Major Upanishads found in Samaveda are Kena and Chandogya.
Atharvaveda: Atharvaveda, apart from hymns to gods, gives many ways to make
life successful. While Gayatri mantra is said to be the essence of the three Vedas
(Rig, Yajur and Sama), there is a different Gayatri mantra for Atharvaveda. And it
requires that a second Upanayana is done for the pupil before he is initiated to
learning Atharvaveda. (Another brahmopadesam of Atharva Gayatri is done here).
Atharvaveda contains prayers to Gods not mentioned in the other three Vedas, like
Pratyangira. Atharvaveda also uses many Riks. For instance, the Manyu sukta of
Rigveda appears as two chapters sena nireekshana and sena samyojana in the
Atharvaveda.
Major Upanishads in Atharvaveda are Mandukya, Mudaka and Prasna.

2.4 Vedangas
Understanding Vedangas is a pre-requisite to understanding the Veda. There are six
Vedangas.
Nirukta: Nirukta is the science of etymologies. It explains the word-roots and
derivation of meanings of words in different contexts. Text: Yaskas Nirukta.
Vyakarana: Vyakarana is Grammar. Paninis Astadhyayi is the authority on Sanskrit
Grammar. It was not written in Sanskrit but Panini used a meta-language called
Upadesa to define the grammar of Sanskrit in about 8000 sutras/rules. Text: Paninis
Vyakarana.
Siksha: Siksha deals with phoenetics, the pronounciation and accent. It explains
how each syllable should be pronounced in which context and the psychic effects of
those. There are two variations to plain pronunciation, called Udatta and Anudatta.
Altering the pronunciation alters the meaning of what is being chanted and the
results of chanting. Text: Paninis Siksha.
Chandas: Chandas is the science of metres. Syllables are classified into two
categories, Guru and Laghu. A string of Guru-Laghu sequence of a particular length
is called a metre. There are various metres in which the Vedic mantras are
composed, such as Gayatri, Anusthup, Trishtup and Jagati. The chandas of a mantra
determines its usage, such as its purpose and context. But it acts more as an errorcorrecting mechanism. Since the Veda is an oral tradition, any aberration in the
chandas because of error in text or the swara, can be easily identified and
corrected. Text: Pingalas Chandassastra.
Jyotisha: Jyotisha is the science of shining objects astronomy. Text: Vedanga
Jyotisha of Lagadha.
Kalpa: Kalpa speaks of the ritual portion, how and when sacrifice is to be
conducted. Texts: Kalpa Sutras, consisting of Sulba Sutras and Srauta Sutras. Sulba
Sutras contain the geometry of altars along with mathematical deductions for the
geometry. Srauta Sutras contain guidelines for conducting sacrifices.
2.5 Upavedas
Upavedas are four and they are Dhanurveda, Gandharvaveda, Ayurveda and
Arthasastra. Dhanurveda is the science of warfare. Gandharvaveda is the study if
aesthetics and it speaks of all art-forms like music, dance, poetry, sculpture, and
erotica. Ayurveda is the science of health and life. Arthasastra deals with public
administration, governance, economy, polity and judiciary. All these sciences/arts
are discussed not just from their technical perspective (though that is primarily
done); these are seen as means to transcendence.

2.6 Upangas
There are four Upangas, Nyaya, Mimamsa, Itihasa-Puranas and Dharma sastras.
Nyaya is also a darshana and speaks of the law of nature. It also contains
predicate logic. This can be discussed more elaborately as a darshana.
Mimamsa too, is a darshana and has two parts Purva Mimamsa and Uttara
Mimamsa. Purva Mimamsa speaks of the philosophy of rituals and Uttara Mimamsa
is spiritual philosophy. There is another text called Sankarsha kanda, which is also
called the Madhya Mimamsa and Upasana Kanda, which speaks of Gods and
mentions the essential one-ness of all God-forms. This can be seen as a ramp from
Purva Mimamsa to Uttara Mimamsa. Mimamsa can be discussed more elaborately
as a darshana.
Itihasa-Puranas: There are 18 Maha Puranas and 18 Upa Puranas. Mahabharata is
the Itihasa. The eighteen Maha Puranas are Matsya, Markandeya, Bhagavata,
Bhavishya, Brahmanda, Brahma, Brahma Vaivarta, Vishnu Dharmottara, Varaha,
Vamana, Siva, Skanda, Narada, Garuda, Padma, Kurma, Linga and Agni Puranas.
Purana is said to speak of five subjects (Panca Lakshana): the creation and
dissolution of Universe, evolution and the cycle of time, Theology, history of Kings
(human history).
Alternately, these speak of three levels of allegories terrestrial, astronomical and
spiritual. They also speak of the different incarnations of the Supreme Godhead 51
avataras, then 21 important ones from them, then 10 primary avatars out of them
that we call as dashavataras and 2 as complete incarnations (purnavataras). Rama
and Krishna are said to be purnavataras. The remaining are said to be
amshavataras (partial manifestation) in different degrees.
Dharma Sastras: Dharma sastras include smritis and the four sutras - Dharma
sutras, Grhya Sutras, Sulba Sutras and Srauta Sutras. The sutras are laid down for
each Vedic sakha/branch. Dharma sutras contain the guidelines to live a Dharmic
life. Grhya sutras contain specific guidelines to Grhasthas. Srauta sutras contain
guidelines for performing rituals. Sulba sutras contain the mathematical principles
for construction of various altars. Smritis including metrical codes like Manusmriti,
and Puranas are also called Dharma sastras.
Vedic Religion
Mantra is central to Vedic religion. Mantra is said to be the sound-form (vak-rupa) of
the God-form. Yajna is central to Vedic philosophy. All life performed as a Yajna
(sacrifice making an offering to derive something greater) is the means to Moksha.
Each action, education, earning, eating, sleeping, procreation, war, worship, is a
Yajna. Doing each of these as an offering through which transcendence is sought,
guarantees liberation. There are different approaches like Tatva Chintana, Upasana,
Yajna and so on where aspects like Mantra or Rituals or devotion become more
important or less important for each of those paths.

2.7 Darsanas
There are six Vedic Darsanas, or windows to Truth. They are Nyaya, Vaiseshika,
Sankhya, Yoga, Purva Mimamsa and Uttara Mimamsa. Uttara Mimamsa is also called
Vedanta Darsana.
All the six darsanas have these elements in common: They hold that Atman is
different from manas, buddhi and prakriti. Atman is eternal and free, and liberation
is not mixing it or mistaking it for others. They differ in the technicalities like how
binding comes and the methods and meaning of liberation. They commonly hold
Veda as the highest authority on Truth. They are not unanimous in accepting the
existence and nature of Iswara.
Pramana is a source of knowledge, as well as a reference for validation of
knowledge. What make all these darsanas Vedic, is that they hold Veda as a
pramana. The other pramanas are pratyaksha, anumana, upamana, ardhapatti,
anupalabdi. All the six pramanas are accepted by both Mimamsa Darsanas. Nyaya
accepts four of them, Vaiseshika two, Sankhya three, Yoga three. Prathyaksha and
Sabda are the two common pramanas for all these darsanas.
There are three different approaches that these darsanas follow: arambha vada,
parinama vada and vivarta vada. Roughly, Arambha vada holds that universe is
created. Parinama vada holds that universe is not created or destroyed but it only
transforms. Particularly, it is transformation of the manifesting form of the
immutable God. Vivarta vada holds that Universe as it appears is but because of the
observer and it appears so, because of Maya, the play of veil. What it actually is, is
Brahman and once that is realized the illusion is no more there (meaning it puts an
end to the sense-perception of universe and not an end to the universe as such).
However, Vedanta darsana is further interpreted according to the lights of seers.
And they have become different darsanas over time. The famous ones are Advaita
Vedanta, Visistadvaita and Dvaita. There are many other darsanas, such as
Dvaitadvaita, Bhedabheda, Suddhadvaita, Nakuleesa Pasupata, Pratyabhijnana and
so on. Advaita Vedanta holds six pramanas and is purely a Vedanta (having spiritual
philosophy) darsana. It holds vivarta vada. Dvaita and Visistadvaita accept three
pramanas, pratyaksha, anumana and sabda (Sruti). Visistadvaita holds parinama
vada. Dvaita in particular is called Tatva-vada, which deals with the Tatvas of the
universe. There are Saiva schools such as Saiva, which also hold dvaita or dualism.
Bauddha and Jaina accept two pramanas, pratyaksha and anumana. Carvaka
accepts pratyaksha alone. This is the reason that they are not counted as Vedic
darsanas.
Sayana Madhavacarya, created a compilation of sixteen darsanas. They are as
follows:
1 Gautama Darsana (Nyaya)
2 Kanada Darsana (Vaiseshika)
3 Kapila Darsana (Sankhya)
4 Patanjala (Yoga darsana)
5 Jaimini darsana (Purva Mimamsa)
6 Sankara Darsana (Advaita Vedanta)

7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16

Ramanuja Darsana (Visistadvaita)

Purna Prajna Darsana (Dvaita of Madhvacarya)
Panineeya Darsana (Vyakarana)
Nakuleesa Pasupata
Saiva Darsana
Rasesvara Darsana
Pratyabhijnana Darsana
Bauddha Darsana
Arhata Darsana (Jaina)
Carvaka/Nastika Darsana

Of these, Pasupata of Nakuleesa, Saiva, Rasesvara and Pratyabhijnana are Saiva

Darsanas. Purna Prajna and Ramanuja darsanas are Vaishnava Darsanas. There are
other Vaishnava darsanas too, such as the Suddhadvaita of Vallabhacarya (which is
also called Pushti marga), Bhedabheda (Gaudiya Vaishnava), Dvaitadvaita of
Nimbarkacarya. These philosophies are closely knit with religious practices and
theology. The others are more of spiritual philosophies knit with specific sastras and
world-views. We can see that Vyakarana of Panini, which is essentially a Vedanga, is
also acknowledged as a Darsana. This is because Vyakarana is the science of
purifying word and word is the one that gets us to understanding the world.
Spiritual philosophy means Vedantic worldview. It essentially deals with individual
soul (jiva), supreme Godhead (para) and nature (prakriti); explains the nature of
those, their relation. It also defines what liberation means and what the state of
bondage is, along with what causes liberation. Uttara Mimamsa and Advaita
Vedanta are examples of Vedantic worldviews.
However, many schools have developed along with spiritual philosophy, elaborate
methods and practices that help individuals liberation. Yoga is a good example for
this.
Some spiritual philosophies have not developed separately but closely related to
theology and religious practices, the way Visistadvaita developed hand in hand with
Sri Vaishnava. They are almost inseparable. Same holds with Saiva Darsanas like
Pasupata and Saiva. Worship of deity, theology of the deity, paths to salvation, how
God manifests in phenomenal world, are contained in these in addition to Vedantic
worldview.
Darsanas like Vaiseshika or Vyakarana for instance, are spiritual philosophies knit
with sastras. It contains a worldview, how the sastra explains the phenomenal
world, along with definition of how jiva is bound in the phenomenal world and what
causes liberation. While Vaiseshika enumerates the world in terms of viseshas or
attributes, vyakarana being sabda sastra sees the world as a manifestation of
sound-energy and gives ways to refine words to make the sacrifice (yajna) of life
fruitful.
The Six Vedic Darshanas
There are six Darshanas (windows to Truth) that treat Veda as authority. They are
called aastika darshanas. They are Nyaya, Vaiseshika, Sankhya, Yoga, Purva

Mimamsa and Uttara Mimamsa. There are six nastika darshanas that do not accept
the Veda as authority and are called nastika darsanas.
The astika darsanas can be grouped into three pairs Nyaya-Vaiseshika, SankhyaYoga, Purvottara Mimamsa. Nyaya and Vaiseshika are called arambha vada.
Sankhya and Yoga are called parinama vada. Purva and Uttara Mimamsa discuss
philosophy of Veda. Purva Mimamsa discusses the philosophy of karma kanda and
Uttara Mimamsa discusses the spiritual philosophy (esp. Upanishads). Nyaya, Yoga
and Uttara Mimamsa say that there is an Isvara the Lord of All souls. The other three
are Nireeswara vaadas. They talk of Atman, but not of Paramatman. Nireeswara
vaada is not necessarily nastika vaada and these darsanas do lay equal amount of
stress on Dharma and that is the reason they are called aastika darsanas and not
because they accept a Parabrahman different from individual atman. They differ in
their basic tenets like Isvara.
All these darsanas hold that atman is different from manas(mind), buddhi (intellect)
and prakruti (nature) and that binding is because of the contact of these with the
Purusha. Once the contact is rid, that is liberation. They differ in which of these
causes binding, what causes creation and whether creation is an appearance or true
in a given state. They also differ in whether atman is same as Brahman or not.
Differentiating these and understanding the uniformity of these is very important
both in understanding Hinduism as well as differentiating Hindu from non-Hindu
ideology. Here is a brief note of each darsana.
Vaiseshika
Text Vaiseshika darsana; Author Kanada; Bhashya kaara - Prasasta Pada; Vartika
kaara Jagadidh Bhattacary.
It has 10 chapters, 20 ahnikas, 370 sutras. It accepts 2 pramanas (criteria for
verifiability) and 7 padarthas. Vaiseshika is one of the earliest darsanas
hypothesised. According to it, atma-manas contact causes the nine Gunas buddhi,
sukha, dukha, iccha, dvesha, prayatna, dharma, adharma, sanskara. This is the
samsara for atman. Realising this and separating mind from atman so that the
Gunas get dissolved and do not arise again, is Moksha. This is possible through
satkarma, sravana, manana and so on. According to Vaiseshika darsana, Gunanasha forever is moksha.
Nyaya
Text Nyaya darsana; Author Gotama; Bhashya kaara Vatsayana; Vartika kaara
Udyota kaara. It has 5 chapters, 10 ahnikas and 528 sutras. It accepts 4 pramanas
and 16 padarthas.
According to Nyaya, midhya jnana (nascience) causes sansara and tatva jnana
(gnosis) brings liberation. Destroying misery (dukha) forever is Moksha. Jiva is
different from Isvara. Isvara is a nominal (nimitta karana) cause for creation, the
substantial cause of creation is paramaanus (upadana karana). Jivas are multiple
because of multiple bodies (sareera). But Iswara is one. Iswara created the Veda.
It is called Nyaya because it is constituted of five laws Pratijna, Hetu,
Udaharana, Upanaya, Nigamana. Nyaya includes formal logic and modes of
scientific debate. It explains the logical constructs like antecedent and laws of

implying. It expounds various modes of scientific debate and methods for debate,
like tarka, vitanda, chala, jalpa and so on.
Sankhya
Text Sankhya darsana, Sankhya karikas; Author Narayana avatara Kapila gave 25
sutras and Vaiswanara avatara Kapila gave 6 chapters. Disciple line of the latter
Kapila Asuri, Panca Sikhacarya, Iswara Krishna. Iswara Krishna wrote the Sankhya
Karikas with 70 aryavrittas. Bhashya to these are given by Gauda pada. Vartika is
given by Vijnana Bhikshu. It accepts 3 pramanas and 25 tatvas (principles).
Sankhya too, is an old school. It says that binding is bevause of mistaking Prakruti
for Purusha. Realising their difference is liberation. As such, binding and liberation
are for the Prakruti and not Purusha. They appear on the Purusha because of
contact with Prakruti. Nyaya recognizes Iswara. The world is true. Purusha is asanga
and chidrupa, not touched by creation or action. He is Jnana rupa, but not
Jnanasraya. That is, Purusha is himself knowledge and not seen as a result of
knowledge. In liberated state Purusha is neither jada nor ananda rupa. Multiple
Purushas exist. There is no single Iswara, and Prakruti Herself does creation. Sukha,
dukha and moha are because of the three gunas (satva, rajas, tamas).
Yoga
Text Yoga sutras; Author Patanjali; Bhashya Badarayana; Vartika Vijnana
Bhikshu. It has 4 padas and 194 sutras. It accepts 3 pramanas and 25 tatvas.
According to Yoga, mistaking buddhi for Purusha causes binding. Realising their
difference is liberation. Purusha is asanga and chidrupa. Buddhi satva has three
qualities (satva-rajas-tamo gunas) and it attracts Purusha. Atman separated from
buddhi and its qualities is Moksha. Yoga of eight limbs (yama, niyama, asana,
pratyahara, pranayama, dharana, dhyana, Samadhi) gets one to Samadhi state. By
the grace of Iswara too one gets to Samadhi state. One can realize the buddhi
atman difference in that state. Avidya is binding and jnana is Kaivalya (liberation).
Binding and liberation are for buddhi and not for atman, they only appear over the
atman. Iswara is one.
Purva Mimamsa
Text Purva Mimamsa darsana; Author Jaimini; Bhashya Sabara Swamy; Vartika
Kumarila Bhatt. It has 16 chapters in the adhikarana way. It accepts 6 pramanas.
Purva Mimamsa is also called Karma-Mimamsa.
Dharma develops by performing Vedic rituals. By refraining from prohibited deeds
and actions inspired by desires, one can be cleansed from sins. It leads to a state
beyond dharma and adharma. After experiencing the result of past karma, body
(sareera) dies. If the state beyond dharma and adharma is attained by then, the
atman does not assume sareera any more. Thus liberation from sareera forever is
Moksha. Moksha is a result of nivritti dharma. One can get to swarga (heaven) by
pravritti. Atman is different from those like sareera and indriyas (sense organs).
There is no Iswara separate from atman. Atman is jnanasraya but not jnanarupa.
That is, atman can be known through jnana but is not jnana itself. Veda is accepted
as pramana in Purva Mimamsa. Atma-manas contact causes the nine Gunas (spoken

of by Vaiseshika). In liberated state when atman liberates from contact with manas,
gunas get dissolved. Atman is jada rupa in that state.
Uttara Mimamsa
Text Brahma sutras; Author Vyasa; Bhashya Adi Sankara; Vartika Narayana
Saraswati. It has 4 chapters, 16 padas and 555 sutras. It accepts 6 pramanas
(pratyaksha, anumana, upamana, agama, ardhapatti, anupalabdi) and 25 tatvas.
According to Uttara Mimamsa, binding is lack of discrimination between atman and
non-atman. From knowledge of atman and its true nature, ignorance is dissolved.
Experiencing it as nirguna (without qualities), advaya (one without second), and
Brahman is Moksha. Jiva-Iswara difference is because of nascience. Once that goes,
the natural unity of Jiva-Para realizes. Until the unity is realized, Jagat
(world/universe) is true. Jagat appears over Brahman. Once that is realized, the
world is an illusion (mithya) and only Brahman remains. Brahman is the
undifferentiated (abhinna), nominal (nimitta) and substantial (upadana) cause for
creation. Thus, Uttara Mimamsa holds the indefinable nature of Brahman. Purushas
are not multiple. There is one Iswara and Prakruti does not create by Herself She
does it for and inspired by Iswara.

2.8 Smritis
Vedic literature is primarily of two types, sruti and smriti. The Veda is called sruti
and is the highest authority. Other texts are called smritis, and they derive authority
from the sruti. Sruti is apaurusheya, and smritis are the words of seers.
Smritis could be broadly classified as
1 Vedangas subjects required to understand various aspects of the Veda
2 Upavedas arts and sciences
3 Upangas understanding of dharma and debating it
4 Darsanas windows to truth
5 The other sastras
These are not mutually exclusive classes. For instance, Nyaya and Mimamsa are
Darsanas as well as Upangas. Dharma sutras are included in Vedanga Kalpa as well
as Dharma Sastras (Upanga).
Types of Smritis
Based on the nature of knowledge, the smriti literature is of two types: one that
expounds sastra and one that outlines codes of conduct. While texts like Manusmriti
and Puranas contain both types of knowledge, there are specific texts for specific
purposes. Texts like Paniniya Astadhyayi (Vyakarana), Gautama Sutras (Nyaya),
Tarka Samgraha (tarka) expound specific sastras. Dharma Sutras and similar
literature expound codes of conduct, judiciary etc.
Sutra and Metrical forms
Based on the method of organizing the text, the smriti literature is of two forms:
sutra and metrical. Sutra method is a concise way of stating information, where
entire text is arranged in a sequence of rules. A rule below borrows context from the
above ones, unless stated otherwise. Thus, the size of text reduces considerably
because every sutra is not an independent statement and a lot of text common to
sutras is thus eliminated. For instance texts like Astadhyayi, Dharma Sutras follow
the sutra method.
The non-sutra texts are more descriptive, so each statement is unambiguous in its
meaning. These are in sloka (poetry) or prose form, but most of the texts are in
sloka form. Examples are Manusmriti and Itihasa Puranas.
Further, a set of sutras slokas or names are referenced with the first word of a
beginning sutra and last word of ending sutra along with the count of sutras. This
way pointers to huge amount of information is linked to with small text.
Examples:
1 The alphabet is referred to as a adi ksha anta, meaning beginning with a
and ending with ksha.
2 The entire procedure for constructing a temple is referred to as karshanadi
pratisthantam, beginning with karshana and ending with pratistha.
3 The 16 step procedure for worship is called dhayavahadi shodashopacara,
that is the sixteen steps beginning with dhyana and avahana.
4 The sloka to refer to all the 18 puranas goes:
ma dwayam bha dwayam caiva bra trayam va catustayam

ana pa ku ska linga antam

Meaning the names of two puranas start with ma (matsya and markandeya), two
with bha (bhavishya, bhagavata), three with bra (brahmanda, brahma, brahma
vaivarta), four with va (vamana, varaha, Vishnu, vayu), one each with a (agni), na
(narada), pa (padma), ku (kurma), ska (skanda) and linga.
Goal of Smriti
The smritis aim at outlining and giving a picture of how to live life in a way to fulfill
the purpose of life, thus make life meaningful. They also aim at reflecting Vedic
worldview in daily life. The functions smritis prescribe regulate life closest to natural
laws as seen in the Veda.
Spirit of Dharma Sastras
Dharma Sastra is a guideline that outlines ideal practices. Smriti keeps in mind that
real life is not however ideal, and recommends what is best. There is always a
deviation from smriti, and the goal is to be as close to it as possible. Common man
is always between the two extremes questioning the smriti and following each
principle without fail. What smriti attempts is to direct common man towards giving
his best try to follow the smriti. In case of a deviation, smriti also advocates ways
how one can correct himself and fall back in line.
This is why, while we find smriti saying what is not to be done, it also says how to
deal in cases of things happening otherwise. For instance, having said one should
not have extramarital relation, it says what should be legally done in cases of such
relation and offspring of such relations (such as property, inheritance). Having said
a Brahmin should not drink, it explains how a drunkard should be dealt with in
various situations. This shows that while outlining what is best, smriti takes into
consideration all combinations in which things can happen (which are in agreement
or disagreement with smriti), and explains how to deal with all those situations.
Thus smriti is thoroughly founded in life and society and is not an out of the world
text. Also, because of the flexibility it thus offers, it applies to all times with the
fewest modifications. In fact it should be said that the modifications needed to make
smriti suit any kind of times are much smaller than the level of deviation from it
otherwise existent in the society (which is deviation for those times itself).
Further, smriti seeks to present with clarity the rights and wrongs of a situation
along with dos and donts. While describing the actions of most righteous (as in
case of Itihasa Puranas) it demonstrates how one can realize ideals in life. It also
clarifies the dilemmas and confusions man faces in various life situations and
explains what its stand is and why.
Thus smriti is a comprehensive guide to life that defines goals of life, gives methods
to achieve them, clarifies where there are confusions, and explains how to stick to
those goals and how to correct oneself if one is going wrong in the path. It also
outlines social design such as various stages of life, functions of man and woman,
various classes/sections of the society, polity, administration, judiciary and polity.

2.9 Agamas
Agama is from the root gam which means to come. Sruti, the eternal word, is of
two forms Nigama (Veda) and Agama. Origin of portions of Agamas could be
traced to the Vedic literature, and are regarded by those like Vyasa. Veda is said to
be Prabhu-sammitam (The Kinglike Authority), and Agama could be called
Aptavakya (dear ones word). Narada Pancaratra, a Vaishnava Agama, could be
traced back to the Santi Parva of Mahabharata. Agamas extensively contain
samputikaranas and many of the mantras used could be found in the Veda.
Agamas, like the Veda, have come down through Guru-Sishya parampara, as an oral
tradition.
Agamas are regarded Vedic, and Agamas regard themselves Vedic. Many mantras in
the Agamas are found in the Veda. We find many Vedic mantras put into various
combinations (samputikaranas) in these Tantras. Example: Vana Durga chapters in
Rudra Yamala Tantra use the mantras of Durga Sukta for most of the sequences.
Durga Sukta is found in Taittiriya Aranyaka, which again is a collection of Riks
scattered in different places in the Samhita. Many of the procedures for rituals too,
acould be directly found in Kalpa Sutras. Example: Mantras of rituals for Pratistha in
Vaikhanasa Agamas could be traced directly to Vaikhanasa Kalpasutras.
Contents of Agamas
Agamas are said to contain Tantra, Mantra and Yantra.
Mantra is the word-form of energy. It is the means/basis for both Yantra and Tantra.
Yantra: Yantra is basically a contrivance, charged with the power of a mantra. It
could be a geometric shape as in case of devata yantra or just any instrument as in
case of an astra. It is the tool. The nature of Yantra depends on its purpose sought
to be served.
Each devata is said to have a Yantra, a specific geometric shape that represents the
nature of energy of the devata. For temporary purposes and worshipping, it could
be drawn on clean floor with turmeric or some other powder, or for installations it
could be carved on metal plates. The Yantra is worshipped and charged with
corresponding mantra. It is treated to be devata, and is worshipped the way devata
is worshipped. More specifically, Yantra represents the entire vicinity, including the
deitys consorts, associated persons, powers etc. So the worship is an elaborate
ritual consisting of propitiation of each of those.
There are variations in the Yantra of a devata, when used for different purposes.
Tantra: Tantra is a procedure, which puts mantra to specific use. It is the method as
well as philosophy (Tatva-Mantra samanvaya). It elaborates procedures that a
sadhaka should follow, and the results of each practice. Thus Tantra is the superset
and is therefore synonymous to Agama.
There are three divisions in Tantra, dakshina vama and madhyama. They are said to
be the satwic, rajasic and tamasic forms of Tantra respectively. Dakshinacara
prescribes practices of mind. Vamacara involves physical codes and practices to

vitalize energy centers in the body. The panca makaras, matsya, mamsa, maithuna,
madya and mudra are also practiced in some vamacara Tantras.
Thus mantra, Yantra and Tantra are not exclusive; they are interconnected. Mantra
is the energy. Yantras are geometric shapes that define the workings of various
kinds of energies. Tantra deals with the philosophy and methods. However, both
Yantra and Tantra use Mantras. Tantra involves methods and practices through
which the practitioner uses the energy to serve a purpose, while Yantra uses
tools/shapes that are charged by the power of mantra.
Thus, Agamas are procedures for serving various purposes, along with means and
methods.
Agamas expound a variety of subjects and could be called the guides to a huge
range of Hindu practices. They contain
Manuals for worship
Methods for salvation, Yoga
Devata, Yantra
Prayogas using various mantras
Temple Building, Town planning
Iconometry
Domestic practices and civil codes
Social/Public festivals
Holy Places
Elements of Universe, Creation and Dissolution
Philosophies (Tatvas)
Worlds
Austerities
and many other interrelated subjects.
Each
1
2
3
4

Agamas contains four parts or padas into which these subjects are classified Jnana Knowledge
Yoga Meditation methods etc
Kriya Rituals
Carya Moral codes etc

Agamas are primarily used by three religions Vaishnava, Saiva and Sakta.
Vaishnava Agamas
The Vaishnava Agamas regard Vishnu as the supreme Godhead. They are said to
have come from the mouth of Vishnu Himself. There are hundreds of Vaishnava
Agamas. Boradly they could be classified as Panacratra and Vaikhanasa. Pancaratra,
as the name suggests, involve a five-fold ritual schedule. There are about 200-225
Pancaratra texts. Vaikhanasa agamas are taught by Vikhana to his disciples like
Marichi and Bhrigu.
A few Vaishnava Agamas: Isvara, Ahirbudhnya, Narada, Hayasirsha, Paushkara,
Satvata, Jnanamrita sara.

Saiva Agamas
Saiva Agamas hold Siva as the supreme Godhead. There are 28 Saiva Agamas and
they could be classified into two classes: 10 Siva bheda and 18 Rudra bheda
Agamas. Further, the 28 are classified into four classes: Kapala, Kalamukha,
Pasupata, Saiva. The last kind (Saiva) is further classified into two subclasses
Kasmira Saiva and Siddhanta Saiva. Kasmira Saiva is in vogue in the North and
Siddhanta Saiva in South India. Each Saiva Agama has supplements/additional
fragments called Upa-Agamas.
A few Saiva Agamas to mention: Kamika, Vira, Parameswara, Swayambhuva.
Sakta Agamas
Sakta Agamas hold Sakti as the supreme Godhead. These Tantras are of two kinds,
Vama and Dakshina. There are said to be 64 Sakta Agamas, but the number could
be much more. Many of these are in the form of Siva-Sakti conversations.
A few Sakta Agamas to mention: Kularnava, Rudra Yamala, Brahma Yamala, Vishnu
Yamala, Maha Nirvana.
Tantras and Vedas
Certain Tantric practices, esp. extreme side of vamavara Tantra however, are in
direct contradiction to some of the Vedic literature (Kalpa Sutras, esp. Grihya and
Dharma Sutras, as well as smritis like Manusmriti).
However, it is not the mantras that differentiate. The methods used the practices
that supplement, the spirit in which they are practiced and the purpose of those
practices determines whether a Tantric practice is in accordance with the smritis.
Some Tantras are just Vedic. Some have elements and practices that are not
supported by the Vedic literature, but are not against Vedic spirit. Some contain
practices that are not condemned by Veda but are not practiced in a way that
following Vedic literature (esp. Vedanga kalpa) prescribes. Some contain practices
that not in accordance with smritis, in varying degrees.
For example, vamacara Tantras prescribe five makaras, which are five practices like
eating meat and sexual union. While smritis do not prohibit these per se, what
differentiates vamacara Tantras from smriti-prescribed practices and make them
unvedic, is the purpose and context of those practices. The Vedic literature gives
utmost importance to brahmacarya. Sexual union is allowed only for a grhastha and
that too, the primary purpose is said to be begetting children. Even a grhastha is
advised to abstain on specified days (nindyas and parvas) and is said to derive the
merit of brahmacarya by that (Manu 3.50, 2.176-181, 6.26). Prajanana (procreation)
is to be seen as a yajna. By contrast in vamacara Tantra, sexual union is a method,
is an element of spiritual practice/sadhana. Procreation is not the purpose here. So
sexual union, as done in vamacara Tantra is against the spirit of smritis. It is the
same with other practices. Meat is to be taken only as the fruit of yajna, according
to Vedic prescriptions, while they are methods/elements of sadhana in vamacara
Tantra. Alcohol is not prescribed by smritis either (Manu 3.159). Thus, it is not
necessarily a practice; it is its context and purpose that differentiates.

This said, it should be noted that extreme practices in Tantra such as sitting with
corpses, are really not the core of Tantra. Tantra is basically philosophy of spiritual
practice, and does not have a negative connotation as such. This is evident from the
fact that the word Tantra is used in many places like Sankhya Karikas (70),
Sankarsha Kanda, a supplement to Karma Mimamsa (1.1.3) and also by men like Adi
Sankara (he calls Sankhya a Tantra). In all these places, Tantra is used as a general
word for method/philosophy rather than as something undesirable. The bulk of
Tantra deals with varied subjects, and contains sublime spiritual philosophy that is
found in all other literature/schools of Hinduism. It also contains many spiritual
practices like japa, homa, arcana, encapsulated into various sets of procedures.
Entire science of temple, its practices, construction, rules are from these, and are in
no contradiction to the Vedic spirit. In fact, the practices that were ill-suited to times
were improvised with alternate forms of worship in these texts.
Present day Hinduism
In the present form of Hinduism, we should say that there are no elements in the
mainstream and temple worship that are far from Vedic. There was a time when
many unvedic practices were prevalent and it was really tough to differentiate, but
great reformers like Adi Sankara have reformed the system and expelled many
practices from the mainstream Hinduism that are either totally unvedic in spirit or
are not condemned by the Veda but do not suit the times. Men like him toured
Bharata varsha and pacified Sakti worshipped in almost every famous temple that
was there, and made those places for Vedic forms of worship. Many practices like
Kapalika and tamasic forms of Sakta were prevalent and many of them were
marginalized by Adi Sankara. There were also many practices that were not strictly
prohibited by the Veda, such as jantu bali in the temples. These too, were
eliminated to suit the spirit of changing times. At the same time, Tantra as such was
not downplayed for Sankara himself had great knowledge of Tantra. Only the
undesirable practices were removed. They do exist today, but are found mostly
outside the mainstream. The temple practices especially, are refined and reformed
to a great extent and do not contain any of the extreme practices.

3. Vedic Religion
3.1 Schools of Spiritual Philosophy (Vedanta)
The curriculum for Vedanta or Spiritual philosophy is called Prasthana Trayi, it
consists of BhagavadGita, Upanishads, and Brahma Sutras. Bhagavad Gita is the
compendium on spiritual philosophies by Sri Krishna. Upanishads are found in
Aranyaka portion of the Veda. Of the 108 Upanishads, ten important ones are
studied. Brahma sutras are given by Badarayana.
There are three major schools of Spiritual Philosophy (Vedanta) in Hinduism. They
are Advaita, Dwaita and Visistadwaita. All the three accept the authority of texts
and sources of knowledge. They are different interpretations of the Vedantic texts.
The cause and method of creation, the relation between jiva and Iswara, the role of
Prakriti are seen differently by these schools. The major proponents of these schools
(Sankara in case of Advaita, Ramanuja in case of Visistadvaita and Madhva in case
of Dvaita) have written commentaries on the prasthana trayi.
However, though these are the major ones, there are many other schools like
Gaudiya Vaishnava (Bhedabheda), Vallabha Sampradaya (Shuddhadvaita) and
Nimbarka Sampradaya (Dvaitadvaita).
There are three major concepts (vaadas) that explain the cause of universe:
Arambha, Parinama and Vivarta. In Arambha vada universe is seen as eternal. In
Parinama vada Brahman is said to create/become the Universe. In Vivarta Vada
Brahman is said to be without change but only appear as the Universe, through the
play of maya.
In the six darsanas, Nyaya and Vaiseshika are Arambha vada. Sankhya and Yoga
hold Parinama Vada. Mimamsa, esp. Uttara Mimamsa is said to contain Vivarta
Vada. The dwaitic schools of Vedanta too, hold Parinama vada. According to them
God becomes or creates the Universe just the way a spider creates its web from its
body. In Vivarta Vada the Universe is not created or destroyed it only appears as it
is, by the play of Maya. Realizing Brahman puts an end to the apparent.
The cause of creation or any phenomenon (karana) is said to be of two kinds
nimitta (nominal) and upadana (substantial). If we take the famous example of
making a pot, the potter is said to be the nominal cause, and mud which is the
substance of pot is said to be the substantial cause.

Advaita
Advaita is the oldest school. Adi Sankara is the latest best exponent of the Advaita
philosophy. There are some schools that differentiate Advaita as Sankara and
Sankara-Purva (the one that existed before Sankara) advaita.
Advaitins accept all the six pramanas, pratyaksha, anumana, upamana, arthapatti,
sabda and anupalabdi.
Advaita is found as an independent school of spiritual philosophy, not closely
related to any of the religions. Many flavors of religions including Saiva, Sakta,
Tantra (though all these are not mutually exclusive), are advaitic in nature.
Brahman Jiva Maya
Advaita, especially Sankara Advaita completely stands by Vivarta Vada. Universe is
empirically true vyavaharika satya. But it is not what it appears to be. It appears
so, because of the veil caused by Maya. This is of two types, veiling (covering the
Truth) and projection (appearing to be True). These are called avarana and vikshepa.
Maya is neither real nor unreal, it is inexplicable. It is not real because it ceases to
exist when Brahman is realized. It is not unreal in the empirical sense. Maya is the
cause of creation. Brahman is the nominal cause (nimitta karana) for creation,
Maya does creation. The substantial cause (upadana karana) for creation too, is
Brahman. The only difference the pot-potter example has from creation is that the
substance of creation is same as that of the potter. Thus Brahman is not only
nimitta and upadana but also abhinna (undifferentiated) karana for creation.
Jivatma, the individual soul, is nothing but Brahman. It is untouched, unmanifest,
neither conscious nor unconscious, beyond qualities (nirguna), and advaya (the one
without the second). It is only witness of action and experiences, but not the one
that experiences. Avidya (nascience) caused by Maya is cause for binding. This is
the reason for atma appearing as non-atma. Differentiating atma from non-atma
and thus realizing atma, is liberation.
Moksha
Moksha is realizing oneself to be atma and atma to be Brahman. The Jiva is already
liberated in its true nature thus realizing the true nature of oneself (jiva) is
liberation. Thus, one can be liberated even though one is wearing a body. This is
called jivanmukti (getting liberated even while living in a body). Videha mukti is
achieved eventually, after jiva leaves the body.

Visistadvaita
Visistadvaita is qualified non-dualism. Though the school existed much earlier,
Ramanujacarya was the best proponent of the school. Hence it came to be known
as Ramanuja darsana. Specifically, his commentary on Brahma Sutras is called Sri
Bhashya.
Visistadvaita is closely related to Sri Vaishnava, hence it is seen more as a
philosophy of religion rather than an independent spiritual philosophy that is
followed by any religion.
Visistadvaita as the term indicates is Advaita that accepts viseshas. Visistadvaitins
accept basic advaita or non-duality of jiva and para. In the liberated state jiva is
para. Jiva has viseshas of consciousness in unliberated state, unlike in Advaita
where jiva is just a witness even in unliberated state (in fact liberation is not for the
jivatma, it is for the entity jiva consisting of sukshma sarira etc, which is bound by
Prakriti or Maya).
Visistadvaitins accept three pramanas or sources for knowledge pratyaksha,
anumana, sabda.
There are three Tatvas (Tatva-traya) Isvara, Jiva and Prakriti. Isvara or Brahman is
the only independent reality. Jiva and Prakriti are realities dependent on Brahman.
Isvara
Both nirguna brahman and Isvara are accepted and worshipped. Entire world is the
play or lila of Isvara. And Isvara hence could be worshipped as sakara. This can also
be understood in the light that Visistadvaita is religion + philosophy. Both upasana
and Vedanta are closely knit.
The eternal is said to be five-fold, and worshipped in these five forms:
Para The eternal being. This is Sri Maha Vishnu in times of non-creation in
Vaikuntha, sleeping in the coils of infinity.
Vyuha The one with four aspects, Sankarshana, Vasudeva, Pradyumna and
Aniruddha (Vishnu Sahasranama praises Him as caturvyuha, or having four vyuhas).
Antaryamin The One (as soul) that pervades all creation.
Vibhava The glorious incarnations of God, such as Sri Rama and Sri Krishna.
Arca The forms of worship, such as incarnations, idols. Example of Arca-avatara is
Venkateswara.
Jiva
Jiva (individual soul) is said to be anu (indivisible), avyakta (unmanifest), acintya
(unthinkable), nirvikara (having no distortion or transformation) and jnanasraya (the
abode of knowledge). Jiva is an indivisible part of Isvara.
There are three types of Jivas, bound, liberated and eternal. Any Jiva prior to
liberation or moksha is said to be bound. Post liberation the Jiva is mukta, and
merges in Isvara. There are eternal jives too, that are not bound but exist such as
devatas, consorts, servants, vehicles of Vishnu (Garuda, Java-Vijaya etc).
Prakriti

Prakriti is the cause of manifestation. It causes the three consciousness qualities,

satva, rajas and tamas. There are two forms of satva, suddha satva and misra
satva. Suddha satva is one that is not touched by rajas and tamas this is the one
that manifests in Vaikuntha, creating the eternal beings like Garuda and Ananta.
This is said to be nitya vibhuti. The phenomenal world is caused by misra satva, a
combination of all the three qualities. This is said to be lila vibhuti.
Moksha
Visistadvaita does not accept the jivanmukti concept of Advaita. According to
Visistadvaita, liberation is possible only after the jiva leaves the body. There are
different types in this. One is reaching Isvara after death. Another is reaching higher
worlds (like swarga) after death, and moving to still higher worlds and ultimately
reaching Isvara sannidhya. This is called krama (gradual, stepwise) mukti.
There are four kinds of Isvara sannidhya, in ascending order of evolution:
Salokya Living in the world of Isvara (ex. Vaikuntha)
Sameepya Living close to Isvara
Sarupya Looking just like Isvara
Sayujya Becoming one with Isvara
Moksha sadhana
There are three concepts in path to liberation, Tatva, hita and purushartha. Tatvas
are three as discussed. Hita is fivefold, swa-swarupa (knowing the nature of self),
para-swarupa (knowing the nature of the eternal), purushartha swarupa (fulfillment
of purposes or goals of life dharma, Artha, kama and moksha), upaya swarupa
(means methods or paths to moksha) and virodhi swarupa (obstacles in attainment
of moksha).
There are five avarodhas (virodhi) or obstacles in the path of evolution: Obstacles
in realizing self, in realizing God, in liberation, in following means to realization and
in attainment of goals
Moksha Upaya is fivefold:
Karma this includes karma kanda, panca maha yajnas, dhyana, japa etc.
Jnana This includes vairagya, dhyana, nididhyasana etc found in jnana marga.
Bhakti This includes devotion and worship. There are seven aids for bhakti, viveka
(discrimination and purity), vimoka (detachment), abhyasa (practice), kriya (works,
specifically the panca maha yajnas), kalyana (truthfulness, peace of mind,
gentleness etc), anavasada (untouched by sorrow or disappointment), anuddharsha
(untouched by excitement).
Prapatti (or saranagati) Prapatti is consecration and surrender. This includes
surrender of ego, doing things only to please God and abstaining from all that action
that on the contrary (take one towards worldliness), having faith and attributing
ones own caretaking to Isvara.
Acaryabhimana Having faith in, respecting and following teachers words.

Dvaita
Dvaita vada or the school of dualism is popularized by Madhvacarya, also called
Ananda Tirtha Swami. His darsana is also called Purna prajna darsana, Tatva vada,
Bheda vada, Bimba-pratibimba vada. This school too, is closely related to Vaishnava
mata and Maha Vishnu is held to be the supreme Godhead.
Dvaitins accept three pramanas pratyaksha, anumana, sabda.
There are three Tatvas, Jiva, Isvara and Prakriti. Isvara is the only independent
(swatantra) reality. Jiva and Prakriti are realities dependent (paratantra) on Isvara.
Dependent and independent are the two categories dvaita expounds. Everything
other than Isvara - time, matter or action, is dependent on Isvara. Isvara is sentient
and jiva is sentient. Prakriti is insentient. Jiva is sentient by the grace of Isvara.
Dvaita holds that jiva and para are not one and the same, and that they are
different. Universe is real, and runs by the grace of Isvara. What makes jiva and
prakriti function is also Isvara.
There
1
2
3
4
5

are five differences between Tatvas:

Isvara and jiva
Isvara and Prakriti
Prakriti and jiva
Jiva and another jiva
One element of prakriti and another

Understanding these differences is the qualifying knowledge for mukti.

Dvaita holds multiplicity of jivas. Jivas are multiple, and of three types the ones
that are born, the ones in various worlds above earth, and the liberated. The jivas
are of different levels and capabilities and fall in a hierarchy that ranges from
manushya to Isvara. The gradation is given by Madhvacarya, starting from Vishnu in
the top, followed by Sri Lakshmi, then Brahma and so on till manushyas. Thus
Dvaita is closely knit with theology, along from Tatva and Vedanta.
Vyasa Tirtha, a follower of Madhvacarya condensed Madhva Darsana as:
(i) Vishnu is supreme
(ii) The universe is real and not illusory
(iii) The five differences are real
(iv) The leagues of jivas are subordinates of Vishnu
(v) Jivas are different and of different levels
(vi) Mukti is the experience of ones own innate bliss
(vii) Mukti is achieved through wisdom and devotion to the Supreme
(viii) There are three pramanas - pratyaksha, anumana and agama (sabda)
(ix) Vishnu is the supreme and primary entity described in Veda.
Moksha
There is liberation for jiva, but even liberation does not unite the jiva with Isvara. It
elevates jiva to higher worlds and ends the miseries. In liberated state jiva
experiences existential bliss, and is free from bondage as well as misery. However,
the jiva exists separate from Isvara even in liberated state. Jiva is immutable, and is

bound by misery because of false identification. By realizing the five tatvic

differences one gains wisdom and eventually mukti, by the grace of Isvara.

3.2 Paths to Salvation

There are three paths to salvation; they are called bhakti, jnana and karma yogas.
All aim at the same goal, realization. Man is limited by upadhis (say body or mind),
which are limitations as well as his means in evolution. The three paths prescribe
different methods (though overlapping) to address different faculties and use the
upadhis in different ways, depending on the nature of the seeker, to make him
transcend the upadhis themselves.
Bhakti
One is of devotion (bhakti) where an individual through devotion for God, attains
moksha. This is prescribed for the heart-being. Worship is his method. Devotion
means, bliss and love goals.
Realizing God and becoming one with Him is liberation.
There are two stages or forms of bhakti, gauna and mukhya. The former involves
the three consciousness qualities, the latter is beyond them. Apara and Para bhakti
too, is a similar classification. In the path of evolution the devotee treats devata as
having all the noble qualities, a form, and worships with devotion. As inward looking
develops (antarmukha), he transcends forms and objects. Alongside, he also
transcends desires and attachments. The devotion then takes a para or mukhya
form, where he is no more worshipping but actually merging in the infinite. This is
the same end that a bhakta, jnani and karma yogi arrives at.
There are five forms of Bhakti, in the Vaishnava pantheon santa, dasya, sakhya,
vatsalya, madhura. The first is a calm devotion for God and it mainly aims at
detachment from worldliness. The remaining four involve emotional attachment
with God. Dasya is serving God. Sakhya is treating God as a friend. Vatsalya is
treating God as a child and madhura is treating God as husband. Each one basically
aims at a total surrender, and really there is no distinction in the true nature of
devotion.
There are nine acts of devotion, described in Bhagavata: Sravana (hearing of Gods
lilas and glory), Kirtana (praising Gods glory and his lilas), Smarana (remembering
God throughout), Padasevana (service in general), Arcana (worshiping), Vandana
(bowing), Dasya (serving like a servant), Sakhya (befriending God) and
Atmanivedana (making total surrender).
Thus bhakti uses mind as the upadhi, directs it towards sublimation of its lower
tendencies, through love and devotion.
Jnana
The second is of knowledge (jnana), where one sublimates his lower being through
gaining knowledge. This is for the intellect-being. Study/thought is his method.
Curiosity is his means, Truth goal.
Knowledge of the True and Absolute is liberation.
There are three means in jnana marga, sravana, manana and nidhidhyasana. The
first one is listening to a teacher/learned person (about the True, Brahman). The

next is manana, to remember and reflect on the teaching, its meaning and idea. The
third is to meditate on the Truth spoken of. This eventually leads to discovery of
Truth.
Intellection is the method of jnana marga. Differentiating True from untrue and
making out the True is the way it is done. Tatva (natural philosophy) and Vedanta
(spiritual philosophy) are the subjects to be studied. In general, the Hindu theory is
that any sastra when studied leads to tatvic understanding.
There are four requirements for this. The first is Viveka or discrimination between
True and untrue. This comes with learning. The second is Vairagya or dispassion or
being passive or growing over worldliness. This comes with renunciation of desires.
Unlike in Bhakti yoga where desires are directed towards God and hence sublimated
without suppression, a level of renunciation is necessary in the sadhaka, in this
path. Then concentration and surrender to the purpose, through jijnasa (curiosity) is
needed. These qualities are summarized as the third requirement, named shadsampatti or six possessions. They are sama (peace of mind), dama (restraint),
uparati (being passive to wordliness), titiksha (endurance and perseverance),
sraddha (having single-pointed goal, faith and sincerity), samadhana (being equal
to the duals and unwavering). Mumukshutva or totally surrendered to realization of
Truth or desiring liberation is the fourth requirement.
The stages in evolution are:
1 Being virtuous, thus purifying thought
2 Inquiry into self, thus turning the mind inwards
3 Becoming a mind-being
4 Becoming an intellect-being
5 Total detachment and becoming a blissful being
6 Realization
7 Liberation
In this, it can be seen that the sadhaka climbs the ladder of seven urdhva lokas and
moves into the inner kosas. (More can be seen in the overview on consciousness.)
Karma
The third is of works (karma), where one through fulfillment of responsibilities as an
individual and then serving fellow beings, attains moksha. This is for the social
being. Service is his method. Selflessness is his means, universality, infinity and
permanence goals.
Dispassionate, self-less action is the feature of this path. One should do action that
causes well-being of people, without seeking results for oneself. The fruit of action
should be surrendered to divine. Bhagavad Gita says karmanyeva adhikaraste,
maa phaleshu kadacana meaning one is the master of his actions, but not the
master of the fruit of his actions.
Cause-effect of action is the theory that drives this path. One is supposed to do that
action which not only brings down karma sesha but also does not add to it. Selfless
and detached action is of that kind.

Thus truth-beauty-permanence, the three aspects of eternal are the goals of these
three paths. They are inter-mixing and overlapping paths, with each of them leading
to and merging in the others.

3.3 Shanmatas (Vedic Religions)

Broadly, the religious practices in Sanatana Dharma could be classified into two
Smarta and Tantric. They are not mutually exclusive, and are closely related.
Literally smarta means following smritis. This means the smritis associated with the
Veda, such as the Vedangas and Dharmasastras. Specifically by smarta one means
following dharma sastras. Smarta is a frame of practices, and not a religion. Tantra
is part of the Agamic literature, that developed parallel to the Smarta literature.
There are six major religions or theistic schools, called Shanmatas. They are Saiva,
Vaishnava, Sakta, Saura, Ganapatya and Kaumara. They regard Siva, Vishnu, Sakti,
Surya, Ganapati and Kumaraswamy as the supreme-godhead respectively. These
are not purely theological, and include many other things along with theology, such
as spiritual philosophy and methods of sadhana. Statistically, Saiva, Sakta and
Vaishnava are the major religions and followed all over the country. The other three
are practiced more in specific regions. It also depends on the region which religion is
followed more, because of many factors like the branch of Veda popular in the
region. For instance the followers of Krishna Yajurveda are usually Siva worshippers,
since Sri Rudram is in the middle of Taittiriya Samhita. And the region where Krishna
Yajurveda followers are more, have more smarta-Saivas. While there are many
religions or worshipers of many different devatas, Adi Sankara classified these into
six major schools.
Each of these religions takes elements from theology, spiritual philosophy, smriti,
Tantra. Besides, there are schools in the worship of each devata/religion that take
elements from different Tantras, different spiritual philosophies and different smritis.
For instance Vaishnava itself has different codes, like Vaikhanasa and Pancaratra.
Some flavors of these religions are tightly bound with some spiritual philosophies
and some with methods of sadhana. Thus each religion in fact has a wide range and
different levels of practices. Besides, some flavors of these religions attach more
importance with some of the paths, like bhakti, jnana and karma. A flavor of religion
that attaches more importance to jnana is more bound with a spiritual philosophy. A
flavor of religion that attaches more importance to bhakti is more bound to the
methods of sadhana and so on.
There were brief conflicts between the followers of these religions; mostly they were
debates. Each religion/school made commendable contributions to Hinduism, and
even their debates against each other were enriching to the traditions. They were
very rarely destructive and hate-driven. Most of them are at the philosophical level,
and all the schools have commonly agreed bases such as the authority of Veda,
prasthana trayi, whose interpretations were diverse. Even worship in the schools
has many common aspects.
Smarta: Usually a smriti following person that does not practice any of the specific
religions is called a smarta. This is a broad fold under which any of the religion
naturally falls (though with some exceptions as can be seen). Smartas take
elements mostly from srauta, and practices from Agamas that are in accordance
with smritis. The shanmatas take from Agamas in varying degrees. For instance
flavors of sakta take even those elements that are in contradiction to smriti, such as
the vamacara Tantra. Though different spiritual philosophies are followed, smartas

mostly are advaitins. The worship of smartas usually consists of five devatas
(pancayatana) Siva, Vishnu, Ganapati, Surya and Sakti. This is popularized by Adi
Sankara.
Vaishnava: Vishnu is treated as the Supreme Godhead. He is said to be the sthitikaraka, the eternal and the cause of all states of existence and the pervader. Vishnu
is a Vedic deity. Vaishnavas are almost purely smartas, and the agamas they regard
are Vaikhanasa and Pancaratras. The Vaishnava concept of bhakti is most famous.
They describe five kinds of devotee-God relations, or five forms of devotion to God.
They are santa, dasya, sakhya, vatsalya and madhura. In order, they are calm
devotion, being a servant to God, being a friend of God, treating God as a child and
treating God as husband. Though these in varying degrees are practiced by all
religions they are explicitly categorized by the Vaishnavas. There are also five
different forms in which the Godhead manifests according to Vaishnavas - Para,
Arca, Vibhava, Vyuha and Antaryami.
The two famous Vedantic philosophies Visistadwaita and Dwaita, propounded by
Ramanujacarya and Madhvacarya, are followed by the Vaishnavas. The followers of
Ramanujacarya are Sri Vaishnavas and the followers of Madhvacarya are Madhvas.
There are many different schools in Vishnu-worship or Vaishnava:
Smarta (Bhagavata mata)
Sri Vaishnava (followers of Ramanujacarya - Visistadvaitins)
Sad-Vaishnava (followers of Madhvacarya - Dvaita)
Gaudiya Vaishnava (Bhedabheda)
Vallabha Sampradaya (Shuddhadvaita)
Nimbarka Sampradaya (Dvaitadvaita)
Saiva: Siva is treated as the Supreme Godhead. He is said to be the eternal, and
the first cause of existence. Siva is a Vedic deity. There are many forms of Sivaworship, in smarta as well as Tantra. The smartas who are worshippers of Siva are
usually advaitins. There are dvaita versions of Saiva too. There are many sects in
Saiva, such as Bhairavas, Kapalikas, Veera Saivas. These are worship modes and
worships of different forms of Siva and not different spiritual philosophies. The Saiva
Agamas are twenty eight in number. There are two kinds of Saiva Agamas, Kashmira
and Siddhanta. The former are followed in north and latter in south India.
Sakta: Sakti, the Mother-Godess is treated as the Supreme Godhead. She is said to
be the primal rhythmic energy, and the cause of all manifestation and action. Sakti
could be found in multiple forms in the Veda, like Durga, Gauri, Saraswati, Dakshina,
Bharati and Sri. There are both smarta and Tantric forms of Sakti-worship. The Sakti
worshippers are usually advaitins.
There are ten forms in which Sakti is worshipped, Ganga, Bhavani, Gayatri Kali,
Laksmi, Sarasvati, Rajarajesvari, Bala, Syamala and Lalita.
There are ten forms knowledge of Sakti or Mahavidyas, namely Kali, Tara,
Chinnamasta, Bhuvaneshwari, Bagala, Dhumavati, Kamala, Matangi, Sodasi and
Bhairavi. They include the philosophy, methods of worship with mantra, Yantra and
Tantra.

The worship and knowledge of Sakti, is called Sri Vidya. There are schools like
Pancadasi and Sodasi, which expound the philosophy of Sri Vidya. While Pancadasi
is purely smarta, sodasi being a Mahavidya includes Tantric part too. The Sri Chakra
or Sri Yantra is the one used in Sri Vidya. The devata is called Tripurasundari again
called with names like Lalita and Bala.
Sakti is worshipped in three major forms, as a child or maiden (Bala), as the consort
of Siva (Parvati/Uma) and as Kali. Because of this, many schools worship Siva and
Sakti together.
Saura: Surya is treated as the Supreme Godhead. He is said to be the giver of life,
and the soul of all beings. Surya/Aditya/Savitr is a Vedic deity. Saura is a
comparatively less practiced religion, but was more in practice a few centuries ago.
There are few famous temples of Surya, like the ones in Konark (Orissa) and
Arasavalli (Andhra Pradesh).
Though Saura as an exclusive religion is not very famous, worship of Surya (as
Savitr devata) is done by every practicing Brahmin in his Sandhya vandana thrice a
day. Savitri is the sakti associated. She is said to be in three forms, Gayatri, Savitri
and Saraswati (in the three parts of the day).
Ganapatya: Ganapathi is treated as the Supreme Godhead. He is the leader of all
the forces or the pramadha ganas. In addition, Ganapati is the deity of obstacles
and is to be worshipped before beginning any major work. He is said to reside and
rule the muladhara or the base of energy centers. This is in fact the reason why He
should be worshipped first, before any other deity. Thus, Ganapati is also said to be
all the four forms of vak or word (para-pasyanti-madhyama-vaikhari). Ganapati is
found as Brahmanaspati in the Veda.
Though worshiped all over, exclusive Ganapati worship is found more in
Maharasthra and Karnataka. There are variedly eight, sixteen and thirty two forms
in which Ganapati is worshipped.
Besides, there are many Tantric forms of worship of Ganapati, like Lakshmiganapati,
Pingalaganapati, Uchchishtaganapati and Urdhvaganapati.
Kaumara: Kaumara is the schoold that worships Kumaraswamy. There are two
Vedic forms Agni and Sarpa, which are precursors of Kumaraswamy/Subrahmanya.
He is worshipped more in south India esp. Tamilnadu.
Religion
Vaishnav
a
Saiva
Sakta
Saura

PradhanaDe
vata
Vishnu

Spiritual
Philosophies
Dwaita, Visistadwaita

Agamas

Siva

Advaita

Sakti
Surya

Advaita
-

Kashmira, Siddhanata
Saiva
Sakta Tantras
-

Vaikhanasa, Pancaratra

Ganapat
ya
Kaumara

Ganapathi

Ganapatya Tantras

Kumaraswam
y

4. Core Concepts
4.1 Principle of Transcendence Indian View of Life
Is there an Indian view of life? Let us explore if one such thing exists, if yes what are
its features and how it can be seen in various facets of life.
Education
Education aims at self-mastery and not just knowledge. As Swami Vivekananda
defines, Education is the manifestation of divinity already present in man. It is not
how many texts one has mastered, it is how well one has internalized a single text
that matters.
Traditionally children are taught at early stages to by heart. This is to train Chitta,
the memory. A well trained Chitta forms the basis for self-mastery, not just good
education. This does not mean that analytical faculties are not trained. But memory
is trained ahead of them so that it forms a basis for other faculties.
How does better memory help better analysis? Analysis in itself is a processing of
facts to derive inferences. Thus, considering more relevant facts results in a better
analysis. And a person with better trained memory can consider more facts for his
analysis. Thus, training memory ahead of training analytical faculties is beneficial.
Explicitly training memory as a part of primary education is very essential.
Another important aspect of education is imparting moral education. The seeds of
morality along with trained memory are going to stay with the student for life.
Mythology and stories of great personalities inspire children and help them mould
their character in their footsteps.
Indians are far ahead of others in Consciousness studies. How to master ones own
mental faculties, senses and body, is a very important aspect in leading a
successful life. But if that training comes implicitly along with a good education, that
is the best way it can happen, since it is practically not possible to train one in
consciousness studies at a young age. To train those faculties while they are young
and let them master those by the time they grow up, is exactly what the traditional
system aims at.
Economics
The first paragraph we find in any economics text would be something like this:
"Man has desires. To fulfill them he earns money. His desires multiply, so do his
earnings, thus grows economics." But the traditional Indian principle says: "Desire is
like a burning fire. The more clarified butter you pour into it to fulfill them, the
greater they flame. Therefore the way is not to fulfill them; the way is to transcend
them".
It also says, "idam evahi pandityam, caturyam idam evahi, idam evahi
subuddhitvam, adaya alpataro vyayah" - meaning all wisdom lies in spending less
than what one earns. This is the basis for conservative economics. But one is never
discouraged from earning. In fact, earning is prescribed for many sections of society.
But one is encouraged to spend not more than what is required to live modestly and

use the remaining for the benefit of society. In such a society where everyone is
ready to help each other, there is no scope or fear of poverty.
This does not mean that such an arrangement encourages parasites. Such a system
only encourages people to work for the betterment of themselves as well as others.
Ours is a society that does not know what centralized social security is. Social
security exists, totally at a private level. The west is doing its best to privatize social
security, as its fears of bankruptcy due to social securities from Governments are
going higher every year.
We know how volunteer organizations work - there are some people who work for
the cause and the funds they get to support those volunteers are from the society private contributions. That is, people work for society and society supports those
individuals. Thus, such arrangements do not inherently encourage unemployment
the way publicized social security systems do.
Science and Philosophy of Life
Does Science depend on our view of life? Is there a Hindu view of this? Let us
proceed by considering some instances to see whether Science is independent of
our view of life or otherwise.
1. Creation of zero: Discovery of zero is one of the most important happenings in
the history of Science or Human knowledge in general. Mathematics and many
branches of Science would not be in their present form without zero. It is not just a
numeric zero we speak of, but the numeric zero was the original idea which in later
times inspired the _expression of nothingness in areas like group theory. The
importance of zero in modern Science can never be exaggerated. Formalist and
reductionist approaches which are widely used by Science largely depend on zero
conceptually.
Zero is nothingness, an airy nothing. Creation of zero necessarily shows an attempt
to conceptualise and concretise nothingness. But is an idea to concretise
nothingness an arbitrary idea or an indication of merely one's genius or scientific
temper? Is expressing nothingness a purpose in itself or is it a means to something
else? Simplifying the _expression of big numbers is a smaller purpose served by
zero. Its actual purpose is seen when infinity is expressed. Perhaps we cannot
express infinity or generate infinity without zero. It is not by generating big numbers
and multiplying them that we arrive at infinity, but it is rather dividing numbers,
however small, by zero that we can arrive at infinity.
This is not just interesting logic, but it is rather the quintessence of Indian
Philosophy. It says: "It is not by looking out, working to fulfill desires that one gets
satisfaction but it is by looking in and identifying oneself with the Self that one gets
to the state of immortality." Our Economic theory says: "Man's desire is like burning
fire. The more clarified butter you add to it (the more you fulfill your desires), the
bigger the fire burns(desires grow but never diminish). The way to satisfaction is not
fulfillment of desire but transcending desire." Our philosophy of life says: "It is not
by enmity that we can defeat enmity, but it is by love that we can defeat it." Similar
was the idea that violence cannot win violence, only non-violence can. It is evident
from the past that India lived this Philosophy by continuously creating, even
creating in response to all the destruction by the invaders. It is not possible to
discover zero without such philosophical background.

Therefore this idea is existent in all aspects of life, in different forms. It is not limited
to Mathematics. The Upanishads say: "Atman=Brahman", i.e., the individual self is
the same as the Universal Self. Therefore reaching to one is reaching to the other.
This is the origin of the idea of expressing infinity using nothingness.
The concept of Brahman, the zero and the infinite, pervades all forms of Indian
knowledge, Indian view of life and Indian worldview. This in context of Mathematics
became zero and infinity, in context of Medicine became Prana, in context of
economics became another corresponding rule and so on.
2. Medicine: Indian medicine speaks of 'Prana', another instance of the same
concept of Brahman. This resulted in a positive approach to medicine. The English
medicine proceeds by studying abnormalities in the body and fixing them. Ayurveda
proceeds by studying how a perfectly healthy body is and how differently it behaves
under certain conditions.
In fact the whole western Philosophy is so. It gives innumerable names to
abnormalities and concentrates on them. Here in India there was no concept of a
Lunatic asylum, since the case of mental imbalance was almost ruled out. The social
organization was so fashioned behind an ideal society that it went for balance
rather than fixing imbalances.
According to English medicine the remedy (the medicine) enters the body and fights
the disease. According to Ayurveda the medicine revitalises Prana so that body itself
fights the disease. This is the fundamental difference. Both medicine and disease
being outsiders to the body, when two outsiders fight in the body a side-effect is
natural. This is the drawback of the English medicine. But ours is another instance
of the Philosophy stated above, that it is revitalization that cures the disease but not
a battle with the disease.
The principle of Homeopathy is that a disease characterised by a symptom complex
can be cured effectively by the drug (in extreme dilution), which produces in a
healthy individual a similar symptom complex (similia similibus curanter, meaning
let likes cure likes). It comes close to Ayurveda in its holistic approach, its
conception of 'Prana' and its very principle. The west could not accept homeo as a
'scientific' school of medicine, because of its philosophical discomfort with such
principle rather than because of a 'really scientific' reason.
3. That plants have a nervous system, that even they can breathe and smell and
have life, was unknown to the west a century ago, till J. C. Bose proved it. His idea
was initially criticised as radical and he was advised to change his views in certain
respects when he suggested that plants have life, in his paper. The western world
took a shock when J. C. Bose could prove in the Royal society by 'scientific' methods
that plants have life.
The importance of this apparently elementary fact can be understood, since without
the knowledge of this fact many branches of life sciences we see today would not
be there in their present form. How lifeless are life sciences without acknowledging
life in plants? The world kept using plants for millions of years and yet it took
unpardonably long for modern man to realise that they are living beings.
It can be easily known from our scriptures that our ancestors had the knowledge
millennia ago that plants have life. They had also the knowledge that plants can
smell & listen, absorb water through their roots, prepare their food themselves.
Is this just a theory of science or does it have any philosophical implication? It looks
to us like a matter of commonsense that if plants grow in age and size, take birth
and wear out they must be having life. But why could the western man not see life
in them? Is the problem in his science or his very approach to life?

It is certainly a matter of one's approach to life that determines these. The Indians
see the same divine in all qualitative manifestation. They see that every part of the
Universe has consciousness, whether it is rock or man. They possess therefore no
prejudice that some have additional greatness as compared to others. Hence it is
not difficult for them to believe that even plants have life. That they have verified
this scientifically is a different thing. But they did not have the sense of superiority
which stands as an obstacle to seeing many ground realities. They worship plants
not as nature worshipping barbarians, but as highly civilised people who can see
divinity all over, in every part of the universe. It is such approach that led their
ecological sense, which is today a very big buzzword. In fact the ecosense of Indians
can be seen from the moment they wake up in the morning when they ask mother
Earth to forgive them for having touched her with their feet. Unfortunately we
cannot see as much of science in such practices as much we see a religious
superstition since we are trained to look at them the wrong way.
The western man, on the other hand, has always believed that man is superior to
other elements of nature. It is therefore difficult for him to 'grant' any greatness to
any other being. This sense of superiority is visible at different levels of collectivity.
It is the same sense of superiority that made him pollute nature and exterminate
many species of animals around him. It is the same attitude that shows out in their
prejudice that westerners are superior to other human races. It is this sense of
superiority that led them to destroy great civilizations all over the world. It is the
same complex at a different level of collectivity that resulted in two world wars.
It is not true that it was proved only a century ago that plants have life. But the way
Indians verified it was not only scientific, but also spiritual. Here comes the first
hiccup for the westerner, for he cannot see spiritualism as a scientific means to
reality.
The examples considered above fall among the most significant discoveries, which
changed the course of modern science.
We have seen how the same root idea that inspires a scientific theory affects other
aspects of human life, socio-political, economic, philosophical and spiritual. It is
visible from the above examples that the Science discovered by a civilization
reflects its worldview, its approach to life and its value system, but is not unaffected
by them or disjoint from them.
Consciousnss Studies
Hindus realized long back that all knowledge is ultimately subject to verification
only by human consciousness and faculties. Thus the study of observer (human
consciousness) forms an important part of both truth and its criteria. We see that
scientists of late have arrived at this. A famous Physicist said "All science is nature's
answer to man's question about what nature is, it is not what nature actually is".
Entire theory of relativity is about acknowleding the observer and truth's relativity
with reference to observer.
Spirituality
Spirituality is not just a matter of meditation practises/yoga, though they are means
to the same. Spirituality is an outlook to life that recognises a principle of
transcendence in every aspect of life. The above, i.e., Economics, Science,
Education, are few examples of how recognizing the principle of transcendence
affects and redirects the entire philosophy and pursuit.

While science, religion, economics, education, all these have a place in th Hindu
system, all these are put in the right perspective. As a result, we donot see any of
these overwhelming the others. That is, technology has its due place, but it doesnot
supercede any other aspect of life, say religion. Such a balanced view is unique to
Hinduism. If we look at the west, they suffered from fanatic religions and grew over
those with rational thinking. But as a result the void created by the absence of a
true spiritual culture is still not filled in. And that is why we see that Eastern spiritual
cultures are now being received there. Also, the discoveries in sciences in the past
century have marked a new era, recognising the continuity of truth and also the
limitations of the human observer who perceives these only in discrete quanta.
Those like Erwin Schrodinger who made these discoveries, have observed that these
discoveries come very close to the Vedantic view of life. We also see that be it the
olden times or present, the most significant discoveries that changed the course of
the history of mankind, directly or indirectly, knowingly or unknowingly,
acknowledge this principle of transcendence.
Conclusion
Thus what marks the Hindu approach is the recognition of the Principle of
Transcendence.

4.2 Worship Murti Puja

Murti Puja (idol worship) is one of the core concepts of Hinduism. This unique
concept of Hinduism is misunderstood both within and outside Hinduism.
Murti - Devata
An idol is a symbol, representing a God-form. When a person worships an idol, he is
worshipping the deity in the idol. Murti usually is a concrete shape, having features
attributed to the deity. These are usually the physical attributes of the deity as
described by the theology for the deity. The idol has as many hands/legs/heads as
spoken of in theology. Features like wearing snakes/garlands/having moon as
adornment, the weapons they hold, are also reflected in the idol.
But devata as such does not have a specific form or quality; these are not the
physical attributes of devata. Devata being pure consciousness, these are the
attributes that reflect the nature of that consciousness. For instance, when we
speak of lord Siva, He is featureless. He is the eternal. But He is said to have two
wives, wearing a snake, traveling on an ox, having matted and dusted hair. What
are these features of the featureless? What are the wives of the One without the
second? All these features, if seen properly, reflect only His featurelessness. His hair
is the infinite space, vyoma (vyomakesa). The snake he wears is the awakened
consciousness. He is the eternal and is associated with two attributes energy and
consciousness. These are His two wives (Sakti and Ganga). The universe is said to
be the play of primal rhythmic energy and Her union with the eternal is said to be
the dissolution or liberation as the context may be. The vehicle of this union is
Nandi, the ox. This is the upward movement or ascent man. He is digambara, the
one with directions as his clothes this in the trivial sense is nudity, but in profound
sense only indicates His infiniteness. Thus, none of these are qualities in the sense a
person has qualities, but are the attributes that describe the featureless the best.
Experience - Darsana
Seeing is a metaphorical expression of experiencing. By saying one sees
devata, we are saying that the person elevated to the state of experiencing godconsciousness.
Then, what does one mean when he sees God in this form? What does he mean
when he says he saw Rudra or Durga? Does it mean he really saw the devata in
human form? How is this possible? The answer has two parts:
Yes devata does descend into a form for the sake of the devotee. When worshipped
with sincerity, in any particular form, one sees divinity in the particular form as one
may desire. As such, divinity is pure consciousness and it does not have a form. Just
like water. But one can collect it in the vessel he wants. This vessel is of two kinds
the human vessel and the god-vessel. As long as person exists, he has to
experience the impersonal in either of these ways. The impersonal exists eternally,
but experiencing comes only when we talk of a seeker. And so long as the seeker is
there, there is a vessel needed. The vessel is called upadhi.
1 Just invoke pure consciousness and experience the formless. You are the
vessel here. This is like collecting water in a vessel.
2 Invoke it in the form you want. This is like freezing water into an ice-block of
your desired shape. You can behold water; see it, and its form. The ice-block

is the devata. The reason this kind of practice can be institutionalized is that
this is not specific to any human vessel this is impersonal and a concrete
form of the impersonal that is created for the well-being of entire mankind.
There is no difference in the level of divinity one sees or in the nature of divinity one
sees. The only difference is in the way one seeks to attain divinity. These are
different approaches that need to be practiced based on the approach of the
devotee. There are definite advantages in both. But the former is a secret practice
that is possible only in few cases while the latter is possible at a more popular level.
The reasons are:
1 Ego always comes in while saying I am the pure consciousness or its vessel.
This is not the case when we try to invoke it as if we are not the same. But it
should be understood that though one tries to invoke divinity instead of
feeling oneness with it, he can only behold it only when he attains that
oneness. Seeing is becoming.
2 Mind has the limitation of working even while it thinks it does not work.
Concentrating on the formless is not possible unless one transcends the very
state of concentration. So it is tough to get to the real state of experiencing
the formless unless guided very carefully.
3 Treating the formless as having forms and quality-less in terms of qualities
allows one to soon discover the nature of those qualities. This way thinking of
God and worshipping can be made understandable and practicable for
everyone.
4 The state of having a form always by ones side, is a great psychological
advantage. One can easily start feeling yes there is this (impersonal) person
who is more interested in my welfare than me, who is capable of everything
that I am not, who has infinite patience, power, mercy, and love for me and
everyone else. One slowly decreases bothering about himself because he is
already taken care of and starts caring more about the person than himself.
This is how one slowly identifies with the impersonal and impersonalizes
himself.
5 In fact, if seen properly, what is he better way to say I am that (aham
brahmasmi) and That is me, than treating devata as having a form, life and
qualities like human? Treating god like oneself is nothing but feeling oneness
with God. By admiring the qualities attributed to devata, one only grows over
his own limitations of human qualities and invokes those qualities he
worships the devata as having, in himself.
What we call as seeing, is not seeing a physical form with biological eyes. The one,
who sees, certainly sees a form but not a physical form that every one can see. It is
visible to him alone as a taijasika rupa. The form talks to him and reveals to him
many secrets of the path he is following, and showers on him many other boons.
But this is only another way of saying that the devotee acquired all those through
his sadhana. So, by disowning the capability as an individual and attributing it to the
One, one can easily grow over ego. This is precisely the reason why duality of
individual-God (dwaita of jivatma-paramatma) is so successful (ex. Bhakti marga).
But devata as such cannot be limited to an idol. Then what are we doing by
worshipping an idol as devata? We are only invoking the formless infinite in the
small idol as small as our thumb. It does get invoked there wherever we want and

in whichever thing we want. We need not bother whether we can compress the
infinite into the idol we cannot and we dont have to. But of the size of the thumb
is the Man that is ruling us from within (Purusha). This is the reason why idol is
usually prescribed to be of that size (for personal worship). However, the
consciousness/energy that one beholds through the worship is only of the order that
his own consciousness permits, and not of the size of the idol. One only identifies
the idol with the Purusha within he actually experiences it.
Theory of Puja
Puja or worship is a token of affection towards divinity. It is the ritualistic expression
of devotion. The divine is the closest and the most private relative of man, and puja
is a way to express ones gratitude to God, because all that he is is because of God.
God causes our existence, and our evolution. It is not an expectation of God that we
express anything to Him, for it does not matter to Him. But it is a necessity of man
to realize his own insignificance in the cosmic game, as that is the way he can grow
over all his miseries into infinite bliss.
Just the way a parent nurtures the child irrespective of whether the child says
thanks or kisses the parent; God still takes care of our evolution. But just the way
a child spending good amount of time in the parents lap every day never starves
for anything, the devotee who sits in the lap of the divine consciousness never
starves for anything. The parent is already there to take care of us, so there is no
need to starve for anything as such. But all the difference is between knowing that
the parent is there. The child who thinks he is not getting something he wants, and
a child who thinks he gets everything from the parent, do not differ in their success
the parent causes their success in either case. They differ however, only in the
quality of their happiness, their confidence, their craving for desires. One, who rests
his desires on God alone, has nothing to desire because he knows he already has
everything.
Yes it is true that one can worship god desiring something but when it is like the
kid appeasing the mother with kisses wanting something, it is equally blissful. But
one does not experience the bliss in that love his attention is in the thing he is
asking for and not the beauty of mothers love. It is still there however. And
evolution in life is to slowly move ones attention from the object of desire to the
experience of love. Then one automatically realizes the insignificance of desire. He
realizes that the happiness in the object of desire is infinitesimal before the
happiness in mothers love. And he then seeks to sit in the mothers lap and does
not seek anything else. This is what happens when one keeps worshipping sakama
becomes nishkama over time. One does not have to suppress desires, but one has
to worship with sincerity even though seeking something. This guarantees his
evolution.
Textual References
Brahmana portion of the Veda (Aranyaka also to some extent) contains mantras for
worshipping. There are many ways to worship, like arcana, homa, japa. The mantras
that praise the devata are found mostly in the Samhita portion of the Veda. The
mantras used in the sequence of various steps in the worship come from Brahmana.
The procedures for various kinds of worship are found in the Kalpa Sutras (esp.
Srauta Sutras). For different purposes, mantras are put into different sequences,

and used in different combinations with different procedures. Each of these is called
a samputikarana.
The Procedure
The major steps in worshipping are meditating on the devata, then invoking devata
and praying. In case of arcana, devata is invoked in an idol. In case of homa, Agni is
invoked and is asked to carry oblations to all the devatas. In case of japa/yoga
devata is invoked in the body of devotee himself. This is called dharana in yoga and
nyasa in japa/upasana terminology. These categories are not mutually exclusive
nyasa can be done during arcana and so on. There are differences in the way it is
done, but in all the cases the sadhaka invokes devata in him, directly or indirectly.
There are a few common steps for all modes of worship. They are:
Sankalpa
Sankalpa is the first step in worship. Before beginning worship the devotee
mentions the place, date and time and declares that he is beginning worship. The
devata being worshipped, the mode of worship and purpose of worship are also
mentioned. After avahana, the mantra used for worship, its rishi and chandas are
also mentioned before nyasa is done.
Tarpana
The devata is satisfied before worship. Tarpana comes from trupti and tarpana
means satisfying. It is outwardly symbolized by leaving water, but the devata is
satisfied by offering rahasya tarpana through yogic practice.
There are different means of giving a tarpana, for different purposes. In case of
devatas it is through water or milk or any other sweet fluid. In case of pitris it is
water with black sesame (tila+udaka).
Puja
The devata is then invoked, worshipped in any of the ways. One is said to attain to
Samadhi and become one with the devata in that state, during worship.
Phala
The result/merit of worship performed is offered after worship. It is offered according
to the result sought during sankalpa. It could be loka kalyana or any specific desire
or simply left to the devata.
Here is a brief of methods of worship.
Arcana
Arcana involves 16 upacaras to the devata, dhyana, avahana and visarjana. These
are preceeded by vigraha sodhana and prana pratistha. Vigraha sodhana is finding
and purifying the idol to make it fit for worship. Then the idol is charged with godness. This is called prana pratistha.
During prana pratistha, the idol is said to be given life, eyes and other organs.
Without this, devata cannot be invoked in the idol. Through this, we are invoking the
cosmic consciousness that enables all our vision, into the idol. In other words, we

are charging the idol with the devata-ness. This is the step before inviting the
devata (avahana). As the idol is given life and senses, we meditate on the form of
devata we are invoking (dhyana). Then we invoke the devata in that form
(avahana). Then the devata is worshipped in many ways, and is offered all that a
human is offered.
It should be understood that prana pratistha is different from avahana. Prana
pratistha is done to the idol while avahana is done by and for the devotee. Prana
pratistha is charging the idol with god-ness while avahana is invoking the god-ness.
Prana pratistha charges the idol with the devata, but it does not invoke it.
There are cases where devata resides imminently in certain idols (like salagramas or
swayambhuva lingas) and they do not need prana pratistha. However, avahana is
needed in all cases including these, since invoking the devata in the idol is to be
done every time the devotee is seeking to worship devata in that idol.
Having said this, when one worships with sincerity and attains divinity steps like
prana pratistha and avahana happen by themselves even when they are not done
explicitly. That does not undermine the significance of these steps but only stresses
the importance of devotion.
Devata is offered all that a man is offered. The upacaras or services or treatment
that are done to a human guest, like inviting, giving water and other drinks, clothes,
food, entertainment that he likes are all done to the devata.
After that, the devata is worshipped. This involves chanting mantra or stotra, and
making offerings to the devata. This could be flowers or kunkum or abhisheka. Each
devata is worshipped in a specific way. For instance Devi is worshipped with pushpa,
kunkuma and haridra (turmeric). She is said to love to be praised (stotra priya).
Vishnu is offered flowers, garlands, scents, He is said to like adornments (alankara
priya). Siva is said to like abhisheka (continuously pouring water/milk/sweet
liquids/rice/bhasma etc over the Siva linga) (abhisheka priya).
Devatas are said to like to be called with different names (ex. Lalita Devi is praised
as nama parayana preeta). By taking the different names of a devata, one realizes
the multifaceted and infinite nature of the devata.
The upacaras are done again after this and the worship then concludes.
Japa
Japa is chanting of mantra. The procedure for japa involves sankalpa, nyasa, dhyana
and mantra japa.
Homa
Homa is worshipping through fire (agni karya). In Homa, Agni is invoked. Agni is said
to be the face of all devatas (deva mukha). All the oblations (havis) are offered to
Him. After offering oblations to Agni, oblations to all other devatas are offered
through Agni Agni is said to carry those to devatas. Havis is said to be the food of
devatas by obtaining which they cause mans well-being.

Agni being the carrier of oblations, his consort symbolizes offering. Agni is said to
have two wives, Svaha and Swadha. Svaha is the word to be said while oblations are
poured into fire. Svaha is offering to devatas and Swadha is the offering to pitris or
departed fathers.
For a homa, an altar is built. Then fire is invoked in that. Then the articles are
purified and fire is worshipped. Then other devatas are worshipped.
Nityakarma
One is supposed to perform eight rituals everyday, they are called nityakarmas.
These are eight ways of worship. The list varies for varnas and each varna has the
nitya karma-astaka prescribed separately. Broadly they are taking bath, various
forms of worship, serving occupation and treating guests. For a srotriya, they are
snana, sandhyavandana, japa, homa, devatarcana, vaisadeva, atithya and veda
patha.
4.3 Devata
Devata or deity is a multifaceted concept in Sanatana Dharma. There are very many
different aspects of devata. Apart from object of worship, devata is a symbol
representing different things in different forms of knowledge.
Commonly we see that devatas are described as having consorts, weapons and
vehicles. And they have number of heads, hands and feet. They are also associated
with different sets of numbers. All these have different meanings in different senses,
when we talk of different aspects of the devata. Some of the symbols become more
important or less important based on the aspect we are talking of.
Then there are different likes and dislikes for each devata. Not having a form and
qualities in the human sense, likes and dislikes do not apply to devata the way they
apply to humans. They represent methods that make the devata easily reachable or
in other words, they are the means to realize the devata.
Broadly, the different aspects of devata are:
Belonging to a level of consciousness - transcendental: Devata represents a
faculty of higher consciousness. Consorts represent the associate consciousness
powers of devata that are inseparable from devata. Weapons and vehicles represent
powers, instruments and methods that enables one to reach the devata. Kapali
epithet of Siva (Kapalini of Sakti too) is a good example of this, which means that
He wears kapalas or in other words resides in the kapalas of the devotees.
Different forms of devata are said to reside in or rule different worlds. Though
devatas pervade all the worlds, we usually apply the word devata in the seven
urdhva lokas, especially from swarga loka and above.
What is symbolically narrated in general by allegories of gods killing demons is the
story of transcendence. There are demons and gods. Demons do evil acts, hurt
noble people; gods slay them and protect the noble. In Sanatana dharma, there is
nothing that is noble or evil. Everything, good or bad, is seen as a part of evolution

of man. Only evil is ignorance of man or nascience that will be transcended by

gnosis. Devata killing an Asura, is also a psychological suggestion. It symbolises the
growth of man over his inner enemies such as hatred and lust that emanate from
ignorance, and his march towards truth. Gods are the nobler facets of human nature
that are manifestations of knowledge and realisation. They help man elevate
himself to higher states of consciousness by slaying demons. Man himself, by his
will power, reaches to those states is another version of the same statement. Arjuna
fighting gods and later knowing that gods were testing him, then taking astras from
them, pleading Lord Shiva to get the Pashupata, Bhima defeating the Airawata of
Indra are accounts of their divine romance and their quest for truth. Their
consequent physical victory is an account of how dharma was established. These
stories narrate a moral action followed and inspired by a spiritual realisation. In fact
the great Mahabharata war followed a great discource on cosmic mechanism and its
spiritual principle, Bhagavad Gita.
Part of Virat Purusha, a cosmic conception: Devata is infinite and universal.
Devata is depicted as a part of the Unviersal Being or Virat Purusha. Also, in the
worship of each devata the devata is equated to the Virat Purusha Himself. It is said
that the word "deva" applies up to Paramatma, that is each devata is not only a part
of but also represents the whole of the Eternal. This is to say, the absolute/eternal
could be realized through worship of any devata.
Devata is both universal and personal. Devata is said to grow when man worships.
This is the personal aspect. The growth of devata in man is the development and
fulfillment of man's being, material, emotional, intellectual and spiritual.
Sri Krishna says "devan bhavayatanena te deva bhavayantu vah
parasparam bhavayantah sreyah param avapsyatha [Bg. 3.11]". Gods grow when
men worship and please them. They in turn bring about man's wellbeing. Thus they
mutually help each other.
Representative of a power of nature: The sound-form of each devata's energy
is represented by Mantra. Mantras are of many types like stri and purusha mantras.
They have waking and sleeping times. Each mantra devata represents a "nadi" and
the active and inactive times of those are represented by this.
There are also different ragas in Sangita, which are said to please different devatas
(Ex. Sivaranjani, Shanmukha priya).
Yogic: Devata is a yogic symbol too. The various weapons and associate symbols of
devata represent methods, clues and instruments to awaken higher levels of
consciousness hidden in man. The heads, hands, legs of devata that are in different
numbers, are also such suggestions. Vajrayudha of Indra, Bowl and Gada in the
hands of Gayatri, the great Serpant that Vishnu sleeps on and Siva wears as
adornment, Garuda and Mayura the vehicles of Vishnu and Kumaraswamy that are
enemies of snakes, Vrshabha the vehicle of Union of Siva and Sakti, Kumaraswamy
having Six heads, are all examples. They are all clues to yoga, that the sushumna
marga in the spine could be used to awaken the hidden consciousness and union
with the divine.

Astronomical: Alternately, Devata is an astronomical suggestion. Each devata

represents a star, or a constellation.
The consorts, vehicles, symbols on flag, can also be seen in this light. The star
closest to another star is depicted as an adornment or consort. A star while rising is
followed by another, the latter is said to be the vehicle. While setting the direction
changes and the latter gets ahead of the former - in this case the latter becomes
symbol on the formers flagstaff. For instance, Mithuna (Gemini) is ParvatiParameswara Mithuna. When Gemini rises after sunset, Vrshabha (Taurus) rises just
ahead of it. Then Parvati-Parameswara become Vrshabha Dhvaja, with Taurus as the
symbol on their flag. Before sunrise when Gemini sets, the positions are reversed
and it appears above Taurus. Then Siva-Parvati are Vrshabha vaahana, Taurus
becomes their vehicle. Durga as Simha vahana (Virgo over Leo), Kumara Swamy as
Mayura vahana, Ganesha as Mushika Vahana, Manmatha as Makara Dhwaja are
examples.

A devata killing an asura is an astronomical symbolism too. If a character A is said

to kill a character B, it means that the star symbolised by B sets at the time at
which the star symbolised by A rises. If it is an indirect killing then it means that
these stars are not diametrically opposite but there is a small time difference
between the rise of A and set of B. In general, enmity is to be seen as diametrically
oppositeness. At the time of the set of B, the star nearest to A is said to have helped
A in killing B. Indra killing Vritra, Rama killing Ravana, Arjuna hitting Bhishma with
the help of Sikhandi, enmity between Garuda and Sarpa, are examples. 4.4 Mantra
Beeja:
Beeja is a sound-seed that represents energy. Beejas are found in the pre-Vedic
times too. In Vedic Period we see the Beejas encapsulated into mantras. Each godform is identified with a particular energy form, represented by a beeja.
Mantra:
Mantra is a central concept of Hinduism. Mantra is defined as Mananaat trayate iti
mantram, meaning the word that protects when recalled repeatedly.
Each mantra has a rishi, chandas and devata. Rishi is the seer that revealed the
mantra. Chandas is the meter of the mantra. Devata is the diety being prayed to in
the mantra.
Mantra is said to be the sound-form of a god-form. Each god has a mula-mantra
consisting of or equivalent to the energy generated by the beejas of that god-form.
The entire universe is the play of Primal Rhythmic Energy and in its essential form
matter is also energy. Vibrations comprise the universe. Vibrations produce sound
and the kind of energy generated and its effects depend on the nature of vibrations.
By the repeated chant of a mantra the energy represented by it can be invoked and
directed towards specific purposes. For this reason scriptures prescribe that the
eligibility of a person should be adjudged before inducting (upadesa) into such
practice (Anusthana). It should be learnt from a preceptor (guru) and practiced the
way it is taught, for improper practice can be harmful to the individual as well as
surroundings.
Japa:
The repeated chanting of a mantra is called japa. There are three modes in which
japa is done:
1 Chanting the mantra loudly in a rhythm
2 Not chanting aloud but it in a low voice or simply recalling the mantra with lip
movement. This is called Upamsu japa.
3 Recalling the mantra within, without making any voice, lip movement or
movement of tongue. This is called Antarjapa. This is the state best
recommended.
Mantra-Anusthana:
Mantra-Anusthana is an encapsulation of mantra japa into the astanga yoga. The
steps like yama, niyama, pratyahara are general rules. A few of them are: Each
devata is said to have specific timings in the day when the devata wakes/sleeps.

Japa is prescribed in the time the mantra adhidevata (deity of the mantra) wakes.
One should do japa facing different directions when seeking different results. Asana
is the posture in which japa is done. Pranayama is the breath regulation done
before japa. Dharana is done through karanyasa and anganyasa, this is invoking
devata in the body. Dhyana sloka is chanted after that, this is concentrating on the
form of devata. Then japa is started. One is said to get to Samadhi state with japa.
Mantra Siddhi:
The state where the energy represented by a god-form can be invoked is called
mantra siddhi. Every devata is said to be mantra-baddha, that is, the devata is
obliged to fulfill the purpose why the devata is invoked.
Sukta
Sukta (hymn) is a collection of mantras on a specific diety (god-form).
Samputikarana
A samputikarana is a sequence of mantras used for specific purposes combined
with specific procedures.

4.5 Yajna
Yajna is the central concept of Vedic religion. Yajna means sacrifice. It involves
making an offering for a specific purpose.
The Theory of Yajna
Agni (the God of Fire) is called the face of all Gods and is the central deity for Yajna.
Oblations are offered in the fire and Agni is said to carry those (havis) to the Gods.
Havis is the food for Gods. Gods grow on havis and bring the well-being of men
(through rains and so on). Thus Gods grow on mans offerings and mans elevation
is brought by the Gods.
devan bhavayatanena
te deva bhavayantu vah
parasparam bhavayantah
sreyah param avapsyatha
[Bg. 3.11]
All life is said to be a yajna. Every action, when made as an offering to the God, is a
yajna. Worshipping, eating food, fighting war, creating wealth, contributing to
human knowledge, running family, each of these is a yajna. Doing these as offerings
to derive something greater, makes these actions yajnas. When these actions are
not done for material gain but with a selfless motive, that is the highest form of
yajna. Sacrifice brings transcendence. Transcendence through sacrifice is the
meaning of life in the Vedic religion.
There are two directions of movement in life, pravritti and nivritti. Pravritti is
accumulating and indulging. Nivritti is clearing debts and transcending. In pravritti,
Yajna brings material possessions, righteousness and heavenly bliss. This helps man
fulfill his aspirations as well as contribute to social living. Man gradually grows over
desires and becomes more impersonal. This is how he enters nivritti phase. During
nivritti, yajna is done without any desire, merely as a duty. This helps in clearing
past karma, but this greatly helps the well-being of surroundings (loka kalyana). This
is the way realized soul performs yajna. In nivritti, yajna brings eternal bliss.
Brahmandavalli of the Taittireeya Upanishad (chapter 8) expounds the gradation of
happiness experienced by men, manes, gods, lord of gods, teacher of the gods,
creator of gods and the creator of the universe in the ascending order, increasing
hundred fold for each level. At each level, the bliss is equated to that of a veda-wise
person (srotriya) who overcame his desire (kama hatasya). In pravritti one
experiences the bliss of gods. In nivritti one grows over desires and experiences the
bliss of Brahman. In nivritti, yajna brings liberation.
Texts
Purva Mimamsa deals extensively with the philosophy of yajna. This is also called
Karma Mimamsa. Jaimini gave the Purva Mimamsa darsana with 12 chapters. It is
primarily an inquiry into the Brahmana portion of the Veda. It deals with various
sacrifices, their purposes and methods.
It has a four chapter supplement called sankarsha kanda, by Jaimini. It is also called
Madhyama Mimamsa, Madhyama Kanda, Devata Kanda and Upasana Kanda. It

deals with purpose of mantras, the nature and essence of devatas, purpose of
worshipping devatas.
Yajna in Daily life The Panca MahaYajnas
A Grhastha is supposed to do five yajnas every day. These are called panca
mahayajnas. These are offerings to Gods, Rishis, Pitris (departed fathers), creatures
and men. They are called deva yajna, rishi yajna, pitru yajna, bhuta yajna and
manushya yajna respectively. Apastamba Dharma Sutras mention these (1.13).
Man has four debts, to gods, pitris, rishis and fellow-men. These are called deva
runa, rishi runa, pitru runa and manushya runa. By doing the above yajnas, man
repays those debts and fulfills his purposes in life.
By praying to gods and offering oblations to them, and through sacrifices one clears
his debts to gods. This is called deva yajna.
By gaining Vedic knowledge, by teaching, sharing and passing it on to subsequent
generations one clears his debts towards the seers. This is called rishi yajna.
By offering oblations to pitris, and by continuing the race by begetting progeny,
raising them properly, by getting good name for the lineage, one clears his debts
towards the pitris. This is called pitru yajna.
By showing compassion towards fellow men, by treating the guests well, by helping
those in need, by excusing those by which one has been wronged, by doing actions
that are beneficial to men, one clears his debts towards his fellow men. This is
called manushya yajna.
Bhuta yajna is showing compassion towards living beings in general. This includes
abstaining from inflicting violence and killing, living as a part of nature without
harming it.

4.6 Consciousness Studies

What makes the Hindu knowledge system unique is the study of consciousness. We
have the most comprehensive science of consciousness. After realizing that
phenomenal world is relativistic, the next stage is realizing that the truth in
phenomenal world is determined by state of consciousness of the observer. There
begins the study of consciousness. Thus the study of consciousness is an advanced
stage in mans pursuit of Truth.
Hindu science of consciousness deals with consciousness at all the levels, human,
supra-human and sub-human. It expounds the various levels of consciousness,
states of consciousness, the nature of consciousness at each level, the nature of
Truth at each level of consciousness and methods to attain those levels.
Terminology:
Lokas (planes of consciousness)
The various planes of consciousness are called lokas or worlds. There are fourteen
worlds, seven adho lokas (lower) and seven urdhva lokas (higher). Earth (physical
consciousness) is at the bottom of urdhva lokas. The worlds below it are
subconscious.
The seven urdhva lokas are bhuh, bhuvah, suvah, mahah, janah, tapah and satyam.
These can be grouped into three, human-the interconnect-superhuman. Bhuhbhuvah-suvah is the matter-life-mind triplet. Bhuh is earth or physical
consciousness. Bhuvah is vital consciousness. Suvah is the world of mind. Mahah is
the world of pure idea, thus it is also called vijnana loka. This is the plane where
man begins transcending from personal to impersonal consciousness. The principle
of manifestation can be understood through mahat, a higher function of intellect.
Janah is the world of bliss, ananda. Tapah is the world of penance, chit. Satya loka is
the world of Truth. The three higher worlds are sat-chit-ananda, the famous triplet of
Truth-Permanence-Beauty or Existence-Consciousness-Bliss.
We find the mention of three worlds in the samhita, Bhuh, Bhuvah and Suvah (RV
Samhita 1.34.8). Indra is the lord of the swar/suvah world. But we find the explicit
mention of the seven worlds in Taittireeya Aranyaka (10.35.1).
Kosas (sheaths of consciousness)
In parallel, a man is said to live in five sheaths of consciousness. These also called
the panca kosas. The outermost is Annamaya Purusha, the physical man living in
Annamaya kosa. Within it, sustaining it and sustained by it is Pranamaya Purusha,
the vital man. Within it is Manomaya Purusha, the mental man or man living as a
pure mind-being. Within it is Vijnanamaya Purusha, the man living in the world of
pure idea. Within it is Anandamaya Purusha, the blissful-being. Within these five
sheaths or kosas is said to live the eternal being, the Primal Purusha. By training
himself to looking inwards and transcending the outer sheaths of consciousness one
can realize the eternal being.
Bhrigu valli of the Taittireeya Upanishad expounds the five kosas. Bhrigu seeks the
knowledge of Brahman from his teacher and father Varuna. Varuna asks Bhrigu to
know the Brahman through penance. Bhrigu knows Anna to be Brahman and comes
back. He is again sent to know Brahman through penance. Bhrigu goes repeatedly

to know Brahman through penance and he successively discovers anna, prana,

manas, vijnana and ananda to be Brahman respectively. That is, he discovers all
these sheaths. Finally he realizes that ananda (Bliss) is Brahman. In this sheath
(anandamaya kosa) lies the sat-chit-ananda (Brahman).
Lalita Sahasranama of the Brahmanda Purana praises the Godess as panca
kosantara sthita, the one who resides within the five kosas. The sahasranama is
also called Yoga sahasra, the compendium of entire yoga and the study of
consciousness.
Avasthas (states of consciousness)
The Mandukya Upanishad in Atharva Veda expounds the states or avasthas of
consciousness. There are four states in which man perceives the world, jagrut
(waking), swapna (dream), sushupti (dreamless sleep) and turiya (the fourth state).
In the waking state, the being called Vaisvanara, is outwardly cognitive and
perceives gross objects. In the dream state, the being called Taijasa, is inwardly
cognitive and perceives subtle objects. In dreamless sleep, the being called Prajna,
is blissful, opening up to Soul-consciousness. The being in this state is and perceives
the causal world.
Turiya, is neither inwardly nor outwardly cognitive nor non-cognitive. It pervades all
states of consciousness and not any one of them. It is neither a combination of
those nor void of those. All the other states and all phenomena dissolve in it. It is
Brahman, the Absolute.
Lalita sahasranama praises the Godess as supta prajnaatmika turya sarvavastha
vivarjita, the one that is all the three states and the one beyond the states.
Faculties of Mind
There are four faculties of mind - mind-proper (Manas), intellect (Buddhi), ego
(Ahankara) and memory (Chitta). Manas is the base of all mental cognition. All
emotions, thoughts and impressions originate and manifest here. Buddhi is intellect.
Discrimination, discerning and judgement are the functions of Buddhi. Ahankara is
the sense of I or ego, which is the source of all action at mind-life-matter. Chitta is
the impression of past experiences or memory.
Faculties of Soul-Consciousness
There are four faculties of Truth-Consciousness (Atma Chaitanya) too intuition,
inspiration, discrimination and revelation. Inspiration is the source, intuition is the
means, discrimination is the judge and revelation is the destination in the seeking of
Truth. The Veda treats these faculties as god-forms. Sarama is intuition, Saraswati is
inspiration, Dakshina is discrimination and Ila is revelation. The Veda contains
allegories to suggest these, like Sarama searching and finding the herds of
revelation/dawn (Rigveda samhita 5.45.7).
Levels of concentration
There are five levels of concentration, dispersed, restless, concentrated, stopping of
mental activity and the experience of absolute. These are called Kshipta, Mudha,
Vikshipta, Ekagra and Niruddha respectively.

An untrained mind is dispersed, with no specific object of thinking. It becomes

restless when it is being trained to think on a specific object. Slowly it begins to
concentrate on an object. This is the state of concentration. Beyond this when
trained to concentrate on the formless, and sometimes also due to purification of
mind in concentrated state, one will be able to stop mental activity and open up to
soul-consciousness. This state is called chittavritti nirodha. In this state however
outward objects exist, while the being is fully trained in inward-looking. This is the
Praajna state described by the Mandukya Upanishad.
Beyond this state one can experience the absolute or Brahman. All the other states
and phenomena are dissolved in this state and one experiences the one without the
second. This state is called Nirvikalpa or Turiya-avastha.
Consciousness qualities
There are three qualities or gunas, Satwa, Rajas and Tamas. Tamas is darkness,
inertia. Rajas is inspiration, the force of action, creation. Satwa is knowledge,
nobility, sustenance. The phenomenal world is said to be the play of these three
qualities. The fourth, the one beyond the three qualities is called Trigunaateeta or
the absolute.
Lalita sahasranama praises Godess as trigunatmika as well as nistraigunya, the
one having the three qualities and also the one beyond qualities.

4.7 Hindu View of Patriotism

It is a uniqueness of Hindus to treat land as mother and a goddess. Right from Vedic
days, Hindus have always treated this land as the Bharata varsha.
Earth is the mother of all the living beings. Our elders describe that earth is the
mother of all, and that we are all her infant children that feed on her breast all
vegetation is the milk that she feeds us. The Veda (Bhu sukta) praises earth as a
goddess. Puranas describe the goddess earth (Bhudevi) as the consort of Lord
Vishnu.
Earth is one of the five primordial elements (panca maha bhutas). It is the element
with all the attributes sabda, rasa, rupa, gandha and sparsa. Evolution is described
to be beginning from akasa from which vayu comes and so on, and earth is the final
stage in that manifestation. Thus, earth is the fullest manifestation of maya in
creation and it contains all the other elements.
If seen as a loka or plane of consciousness, earth is the physical plane. It is the base
of life. It is at the bottom of the urdhva lokas and is the basis from which all the
higher planes can be achieved. For man to get to highest planes of consciousness,
physical plane is the earth.
In our daily life, treating earth as mother begins when we wake up. Hindus wake up
remembering her as samudra vasane devi parvata stana mandale and apologise
for touching her with feet by saying pada sparsa kshamasvame. Such outlook
implies and inspires respect for nature and surroundings. And people with such
outlook live like undifferentiated parts of creation and not as those who have come
to conquer/rule it. It is because such outlook is wanting today, that we see many
problems in society like ecological imbalance and man trying to exploit other men.
Having this outlook and trying to live it everyday, is the solution to these problems.
It is not just land, but state/society is also praised as mother-goddess by the Veda.
The mother says aham rastrii in the third mantra of Vaagaambhrini sukta
(mandala 10, sukta 25 of Rigveda). She further says she causes wellbeing and
prosperity of the peoples, all actions of men and gods are inspired by her, and she is
the purpose of those actions.
Hindus have the concept of state and society right from remote past. The concept of
nation is not prevalent in the world a few centuries ago, except in Bharat. But the
sense was not political/ military in nature it was cultural and spiritual.
Actions of every individual affect the society and every change in the society affects
individuals. The actions that are inspired by this awareness are beneficial to
individuals as well as the society. If that awareness is lacking, then individual
interests alone inspire peoples actions and individuals vision becomes narrow.
Then, though their actions are apparently beneficial in the short run, on a long run
and at a society level their consequences can be harmful. The actions of people
treating society as a goddess do not suffer from such shortcomings.
Treating that society has life like a person, that the collective intellectual life of its
individuals is the intellect of the society, that their collective actions and their fruits

as those of the society, is an advanced stage in the universalization of an

individuals consciousness. Like an individuals a society also has a lifecycle.
National consciousness includes and supersedes consciousness of individual, family,
community and region. A person, who can achieve it, is as good as having universal
consciousness. Growing over it is the last stage in universalization. Simply ignoring
the boundaries of a nation is not universalizing. Nor is respecting those boundaries
and having patriotism narrow-mindedness. Universalizing means that the person
treats identifies himself as the nation and vice-versa. One who identifies himself as
his family does all his actions for and inspired by the family and not him as an
individual. He is the family and family is he. There is no other identity for him. As he
universalizes further, he lives as and works for his community or region. At higher
stages he becomes his nation himself. Growing further and identifying himself with
the universe, is the final stage in the path. There he achieves complete universal
consciousness.
If this is interpreted in the terminology of sadhana, an individual treats the society
as a goddess, worships Her, and becomes one with Her. In the terminology of karma
yoga, the individual gets salvation in the described way above.

5. Individual and Social Life

5.1 Dharma
Dharma is a wide concept which can be roughly translated as righteousness,
inclusive of inclination and initiative towards righteous action.
Hindu Dharma, has at its basis the varna and ashrama.
Dharma is outlined in the Smritis, specifically the Dharma Sastras. Kalpa Sutras, a
Vedanga, contain Dharma Sutras, Srauta Sutras, Grihya Sutras and Sulba Sutras. Of
these, Dharma Sutras outline Dharma. Because of the critical importance of
grhastha ashrama to the society, Grihya sutras (to be followed by Grhastha) are
separately mentioned. These Sutras are specific to the adherents of each Veda
Shakha. There are many other metrical codes written, for instance by Manu,
Parashara and Vasistha, that serve the same purpose. Apart from these, the Itihasa
and Puranas detail the nature of Dharma and illustrate through stories of what is
Dharma in various life situations.
Sutras are guidelines and not impositions. It is a guide to persons desiring to go by
a particular path as to what benefits and what retards them in the path. The
prayaschitta for deviation also, only applies for someone wanting to go by a
specific path.
Smritis, for instance the Manusmriti are more of a record of what is/was, rather than
a prescription. It is a statement of what kind of social setup existed and what are
the norms followed. Parashara smriti, being more recent, is said to be applicable to
kaliyuga.
So the following are the texts needed to understanding Dharma:
1 Sutras (Dharma, Grihya)
2 Smritis
a Metrical codes like Manusmriti
b Itihasa Puranas
There
1
2
3

are three sources of knowledge of Dharma (Manusmriti 2.6-16):

Through scriptures
Through elders
By observing the behavior of noble men in different situations

The concepts involved in understanding Dharma:

1 Varna Dharma
2 Ashrama Dharma
3 Karma Concept
These are overlapping and not exclusive concepts.
Also, there are different kinds of Dharma for an individual, based on the different
roles he plays as an individual (vyakti), in a family (kutumba), as a professional
(varna), in a society (samaja) and in exceptional/abnormal situations (apaddharma).
Varna

Varna is a fundamental concept underlying the Hindu society. In fact, it is not a

social arrangement or segregation; it is rather a statement of how any society is
arranged. It does not say society should be classified into classes, it says what
classes or kinds of people exist in any society.
There are four varnas, based on the functions people perform in any society.
Brahma
One belonging to this varna is called a Brahmana. His function is to learn, share and
preserve the eternal knowledge of the race (in our case, the Veda). It is often
mistaken that Brahmana is the one with spiritual realization his function is
scholarship more than realization. Realization is a result of following ones Varna
dharma (simply put, doing properly what one does, and a Brahmana may also attain
realization). And in Sanatana Dharma, every person is bound to get spiritual
realization and liberation, if he properly does what he does. This is irrespective of
his Varna. This is a unique feature of Hinduism.
There are specializations in this varna, such as those taking to priesthood, those
taking to just learning and teaching the Veda, those taking to learning and teaching
specific Darsanas or Vedangas, etc.
Knowledge is classified into many kinds, to serve many purposes. Of this the study
of Veda, is done only by a dwija (Brahamana/ Kshatriya/ Vaisya). This is for the
purpose to be served by the Veda for the society, and also because of the training
required to pursue the study. Most of the times there is no compulsion on who
should do the study, but there is a compulsion on what is the prerequisite to such
study. Veda being swara specific and also based on mantra sastra, pursuing it needs
special training from childhood and also needs an extremely disciplined lifestyle
throughout. This is the reason that most people do not show interest to take this up.
But the knowledge is not denied to any class, though this particular mode of
learning is the Vedic wisdom is available through texts like the Puranas and other
smritis. Through these, the vedic word is not known its essence/meaning is known.
The smritis and sastras can be studied by person of any varna, based on the
purpose and on the occupation. They could also be studied irrespective of
occupation, provided one has the interest and has the academic qualification.
Because of the function that he does, a Brahmana is said to be of satwik nature.
Kshatra
Kshatriya is the one who belongs to Kshatra varna. This is the martial class and
forms the military defense and administration of the society. A kshatriyas functions
are to rule and protect the society. They also learn all forms of knowledge.
Because of the knowledge gained a khatriya is of satwik nature, and because of the
martial aspect he is of rajasic nature. Thus he is satwik-rajasic.
Vaisya

Vaisya is the productive class of the society, and his primary functions are trading
and business. Making the society prosperous is their primary function. A Vaisya
generates wealth, and distributes it for the social well-being.
Since artha is the predominant purushartha for a Vaisya, he is usually of rajasictamasic nature.
Sudra
Sudra is the service/artisan class and covers most of the occupations, like
engineering, agriculture, mining, metal work etc.
Based on these temperaments and functions, the smritis outline dharma for each of
these varnas, their duty towards their profession and their role in the society.
Varna and Social Health
How healthy the society is, depends on how well the people belonging to these four
varnas are performing their functions. The society is healthy, prosperous, strong and
free, if all the four varnas prosper in their respective functions.
If Vaisya varna is suffering or weak, the society will be financially weak, and may
lose financial independence as a society. If Kshatra varna weakens, the society will
be militarily and politically weak, and will lose political independence. If the Sudra
varna weakens, it will lose its existence as a society. If the Brahma varna weakens,
the society will lose its synthetic (rejuvenating ability) strength, its spiritual identity
and intellectual independence.
Weakness of any of the section can be used by the enemies to get hold of the entire
society. Also, each varna controls certain aspects in the society. The society will lose
its independence and control in those aspects, if that varna weakens.
Depending on the kind of control an enemy wants to gain on another society, he
tries to weaken those aspects in the enemy society so he can start establishing his
control.
Examples:
The Islamic aggressors have targeted and weakened the Kshatra Varna, since the
control they wanted was more physical. The British have targeted the Brahma varna
more, because they wanted a total control over the society and wanted our society
to serve their needs so they wanted to demolish the intellectual class. That is the
reason we lost intellectual synthesis and independence along with political
independence.
Though it is not very relevant to talk of foreign attacks here, it explains how the
strength and weakness of different varnas affects the society. Therefore we should
understand that for the society to be strong, each of these varnas should be strong,
and each of these must fulfill what their functions are, for the society to be
peaceful, independent and prosperous.
Also within the society, the development will be skewed if any of the varna performs
its functions improperly and another varna performs its functions better. This results
in a handicap in the development over time. For instance, if Brahma varna does not

prosper and Sudra varna prospers, the society lacks direction in its evolution. If vice
versa happens, the immediate wealth is also lost. There should be a fine balance
and mutual respect among these varnas in order that the society really prospers.
History has ample proof to say that the society tried to restore balance when it is
lost, through people of other varnas taking to those professions that were suffering.
For instance non-Kshatriyas took to fighting when the Kshatra varna was weakened
by Islamic invasions. This is just one example, there were occasions when each of
varnas was weakened and others strengthened them. For a more detailed
explanation refer Appendix Collectivism.
Social Mobility
In the Hindu society there are many jatis (kula/caste). Jati is an endogamous cultural
unit. A set of jatis are grouped to each Varna. So mobility is of multiple types
Mobility could be at individual, group or jati level.
For an individual:
1 Change of Varna: An individual with his merit, he can move to another Varna.
This depends on the merit of the individual, the eligibility to pursue the
function of a Varna, the teacher he seeks and so on.
Examples:
Many rishis born as non-dvijas, Sudras like Vidura taking up ministries
Many persons with study or yoga becoming teachers today
Many brahmins losing their varna because of not practicing their varna dharma
2 Change of jati: Through inter-jati marriage an individual can move from one
jati to another. This has some regulations. In a patriarchy, a woman moves to
the jati of her husband. In matriarchy, it is the other way round. There are
very few matriarchic societies in India, like in Kerala. This however does not
change the varna/function of the individual.
Examples: All inter-jati marriages.
For a group: An entire group of individuals could move to another Varna, because of
the role they play in a social situation.
Examples: Many non-Kshatriya jatis becoming Kshatriya jatis as they took up
military defense during Muslim invasions.

Ashramas
Ashrama dharma is fundamental to the Hindu society. It divides mans life into four
stages and specifies what one should do in each of the stages. Historically, it was
only few Brahmanas who were found to make it through all the four ashramas.
Kshatriyas of yore, used to make it to vanaprastha. Vanaprastha was even more a
rare case in Vaisyas.
Brahmacarya
In this stage, one does academic learning. He should go to a guru and learn what is
prescribed for him. After some basic education he would move to some
specialization based on his interest and performance. This is a stage of learning and
celibacy (Rules in Manusmriti 2.173-249). Upanayana or initiation should happen at
5-16 years of age (Manu 2.36-40). Upon completion of study, one should take up
grhastha ashrama (Manu 3.1-4).
Grhastha
Grhastha ashrama is the center stage; it is the phase where a person contributes
most to the society. For this reason, the Kalpa Sutras devote an entire book Grihya
Sutras, for the householder. He sustains the society, financially and otherwise (Manu
6.89-90). Unless in exceptional cases, one is not permitted to bypass this ashrama.
One is supposed to base his pursuits on Dharma, and fulfill his desires. This is a
stage of fulfillment. Both purusharthas Artha and Kama are to be served here,
based on Dharma, the first purushartha. This ensures the fourth, which is Moksha.
Grhastha should perform five sacrifices every day (panca maha yajnas), to please
gods, rishis, departed fathers, fellow men, and other living creatures. One is said to
be indebted to all these. Ones debts towards his departed fathers are cleared at
the end of this ashrama. One is also prescribed eight activities a day, which can be
classified into worshipping and pursuing profession/occupation (Manusmriti chapters
3-5).
Having lived half his life, one should take up vanaprastha ashrama (Manu 5.169).
Vanaprastha
At this stage one gives his property to his heirs or donates it, goes into seclusion,
and does penance. One becomes inward looking. He still contributes with his
experience, through advising and teaching. Having fulfilled his desires in the
previous ashrama, one is expected to win over senses and sensuous pleasures.
Thus his work is also more dispassionate and detached, as he does not seek any
specific result from the work. It will be for the benefit of society alone. Though one
is supposed to celibate, he is not required to renounce or live alone. One can take
his wife or live with any other person. One is also permitted to earn his livelihood
though not to save/accumulate. But unless there is a specific need, he does not
enter the city usually people needing a vanaprasthis advice go to him instead of
him visiting people.
One still has debts towards rishis and gods at this stage, and does teaching as well
as performs sacrifices to propitiate the devatas. His primary debt towards pitris is

cleared as he obtains progeny and raises them in grhastha ashrama, though he

continues giving oblations to pitris during vanaprastha (Manu 6.1-32).
Sanyasa
In this stage one renounces the world and detaches from his social and family
relations. One should not earn in this stage, or have any material possession of his
own. Whatever few attachments he has with his relations or social ambitions are
also given up. Man does all work purely for moksha at this stage. Technically, a
sanyasi has no debts, and lives only as long as his karmaphala remains (Manu 6.33 86).
In general, Brahmacarya and Grhastha ashramas are seen as Pravritti dharma.
Vanaprastha and Sanyasa are nivritti dharma for man.

5.2 Karma and Rebirth

Karma is another fundamental concept in Hinduism. This has multiple levels of
applicability, but approximately it can be defined as the natural order of action and
its fruit.
As you sow, so you reap is the gist of the theory. Each action has a fruit and it
depends on many factors: sincerity in action, the purpose of action, the means
chosen, and righteousness of action (Dharma). One reaps the fruit if ones actions.
Apart from the direct result of action or its effect on the surroundings, each action
creates an impression on its doer. These impressions accumulate and constitute the
karma of the individual. Any action done in the present is aided and affected by the
impressions of previous actions. Thus Dharma forms basis for Karma, and many
principles are consequent of the Karma theory, like
1 Dont hurt anyone
2 Do unto others only what you want to be done unto yourself
3 Do those actions that bring happiness to oneself and does good to others
4 Do not speak harsh
5 Wish only good for others
6 Do not hesitate to take up cudgels to protect dharma, even if it means to
incur personal sin
7
When men are thus good and cooperative to each other, social well-being is caused.
If for some reason it is disturbed, it would be restored sooner or later, either
because men realize the order going bad or because nature intervenes to restore
the order.
Rebirth
There is rebirth (punarjanma) according to Sanatana dharma. The being or atman,
assumes three bodies gross (sthula), subtle (sukshma) and causal (karana). With
these three one experiences gross, subtle and causal objects as explained in the
Mandukya Upanishad. Only the gross body is left during death and subtle body is
with atman throughout and assumes new gross body in the next life. The sukshma
sareera carries the impressions of the experiences of previous lives and acts as an
accumulator in the evolution. The accumulated backlog of impressions from
previous lives is called prarabdha.
Individual Karma
In the cycle of its evolution, the jiva has two movements pravritti and nivritti.
During pravritti impressions/samskaras are accumulated. One is recommended to
do noble actions so as to reap their sweet fruits. During nivritti, one tries to get rid
of prarabdha and exhaust karma by experiencing its fruits (karma phala) so as to
break the cycle of life and death. One is recommended to perform actions without
attachment, so that its fruit or impression does not add to the baggage of ones own
karma. When one performs detached actions, he only performs action as long as his
previous karma phala is not nullified. One performs the highest kind of action at this
stage, and such action always results in the benefit of surroundings (loka kalyana).
Moksha is through total karma nivritti and transcending the action-fruit cycle. This is
possible if one realizes and discriminates between atman and non-atman (body,

mind etc). One can get beyond the ambit of karma by experiencing the One beyond
qualities (beyond trigunas satwa, rajas, tamas).
Akarma is a state where an action is not bound by karma/phala. This is the kind of
action performed by a liberated person. Akarma is not inaction, but sterilized action.
Freewill
Fate and freewill both are significant in ones actions. While many factors like
daivabala (destiny or God-will), prarabdha (ones own previous actions) affect the
fruit of action, it is human effort (purushakara) that predominates action. Man is
said to be the master of his actions (destiny), though not wholly the owner of the
fruits of the actions.
God is said to be the witness of all action (karma sakshi). One way, it is true that
God is the one who inspires and drives all action, and bears its fruit. But He does it
through the instruments. Man is that instrument. In the microcosm, daiva is said to
follow purusha prayatna, and in the macrocosm it is the other way round.
Group Karma
When a group of individuals do actions that affect each other, it results in group
karma. This could be a collectivity or persons closely attached to each other. In the
latter case the group is called a group soul (yaksha). In the former, the persons do
not get combined as a group soul but reap the fruit of collective action. This kind of
karma drives the lifecycle of a society.
Textual References
The Veda Samhita does not directly indicate or explain the karma concept. In fact,
karma is simply equated to yajna in the Veda. This is because in the Vedic sense all
life and all action is Yajna, and thus karma = yajna. The Veda refers to karma in this
sense, throughout.
Example: The Mother Godess Durga is praised as the controller and giver of the
fruits of action, karmaphaleshu justam (Durga Suktam, Taittiriya Aranyaka).
Karma is another fundamental concept in Hinduism. This has multiple levels of
applicability, but approximately it can be defined as the natural order of action and
its fruit.
Each action has a fruit and it depends on many factors: sincerity in action, the
purpose of action, the means chosen, and righteousness of action (Dharma). One
reaps the fruit if ones actions. Apart from the direct result of action or its effect on
the surroundings, each action creates an impression on its doer. These impressions
accumulate and constitute the karma of the individual. Any action done in the
present is aided and affected by the impressions of previous actions. Thus Dharma
forms basis for Karma, and many principles are consequent of the Karma theory,
like
8 Dont hurt anyone
9 Do unto others only what you want to be done unto yourself
10 Do those actions that bring happiness to oneself and does good to others
11 Do not speak harsh
12 Wish only good for others

13
When men are thus good and cooperative to each other, social well-being is caused.
If for some reason it is disturbed, it would be restored sooner or later, either
because men realize the order going bad or because nature intervenes to restore
the order.
Rebirth
There is rebirth (punarjanma) according to Sanatana dharma. The being or atman,
assumes three bodies gross (sthula), subtle (sukshma) and causal (karana). With
these three one experiences gross, subtle and causal objects as said in the
Mandukya Upanishad. Only the gross body is left during death and subtle body is
with atman throughout and assumes new gross body in the next life. The sukshma
sareera carries the impressions of the experiences of previous lives and acts as an
accumulator in the evolution. The accumulated backlog of impressions from
previous lives is called prarabdha.
Individual Karma
In the cycle of its evolution, the jiva has two movements pravritti and nivritti.
During pravritti impressions/samskaras are accumulated. One is recommended to
do noble actions so as to reap their sweet fruits. During nivritti, one tries to get rid
of prarabdha and complete experiencing his karma phala so as to break the cycle of
life and death. One is recommended to perform actions without attachment, so that
its fruit or impression does not add to the baggage of ones karma. When one
performs detached actions, he only performs action as long as his previous karma
phala is not nullified. One performs the highest kind of action at this stage, and such
action always results in the benefit of surroundings (loka kalyana).
Moksha is through total karma nivritti and transcending the action-fruit cycle. This is
possible if one realizes and discriminates between atman and non-atman (body,
mind etc). One can get beyond the judiciary of karma by experiencing the One
beyond qualities (beyond trigunas satwa, rajas, tamas).
Akarma is a state where an action is not bound by karma/phala. This is the kind of
action performed by a liberated person.
Freewill
Fate and freewill both are significant in ones actions. While many factors like
daivabala (destiny or God-will), prarabdha (ones own previous actions) affect the
fruit of action, it is human effort (purushakara) that drives action. Man is said to be
the owner of his actions, though not totally the owner of the fruits of the actions.
God is said to be the witness of all action (karma sakshi). One way, it is true that
God is the one who inspires and drives all action, and bears its fruit. But He does it
through the instruments. In the microcosm, daiva is said to follow purusha prayatna,
and in the macrocosm it is the other way round.
Group Karma
When a group of individuals do actions that affect each other, it results in group
karma. This could be a collectivity or persons closely attached to each other. In the

latter case the group is called a group soul (yaksha). In the former, the persons do
not get combined as a group soul but reap the fruit of collective action. This kind of
karma drives the lifecycle of a society.
Textual References
The Veda Samhita does not directly indicate or explain the karma concept. In fact,
karma is simply equated to yajna in the Veda. This is because in the Vedic sense all
life and all action is Yajna, and thus karma = yajna. The Veda refers to karma in this
sense, throughout.
The Mother Godess Durga is praised as the controller and giver of the fruits of
action, karmaphaleshu justam (Durga Suktam, Taittiriya Aranyaka).

5.3 Purusharthas Goals of Life

In Vedic worldview, there are four Purusharthas or goals of human life
righteousness (dharma), generation of wealth (artha), fulfillment of ones desires
(kama), and liberation (moksha). A person having fulfilled all these is said to have
lived a complete life.
Dharma
Dharma is the basis, and it is both the driving force and determinant of all action. It
can be translated as right action, including propensity to choose right action, and
initiative to do it. Dharma is not just doing duty, though doing ones duty/fulfilling
responsibilities is a part of ones dharma.
Dharma can alternately be defined as natural order, and it is righteousness. Morality
is a superficial definition to dharma, since morality is mostly at mind level. However
it is included. It is the course of action chosen by the self, and is defined and
explained by seers who have realized the true nature of self (jiva). Thus Atma
Nirdesa is the ultimate source/authority of dharma. But since common man is in
the path to realizing self rather than driven by self directly, the dharma sastras
given by seers stand as advises for him. Dharma is said to be eternal, and the right
is defined as ritam. Righteousness is the dynamic or applied aspect of Truth
True-Righteous is as Satyam-Ritam.
Apart from doing ones dharma, ones thoughts should be dharmic too. One should
train oneself to do things according to dharma, while simultaneously training ones
mind to have the right emotions and thoughts.
Thus dharma is the first goal of life. All other goals of life are to be pursued based
on dharma. In fact, having followed ones dharma consciously, one automatically
fulfills all other goals. Dharma applies to all four ashramas and four varnas, and it is
defined separately for each Varna and ashrama. There is a samanya dharma,
(general code) visesha dharma (special code) and apaddharma (emergency). Also, a
person has different dharmas at different capacities in which he operates as an
individual (vyakti), as a member of family, community and society (samisti). This
purushartha when fulfilled ensures proper order, peace, happiness in the society
and the individual.
Artha
Artha is the second Purushartha. This translates as generation of wealth. Although it
appears that generation of wealth and production is the job of vysya and sudra
varnas, it is not just for them. Any form of material wealth/prosperity is artha. It is
primarily the function of vysya and sudra, but others are not prohibited from
earning/generation of wealth. Though there are differences in the professions
prescribed for different varnas, each grhastha irrespective of his varna should
support his family as well as offer sustenance to the society. Grhastha is the basis of
society, and brahmacaris and sanyasis and many other sections of people depend
on grhastha. This is possible through earning wealth, artha. Thus artha is an
important purushartha, a goal of life. Sharing, distributing the wealth is necessary
along with earning. This Purushartha ensures sustenance and prosperity of society.
In a prosperous society, one should not need to think of survival in future. Grhastha

spends/distributes part of his wealth for the benefit of others. And as he takes to
next ashramas, the society supports him. Even a suffering grhastha gets support.
Thus survival should never be a problem. Thus accumulating is not the idea,
support, help and circulation of wealth is the idea. However earning should be done
through righteous means. One should not covet others wealth. Under exceptional
conditions like distress unrighteous means can also be used for supporting family.
Kama
Fulfilling ones own desires through righteous means is the next goal of life. The
desire could be sensuous or emotional or otherwise.
Fulfillment/satisfaction/happiness of the individual is always the implicit purpose.
However, this is not seen as the only goal, and the other goals are the ones that
differentiate man from other animals.
It is the default tendency of every person to try and fulfill his desires. Subjecting
these to dharmic means and their fulfillment is a way to sublimate desires. Also it is
said that one can gain the maximum fruit and fulfill his desires the best, when it is
based on dharma. It is in this context that the definition of dharma as natural order
makes good sense to us.
However, kama as desire is a general definition, and the specific definition is sexual
desire/sensuous pleasure. Fulfilling sexual desire, begetting progeny and extending
the race is a prescribed goal. This fulfillment too, should be dharmic both in the
sense that it should be legitimate and in the sense that it should follow the natural
order. The highest level of contentment in sexual life is said to come through
commitment to one partner, since this not only gives sensuous but emotional
security and happiness. Only grhastha is permitted to this, and it is the duty of a
grhastha. It is independent of varna.
Moksha
Liberation is the ultimate goal of life. Though there is an explicit way to this,
following ones varna and ashrama dharma and basing artha and kama on dharma
is said to ensure moksha. Moksha is irrespective of varna.
However, there are many factors that determine what goals the person shall fulfill in
a life, such as experiences in previous lives, karma. Someone aims at moksha
directly through sanyasa, as he would have fulfilled the other purusharthas in his
previous lives. Most should go through all the ashramas, fulfilling each goal which is
the way it is usually aimed and prescribed.

5.4 Women
Principle of Duality
The status, treatment and role of woman in any society come from the worldview of
its philosophy/civilization. In the Hindu worldview, phenomenal world is dualistic.
There are two principles in the creation of universe itself. There are male and female
principles underlying our entire philosophy, seen as the essence and the
manifestation, root and the spreading. These two principles are inseparable and
complementary. Essentially both are same, but they are two aspects of the reality.
Thus if principle of existence is seen as male, then principle of creation, pervasion is
the female principle (the Siva-Sakti symbolism). They are inseparable like seed and
the tree, word and its meaning, energy and its potential to work. These two qualities
are represented by two colors, white and black. The former symbolizes pure
existence, the latter pervasiveness. In fact the entire universe is a play of the duals
consciousness and energy. And at different levels duality governs the entire
creation eternal-phenomenal, manifest-un manifest, mass-energy, life-non life,
male-female.
Man and Woman
The male and female principles in the human society too, i.e., man and woman, are
complementary aspects. The underlying principle is not equality; it is essential
oneness and natural diversity consequent of manifestation.
Nature is two-fold: spiritually, psychologically and biologically. And the
understanding of this fact underlies the design of individual, family and social
functions of man and woman.
Man being the representative of the essential principle of existence, his spiritual
realization/fulfillment comes through detaching from the apparent and realizing the
deeper reality. Woman being the representative of manifestation, her fulfillment
comes through fulfillment of natural functions.
Thus man is prescribed four ashramas, where he learns and celibates first, then
stabilizes and fulfills his family and social responsibilities, and then through penance
and renunciation he realizes the spiritual root. If there is any lapse in this, he should
identify and correct himself for this he has explicit expiation rites. There is no selfcorrecting mechanism.
A womans roles go by her natural tendencies her family role etc. She being nature
herself, her ways are the natural. She has a self-correcting mechanism in the form
of her natural cycle. And what she does, is natural/dharmic. If what she does is
abnormal, it is seen consequent of an abnormality in the surroundings (say behavior
of people around her or things like that) to which her abnormal action is an
indicator/reaction/correction. This is the reason smritis do not specific prescriptions
or expiation rites for women. This is the status accorded to women.
Thus it is not because woman is not considered important that the smritis mention
less about her. It is because she does not need a lot of prescription to get salvation.
She is given very few instructions, such as regarding her husband prior to anything
else. That guarantees her salvation. It is not the case with man; he needs specific

conditioning of his mind, and needs to follow specific paths to salvation. And errors
can detract him, so there are explicit corrective actions for him.
However, woman does all that the man does, say following ashrama dharma or
doing yajnas, in a different way.
Manusmriti 2.67 says that marriage is the Upanayana for the woman, serving her
husband is like serving guru and learning at gurukula, household work is like the two
yajnas done in the morning and the evening.
It is also because of the temperament that it is often said woman does not have
freedom and man has. Freewill in action and consequent responsibility of the action,
both are in mans natural way not in a womans natural way. Also, man is said to
be responsible and pay for the actions of his wife. Thus if seen properly, all those
things that apparently cause discomfort for a woman or are seen as her limitations,
such as natural surrender, physical weakness and biological limitations, are her
strengths in her spiritual path. And all the apparent strengths of a man are his
weaknesses/things that bring him down in his spiritual path.
Thus we can see that getting over ego is given a lot of importance in the Hindu
system. Either it is through a direct surrender to the divine or in terms of respecting
and obeying elders, humility and attributing ones success to what caused the
success, such as guidance from elders or disowning the credit calling the success as
god given. The arrangement also ensures that many natural tendencies of mind that
affect ones downward movements, such as jealousy, hatred, anger are kept in
check. Manusmriti for instance (2.118-139) instructs who is respectable and in what
ways one should express humility and respect towards elders.
In a society that puts spiritual cause above material, priority is attached to practices
that cause spiritual elevation. And a society that puts material above spiritual, aims
at minimizing material discomforts. And Hindu society aims at the former. Thus the
goal of human life is the same for man and woman, but the methods prescribed suit
their natural tendencies.
Spirituality
Spiritual practices like yoga are said to be easier for woman than for man. One
reason for this is that unlike man who dwells into the philosophy of things than
things in themselves, woman by nature is more oriented towards things in
themselves. It is often said that man has more aptitude in the theory of
(intellectual) things (sastra vishaya) and woman has more aptitude in worldly
knowledge and experiential things. As a result woman is by default tuned to first
hand experience, whether it is spiritual or otherwise. And naturally spiritual
experience too, is an easier bet for the woman.
Another reason is the natural sense of surrender, which allows her to a total
surrender to the divine. Man has a bigger obstacle of ego. This does not mean a
woman does not have any ego but it is easier for her in the wake of the fact that
she is more oriented towards surrender than man. And since ego is one of the
biggest obstacles in spiritual realization, the path and the goal are comparatively
easier for woman than man.

Functions of a woman
The functions specified for a woman, follow from the above philosophy. The
following are prescribed for a woman, through which she is deriving the fruit of
having done every noble action, and ultimately salvation (Manusmriti 5.147-168).
1 Single point devotion to husband
2 Efficiency and capability in managing the house and finance. In the house,
she is in the center stage.
A woman can get salvation even if she does not have children, if she leads her life in
a proper way. She is directly responsible in molding the offspring, continuing the
lineage.
However, the biggest role of a woman is that of a mother. In every relation that she
has wife, mother, sister, daughter, at some stage she naturally assumes the role
of a mother.
Woman is called jaaya, because her husband is taking birth in her womb in the form
of offspring.
Donts
Certain qualities/habits are discouraged for a woman (Manu 9.80-83). These include
1 Drinking.
2 Of cruel nature.
3 Going against her husbands interests. Because he is her primary relation
always.
4 Hurting or being rude to servants. Because she is the one managing and
instructing them all.
5 Being spendthrift. Because she is the one controlling the entire finance of
house.
It can be noted that these directly go against what is prescribed for her.
Woman and her husband
Husband is the primary and most intimate relative of a woman. In theory and for all
practical purposes they are one after marriage. Any person dealing with either of
them is as good as dealing with the one.
Woman is divine helpmate of the man, in all his rituals. It should be understood that
every activity in life is a yajna in the Vedic sense, and thus man and woman partner
each other in all that they do. It actually suffices if it is said that one is the others
partner, since partnership is always mutual. A man is not permitted to do a homa
alone (Apastamba Dharma Sutras 2.15.18). The wife gives the fire with which a
homa should start. Any ritual at the household level and higher, should be done by
the couple together. In all the yajnas other than individual japa/devatarcana, wife
and husband both have complementary roles. The wife should offer bali to the
bhutas (primordial elements) in the evening, and man in the morning (Manu 3.121),
this way Vaisvadeva should done by the couple everyday. In case one is absent, the
daily rituals should be done by the one who is home, and special rituals cannot be
done.

Keeping his wife happy is the primary responsibility of a man (Manusmriti 3.45). The
house where husband and wife keep each other happy will prosper (Manu 3.60).
And a devoted woman will acquire all the good qualities of her husband (Manu 9.1103).
Single pointed devotion is mandatory between man and woman (Manu 4.134,
5.151). And unless there is a good reason they are supposed to be together, and
there is expiation if they separate even for a small duration, when the reason is not
good enough (Apastamba Dharma Sutras 1.28.19, 20).
There is no separation between wife and husband, and it is not allowed to treat
them as separate (Apastamba Dharma Sutras 2.14.16-20). All the property they
own belongs to the couple, and there is no distribution between husband and wife.
The wife and husband, have the right to spend/lend/give the wealth, but only with
each others consent. In the absence of either, the other has entire responsibility
and right over the wealth (Apastamba Dharma Sutras 2.29.3).
Remarriage is not recommended for a woman, while it is for a man. This should be
understood in the light of two points:
1 This rule applies more in a patriarchy. In case of matriarchy, kshetra is
primary and beeja is secondary (man is called the beeja and woman,
kshetra). However Manu holds that both are equally important.
2 Grhastha ashrama is exactly for one fourths of ones life, and remarriage is
specifically for begetting children. In case of a woman widowed without
children, she is permitted to beget children, though without marrying again.
Debts
A woman is not indebted to anyone except her husband. Her husband and son are
indebted to her. Her father is responsible to raise her well and get her married. Her
husband is responsible to keep her happy then on. Her son is responsible after his
fathers vanaprastha (Apastamba Dharma Sutras 2.28.9).
Treatment of Woman
A womans safety and happiness are given high importance. Women are the source
of happiness, in the sense that a happy woman keeps her surroundings always
happy and prosperous. Manu insists on this in many ways. (3.56) - where women
are respected devatas will be happy. Where women are not respected, no the ritual
or worship will be of any use. (3.57) - If women are unhappy, the clan of those who
cause it will be destroyed. If women are happy, the house and clan will prosper.
(3.58) If a woman is insulted, the entire clan (of those causing the insult to her)
will be destroyed. (3.59) Those who want to be happy, should keep women happy,
respect her and treat her well. (3.62) If woman is happy, the entire clan will be
happy. If she is not, the entire clan will suffer.
(Manu 5.147-168, 9.1-103) Woman is not recommended to live alone; she should
live with her parents in childhood, with her husband after marriage and with her
children in case she is widowed. And she is to be treated well, by her father,
husband children and protected in all situations. She gets her due from them.
Ideally, she should never need to do many things like supporting the family.
However if she happens to live alone because not proper arrangements are not

made for her (by husband etc.) she should make her earning/living through some
specified ways that keep her safe.
However it is worth noting that a man is alone in three ashramas brahmacarya,
sanyasa and vanaprastha (this is optional though). Grhastha and in some cases
vanaprastha are the only ashramas where wife and husband are together. Before
and after that they are not. Still, woman is not left alone while man is. This is
because woman is the primary sustainer of society. The fulfillment and
detachment/renunciation approaches that are mentioned earlier, explain this. Most
of the times man does his duty detached. As a reason, he is not a sustaining
element of society in all phases of his life. He is not the one who keeps people
intact. It is the woman who keeps people intact, in the form of a family. This is the
reason it is said that there is no beauty in a house that does not have a woman. For
this reason, woman is to be given importance. But for the same reason she should
not be alone in fact she will not be alone by her nature. And for the same reason
her freedom is also constrained. And if it should said that woman is not given
freedom, it is because she is precious rather than anything else. You tend to protect
what is precious to you, though it means discomfort to who you are protecting.
However, it should be noted that this does not mean dependency or lack of freedom
in the sense it is normally understood. Dependency, if it should be called, is twoway, as man depends on woman and vice versa. In a more positive sense this is the
complementariness mutual reinforcement through diversity of functions. What is
ignored in understanding of this arrangement is the element of trust that each one
satisfies his/her responsibility and the other has to bother about his/her. It becomes
a dependency, when the sense of mutual reinforcement goes and one becomes
atomic.
The Hindu system that does not aim at atomizing individuals puts diverse
responsibilities on each individual, and the entire system functions well if each
individual performs his/her functions. These functions will be defined according to
the natural tendencies of persons in each position. However, there will always be
exceptions but a society will not be designed for exceptions. And saying that
design should not be there because of exceptions, is defeating the entire purpose of
society. However, exceptions should have a way out of the system. They always
have.
Smriti is a guideline, which only recommends. And having said what is not to be
done, smriti also treats that people exist in the society that do not go by the
practices, and includes them. In fact society has all kinds of practices what is best
is recommended by smriti, and ideal and deviant cases are always small in number.
Therefore smriti covers all cases while highlighting what is best. This is the spirit in
which smriti should be read. Thus, for instance, having said what kind of marriage is
ideal (between same Varna), it covers all combinations of varnas. Having said
woman should not be left to live alone, it says what she should do if she is alone.
Having said one should not have extramarital relation, it says what should be legally
done in cases of such relation and offspring of such relations (such as property,
inheritance). In fact this is the purpose of smriti, showing what is good and in what
way.

Knowledge
While the professions ordained by the Varna dharma do not apply to woman
because her functions are otherwise, knowledge of any form is not denied. Of late
with social changes women are kept outside the fold of Vedic study, but study of
Veda was not denied for women. Rishikas like Apala are among Vedic seers, not just
scholars. But then it was not a prescribed profession for women it is optional.
Knowledge of sastras on the other hand has always been available to women.
However, this was not done by gurukula system. A woman is supposed to do the
learning from her father/elders at home, or any other learned person visiting her
place. She can also author/ engage in technical debates. But all this is more optional
than to be done as a necessity, unlike for man whether there is a minimal
prescribed study based on Varna.
Diversity- man/woman
Thinking like a man and doing things like a man, is not the way a woman can be
individualistic or independent. It is by retaining her woman ness, and in a setup that
respects woman ness and gives scope for living it, that we can say woman is
respected or treated on par with man. Treating on par with man is not reducing
woman to a man. So where her functions are designed according to her natural
tendencies, is the system that really respects women. Not the one that simply says
she is free to do anything and implicitly forces her to live like a man and generously
offer her the freedom of doing anything a man does.
Social Practices
Woman not working or any other thing is not a scriptural instruction, but an
arrangement made for social convenience and to suit social conditions and times.
Often, it is the importance she is given and a consequent expectation, that makes
us feel she is ill-treated.

5.5 Institutions
Hindu society could be seen as a collection of institutions. Collectivities evolve at
each stage of human life. Traditionally woman is always a part of a jati. Man
however, does not always belong to the same collectivity. In the four ashramas
there are different collectivities he belongs to. During brahmacarya there is no
established group he belongs to, except his gurukula. Gurukula is the vyavastha for
brahmacaris. In grhastha ashrama he belongs to the varna he pursues and the jati
he is born in. In vanaprastha there is no collectivity. During sanyasa he is very much
alone, but there is a system/framework within which his activities are facilitated.
Family is the basic unit of the society. Marriage is the arrangement that enables this.
Jati is the cultural unit that binds families. Varna is an abstraction that diversifies
and arranges jatis in the society.
Guru-sishya parampara is really the corner stone of the society, which enables
keeping religious/philosophical pursuits of a person separate from the remaining
social system. Absence of this is the reason why religions in the west have
penetrated into socio-economic-political system and have not really remained
religions.
Broadly, these are the institutions that form the foundation of Hindu society:
1 Family (kutumba)
2 Caste (jati)
3 Vivaha (marriage very much covered in the above two)
4 Varna (an abstraction over jati)
5 Gurukula vyavastha (vaguely education system)
6 Guru-Sishya parampara (master disciple system)
7 Sanyasi Vyavastha
8 Finance
9 Public administration
10 Governance
11 Polity
12 Judiciary (8-12 are necessarily interrelated and not separate systems
5.5.1 Guru-Sishya Parampara
Guru-Sishya Parampara is the teacher-disciple institution. Being a civilization that
respects experiential knowledge, we hold high respect for the teacher of such
knowledge. It is separated from the socio-political structure and spans across
social/political divisions since such knowledge is beyond those divisions. This is the
institution that kept religion and theological practices and beliefs from occupying
place in governance, and also kept the administrative structure from interfering with
the institution of knowledge.
Knowledge
Knowledge is of two kinds, deductive and experiential. While the student gets initial
guidance and understanding of the subject from the teacher to understand the
premises and continue study with his discrimination, experiential knowledge is
supposed to be pursued in a different way. Here there is needed an unwavering faith
in the teacher, and a determination to follow his word on the path, irrespective of

how it sounds to his discriminatory logic. This is a primary difference in the pursuit
of sastras and spiritual practice.
Lineage of Gurus
Like any other institution Guru-Sishya parampara is also said to have come from the
eternal. Every Guru-Sishya tradition claims its origin in the eternal. In every tradition
the lineage of teachers is given a salutation. For instance here is the salutation
sloka of advaitins:
"sadasiva samarambham sankaracarya madhyamam
asmad acarya paryantam vande guru paramparam"
Meaning: salutation to the lineage starting with lord Sadasiva, with Adi Sankara in
the middle and continuing up to my immediate teacher.
Here is another one:
"narayana samarambham vyasa sankara madhyamam
asmad acarya paryantam vande guru paramparaam"
Meaning: salutation to the lineage starting with lord narayana, with Vyasa and Adi
Sankara in the middle and continuing up to my immediate teacher.
Siva/Vishnu are said to be the first teachers. Veda Vyasa is said to be the first
human teacher, who is an incarnation of Vishnu himself. This is the reason his birth
day is celebrated in remembrance of Gurus (Vyasa Purnima is called Guru Purnima).
Usually, first guru in any lineage sets the goals and broadly gives paths to achieve
those. (Lakshya Nirdesa) The subsequent ones define paths that suit the times, in a
way that they lead to the goals set by the first teacher and are not in conflict with
the philosophy of the tradition (Marga Nirdesa).
Guru, the teacher
Teacher is accorded highest respect, and is equated to God. The famous verse goes
thus:
"gururbrahma gururvishnuH gurudevo maheswaraH
guru sakshat parabrahma tasmai sri gurave namaH"
Meaning: Guru is Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesha, in fact guru is Prabrahma himself,
the Brahman, the Absolute. Salutations to such guru.
Guru is treated with such high respect, because it is believed that he imparts that
knowledge which cannot otherwise be gained through merely reading books. In
spiritual disciplines this applies more, and here is how the importance of teacher is
explained:
"dhyana mulam gurormurtiH
puja mulam guroH padam
mantra mulam gurorvakyam

moksha mulam guroH kripa"

Meaning: Guru's murti/idol/body is the object of meditation, his feet the objects of
worship, his words the objects of chanting. All this is because in his grace lies the
source of liberation.
Guru is said to be worthy of such respect and unwavering trust of the disciple, since
he takes the responsibility for molding the disciple into what he should be. The
disciple that follows Guru's word with faith, is supposed to be assured of reaching
the goals (sometimes irrespective of the personal merit of the teacher).
Upadesa
The Guru accepts disciples that he deems fit for the education that he is imparting.
There is scriptural guidance for such qualification, but the final decision on this is of
the Guru and no one else. Knowledge is usually not subject to social divisions, but
pursuing a subject as a prerequisite for a career is subject to social convention and
eligibility of the student. However, the social convention is also only a factor and not
the decisive force. The Guru in case he is convinced of the genuineness and
qualification of the student, does accept the student with necessary initiation (in
some cases by change of the student's Varna as needed in the case). This is how
Karna became the student of Drona, who does not otherwise teach anyone who is
not from the Royal clan. However the teacher decides what is the amount of wisdom
he should impart based on the aptitude, maturity and righteousness of the disciple.
This is why, Karna was accepted as a disciple by Drona even though he is not the
son of a king because of his aptitude; he was not given Brahmastra because he is
filled with negative impulses like hatred. Though there is curriculum defined for any
study, the Guru defines what the curriculum is for the qualification and interest of
each disciple. And for what the disciple is not eligible, there cannot be any force on
the Guru to impart such knowledge. Thus it is not just a matter of curiosity but a
matter of social interest where knowledge never goes into the hands of men that
can misuse it. And it is the responsibility of every Guru to ensure that no student is
deprived of knowledge where he is eligible and no student gains knowledge that he
either does not qualify for or he is not mature enough to handle.

Gurudakshina
After acquiring knowledge from the Guru, the disciple is supposed to repay him for
the teaching. The Guru's "fees" is called guru dakshina. It is usually offered by the
student, then the teacher asks what he wants as his fees and the student pays it.
However the student owes to a guru much more than fees. Gurudakshina only gives
adhikara on the vidya, that is the student only becomes eligible to use the
knowledge he learnt by paying the fees. That does not absolve him of the debt to
the Guru. For that to happen he should do two things throughout his life: putting the
knowledge to good use and getting good name for the teacher; and imparting and
spreading the knowledge by teaching it to subsequent generations of students.
Examples
" There are many Guru-Sishya paramparas in Sanatana Dharma, which have come
down uninterrupted over millennia. All the Vidyas and literature like Vedas,
Vedangas, Darsanas and Dharma sastras have come down as Guru-Sishya
paramparas. The various flavors of similar knowledge, for instance different
branches of Veda have come down as Guru-Sishya paramparas.
" Various schools of spiritual philosophy such as Advaita and Dvaita, have come
down as Guru-Sishya paramparas.
" All the religions in Bharatiya Civilization, whether the Vedic ones such as
Vishnava and Saiva, and also outgrowths like Buddhism, have come down as GuruSishya paramparas. Besides, various variants of the religions developed in the same
framework of Guru-Sishya parampara. The different schools of practices like Tantra,
Smarta are Guru-Sishya paramparas.
" Sanyasa too contains Guru-Sishya paramparas.
" The learning of various sastras and vidyas, religious or secular, such as
administration and engineering, has many diverse schools that are Guru-Sishya
paramparas.
Thus entire knowledge and religious structure in Hinduism stands on Guru-Sishya
parampara. This is the institution that caused uninterrupted flow of knowledge over
generations, its growth and spreading5.5.2 Gurukula Vyavastha - Schooling
System
Gurukula Vyavastha translates as schooling system.
Selection of students and eligibility
There is scriptural guidance for determining the eligibility of a student. However the
immediate and final decision on this is of the guru, as he could determine the
eligibility considering changing times and situational needs along with the student's
attitude and aptitude.
The selection for different vidyas will be based on aptitude and attitude of the
student, along with his Varna. There could be exceptions where the guru may
decide to disqualify a student in spite of his Varna or aptitude, for other reasons like
the attitude/intentions of the student. And there could be occasions when a student
will be accepted for a study that his varna does not otherwise qualify for.
Study - instruction
Except on specific days, instruction will typically happen after daily ritual in the

early morning till afternoon.

For dwija students the curriculum includes veda and associate texts like vedangas
and upangas. Besides, each class will have a different curriculum - kshatriyas will
pursue things like neeti sastra, dhanurveda etc while brahmanas will continue to
study the veda. Sudra students will pursue varied subjects like engineering and
architecture.
Study - life in gurukula
As the name itself indicates, gurukula means extended family of the guru. Guru is
the owner of the family. Students should raise food through alms and by collecting
wood/eatables etc from forests. They should surrender it before the gurupatni
(guru's wife) and she distributes whatever all the students collected amongst all the
students after guru's share. Usually the needs like wood for household fire are also
got by the students.
Fees
Guru should not take any money from the students. The guru dakshina will be paid
in the end by the student, and it will be what the guru asks for.
References
The dharma sastras, especially the Dharma Sutras of Kalpa (like Apastamba and
Baudhayana) and metrical codes like Manusmriti lay down the outline of Gurukula
Vyavastha, how a guru should be, how a disciple should be, how instruction should
be and so on.

5.5.3 Sanyasi Vyavastha

Sanyasa ashrama is one of the four stages of man's life. However a sanyasi is
technically outside the social fold. He is outside social divisions or categories, and
its rules. He does not have any social bond as such, though he can raise his meal
through accepting alms and by attending people's houses as a guest. A sanyasi is
not supposed to stay long in any single place, he should be continuously moving so
that he is not attached to any person or place. This is why a sanyasi is in fact called
parivrajaka, one that roams and is never settled in a place. The single point goal of
a sanyasi is liberation, and nothing else. He should have no desires, temptations,
ambitions, other than liberation.
However there are places where a sanyasi can live, such as mathas (monasteries).
A sanyasi should be moving and should not be living in the monastery throughout
the year, and can be returning to it every year.
There are many traditions of monasteries in Hinduism. Broadly they agree upon
renunciation, detachment concepts but are diverse in practices. The different
schools have different traditions and different monasteries. For instance Sanyasis
following Sri Vaishnava (like Sri Jeeyar) follow different practices than those
following advaita-smarta like Kanchi Acaryas.

It is not necessary for a sanyasi to be affiliated to any of the monasteries. Ideally he

could just be alone, a parivrajaka, with no fixed home.
Sanyasi and Society
Sanyasi has a peculiar kind of relation with the society. He can be dependent on it
for his food, though not settled with one set of people. He can also teach them what
he knows. However he shall not accept any assets from anyone for himself and can
only do it to donate it or putting it to use for the benefit of the society (like doing
yajna or giving it for building a monastery/temple/school etc). He can accept as
disciples only sanyasis. He can however teach grhasthas (or brahmacaris or
vanapratshis) though not take them with him.
Sankara Mathas
Adi Sankara gave a small set of five poems called Yati pancaka, to explain how a
Sanyasi should be. He gave two documents, for intra and inter-monastery
(ashrama/math) activities. The first is to prescribe the way sanyasis should live in a
monastery, their hierarchy and seniority, how they should treat each other, how the
monastery should be organized etc. The second is about the way different
monasteries should deal with each other. He laid down the dasanami sampradaya,
where a sanyasi can be taking one of the ten suffixes to his name. They are bharati,
sarasvati, sagara, tirtha, puri, asrama, giri, parvata, aranya and vana.
He established four mathas called Amnaya mathas in our sides of the country, at
Puri (East), Sringeri (South), Dvaraka (West) and Jyotirmatha (North). They are
associated with Rigveda, Yajurveda, Samaveda and Atharvaveda respectively. The
dasanami sanyasins do not really have to belong to any particular matha and are
arranged in to number of mathas apart from the Amnaya mathas. However the
names are distributed within the Amnaya mathas as: vana and aranya with Puri,
bharati, puri and sarasvati with Sringeri, tirtha and asrama with Dvaraka; sagara,
parvata and giri with Jyotirmath.

6. Popular Religion
6.1 Temples
(i) Construction
Temple is one of the foundations on which Hinduism survives. The theory of temple,
its construction, running it, its rituals are taken from Agamas. Vaishnava temples
follow Vaishnava Agamas and so on. Although there are portions of Agamas that are
unvedic, temples at least in their present form, are based on the Vedic portion of
Agamas only.
A Temple can be likened to a human body, with the God placed where Jiva resides in
man, which is heart. Agamas extensively discuss the entire procedure for temples,
including
Routines for worship and prescriptions for worship of God in His various forms
Selection of site for Temple
Materials for construction
Iconometry, along with sizes and proportions of idols and various parts of
temple
Architectural details, designs, qualities expected in sculptor and director of
the temple project, their roles etc
Social aspects, such as the soil for town building, town plan
Aspects of Temple Construction
There are many aspects involved in constructing a temple. Acarya, director for the
temple construction and silpi (sculptor) play major role in the construction of a
temple. Though not as much as silpi, acarya is expected to know silpa sastra.
Temple construction begins with search of a proper site. Soil and location are
examined by acarya and silpi. This is called Bhupariksha.
This is followed by nagara/grama nirmana. Here, the layout of town, its size, breadth
of different types of streets, locations and sizes of facilities like water tanks are
determined based on the size of town. There are different names for different sizes
of towns, like grama, kheta, kharvata, durga, nagara. Then the location of temple
(brahma sthana) in the town is decided. Temple is usually in the center of village so
that every villager has access to it. The entire arrangement is called grama vinyasa.
Then the size of temple is determined. For this, size of the image of main deity is to
be known, since the size of a temple is always a fixed multiple of the size of image
of main deity. Then wood/metal/stone is selected for the image. The icon has three
parts, main icon (vigraha), pedestal (peetha) and platform (adhisthana or upa
peetha). The tests to determine quality of stone are prescribed by the Agamas.
There are three kinds of stone, male female and neuter. When hit with an iron rod if
the stone produces good sound and spark, it is male and should be used for the
main icon. If it produces sound but not spark it is female and should be used for
pedestal. If it produces neither, it is neuter and should be used for platform. There
are various standards for the relative proportions of image, gopura, prakara etc. and
also the relative proportions of various parts of the vigraha. The units for measuring
vigraha are tala, angula and yava. Tala is a multiple of angula and angula is a

multiple of yava. More than the specific size of each unit, the multiplicity and
relative sizes are important. The proportions of Head-Trunk-Arms-Legs of images are
specified. The finer specifications like nose, nail, ears and their shapes are also
mentioned. Generally the standard is to use dasatala (ten talas) for the height of
image of male deity, navatala (nine talas) for His consort and astatala (eight talas)
for bhakta.
Duties of temple administration are also specified in the Agamas organizing
festivals, encourage art forms and conduct shows to encourage artists, create
accommodation for pilgrims from other towns, run hospitals, regularly conducting
religious discourses etc.
Town planning, engineering, architecture, fine arts, civics, and many other subjects
are dealt in the agamas, which relate to the various interests of people and involve
them in different capacities and also direct their work towards a higher goal.
Steps in Temple Construction
The procedure for building a temple is extensively discussed, and it could be
expressed in short as Karshanadi Pratisthantam, meaning beginning with
Karshana and ending with Pratistha. The details of steps involved vary from one
Agama to another, but broadly these are the steps in temple construction:
1

Bhu pariksha: Examining and choosing location and soil for temple and town.
The land should be fertile and soil suitable.
2 Sila pariksha: Examining and choosing material (metal/stone/wood) for image
3 Karshana: Corn or some other crop is grown in the place first and is fed to
cows. Then the location is fit for town/temple construction.
4 Vastu puja: Ritual to propitiate vastu devata.
5 Salyoddhara: Undesired things like bones are dug out.
6 Adyestaka: Laying down the first stone
7 Nirmana: Then foundation is laid and land is purified by sprinkling water. A pit
is dug, water mixed with navaratnas, navadhanyas, navakhanijas is then put
in and pit is filled. Then the temple is constructed.
8 Murdhestaka sthapana: Placing the top stone over the prakara, gopura etc.
This again involves creating cavities filled with gems minerals seeds etc. and
then the pinnacles are placed.
9 Garbhanyasa: A pot made of five metals (pancaloha kalasa sthapana) is
installed at the place of main deity.
10 Sthapana: Then the main deity is installed.
11 Pratistha: The main deity is then charged with life/god-ness.
Before the temple is opened for daily worship, there are some preparatory rituals to
be done, like:
Anujna: the priest takes permission from devotees and lord Ganesha to
begin rituals
Mrit samgrahana: Collecting mud
Ankurarpana: Sowing seeds in pots of mud collected and waiting till
they germinate
Rakshabandhana: The priest binds a holy thread of vow on his hand to
take up the assignment.

Punyahavacana: Purifying ritual for the place and invoking good omens
Grama santi: Worship for the good of village and to remove subtle
undesired elements
Pravesa bali: Propitiation of various gods at different places in the
temple, rakshoghna puja (to destroy asuric elements) and of specific
gods like Kshetra palaka (devata ruling the town)
Vastu Santi: Pacifying puja for vastu (this happens twice and this is the
second time)
Yagasala: Building the stage for homas, along with vedika.
Kalasasthapana: Installing kalasam
Samskara: Purifying the yaga sala
Kalasa puja, yagarambha: Woshipping the kalasa as god and
propitiating deities through fire
Nayanonmeelana, Pratimadhivasa: Opening eyes of the god-image,
installing it and giving it life

Then specific worship is done to deity, as prescribed. For instance in the case of
Siva, this is followed by astabandhana and kumbhabhisheka.
Rituals
There are four kinds of rituals conducted in a temple: nitya (daily), naimittika
(occasional), kamya (desirous or optional) and prayaschitta (expiation).
Appendix I Collectivism
Contents
Collectivity - The Theory
Section
1 Need for Collectivity
Section 2 Completeness and Collectivity
Section 3 Levels of Collectivity
Section 4 Benefits of Collectivity
Section 5 Problems and Pitfalls in Managing Collectivities
Understanding Contemporary Societies
Section 6 The Hindu Society
Section 7 Hindus in US
Collectivity The Theory
Section 1 Need for Collectivity
Forming groups, feeling belongingness to them, representing those groups in the
society, trying to protect the interests of those groups, creating a group level capital
be it monetary or human resource, how good or bad is this? Let us examine both
sides of the coin.
Let us take the case of an individual in a society. He is given the right to live there.
How can he survive there?

1. Apart from salary and house, he needs a social circle to move. He can say the
entire society is his, but obviously he does not move with it. He needs some
friends/relatives to move. He searches for them and creates a circle for himself.
2. He confides in that circle, moves in it. He depends on the circle for what he
cannot do as an individual social dependence. This can be of different types and
levels, right from having company to visit a restaurant to having somebody to take
him to the doctor if he has an urgent medical problem. These can be bad examples
but there will be many other needs. So he creates a circle where help can be given
and taken. This help can be human or monetary. In case of monetary help he tries to
raise a fund within the circle that can be used in case of need for an individual or
family within the circle.
3. Then there are aesthetic needs for which he needs like-minded people around
him. Having similar interests or working for a similar cause as his, resonating to the
wavelength of his thought, these are higher needs for the individual. He creates a
circle for such interests.
4. There is another kind of need, which is compatibility of culture level. He needs his
circle to be of a similar culture-level as his. Not his habits but his entire civilizational
trait, including likes-dislikes of customs, attire, and language level, knowledge level,
value-set, character level, personality and philosophical traits. Each person wants to
move with those persons who match him in these. Different aspects can be
matching with different people, and the person chooses to limit his interaction with
others to those aspects he has match with. This is human tendency.
There are other needs for collectivity to a person, but we can start with this initial
set. In fact all this need not be listed even to a layman, because everyone
acknowledges these implicitly and takes for granted man is a social being he needs
a group to move with. But our purpose is not concluding this; we want to go a bit
further into the matter. We want to find out what kinds of needs of a man are
addressed by what kind of groups.
Section 2 Completeness and Collectivity
But before that we need to address another important aspect, what causes a man to
attach more importance or less importance with collectivities. What makes man
more dependent or less dependent on collectivities? For this we need to see what
man seeks in life. He seeks happiness. Then the question is what brings happiness.
It is completeness that brings happiness. There is a vast landscape of
incompleteness in man. The more successful he is in fulfilling it and achieving
completeness, the happier he is. There are different ways to achieve completeness.
Most wise people say that having a goal and working for it throughout ones life is
the way to achieve this completeness. It is aimlessness that causes incompleteness
to grow and it is goal that fills in that incompleteness.
Having said this, it is really rare to find in a society someone who has such goal and
spends his life for it. Most people have aims, ambitions, passions, fancies,
principles, dreams, visions, but a goal of the kind that offers such a fulfillment is
rare to find in men.

There are many constructs man creates to offer completeness the biggest of them
is God. A definition for God/Divinity is the belief that offers completeness to man.
This is not a qualitative definition for God but a teleological definition. At higher
levels it is not a belief but a living presence with which he needs no other circle or
society to offer him anything except his basic physical needs (sometimes not even
that). The more a man gets absorbed into it, the more complete he gets and the
less is the need for him to seek, create or move within circles. This way, aloofness is
brought about by a kind of completeness in man.
But there is dichotomy in aloofness one who has not begun the journey for
completeness and still has to feel the need for circles and create them and the one
who has journeyed through it and finally grew above it by achieving completeness
from within.
Thus during his journey he creates and sustains many levels of collectivities this
phase is called pravritti. In pravritti marga man synthesizes and sustains the society.
Then he locates the space within him where he can attain completeness then he
starts nivritti. That is, he withdraws into himself.
There are many other ways man can achieve completeness art forms, research,
social activity in short any kind of synthesis. Synthesis brings completeness. In
traditional language one transcends annamaya, pranamaya and manomaya kosas
with synthetic activity and lives in vijnanamaya kosa. He then moves further in, to
anandamaya kosa and within that to achieve total completeness. But in this stage
of transcendence he does things that do not relate to the subject of his synthetic
activity. For instance, a scientist stops speaking about laws of science and starts
dwelling in philosophy. An artist no more thinks of skill but only expresses his
deepest experiences. A social activist no more represents his community or cause
or principle but becomes instrument in the universal cause. In this stage he does
continue to synthesize but it is entirely different both in content and quality from
what he does earlier. This is the highest form of synthesis and offers the highest
fulfillment for mans life.
The dependence a man has with collectivity begins as he steps into pravritti, grows
with it, and starts coming down when he starts nivritti. As he completes nivritti he
has nothing to do with any kind of collectivity family, community, society or
nation.
Section 3 Levels of Collectivity
Having seen how mans life cycle maps with need of collectivity, we can now
examine what levels of collectivities he embraces in what stages of his life and for
what needs.
As an individual, his pravritti begins with birth and continues as he accumulates
material possessions and relations. As he begins to retire from all these and ceases
to feel ownership over these, his nivritti begins. As his nivritti completes, his
lifecycle ends.

The basic unit of collectivity for a man is his family that offers him most of what
needs. It is this unit to which he owes most directly. His existence, survival, living is
because of his family till he achieves the ability to do all these himself. Then he will
be responsible for the survival of his family. And there will be someone else (the
next generation is ready to take it up) to do that. His dependency on his family is
the highest when he does not even realize that there is something called family. And
as he becomes self-sufficient, his need for family decreases and familys need for
him increases. Then his nivritti starts. And when the next generation takes it up and
his need is fulfilled, his nivritti completes and vanaprastha begins (his role in family
ends).
Almost when mans nivritti in family begins, he starts behaving like an individual in
his society. Before that he is not responsible for his actions in the society and he
does not face its consequences directly as the family faces the consequences of
many if not most of his actions. But from then on he has to face the consequences
of his actions and the actions of every one in the family. Then he starts building an
image of the family in the society and creates a new interface with the society. He
tries to consolidate his position in the society by representing different levels of
collectivity he is known through his contacts, his community and his region apart
from his personal qualities. He realizes that his communitys strength becomes his
strength if he uses his belongingness to the community. Similarly the strengths of
his region religion, nation are his strengths. And the weaknesses of those are his
weaknesses. There is a tendency in him to disown those collectivities when it comes
to weaknesses and own it when it comes to strengths. In stronger individuals this
manifests as a reformative tendency to own the collectivity as it is and then work to
overcome the weakness. Before he starts contributing to the society but still
depends on it he is in pravritti alone. When he starts repaying while still depending
on it he is in both pravritti and nivritti, but his nivritti starts. When he starts giving it
without taking from it (or taking the bare minimum) he is in nivritti alone. In the
highest stage of evolution discussed earlier man will be in this stage.
Coming to his needs discussed in the first section, man learns about his culture from
his family and his community. It is his community with its set of unique cultural
traits such as customs, protocol of interactions and code of conduct that is his
cultural unit. He depends on it for his own culture. His own stature and how well he
carries his culture on (that is, how well he sustains it), is what he gives back to it.
Many means of fulfilling his aesthetic needs are also learnt from his cultural unit.
The same person can both personally and impersonally relate himself to his cultural
unit. At a community level where he resonates with individuals needs and
contributes to those he is personally related. At a deeper level (such as cultural and
aesthetic) he is more impersonally related to his cultural unit. The bigger the level
of collectivity he represents or seeks to work for, the higher is the chance for him to
transcend the outer kosas and dwell in inner kosas. The more impersonal he gets in
his work the higher this chance is.
Even within the community a person usually relates himself more to those persons
who resonate with his wavelength of thought or belong to his economic stature or
conform to customs to the same extent as himself. And if he finds someone outside
his cultural unit that matches to some of these, his circle will include those persons.
Such circle will not usually overlap with his cultural unit. This way the person is

simultaneously a member of different collectivities such as his place of work, his

friend circle, his cultural unit, his family, his region, the circle he participates in for
his aesthetic needs or the circle where he tries to achieve the goal of his life, and so
on. Depending on his stage of evolution and how complete or incomplete he is, he
relates more to some of these collectivities and less to others.
For instance, a person with his basic and aesthetic needs already satisfied is not
found in a circle meant for fun alone. The kind of completeness he achieves is far
more than what a friend circle meant for fun can offer. If he has friends they are not
for any specific reason. For such a person a friend means simply a known person
who shares good and bad mostly for the sake of sharing than helping. We only find
circles where his aspirations are collectively achieved.
The Macro View
All this is discussed mostly in the micro perspective, i.e., from the individuals
perspective. The belongingness of a person to a nation or a civilization should be
seen from the macro perspective. Just the way the individual is benefited by the
collectivity, collectivity is sustained and affected by the individuals. In a healthy
society the individuals contribute according to the pravritti and nivritti dharmas at
all these levels of collectivity. Such a society will be self-reformative and hence long
living. It will have a nice balance between subjective and non-subjective. That is,
balance between the choices of individuals and the needs of society. The society
sees problems if this balance is lost for some reason, be it coming in contact with
other societies or loss of gelling between different layers of collectivities. In a
healthy society these different levels of collectivities have a proper context in the
individuals lives. And it has a mechanism to rediscover this balance when it is
disturbed.
Section 4 Benefits of Collectivity
The needs of collectivity and reasons why collectivities are sustained is already
under discussion. Apart from these, there are many other benefits that collectivities
offer.
1. It offers a much needed buffer for individuals and families. When a person falls
sick in a family, others contribute to compensate for his work or contribution.
Similarly when an individual or a family suffers, the bigger collectivity say
community or region takes up supporting them in a healthy society. This buffer can
be monetary or human help or something else.
2. It offers confidence to the individuals in the group. The strength of the group is
the confidence of its members.
3. Collectivities give the scope to handle events or problems of scale beyond
individuals. What an individual or family cannot face or achieve, can be done by
smaller and effortless contributions by them. It can be something like handling a
group of rowdies to running a Vedic school.
4. Collectivities give the scope for survival in alien conditions. Individuals or families
cannot retain their cultural identity unless they live in groups. For example many

Gnostic and Pagan traditions vanished in the west because they lived as spiritual
traditions but not as social and cultural units. By contrast Hindus are surviving in
the west because they live as social and cultural units in the west.
Section 5 Problems and Pitfalls in Managing Collectivities
What problems do collectivities pose? The first is a clash of collectivities. This is of
two forms, a conflict between groups and a friction between two levels of
collectivities because of not striking a balance between those. An example for the
former is something like two jatis rallying for power. While the strength generated
by the two groups is useful to both groups and the society overall, the strength used
by these groups against each other damages the groups and the society. The
tradeoff between short and long term interests of the groups has to be made here.
There are rivalries that arise between groups because of the nature of their very
purpose. These can be avoided by a good design of the society. When the society is
designed in a way that opposite purposes are complementary instead of conflicting,
this can be avoided. Another kind of rivalry is one that arises between groups in
course of time not necessarily because of their purposes conflict but because of
temporal reasons. As long as the individual groups have the strength to withstand
these and endure the situation, these are merely ups and downs that are natural to
the society. But when the groups and society in general is not strong enough to
endure these, it poses threat to the very social design. The society then chooses to
dissolve those groups to come out of this crisis. A more synthetic society chooses to
create or appeal to another level of collectivity above these groups, so that the
higher level of collectivity appeals more before which the conflict between smaller
level of collectivities appears small and eventually fades out. An example to this is
appealing to religion in context of caste conflicts in Hinduism.
The second kind of clash is a friction between different levels of collectivities. In the
micro perspective, smaller levels of collectivity appeal more to individuals than
bigger levels of collectivities. Individual choice prevails over family, family over
community and community over society. In the macro perspective, higher levels of
collectivities are needed by the society for their longer life. These two tendencies in
the society pose a challenge how to organize a society in a way that this friction
decreases. This depends on many factors like how the individuals are trained by the
societys culture and what the societys outlook to life is, how good the experience
of the society with life. These determine how such an arrangement can be made. A
well experienced society makes an arrangement where different levels of
collectivities preexist in a way that it does not need creation of collectivities
temporally. And if collectivities have to be made temporally it ensures that they
would only be needed in situations of crisis and that they go the moment their need
is over. This requires a long lasting arrangement of individual, family, community
hierarchy. A society where individuals or families are the basic units does not satisfy
community level needs. And communities if created temporally will overlap, clash
over time since their arrangement is made only in view of the current individual
needs. And if there is an arrangement where communities preexist, individuals will
not need to create temporary and ad hoc arrangements for communal needs. But to
make such a social arrangement the society needs long and enlightening
experience with life. It mot only needs to create communities that do not clash with

each other, but needs to place them in the society in a way that a the personal
choice of life of individuals is least affected and at the same time the individual in
his normal life contributes knowingly or unknowingly towards sustaining the
arrangement. Also, a community offers only a base for the individual and an
excelling individual always transcends the limitation of his environment and the
society gives scope for it. An experienced society creates such an arrangement
itself.
The advantage of such arrangement is that it offers scope for survival of small
communities in the midst of big ones, without extinction. In a free society that has
no such arrangement, there is no concept of cultural units and therefore uniqueness
of some unit is not possible to be retained over time. This is how very small
communities manage to survive in the Hindu society and succeed in retaining their
uniqueness. This is the arrangement that offers diversity in a society.
If one has such arrangement it is necessarily by birth that a person belongs to some
unit, since whatever preexists accommodates the individuals from birth. It is not
possible to have a communal setup that does not apply from birth and comes up
from air somehow. Therefore, social mobility is an important factor without which
these units do not live long. Mobility between communities exists only at an
individual level, such as through marital relations. To ensure mobility of
communities or parts of communities, the society needs a higher level arrangement
over these communities, which is an abstraction. This way the community as a
whole transforms itself into a higher/lower cultural unit.
Another aspect needed for such an arrangement to live long is that it creates scope
for individuals in each of these abstractions and communities to achieve the
completeness discussed above. That is possible if there is a prescribed method of
synthesis for individuals of these units that does not suits the functions of the
individual, his situation in the society and his cultural background. This does not
enforce the method on the individual since it applies only on the abstraction and not
on the community, and also since this is only a guideline and not a duty. But since
practically social pressure and environment of upbringing does influence this, the
individual does not usually get to transcend this limitation unless he has wider
exposure or has exceptional merit. Also, there is always a difference between
occupational and aesthetic pursuit. This arrangement sometimes needs individuals
to keep them disjoint since having a specific occupational pursuit is not always a
matter of choice for individuals in the society. But the individual always reserves
both scope and right to pursue his interests in the other form. Secondly, choice of
occupational pursuit is not a community decision most of the times there is a
situation-peer/family pressure-social convention always acting on each individual
that determines it in the presence or absence of community. And this is a forced
personal choice influenced under all these pressures, especially when the society is
undergoing a transformation. (A small example is that most people opting for
software jobs do not do it for any reason other than the money in it and lack of
prospects in other lines of career. The technical challenge or the completeness it
offers is next to nothing. It is certainly the individuals decision, but forced by
convention and social situation. And most of the times the community decisions on
this are wiser, since it helps create a lobby to pursue those.).

In such an arrangement if there is a disturbance that causes these units to clash, be

it due to resource crisis in the society or an external factor, the society should be
able to appeal to a higher level of collectivity that binds these communal units. That
is the culture/civilizational uniqueness of the society it retains beyond the diversity
of customs of the units. It can also be a geographic unit such as nation, but that
does not appeal as much as the cultural unit does. The first reason is, nation is a
very new concept which did not exist a few hundreds of years ago. Next reason is
that culture is something a persons every day activity reflects. Regional appeal
may work only in case of a political/military aggression on the society, but in case of
communal conflicts it is the cultural unity that appeals.
But more importantly, what should be remembered is that it is after all humans that
live the system and however meticulous the system is its benefits are determined
by
1. How worse can the society be without the system, and how better the system is
given the same human tendencies?
2. How elevated can a person be because of the system, that is, whether the
system accommodates for the highest reaches of human nature?
3. What is the normal stature of human expected by the system and where does it
aim to take it to? How successful it is in doing so?
And since human nature is not a straight line but moves in a cycle like seasons, the
system also sees its lifecycle of highs and lows. Also, the system is not responsible
for human weaknesses. A system ideally aims at an arrangement where the society
does not collapse because of those weaknesses, but the weaknesses cannot be
removed by the arrangement. The downward tendencies can only be de-prioritized
by the system but they keep showing up. Therefore it is not arrangement but men
that ultimately have to fight with those tendencies and the arrangement can only
help their thinking in that direction. And many factors like contact with other
societies and philosophical development play a role in the extent to which it
succeeds.
Understanding Contemporary Societies
Section 6 The Hindu Society
The previous section deals with how an experienced society organizes itself. Most of
it applies directly to the Hindu society. It has all the equipment needed experience,
outlook, cultural background and knowledge system to arrange itself the best way.
And it has the equipment to create an arrangement that has all the aspects
discussed above.
Jati is the cultural unit in our society. Varna is the abstraction that directs (upward)
mobility for these units. As long as the varna controlled jati, the system came down
quite well without much friction between jatis. But as jatis started behaving as
uncontrolled units by themselves, the society started seeing problems.
The first challenge to varna came from Buddhism. Buddhism did not offer a social
model; in fact it does not apply to societies. But more people started taking to
Buddhism who did not take to sanyasa but remained in their social fold without

living their tradition. Since Buddhism neither offered an alternate model nor
followed the then existing social setup the society suffered loss. Instead of
eliminating the classification they only succeeded in creating subsections in all
the existing sections that did not follow the rules of those bigger sections. Thus they
only succeeded in creating pockets that do not comply with the varna system.
Buddhism however did not succeed in countering jati. Jatis remained the units, but
the control of varna over jati is what they succeeded in harming. This not only failed
in improving social situation but harmed it. As a result, conflicts between jatis did
arise and varna system was not strong enough to resolve those. The lesson is that
attacking varna before addressing jati will only harm the society.
The next biggest harm is done by the British and the Christian missionaries by
maligning varna. They created an opinion that some varnas dominated the others
and some are oppressed in the society because of varna vyavastha. As an example
they showed the feudal setup. But the reality on ground is that it is not varnas that
oppressed varna in itself is the controlling level that prevents friction and not the
physical power that can be used to oppress. It is the imbalance created in power
and money due to continuous external attacks and the disturbance caused in our
society that gave strength to certain jatis and weakened the others. We can see
how some groups high in the varna hierarchy got into miserable conditions during
the Muslim attacks and are today called scheduled tribes.
What the British did is they mapped this jati rivalry over the varna system and made
Indians believe that that is because of the varna hierarchy. All the problems in the
society across sections are due to the varna, this is what they wanted us to believe.
Destroying our faith and confidence in anything Hindu and making us feel inferior
about our tradition is what the British wanted us to do in order to have their
dominance on us. And most of us are the victims of this misinformation. What we
study in our text books today after 60 years of political independence is the same.
Education system, law and order, administration, there is virtually nothing really
Indian about what we have today and this is because of the inferiority we have
about our own system. The lack of aggression we see today in Indians in front of the
world is greatly because of this, be it cricketing or diplomacy.
Post-independence is the next and current phase where we see that the theory of
caste oppression of British is being used and misused to encourage caste rivalry
and hatred and thereby gain political mileage. Today it is no more an anguish or
displeasure due to social situation, today it is a competition for power between
units. Start a movement, appeal to the age-old varna and smriti that is not being
followed, conduct a hate campaign over those who stand for them, get a modern
and an equality brand (gain equality through hate campaigns!) yourself. Use
jargons and buzz-words, no body knows what they really mean they sound big and
good. Attack those who do not have strength and can be attacked and brand them
as the representatives of the chauvinistic, hegemonic and oppressive system
these two moves will get you credibility. Use that to get some numbers and be able
to have some influence in governance. That gets you power. This is typically what
happens today. This has nothing to do either with varna this is simply a rally for
power. And in fact it is a campaign against varna.

The work that is done silently at the ground level to overcome the influence of the
hate-campaigns to achieve some smoothness between the units, with the
knowledge of both tradition and of these attacks, is almost unnoticed. Not only
because it is not done by many but rather because credibility to such work is
harmful to has power mongering that live on hatred and social friction. Their
existence is what gets them a rallying point.
But all this said, there is a positive side of the coin. Jati today offers a social capital.
The buffer that an individual/family cannot afford comes from the community.
Communities work as communities to generate huge amount of human and
monetary resources. Some of this certainly goes into the power rallying or jatirivalry, but a great amount of social capital is constructively used too. We see
people of same communities coming up in groups, generating wealth, contributing a
great deal to the economy and social strength. The wisdom of society lies in
recognizing this, using it properly and minimizing its misuse (hate, rivalry or
whatever).
Jati is a cultural unit and jatis are the representatives of Hindu culture. These are the
ones that preserved a culture so diverse in customs, approaches and occupations.
In fact the jati system offers survival to small cultural units and allow them retain
their cultural uniqueness over a long period of time.
Another whip used to beat Hinduism is untouchability. There are two aspects in this.
One people using it against Hinduism. Two Hindus confused about it. While most
people think varna/jati is directly related to untouchability, truth is that its solution
lies in handling it independent of varna. Irrespective of the level of casteism and
caste-hatred, we do not see untouchability in urban areas as much. It has more to
do with something other than varna system. Keeping aside its historic evolution we
have to accept that it is fast going down. We also have to admit that it is almost
gone in places where its relevance is gone. The rest lies in transforming those
places where it still exists. One part of it is raising the living conditions. Second part
of it is making the people there aware of its obsoleteness. Also, those who know
about Hinduism and its history agree that many practices in Hinduism come and go
in time they are temporal. And Hinduism has the ability to create and shun
practices that suit times. We do not get to see most of the mediaeval practices
today. Most people lack this proportion and tend to overreact. Another important
thing needed in understanding our society is that it is a huge, complex and old
society and it does not take up or shun anything in haste. The timescale for changes
in such a society is much larger than the lifespan of a man and this is why most
people think that Hinduism is too slow in reforming itself. In fact it is very fast in
doing that. Movements needed come in no time looking at its size and complexity,
though it may appear too long for people. Realizing this and still working to discard
obsolete practices is entirely different from using those to malign and harm the
society.
Other forms of collectivity exist in Hinduism too. There have been many movements
that mobilized huge masses and lasted for long. Any bhakti movement typically
sees a lot of success in the Hindu society. Religion is the heart of India, and any
appeal to religion gets a huge response. The scale and success of Kumbh mela or
Ratha yatra in Puri stand for this. Those movements last real long. Permanence is

the primary requirement and Hindus tend towards those setups and movements
that aim at it. That is the reason why institutions like family, caste, religious
sampradayas come down for millennia.
Section 7 Hindus in the US
The Hindus in the US organize themselves as communities. It is geography that
determines these units, but there are many other aspects like culture that
determine these. In places where there are few thousands of Hindus they form a few
communal units. In places where the Hindu population is dense and big, they
organize themselves in multiple units and such grouping involves more factors like
language, caste, customs and economy. As the unit is small, these do not factor
much and as units grow in size all these start coming into the picture.
These units behave like cultural units and like pockets of Indian culture within the
US. Their interface with the native US community (say native for the sake of
convenience, this means the Whites and not the Red Indians) is not much and is
limited to minimum most of the times. The fact that the American society is loosely
bound and individuals are atomized, allows the Indians to live like communal units
within the US without much interference or assimilative pressure from the American
society itself. This way they retain their cultural uniqueness.
We may ask how culturally Indian are the Indians settled in US? Third/fourth
generation Indians in US are as good as Americans anyways. But we have to
acknowledge that their ties with the Indian units there are stronger than the more
recent Indians settled there. And the social units do survive there. Also, the cultural
aspects that are not directly related to geography and local life are retained by the
Indians there because of their collective living. Secondly, the social need and
incompleteness can be seen more by older settlers say beyond 4 generations than
recent ones because of their experience, hence their greater participation in such
units. Thus, while the recent ones still have the cultural string towards these units,
the older ones have a need string. Also since their influence on the American
society is greater, these groups depend more on them for a base.

Dattatreya - Avadhuta Gita.pdf - Nytz

vadanti rutayah sarvah nirgunam ... mok a-svarupam yadi sarvam ekam.
24. ... anrtam panca-bhautikam. 26. ...... tanmatra-bhutani na bhutapancakam. 55

Supreme Sacrifice - Essence

That is why Vedas say: "EKAM SAT VIPRAAHABAHUDAA VADANTI" --- "ONE
(SAT-) ..... The institution of 'PANCHA YAJNA' - Five types of rituals of
Sacrifices, ... (4) BhutaYajna, ministering to all the creations of God,
including animals, and.
A GREAT SPIRITUAL -SECRET GIVEN OPENLY FOR THE BLESSINGS OF GOD'S ENTIRE
CREATION AND ALL GOD'S PEOPLE.
SUPREME SACRIFICE OF PARAMAPURUSHA
IS THE
ESSENCE OF VEDAS

INTRODUCTION
"VEDAA HI AMRITAAHA" --- Thus saith the Chandogya Upanishad ( 3:5:4 ), one
of the important commentaries on Vedas. It means "Vedas are immortal". Hindus
consider Vedas as the ESSENCE OF WORLDS (Ch.Up.2:23:2). It is said in this text,
"Prajapati ( Lord of Hosts ) brooded on the worlds. From them, thus brooded upon,
issued forth three-fold Vedas as their essence". According to Vedas, the worlds may
pass away but Vedas remain immortal. The meaning of Vedas is :- 'VID' - to know,
means, to know about ( WISDOM ) GOD. Vedas always insist on ONE GOD ONLY,
even though there are many names attributed for that One and the same DIVINE
PERSON, GOD ALMIGHTY.
The Vedas depict the GODHEAD - DIVINE PURUSHA in a more deeper spiritual
sense of experience than what the Monotheists and Polytheists preach. Prof. Max
Muller called Vedas' view of GODHEAD as "HENOTHEISM" but failed to define the
term, nor explained the total significance of the Vedic Theism. Vedas stand on its
principle "UNITY IN DIVERSITY". That is why Vedas say: "EKAM SAT
VIPRAAHABAHUDAA VADANTI" --- "ONE (SAT-) TRUTH EXISTS: THE WISE SPEAK AS
MANY". There is no equivalent word in English: THE WISE SPEAK AS MANY". There
is no equivalent word in English, identical with the Vedic principle of God-head, and
hence Max Muller's HENOTHEISM is still in force in defining Vedic Theism.
The Vedic religion has persistently withstood all the oppositions of the later
religions throughout the ages of the Universe. The Vedas are considered to be the
most ancient Scriptures available so far, and are considered to be the most ancient
Scriptures available so far, and are considered to be contemporary with the very
Creator PRAJAPATI BRAHMA, because both BRAHMA and VEDAS are co-created. It is
said in Vedas and Puranas (epics) that BRAHMA came forth reciting Vedas.
BRAHMA, VEDAS, GAYATRI AND GOAT (LAMB) coexisted at the time of creation. ( In
fact the Sanskrit name for BRAHMA and the goat is the same, 'AJA' - meaning
UNBORN).
The earliest characteristic spiritual expression in Vedas and Vedic civilisation
is "UNITY (ONE GOD - SPIRIT) IN MANY NAMES (FORMS) AND MANY IN ONE".
Henotheism is meant to cover this aspect of Vedic Principle. The Henotheism
resembles Monotheism as far as the Divinity point of Vedas are concerned, but it is
like Polytheism as regards the gods and goddess phonomena. But Henotheism is
different from both, because of the Vedic concept of UNITY IN DIVERSITY - that
means - The Governing Spirit of Almighty is ONE, through the forms are many. It is
added here that the Vedic deities are without forms and are the attributes of one
and the same SUPREME BEING or PARAMA PURUSHA. The mode of worship and
Vedic hymns are same irrespective of the different deities. That is why the concept
of the Vedic Divinity is beyond the Max Muller's concept of Henotheism,
because (a) All the deities are co-related; and
(b) All deities are identified as to the THE ONE SUPREME PURUSHA ( EKAM
in neutral gender ).

This Vedic concept of Theism should not be confused with the ADVAITA.
Advaita (of Adi Shankara) tries always to prove the unity of all entities including the
nature. According to them everything is because of ONE SPIRIT and that man can
attain that state by adhering to strict renouncement of the world, SANYASAM.
According to Advaita, to strict renouncement of the world, SANYASAM. According to
Advaita, SANYASAM is the only way for MOKSHAM or REDEMPTION. That means
almost the whole humanity has to be devoid of the grace of God except these
Sanyasis ! This is the reason why the Advaitists scorn at Bhaktiyoga which preaches
that any man can win God by completely surrendering to Him and who loves Him
with all his heart, strength, mind, soul and body (which is called PRAJAPATI).
Advaita is otherwise called as PRASANNA BOUDDHA MATAM (Refined Buddhism) by
Sri. Ramanuja, the founder of Vishishta-Advaita. In a way Vishishta-Advaita is the
nearest term to describe the Vedic Concept of Divinity. Many Vedic scholars neglect
this concept as of recent origin. In fact without naming the term, Veda Vyasa
describes the concept of Vishishta-Advaita in his famous post-Vedic literary work,
BRAHMA-SUTRA.
Vedic deities do not combine both good and bad characters (powers) like
polytheistic gods and goddessess. All Vedic deities are too good and perfect, each
representing a highest morality in the sight of the world. No deity is deformed.
Thus in forms, (poetic) deities are many, but in SPIRIT they are One. Max Muller
called this Vedic Concept as HENOTHEISM. Even though Sri. Ramanuja, followed the
worship of idol NARAYANA, yet his concept of VISHISHTA-ADVAITA is nothing but
what Vedas preach of God; EKAM SAT. For him, that SAT is NARAYANA, THE
SUPREME PURUSHA. But for Adi Shankara, it is the feminine SHAKTI - closely
resembling the Assyrian concept of Isha and Ishi. This Shakti concept is later
followed and promulgated by the later visionaries like Sri. Aurobindo, who started
his spiritual journey from SUPREME PURUSHA NARAYANA but ended in SHAKTI CULT
by a worshipping KAALI. Therefore the Revelation of SUPREME SACRIFICE OF
SUPREME PURUSHA, which is the essence of the Vedas was blacked out to them, the
Advaitists or Monists.
VEDAS ARE VOID OF IDOLATRY
The Vedic deities are (Spirit) visions, but formless. Their forms are described
in Vedic poetry just to explain to the world about them. But the subsequent
generations made idols of deities. But even then the mode of worship is the same.
The Vedic Ritual "YAJNA" is same for all deities. The Vedas express their deities only
in poetry and music but not in sculpture or plastic arts. In sculpture, one deity is
different from the other. But in Vedas, the male Agni and Surya and the female
Usha are considered as EKAM - ONE in the neuter gender. Such unity are
identification cannot be conceived in polytheistic visual arts. Some of the image of
Vedic poetry can't be reduced to definite forms, for example, VIRAAT PURUSHA,
Suparna bird, Vrishabha (bull) meaning mobility, Varaaha (boar) meaning greatness.
There are four types of Vedic Religious Ritual practices :(1)

Recitation (VEDA GHOSHAM)

(2)

Singing,

(3)

The Path of Knowledge, and

(4)

YAJNA (SACRIFICE), (Rig Veda. X.71:11).

VEDIC CODE (DHARMA)

The basis of the ancient code of the Vedas is the moral law with the spiritual
discipline guiding the life. This concept is called as DHARMA. It is not what one
believes or behaves, nor what the intellectuals conceive as their moral characters
and spiritual status. DHARMA is something different and unique from all other
religious concepts of other religions of the world. The nearest equivalent term in
English for DHARMA may be CODE or PRINCIPLE.
The DHARMA are believed to be existing even before Vedas as DHARMAN
which means "ETERNAL LAW"; e.g., Vishnu is considered as holding the ETERNAL
STATUTES (DHARMANI) - Rig. Veda. I.22:18; Agni is called as "The Head (Chief) of
the ETERNAL LAWS: "DHYAKSHAM DHARMAANAM" - Rig. VIII.43:24. Earth is
considered to be held by DHARMAN - Atharva Veda.XII.1:17.
"DHAARAYATI ITI DHARMAHA" : It is so called as Dharma, for it upholds itself
(e.g. Mahabharatam, Karna Parvam). It is DHARMAN which upholds creation, as said
in Karna Parvam of Mahabharatam.
GAUTAMA (BUDDHA) coined the Pali word DHAMMA meaning eternal moral
principles but without stressing on one's faith in God. In his sermon of DHARMA
CHAKRA PRAVARTANA at Sarnath (Bihar, India), meaning setting in motion THE
WHEEL OF LAW (DHARMA), cessation of suffering and Eight-fold Path conquering all
the former three truths. His Eight-fold Path is:
(1)

Right View,

(2)

Right Aspiration,

(3)

Right Speech,

(4)

Right Deed,

(5)

Right Livelihood,

(6)

Right Effort,

(7)

Right Mind,

(8)

Right Concentration.

So for them there is nothing known as God.

The DHARMA of VEDAS is accepted as the foundation of Vedic religion, being the
ideal form of code of conduct. Its contents are totally accepted by all religious

orders of India from traditions. The Atharva Veda gives the earliest but
comprehensive definition of DHARMAN - A.V.XII.1:1 :SATYAM BRHAD RTAM UGRAM DIKSHA TAPO
BRAHMA YAJNAH PRITHIVIM DHAARAYANTI.
" (1) Truth, (2) The mighty, strict Eternal Order RTA, (3) Consecration (Diksha),
(4) Austerity or Penance or Meditation (Tapas), (5) Vedic Prayer (Brahma) and (6)
Sacrifice (Yajna) or Ritual - These uphold the Earth.
These six principle form the Fundamentals of Vedic Religion. The TRUTH is
ONE (EKAM SAT); The Eternal Law is HIS WORD OR COMMAND (RTA); (Rta also
means Truth). By consecration (DIKSHA) one attains His Path. By true Tapas
(Meditation) on Him (Parama Purusha or Supreme Person) one will find out the
secret of His Existence. By constant ceaseless prayers only, one can realise the
Creator. But above all by realising the SACRIFICE (Supreme Sacrifice) only, one
draws blessings from the Supreme Purusha, THE ONE EXISTING AS SAT. The most
important principles of DHARMA are RTA and YAJNA, after TRUTH which is placed in
first place of importance in Vedas.
SATYAM (TRUTH)
(BHAGAWAN SHRI. LAHARI KRISHNA)
The word "SATYAM" is derived from the Sanskrit Root "SAT" means "Exists";
that means, IT CANNOT BE DENIED. SAT + IYAM = SATYAM: This exists. This is the
TRUMP OF VEDAS, which fully acknowledges the existence of the Supreme Divine
Being which can't deny Itself. In English it is just said as Truth. What is Truth ?
They can't explain. But Vedas clearly define what is Satyam, even though the
subsequent generations lost the importance of This SATYAM, The Supreme Purusha
who performed the VIRAT YAJNAM (The Great Sacrifice) in which He Himself offered
to HIMSELF as the SACRIFICE. HE IS SAT ( Purusha Sukta ). This is TRUTH.
The Vedas define SATYAM as the essence of Divinity: A.V.VII.24:1 says SAVITA
SATYADHARMA: The Deity has truth as the LAW OF HIS BEING. Rig Veda (I.1:5,29)
describes the Deity as SATYAM (Truth). Ultimately in Vedic Religion, SATYAM alone
counts, which stands against all untruth. Rig Veda (VIII.62:12) reminds to worship
India, the Lord of Heaven who is Satya and not the untrue (ANRTA). Rig Vedas
(X.85:1, A.V.XII.1:1) says that the Earth is upheld by Truth. Yajurveda says: "SATYAM
JINHVA" - "Truth quickens". The Upanishat starts its prayer from "SATYAM
VADISHYAAMI" I will speak Truth. The National Emblem of Indian Government
quotes the Upanishat Hymn: SATYAM EVA JAYATEY - TRUTH ALONE WINS . But we,
the Indians are ignorant of this Great Truth, viz: GOD HIMSELF, That Great Supreme
Purusha, The Undeniable Person who died as Sacrifice before the Foundation of the
world as FIRST SACRIFICE and rose again with the Power of Almighty. This is the
Truth. The world may deny Him. But He cannot deny Himself, and hence is called
as SATYAM, Satyam (SATYAM) IS IMMORTAL, ETERNAL, BECAUSE HE IS GOD.

R T A (ORDER)
THE ETERNAL LAW
The next essential principle of DHARMA after Truth is RTA, The Eternal Order
or The Eternal Order or The Eternal Law. Its meaning is not clear, but its opposite
'ANRTA' is used by ancient Vedas to describe disorder or chaos of the universe. RTA
is considered as co-existent with SATYAM in the beginning of Creation (or even
before) out of Perfect Spiritual Order (Rig Veda.X.110:1). According to Vedas, Truth
upholds the Earth and RTAM the Heaven. Therefore RTAM is the Heavenly Order.
The Vedic Deity SOMA (MOON) is considered as preacher of RTA, being made
splendid by RTA.
Rta includes justice, goodness (grace) and is great synonymous with Dharma.
It is severely opposed to evil, and hence is stern and fierce (Rig. IX.73:6 says that
"The wicked tread not the path of RTA (Eternal Law). BRHASPATI is invoked in Vedas
as follows: (R.II.23:3)
"Having chased the wicked ones and darkness
Thou mountest Thy refulgent car of order (Rta)
The awful car, O Brhaspati ! that subdues the foe,
Slays the wicked, cleaves the stall and brings the light"
RTA as RTA: The Term RTA is also applied to Vedic Ritual and it signifies the orderly
performance of the complicated ceremonial part of worship. Thus the YAJNA (Rite of
Sacrifice) also confirms RTA, The Eternal Order. In remembrance of what happened
in Heaven as per Eternal Law RTA, The Yajnas (Sacrifices) are performed on earth so
far are the shadow of what really happened as per the Heavenly RTA - Order, before
the foundation of the Universe. The Cosmic Order RTA is considered to be ETERNAL
and IMMORTAL while the ritual RTA of the world is expected to vary with time and is
renewed to suit the human desires for change. That is why all the Vedic Yajna
rituals of offering animals and human sacrifices were stopped immediately after the
sacrifice of Jesus Christ, to divert the attention of Vedic people from the Real
Sacrifice (Jesus) which came to the world to show EXACTLY what happened before
the Creation, when PARAMA PURUSHA was slain. That is why the new RTA of
Agnihotra, etc., came into importance replacing the Vedic Sacrifices like
ASHVAMEDHAM (Sacrifice of horse), Ajamedham (sacrifices), thus fulfilling Vedic
saying: NAVYO JAAYATAM RTAM - Let the new ritual grow: - Rig.I.105:15.
RTA as FATE: The concept of Rta is entirely different from the Greek concept
of fate. The Cosmic Rta Order should be translated into World Social Order for an
ideal world society. Unlike Greek Fate, Rta lies above divinity. But according to
Greek philosophers, Fate is the power which even the gods could not withstand,
which is arbitrary and which foreordains the course of mortal life beyond one's
capacity to alter it. But RTA is not so; e.g. Markandeya changed his death into
eternity; Bhishma could postpone his death at his will; Krishna made Sun and Moon
to come together one day earlier before their appointed day of Amavasya, etc. The

Vedic Rta remains as Eternal Law and Eternal Justice. In later generations, this
concept led to the Theory of Karma, but in ancient Vedic says, it was not so. The
doctrine of Rebirth depending on the Theory of Karma appeared in the Vedic
religion, only after the influence of Jainism, Buddhism and Greek Philosophy.
The KARMA YOGA of Vedas is entirely different from the present-day concept
of Karma Yoga. A man can confidently follow the RTA in full faith to prevail against
any disorder. The existence of evil is recognised but Vedas confidently proclaim
that we can prevail and win over the evil both within us and surrounding us. Indra's
opposite of RTA, proves the final victory and goodness and Law over evil and
disorder. The Vedic view of life is heroic. Life is hard and evil is in the midst of us
but victory is ours if only we are brave and follow RTA (Heavenly Eternal Order) with
determination and grit (R.X. 53:8).
The Vedic rite of offering libation or oblation (Sacrifice) on the burning altar is
called as YAJNA (SACRIFICE) - YAT JUHOTI YAT JAANAATI - This is offered to be burnt;
and thus this is known. The offering of Soma juice is the other ritual of divine
offerings. The ritual is one and the same for all deities. There are different types of
rituals of Yajna, viz,
(1) Agnihorta (The Domestic Sacrifice),
(2) The seasonal mass-scale sacrifices like horse-sacrifice, etc;,
The study of the four Vedas is called as Aparajnana, while the study of Upanishats
as Para Jnaanam. Apara means worldly whereas Para means heavenly.
The Vedic Society is conspicuous of tolerance towards the opposition to its
formal traditions of rituals, because the Vedic Society encouraged the freedom of
thought and expression. Also the later developed famous Bhakti Cult (Path of
Devotion) stressing mainly on the Divine Grace, completely overshadowed the ritual
part (Sacrifice) of Vedas. The Bhagavad Gita explains this path of Devotion clearly The Direct Experience of the Divine Purusha cannot be held by (just memorizing)
Vedas, nor by Yajnas, nor by penance, nor by religious studies but only by Devotion
(LOVE) on PARAMA PURUSHA (compare in this view with I Corinthians. Ch.13 of The
New Testament). But even the Vedas have propagated such views. e.g.
"No one by work (karma) attains Him,
Who works and strengthens ever more;
No, not by Yajnas (Na Yajnair) can One attain INDRA (Lord God)
Praised of all, resistless, valiant, bold in might "
-- Rig. VIII. 70:3
The institution of 'PANCHA YAJNA' - Five types of rituals of Sacrifices, enhanced
the importance of the concept of rituals of sacrifices (Yajna). These are:-

(1) Agnihotra, the domestic rituals,

(2) Brahma Yajna, the study and teaching of Vedas.
(3) Nryajuna, ministering to the guests, the fellow human beings.
(4) BhutaYajna, ministering to all the creations of God, including animals, and
(5) Pitr Yajna, offering oblations to manes (departed fathers).
The Hindu Scholars tried to propagate the concept of Spirit of Sacrifice quoting from
the Bhagavad Gita. But the Bhagavad Gita is clear enough as crystal in giving
importance to SACRIFICE, especially the SUPREME SACRIFICE. Because this
Supreme Sacrifice was beyond their human conception, they propagated their own
doctrines about "Spirit of Sacrifice" and Path of self-less duties. But actually Karma
Yoga means, the Path of Action of Whom? The Action taken by The Cosmic Purusha
(AADI PURUSHA) SAT in that great Cosmic Sacrifice as mentioned in Rig Veda,
Purusha Sukta (R.V.X). A man will be glorified without death only if he believes and
follows the Path of that Karma (Sacrifice of Aadi Purusha). But for that, the world
has to wait till the very same PURUSHA enters this world as a normal human being
to lead us, His disciples to glory along with Him to Heaven. In Brahma Yajna, The
Supreme Reality Brahma is the Sacrificing fire, and He is the WORD as fuel, and He
is the Sacrifice and also the Sacrificer. Therefore YAJNA (Supreme Sacrifice) must be
accepted as the PIVOT of the Universe.
"Naayam loko 'sty ayajnasya kuto'nyah kuru-sattama" Bh. Gita.4:31: "To the man who does not offer SACRIFICE, even this world is not
happy; how, then, can the other world be happy ?".
The Vedas also talk about the YAJNA (SUPREME SACRIFICE) figuratively;
e.g., Yajurveda says that "Life prospers through Yajna (Supreme Sacrifice)". Even
the ritual of Yajna - The KARMA-KANDA - prospers through YAJNA --- "YAJNO YAJNENA
KALPATAAM" - "MAY YAJNA (Ritual) prosper through YAJNA (SUPREME SACRIFICE)" Yajur Veda. IX.21.
The Hindus always spiritualize the concept of Yajna. The Yajna emphasized
the realistic elements of Vedic Religion. Unlike the ascetic muni who is austere and
silent, the Rishi (Sages) of Yajna expresses himself through poetic oration with
music which is in contrast with the non-spiritual yogi's hard strivings in material
spheres to master the world.
But Karma-Kaanda, the Act of Sacrifice, YAJNA, has its own story to be spoken
of. The glorious lustre of blazing fire of altar, the sweet perfume of the sacrificed
ghee (fat), the blades of grass (DHARBHAM), the meal offering of cooked material,
the crushed Soma (Drink offering) and all the materials of Yajna had their own direct
performing the sacrifice Yajna also behave in turn with music, and the mass-action

in making the FINAL OFFERING (POORNA-AHUTI) produces an immediate appealing

high spiritual sense.
The Vedic Age delighted in forms and ceremonies. People may ask: Is Form
necessary for worship ? Does it have any relationship with the Spirit ? The Rig Veda
says: "ATMA PITUS TANUR VASA OJODA ABHYANJANAM" - R.VII.3:24. "Food is soul;
the apparel is the body; and the ointment is the giver of spiritual vigour".
Thus the Six Principles of Vedas remain in the same order as in the beginning
of the ages. But only the ritual part of Yajna has caused much dissensions. SHABDA
BRAHMA, the Vedic Text is still being learnt orally by hundreds of people in our
country (India). The Western Orientalists have strenously published the
authoritative Vedic Texts. Consecration and Self dedication (Diksha & Tapas) made
a direct impact on the minds of Western Oriental researchers. The RTA (Order) of
Vedas is still to be realized by the world. (This (RTA) is the hidden mysterious Will of
God or The Hidden Plan of God, hidden from the creation, but by which power the
creation took place). Finally the SATYA (Truth), the first Vedic Principle is an integrity
for every moment of life, as SAT or Reality for those moments of exaltation
(KOOTASTHAM). Many leaders of spiritual thought in different ages asserted that
GOD IS TRUTH, viz., Jesus, who said: I AM THE TRUTH, and Krishna who said: "I AM
RTA".
The Vedic ages with their intellectual adventures and spiritual power
attempted to break away the barriers of caste system and to unite men through the
ideals of harmony and order of justice and universal fellowship and that is why
those sages were called as 'BHOOTAKRITAH' - World Fashioners (Atharva Veda VI.133:4). The essence of Vedas is progressive: "Go forward, Fear not, Fight", says
the Vedic Spirit of Kshatra (R.I.80:3).
The Vedas always conceive its movement as the progress on the path of Truth
and Eternal Order (RTA) and self-dedication to a noble ideal of prayer and wisdom
and of ritual and sacrifice. Man should grow to the full stature of his being
(spiritual) to live in broad, free world in the joy of the Spirit. Thus the Atharva Veda
laid down six principles of DHARMA in contemplating such a New World Order:
"Satyam Brihad Rtam Ugram Diksha Tapo,
Brahma Yajnah Prithvim Dhaarayanti" - A.V.XII.1:1
"Truth, the great stern Eternal Order, consecration, austerity prayer and ritual
(SACRIFICE); these uphold The Earth".
BHAKTI YOGA
(PATH

OF DEVOTION)

Love and devotion are the simplest modes of the religion, wherein The
Divinity is contemplated as The Lord, most affectionately as Father, Mother, Brother,

Friend, Husband, Guest, etc. The worshipper prays to the Divine for help (UTI),
benediction (Sham), Protection (Sharman), soccour (Avas), Mercy (Mula),
Benevolence (Sumati), Love (Vena), etc. God is the Saviour (THRAATA), The Merciful
One (Mardita), Protector (Avija), etc. He is the Most Beloved One (Jushta, Preshta).
Both He, the Lord as well as His worshippers are called as The Loving One (Vena).
Thus the Divinity is common and universal in BHAKTI YOGA. The Vedic Poetry and
Prayers are aroused by the Spirit of love and devotion. Poetry and Prayers are
aroused by the spirit of love and devotion. In this context, it is very important to
point out Bhakti Yoga is the light of the Supreme Sacrifice, the Essence of Vedas.
The Supreme Purusha (Person) in the Vedas is addressed as HIRANYA GARBHA
SHAAYEE -- Vishnu; - R.X.121:1 ( also in Y.V. & A.V. )
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Hiranyagarbhaha samavartataagre
means
"What God shall we adore with ouroblation ?
Bhootasya jaatah pathireka aaseet;
means
The Divine Being who existed in the Beginning,
Sa dadhaara Prithiveem dyaam utemo
means
Who was the One Lord of Creation,
Kasmai Devaaya havishaa vidhema"
means
Who fixed and upholds this earth and sky".
Here the Deity is termed as HIRANYAGARBHASHAAYEE. According to Vedas,
The Unseen Spirit, LORD before creation took the form of NARAYANA (Vishnu) as the
Cosmic Womb, called HIRANYAGARBHA. He is the One who created everything.
Before Creation, He Himself is in that Womb. He is called as HIRANYAGARBHA,
because, after AADI BALI (FIRST SACRIFICE). He was inside the Cosmic Womb of
God and then He rose up in the same form in glory ! ! !
The Vedas clearly say how the FIRSTBORN NARAYANA (VISHNU) got this
Cosmic Power of creation, protection and annihiliation of the whole universe
(R.X.121:2).
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)

Translation in English
"Ya aatmadaa baladaa yasya vishva
means
"What God shall we adore with ouroblation?
upaasate prashisham yasya devaah
means
Him who is the bestower of life and vigour,
Yasya chaaya amritham yasya mrityuh
means
Whose commandments all cosmic forces obey;
kasmai devaaya havishaa vidhema".
means
Under whose shadow is DEATHLESSNESS, because of His death".
This Vedic text clearly enunciates the Power of the FIRSTBORN NARAYANA
(VISHNU) (The Self-Existing), The Root of all creation, obtained by His total surrender
to The Supreme Command of The Supreme Spirit that possessed Him, to lay down
His Life for His people, nay, for the sake of the whole universe. By His death and by
His Resurrection, before the foundation of the world, His very shadow brings
IMMORTALITY to us, because we are the partakers of that Supreme Sacrifice.
Ironically, The Vedas also prophesy that gathering of all the people of the world is
under HIM only, who comes as a GUEST (STRANGER) in this world. THIS IS GOD
HIMSELF.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Sametaa vishva ojasaa patim divo
means
"Come together, ye all, with power of spirit, to the Lord of heaven,
Ya eka id bhoor atithir - janaanaam
means
Who is only One, the GUEST of the people;

Sa poorvyo nootanam aajigeeshan

means
He, the Ancient, desires to come to the new;
Tam vartaneer anu vaavrta eka ith"
-- Rig. VIII. 70:3
means
To Him all path-ways turn; Verily HE IS ONE'.
The word SAMETAA is very important; as verb it means to gather or assemble;
as noun or adjective, it means that the Lord of Heaven comes as Stranger along
with His heavenly host. It also means that the power of the whole universe is
gathered or concentrated in Him who comes as a MAN, as a STRANGER in this
world, with a desire to make everything new. Please compare this with THE HOLY
BIBLE - The Book of revelation. 3:14 to 22. This Vishnu of Vedas is called called
otherwise only as ALLAH (KHUDA). Hindus affectionately call Him as "HARI", the
destroyer of all evil. By joining the two names of the Same God, we get "LAHARI".
The New Name of the Lord that has now come down as STRANGER - GUEST in this
world. That is why the Hebrews address God only as "L", the first letter of the New
Name of God. The Egyptian Haggar, the second wife of Abraham called Him as
LAHAROI. The exact equivalent word for HARI in Hebrew is YESHU (Yehhoa Shuah),
which is changed in English as JESUS.
God destroyed our death in AADI BALI and thus He was called as HARI. the
same God came down two thousand years ago as YESHU (JESUS) to doubly confirm
and to reveal His right to redeem His people who have once again falled in sin in
this world through Adam. Now the same God has come down as a MAN, a strangerguest of this world, but who is the Creator as well as the Appointed Heir of the
whole Universe. All the Vedic sages and devotees worship That Same Divine
Purusha only. He is called as POOVYA, The Ancient, The FIRSTBORN !
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Thraataa no bodhi aadrshaana aapir
means
"Be Thou our Saviour; Show Thyself our Own,
Abhikhyaataa marditaa somyaanaam
means

Looking after and showing mercy to the worshippers;

Sakhaa pitaa pitrtamah pitrinam
means
Friend, Father, Father of fathers (patriarchs),
Kartemu lokam ushate vayodhaah"
-- (R.V.IV.17:17)
means
Giving to the loving worshippers free space and vital power".
The Vedas are clear about Godhead, that there is ONE GOD. Refer Rig Veda, X.82:3
(Y.V.17:27, A.V.II.1:3).
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Yo nah pitaa janitaa you Vidhaataa
means
"Our Father, our Creator, our Dispenser,
Dhaamaani veda bhuvanaani vishvaa
means
Who knows all positions, all things existing;
Yo devaanaam naamadhaa eka eva
means
Who is the only ONE, bearing different names (of deities)
Tam sam samprashnam bhuvanaa yantyanyaa".
-- (Rig Veda X.82:3) (Y.V.17:27), (A.V.II:1:3)
means
Him other beings seek with questionings".

He is called as VISHVAKARMAN, The Creator, The Divine Architect of the Universe.

Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Sa nah pitaa janitaa suta bandhuh" -- A.V.II.1:3
means
"He is our Father, our Progenitor, our Friend".
"Sa no bandhur janitaa sa Vidhaataa

Dhaamaani veda bhuvanaani vishvaa" -- Yajur Veda. (V.S.) 32:10

means
He is our Creator, Our Father, Our Creator;
who knows all positions, existing things".
"Uta vaata pitaasi na uta bhraatota nah sakhaa"
--(Sama Veda.1841)
means
"O God!, Thou art our Father, our Brother, our Friend" -- (Also Rig Ved, X.186:2)
As Creator, He is our Father. As FIRSTBORN, our Brother, He offered Himself as a
SACRIFICE before the Foundation of the World. As Friend, He came down again and
reminded us of the Early Sacrifice. Now He has come down as our GUEST,
STRANGER.
THE RESURRECTION OF SUPREME SACRIFICE (AADI BALI):

"Sarvam samsinchya martyam devaah

Purusham aavishan" - A.V.XI.8:13
"When they had rused the MORTAL MAN (PURUSHA) complete, The gods entered
into HIM ".

The real meaning is that human FIRSTBORN was offered by the partakers of
the AADI BALI (FIRST SACRIFICE) but they saw Him now as the DIVINE GLORIOUS
PURUSHA being possessed by the FATHER OF SPIRITS, who has raised Him from
death in this glorious Body,and all those who were created and took part in that
Great Sacrifice found themselves inside that Glorious Body of DIVINE PURUSHA.
THIS IS THE MYSTERY OF VEDAS kept hidden by the very Author or Veda Himself to
be revealed only by Him through His Spirit in these last days. Who are the real
partakers of that Great First Supreme Sacrifice ? -- Read Rig Veda. X.13:1.
"Shrnvanth vishve amrtasya purtaa
Aa ye dhaamaani divyaani tasthuh"
"May all the sons of Immortality ( Amrtasya purtaah ) listen,
all the possessors of celestial natures (divine powers) ".
Through this Aadi Bali only we were already created as possessors of Heaven, even
before the foundation of the world. Now as God has come down in flesh to rule this
world as KING, we have also come down with Him, because We are His inseparable
part as we are in Him totally even before the creation of Universe.

JNAANA YOGA
(PATH

OF KNOWLEDGE)

In Jnana Yogam, the seeker prays God for DHI (Intelligence), MEDHA (Talent to
achieve the intelligence), KRTU (Wisdom), DAKSHA (Ability or efficiency). These are
the principles of JYOTI (Light), VARCHAS is the light of Intellect. The Man of
Knowledge in Veda is called as VIPRA - Wise, or KAVI --- poet - philosopher, RISHI sage, etc.
GAYATRI MANTRAM: The Path of Knowledge constitutes the essential part of
Vedic Religion. In this path, the seeker, the sage never accepts faith or belief as a
substitute for his personal realization of the Highest Truth. He always prays for
Knowledge for mental and spiritual power which leads him to the Realization of
Highest Truth, SATYAM. This following Hymn (Mantra) called as GAYATRI MANTRAM
by the name of the Metre GAYATRI in Vedic Music, is for this bright mental spiritual
power (DHI) leading to the ENLIGHTENMENT and therefore this hymn is repeated
thrice daily from the Vedic times throughout the Ages.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Om Bhur Bhuvah svah Tat Savitur Varenyam Bhargo

Devasya Dhimahi; Dhiyo yo nah prachodayaat"

-- (Rig Veda. III.62:10 ; Samaveda. 1462; Yajurveda. (V.S.)36:3; 22:9; 30:2)
means
"We contemplate that adorable glory of the LORD "OM" who is in the earth, the sky,
and in the heavens ! May He stimulate our mental power".

(Om means the All-pervading Eternal Spirit, the Ultimate Reality). Compare
this Text with John.3:13 of the New Testament. The LORD ADITYA, the other name of
Vishnu is called as SON OF MAN by Jesus, because as KALKI, (Son of Man) Vishnu
comes to rule this earth bodily as the Heir-Apparent.
This Gayatri Mantram Japam is the prayer for the highest power that a man is
capable of possessing - DHI - higher intelligence which brings him material and
transcendental knowledge. What the eye is to the body, DHI or intelligence is to the
mind. SAVITA means light (jn.1:3: "In Him was the LIFE and the LIFE was the LIGHT
of men). This Divinity - LIGHT - cannot be comprehended by the darkness.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"So and he chit tamasi jyotir vidan"
-- (R.V.I.100:8)
"Vedaaham etam purusham mahantam
Adityavarnam tamasah parastaat"
-- Y.V.(V.S.) 31:18
means
"He knows the light amidst blinding darkness".

"I have known This Great Mighty Being (PURUSHA) radiant as Sun beyond
darkness", who is called as Christ Jesus by Paul
- Vide (I Tim.6:13-16).

ONE WORD ABOUT BRAHMAN :

Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Ahameva svayam idam vadaami
Jushtam devebhir uta maanushebhih
Yam Kaamaye tamtam ugram krnomi
Tam brahmaanam tam rshim tam sumedham"
-- R.V. X.125:5
means
"I, verily, Myself say this
Which is welcome to the Shining Ones (Devas) and to men
Him whom I love I make mighty
I make him a Brhaman (wise man), a Rishi (seer), a man of talent"
This Vedic Text clears the doubts of Hindu fanatics as well as the critics of Hindus
about the caste conflicts. All that glitters is not gold; so also all the people born in
the Brahmin caste are not all of them Brahmins, but only those chosen by the
Almighty God and who are being inspired by Him and who are filled with His Spirit.
All such people, because of their acceptance of God as their Father, cannot die.
That is why for their sake, God died as AADI BALI (FIRST SACRIFICE). They are
called as AMRITA PUTRAAH - Sons of Immortality. As God cannot die, they also
cannot die. No rishi of Vedic times is reported to have passed away. All are
considered to be in TAPOLOKA (World of Tapas, as in Vedas), one of the Seven
Heavenly Planets. In this context, it is worth mentioning BRAHMAM JAANAATI ITI
BRAAHMANAHA -- Braahman is the one who knows BRAHMA, The Creator, The
Almighty Spirit. That means everyone who has realised The Creator is a
BRAAHMAN. Thus Jesus can also be called as Brahman as also Kalki as
Brahmanottama, the most noble Brahmana, because He is the very SACHIDANANDA
BRAHMA VIGRAHA, who has come in this mortal world as a human being.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English

"Purvo jaato brahmano brahmachaari

Dharmam vasaanas tapasodatishthat
Tasmaadjaatam braahmanam brahma jevshtham
Devaashcha sarve amrtena saakam"
-- A.V. XI.5:5
means
"The BRAHMACHAARI (followers of Brahma, The Creator), born before BRAHMA,
robed in libation, stood up th
rough spiritual endeavour (tapas); From HIM arose sacred Wisdom, The Highest
Brahman and of all the Shining Ones (Devas) with life that lasts for ever (Eternal
Life) "
"The BRAHMACHAARI (followers of Brahma, The Creator), born before BRAHMA,
robed in libation, stood up through spiritual endeavour (tapas); From HIM arose
sacred Wisdom, The Highest Brahman and of all the Shining Ones (Devas) with life
lasts for ever (Eternal Life)
Who is the FIRST MYSTERIOUS BRAHMACHAARI ? This mysterious path of
Brahmacharya is completely different from what the present-day Caste Hindus
practise. Of course, in this material world, a material worldly Brahmachaari by
conteolling senses and by observing celebacy and austerity, may master his self.
But this will lead only to Self-righteousness. But the real Brahmacharya as
expounded in the about text seems to be very deeper in the spiritual field to attain
immortality.
We know the Brahma is the First of the Creations of God. But here it is said
that there is ONE who is born before BRAHMA ! ! ! He is arrayed in sacrificial
libation (offered as AADI BALI - FIRST SACRIFICE before the creation of universe),
rose up through tapas-spiritual power. The Holy Wisdom of God is revealed by HIM
only, through that grerat AADI BALI. By that sacrifice only, He became
PARABRAHMA, The Lord Creator of all universe, and of the glorious divine beings
( who are the partakers of AADI BALI who are glorified to live with Him forever).
This clearly denotes that the Path of Supreme Sacrifice is the real
Brahmacharya, the Path of Creator. By accepting the Sacricice AADI BALI we
become brahmacharis and now by accepting the TRUTH that The Same Person The
Firstborn has come down as KALKI, Son of Manas Bridegroom, we have become His
Bride, His Household. It does not mean that only now we have become His Bride in
His Original Creation, even now in these last days, when He has come down as Man,
we too accept Him as our Bridegroom, because we are His Wife, His household. It is
said in Vedas that the gods (enlightened beings of heaven) became eternal through
the Brahmacharya (A.V.XI.9:17-19).

Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)

Translation in English
"Brahmacharyena tapasa devaa mrityum apaaghnatah".
means
"By the spiritual effort of Brahmacharya, devaas (the Shining Ones) drove away
death from them".
What else can this Brahmacharya be, but the Path of the Creator who offered
Himself as AADI BALI, being offered by all the gods (Bride Members and the
Household of God in Heaven) before the foundation of the world ! ! ! Through this
Sacrifice only they got that glory and power to occupy heavens.
The Deity of Spiritual Knowledge is BRIHASPATI or BRAHMANASPATI, Lord of
Wisdom.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Ganaanaam tvam Ganapatim havaamahe
Kavim kaveenaam upmashravastamam
Jyeshta Raajam Brahmaanam Brahmanaspatee
Aa nah shrinvannootibhih seeda saadanam"
-- R.V.II.23:1
means
"We call on Thee, The LORD OF HOSTS (GANAPATI),
The Poet of poets, the most famous of all;
The Supreme King of Spiritual Knowledge, O Lord of Spiritual Wisdom
(Brahmanaspati)
Listen to us with Your grace, and SIT IN THE PLACE OF SACRIFICE".
"Richo Akshare parame vyoman
Yasmin devaa adhi vishve nisheduh
Yastanna veda kim richaa karishyati

Ya ith tad vidus ta ime samaasate"

-- R.V.I.164:39.
means
"The Eternal (The Subject) of the (Vedic) Hymn existing on the supreme region;
In which all Shining Ones have their being;
What will He do with the (Vedic) hymn who does not know That ?
But those who have known That - They are perfect " In Vedas, AKSHARA means Indestructible, "Yad Aksharam veda-vido vadanti" Bhagavad Gita.8:11 - "That which the knowers of Veda speak of al Indestructible".
"Aksharam Brahma Paramam" - Bhagavad Gita.8:3 --- "The Supreme Indestructible
is Brahma, The Supreme Being". Bhagavad Gita:15:16;
"Dvaavimau purushau loke kdsharascha - Akshara eva cha
Ksharah sarva bhootaani kootastho Akshara uchayate"
"The perishable and the imperishable (AKSHARA) - these are the two kinds of
PURUSHAS in this world. Of these, the bodies of all beings are spoken of as
perishable; while The Embodied Souls (Supreme Purusha) is indestructible".
The Supreme Abode is "PARME VYOMAN" - "Yo asyaadhyakshah Parame
vyoman"--R.X.129:7:----"He who presides over all this in the Supreme Abode". This
is the central pivotal point of Jnana Yoga, The Path of Knowledge, and the main
theme of Veda. Veda means to know (Vid - to know). It is the knowledge of God
that is needed, not just the word of Veda (Rk). Hence just memorizing Vedas
without knowing the meaning or without having the proper revelationof Vedas is
futile attempt in spiritual guest for knowing That Supreme Being AKSHARA. But
Vedas, Karmakanda demands the efficiency of the Vedic Mantras only, whereas
Bhagavad Gita rightly critizes such Karmakanda followers.
The Ultimate Reality AKSHARA is recognized as the Subject of Vedas (Rks)
throughout the ages in India (Bh.Gita.8:11).
"Vadais cha sarvair aham eva vedyo" - Bh.Gita.15:15.
"I am the Only Object worth knowing through the Vedas (Scriptures)". Only the
Vedas (Scriptures) reveal God as Indestructible. If God is without any form and is to
be The Only Supreme Spirit, the stress on the word INDESTRUCTIBLE is not
necessary. A strong man does not require a protection. He can take care of himself.
Only a weak man will get credit of honour when he overcomes all the strong
oppositions, inspite of the fact that he is weak. Smilarly, the position of The Unseen
Spirit is unapproachable to anybody, be it for light or any other matter. But the

greatness of God lies in this fact, that even though being in the Form of That man,
AADI PURUSHA, FIRSTBORN, yet He is indestructible. This can be the nearest
explanation that can be given to the Central Theme of Vedas that
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"AKSHARE PARAME VYOMAN"
-- (R.V.I.164:39)
means
"The Indestructible exists in Supreme Abode".
The FIRSTBORN, AADI PURUSHA, NARAYANA, exists in the Supreme Region
beyond Universe in human form, but yet is indestructible.
This realisation of God as Eternal, Indestructible and yet in human form, is
very peculiar and is only found in Vedic Scriptures. That is why it is said that:
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Vaasudevo idam agra asin na Brahma na cha Shankara;
Eko Naarayanaasin na Brahma na Ishaana".
means
"Only Vaasudeva exists, neither Brahma nor Shankara;
Narayana alone exists as Chief; neither Brahma nor Ishaana".
Even Aadi Shankara Bhagavatpada confirms in his Commentary on Gita that
NARAYANA is transcendental to all creations. The same Narayana (Christ Jesus)
expresses Himself as Rama, Krishna, Jesus and now as Son of Man, KALKI. All the
previous incarnations of God are subject to the natural death, whereas this Kalki is
the very Narayana in His Own Body. The same Narayana (Christ Jesus) comes as a
human being in the Royal Line in His own indestructible form fulfilling all the
prophecies in the Scriptures of the world. God is for all. The same Narayana is
called as Yehovah (YHVH) by the Hebrews, Allah by the Muslims, Christ Jesus by the
Christians and as Krishna by the Hindus. He is the One and the Same Person, God.
The Desire of all nations that has come down in His own human body. This is the
secret wisdom hidden in all the Scriptures but revealed in these last days by the
very Lord God who has come down.

RAJA YOGA
(THE PATH OF MYSTICISM)
The Vedic Scholars consider the Path of Mysticism (Raja Yoga) as a stage of
Jnana Yoga, the path of knowledge. In this path of Raja Yoga, one experience the
Divine Personality (PURUSHA) and therefore Raja Yoga is the Path of personal
spiritual realization SATYAM, The Truth is called as That which is obtained (AAPTA)
by the Vedic process as given below.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Vratena dikshaam aapnoti
Dikshaayam aapnoti dakshinaam
Dakshinaam shraddhaam apnoti
Shraddhaya SATYAM aapyate"
- Y.V.(V.S.). 19:30
means
"By self-dedication, one obtains consecration; by consecration one obtains grace
(dakshina);
By grace, one obtains reverence, and by reverence TRUTH is obtained".
Thus Brahmacharya, the simple control of sex energy is not sufficient to obtain the
SATYAM, the knowledge of The Ultimate Reality of Divine Purusha; but only through
steady spiritual growth till the stage to meet TRUTH face to face in glory. THIS IS
RAJA YOGA. Many people boast themselves to have attained this Stage. If so, they
ought to have accepted the Truth that The Lord God Almighty has now come down
as human person is His own form SAUMYA ROOPAM). Because He is the King of the
future DHARMA YUGA, naturally, when He is just a Prince only, these so-called Raja
yogisought to have seen Him face to face either in person or in spirit. But
unfortunately most of them do not give a correct identification of Kalki (only Veda
Vyasa has clearly written in his Puranas about Kalki). But God as revealed Himself
to us in these last days through AADI BALI (FIRST SACRIFICE). For us His Path of
Supreme Sacrifice Narayana (also known as Christ Jesus or Allah). This section here
deals with the Vedic verses revealed by God in connection with Raja Yoga in the
light of the AADI BALI (FIRST SACRIFICE).
The above Vedic text quoted in the beginning of this section, says that a
person by his self-determination earnestly dedicates himself to this higher spiritual

path of realisation of Supreme Eternal Monarch of Universe, SATYAM THE TRUTH. By

his dedication(Vratam) he enteres into a spiritual ordainment (Diksha). This Diksha
does not mean Sanyasa or Renouncement as the Sanyasis for Renouncists
propogate. Diksha or ordainment is a commitment by a seeker (Sadhaka) through
dedication in spiritual discipline concerned. Thus he obtains spiritual grace and
refinement or purification. The spiritual grace and purification will lead him to the
stage of reverence or Spiritual zealousness (shraddha). Through this spiritual
zealousness or Zeal only, the Supreme Realization of TRUTH is obtained or
experienced by any person. This is the Authoritative Vedic Process of Spiritual
Realization of GODHEAD, Who is ONE ONLY, THE TRUTH (SATYAM), THE LIFE
(SHIVAM), THE EVER BLISS BEAUTIFUL (ANANDAM), THE SUPREME PURUSHA. The
Advaitists realize God as Impersonal Truth - Reality. The Dvaitis realize The Same
TRUTH both as Impersonal Brahman as well as The Ever Beautiful LORD in definite
conceivable Form, always ready to be worshipped or served by His disciples.
According to them, The Lord is in a completely different plane from the human
beings even though He too appears in His Transcendental Human Form.
The Vedic sage speaks thus of the direct experience of the Supreme Purusha
in his personal realization.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Vedaahametam purusham mahaantam
Adityavarnam tamasah parastaat
Tam eva viditvaati mrityumeti
NA ANYAH PANTHAAYA VIDYATE AYANAAYA".
- Y.V.(V.S.) 31:18
means
"I have known This Mighty Being (PURUSHA)
Refulgent as Sun (ADITYA) beyond darkness
By knowing Him alone one transcends death,
THERE IS NO OTHER WAY TO GO".
Thus this vedic sage categorically declares that a real Raja Yogi is the
Overcomer of death. But to our dismay, no rajayogi of 20th Century has so far
declared that he has overcome death. They conveniently resort to the shelter of
Bhagavat Gita: "Jaatasya dhruvo mrityuh dhruvam janma mrutasya cha" ("Death is
certain for the born, and even the dead shall be born again" - (When?) -

Bh.Gita.2:27), but they shrug at the Vedic Truth that YOU CAN OVERCOME DEATH
ONLY THROUGH THE SUPREME PURUSHA NARAYANA. The same NARAYANA came as
JESUS and that is why death could not swallow Him. NARAYANA IS CHRIST JESUS.
All the human avatars (incarnations) died or passed away after their functions. But
Narayana is eternal, immortal. In Kali Yuga He is known as CHRIST JESUS, even
according to Veda Vyasa in his Bhavishya Purana. Fulfilling the prophecy of Veda
Vyasa and all the prophets of God raised in the whole universe, The Lord has come
down on the 21st July 1969 (MOON-LANDING DAY) into His chosen Vessel in the
Royal Line of AVIRAM (ABRAHAM). The ancient king of Bharata-varsha in Kali Yuga.
He is both King and Priest in that tradition.
A real religion, if any, ought to have this spiritual realization of overcoming
physical death, by the complete faith in the ONE who is deathless, immortal, eternal
LORD OF GLORY. We, as normal human beings, always prone to sin, can never
achieve that state of deathlessness through any of our herculean efforts of
meditation, or penance. But by trusting THAT ONE IMMORTAL DIVINE
PARAMAPURUSHA, in full faith, by absolute surrender to Him, we all will overcome,
death. This is the mystery of this Supreme Sacrifice of the PARAMA PURUSHA, by
believing which we overcome death. That is why Rig Veda I.164:46 PEOPLE CALL
HIM AS MANY". - vide Rig. Veda X.114:5: "EKAM SAD VIPRAAH BAHUDHA VADANTI"
-- "ONE EXISTS, BUT THE PEOPLE CALL HIM AS MANY". - vide Rig.Veda.X.114.5:
"EKAM SANTAH BAHUDHA KALPAYANTI", which means, "Though He is one, He is
imagined by people as many".
Rig Veda. X.129:1-2:
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Naasad aaseenno sad aaseet tadaaneem
Naaseed rajo no vyoma paro yat
Kim aavareevah kuha kasya sharman
- nambhahkim aassed amritam na tarhi
Na raatryaa aharna aaseet praketah
Aaneed avastam avadhayaa TAD EKAM
Tasmaddhaanyan naparah kim chanaasa".
means
"There was neither non-reality nor reality then;
There was no air nor sky which is beyond it.

What covered it and where? And Whose shelter was there?

Was water there, fanthomless and deep?
Death then existed not, nor life immortal,
Neither of night or day was there any sign;
THE ONE BREATHED, airless, by self-impulse
Apart from IT was nothing whatsoever".
This Vedic hymn clearly tells the existence of ONE DIVINE BEING breathing well
before the creation of the Universe. For the purpose of creation, TAT, that Supreme
Spirit becomes PRAJAPATI (Lord of Creations), THE FIRSTBORN.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Tad evaagnis tad Aadityas
Tad Vaayus Tadu Chandramaah
Tad eva Shukras Tad Brahma
Taa Aapah Sah Prajaapatih".
-- Y.V. (V.S.): 32:1
means
"Agni is but THAT, Aditya is That,
Vayu is That, Chandramas is That.
Light is That, Brahman is That,
Apah (Water) are Those, Prajapati is HE".
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Ya etam devam ekavritam veda
Na dviteeyo na triteeyash chaturtho naapyuchayate".

- A.V.13:4
means
"To him who knows this God simply as ONE,
Neither second nor third nor fourth is He called".
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Tamidam nigatam sahah sa esha eka ekavrid eka eva
Sarve asmin devaa ekavrito bhavanti".
-- A.V.13:4:20-al
means
"To Him goes the conquering (supreme) power. He is the One, The One alone.
In Him All Deities become One alone".
People are not at all aware of the revolutionary concept of Almighty God as in
Vedas. Even the Vedic scholars purposely hid the important truth of God-Head from
the common man. This important text is quoted here for the enlightenment of all
mankind.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Yah samaamyo varono yo vyomyo
Yah sandeshyo varuno yo videshah
Yo daivo Varuno yascha maanushah".
-- A.V.IV.16:8
means
"God is that in which things converge (gather);
He is That from which things diverge.
God is Compatriot (from our land); He is the Stranger (Videshyah)

God is Divine; HE IS ALSO MAN".

Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Yas thishthati charati yashcha vanchati
Yo nilaayam charati yah prathankam
Dvou sannishadya yanmantrayete
RAJA TAD VEDA VARUNAS TRITHEEYAH"
-- A.V.IV.16:2
means
"Whoever stands or walks or who moves in secret,
Who goes to his lying down or his uprising;
What two men, sitting together, whisper to each other;
All that, God, THE KING, knows; HE IS THE THIRD PRESENT THERE".
All the four Vedas categorically describe the FIRSTBORN NARAYANA as PURUSHA OR
PARAMA PURUSHA OR PURUSHOTTAMA Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Sahasrasheershaa purushah shasraakshassahasrapaat
Sa bhumim vishvato vritvaa tyatishthaddashaangulam".
-- Rig. Veda. X.90:1
means
"The Supreme Purusha, thousand-headed,
Thousand-eyed, thousand-footed;
He pervading the earth on all sides

Transcends the ten directions".

Sahasra means innumerable and hence there is no arithmetic symetrical meaning
between heads and hands.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Purusha evedam sarvam yad bhutam yaccha bhavyam
Utaamritatvasyeshano yad annenaatirohati".
-- Rig. Veda. X.90:2
means
"PURUSHA is all that has been and that will be;
And He is the LORD OF IMMORTALITY which transcends through ANNAM (SACRIFICE)
".
Here Annam means the Sacrifice of His Own Self by which He transcends through
ANNAM (SACRIFICE)".
Here Annam means the Sacrifice of His Own Self by which He transcends up in glory.
Thus The Supreme Purusha, creates this material universe to express Himself
and His glory is manifested through His creation. Therefore He is called BHAGAVAN,
Lord of glory. The world may call many as bhagavans, but there is only one
BHAGAVAN, THE FIRSTBORN, SUPREME PURUSHA, NARAYANA who is also called as
Christ Jesus, Allah, etc., who is the Lord of Immortality. But all the other imposter
bhagavans have to face death and condemnation in the hands of That Parama
Purusha, who is A MAN as explained in Vedic Hymn.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Vaasudevo idam agra aasin na Brahma na cha Shankarah
Eko Narayana asin na Brahma na Ishaanah ".
means
"There is neither Brahma nor Shankara, only Vaasudeva exists;
Narayana alone exists as Chief, neither Brahma nor Ishaana ".

Vaasudeva means God who is Omnipresent.

Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Taasvavaatsit sva-srishtaasu sahasram parivatsaran
Tena Narayano naama yadaapah purushodbhavah".
-- Shrimad-Bhagavatam.II.10:42
means
"That Supreme Person (Purusha) is not impersonal and therefore is distinctively a
nara (Person). Therefore the transcendental water created from the Supreme Nara
is known as Nara. And because He lies down on that water, He is known as
NAARAAYANA ".
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Yetaavaan asya mahima ato jaayaanscha poorushah
Paadosya vishvaa bhootaani tripaadasyaamritam divi".
-- Rig. Veda. X.90:3
means
"Such (that He pervades with AADI BALI. According to Vedas, the Absolute
Imperishable Lord (Akshara) reveals Its glory in the creation of the entire Universe
through the Supreme Sacrifice of His Own Self. ".
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Yat purushena havishaa devaa yajnaa atanvata
Vasanto asyaasid aajyam grishma idhma sharadhavih ".
means
"Of the Yajna (AADI BALI) that the gods (glorified beings)

at that time prepared with PURUSHA as oblation;

His youth (Spring) - Virility was the ghee or fat; His body as the wood and His soul
(Atman) as offering ".
Here the Veda confirms that Creation proceeded from this AADI BALI. Please go
through the entire chapter for further enlightenment.
VIBHUTI

YOGA

(THE PATH OF SPLENDOUR)

Vibuti Yoga (Path of Splendour) implies the presence of Divine Being in all
splendour elements. Vibhuti Yoga is the Path of Poetic sages (Kavis) whereas Raja
Yoga is for the recluse seers and munis and Yogis. Light (JYOTI) is the source of all
splendour. Light is the symbol for the Glory of the Spirit and it stands for Truth
(Satyam), Order (Rta), Goodness or welfare (Svasti), glory or wealth (Shri), Beauty
(Charuta), Intelligence (Dhi), Wisdom (Krta), Bliss (Bhadram), Immortality or
Deathlessness (Amritam), for God (Devam), and for noble man (ARYA); but DASYUS
(Tamas) stands for all the opposite of Light (Jyoti), for untruth (Asatya), disorder for
chaos (Anrita), unreality (Asad), evil (Ashiv or Durita), ugly (ashri), ignorance
(avidya), death (mrityu), for demon (Vritra) and for all the wicked man (dasyus or
dasas). Fire (Agni), Sun (Surya), Moon (Soma), The Dawn (Usha), etc., are
associated with the Light (Jyoti).
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Hamsah shuchishad vasurantarikshadad
dhotaa vedishad aththir duronasad
nrishad varasad rtasad rtasad vyomasad
abjaa gojaa rtajaa adrijaa rtam"
--- Rig Veda. IV.40:5 Y.V. (V.S.).X.24:XII:1
means
" He is the Swan seated in the midst of the light;
The Lord of Wealth seated in the mid-region;
The Priest seated by the altar, the Guest seated at the house

The Dweller among men; the Dweller in the noblest place;

The Dweller in Eternal Law; the Dweller in the infinite sky;
Born of water, born of Light, born of Eternal Law,
Born of water, born of Light, born of Eternal Law,
Born of mountain, HE IS THE ETERNAL LAW (RTAM)".
Vibuti Yoga is famous among Vedic Scholars in its peculiarity in combining both
physical and material aspects with the spiritual aspect of Divinity. It describes the
material form of the Divine aspect of Divinity. It describes the material form of the
Divine Being (Purusha) on one hand but also leads to the highest spiritual abstract
state of Divinity. Though this hymn refers to Sun(Aditya) in material plane, but in
spiritual sense, this refers to the Supreme Purusha and His presence being
Omnipresent is clearly described here. Here in this hymn, Sun and Swan are not
just material beings, but they symbolise the Supreme Purusha who is the Source of
Light (Jyotiswarupi Hari) and as the heavenly being (Swan). This Supreme Purusha
is considered to be ageless, ever youth.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Na yam jaranti sharado na maasaa
Na dyaava Hendram avakarshayanti
Vriddhasya chid vardhataam asya tanooh
Stomebhir ukthaishcha shasyamaanaa"
--- Rig Veda. VI. 24:7
means
" Years do not age Him; nor months nor days wear out Indra;
May H is self grow, though ever so mighty
glorified by songs of praise and hymns of prayers".
It is well known among vedic scholars that none of the Vedic deities have the
capacity to be born as eternal human beings. Only one Person is both man as well
as God and He is NARAYANA. Because He controls the reins of the universe, He is
called as INDRA. Also in Bhagavatam, it is said that there is a finite age for all

celestial beings after which they will merge in Pralayam into Paramapurusha. But in
this vedic hymn, the person, the Deity Indra is said to have a human body (Tanu).
Because the vedic sage sees the Supreme Purusha in His own Human Body, which
even though appears to be like a perishable many form, yet because of its capacity
to hold the Fullness of Spirit of Almighty God, The Lord of Light, as becoming youth
with age. That means, as a prophet, the vedic sage has seen this human body of
Lord Narayana which comes in the last days of Kali Yuga as Kalki Avatar, The
Parama Purusha but yet who was The FIRST BORN. Really the Vedas contain the
Mystery of Godhead which only Narayana can reveal, which He is doing now to His
own people whom He created with Him and in Him before the creation of Universe.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Manye tvaa Yajniyam Yajniyaanaam
Manye tvaa chyavanam Achyutaanaam
Manye tvaa satvaanaam Indra Ketum
Manye tvaa vrishabham charshaneenaam"
--- Rig Veda. VIII. 96:4
means
" I deem Thee as Holiest of Holy (YAJNAM)
I deem Thee as Shaker of unshaken
I deem Thee, O God! as the Banner of heroes
I deem Thee as th Chief of the People (King)".
But the actual meaning of YAJNIYAM means the power attained through Yajna
(Sacrifice). This Vedic hymn tells clearly the secret of power of The Supreme
Purusha, who eventhough a NARA (MAN), yet, is the Most Holy Person, because by
virtue of His capacity to take a human form without any human connection, He is
Holy. More than this, when He offered Himself in His own Body for our sake before
the creation of universe, He made all His people in Him as holy, even though they
have to take up the mortal bodies.
God is considered as the King of Universe (R.V.VIII.43:24, III.46:2) as the
Almighty Person (R.V.VIII.45:6), as the Most Terrible (R.V.VIII.45:35), as the Forgiver
of Sin (R.V.VIII.45:34), which are characteristics of Semitic Beliefs. The Supreme
Purusha is also described as COMFORTER (R.V.IV.20:9).

Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)

Translation in English
"Agnim Ile Purohitam
Yajnasya Devam Ritvijam
Hotaram ratnadhaatakam"
--- R.V.I.1:1
means
" I pr ay to AGNI, the PRIEST, GOD OF SACRIFICE, MINISTER OF the Service, The
Offerer of Oblation, the best Giver of treasure".
Here, The Supreme Purusha is described as AGNI - FIRE, This clears the doubt
among the people about His capacity both as Sacrifice as well as Sacrificer and the
Accepter of Sacrifice. As God, He accepted the Supreme Sacrifice; As the Sacrifice
Being, He offered Himself in that Sacrifice; As Offerer and Minister of Sacrifice, He
and His people took part in that Sacrifice ceremony. As High Priest, He performed
that Sacrifice. Lastly He is the One who rose in that same body but now filled or
possessed by the Fullness of the Spirit of Almighty God as the Bestower of His
Peculiar Treasure, IMMORTALITY to His followers.
The Supreme Lord is described as given below in Veas, typical of Vibhuti-Yoga.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Tvam samudro asi Vishvavit kavey
Tavemaa pancha pradisho vidharmani
Tvam dyaan cha prithiveem chaati jabrishe
Tava jyotishi pavamaana Suryah"
--- R.V.IX.86:29
means
" Thou art the Vast Se a; Thou, O Seer, ! who discoverest all things
Under Thy Law are the Five regions of the world.
Thou transcendest heaven and earth.

O, Self-purifying One! Thine are the Lights

and Time and The Sun".
To discover the things, One has to first forget or forego the same. Similarly
the Supreme Purusha when He comes down to earth as a normal human being, has
to forget His Supreme Prowess as Creator, Protector and the Consummator of The
Universe, and He has to get the Revelation of Himself and about His unlimited
Almighty Power, as HE IS THE VERY GOD HIMSELF, right from the times immemorial.
This Vedic hymn clearly prophesies the Advent of Narayana as Kalki as the
Eternal King of the World, as a MAN.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Vishvedete janimaa sam vivikto
Maho devaanaam bibhratee na vyathete
Aejad Dhruvam patyate vishvam ekam
charat patatri vi jaatam"
--- R.V.III.54:8
means
" All that exists these two (sky & earth) keep asunder;
though bearing the mighty Devas, they suffer not.
ONE LORD IS ALL of what moves and what is fixed,
of what walks, what files, -- this multiform creation".
Thus The Vedas clearly reveal the Divine Purusha both in material plane as
well as in Spiritual Plane. THERE IS ONE ALONE, NO SECOND.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Aaneed avaatam sv adhayaa TAD EKAM

Tasmaaddhaanyan na parah kim chanaasa"

--- R.V.X.129:2
means
" The One breathed airless by self-impulse;
Apart from IT was nothing whatsoever ".
It can also be translated as: "IT ALONE (TAD EKAM) breathed airless by self-impulse;
Apart from TAT was nothing whatsoever".
IT (TAT), THE DIVINE PURUSHA, the Vedic conception of Ultimate Reality but
this state was before the Same expressed ITSELF as FIRSTBORN PURUSHA,
NARAYANA (CHRIST JESUS).
The Essence of Vibhuti Yoga is to realise the Divine Being, The Supreme
Purusha as Glorious Being both as Human as well as Heavenly Being.
KARMA YOGA
(P A T H O F A C T I O N )
( IN THE LIGHT OF SUPREME SACRIFICE )
KARMA YOGA is equally important as JNANA YOGA in the Vedic religion. Even
though the later literary works tend to consider KARMA - Action as non-essential or
even evil, yet Vedas accept KARMA (Action) as an accepted fact. The Karma Yoga
primarily leads one for the acceptance of our physical existance. This necessitates
the building up of our body, the sharpening of the mind leading to the full span of
healthy and vigorous life with full joy and satisfaction. Secondly Karma Yoga
accedes to the battle of life and fight for survival though not literally. In the Vedic
sense, survival means not the just mechanical living like a beast, but includes the
moral and spiritual aspects of life. Therefore the battle of life is the battle between
good and evil, demanding man's all mighty and valiant efforts and occupy for its
use. Thus Karma Yoga is basically a Kshatriya's (King's) view of life with beroic
outlook.
But in the light of the Revelation of Supreme Sacrifice by Parama Purusha the
concept of Karma Yoga becomes drastically different from what it is so far in the
eyes of the Vedic ritualists.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Devebhyah kam aavrineeta mrityum

Prajaayat kam amritam naarineeta

Brihaspatim yajnam akrinyata rishim
Priyaam Yamas tanvam praarirecheet"
- R.V.X. 13:4
means
"He chose death, for the same of gods (celestial beings)
And for men's sake, He chose not immortality;
They made a SACRIFICE OF BRIHASPATI, THE SEER, YAMA GAVE UP HIS OWN BODY".
This above Vedic hymn describes the Sacrifice of Parama Purusha who is also
called as BRIHASPATI - The Mighty King, THE SEER. He also is called as YAMA
because of His patience in suffering for the sake of the whole universe. That is why
Bhagavad Gita says: "YAMAS SAMYAMATAAM AHAM" --- 'I am Yama in patience".
Also because He is the First to die (and also to rise to life), He is also called as YAMA,
The Lord of death, One who defeated death. "THEY SACRIFICED BRIHASPATI" means
that there must be a group of beings (people) who were created before the
foundation of the universe, who offered their very Creator as offering for their
deathlessness because by being created as human beings, they ought to die and as
they could not inhabit heaven as human beings. Therefore for their sake, their very
Creator offered Himself as the Sacrifice. That is why This great SEER (PARAMA
PURUSHA) is also called as THE GREAT PATH FINDER (PATHIKRITA -- R.V.X.14:15). It
was He who showed us the Path of Deathlessness even before the creation of this
universe. Now in these last days The same BRIHASPATI-SEER, The Paramapurusha,
Narayana has come down in His own Human form to show us the Path of
glorification (AMRITATVAM) without death. For Hindus, He is the same Krishna, The
Creator; for true Christians, He is the same Christ Jesus; for Muslims, He is IMAM
MEHDI; for Buddhists, He is MAITREYI AMITABHA. GOD IS ONE BUT PEOPLE CALL
HIM BY MANY NAMES. It is not the mistake of God that He is ONE alone, but it is the
mistaken thinking of the people that God is many.
That is why R.V.X.90:6 says that the Supreme Purusha, sacrificed Himself to
create the Universe.
Thus the very Creator became sacrifice for our sake, only because we were
created as human beings ordained to live for ever with Him in Heaven. He atoned
for our sins, for our sickness, for our weaknesses and FOR OUR DEATH.
Transliteration in English (from Sanskrit)
Translation in English
"Deakritasyainaso avayajanam asi

Manushyakritasainaso avayajanam asi

Pitrikritasyainaso avayajanam asyaatmaKritasyainaso avayajnam asyainaso ayenaso
avayajnam asi;
Yacchaaham aeno vidvaanschakaara yacchaavidvaanstasya sarvasyainaso avayajnam asi"
- Y.V. (V.S.). 8:13
means
"Thou art atonement of sin against God,
Thou art atonement of sin against men,
Thou art atonement of sin against fathers,
Thou art atonement of sin against myself,
Thou art atonement of every sort of sin.
Of all the sin that I have committed knowingly
and that I have committed unknowingly, Thou art the atonement".
This is the main reason why the Vedic seers are considered to be free from all
sin because of their unquenching faith in the Supreme Sacrifice. That is why they
are also called as SIDDHAS or the Victorious people. They are supposed to be
immortal beings. But the Karmis or the ritualists of Vedic religion just hid this
Supreme Sacrifice from the mankind and only the ritual part of the sacrifice without
any importance is still followed. They offer SAMIDHS, the wood of Ashwattha tree
as offering. But people do not know the inner meaning of this. The Bhagavad Gita
says that: "ASHVATTHAH SARVA VRIKSHAANAAM" - "Among trees, I am the
ASHVATTA TREE" -- Bh. Gita. 15:1-4). That Parama Purusha is typed as ASHVATTHA
TREE. Ashvattha means that which cannot wait till Dawn, indicating that power of
His coming back to life in the same body before the Creation of universe. Dawn
means the beginning of Day.
CONCLUSION
This humble attempt is made by the Divine Grace of The Lord God Almighty,
who has come down in these last days to take us all in glory without death. This is
only to cite the importance of the Supreme Sacrifice of The Parama Purusha being
performed in reality in toto by the Very Parama Purusha (Christ Jesus) even before

the Creation of Universe. This is not a fiction. Vedas prove this Supreme Sacrifice.
Bhagavad Gita says this path only as Karma Yoga. The Bible says that THE LAMP
SLAIN FROM THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD (Rev.13:8b). The Nabi Mohammed
introduced BAKRID in the memory of this Great Supreme Sacrifice. God Almighty,
That Paramapurusha, who is also called as Narayana, Allah, Christ Jesus, etc., is ONE
AND THE SAME LORD for the whole universe, for, He is the CREATOR-KING of this
whole universe. Only we fight among ourselves without knowing the Supreme
Sacrifice He did out of His love for the same of entire universe. The same God has
revealed this Mystery hidden from the creation in these last days. He only gave
Gita and The Bible and the Quoran and it is only He who gave His Revelation
through Krishna, Jesus, Mohammed, etc. Lord Jesus came to fulfil and to give us an
understanding about this Supreme Sacrifice. Sri. Krishna came to reveal This
Supreme Sacrifice through His Gita. Prophet Mohammad came to fight against all
paganisms and to uphold the important of the Supreme Sacrifice of the Great Judge
of the Universe, THE LORD and in His rememberance only, he instituted the BAKRID.
Now the same God has come down in flesh to inherit what He has created, to usher
in His Millenial Rule. Now He is in His own Human Gentile Form. He is the Man
Christ Jesus for the Christians, Imam Mahdi for our Mislum brothern, KALKI KRISHNA
for our fellow Hindu brethren. He is the very Lord God who has created heaven,
earth and the sea and everything that therein is. He is The Royal Son of David, The
Messiah for the Torah Hebrews.
A word about Saffron Robe and the Holy Thread worn by the Hindus, and their
significance is to be aptly given. The saffron colour denotes not the sanyasam or
Renunciation but THE BLOOD SHED BY THE PARAMA PURUSHA NARAYANA (CHRIST
JESUS) in the SUPREME SACRIFICE. The Holy Thread worn across the body sifnifies
that we are the partakers of that Supreme Sacrifice through which we have become
eternal beings. The circular thread depicts eternity and hence is worn around the
body. But, alas! the present-day tendency is just to wear saffron robe and holy
thread without having faith on or without knowing The Supreme Sacrifice. Even the
sanyasins are supposed to be initiated only through the hymns of the Purusha Sukta
which tell only about The Supreme Sacrifice. They are supposed to recite the
Suktam for 108 times for purification. Our Royal Heavenly Kingdom Flag is in
Saffron colour and has Vishnu Chakram encircled by Rain-bow signifying that the
kingdom of Heaven is established on earth. We wear Saffron in our heart and in our
mind and are victorious over the world. But others wear saffron only outwardly
without knowing their true significance.
WILL IT NOT SUFFICE TO SAY THAT HE IS THE DESIRE OF ALL NATIONS IN WHOSE
EXPECTATION THE WHOLE UNIVERSE IS GROANING WITH BIRTH PAIN ?!!! OH! MY
BELOVED FELLOW-PRISONERS OF LOVE OF GOD, WHEN WILL YOU COME BACK TO
YOUR ORIGINAL ABODE, TO YOUR FIRST FATHER, THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY WHO IS
NOW ON EARTH TO REDEEM THEE !!!
APPENDIX -I
COSMIC YAJNA

( PURUSHA SUKTA )
The Supreme Being is thousand-headed,
Thousand-eyed, thousand-footed;
He pervades the Universe on all sides,
And extends beyond the ten directions.
( Rig.10.90.1 )
He, indeed, is all this,
What has been and what will be,
What is the Lord of Immortality
Transcending through material existence.
( Rig.10.90.2 )
Such is the magnificance, but,
The Supreme Being is greater than this;
All beings are a quarter of Him,,
Three-quarters make up immortality in the
Supreme Region.
( Rig.10.90.3 )
Three-quarters of the Supreme Being remain abstract,
One quarter part manifests again and again,
And, diversified in form, it moves
To the animate and the inanimate world.
( Rig.10.90.4 )
Through the divine energy of the Supreme Being
This dynamic universe (Virat) came into existence
In the course of the evolution of the universe,
The earth and other habitable planets came into being
And souls manifested themselves in the form
Of living beings and thus life came into existence.
( Rig.10.90.5 )
With the coming into being of the dynamic universe,
The adaptation of the primordial matter was made
In the primeval activities.
Thus began the changes in the atomic composition of matter.
In this colossal cosmic sacrifice, substances to
Sustain life were produced;
As well as vegetation, grains, fruit, flowers and

Therapeutic substances that increase both energy

And the life-span.
( Rig.10.90.6 )
This made it possible for animal life to thrive
In the course of the creation of the universe,
The Rig Veda, the Sama Veda, the Yajur Veda and
The Atharva Veda were revealed.
( Rig.10.90.7 )
Three kinds of animals came into being in the
Creation of the universe.
Belonging to the category of domestic animals were
Four types of animals:
1. horse, donkeys, etc. which possessed two sets of teeth, upper and lower
2. cows, 3. goats, 4. sheet, These three possess only the lower set of teeth.
( Rig.10.90.8 )
Because of his superior intellect, man is recognized
As the most advanced of all living beings
That came into existence at the creation of the universe.
Among them were also those who displayed divine qualities
Ascetics, hermits and sages
Well-versed in the knowledge of the Vedas
Who contemplated intensely on how to integrate
And organize society.
( Rig.10.90.9 )
The entire human race was visualized in the form of one Human being.
Some of the questions were :
Into how many parts was this man-conception society divided ?
What was his mouth ? and what were his arms ?
What represented his thighs and what were his feet ?
( Rig.10.90.10 )
In this conception of human society as a man, the highly
Intellectual Brahmanas (priestly class) were regarded as the mouth,
While the Kshatriyas, who were the administrators
and warriors, represented the arms.
The Vaishyas who were artisans, traders and
agriculturists corresponded to the abdorminal
region and the thighs,
While the Shudras of the society were associated
with the feet of this man-conception society.
( Rig.10.90.11 )
The moon denotes the mind of the Supreme Being,
While the sun His eyes.
The wind and breath issue from His ears,

While fire is produced from His mouth.

Similarly the moon is associated with the mind of the human being.
And the sun symbolises his eyes.
( Rig.10.90.12)
This universe is conceived in the form of the
intangible Supreme Being.
In the idealized schematic physical map of the
Unverse, the central region, identical with the
abdominal region, corresponds to the middle space, Antariksha.
The uppermost region, synonymous with the head,
is depicted as the luminous outer space.
Its lowest region correlating with the feet is
identified as the earth ( Bhumi ).
The entire planetary system of the universe
gradually evolved according to this scheme.
( Rig.10.90.13)
The Supreme Being proceeded ahead with the
symbolic Yajna (task) of the creation of the universe,
A colossal, cosmic yajna in which solid
substances displaying natural specific properties
were offered as oblation, Ahuti ( SACRIFICE )
In this cosmic yajna clarified butter or ghee
symbolised spring, wood chips summer, and corn autumn.
( Rig.10.90.14)
In this cosmic yajna innumerable species of animal
life came into existence
Of which the human race is most advanced.
Among mankind there were also seers and sages,
hermits and ascetics, and intellectuals and
scholars who set about the task of organising
society by disciplining man, the animal.
In this imaginary symbolic yajna or sacrifice, there
were seven enclosures or disciplines and twentyone
sticks, samidha, were utilised.
( Rig.10.90.15)
In the course of this symbolic cosmic yajna of the
Supreme Being, the scholars and sages undertook
the yajna (function) of organising society.
With this object they gave significance and priority
to the formulation and fundamental laws and
of behaviour that promoted society stability and cohesiveness.
( Rig.10.90.16)

The Creator is perfect

He possesses perfect power.
Whence is created perfect Nature ?,
The perfect universe derives life
From the perfect Creator.
Let us comprehend this perfect power
That bestows life on all beings.,
( Atharva.10.8.29 )
APPENDIX -II
SACRIFICE
( EXTRACTS FROM THE BOOK, "THE WONDER THAT WAS INDIA"
BY A.L.BASHAM - PAGES. 241 - 255 )
SACRIFICE : The centre of the Aryan cult was sacrifice. The cult of the domestic
hearth existed in many ancient Indo-European communities, and small domestic
sacrifices, performed by the head of the house, must have been as important in the
days of Rig Veda as they were in later Hinduism, but the earliest texts describing
them are the Grihya Sutras
of a much more recent period. The Rig Veda
is rather concerned with great sacrifices, paid for by chiefs and wealthier tribesmen.
They were already complex rites involving much preparation, the slaughter of
numerous animals, and the participation of several well-trained priests.
The main purpose of the sacrifice was the gratification of the gods in order to
obtain boons from them. The gods descended to the sacred straw (barhis) on the
sacrificial field, drank, and ate with the worshippers, and duly rewarded them with
success in war, progeny, increase of cattle and long life, on a quid pro quo basis.
The solemn Varuna pantheon. Most of the gods were good natured. Guilt-offerings
and thank-offerings, of the kind offered by the ancient Hebrews, are almost unheard
of in the Vedas.
Nevertheless the ceremony must have had its element of awe and wonder.
The worshippers, inebriated with soma, saw wondrous visions of the gods; they
experienced strange sensations of power; they could reach up and touch the
heavens; they became immortal; they were gods themselves. The priests, who
alone knew the rituals and formulas whereby the gods were brought to the sacrifice,
were masters of a great mystery. With these ideas, which are explicitly stated in the
hymns, went others less obvious. Often in the Rig Veda we read of a mysterious
entity called Brahman; in many contexts Brahman is the magical power in the
sacred utterance (mantra), but sometimes it has a wider connotation, and implies a
sort of supernatural electricity, known to students of primitive religion as mana.
The possessor of Brahman, by a common process of secondary word formation in
Sanskrit, became known as brahmana, (in this book usually written in its modern

form brahman to avoid confusion with the sacred texts of the same name), the
tribal priest and magician. In later Vedic times the connection of brahman with
speech becamemore and more pronounced, and the brahman's magic was thought
to lie in the words he uttered. The words and syllables of the Veda were analysed,
and, though the texts were still unwritten, the letters of the alphabet were
recognised and personified as eternal divinities. The metres used in the Veda were
also thought of as gods. Later certain syllables were believed to be particularly
holy, notably OM (the Pranava), which contains the essence of the Vedas and is
pregnant with the utmost power and mystery.
A second conception, which is hinted at in many hymns of the Rig Veda, and
becomes prominent in the latest stratum, is also widely known in primitive religions
-- the mystical identification of god, victim and sacrificer. From these ideas the
sacrifice obtained an even greater importance in the scheme of things than it had
had at the time of the composition of the earlier parts of the Rig Veda. By the end
of the period it was widely believed that universe itself arose from a PRIMEVAL
SACRIFICE.
Through Varuna may sometimes have been looked on as a sort of creator,
and there are suggestion of Indra having fulfilled the same function,
there is no
clearly defined creator-god period, however, such a god had developed, whether
wholly from the speculations of the brahmana or from non-Aryan influences. This
god was Prajapati, "The Lord of Beings", often identified with Brahma, the masculine
from of the neuter brahman. Prajapati was thought of as a Primeval Man (Purusha)
who existed before the foundation of the universe. The man * was sacrificed,
presumably to himself, by the gods, who aparently were his children. (In the Edda
the god Wodan, in order to obtain magic power is sacrificed by himself to himself).
From the body of the divine victim the universe was produced. "The Hymn of the
Primeval Man" (PURUSHA SUKTA) in which this first cosmic sacrifice is described,
bristles with obscurities, but its purport is quite clear. (Please refer Appendix-I of
this web page -- Ed).
"When the gods made a sacrifice
With the Man as their victim,
Spring was the melted butter, summer the fuel
And autumn the oblation.
From that all-embracing sacrifice
The clotted butter was collected.,
From IT were made the animals
Of air and wood and village.
*(Presumable THE MAN Prajapati himself, who survived his own dismemberment).
From that all-embracing sacrifice
Were born the hymns and chants,
From that the metres were born,
From that the sacrificial spell were born..
Thence were born horse,

and all beings with two rows of teeth.

Thence were born cattle,
and thence goats and sheep.
"When they divided the Man,
Into how many parts did they divide him?
What was his mouth, what were his arms,,
What were his thighs and his feet called?
The Brahman was his mouth,
Of his arms was made warrior,
His, thighs became the vaisya,
Of his feet the sudra was born.
The moon arose from his mind,.
from his eye was born the sun,.
from his mouth Indra and Agni,
from his breath the wind was born.
From his navel came the air,
From his head there came the sky,
From his feet the earth,
The four quarters from his ear,
Thus they fashioned the worlds.
With Sacrifice the gods sacrificed to Sacrifice --These were the first of the sacred laws.
These * mighty beings reached the sky,
Where are the eternal spirits, the gods".
* (It is not clear who are the mighty beings referred to. They are not gods
themselves, and the last verse may be a later addition).
By this time a new attitude to the sacrifice had developed, and the rite had become
a supernal mystery. By means of it the priests mystically repeated the primeval
sacrifcice, and the world was born anew. Without regular sacrifices all cosmic
processes would cease and chaos would come again. Thus the order of nature was
on ultimate analysis is not dependent on the gods at all, but on the brahman, who
by the magic of the sacrifice maintained and compelled them. The brahman was
more powerful than any earthly king or any god; The brahman was more powerful
than any earthly king or any god; by his accurate performance of sacrifice he
maintained all things, and was therefore the supreme social servant; by the
slightest variation of ritual he could turn the sacrifice against his patrons and
destroy them and was therefore the most dangerous of enemies.
This is the basic doctrine of the brahman, and it prevailed in many Aryan
communities in North India from about 900 B.C. onwards, and left its mark on
Hinduism in the exaltation of the brahman. In this period many of the old gods of
the Rig Veda lost their greatness, and became comparatively unimportant, while
others rose in popularity, notably Vishnu and Rudra; the latter was already

sometimes called by the epither SIVA, THE PROPITIOUS, originally a deprecatory

euphemism.
Speculation and Gnosis: Ascetism was not merely a means of escape from unhappy
and unsatisfying world; it had a positive aspect, for, it was in part inspired by a
desire for knowledge, for the wisdom which the four vedas could not give. Thus the
growth of asceticism is not only a measure of the psychological incertainty of the
times, but also of their thirst for knowledge. It is not just to India to stigmatise her
ancient wisdom as mere "life-negation".
All through the first millenium B.C. intelligent minds in India were striving for
convincing explanations of the cosmic mystery. In the latest phase of the Rig Veda,
poets began to wonder about creation, which was not adequately explained by the
current mythology. As we have seen, creation was thought of by some as the effect
of a primeval sacrifice. It was also suggested that it was due to a sort of sexual
act; elsewhere the world was said to have originated in a "Golden Embryo"
(Hiranyagarbha), or the prototype of the Cosmic Egg
of later Hindu
mythology. In one hymn the poet states that the world arose from warmth (tapas,
later usually meaning penance or asceticism), and then rather regretfully admits
that he is not sure of this hypothesis, and suggests that perhaps even the high god
Prajapati does not know the truth.
This wonderful "Hymn of Creation", one of the oldest surviving records of
philosophic doubt in the history of the world, marks the development of a high
stage of abstract thinking, and it is the work of a very great poet, whose vision of
the mysterious chaos before creation, and of mighty ineffable forces working in the
depths of the primeval void, is portrayed with impressive economy of language.
Then even nothingness was not, nor existence.
There was no air then, nor the heavens beyond it.
What covered it? Where was it? In whose keeping?
Was there then cosmic water, in depths unfathomed?
Then there was neither death nor immortality,
Nor was there then the torch of night and day,
Then One breathed windlessly and self-sustaining..
There was that One then, and there was no other.
At first there was only darkness wrapped in darkness.
All this was only unillumined water.
That One which came to be, enclosed in nothing,
Arose at last, born of the power of heat.
In the beginning desire descended on it --,
That was the primal seed, born of the mind.
The sages who have searched their hearts with wisdom

Know that which is , is kin to that which is not.

And they have stretched their cord across the void,
And know what was above, and what below.
Seminal powers made fertile mighty forces.
Below was strength, the over it was impulse.
But, after all, who knows and who can say
When it all came, and how creation happened?
The gods themselves are later than creation,
So who knows truly whence it has arisen?
Whence all creation had its origin,
He, whether He fashioned it or thwehter He did not,
He, who surveys it all from highest heaven,
He knows -- or may be even He does not know.
(Author's Note : My translation of this obscure verse is very free).
In the centuries succeeding the composition of the Rig Veda, however,
speculation was mainly concerned with the symbolism of the sacrifice.
"Dawn is the head of the sacrificial horse, the sun its eye, the wind its breath,
fire its mouth, the year is the body of the sacrifice, heaven its back, the sky its belly,
earth its chest, the four quarters - the seasons its limbs, the months and fortnights
its joints; days and nights are its feet; the stars its bones, the heavens its flesh. Its
half-digested food is sand; its bowels the rivers, its liver and lungs the mountains;
its hair plants and trees. When the sun rises it is the hourse's fore-quarters; when it
sets it is its hind-quarters. When the horse shakes itself it lightens; when it kicks, it
thunders; when it makes water, it rains. Sound is its voice".
The symbolism of the sacrifice was carried much further than this. Every
word or action of the ritual was identified with some aspect of the cosmos. The
intellectual ingenuity spent on this process of finding pratikas (symbols) must have
been considerable, but it was largely sterile. Yet the questing spirit of the "Hymn of
Creation" never wholly disappeared, and in the 6th Century B.C. it bore fruit in a
great wave of thought which was to alter the whole religious life of India.
...........The Universal Essence is sometimes defined in purely negative terms. "The
Self can only be described as 'Not this, not this'. It is incomprehensible,
imperishable.....unattached.....it does not suffer..........it does not fail". But despite
the negations of this passage, the sage Yajnavalkya, to whom it is attributed, could
not escape giving the Universal Essence a degree of personality and in one place
almost identified it with the High God.
"The great unborn self, comprised of knowledge.......the other in the heart. In
that is the Ruler and Lord, the King of all things. He grows no greater by good
deeds, nor smaller by evil deeds, but he is the Lord of all things, the king of all
things, the protector of all things".

In the verse, Upanishad, the World Spirit is described rather as a god than as
cosmic essence. (SUPREME SPIRIT is termed as WORLD SPIRIT or Universal Essence
in this book).
"He encircles all things, radiant and bodyless,
unharmed, and untouched by evil, all-seeing,
all-wise, all-present, self-existent,
He has made all things well for ever and ever".
In the Upanisad from which this is taken the World Spirit is referred to as ISA,
THE LORD. The Katha Upanisad calls the Spirit, The Person (PURUSHA), reminding
us of the Divine Victim of the Primeval Sacrifice from which the world was born. In
one passage the World Spirit is mentioned with fear and dread, recalling that earlier
felt for the god Varuna.
All things whatever, the whole world,
produced (from Brahman) tremble in its breath.
It is a great terror, an unpraised thunderbolt.
They who know This become immortal".
"From Terror (of Brahman) the Fire burns.
From the Terror (of Brahman) the Sun shines.
From Fear of Brahman Indra, and the Wind,
and Death as the fifth all run away".
The Svetasvatara Upanisad, which is later than those previously mentioned,
describes the World Spirit in completely theistic terms. It is no longer an impersonal
essense, but a creator god-fact, the god Rudra or Siva. Rudra may be reached not
only by meditation and penance, but also by devotion and worship.
The snarer, who rules alone in his might,
He who governs the world in his power,
Is always one and the same,
though all else rise and decay......".
"There is one, Rudra alone,.......
who rules the world in his might.
He stands behind all beings, he made all the worlds,
and protects them, and rolls them up at the end of time".
The Lord lives in the faces of all beings,
in their heads, in their necks,
He lives in the inmost hearts of all,
The all-pervading, all-present Siva".
This brings us very near to the religious atmosphere of the Bhagavad Gita,
the most exalted and beautiful of India's religious poems, which teaches a fully
fledged theism and is part of the more changed from a religion of sacrifice to one of
devotion.
APPENDIX-III
( THESE VERSES TAKEN FROM RADHA SWAMI SATSANGI )

Be fused into PARAMA GURU, WITHOUT him your way is dangerous. If any
man dare to take journey without SADGURU, devils take him into wrong way.
The VOICE OF SADGURU is sweetest. That DEATHLESSNESS have intellectual
(wisdom). If you tasted it you have its fullness.
MOULANA RUN SAID
God has come as man.
He wakes up the WORLD.
HARI (God) became human being
Ramdas had that NAME.
KABEER SAID
ALL BODIES ARE HOUSE OF GOD
WHICH BODY IS REVEALED
WORSHIP ONLY THAT BODY.
DEATHLESSNESS IN OUR BODY
THERE IS ONLY ONE WITH DEATHLESSNESS
HAVE IT IN YOUR MIND THAT DEATHLESSNESS
THOSE WHO KNOW GURU THEY CAN HAVE IT (That deathlessness).
FROM NURUL TAKHEEM
Thou has given light send this world
Thou made him deathlessness and give your NOBLENESS
O MUSTAFHA (GOD) THOU HAS CREATED LIGHT AND PUT
THAT LIGHT IS LAHARI.
THOU HAS SAIROUR IN JUDGEMENT DAY
COME TO GATHERED AS AMONG YOUR DEVOTEES
THE MOST VICTORIOUS AND PEACE-GIVER
THE KING CAME ON EARTH BOTH HEAVEN AND EARTH.
THE MOON CAME TO OBEY THE COMMANDMENT
CAME AND PLAY MUSTHAFHA
THE ANGELS CAME TO EARTH WITH HAPPY AND GATHERED
AROUND THE KING.
APPENDIX -IV

A NOTE ON THE OMMITTED PORTION IN THE TRANSLATION WORK OF

SRIMAD-BHAGAVATHAM
EXTRACTS FROM THE BOOK SAARAM (PUBLISHED BY R.K. MATH - MADRAS - 4)

Srimad Bhagavatam is believed to be the prophecy spoken by the very Lord

Almighty to Brahma--- (Srimad Bhagavatam. Canto II.7.51), which in turn came to us
from Brahma through Naroda, Vyaasa, Shukha, Suta, etc, in that order of disciples
of Narayana. The Standard version of Srimad Bhagavatam as told by Veda Vyasa
contains valuable prophecies of Kalki Avatar and coming Yugas and Manvantras.
The present day translations and books on Srimad Bhagavatam conveniently set
aside the present and future prophecies yet to be fulfilled in our times, and just try
to glorify the past historical events of the Avatar of Dwapara-yuga. We have already
translated important prophecies of Veda Vyasa from Bhavishya Mahapuranam and
Kalki Puranam. To our dismay, we found that the important texts prophesying about
the abode of Kalki-Avatar (The famous TAMBRAPARNI RIVER missing e.g.p.216).
This is a very serious ommission by the Translators, because TAMBRAPARNI RIVER is
the key to find out the wherabouts of Kalki Avatar. In Treta Yuga, Rama appeared on
the earth in Ayodhya, on the outskirts of Ancient River SARAYU. In Dwapara Yuga,
Krishna Avataram and old related activities happened round about River Yamuna.
Krishna was born in Mathura, and brought up in Gokulam (Brindavan), having River
Yamuna flowing in between.
But Veda Vyasa has clearly prophesied as per the command of Almighty that
VISHNU will appear as Kalki in Shambhalagramam in Dravida Desham (South India),
on the outskirts of River Tambraparni-(Srimad Bhagavatam. Canto.XI 5:31-42). It is
further stated in this portion that Kauveri, Kritamala (Vaigai), Payaswini (Palar) and
Pratichi are the other rivers of that country. The geographical description clearly
denotes Tamil Nadu. The prohpecy further says that in Kaliyugam, the real
devotees of NARAYANA will be found worshipping LORD NARAYANA at his Feet,
voluntarily forsaking their wealthy positions and jobs etc. But the important portion
of Text.5:33,35 to 40 and 42 are completely missing in the Book Bhagawata Asram.p.No.335.
Many Hindu religious sectarian organisations are springing up in this century
simultaneously, when the whole world is unaware of the KALKI MAHA AVATAR who is
already secretly working out HIS DIVINE Mission before His Final One laught, which
is completely hidden from the vulturous eyes of the worldly religious leaders. This
world failed to recognize the manifestation of God in the previous Ages. Only after
their departure the world and the religion declared and honoured them as God, but
in their life time all the manifestations of God received only brickbats from this
world right from the when the LORD HARI Himself has come down as KALKI
(KALKI==KALKA VINASHA - i.e. One who destroys all our sins), to redeem His people
-- (Please refer to the MANUJOTHI ASHRAM PUBLICATIONS: (1) The Mystery of
Bhagavadgita, and (2) KALKI MAHA AVATAR -- Vols. 1 and 2, for further
enlightenment).
TIME OF ADVENT OF KALKI AVATAR
( Ref. Bhagavata Saaram P.430-439.)
( Srimad Bhagavatam XII.Ch.2.3 ).

There appears to be a confusion about the date of birth of Kalki Avatar. Veda
Vyasa wisely omitted this aspect in Srimad Bhagavatam because he wanted to hide
the secret of birth of Kalki Avatar from the world. But he has clearly told about the
Kalki Avatar to his son Sukha and disciple Suta etc., as mentioned in Bhavishya
Puranam and Kalki Puranam. Veda Vyasa himself gave different dates as for the
birth of Kalki-Avatar.
(1) BHAVISHYA PURANAM: Canto IV.Ch.23. Text 15.
The Saviour of the entire universe, Maha Vishnu will be born on Margashirsha,
Krishna Ashtami, 8th day after the full-moon day in the month of Capricorn (Dec.15
to Jan.14).
(2) KALKI PURANAM: Canto I.Ch.2. Text 10-15.
LORD VISHNU (MADHAVA) born in human form as KALKI AVATAR in
Shambhalagramam in Phalguna Shukla Dwadashi (12th day after Amavasya in the
month of Pisces - 15th March). This is the correct prophecy as the LORD KALKI was
born on 24th Feb. 1921.
(3) KALKI - Avatar - By Sudharsanam Simha Chakra, Mathura (in Hindi)
Shri. Chakra says thus (p.111). The birth-days of many Avatars are
celebrated throughout India in the ancient temples. But I do not know whether
KALKI JAYANTI is specially celebrated anywhere. But according to the Panchangam
(Hindu Calender) of South India I found that KALKI JAYANTI is celebrated regularly in
many famous temples of South India, on Shravana - Shukla - Shasthi (6th day of the
Amavasya in Shravana, 15th July to 14th Aug. i.e. on 21st July.)
(4) Srimad-Bhagavatam:- Canto. XII Ch.2. Text.23-24.
Text.23:-The KRITHA YUGA ! (SATYA-YUGA) or DHARMA-YUGA will come from the
day LORD KALKI comes on the world. Even the people born in His time will be peace
loving and meek and gentle in temperament.
Text.24:-DHARMA YUGA will start from the Day on which Sun, Moon, and Jupiter
will meet uner the star "PUSHYA" in one Zodiac.
Apr/May
Mesha
May/June
Vrishaba

June/July

Minam
Mar/Apr
12
1
2
3
Mithuna
Kumbha
Feb/March
11

Sun
Moon 4
Jupiter
Katakam
(July 17/Aug.16)
Makara
Jan/Feb
10

Simham
(Aug-Sep)

9
8
7
6
Kanya
(Sept-Oct)
Dhanu
Dec/Jan
Vrishika
Nov/Dec
Tula
Oct/Nov

According to this Text, Kritha Yugam (Millenium) would start on a particular

Amavasya day between 17th July and 16th August of the year.
Veda Vyasa has given another clue about the Revealing of Kalki in SrimadBhagavatam. Canto-II Ch.7 Text.37.
"When the Atheists (Scientists) after being well-versed in the Scriptural
Scientific knowledge, annihilate inhabitants of different planets, flying unseen in the
sky, on the well-built rockets prepared by the great Scientist Maya, The LORD will
bewilder their mind by dressing Himself (as Man) attractively and will preach His
Doctrine (Aupa-Dharmam).
This prophecy was fulfilled on 20-21st July 1969, when just an hour before
Man first landed on the Moon, God revealed Himself with fire coming out of His eyes
and mouth, and His human form being transfigured into the form of Light. Since
then we are celebrating the Day of God revealing Himself as Man, hiding all His
powers within Him, as KALKI-JAYANTHI. The believers recognize Him as of their own

religion and call Himby the Name known to them, like as Narayana by Hindus, Allah
by Muslims, and Christ Jesus by Christians.
But His Personal Name (LAWRIE or LAHARI) brings us all the power and
blessings even deathlessness.
God has revealed Himself as Human in these last days fulfilling all His
prophecies of all His sacred books. It is only for us to accept and act and follow His
foot-steps. People may claim and form their own group and organisation. But God
has to vindicate His form and has to prove that His WORD is true which He is doing
now. Now that the kingdom is already established from 21st July 1987 and that the
ROYAL FLAG of LOVE of God is hoisted, Time is No More !!!! Come unto Him before
he shuts himself in and takes off, before his final onslaught on the enemy, the Kali
or Satan.
APPENDIX - V
A Note on the Display of a Stone Idol of Vishnu Whose head, arms and feet as if
being cut off, exhibited in an Indian Arts Exhibition in Washington, America in 1985.
(As published in Tamil weekly, Kalkandu, dt.1.8.85)
The photo copy of the stone idol of Vishnu which was displayed in Washington
in an Indian Exhibition in 1985 is appended here as it is in concordance with the
Vedic View of Supreme Sacrifice of Parama Purusha. A translated version of the
news which appeared in Tamil magazine, Kalkandu, dt. 1.8.85. is given below:
"An exhibition on Indian Archaeological Art and Sculpture was arranged in the
National Art Gallery of Arts in Washington, America showing the might of the Indian
Sculpture. Some important stone idols carved between 3000 B.C. and 1300 A.D.
were on the show, which were of India only. This stone idol (shown in the picture)
carved without head, arms, and feet is that of Vishnu and it is believed to be of the
5th Century A.D. Many more such stone idols have attracted the thoughts of
Americans".
Stone Idol of Vishnu (Displayed in Washington - America)
'SATI'
'RITUAL KILLING'
'WHICH IS MURDER'
A recent ' SATI ' incident at Deorala in Rajasthan State of India had aroused
and kindled a spate of very loud protests from almost every quarter, from the
common village-man or townsman on the street to the highest cultured gentleman.

'Sati' is a ritual by which the wife of a man who dies, is burnt alive along with him,
whether she is young or middle-aged or old, or whether she is quite willing or half
willing or most unwilling, and is practised by certain sections of Hindus - an
insignificant minority - mostly in Gujarat and Rajasthan States in India.
As a result, steps to legilate stricter laws at State and Central levels to
prevent 'Sati' have been initiated. The hard and adamant core among the
protagonists of 'Sati' have mounted counter protests against the State interfering
with their religious and social age-long custom of 'sati' ritual. Even they cannot
point to any scriptural (Vedic) sanction behind this ancient custom which was only
traditional. Neither the Vedas nor even Manu's DharmaShasthra have any mention
of this tradition. On the other hand, there are references in these scriptures which
point to the existence of widows and permit the remarriage of women under certain
conditions.
For instance, the Rig Veda upholds property rights for widows. It even says
that a widow could marry the brother of her late husband--(10-40-2).
Manu also has said the same thing that a widow could marry her husband's
brother, though he would restrict its purpose to begetting a son. The following sloka
in Manu in quite significant:"Naste Mrute Pravrajite Klibecha Patite Pathau;
Panchatvapatsu Nareenam Pathiranyo Vidheeyate."
This sloka permits women, even while, in most cases, their husbands are
alive, to remarry, when they are faced with the following five categories of
calamities:(i) When the husband is lost;
or (ii) When the husband turns to sanyasa (hermit's life);
or (iii) When the husband is impotent;
or (iv) When the husband is committed a heinous crime;
or (v) When the husband is dead (probably prematurely).
This clearly shows that Manu was most considerate towards ill-fated women
and did never ensorse 'sate' ritual. The Vedas and the Upanishads too depict the
same picture.
The Epics of Ramayana and Mahabharatha also have no instance of 'sati'
ritual mentioned therein. If the ritual had Vedic or Dharmic sanction, the three
wives of Dasarathe, especially Kaikeyi was responsible for the death of the king,
should have ascended the funeral pyre with their deceased husband and king. They
did not, nor any woman who figured in the epic ever thought of dying with her

husband. In Mahabaratha too, Kunti could not have bred and brought up the
Pandavas and protected them against the wicked Kauravas, had she committed
'sati'. If Shivaji's mother had dived into the funeral pyre of her husband, how could
Shivaji the Great have built up a glorious empire through the inspiration of his
mother?
So it is unquestionably evident that this barbaric 'sati' ritual should have been
born out of some expedient which happened in the most ancient times and became
a traditional custom, which people thought had religious sanction. But none of the
religions nor their scriptures endorse or even make mention of it. And we should be
grateful to the latter day veteran social reformers like Basaweswara and Raja Ram
Mohan Roy who valiantly and persistently strove for the abolition of this age-old
tradition and quite succeeded in getting legislation passed banning the ritual and
imposing punishments for breach of the law. Virtually, therefore, there was no sati
burning, nor was one heard of, till this recent incident occurred. The wholesale
condemnation of the recent 'sati' incident as Deorala was, therefore, quite right and
deserved all the appreciation it gained.
Regarding the efforts at the enforcement of anti-sati-ritual, one cannot help
feeling amused at the recent remark of Profr. N.G.Ranga, a member of Parliament of
India (the Lok Sabha), namely:- "Who is Manu? We (the Parliament members) are
the Manu". If one should remark, the legislators should be bolder to venture upon
and succeed in the introduction and passing of a common civil code for all the
citizens of our secular country instead of there being multiple standards fostered
and propagated by the fundamentalists of the diverse religions of the land.
In this connection, the valiant example of the Utah state should find mention.
When the Utah territory with a predominant Mormon population practising
polygamy, applied for Statehood in the U.S.A., they were given the option to choose
either Statehood or polygamy. The Mormons valiantly chose Statehood and joined
the U.S.A. by conforming to the common law of Monogamy in the rest of the Union.
Can we expect or find such a lot of courage of conviction and honesty of
purpose as the Mormons had exhibited, in the legislators of India's Parliament and
of its State Assemblies, who claim themselves to be modern Manus? If they are so
bold enough, the only counter law which could and wouls erase even a trace of the
sati ritual from off the land, would be to legislate that whichever family wishes to
continue to observe sati ritual, in that family, when a wife dies, herhusband too
should be burnt alive with her. This is the only way by which 'sati' could be effaced
effectively from society. Will our legislators venture out so valiantly and strike at
the root of the eveil by passing the above law?
Supporters of the Deorala 'Sati' incident claim that it brought glory to
womanhood. When the above counter law is passed, it would be interesting to see
how many husbands whose wives die, would come forward to immolate themselves
and bring glory to manhood.
Regarding a common civil code for all citizens of India, even if one such code
is legislated upon and comes into being, how could it be enforced of put into
common practice by all members of the public, unless all believe that there is but

one God for all, and that only the diverse religions give various names to Him and
make so many gods out of the One.
There have been preachers and reformers in all religions who have boldly
asserted that Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, etc., need not give up their respective
religions to join another religion and that on the other hand each religion should find
ways of identifying itself with the other religions, and turn towards the one God and
Lord of the entire Universe who would work through every culture and religion.
In South India the above divine doctrine was first preached by
BRO.PAULASEER LAWRIE MUTHUKRISHNA, which made the Christians furious. It
made the administration of the (American) CMC Hospital, Vellore, in which
BRO.LAWRIE was then working as the Secretary of the General Superintendent of
the Hospital, still more furious. Immediately, action was taken against him and
BRO.LAWRIE who was to have been deputed to the USA for higher training in
Hospital Administration to take up a more responsible administrative post in the
Hospital, was denied the deputation, because of this his religious stint of what they
called Universalism. But he stuck to his doctrine and resigned his job and came out
of the Hospital, and is still going on with his ministry in this divine direction.
When more and more people accept him, not only a common civil code, but a
common Universal Society will automatically emerge.
' ISRAEL OF GOD AND PALESTINE ISRAEL '
All the people created before the foundation of the world, who took part in the
Great Supreme Sacrifice, are called Israel of God or Royal Priesthood of God, not the
Talmud Jews in Palestine (read the Book of Talmud and Torah Jews, which will be sent
to you on request), but people mistakenly call the Talmud Jews as Israel of God.
This is a misnomer. Paul, when he said, All Israel will be saved, he really meant,
People whom God chose to be in Christ Jesus or Narayana or Allah will be saved.
This has no caste or creed or nationality barrier as before the world began all these
divisions were not there.
' SOULS IN PRISON AS CAPTIVES '
In the time of Lucifer he never left anyone free as he was very powerful
except Christ Jesus who was first made better than angels who has the key of hell
and death - vide Heb.1:4 & Rev.1:18. From Adam's time the Sacrifice of Lamb was
instituted by God to depict the coming of the Sacrifice Lamb to take the place of the
Supreme Purusha coming as a man - the Lamb as if it had been slain like Isaac.
When he comes down to the Earth, the one looking like a gardener was not the
same Jesus as we all know. He went over to hell and brought all the sould in prison
which was impossible to be brought out. They were in prison even in the time of
Noah. Noah preached the Gospel and eight people were saved and the others
rejected the Gospel and had no hope. But those in prison in the time of Lucifer had
no one to set them free except the Parama Purusha. So he went down and brought
the captives as captive and took them to paradise. All those who died after Jesus
are sleeping saints - (have life everlasting) or rise from sleeping like Lazarus, they

are not totally dead. They will come now in glorification very very soon. Those who
miss glorification will go to tribulation and their eyes will open too late; and if they
stand true to this message and die Martry's death, they are real human beings in
the millenium and will be resurrected. This is only the First resurrection.
May the Lord God make you all ready for the Wedding Supper and I am sure
you who seriously read these books and are certainly, doers of the word and not
hearers only, God will certainly glorify. And God says: "The wife has made herself
ready" - not the Bride but she knows she is already married - inside Christ Jesus or
Narayana or Allah.
GOD BLESS YOU

panca bhuta prapancam drsti ekam srsti

Brahma.sutra-The.philosophy.of.Spiritual.life Epub Sumatra

The Buddhists refer to views as ditihi, or Sanskrit drsti derived from ..... the ideas of Pancapddikd-vivarana, His Jwan-mukti-viveka deals ...... In pralaya or dissolution they remain in a
subtle state and in srsti or creation they become manifest. ..... mitnir gacchati bhuta-yonim
samasta-sdksim tamasah parastdt.

Caitanya Bhagavat: Adi-khanda Chapter 1, Verses 37-91

agatuh sarva-bhutanam manah-sravana-mangalam .... yad-rupam dhruvam akrtam
yad ekam atman ... along with Nityananda Prabhu and the panca-tattva, give the
jivas this ... yanra drsti-pate haya, yaya punah punah ... The jivas collect everything
according to their choice, whether it be srsti, stithi, pralaya
Caitanya Bhagavat: Adi-khanda Chapter 1, Verses 37-91
29 Jun 2015/0 Comments/in Caitanya-Bhagavata, Prabhuji /by Pundarikaksa
Hari-katha inspired by the Guru-varga
Verse 37
jagatuh sarva-bhutanam manah-sravana-mangalam
tau kalpayantau yugapat svara-mandala-murcchitam
Krsna and Balarama sang, producing the entire range of musical sounds
simultaneously. Their singing brought happiness to the ears and minds of all living
beings.
Whenever Krsna is dancing in the rasa dance with the Vrajadevis, singing songs, or
meeting with His associates in other pastimes, the embodiment of pure soul
existence Baladeva Prabhu, or suddha-sattva-sandhini-sakti, is present. The jiva
would have no svarupa or body for the soul in the absence of sandhini-sakti.
Anybody who neglects Baladeva Prabhu cannot have a svarupa bodyeverything
for them will be zero. Without Baladeva Prabhu, jivas cannot have cit-sattva. Krsnas
flute, dress, crown, body, and His dancingeverything in Krsnas rasa danceare
all manifested from Baladeva Prabhu. There would be no possibility of rasa in the
rasa dance without Baladeva Prabhu.

Who is making all the arrangements? Baladeva Prabhu. Wherever Baladeva Prabhu
is present, Krsna will also definitely be there. Krsna is not distant from Baladeva.
Guru-pada-padma is cleaning and making the bhaktas hearts a place for Lord
Krsna. Those who cannot make a place for Krsna in someones heart are not perfect
or qualified Gurus. Baladeva Prabhu is arranging everything. Nothing happens
without Him.
Baladeva Prabhu came to Vrndavan and started His rasa-lila. The deep meaning
behind this is that He was arranging for the gopis to meet with Krsna. They were
suffering and feeling so much sadness, so Baladeva arranged for Krsna to come.
However, outside ordinary people cannot see this. There was a monkey named
Dvivida-bandara, who was also in rama-lila. In the pastimes of Rama, he respected
Rama, but not Laksman. He was against Laksman. And during the time of Krsna,
this monkey knew that Balarama was previously Laksman, so he began to insult and
taunt Him. Sometimes he would run and steal the clothes of the gopis, and
sometimes he would try to bite their breasts. He was doing many nonsensical
activities. Baladeva watched him do this once, twice, and then finally caught him
with His plow and beat Dvivida with His hammer and killed him. Many people insult
the Bhagavatam when they hear about Baladevas rasa-lila. But these activities are
not wrong, they are genuine and free from fault.
Verse 38
bhagavata suni yara rame nahi prita
visnu-vaisnavera pathe se janavarjita
One who has no love for Lord Balarama after hearing Srimad Bhagavatam is
rejected by both the Lord and His devotees.
Verse 39
bhagavata ye na mane, seyavana-sama
tara sasta ache janme-janme prabhu yama
Many persons hear Srimad-bhagavatam but have no faith in Baladeva Prabhus
rasa-lila. They do not want a relationship with Baladeva Prabhu. They think
Baladeva Prabhus actions are wrong. Anyone who does not follow the Bhagavatam
is a mleccha, outcast. Such a person has no faith, and is useless and bogus. They
will receive Yama Maharajas punishment life after life.
Verse 40
ebe keha keha napumsaka-vese nace
bolebalarama-rasa kon sastre ache?
Nowadays some faithless persons (eunuchs) challenge, In which scripture is
Balaramas rasa-lila described?
Verse 41
kona papi sastra dekhileha nahi mane
eka arthe anya artha kariya vakhane

Some sinful persons do not accept this pastime even if they read about it in the
scriptures. They distort the actual meaning of the scriptures into some other
meaning.
Somebody who thinks, Oh, Baladeva Prabhus pastimes and activities are
inappropriate, and who has no relationship or respect for Baladeva Prabhu will
never get svarupa-siddhi. It is not possible, because it is Baladeva Prabhu who is
giving the soul its spiritual form and existence. It is necessary to first have respect
for Baladeva Prabhu. If a person has no respect for Him, then they will have no
respect for Guru. As a result, anything that person does will be useless. Therefore
Vrndavan das Thakur is first narrating all the specialties of Nityananda Prabhu. Only
then can other matters be understood.
Verse 42
caitanya-candrera priya-vigraha balai
tana-sthane aparadhe mare sarva thani
Lord Nityananda is the dearmost object of Sri Caitanya-candra, therefore anyone
who commits an offense to His lotus feet is vanquished.
Verse 43
murti-bhede apane hayena prabhu-dasa
se-saba laksana avatarei prakasa
Lord Balarama appears in various forms as the servant of the Lord. He manifests
these symptoms in His various incarnations.
Verse 44
sakha, bahi, vyajana, sayana, avahana
grha, chatra, vastra, yata bhusana, asana
Lord Balarama serves Krsna in ten different ways as His friend, brother, fan, bed,
carrier, residence, umbrella, garments, ornaments, and sitting place.
Text 45
apane sakala-rupe sevena apane
yare anugraha karena, paya sei jane
In all these forms He serves Himself. Whoever receives His mercy can understand
this truth.
Text 46
nivasa-sayyasana-padukamsuko
padhana-varsatapa-varanadibhih
sarira bedais tava sesatam gatai
yathocitam sesa itirite janaih
Caitanya-candras close and very dear friend and brother is Nityananda Prabhu. No
one will protect someone who makes offenses to HimGod Himself will not help
that person. Mahaprabhu can be seen in two aspects; one is sevya and one is seva.

One is servant and one is master or Prabhu. In order to teach everything about how
to collect Gods mercy, Nityananda Prabhu, or Baladeva Prabhu, has appeared.
Baladeva Prabhu and Nityananda are the friend, brother, fan, bed, house, dress,
ornaments, umbrella, seat, and flute of Krsna. They are everything that is used in
service. It is not that Baladeva Prabhu merely manifests these things and then
disappears. Rather, He is continuously helping and serving at all times. Wherever
Krsna is, Baladeva is. And wherever Baladeva is, Krsna is.
Baladeva came to Vrndavana from Dvaraka, but some people do not understand
and they lack faith. They think, Oh, Krsna did not come, only Baladeva came to
Vrndavana. But this thinking is not true or good. Also, Laksmi Devi is serving
Narayana. There Baladeva is present as Ananta-deva. He makes a bed, atop of
which Narayana sleeps, plays, and is massaged and served by Laksmi. Baladeva is
everywhere serving the Lord.
Verse 47
anantera amsa sri garuda mahabali
lilaya balaye krsne hana kutuhali
The most powerful Sri Garuda, the expansion of Ananta-deva, enjoys pastimes as
Krsnas carrier.
Verse 48
ki brahma, ki siva, ki sanakadi kumara
vyasa, suka, naradadi, bhakta nama yanra
Lord Brahma, Lord Siva, the four Kumaras, Vyasadeva, Sukadeva Gosvami, and
Narada are all pure devotees, eternal servants of the Lord.
Verse 49
sabara pujita sri-ananta-mahasaya
sahasra-vadana prabhubhakti-rasa-maya
Lord Sri Ananta is worshiped by all the uncontaminated devotees mentioned
above. He has thousands of hoods and is the reservoir of all devotional service.
Verse 50
adideva, maha-yogim isvara, vaisnava
mahimara anta iha na janaye saba
Lord Ananta is the first incarnation of the Lord and the master of all mystic power.
At the same time, He is a servant of God, a Vaisnava. Since there is no end to His
glories, no one can understand Him fully.
Verse 51
sevana sunila, ebe suna thakurala
atma-tantre yena-mate vaisena patala
I have already spoken to you of Ananta-devas influential service to the Lord. Now
hear how the self-sufficient Ananta exists in the lower planetary systems of Patala.

Verse 52
sri-narada-gosani tumburu kari sange
se yasa gayena brahma-sthane sloka-vandhe
Narada Rsi has all knowledge. He knows everything, which means that he is a
Vaisnava. Vaisnavas have knowledge of guru-tattva and they have guru-bhakti. By
going to the Vaisnavas, you can learn about guru-bhakti and of the special qualities
of Guru. They teach how one can make a relationship with Guru and then Gurudeva
teaches krsna-bhakti.
Garuda is a sevaka, bhakta, and Vaisnava. Narada is as well. Narada, Vyasa,
Brahma, Siva, Sanaka-adi, Suka, etc. all have knowledge. They know who is Ananta,
Sesayi Bhagavan, Maha-sankarsana, Sankarsan-rama, Baladeva Prabhu, Nityananda
Prabhu, and therefore they know everything. Adi-deva Siva is a Vaisnava. They are
continuously serving without any break. If someone has a relationship with a pure
soul, they will see how many people are attracted to and near that elevated
personality.
Narada Rsi is singing Gods holy name and playing on his vina; not for just one day
or one minute, but continuously. Whether Narada Rsi is with Brahma, with Siva, or
anywhere elsehe is performing his duty. What is his duty? Wherever there are
conditioned souls, he is singing this nama and distributing it. This nama has sakti, or
power. He is distributing this harinama to all jivas and giving them guru-bhakti and
knowledge about Guru, bhaktas, and Vaisnavas. Once they have this, the jivas can
understand everything. The jiva cannot attain anything if this harinama is not being
distributed.
Verse 53
utpatti-sthiti-laya-hetavo sya kalpah
sattvadyah prakriti-guna yad-iksayasan
yad-rupam dhruvam akrtam yad ekam atman
nanadhat katham u ha veda tasya vartma
This world creation is now operating and after some time it will be destroyed. These
three thingscreation, maintenance, and destructionare always occurring.
Someone takes birth, and after being alive for some time, he dies. Why? Because in
this world, there are the three gunas: sattva, raja, and tama. These three gunas are
responsible for any changes that occur for the jivas, just like how the jivas karma
makes him pass through many species of life. When people are born into a certain
species, they think they have taken birth somewhere, and when they have to leave
that place, they think they die. But this is their own speculation. The jiva, or soul,
never goes through the cycle of birth and death, it is not possible.
Why do they have this idea? They think that by leaving one situation they are now
orphans. People may have left their house and all possessions in America, but now
they are staying in a room with a garden in India, thinking that it is theirs. And if
they go to jail, they will also make it their own place. My house, my bed, my
place.

Jivas who are sattvik do not have too much attachment; those who are rajasi have
too much attachment; and tamasi people are like dogs, who think that an area is
theirs alone and you cannot cross without their permission. You have to touch my
feet and lick me, and pray to me humbly and then I will let you cross. This is my
road. Tamasi people have this nature. Sattvik people know themselves to be
refugees. Today I may have one body, the next day another. Today I may have one
plate of food, the next day no plate. Today there may be friends, tomorrow I will
have no friends. They have this idea.
Anyone who follows Ananta-deva will realize atma-sattva, suddha-sattva, and atmatattva. They will have no suffering, no pain or tension, and no worry or misery. They
will not be sad or mad, crazy or lazy, or busy and dizzy. All frustrations will be
removed and everything will be tranquil. Ananta-deva gives this pure nirgunatattva, this sattvik mood.
Verse 54
murtim nah puru-krpaya babhara sattvam
samsuddham sad-asad idam vibhati tatra
yal-lilam mrga-patir adade navadyam
adatum svajana-manamsy udara-viryah
God is merciful. He is all-in-all. At first He makes pure bhaktas. He does this by
awarding the bhaktas with a body comprised of suddha-sattva, and lots of power.
How is He controlling all the bhaktas? He makes them clean and pure and ensures
that they will not go the wrong way. Only Caitanya Mahaprabhu, along with
Nityananda Prabhu and the panca-tattva, give the jivas this suddha-sattva-svarupa
body and seva. Without Sankarsana, nobody has the power to attract. Gurudeva has
sankarsan-sakti, so many jivas are attracted and come nearby him. And after they
get this suddha-sattva, the jiva will not run the wrong way. But anybody who does
not get this suddha-sattva will run after jaddha-sattva and become entangled in it.
This Sankarsan is very powerful and He provides many programs for the bhaktas.
Verse 55
yan-nama srutam anukirtayed akasmad
arto va yadi patitah pralambhanad va
hanty amhah sapadi nrnam asesam anyam
kam sesad bhagavata asrayen mumuksuh
People question why someone would go to a Guru and hear hari-katha from him.
They think, Why are they going near the sadhus or Guru? If we perform sadhana,
we will become clean and pure, and then the sadhus will give us their mercy and
blessings. But this is not possible. Now our sadhana is to hear hari-katha from the
sadhus and to remember Gods glories. By doing this the sadhus hearts will melt
and we will be the recipients of the flow of their hari-katha. Their sakti will come and
envelop us. This power makes one pure and able to chant Ananta-devas holy name,
meaning Baladevas holy name, and take Their shelter. Then Gurudeva, Sankarasanrama, purifies one and provides a good path, and gives shelter and support for
accepting beneficial practices along the way.
Verse 56

murdhany arpitam anuvat sahasra-murdhno

bhu-golam sagiri-sarit-samudra-sattvam
anantyad animita-vikramasya bhumnah
ko viryany adhi ganayet sahasra-jihvah
God is infinite. It is not possible to measure Him. Ananta-deva carries on His head all
the hills, rivers, oceans, and animals, but for Him it is all like one grain of sand. He
has thousands of tongues that are always explaining Gods glories everywhere. He
is not ordinary. If we do not hear the glories of Ananta-deva or Guru-pada-padma,
how can we understand these things of the universe? He is protecting and helping
everybody. He is maintaining and purifying everything through His power. If we go
to hear hari-katha from Ananta-deva or from a bona fide Guru, this is our good luck
and good fortune, for that maha-bhagavata Vaisnava is distributing bhakti.
Attending this program is very sweet and helpful for us.
Verse 57
evam-prabhavo bhagavan anato
duranta-viryoru-gunanubhavah
mule rasayah sthita atma-tantro
yo lilaya ksmam sthitaye bibharti
There is no end to the great and glorious qualities of that powerful Lord Anantadeva. Indeed, His prowess is unlimited. Although he is self-sufficient, He Himself is
the support of everything. He resides beneath the lower planetary systems and
easily sustains the entire universe.
Verse 58
srsti, sthiti, pralaya, sattvadi yata guna
yanra drsti-pate haya, yaya punah punah
Simply due to the glance of Lord Ananta, the three material modes of nature
interact to produce creation, maintenance, and annihilation. These modes of nature
appear again and again.
Verse 59
advitiya-rupa, satya anandi mahattva
tathapi ananta haya, ke bhuje se tattva?
The Lord is glorified as one without a second and as the supreme truth who has no
beginning. Therefore He is called Ananta-deva [unlimited]. Who can understand His
ways?
Verse 60
suddha-sattva-murti prabhu darena karunaya
ye-vigrahane sabara prakasa sulilaya
His form is completely spiritual, and He manifests it only by His mercy. All the
activities in this material world are conducted within His form.
Verse 61

yanhara taranga sikhi simha mahavali

nija-jana-mano ranje haya kutuhali
He is very powerful and always prepared to please His personal associates and
devotees with waves of pastimes.
The jivas collect everything according to their choice, whether it be srsti, stithi,
pralaya, rajasi, sattviki, tamasi, or suddha-sattva. But if one likes Gurudeva, God, or
Vaisnavas for even a moment, then all rajasi and tamasi moods will be thrown out.
For example, Srila Bhaktivedanta Svami Maharaja went to Western countries, where
practically 100% of the people are rajasi and tamasi. Sattvik people are very rare.
Why is that? Because no one is vegetarian. They also all have jealousy and are
sentimental. Westerners are too sensitive. They do not give proper respect to one
another and they are never humble. When they meet together, they become selfish.
Their brains are too sharp. They collect anything according to their own choice. If
anybody gives them an idea, they accept it. They like research, realization, and
feelings.
But what did Svami Maharaja do? Svami Maharaja at once cleansed them of all
these moods and flooded them with suddha-sattva. In English, this is called
brainwashing. After brainwashing, it is still possible for pollution to sabotage the
brain and make it dirty again. But Svami Maharaja made a good and very thin
protection and cover so that this pollution would not enter in the brain; he said to
first become a vegetarian.
This is good, but it is not enough. Goats and cows are also vegetarian, but are they
getting bhakti? Many animals and birds are vegetarian, but are they getting bhakti?
What is it that gives bhakti? Receiving nirguna bhagavat-prasada. Many people are
vegetarian. Most trees are vegetarian as well, but there are some African trees that
are not vegetarian. They are big trees, with good smell, color, and leaves. When a
bird comes, the tree strokes it and at first the bird is pleasantly surprised. But then
slowly its leaves come and hook, grab, massage, and tie the bird and suck its blood,
and the bird dies. Big elephants are also caught by these trees and eaten. They eat
everything. They are not vegetarian. But even the trees that are vegetarian are not
getting bhakti.
However, if you offer your vegetarian preparations to God, then with Gods
blessings it will be nirguna. Mango means it will make a man go, but if you offer that
mango to God, then it is prasada. It is no longer a man-go. Is it sattvik to simply eat
mangoes or bananas? Is this what it means to be vegetarian? Noonly when it is
offered to God. Milk is also not vegetarian, it is the white blood of cows. So what
happens if we take it without offering it? Mother milk is also blood. The process for
everything to be pure and clean is to offer it to God with tulasi and mantra, share it
with bhaktas and other souls, and then take whatever little is remaining for your
maintenance.
If I take anything in this life, without first offering it to God, I will be harshly
punished. Those souls that I have disturbed will not be happy and pleased with me.
Millions and millions of souls will be attracted to my body. They will come and catch,

bite, suck, drink, torture and insult methey will do all sorts of wrongs and create
much suffering.
Therefore it is saying that it is only by Gods desire that everything runs very easily
with the qualities of srsti, stithi, and praylaya. Guru and Vaisnavas go everywhere to
wash and purify everybody and to give them prema-bhakti. They guide them along
a favorable line and arrange nice programs for them. Otherwise jivas try to cross
maya again and again, but it is not possible. Anyone who has no knowledge of
ananta-tattva or suddha-sattva is like a jackal, cat, rat, or mouse. They have no
brain, all they do is hide and eat. They are sucking blood and always suffering from
painful poison as a result of their selfish life.
Verse 62-63
ye ananta-namera sravana-sankirtane
ye-te mate kene nahi bole ye-te jane
asesa-janmera bandha chinde sei-ksane
ataeva vaisnava na chadena kabhu tane
If we simply try to engage in the congregational chanting of the glories of Lord
Ananta-deva, the dirty things in our hearts, accumulated during many births, will
immediately be washed away. Therefore a Vaisnava never misses the opportunity to
glorify Ananta-deva.
Gaurahari is always hearing or speaking the glories of Anantadeva, Gurudeva,
Sankarsan-rama, Baladeva, and Nityananda Prabhu in the form of nama-sankirtana.
If someone anyhow comes in contact with Ananta-deva or Gurudeva, then millions
and millions of lives of karma, bindings, and attachments are broken and finished.
Therefore Vaisnavas, bhaktas, and Gurudeva never leave this Sankarsan-rama. He
carries all hills, water, the ocean, and Prthvi for the sake of purifying and helping the
jivas. He knows that if they are with Him, they will be pure and happy.
Verse 67
sahasra-vadane krsna-yasa nirantara
gaite achena adi-deva mahi-dhara
Verse 68
gayena anata, sri-yasera nahi anta
jaya-bhanga nahi karu, donhebalavanta
Although He has been chanting the glories of Krsna since time immemorial, He has
still not come to their end. Both are unconquerable.
Verse 69
adyapiha sesa-deva sahasra-sri-mukhe
gayena caitanya-yasa anta nahi dekhe
Ananta-deva, or Sesanaga, has many hoods and on these hoods He is holding many
brahmandas. He is never tired. He is always happily singing Krsnas glories and
sharing these glories to Siva Thakura. Siva Thakura is also continuously and very

powerfully singing and speaking these glories. Sesa-deva has an abundance of

strength. He constantly sings of Caitanya Mahaprabhus glories.
Verse 70
ki are, rama-gopale vada lagiyache
brahma, rudra, sura, siddha musivara anande dekiche
How wonderful is the competition between Balarama and Krsna! Brahma and Siva
along with all the demigods, siddhas, and munis watch in great happiness.
Verse 71
lag bali cali yaya sindhu taribare
yasera sindhu na deya kula, adhika adhika bade
Although Sri Ananta tries to reach the shore of the ocean of Krsnas qualities, He is
unable to do so, for the ocean is continuously expanding.
Rama-Gopala, Balarama and Krsna Gopala, are now fighting. It is saying that
Brahma is singing and speaking very nicely. Siva Thakura, the residents of Indraloka, siddhas, and munis are all qualified and nicely singing. One meeting here,
another there; there are many meetings where the singing and glorification of
different pastimes is going on. Krsna is hearing everything. The jivas go to such
meetings and become attached to this hari-katha, and without it, anything else has
no more taste and happiness. The collection of other things is useless. And is
speaking for one day enough? No, tomorrow there will be newer and newer
glorifications. Reading one thing today and then again the next day will reveal
helpful meanings, and the more you read, the more new meanings will come.
Verse 72
nantam vidamy aham ami munayo gra-jas te
maya-balasya purusasya kuto vara ye
gayam gunan dasa-sanatana adi-devah
seso dhunapi samavasyati nasya param
Neither I nor the sages born before you know fully the omnipotent Personality of
Godhead. So what can others, who are born after us, know about Him? Even the
first incarnation of the Lord, namely Sesa, has not been able to reach the limit of
such knowledge, although He is describing the qualities of the Lord with ten
hundred faces. (from Srimad Bhagvatam 2.7.41)
Hey Narada, Brahma is saying. Your elder brothers, the four Kumaras, have a lot
of strength, cit-bala, but they do not know of Maya-devis power. They are not aware
of how powerful maya-sakti is. They are related with Ananta-deva so they don not
know about Maya. Her power does not influence them. Maya-devi is very powerful
and strong, but the four Kumaras are not affected by her potency. They are naked.
They have no dress because they have no attachment to this body. They have no
need for any dress. We may try not to wear any clothes, but have we controlled our
mind, nature, and senses? If you are given an iron coat to wear, would you be
happy? Maya-devi never lets anyone relax. The four Kumaras, however, are above

Maya. Brahma tells Narada that maya-sakti is too powerful, but because the four
Kumaras are above Maya they are not restless and they are not suffering.
How to cross this Maya? It is not possible with ones own power, only through
Sankarsan-rama, Gurudeva, and Sesanaga. By hearing Gods glories and specialties
from them, this power will come and Maya-devis sakti will go running and one will
no longer have any taste or attachment for Maya. Otherwise, Maya-devis power will
not go. We can be near Guru and Vaisnavas a thousand million times, but if we are
being caught and defeated by Maya-devi simultaneously, none of their power will
come to us. Oh piglet, drink this nectar in the drain. How are we crossing this? The
four Kumaras and Sukadeva are not attached to the body, senses, and mind. They
are always thinking of Ananta-devas glories, so how can Maya-devi come to them?
Brahma asks Narada, How can one cross this Maya? Narada replies, I will tell
you.
Verse 74
brahmara sabhaya giya narada apane
ei guna gayena tumburu-vina sane
Sri Narada Muni visits the assembly of Lord Brahma and glorifies the qualities of
Lord Ananta accompanied by his vina.
Verse 75
brahmadivihvala, ei yasera sravane
iha gai naradapujita sarva-sthane
Headed by Lord Brahma, everyone is overwhelmed hearing the Lords glories.
Narada Muni is worshiped everywhere for chanting the Lords glories.
In Brahmas assembly, Narada Rsi sings Gods songs and glories with his vina. He
does not hear or sing about other things. When you speak about Maya for even a
little bit, Maya-devi will open the door and come and say, You invited me, so why
should I leave you? Then you will tell her, No, I will not speak about you anymore,
please go. She will reply, No, now I am not going. Therefore Narada Rsi only
sings, Narayana Narayana Hari Hari, only Gods name at all times. This is why he
has maha-sakti, because he is always singing these glories.
Verse 76
kahilan ei kichu ananta prabhava
hena-prabhu nityananda kara anuraga
I have thus described a portion of Lord Anantas glories. Please therefore, develop
attachment for Lord Nityananda.
Brahma became surprised hearing Gods glories. Narada is very powerful and is
respected and worshiped everywhere. Why? Because he has Ananta-deva prabhava,
the power of Ananta-deva. You should develop deep love and attachment for that
Nityananda Prabhu and think of Him.
Verse 77

samsarera para hai bhaktira sagare

ye dubibe, se bhajuka nitai-candere
Those who wish to cross the ocean of material existence and drown in the ocean of
devotional service should worship Lord Nityananda.
Verse 78
vaisnava-carane mora ei manaskama
bhaji yena janme-janme prabhu balarama
My only desire at the feet of the Vaisnavas is that birth after birth I may worship
the feet of Lord Balarama.
How can one cross this samsara and enter into the line of bhakti? If you follow and
worship Nityananda Prabhu, sing His songs, and remember and distribute His
glories, then it is possible. Vrndavan das Thakur is praying to all the Vaisnavas to
give him blessings so that he may worship his guru and his Prabhu, Nityanandarama, life after life.
Verse 79
dvija, vipra, brahmana yehena nama-bheda
ei-mata nityananda, ananta, baladeva
A person named dvija means twice-born. That same person is also called a
brahman or vipra. Similarly, Baladeva and Ananta are the same names for
Nityananda Prabhu.
Verse 80
antaryami nityananda balila kautuke
caitanya-carita kichu likhite pustake
Nityananda Prabhu gave me the order and inspiration to write these pastimes of
Caitanya Mahaprabhu into books.
Verse 81
caitanya-caritra sphure yanhara krpaya
yasera bhandara vaise sesera jihvaya
How can I write Caitanya-caritra and have it enter my heart? It is all in heart of
Sesa-deva Nityananda. By praying to Him, He will bestow mercy. Only then is it
possible.
Verse 82
ataeva yasomaya-vigraha ananta
gailum tahana kichu pada-padma-dvandva
One should always glorify Nityananda Prabhu. I am explaining a little of His glories,
and by His mercy Gauraharis glories may manifest in my heart.
Verse 83

caitanya-candera punya-sravana carita

bhakta-prasade se sphurejaniha niscita
Verse 84
veda-guhya caitanya-caritra keba jane?
tai likhi, yaha suniyachi bhakta-sthane
It is not possible to understand Caitanya Mahaprabhus glories without mercy from
the bhaktas. Mahaprabhus specialties are very secret and very hidden, but bhaktas
are always singing, glorifying, and distributing the glories of Gaura-Nitai.
Verse 85
caitanya-caritra adi-anta nahi dekhi
yena-mata dena sakti, tena-mata likhi
Caitanya Mahaprabhus pastimes have no start and no end. The more spiritual
power one has, the more he can collect.
Verse 86
kastera putali yena kuhake nacaya
ei-mata gauracandra more ye bolaya
Just how someone may play with a wooden doll or puppet, in the same way I am like
a wooden doll. I dont know anything of Gaurahari, but like a puppet, by any
inspiration I am writing and reserving.
Verse 87
sarva vaisnavera pa-ye kari namaskara
ithe aparadha kichu nahuka amara
He is offering pranama to all Vaisnavas. He is saying, Give me some blessings so
that I may write something. This is not my property.
Verse 88
mana diya suna, bhai, sri caitanya-katha
bhakta-sange ye ye lila kaila yatha-yatha
Seriously hear Caitanya Mahaprabhus glories. These glories are very helpful and
useful for the jivas, so you should listen to them with attention. By not hearing
seriously, you will not understand anything.
Verse 89
trividha caitanya-lilaanandera dhama
adi-khanda, madhya khanda, sesa khanda nama
The pastimes of Sri Caitanya are the abode of all happiness. These pastimes are
divided into Adi-khanda, Madhya-khanda, and Antya-khanda.
Verse 90-91

adi-khandepradanatah vidyara vilasa

madhya-khandecaitanyera kirtana prakasa
sesa-khandesannyasi-rupe nilacale sthiti
nityananda-sthane samarpiya gauda-ksitit
Mahaprabhus lilas are of three types. The first is about His schooling, the second is
about His sankirtana-lila, and third is about when He takes sannyasa.
of Cetanam, acetanam and the prapancam resulting from their union as well as .....
indriyagocrA:-panca- the five objects of the senses, sound, form, taste and ....
idamagra AsIt ekameva advitIyam (chAn.6-2-1), that Being, meaning Brahman, .....
According to advaita, Brahman alone is real and the world, including the jIva is.
panca bhuta prapancam mithyatvam ekameva advaitam

sadagopan.org - Ibiblio
f Cetanam, acetanam and the prapancam resulting from their union as well as .....
indriyagocrA:-panca- the five objects of the senses, sound, form, taste and ....
idamagra AsIt ekameva advitIyam (chAn.6-2-1), that Being, meaning Brahman, .....
According to advaita, Brahman alone is real and the world, including the jIva is.

Preceptors of Advaita - : kamakoti.org

Tradition regards Gaudapada as Sankara's paramaguru (preceptor's preceptor). .....

cites in support the evidence of passages from other scriptural texts as well.
Preceptors of Advaita
Design
6
GAUDAPADA
by
T. M.P.MAHADEVAN
M.A., Ph.D.
Design
1
Gaudapada, like most of the classical Indian thinkers, lives in our memories mainly
through his work. Tradition regards Gaudapada as Sankaras paramaguru
(preceptors preceptor). A verse which contains the succession list of the early
teachers of Advaita gives the names of those teachers in the following order:
Narayana, the lotus-born Brahma, Vasishtha, Sakti, his son Parasara, Vyasa, Suka,
the great Gaudapda, Govinda-yogindra, his disciple Sankaracharya, and then his
four pupils Padmapada, Hastamalaka, Trotaka and the Vartikakara (i.e. Suresvara)1.
From this list we learn that Gaudapada was the preceptor of Govinda who was
Sankaras guru. The first teacher is Narayana, the Lord himself, and the line of

succession, which is from father to son upto Suka, consists more or less of mythical
persons.
1narayanam padma-bhuvam vasishtham saktim cha
tat putra parasaram cha
vyasam sukam gaudapadam mahantam
govinda-yogindram athasya-sishyam,
sri-sankaracharyam athasya padmapadam, cha
hastamalakam cha sishyam,
tam trotakam vartikakaram anyan asmad-gurun santatamanatosmi
The first teacher of whose historicity we may be sure is Gaudapada, and from him
onwards we have the rule of sanyasins succeeding to the Advaita pontificate. With
him commences, according to tradition, what may be called the manavasampradaya in the present age of Kali; he was the first human preceptor to receive
the wisdom of the One and impart it to his pupils. Anandagiri in his gloss (tika) on
the Mandukya-karika-bhashya, says that the teacher Gaudapada in those days
spent his time in Badrikasrama, the holy residence of Nara-Narayana, in deep
meditation on the Lord, and that the Lord, Narayana, greatly pleased, revealed to
him the Upanishadic wisdom. Balakrishnananda Sarasvati (17th Century A.D.)
writes in his Sarirakamimamsabhashya-vartika that there was in the country of
Kurukshetra a river called Hiraravati, on whose banks there were some Gauda
people (people of Gaudadesa, the modern North Bengal); that the pre-eminent of
them, Gaudapada, was absorbed in deep meditation beginning from the Dvapara
age; and so, as his proper name is not known to the moderns, he is celebrated by
the class-name of the Gaudas.
Gaudapada, after he was blessed with the intuitive wisdom of the
Absolute, must have taught those who gathered round him the truth he had
discovered and embodied it in a work which came to be called the Agamasastra or
Gaudapada-karika. It is an exposition of a short but important Upanishad called the
Mandukya, which is counted as one of the principal Upanishads by all the schools of
Vedanta. Besides the Mandukyakarika, other works are also attributed to
Gaudapada. They are: a vritti on the Uttaragita, a bhashya on the Savkhyakarika, a
commentary on the Nrisimhottaratapinyupanishad, a bhashya on Durgasaptasati
and two independent Tantric treatises, viz., Subhagodaya and Sri vidyaratnasutra.
Since nothing definite can be said regarding the authorship of these other works, we
shall here attempt a study of the philosophy of Gaudapada as it is set forth in the
Mandukyakarika.
Design
2
Gaudapadas Karika, which is more than a verse commentary on the Mandukya
Upanishad, contains the quintessence of the teaching of Vedanta2. The work
consists of 215 couplets arranged in four chapters. Following the Upanishad, the
first chapter, Agama-prakarana, analyses the three avasthas, waking, dream and
deep sleep, and finds that the Self which is referred to as the Turiya underlies and
transcends these changing states. The second chapter, Vaitathya-prakarana, seeks
to establish the illusoriness of the world of plurality, on the analogy of dreams and
through a criticism of creationistic hypotheses. The third chapter, Advaitaprakarana, sets forth the arguments for the truth of the non-dualism, gives citations

from scripture in support thereof, and discusses the path to the realisation of nonduality, called Asparsa-yoga. The last chapter, Alatasanti-prakarana, repeats some
of the arguments of the earlier chapters, shows the unintelligibility of the concept of
causality through dialectic, explains the illusoriness of the phenomenal world,
comparing it to the non-real designs produced by a fire-brand (alata) and pressing
into service modes of Bauddha reasoning, and establishes the supreme truth of nonduality which is unoriginated, eternal, self-luminous bliss.
2 The commentator on the Karika says: vedantartha-sara-sangrahabhutam
Design
3
The central theme of Gaudapadas philosophy is that nothing is ever born (ajati),
not because nothing is the ultimate truth as in Sunya-vada, but because the Self is
the only reality. No jiva is born; there is no cause for such birth; this is the supreme
truth, nothing whatever is born3. From the standpoint of the Absolute there is no
duality, there is nothing finite or non-eternal. The Absolute alone is; all else is
appearance, illusory and non-real. They are deluded who take the pluralistic
universe to be real. Empirical distinctions of knower and object known, mind and
matter, are the result of Mava. One cannot explain how they arise. But on enquiry
they will be found to be void of reality. If one sees them, it is like seeing the footprints of birds in the sky4. The Self is unborn; there is nothing else to be born.
Duality is mere illusion; non-duality is the supreme truth.5
3 III, 48; IV, 71.
na kascij-jayate jivah sambhavo sya na vidyate,
etat-tad-uttamam satyam yatra kincin-na jayate.
4 IV, 28
5 I, 17, maya-matram idam dvaitam advaitam paramarthatah.
Design
4
Gaudapada expounds his philosophy of non-origination or non-birth in several ways
and through many an argument. The reality of the non-dual self he first establishes
through an enquiry into the purport of the Mandukya Upanishad. Though extremely
brief, the Mandukya contains the essentials of Vedanta. For the liberation of those
who desire release, says the Muktikopanishad, the Mandukya alone is enough6. The
Mandukya Upanishad begins with the equation Om=all=Brahman=self and
proceeds to describe the three states of the self, waking, dream and sleep, as well
as the fourth (Turiya) which is not a state alongside the others but the transcendent
nature of the selfthe non dual peace, the self per se. Gaudapada makes this
declaration of the Upanishad the basis of his metaphysical quest and seeks to show
through reasoning that non-origination is the final truth.
Visva, Taijasa, and Prajna are the names by which the self is known
in the three states, waking, dream, and sleep. Visva is conscious of the external
world, enjoys what is gross and is satisfied therewith. Taijasa is conscious of what is

within7, enjoys what is subtle and finds satisfaction there. Prajna is a

consciousness-mass without the distinctions of seer and seen; its enjoyment and
satisfaction is bliss. The three, Visva, Taijasa, and Prajna are not distinct selves. It
is one and the same self that appears as three8. To show that all the three aspects
are present in waking, Gaudapada assigns localities to them. Visva has its seat in
the right eye; Taijasa in the mind; and Prajna in the ether of the heart9. And the
three should also be thought of as identical with the three cosmic forms of the self,
Virat, Hiranyagarbha, and Avyakrta or Isvara. It is to indicate this identity that the
Mandukya Upanishad describes the Prajna-self as the lord of all, the knower of all,
the controller of all, the source of all, the origin and end of beings10. The
recognition of Visva, Taijasa, and Prajna in the waking state, and the identification of
the three individual forms of the self with the three cosmic forms, are for the
purpose of realising non-duality. The non-dual reality is the Turiya. It has no
distinguishing name; hence it is called the fourth (turiya)11. It is the self-luminous
self, changeless, non-dual, one without a second. The states that change and pass,
with their words and enjoyments, are illusory, products of Maya. Maya is two-fold in
its functioning; it veils the one and projects the many. Non-apprehension of the real
(tattva-pratibodha) and the apprehension of it otherwise (anyatha-grahana). For
the Prajna in the state of sleep there is non-apprehension alone, and not
misapprehension. It knows neither the self in its real nature nor the not-self. The
Turiya is free from both the aspects of Maya. It is consciousness per se, without
even a trace of ignorance. It is unfailing light, omniscient sight12. The
metaphysical implication of sleep is that it hides the true, and of dream that is
projects the untrue. Visva and Taijasa are associated with dream and sleep; Prajna
is associated with dreamless sleep; for the Turiya there is neither dream nor sleep.
Real awakening comes with the realisation of the Turiya, with the transcendence of
Maya in its double role of veiling the real and sowing up the non-real. When the jiva
wakes from the beginningless sleep of illusion, it knows its true nature as unborn, as
that in which there is neither sleep nor dream nor duality13.
In the Alatasanti-prakarana14, Gaudapada teaches the same theory
of the three avasthas, employing Bauddha terminology. Waking, dream and sleep
are there called laukika, suddha-laukika, and lokottara respectively. The difference
between the first two is that while in the former there are external objects (savastu),
in the latter there is none (avastu); but in both there is consciousness of duality
(sopalambha). In the lokottara there is neither the external world of things nor the
internal world of ideas, and consequently there is no apprehension of duality;
ignorance, however, persists. It is only he who knows these three as non-real states
that knows the truth. For him there is no duality, nor ignorance, the seed of duality.
When the real is known, there is not the world of duality15.
6 Muktika, I, 26.
7 The distinctions of within and without, it must be remembered, are from the
standpoint of waking experience; for it is in this state that inquiry is possible.
8 I,i. eka eva tridha smrtah.
9 I, 2. See commentary.
10 Mandukya, 6.

11 Here again it must be noted that the real is called the fourth from the empirical
standpoint; in truth, the category of number is inapplicable to it.
12 I, 12. Turiyah sarvadrk sada.
13 I, 1316
14 IV, 87, 88.
15 I, 18. jnate dvaitam na vidyate
Design
5
As a result of the inquiry into the avasthas it must be evident that the pluralistic
world is illusory, as the self alone is real. That the world which we take to be real in
waking is illusory, Gaudapada seeks to establish in the Vaitathya-prakarana on the
analogy of the dream0world. Judged by the standards of waking, it will be readily
seen that the world of dreams is unreal. A person may dream of elephants and
chariots; but on waking he realises that all of them must have been illusory because
they appeared within him, within the small space of his body16. The dreamcontents do not form part of the external world which we take to be real in waking;
and so they are illusory. Nor do they conform to the laws of space and time which
govern the waking world. In a trice of waking time one may travel far and wide in
dream. There is no real going to the place of dream, for on waking one does not
find oneself there. Nor are the objects experienced in dream real, for when the
dream-spell is broken one does not see them17. Because chariot, etc., seen in
dream are non-existent, they are illusory18.
The world of waking is in many respects similar to that of dream.
The objects of waking are perceived as the dream-objects are; and they are
evanescent as well, like the contents of dream. What is non-existent in the
beginning and at the end, is so even in the present19. That is real which is not
conditioned by time. Per contra that which is conditioned by time cannot be real.
Just as the dream-objects are experienced in dream alone neither before nor after,
even so the objects of waking are experienced in the state of waking alone. A
difference between the two states cannot be made out on the ground that, while the
objects experienced in waking are practically efficient, those seen in dream are not;
for even the objects of waking experience are fruitful in practice only in that state
and not in dream; and the dream-objects are useful in their own way in the state of
dream.
16 II, i; IV, 33.
17 II, 2.
18 II, 3; see Brhadaranyaka, IV, iii, 10.
19 II, 6; IV, 31.
adavante ca yan-nasti vartamane pi tat tatha
It is true that the dream-water cannot quench actual thirst. But it is equally true
that the so-called actual water cannot quench the dream-thirst either20. It may be

argued that the contents of dream are unreal because, unlike the objects of waking,
they are strange and abnormal. But when and to whom do they appear abnormal?
To him who has returned to waking after a dream. In the dream state itself the
contents are not realised to be strange. With perfect equanimity the dreamer may
watch even the dismemberment of his own head. We are told that the denizens of
heaven have their own peculiarities which to us are all abnormal. Similarly, from
the side of waking the dream-contents may seem abnormal; but in themselves they
are quite normal21. That there is an essential similarity between the contents of
dream and the objects of waking may be shown by a closer scrutiny of the two
states. In the state of dream, the dreamer imagines certain ideas within himself
and sees certain things outside; and he believes that, while the former are unreal,
the latter are real. But as soon as he wakes from the dream, he realises the
unreality of even the things which he saw in dream as if outside. Similarly in
waking, we have our fancies which we know to be unreal, and we experience facts
which we take to be real. But when the delusion of duality is dispelled, the so-called
facts of the external world will turn out to be illusory appearance22. Therefore it is
that the wise characterize waking as a dream23. Just as the dream-soul arises and
perishes, the souls of waking come into being and pass away24. It is the self that
posits the dream-contents as well as the external world. The things created in the
mind within and those posited in the world withoutboth these are the illusory
imaginations of the Atman. The difference between the two sets of things is that
while the dream-contents last only till the mind of the dreamer imagines them
(cittakalah) and are peculiar thereto, the objects of the external world are perceived
by other subjects25 as well (dvayakalah), and are cognised through the senseorgans. Illusoriness (vaitathya), however, is common to both26. In dream as well
as in waking it is the mind that moves impelled by Maya, and creates the
appearance of plurality. As identical with the self the mind is non-dual; but owing to
nescience duality is figured and there is the consequent samsara27.
20 II, 7; IV, 32.
21 II, 8. See J. A. C. Murray, B.D.: An Introduction to a Christian Psycho-Therapy
(T. &T. Clark), p. 252; Waking consciousness is, after all a limited affair, narrowed by
the immediacies of the five senses, and concentrated at every moment on but one
moving point. In dreams, we seem to enter a wider kingdom, freed from the fears
and restraints of normal life, a field where earthly forces and laws are set at naught,
and where the whole immensity of the sub-conscious can have freer speech, and
like a rising tide, submerge the petty logics of our daily life.
22 II, 9 & 10, IV, 6366.
23 II, 5. svapna-jagarite sthane hy ekam ahur manishinah. An ancient Chinese
sage said: Last night I dreamt that I was a butterfly and now I do not know whether
I am a man dreaming that he is a butterfly or a butterfly dreaming that he is a
man.
24 IV,68.
25 Who are also positions of the supreme Self.
26 II 1115.
27 III, 29, 30; IV, 61, 62.
Illustrations for illusoriness are to be found even in the state of waking. Just as in
the dark a rope which is not determinately known is imagined to be a snake or a
streak of water,the self is imagined to be the world through nescience. And as

when the rope is known as rope the posited snake, etc., vanish, so also when the
self is known as non-dual, that pluralistic world disappears28. Like the Palace city of
Fairy Morgana (gandharva-nagara), the universe is seen but is not real29. The
things of the world are believed to exist because they are perceived (upalambhat)
and because they answer to certain practical needs (samacharat). But these two
reasons cannot make them real; for even the objects like the elephant conjured up
by the necromancer are observed and are practically efficient but are not real30.
One more illustration Gaudapada gives in the fourth chapter, viz. the alata or firebrand. When a fire-brand is moved, it appears to be straight, or crooked, and so on;
and when the movement stops, the appearances vanish. They do not really come
from the fire-brand in motion, nor do they enter into it when it comes to rest. The
patterns of fire that appear with the movement of the fire-brand are illusory; they
have no substance whatsoever. Similarly, consciousness appears in manifold forms
due to Maya. These do not come out of it, in reality, nor do they return to it; for
they are naught31. There is no dissolution, no origination; no one in bondage, no
one who desires release, no one who is released this is the supreme truth32.
28
29
30
31
32

II, 17, 18.

II, 31.
IV, 44.
IV, 4752.
II, 32.
na nirodha na chotpattir na baddho na ca sadhakah
na mumuksur na vai mukta ity esha paramarthata.

Design
6
The establishment of the non-reality of the world by Gaudapada does not mean that
the great teacher subscribes to the view of ontological unreality (sunyavada). We
have already seen how in the Agama-prakarana he expounds the meaning of the
Mandukya Upanishad and shows through an inquiry into the nature of the three
avasthas that the Self (turiya) is the sole reality. That this is so Gaudapada argues
through reasoning in the Advaita-prakarana, and cites in support the evidence of
passages from other scriptural texts as well.
The self is unlimited like ether, undivided and the same throughtout.
The jivas are apparent distinctions therein, as pots, etc., produce in ether divisions
as it were. We speak of a plurality of souls and a multiplicity of material objects,
even as we speak of pot-ether, pitcher-ether, and so on. The one Atman appears as
the many jivas, as the same ether seems divided, enclosed in the different things.
When the things are destroyed, the distinctions in ether too vanish; so also when
the jivas are realised to be manifestations due to Maya, the self alone remains.
There is no contingence of the defects of one jiva being occasioned in the other
jivas or the defects of the jivas defiling the purity of the self. It must be noted that
Gaudapadas theory is not eka-jiva-vada but eka-tma-vada. Since the empirical
plurality of jivas is recognized, there is not the contingence of the defects of one jiva
being occasioned in the others or the experiences of one being confused with those
of the rest. And by the defilments of the jivas the self is not affected, as dust,
smoke, etc., present in the pots or pitchers do not make ether foul. Forms,
functions, and names differ from object to object; but there is no difference in ether.

Similarly, the jivas vary in their physical make-up, mental and moral endowment, in
station and status; but the self is unvarying, formless, functionless, and nameless.
Just as children attribute wrongly dirt, etc., to the sky, the ignorant superpose on
the unsullied self defects like birth and death, pleasure and pain. But these are
changes that are not real and do not touch the self. The birth of the jivas and their
death, their coming and going, do not alter the Atman. They are not products of the
self, nor are they parts thereof. The non-dual reality is partless; it neither causes
anything, nor is caused by anything33.
Scripture in many places proclaims the non-duality of the self and
deprecates the delusion of duality. Through an inquiry into the five sheaths (kosas)
that cover the soul, the Taittiriya Upanishad34 exhibits the self as the non-dual bliss,
not to be confused with the mutable coverings. In the Honey section of the
Brihadaranyaka35 the principle behind the cosmic elements is identified with the
self which is the substrate of the body and its functions. What is without is within as
well. The same honey pervades all beings. It is immortal, the self, Brahman, the
all. As the spokes are fixed in the nave of a wheel, so are all beings centred in the
self. Thus scripture declares the non-difference of the jiva from the self and
denounces plurality. Difference is illusory; the one appears as many through Maya.
There is no plurality here.36 Indra through mayas assumes diverse forms.37
Though unborn he appears variously born".38 The Isavasya39 denies birth of the
self and the Brihadaranyaka asks, Who indeed could produce him? 40 Of what is
real birth is incomprehensible; and what is unreal cannot even be born.41
It is true that in some contexts scripture speaks of creation. Through the
illustrations of clay, metal, sparks, etc., creation of the many from the one is
described. But this is only to enable those who are dull-witted and middlings to
understand the fundamental unity of reality. Sruti declares creation in some places,
and non-creation in others. The two sets of passages cannot have equal validity.
That teaching should be taken as the purport of scripture which is ascertained
through inquiry (nischitam) and is reasonable (yukti-yuktam). If birth is predicated
of the real, it must be in the sense of an illusion, and not in the primary sense. The
self is unborn, sleepless and dreamless, nameless and formless, self-luminous and
all-knowing.42
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42

III, 39.
Second valli.
II, v.
Brh. Up., IV, iv, 19; Katha Up. IV, 11.
Rig Veda, VI, 47, 18; Brh. Up., II, v, 19.
Tait, Ar. III, 13, 1.
Isa, 12.
III, 9, 28.
GK, III, 1113, 2426.
III, 1416, 23, 36.

Design
7
That the self is unborn and that nothing else there is which is born, Gaudapada
seeks to demonstrate through a dialectical criticism of the causal category in the

fourth chapter. Causation, like all other relations, falls within the realm of
nescience, because on analysis it turns out to be unintelligible. There are two rival
views on causation which are totally opposed to each other. The Sankhya theory is
that the effect is pre-existent in the cause and is not produced de novo. The NyayaVaiseshika view is that the effect is non-existent, there prior to its production. On
either of these hypotheses there will not result causation. If the effect is already
existent, there is no need for any causal operation; it is meaningless to say that
what is existent is born. If the effect is non-existent, it can never be produced; what
is non-existent like the barren womans son is not at any time seen to take birth43.
Even without their knowing the two rival schools, satkarya-vada and asatkaryavada, are thus seen to support the view of non-creation or non-origination44.
Of what is really unborn the disputants predicate birth. But this is a
flagrant violation of the law of contradiction. How can that which is unborn and
therefore immortal become mortal? The immortal cannot become mortal, nor the
mortal immortal; for it is impossible for a thing to change its nature. If what is by
nature immortal were to become mortal, then it would cease to be changeless, and
attain artificiality, illusoriness. But this is impossible for what is immortal by nature.
The Sankhya thinks that the unborn and beginningless Prakriti evolves itself into the
manifold evolutes that constitute the universe. But this view cannot be justified by
any canon of logic. If Prakriti becomes the world, it cannot be unborn (aja) and
eternal (nitya). Even to admit that there is a first cause is to confess the failure of
causation as a principle of explanation. To add to the confusion the Sankhya says
that the effect is non-different from the cause. Now, is the effect born or unborn? If
it is born, it cannot be non-different from the cause which is unborn. If it is unborn,
then it cannot be called effect, as the effect is that which is produced. And if the
effect is produced and is non-different from the cause, the cause cannot be
permanent or unchanging. There is no illustration that could be instanced to prove
the production of the effect from the unborn cause. If to avoid this difficulty it be
said that the cause too is born, then there should be a cause for that cause, a still
further cause for that other cause, and so on ad infinitum45.
43 IV: 4, bhutam na jayate kinchid abhutam naiva jayate.
44 IV, 35.
45 IV, 68, 1113.
The Mimamsakas maintain that the cause and the effect are reciprocally dependent.
Merit and demerit are responsible for producing the body; and the body occasions
merit and demerit. The chain of causes and effects is without beginning, each
alternating with the other, like the seed and the sprout. Here again we meet with
insuperable difficulties. If the antecedent of a cause is its effect and the antecedent
of an effect is its cause, then both cause and effect are begun. How can they be
beginningless? Moreover, there is a paradox in the very thesis that is proposed. To
say that the antecedent of the cause is its effect is like saying that the son begets
his father46. There must be some definite sequence recognised as between cause
and effect. It is no use believing that the two are reciprocally dependent. If the
cause and the effect can be indifferently antecedent or consequent, there would be
no distinction whatever between them, and to call one a cause and the other an
effect would be entirely arbitrary and void of meaning. Now, there are three
possible ways of stating the sequence. It may be said that first there is the cause
and subsequently the effect takes place (purva-krama); or it may be held that the

effect is followed by the cause (apara-krama); or it may be thought that the cause
and the effect are simultaneous (saha-krama). None of these alternatives is
intelligible. That the cause cannot produce the effect we have shown already. If the
cause is unborn, it cannot change and therefore cannot produce; if it is born there is
infinite regress. The reverse order too is impossible; for, as we said, it is just like
making the son antecedent to the father. The effect by definition is that which is
produced by the cause; and if the cause is not there before the effect, how can the
effect be produced? And from the unproduced effect how can the cause come into
being? The third alternative also is untenable. If what are simultaneous be causally
related, there must be such a relation between the two horns of an animal. But as a
matter of experience it is well known that the two horns are not so related. This,
then, is the crux of the problem. Without settling the sequence, the distinction of
cause and effect would be unintelligible. And it is impossible to settle the sequence.
In despair, appeal might be made to the illustration of seed and sprout. But a little
thought would reveal that theseseed and sproutcannot serve as illustration. It is
only when the causal sequence has been settled that the relation between seed and
sprout would become intelligible. Since the latter is a particular falling under the
wider relation of cause and effect, it cannot be used as an illustration. It is, in short,
sadhya-sama, still to be proved47.
A thing is not produced either from itself or from another. A pot is
not produced from the self-same pot, nor from another pot. It may be urged that
pot is produced from clay. But how is pot related to clay. Is it non-different,
different, or both different and non-different from it? If pot is non-different from
clay, it cannot be produced, since clay is already existent. If it is different, there is
no reason why it should not be produced from another pot or a piece of cloth which
are also different. And it cannot be both different and non-different, because of
contradiction. Similarly, neither the existent nor the non-existent nor what is
existent and non-existent is produced. The non-existent cannot be produced even
because of its non-existence. The third alternative involves us in contradiction48.
It is true that empirical distinctions are observed between knower
and known, pain and the source of pain, etc. From the standpoint of reasoning
based on relative experience (yukti-darsanat), there is difference as also causal
relation governing the differents. But from the standpoint of the Absolute (bhutadarsanat) there is no difference and the concept of cause is unintelligible49.
46
47
48
49

IV,
IV,
IV,
IV,

15, putraj janma pitur yatha.

1418, 20.
22.
24, 25.

Design
8
Gaudapada admits creation in the sphere of the empirical. But creation, according
to him, is neither de novo nor transformation of an original stuff. It is of the nature
of Maya, illusory manifestation or transfiguration. The world is not related to the
self either as a piece of cloth to the threads or as curds to milk. In fact, no relation
is intelligible. The one reality somehow appears as the pluralistic universe through
its own Maya (atma-maya). The complexes that constitute the world are
projections, like the dream-contents, effected by the illusion of the Atman50.

Things are said to be born only from the standpoint of empirical truth (samvritisatya); they have therefor no permanence. Just as an illusive sprout shoots from an
illusive seed, all things arise from Maya51.
There are several theories of creation. Some philosophers favour materialistic
origins for the world. For example, there are thinkers who attribute the origination
of the universe to Time. Theists, however, regard God as the first cause of things.
Some of them ascribe to Him efficient causality alone, others both efficient and
material causality. The former say that creation is the mere volition of the Lord,
while the latter hold that it is His expansion. Some maintain that God creates for
the sake of His enjoyment. Others urge that creation of His sport. But how can
desire be in God who is apta-kama and has no end to achieve? In our ignorance we
must content ourselves with saying that creation is His nature or maya. Like dream
and magic it is illusory52. The non-dual is imagined to be the manifold world. The
latter is neither different from the self nor identical therewith. Hence it is declared
to be indeterminable53.
The philosophers of the different schools characterise the real in
different ways and give their own schemes of categories. Each emphasises one
particular aspect of reality and holds on to it as if it were the whole. The self has
been variously conceived as life, elements, constituents of Primal Nature, things,
worlds, Vedas, sacrifice, what is subtle, what is gross, what has form, what has no
form, and so on. According to the Sankhyas, there are twenty five tattvas or
principles. To these, the followers of the Yoga system add one more, viz., God. In
the view of the Pasupatas there are twenty-one categories. There are others who
make the categories endless in number. All these theories are but the imaginations
of their respective advocates54. There is only one self which appears as many
through self-delusion as it were55. First the jivas are imagined and then the various
things, external and internal. The world of souls and things is an appearance
superposed on the self, as the snake-form is imposed on the rope-substance in the
dark56.
The teaching of creation has no final purport. As has been shown
already, what is real cannot be really born. If it is said to be born, it must be in the
sense of an illusory appearance57. Ordinarily it is stated that samsara which has no
beginning comes to an end when release is attained. But this is figurative
language. If samsara had no beginning, it could not have an end. If release is
attained, it is liable to be lost again58. If the universe really existed, it would be
destroyed. As we have observed, duality is maya-matra mere illusion. Removal of
samsara and attainment of moksha are figurative. These have to be taught in
language which needs must relate to duality. When the real is known, there is no
duality whatever59.
50 III, 10. sanghatah svapnavat sarve atma-maya-visarjitah.
51 IV, 5759
52 I, 79
53 II, 33, 34.
54 II, 2029. For details see the Agamasastra of Gaudapada,edited by
Vidhushekhara Bhattacharya, pp. 3037
55 II, 19. mayaisha tasya devasya yayayam mohitah svayam.
56 II, 16, 17.

57 III, 27. sato hi mayaya janma yujyate na tu tattvatah

58 IV, 30.
59 I, 18.
Design
9
True to its character as an upadesa-sastra, the Gaudapada-karika contains practical
teaching at the end of each chapter. The purpose of a sastra is to enable the
aspirant to cross the sea of samsara and reach the shore of blessedness which is
the highest human goal (parama-purushartha). The vicious circle of empirical life
dependent on the law of cause and effect is evil (anartha). This, however, as has
been shown above, is a product of avidya or Maya. As long as there is an obstinate
faith in causality which is illusory (avidyaka), the chain of birth and death will not
cease. When that false belief is destroyed through knowledge, samsara is
removed60. The cause of birth and death is ignorance as regards the ultimate truth
which is causeless. When this is realised, there is no further cause for
metempsychosis, and we attain release which is freedom from sorrow, desire, and
fear. Attachment to the non-real is responsible for the illusory wanderings in the
wilderness of samsara. When one becomes non-attached through knowledge, one
turns back from the false pursuit of the non-real, and reaches the non-dual reality
which is homogeneous and unborn61.
The real bliss is veiled and the non-real sorrow is projected on
account of the perfection of illusory plurality. Enshrouded by the darkness of
ignorance, those of immature knowledge (balisah) dispute about what they consider
to be the nature of reality. Some say, it is; some, it is not; others, it is and is not;
yet others, it neither is nor is not62. All these are kripanas, narrow-minded, who
see fear in the fearless63, and follow the way of difference, getting themselves
engrossed therein. Opposed to these are the great knowers (mahajnanah) who are
settled in their wisdom about the unborn, unchanging reality64.
The knowledge which saves is not that which remains a mere theoretical
comprehension, but that which has become a direct experience. Study of scripture,
ethical discipline, detachment from objects of sense and intense longing for release
these are essential for realising the self. The aspirant should learn the purport of
the Veda and acquire freedom from passions like attachment, fear, and anger (vitaraga-bhaya-krodhah); and he should fix his thoughts on the non-dual reality65.
Gaudapada teaches two methods of concentrating the mind on the non-dual,
Pranava-yoga in the first chapter and Asparsa-yoga in the third. These are to serve
as auxiliaries to the knowledge of the Absolute, methods to loosen the cords of
ignorance.
Asparsa-yoga is the yoga of transcendence, whereby one realises the suprarelational reality. Sankalpa is the root of activity and bondage. The mind
contemplates objects and gets distracted and shattered with the result that there is
no peace or happiness. Acceptance and desistance are motivated by the
centrifugal tendency of thought-process. The out-going mind should be called back
and controlled. Controlling the mind is difficult, indeed, as difficult as emptying the
ocean drop by drop by the tip of kusa grass. But it is not an impossible task; only it
requires relentless effort. If the mind is restrained through discrimination, the end

will certainly be reached. One must remember first that all is misery and turn back
from desires and enjoyments. The mind that moves out must be brought to unity.
But in this process care must be taken that it does not fall into sleep. When the
mind goes to sleep, it must be awakened; when it tries to go out, it must be calmed.
When the stormy mind is stilled, there is the thrill of quietude. But one should not
revel even in this yogic trance. Anything that is enjoyed must belong to duality; it
cannot be unlimited or lasting happiness. The mind must become non-mind
(amanibhava); the relations of subject and object, enjoyer and enjoyment must be
transcended. This will come only through the knowledge of the non-dual self.
Knowledge and the self are not different. Knowledge is the self or Brahman. Hence
it is said that through the unborn (knowledge) the unborn (Brahman) is known66.
Self-established, the unborn knowledge attains its natural equanimity or sameness.
This is called asparsa-yoga, the yoga which is pleasing and good to all beings, and
which is beyond dispute and contradiction67.
The same end may be reached through meditation on OM
(pranavayoga). Om is the term indicative of the Brahman-self. It consists of three
matras, a, u, m, and a soundless fourth which is amatra. A stands for Visva, u for
Taijasa, and m for Prajna. Meditation on the significance of the three sounds
respectively will lead to the realisation of the three aspects of the self. The sound
om proceeds from and is resolved in the soundless amatra. Similarly, the Turiya is
the absolute which is unchanging and non-dual, but which appears as many and
changing. When the meaning of the soundless culmination of Om is realised, there
is leading to or attainment of anything; for the Turiya is no other than real and only
self. Thus the Pranava is to be meditated upon and known. It is the beginning,
middle and end of all things. It is the lord established in the heart of all beings.
There is nothing before it nor anything after it, nothing outside it nor anything other
than it. Understanding the Pranava in this manner, one attains the
supreme.68Moksha or release is not a post-mortem state; it can be realised even
here (iha), while in embodiment69. To speak of it as an attainment or realisation is
but figurative. It is the eternal and inalienable nature of the self. He who knows this
is released, he is a jivan-mukta. Because he has attained full omniscience and is
free from the delusion of duality, there is nothing for him which he can desire70. He
is not elated by praise nor depressed by blame. He does not offer obeisance to any,
nor does he perform any rite. He has no fixed home, and subsists on what comes
his way. He lies like a non-conscious being, and lives as he likes71. Though he has
no obligations, his conduct can never be immortal. Virtues like humility,
equanimity, calmness, and self-control are natural to him72. His is the immortal
state which is difficult to be seen, very deep, unborn, ever the same, and
fearless73. He sees the truth everywhere. He delights in the truth and does not
swerve from it. He is the truth74.
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67

IV, 56.
IV, 7880.
IV, 8284.
III, 39, abhaye bhayadarsinah.
IV, 94, 95.
II, 35, 36.
III, 33. ajena-jam vibhudhyate.
III, 31-46, IV, 2.

68
69
70
71
72
73
74

I, 1929.
IV, 89.
IV, 85.
II, 36, 37.
IV, 86.
IV, 100.
II, 38.

Design
10
From the account of Gaudapadas philosophy given above it will be clear that this
great teacher was an Advaitin, the earliest known to uswho is his karika laid the
foundations of a philosophy which was to become a glorious edifice through the
immortal work of Sankara. While making use of logical reasoning and the dialectical
method, he does not deviate from the teaching of the Upanishads.
Even where he employs Bauddha terminology, he takes care to point out that his
system should not be confused with Buddhism. While denying absolute reality to
the world, he is firm in proclaiming that the non-dual Brahman-self is the supreme
truth. He has no quarrel with any system of philosophy because, in his view, all
systems if properly understood are pointers to non-duality. While the dualists
oppose one another, the doctrine of non-duality does not conflict with them75. Ajati
or the unborn reality is the final goal of all metaphysical quest.
75 III, 17.