The Vedas and Upanishads for Children Page 6
Now, even though the Vedas had stringent methods of oral transmission, some variations are bound to creep in over three millennia. The story goes that Veda Vyasa, the compiler and editor of the Vedas, taught the Yajur Veda to his student Vaishampayana, who in turn taught it to twenty-seven of his students, who taught it onwards in their own shakhas or schools. Over time, we ended up with two variants of the Yajur Veda Samhita – the so-called Shukla (Sanskrit for ‘white’ or ‘bright’) Yajur Veda, and the Krishna (‘black’ or ‘dark’) Yajur Veda, considered ‘dark’ because it was not organized as meticulously as the Shukla, and was therefore confusing. (Hey, Arya! Your colour biases are showing!)
Most scholars believe that the Atharva Veda Samhita is not directly connected with the other three, because this one has less to do with liturgy and gods and philosophical ruminations, and more with the everyday fears and hopes and troubles of common people. The Atharva Veda’s name origin is different from the rest of the Vedas too – it is named after the sage Atharvan, who – interesting sidelight alert! – is believed to be the man who discovered how to make fire by rubbing a pair of sticks together!
This fourth Samhita is a motley mix of many unusual and somewhat bizarre things – spells to ward off nightmares and disease, prayers to individual herbs to do their job as healers, mantras to chant while a broken bone is being set, praise for the motherland and the mother tongue, and even incantations to wake a dead person so that he can go and meet his ‘deader’ ancestors. True story.
In fact, there are so many prayers to plants and herbs, and the verses display such a vast knowledge of the healing properties of each, that the Atharva Veda Samhita is believed to be the inspiration behind the Indian system of medicine, Ayurveda! Both the great ancient Indian healer Charaka, who left us the Charaka Samhita, a fat compendium on Ayurveda, and the ancient Indian doctor and surgeon, Sushruta, who wrote the Sushruta Samhita, a medical manual listing 1,120 illnesses and their treatment, along with surgical procedures that include tooth extraction, fracture management and cataract surgery, acknowledge the Atharva Veda Samhita as one of their main inspirations. Cool, hunh?
Now, armed with all this information about the Vedas, back to the main pastime of rich and powerful Arya – the yagna!
BACK TO THE YAGNA
By the time some 800 years had passed since the earliest bits of the Rig Veda were composed, yagnas were really trending in Aryavarta. There were daily fire yagnas at home and outside, fortnightly yagnas to commemorate the new moon (and the full moon), four-monthly yagnas to celebrate the start of each new season, yagnas to celebrate a good harvest or pray for rain after a bad one, and yagnas for more ‘special occasions’ than anyone could keep count of – birth, marriage, death, and many more. Then there were the mega one–off yagnas – performed by a king to celebrate a famous victory, or to ask for blessings before going to war; the list was never-ending. And while they were seriously expensive affairs for the yajamana, they certainly kept those knowledgeable in the Vedas, the brahmins, very happy indeed – after all, a yagna could not happen without Vedic hymns.
Now, each Veda had its own set of specialists, so there were four sets of brahmins required at each yagna. One set, called the ‘hotri’, were the Rig Veda experts – they chanted mantras from the Rig Veda Samhita. The ‘udgatri’ formed the choir, providing the melodious background score to the yagna via the hymns of the Sama Veda. Yet another set of specialists, the ‘adhvaryu’, had aced their Yajur Veda exams and did the real work of clearing and preparing the sacrificial ground, building the fire pits, ritually slaughtering the sacrificial animals and cooking them in the prescribed way, and pouring the offerings into the sacred fire, all the while also chanting the formulae for each act. Phew.
And presiding over all of them, and the yagna itself, was the High Priest and Master of the Yagna – the learned Brahmana (say braah-mana)*. The Brahmana sat silent and remote to the right of the yajamana** for the entire duration of the yagna, his keen eyes observing everything, missing nothing. It was his job to see that the hotri, the udgatri and the adhvaryu did their jobs perfectly, without taking shortcuts that would jeopardize the divine feast. The High Priest was also adept at the Atharva Veda. When and if things went wrong with the yagna, the Brahmana went into damage-control mode, chanting the right spells and charms from the fourth Veda to reverse curses, neutralize the bad effects of the wrong moves, and keep disaster, drought and disease from raining down on the yajamana’s head, and on his people’s.
*Brahmana (Chief Priest at the yagna) is different from Brahman (Supreme Soul, Universal Energy) is different from Brahma (Hindu god) is different from brahmin (varna, occupation, caste) is different from the Brahmanas (the second layer of the Vedas). Phewwww.
**In several yagnas, it was mandatory for the wife of the yajamana to participate as co-host. She sat on his left.
You can see why this was a great gig for the priests – at the end of each yagna, the yajamana rewarded each of them with generous amounts of dakshina, or fees, not only to express his gratitude for a job well done but also to buy himself insurance from their curses and ill-will. Win-win all around!
Filed away all that macro info about the Vedas? Super. On to the micro now, in the next chapter!
THE ORIGINAL ‘BEAT POETS’
A brief introduction to the many rhythms of the Vedas
How do you classify a certain grouping of words as verse while another is classified as prose? In English poetry, verse usually involves a rhyme scheme of some kind. In a four-line verse, for example, line 2 may rhyme with line 4 (as in the nursery rhyme ‘Mary had a little lamb’). Or it may be that lines 1 and 2 rhyme with each other, while lines 3 and 4 do the same (as in ‘Twinkle, twinkle, little star’). But you knew that already.
What you may not have realized is that, to give even the simplest verse its lovely rhythmic cadence, the number of syllables per line of the verse also has to follow a plan. In ‘Mary had a little lamb’, for instance, the number of syllables in the first, second, third and fourth lines is a nice and regular 7-6-7-6. In ‘Twinkle, twinkle, little star’, it is 7-7-7-7. This rhythmic structure is called the ‘metre’ of the verse.
If you think about any Sanskrit shlokas that you know or have heard, you will notice that the lines very rarely rhyme with each other. And yet, there is a lovely beat to all shlokas when they are recited or sung, because keeping to a particular metre, or ‘chanda’ (say chhan-da), was considered sacred in Vedic poetry.
There are seven different chandas, together called the ‘seven mouths of Brihaspati’, used in Vedic poetry. What are their names, and how do they work? Let’s find out.
1. The Gayatri – The famous Gayatri Mantra from the Rig Veda is actually a salutation to the sun, or Savitr. It is called the Gayatri Mantra because it is composed in the Gayatri metre, the shortest and the most sacred of all the Vedic metres! A verse written in this metre has 3 ‘syllable collections’ (also called ‘foot’ in English or ‘paada’ in Sanskrit) of 8 syllables each, adding up to 24 syllables in all. Count the syllables in the Gayatri Mantra below and see for yourself! (FYI, each line is a paada.)
Tat Savitur varenyam
Bhargo devasya dhimahi
Dhiyo yo nah prachodayat
We meditate
On the effulgent glory of that Divine Light, Savitr –
May He illuminate our understanding.
Did you notice that the first line of the Gayatri mantra has only seven syllables? No one is sure why that is so; perhaps it is because the words were pronounced a little differently in Vedic times. When it is recited today, to keep the sanctity of the Gayatri metre, some people split the word and say ‘varen-iyam’.
2. The Ushni – With two paadas of 8 syllables and one of 12, the Ushni has exactly four syllables more than the sacred Gayatri.
3. The Anushtubh – The favourite metre of the post-Vedic poets, the Anushtubh is used extensively in the verses of the Rig Veda, the Mahabharata, the Ramayana and th
e Bhagavad Gita, apart from the Puranas and ancient scientific works in Sanskrit. This famous prayer to Ganesha is composed in the Anushtubh metre. Can you calculate the number of paadas, the number of syllables per paada, and the total number of syllables of this metre?
Vakratunda mahakaya
Surya koti samaprabha
Nirvighnam kurume deva
Sarvakaryeshu sarvada
O big-bodied Lord of the twisted trunk,
Who shines with the radiance of a million suns;
Remove all obstacles from our paths
And bless all our endeavours, always.
Ans: 4 paadas of 8 syllables each; 32 syllables in all.
4. The Brihati – Like the Anushtubh, this one also has 4 paadas, except, in the Brihati’s case, the third paada has 12 syllables instead of 8.
5. The Pankti – This chanda has 5 paadas, each with 8 syllables, making 40 syllables in all.
Let’s pause here for a moment. Have you noticed a pattern, a progression, in the five chandas we’ve looked at so far? If yes, you will know, without reading further, exactly how many syllables the next chanda, the Trishtubh, should have. Make your guess now, and then read on to check if you got it right!
6. The Trishtubh – The second most favourite metre of the Rig Vedic poets after the Gayatri, the Trishtubh is used extensively in ancient Sanskrit drama, epic poetry and literature. It is also used in the Bhagavad Gita to great dramatic effect in Chapter 11. Here’s how it’s done.
In chapters 1 through 10 of the Gita, sitting in the palace at Hastinapura, the royal charioteer Sanjaya describes the scenes from the epic battle about to begin at Kurukshetra to the blind king Dhritarashtra, in verse that uses a calm and measured Anushtubh metre. By chapter 10, the rhythm has lodged itself in the reader or listener’s mind, and he is unconsciously keeping beat.
In Chapter 11, when in response to Arjuna’s request, Krishna reveals his terrifying Vishwaroopa form to him, the metre of the verse suddenly changes to Trishtubh as Arjuna (and Sanjaya) become incoherent with bliss and wonder and fear at the vision of this cosmic Krishna. The change of beat catches the listener unawares, shakes him out of his complacency, and delivers the kind of mega-goosebumps that that mega-moment deserves. Clever technique, huh?
But how many syllables and how many paadas in the Trishtubh? Take a look at Verse 15 from Chapter 11 of the Bhagavad Gita, the point at which Anushtubh turns to Trishtubh, and find out for yourself!
Pashyaami devaans tava deva dehe
Sarvaans tathaa bhoota-vishesha-sanghaan
Brahmaanam eesham kamalaasana-stham
Risheensh cha sarvaan uragaansh cha divyaan
And Arjuna said: I see all the gods of all the worlds in you, my Lord! I see hosts of divine beings, Brahma seated on his lotus, Shiva, the sages, and all the celestial serpents!
Ans: 4 paadas of 11 syllables; 44 syllables in all.
7. The Jagati – The longest metre among the ancient ones, the Jagati is used a lot in post-Vedic Sanskrit literature. The shloka below is the third shloka from the Bhagavata Purana (for more info on the Bhagavata, see ‘The Fifth Veda’ on the next page). It exhorts poets and romantics, sinners and liberated souls, to read the Bhagavatam so that their souls may be liberated. As before, do a quick (or s-l-o-w) reading of the shloka and see if you can tell how many paadas, how many syllables per paada and how many syllables in all the Jagati has!
Nigama kalpataror galitam phalam
Shuka mukhaat amritadrava samyutam
Pibata bhaagavatam rasam aalayam
Muhur aho rasikaa bhuvi bhaavukaah
O seekers, connoisseurs, and all ye liberated souls, drink deep of the nectar of the Bhagavatam, which falls from the lips of the sage Shuka; partake constantly of this life-giving draught of the fruit borne on the giving tree of knowledge that is the Veda.
Ans: 4 paadas, 12 syllables per paada, 48 syllables in all. Did you notice how the number of syllables went up by 4 in each chanda, until 24 syllables in the Gayatri became 48 in the Jagati?
THE FIFTH VEDA
FYI: A clear winner hasn’t emerged, and nominations are still being accepted
Suuuur-prise! There aren’t just four, but five Vedas!
Where did a Fifth Veda, often called the Panchama Veda, spring from? The earliest reference to it is in the Sama Veda, in which a work simply called the ‘Itihasapurana’ is singled out as the Fifth Veda.
But ‘itihasapurana’, as we understand it today, is a generic term for works composed by humans that became elevated over the centuries to the status of sacred scriptures. The Mahabharata and the Ramayana are part of what Hindus call Itihasa (see page 28), and there are eighteen major and eighteen minor works that are considered to be Puranas or sacred stories. Which among these is the Panchama Veda, then? Who knows? Thanks a lot, ancient rishis, for not being more specific!
There are other contenders to Fifth Veda status as well! One thing common to all of them is that, unlike the four original Vedas, they were egalitarian – Fifth Veda texts were accessible to people of all castes (including shudras and women – hurrah!). Another is that they all aimed to teach the lessons of the Vedas using completely different approaches – storytelling, dance, theatre – not only in Sanskrit but also in the language of the common people, so that the lessons reached as far and wide and deep as possible. Here are some of the top contenders.
The Mahabharata – The No. 1 contender. After all, it is considered Itihasa, it scores in terms of sheer size over the other epic Itihasa, the Ramayana and, according to its fans, it contains every human emotion, foible, drama, conflict and resolution between its covers. In that sense, it is a great and down-to-earth teacher of the very same lessons that are couched in such esoteric language and philosophy in the other four Vedas. Plus, it is believed to have been composed by Vyasa, the same sage who compiled the other four Vedas.
The Bhagavata Purana – One of the eighteen major Puranas, this one is a complete eulogy to Krishna and Krishna-bhakti (devotion to Krishna). Contrary to the idea that rigid worship to the accompaniment of mantras chanted by the upper-caste guardians of the Vedas was the only way to God, this Purana declares that simple, honest love for Krishna can get you to the exact same place. Most of the popular stories about Krishna’s birth and childhood that you may know are from this Purana, which is mainly narrated by Shuka, the son of Vyasa (he’s everywhere, this sage!). Composed around the 8th century CE (quite recently in the Veda calendar, that is), the Bhagavata was the first Purana to be translated into a European language – a French translation of a Tamil translation of the text came out in 1788.
The Natya Shastra – An ancient treatise on theatre, drama, dance and music, the Natya Shastra, believed to have been composed by the sage Bharata, is the root text for all Indian classical dance and theatre forms. (The name of one of our main classical dance forms, Bharatanatyam, comes from this sage’s name.)
In the Natya Shastra, the arts were seen as a medium through which to tell the stories of the gods and the epics to common people, so that they learnt, just as well as the scholars, how to lead a good and virtuous life. As for the artiste, it was his or her responsibility to be the bridge between the humans and the gods. To this day, all genres of Indian classical music and dance tell the same sacred stories and follow the same philosophy. If, at the end of a particularly accomplished Indian dance or music performance, you feel a rush of emotions jostling within you – joy, sadness, wonder, heroism, peace, and above all, a sense of having been transported to other realms – it didn’t happen by chance, and it didn’t happen only to you; it was exactly what the performer was aiming for! Now you know.
The Ramcharitmanas – Often referred to as the ‘Hindi Veda’, the story of the Ramayana as retold by the 17th century Awadhi poet Tulsidas is considered by its fans in northern India to have even more authority than the four ancient Vedas, and to be the perfect scripture for the modern world.
The Divya Prabandham and the Tevaram – Down south, T
amil votes for what constitutes the Fifth Veda are divided between the Divya Prabandham, a collection of verses extolling the greatness of Vishnu and his avatar Krishna, composed by the twelve Tamil saints called the Alvars; and the Tevaram, a collection of devotional verses dedicated to Shiva, composed by three of the sixty-three Shiva-worshipping poet-saints called the Nayanars.
Time to vote for your pick now! If you want to exercise the NOTA (none of the above) option because you want to nominate a different text entirely, that’s fine too. This is a land of a billion opinions. Another one cannot hurt.
AWESOME THREESOME
Here come the top three Vedic yagnas!
The Ashwamedha – The best known of the three, the Ashwamedha featured an ashwa, or horse, as the medha, or offering, and was meant to establish a king as the undisputed ruler of his empire.
Only a powerful king could perform the long-running (minimum duration: one year!) Ashwamedha yagna, not only because it was expensive but also because it involved taking on several hostile armies during the period. Here’s how it worked: First, the horse, usually a young and healthy stallion, was ritually purified and sent off without a rider or reins in the north-easterly direction. Along with the horse went a hundred soldiers and officers handpicked by the king.
As the horse roamed freely through the kingdom, and often beyond it, back home, the king and his priests kept the yagna fires burning, making offerings each day to the gods. Whenever anyone – a neighbouring king, a rebellious vassal, an ambitious young warrior – challenged the horse, either by not allowing it to pass, or by stealing or capturing it, he would have to go to war with the king’s soldiers. Letting the horse pass unchallenged meant accepting the king as your overlord.