HHinduindu SScripturescriptures AAncientncient holyholy textstexts rrevealedevealed byby GodGod andand manman ATI O C N U A D L E I N S S T I G H TThehe WWord,ord, vverily,erily, iiss ggreaterreater tthanhan nname.ame. TThehe WWord,ord, iinn ffact,act, mmakesakes TThanhan wwhomhom therethere isis naughtnaught eelselse hhigher,igher, kknownnown tthehe RRigig VVedaeda, tthehe YYajurajur VVeda,eda, tthehe SSamaama VVedaeda, tthehe AAtharvatharva tthanhan wwhomhom therethere isis naughtnaught ssmaller,maller, VVedaeda aass tthehe ffourth,ourth, aandnd tthehe aancientncient lloreore aass tthehe fi ffth:th: tthehe VVedaeda nnaughtaught ggreater,reater, tthehe OOnene sstandstands llikeike ooff VVedas,edas, tthehe rritualitual fforor aancestors,ncestors, ccalculus,alculus, thethe auguralaugural ssciences,ciences, a ttreeree eestablishedstablished iinn hheaven.eaven. BByy HHim,im, tthehe kknowledgenowledge ooff tthehe ssignsigns ooff tthehe ttimes,imes, eethics,thics, ppoliticalolitical sscience,cience, tthehe PPerson,erson, iiss tthishis wwholehole uuniverseniverse fi llled.led. ssacredacred kknowledge,nowledge, ttheology,heology, kknowledgenowledge ooff tthehe sspirits,pirits, mmilitaryilitary Krishna Yajur Veda, Shvetashvatara sscience,cience, aastrology,strology, tthehe ssciencecience ooff ssnakesnakes aandnd ooff ccelestialelestial bbeings.eings. Upanishad 3.9, The Principal Upanishads, Radhakrishnan, p. 727 Sama Veda, Chandogya Upanishad 7.2.1. The Vedic Experience, Panikkar, p. 111 july/august/september, 2006 hinduism today I-1 PPresentingresenting a mountaintopmountaintop viewview ooff tthehe vvastast llibraryibrary ofof wisdomwisdom thatthat mmoldsolds aandnd influencesinfluences HinduHindu lifelife WWhathat AArere induism proudly embraces an incredibly HHinduindu RRevealedevealed rich collection of scripture. The holiest and Hmost revered are the Vedas and Agamas, SScriptures?criptures? two massive compendia of shruti (that which is “heard”), both revealed by God to illumined sages The Vedas and Agamas, revealed centuries and millennia ago. The array of works by God, are Hinduism’s sovereign known as smriti (that which is “remembered”) scriptures, called shruti, “that is equally vast, the most prominent and widely which is heard.” Their timeless celebrated of which are the Itihasas (epic dramas truths are expressed in the most and history)—the Ramayana, Mahabharata—and the Puranas (mythology). The Vedic arts and sci- extraordinarily profound mystical ences, including ayurveda, astrology, music, dance, poetry known to man. Aum. architecture, statecraft, domestic duty and law, are reflected in an assembly of texts known as Ve- dangas and Upavedas. Moreover, through the ages God-realized souls, sharing their experience, have poured forth volume upon volume that reveal the art by s. rajam photo, thomas kelly background wonders of yoga and offer passionate hymns of de- votion. The creation of Hindu scripture continues to this day, as contemporary masters reiterate the Above, God holds the holiest of scriptures, the Vedas and timeless truths to guide souls on the path to Divin- Agamas. Around these are an array of other scriptures, ity. In this Educational Insight, we offer a simple enscribed on stone, wood, pillars and scrolls. At left, we dia see a copy of the Rig Veda Samhita. In the dimmed back- overview of Hindu scripture and an anthology of no verses from this luminous library of dharma. dinodiadino d ground, lamps are off ered, as prescribed in the Agamas, by priests at Nallur Kandaswamy Temple in Sri Lanka. eda, from vid, “to know,” means “supreme written down in Sanskrit in the last few millennia. wisdom or science.” Similarly, Agama, The subtly symbolic language of shruti, the cher- V which names the sacred sectarian revela- ished word of God, is lyrical and lofty. In imparting dinodia tions, means “descent of knowledge.” The Vedas religious practice, rules and doctrine, the Vedas are and Agamas are eternal truths transmitted by general and the Agamas specific. The Vedas extol The stack of books at left holds one bound volume from TThehe mmanan wwhoho rrejectsejects tthehe wwordsords ooff tthehe sscripturescriptures God through great clairaudient and clairvoyant and invoke a multiplicity of Gods through elabo- each of the four Vedas in the Sanskrit language. For cen- aandnd ffollowsollows tthehe iimpulsempulse ooff ddesireesire aattainsttains nneithereither turies they have been the basis of philosophical discussion, rishis. They are Hinduism’s primary and most au- rate fire rituals called yajna. The Agamas center hhisis pperfection,erfection, nnoror jjoy,oy, nnoror tthehe PPathath SSupreme.upreme. LLetet study and commentary. The Vedas are also the subject of thoritative scriptures, expounding life’s sacredness around a single Deity and His worship with wa- tthehe sscripturescriptures bbe,e, ttherefore,herefore, tthyhy aauthorityuthority aass ttoo deep study and meditation, to realize the wisdom of the and man’s purpose on the planet. These psalms ter, flowers and lights in sanctified temples and wwhathat iiss rrightight aandnd wwhathat iiss nnotot rright.ight. ancients within oneself. Their mantras are chanted and of wisdom were disclosed over many centuries, shrines. The lauds, “Two are the Bhagavad Gita 16.23-24, Mascaro, p. 111 Tirumantiram used in rites of worship, prayer and japa. memorized and orally conveyed from generation scriptures that Lord Siva revealed—the primal Ve- to generation within priestly families, then finally das and the perfect Agamas.” Aum Namah Sivaya. © 2006 by Himalayan Academy, 107 Kaholalele Road, Kapaa, Hawaii 96746 To order additional copies of this booklet, as well as other Educational Insights, visit wwww.himalayanacademy.com/teachingtoolsww.himalayanacademy.com/teachingtools july/august/september, 2006 hinduism today I-3 WWhathat IIss thethe HHowow AreAre thethe NNatureature ooff thethe VVedasedas SigniSignifi cantcant VVedaeda TTexts?exts? TToday?oday? The holy Vedas, man’s oldest The Vedas, the ultimate scriptural scripture, dating back 6,000 authority, permeate Hinduism’s to 8,000 years, are a collection thought, ritual and meditation. of four books: the Rig, Sama, They open a rare window Yajur and Atharva. Each into ancient Bharata society, has four sections: hymns, proclaiming life’s sacredness and rites, interpretation and the way to oneness with God. Aum. philosophical instruction. Aum. reuters/raj patidar reuters/raj patidar chowdhury afp photo/deshakalyan background: art by s. rajam photo, hinduism today background kash pra Above, using the traditional elutani, stylus, a pandit Above, a young Smarta priest conducts a fi re ceremony, scribes memorized Vedic verses on dried palm leaves. ndra havana, as decreed in the Vedas. At left, a Vaishnava elly jite For centuries the Vedas were passed on orally, then / priest blows a conch horn during prayers in Allahabad. as k k fi nally transcribed. Left, a devotee leafs through his ers/ Background photo, at Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi, a hom thom t reuters/jitendra prakashreut reu thomas kelly holy text as he performs his morning sadhana. priest performs antyeshti, the cremation ritual, last in the series of rites of passage prescribed in the Vedas. he oldest and core portions of the the Rig, whereas most of the Atharva Samhita’s ike the taoist tao te ching, the bud- All Hindus wholeheartedly accept the Vedas, yet Vedas are the four Samhitas, “hymn collec- nearly 6,000 verses of prayers, charms and rites are dhist Dhammapada, the Sikh Adi Granth, each draws selectively, interprets freely and ampli- Ttions.” They consist of invocations to the One unique. The Sama is arranged for melodious chant- Lthe Jewish Torah, the Christian Bible and fies abundantly. Over time, this tolerant allegiance Divine and the Divinities of nature—such as the ing, the Yajur for cadenced intonation. Besides its the Muslim Koran, the Veda is the Hindu holy book. has woven the varied tapestry of Bharata Dharma. Sun, the Rain, the Wind, the Fire and the Dawn— Samhita, each Veda includes one or two Brahma- For untold centuries unto today, it has remained the Today the Vedas are published in Sanskrit, English, as well as prayers for matrimony, progeny, pros- nas, ceremonial handbooks, and Aranyakas, ritual sustaining force and authoritative doctrine, guiding French, German and other languages. But it is the perity, concord, domestic rites, formulas for magic, interpretations, plus many inestimable Upanishads, followers in ways of worship, duty and enlighten- metaphysical and popular Upanishads which have and more. They are composed in beautiful metrical metaphysical dialogs. In all there are over 100,000 ment—upasana, dharma and jnana. The Vedas are been most amply and ably translated. The Vedas verses, generally of three or four lines. The heart Vedic verses, and some prose, in dozens of texts. the meditative and philosophical focus for millions say, “Just as the spokes are affixed to the hub of of the entire Veda is the 10,552-verse Rig Samhita. The Tirumantiram confirms, “There is no dharma of monks and a billion seekers. Their stanzas are a wheel, so are all things established in life, the The Sama and Yajur Samhitas, each with about other than what the Vedas say. Dharma’s central chanted from memory by priests and laymen daily Rig and Yajur and Sama Veda, sacrifice, the nobil- 2,000 verses, are mainly liturgical selections from core the Vedas proclaim.” Aum Namah Sivaya. as liturgy in temple worship and domestic ritual. ity and also the priesthood.” Aum Namah