The Vedas – June 30 What are they? What do they contain? Dr. Satish Prakash Chapter-6 Contents The Rigvedadi – Bhashya Bhumika.............................................................................................................. 4 Introductory............................................................................................................................................... 4 The Veda and its importance .................................................................................................................... 4 The need for interpreting the Vedas .......................................................................................................... 5 Various schools of Vedic interpretation .................................................................................................... 6 Yajnika: ................................................................................................................................................ 6 The Aitihasika: .................................................................................................................................... 6 The Nairukta: ...................................................................................................................................... 7 A brief history of Vedic interpretation ...................................................................................................... 9 The Arsh commentaries: ....................................................................................................................... 9 PRE-SAYANA COMMENTATORS ................................................................................................. 10 SAYANA: ........................................................................................................................................... 10 EUROPEAN COMMENTATORS: .................................................................................................... 11 THE PROBLEM OF VEDIC INTERPRETATION PRIOR TO DAYANANDA'S ADVENT ............ 11 DAYANANDA AND HIS PRE-SUPPOSITIONS : HIS PROJECTED COMMENTARY .................. 14 THE HISTORY OF THE RIGVEDADIBHASHYABHUMIKA .......................................................... 15 THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RIGVEDADIBHASHYABHUMIKA.................................................. 16 THE BHUMIKAS OF SAYANA and DAYANANDA : A Brief Comparison ..................................... 17 THE ORIGIN OF THE VEDA: .......................................................................................................... 19 THE SELF-AUTHORITATIVE CHARACTER OF THE VEDA ..................................................... 19 THE ETERNALITY OF THE VEDA: ............................................................................................... 19 THE VEDA AND THE BRAHMANA: ............................................................................................. 20 THE PURPOSE OP THE VEDA: ...................................................................................................... 20 THE EQUAL IMPORTANCE OF EACH OF THE FOUR VEDAS: ................................................ 20 FURTHER COMMENTS: .................................................................................................................. 21 THESES DISCUSSED IN THE RIGVEDADIBASHYABHUMIKA: ..................................................... 21 VEDA - ITS DEFINITION, NATURE & SCOPE ............................................................................. 21 Definition: .......................................................................................................................................... 21 Other Names: ...................................................................................................................................... 22 Texts Constituting the Veda:............................................................................................................... 23 1 The Four Samhitas: ............................................................................................................................. 25 Page The Contents of the Vedas: ................................................................................................................. 26 THE VEDA AND ITS ORIGIN ........................................................................................................... 27 The Revelationary Character of the Veda: .......................................................................................... 27 The Process of Revelation: ................................................................................................................. 28 The Purpose and Necessity of Revelation:.......................................................................................... 29 Instruments of Divine Revelation: ...................................................................................................... 30 THE ETERNALITY OF THE VEDA ................................................................................................ 32 The Eternality of Sound: ..................................................................................................................... 33 The Age of the Vedas: ........................................................................................................................ 33 The Veda - A work with a Single Purpose? ........................................................................................ 35 THE AUTHORITATIVENESS OF THE VEDA .............................................................................. 36 Introduction: ........................................................................................................................................ 36 The Authoritativeness of the Veda and Dayananda : .......................................................................... 37 Criterion of Authoritativeness:............................................................................................................ 38 THE RISHI OF THE VEDIC VERSES ............................................................................................. 38 Introductory: ....................................................................................................................................... 38 Definitions of the term ‘Rishi’: ........................................................................................................... 39 Dayananda and the term 'Rishi' ........................................................................................................... 39 OBSERVATIONS : ............................................................................................................................ 40 THE DEVATA OF THE VEDIC VERSES ........................................................................................ 41 ‘Devata’ and Western Scholars: .......................................................................................................... 41 'Devata', Dayanand and Monotheism: ................................................................................................. 43 The Devata in the Vedic mantra: ........................................................................................................ 45 SCIENCE IN THE VEDAS ................................................................................................................. 46 Introductory: ....................................................................................................................................... 46 Spiritual Sciences: ............................................................................................................................... 47 Social Sciences: .................................................................................................................................. 48 Physical Sciences: ............................................................................................................................... 49 OBSERVATIONS: ............................................................................................................................. 53 REVIEWING OTHER COMMENTATORS ......................................................................................... 54 Introductory: ....................................................................................................................................... 54 2 EXPLAINING MYTHOLOGICAL REFERENCES ............................................................................. 55 Page Introductory: ....................................................................................................................................... 56 The Coition of Prajapati with his daughter: ........................................................................................ 56 The Tale of Gotam and Ahalya: .......................................................................................................... 57 The tale of Indra and Vritra: ............................................................................................................... 57 OBSERVATIONS: ............................................................................................................................. 57 STUDYING THE VEDA ....................................................................................................................... 58 Introductory: ....................................................................................................................................... 58