Thus Spake the Divine - Why Should Preservation Of Vedic Knowledge Be A Lifetime Profession?

Thus Spake the Divine

Why Should Preservation Of Vedic Knowledge Be A
Lifetime Profession?

As prescribed by Varna Dharma, a Brahmin must take up the role or profession of preserving Vedas. How will this benefit the society at large? In this chapter, Poojyasri Maha Periyava explains the same as well as the genesis and greatness of Veda Mantras. He also states how important it is for the Brahmin Community to take up the profession of teaching Vedas as a full-time profession.

A potter makes pots; a dhobi washes clothes; weaver weaves clothing; milkman supplies milk; farmer ploughs the field. Every individual performs a task of his own for the smooth functioning of day-to-day life. Simultaneously, they reap the harvest of their own actions, apart from providing benefits to others in the society. They eat rice to satiate their hunger; wear clothes to protect themselves from heat and cold; drink milk; use the pot for cooking and so on. Thus, what is required for day-to-day life of the society is provided by people of other castes. So, what is the Brahmin’s contribution? What is the role assigned to Brahmin under the Varna Dharma?

As per the Varna Dharma, a Brahmin has to listen to Veda mantras and memorise them. Similarly, he has to orally impart these mantras to another person. Memorising Vedas is called “Veda Adyayanam”, orally teaching Vedas to others is known as “Veda Adyapanam”. Along with this, the Brahmin should also observe his daily duties (Nitya Karma) and other rituals, as prescribed under the Codes of Dharma. Essentially, our Dharma requires a Brahmin to preserve the sounds of Vedas and disseminate them into the entire society for its people’s wellbeing. Veda mantras possess magnificent meaning and hence have to be preserved.

If any other profession comes to a halt, the society bears the brunt of it. But how will the society be impacted if Veda practices come to a halt? To know the answer to this question, one should understand the concept of Vedas. It is of no use to approach it at the knowledge level. One should have faith in the proponents of Vedas and try to understand the concept from their deliberations.

The prominence given to sounds of Vedas is not something that is easily understandable. For this, we should understand the genesis of a sound. How does a sound occur? Sound occurs from a vibration or motion in a substance. By infusing some modulations in the tone, we frame words. It is apparent that sounds are always audible to ears. But there are some sounds that get converted into electric waves, which cannot be heard by ears. This is quite obvious with radio and telephone systems. It is the ears, eyes and even the brain that can absorb the sound.

There are innumerable inert substances, such as mountains, rivers, and oceans etc. in this cosmos. There are also different kinds of living beings on this planet. All these must have been created from only one substance. When that ‘one substance’ created both inert substances and living beings, there must have been some vibrations that would have created sounds. It means that there were different kinds of sounds even before the creation of this universe.

Both the animate and inanimate substances complement each other in smooth functioning of this world. While doing so, there would be vibrations between the two, resulting in different sounds. It is not that only tangible physical substances can create vibrations. Science has proven that even our thoughts are the result of movement of some electrical elements. Therefore, even our thoughts emerge from vibrations and hence possess some sound. Since these sounds are very minute, they are not audible. Like bacteria are visible only through the microscope and not to the naked eyes, there are some subtle sounds that are not audible to us. Therefore, if there is either a physical or mental movement, according to science, there should necessarily be emission of some sound. Every movement produces a separate sound and conversely, a vibration corresponding to it must also be created.

Both the sound and the movement emerge simultaneously and from that movement emerges a physical substance or some attitude. So, the creation is only out of sound. This fundamental philosophy has the approval of rational thinkers too.

However, do these movements or sounds occur on their own? No! Had they occurred on their own, they would only be in a chaotic manner, whereas if we look at the universe, we see that things are happening in the most systematic way with utmost discipline and mutual connectivity. This reveals the truth that there is a Super Brain, which has created all the things through its own movement. Vedas are the resultant sound of only the movement of that Super Brain. This reveals the reality that Veda mantras have been created only by the Paramatma. We must, hence, preserve these sounds of Vedas for the good of the society.

The remarkable thing about Vedas is that they are of immeasurable value; as much for their sound as for their verbal content. The noble character of their sound apart, Vedas are also notable for the lofty truths that find expression in the Veda mantras.

The Vedic sounds do not grant benefits to the reciter on their own; it is the Ishvara, the benefactor, who does that. Still, he does not grant the benefits directly. Just as a government is run utilising its various departments and their heads, Ishvara has appointed a Devata (angel) each to grant benefits. The sound form of that Devata forms the mantra for that Devata. Thus, if we chant the mantra for a specific Devata and offer oblation in the yajnya (fire ritual) it becomes the food (naivedyam) for that Devata. We don’t pay taxes directly to the King or the President of the country. We are only paying taxes to the officers. Similarly, we make our offerings to the Devatas, who are the deputies of Ishvara, through Veda chanting.

In many mantras, the sound has more prominence than its meaning. There is special power within the syllables and tonality of mantras. For example, if you take the mantra for detoxifying scorpion sting, its meaning will not be very prominent. But its recitation with the appropriate tonality will create a vibration in the space that will arrest the poison. Each sound has a unique power. For example, the Varuna Japam is one that gets rains.

Even a dead wood can bloom with the power of mantras. This has been authenticated by many people who have literally seen dead wood blooming into a green tree in Tiruvanaikaval, Trichy in Tamil Nadu. The sacred tree of the temple is the white jamoon tree and that is why that place is also known as Jambukeswaram. That tree had almost dried and only one trunk was left. At that time, some Chettiyars from Kanadu Kathan took up the religious renovation of the temple. Amid chanting of mantras, they performed Ekadasha Rudrabhishekam (Shiva has 11 forms of Rudra. In this elaborate Pooja for Shiva, all the 11 Rudras are worshiped) and at the end of the Pooja, the tree bloomed with green leaves.

Having realised all these, I am confident we now have the absolute trust in the powers of Vedas. The next question is, “Why do we need an exclusive community to preserve them?” There are many reasons for this.

First of all, Vedas should not be read from manuscripts. They are only to be heard by ears and then memorised by reciting them again and again. Vedas are also called “Shruti”. That which is heard is Shruti. “Srotra” means the “ear”. Vedas have been handed down orally from generation to generation. They have not been taught or learnt from any written text. That is how they got the name of “Shruti”. Why were these scriptures not permitted to be written down? This is because the sound of Vedas cannot be fully transcribed. There are sounds or phonemes that cannot be accurately represented in any script, for instance, the ones between “zha” and “la”. Such sounds have to be learnt by careful listening.

After learning Vedas by word of mouth, they have to be imparted to the next generation through verbal recitation. Since this process of teaching Vedas is so time consuming, the community involved in this profession cannot take up any other vocation or profession.

The fundamental profession assigned to Brahmins is that they must learn Vedas and impart Vedas to others. For this, the Brahmin has to strictly adhere to the rules and Codes of Dharma. As per the Shastras, he has to eat the minimum food, which just protects his life, and must live the simplest form of life. He should not engage in any other business and earn money or fall prey to physical pleasures. His only objective should be to preserve Vedas while adhering to the Rules of Dharma.

If Vedas go extinct, then there is no need for an exclusive community called Brahmins. Nowadays, we hear people roaring, “Brahmins, quit”. Do we hear any similar proclamations on other castes like “Potters, quit” or “Dhobis, quit”? If a Dhobi exits from the society, people will try their best to get him back into the society, because the society will suffer very much without his services.

So long as the Brahmin community was involved in preservation of Vedas as its prime duty and led a simple life, the society found great value in Brahmins. They showed utmost respect towards him and expressed faith in him. The main reason for the society to prosper in those days without any epidemics or any social unrest was mainly because of the sound of Vedas followed by other rituals.

I have not said that Vedas should not be practised by other communities. I have only said, “Veda should be preserved and the Brahmin community should take responsibility of doing this as a life-time profession.” According to Varna Dharma, any profession or vocation should be carried out only through hereditary lineage. Otherwise, competition and confrontation may emerge among communities. Since preservation of Vedas has been demarcated to the Brahmin community, if anybody else intervenes into Vedas, then, there will only be imbalance and chaos in the society.

Let me clarify that I have only said that other communities need not learn Vedas. But there is no objection to their knowing the underlying philosophies of Vedas. What is required is that only Brahmins take up the profession of preserving Vedas for the good of the society. It is not that other communities should feel suppressed that the duty to preserve Vedas has been allotted to Brahmins alone. If it were so, there would not have emerged many scholars in Alarms and Nayanmars, or saints like Thayumanavar or Pattinathar or Ramalinga Daigle.

All other community people should enable the Brahmin community in engaging in his own vocation, which is preservation of Vedas.

This article is a snippet from the Book Thus Spake the Divine, is available online at www.giri.in and across Giri Trading Agency Private Limited, A chain of Speciality Stores dealing in all kinds of products needed in Indian Culture and Tradition.

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