Contributions of the Masters of Yore

[nijarunaprabha]

                                Contributions of the Masters of yore

For a seeker to  take it that the Vedas are apaUrushum (not a creation of man) was said to be not absolutely necessary. This might  be taken as a blasphemous statement by some of the ardent seekers. The idea was not to hurt their sentiments. If it has been stated that a total faith in and conviction about the Vedas is necessary right at the outset to walk the path of righteousness, it is unnecessary to bring in apaUrushatvum into the picture. For, I do not see any necessity to do so when one has decided about his / her conviction about the scriptures and their contents.

Even if one does take that the Vedas are handed down by God , to emphasize its flawlessness, it may still be necessary to prove this claim at vyavaharika level (worldly existence-Being one the three levels of reality). This is requisite because the Vedas are a means to realization (Moksha), and hence its flawlessness needs to be ‘known’ a-priori and not after obtaining Brahma-jnANa. And since, one would not be in a position to ascertain its flawlessness until one has obtained the goal of Brahma-vidyA- that is Brahma JnANa, a-priori notion certainly comes into play. So, in both the cases a prior conviction is necessitated, rendering the idea of apUrushatvum redundant.   

Nevertheless, it is certainly true that there is a very high degree of divinity involved herein. The sages had revelations so profound that the Rishis did not take credit for their utterances, albeit at the subtlest moment of their being. They had accepted these sacred truths as straight from the all knowing omniscient Lord and handed them over to the generations that followed.  Also they began to work on these revelations so that they could be understood by the larger section of the people. Along with the Vedas the Vedangas emerged and the various Smritis and Darshanas (Philosophies – the literal meaning of the term is thoughts that show / lead one) were propounded by the great sages. The mankind was now civilized!

This stand has been, hence, taken to highlight the contributions of the sages, known and unknown, to the mankind. There is not a discipline wherein the sages had not let their minds wander and thereafter through intense analysis and immense meditation they doled out further truths.

The word Muni means the one who has made it his habit to analyse concepts, issues and situations – “Manaa Sheelaha Iti Munihi”.  Very clearly their teaching were meant  to uplift  the mankind from the meaninglessness of mundane  existence, for traversing through life itself is a drudgery if there is no  sense of fulfillment  which can come from contributions to make the society culturally strong. The word Sanskriti, like Sanskrutum, ( the Language) means, that which is rendered complete – “Samyuk Kruthum” . 

It is with the wisdom of these rishis that one can understand the wisdom of life. The word Rishi means – by whose wisdom one is elevated to a higher plane of living – “Rushyathe anena Iti Rishi”     

Hence there are two ways of looking at the greatness of the Vedas – Vedas as originating from the Lord himself and secondly as the contribution of Rishis .You may choose either. Both are likely to impact your belief and conviction equally well.

The crux of the issue is to understand the holistic and purposeful nature of the scriptures. One’s understanding is then enhanced manifold. Like wise when one is able to appreciate the beauty of Sanskrit language and approaches the texts with an aesthetic mind, there is a lot to take home then. The beauty of the language, the mastery of the writer as depicted in those brief aphorisms (Sutras) that are difficult to decipher or understand or even being prone to diverse interpretation need to be looked at with aesthetic sense to be able to understand the intent of the masters.

It is hence that in our culture we are said to be indebted to the Rishis (Rishi RruN). The least we could do is to accept their contribution towards the evolution of our society and give them their due place in the Guru ParamparA. Faith in their work alone would suffice to gather an understanding of their directives and thus elevate the quality of our lives to the higher plane.