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Thread: Rig Veda Samhita

  1. #11

    Re: Rig Veda Samhita

    Thank You Yajvanji

    What you say makes all sense -
    that it is futile if not in the direction of Self Realization.

    Of primary interest to me is the Purusha Sukta - I just love it and Krshna loves it too.
    Please forgive this cut-and-paste of selected verses , I cannot help but paste them

    With uncounted heads
    Uncounted eyes, and
    Uncounted feet, He
    Moves, as all of
    Creation
    Verily is He
    Uncountable.
    Beyond the grasp
    Of the hands of men.

    That which is,
    Was, and is to be.
    All of this
    Is he alone..
    And the eternal,
    Beyond all end,
    He is Lord,
    Alone, of that.
    The world is food..
    That which hides,
    And ventures forth,
    He is that too.

    All that you see
Is but his glory
He is more
Than all of this
All of creation
Is but a fourth of him.
Three parts eternal
Rest in him alone.

    Three parts of his
    Are beyond all this
    All of this, is but a part.
    Again and again,
    All that eats,
    And that eats not
    Appeared from this
    One part of His.

    From him came forth
    The bright Universe
    And he became a Creator
    For its sake
    And so he created
    The verdant Earth
    And creation
    Was his body.

    Spring was the ghee
    That brightened the fire
    Summer the wood
    That fueled it
    Autumn was burnt
    In this great rite
    That the gods sacrificed
    The Purusha in.

    .........
    ....
    ..
    I Know Him,
    Glorious, Valorous,
    Who Names, Forms,
    And Keeps all this,
    Bright as the Sun,
    Beyond all Darkness.
    ....
    ....
    By Sacrifice did the Gods
    Sacrifice to Sacrifice
    By the fruits of this,
    The first harvest,
    Do the great ones
    Ascend to where the Gods
    The first ones,
    Those who made straight the way
    Are.


    -------
    Glories of Purusha Sukta sung :

    This great Purusha, brilliant as the sun, who
    is beyond all darkness, I know him in my
    heart. Who knows the Purusha thus,
    attains immortality in this very birth.
    I know of no other way to salvation.

    ------

    - Translation by Shri V. Sundar
    http://www.ramanuja.org/purusha/sukta-intro.html

    praNAm
    || Shri KRshNArpaNamastu ||

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    Re: Rig Veda Samhita

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~


    namasté smaranam,
    Quote Originally Posted by smaranam View Post
    Thank You Yajvanji

    What you say makes all sense -
    that it is futile if not in the direction of Self Realization.

    Of primary interest to me is the Purusha Sukta - I just love it and Krshna loves it too. Please forgive this cut-and-paste of selected verses , I cannot help but paste them

    With uncounted heads
    Uncounted eyes, and
    Uncounted feet, He
    Moves, as all of
    Creation
    Verily is He
    Uncountable.
    Beyond the grasp
    Of the hands of men.

    Yes, this is a very intriguing hymn.
    om sahasra̍śīrṣā puru̍ṣaḥ sahasrākśaḥ sahasra̍pāt
    sa bhūmi̍ṁ viśvato̍ vṛtvā atya̍tiṣṭaddaśāṅgulam ||


    What is called out in the śloka is sahasra = 1,000 . So this says puruṣa has 1,000 heads, a 1,000 eyes and 1,000 feet. Now does He really have this?

    It is another way the seer (ṛṣi nārāyaṇa) of this great hymn tells us puruṣa is everywhere and even beyond that . He says that by saying beyond the span of 10 (daśā) fingers (aṅgula). When people say 'beyond' is also can mean transcend.

    Not only is this puruṣa everywhere ( some like to say, there is no-where He is not) He also is beyond and transcends all that there is, beyond the span of 10 fingers. You will read some say 10 inches. This is not what the śloka says but is understood at times people use the width of a finger to suggest 1 inch.

    So , what does this imply ? If He is everywhere, there is no need for any movement of puruṣa because there is no place for Him to go that He is not there already, no?

    And if he is everywhere, He has feet and arms and legs and fingers everywhere, is He not your fingers, my arms your friend's legs, and mothers lips, fathers strength?


    So you see other insights and implications?


    praām
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  3. #13

    Re: Rig Veda Samhita

    praNAm Yajvanji

    Quote Originally Posted by yajvan View Post
    So , what does this imply ? If He is everywhere, there is no need for any movement of puruṣa because there is no place for Him to go that He is not there already, no?

    And if he is everywhere, He has feet and arms and legs and fingers everywhere, is He not your fingers, my arms your friend's legs, and mothers lips, fathers strength?


    So you see other insights and implications?
    This is exactly why I like the Sukta, which is also shown by Upanishads like Kena when they say "He is everywhere, but He runs faster than wind" etc.

    Also, what Krshna implies when He shows the VirAt RUp to Arjun (Bh. Gita Chap 11) adding the dimension of Time to it - "Time I am..."

    What is nice is the Purusha Sukta also mentions that this is only a fragment of the Purusha, 3/4 of which is the purely transcendental other.

    Which is what Krshna says in Vibhuti Yoga , Bh. GitA Chap 10 - "This entire Universe is maintained by a mere amsha(spec) of Mine"

    So there is material vastness (never-ending space Universe) as well as infinite spiritual vastness.

    Swami KrshnAnanda's comments on the Sukta (The link above, post #3):

    "....But a greater shock is yet to be, for the Sukta implies to any intelligent thinker that he himself is one of the heads or limbs of the Purusha. This condition where even to think would be to think as the Purusha thinks—for no other way of thinking is even possible, and it would be to think through all persons and things in creation simultaneously—would indeed not be human thinking or living. Just as we do not think merely with one cell of our brain but think with the entire brain, any single thinker forming but a part of the Purusha’s Universal Thinking Centre, ‘a Centre which is everywhere with circumference nowhere’, cannot afford to think as is usually attempted by what are called jivas, or individual fictitious centres of thinking. There is no other way—na anyah pantha vidyate."

    Although these words are just pulled out of the essay and do not mention the rest of the infinite Purusha which is NOT in the form of jivas of Material Universe, the rest of the infinite Purusha which makes up the spiritual sky is obviously not forgotten as some may think. How can the Purusha forget His Own [Better] Most ? Some look at this His Own Better Most as the multitudes of 'jivas' in various abodes. But they are all really Him , playing and just Being His Natural Self.

    This is why ..... where is the contradiction , mutual exclusion , either-or , in the various schools of thought ? They are all saying the same things in different language.
    Gems like Purusha Sukta serve the purpose - that jivas serving Krshna is a very noble thought , and a necessary paradigm, so is the idea that its Adi Purusha Being Himself. The fingers, toes, heart, head have to co-operate - even when they 'think' they are not co-operating. The idea is for them to 'learn' how.
    Last edited by smaranam; 03 March 2010 at 01:38 PM.
    || Shri KRshNArpaNamastu ||

  4. #14

    Re: Rig Veda Samhita

    Namaste

    I was thinking of what Yajvanji said yesterday. Although the essence of Purusha Sukta was clearly that He is working thru' all of us, the words he chose speak a lot :

    QUOTE: "My arms, your fingers, friend's legs, mother's lips , father's strength"

    This is so basic , yet profound.

    As a child, I learnt in school "Parents take place of God on earth" and could see how true this statement was - perhaps at a young age of 6. That statement stuck with me and unconsciously held true all along. We look up to our parents for everything - especially as children and even later. I for one was more into hanging out with parents than a big group of friends.

    Children of SanAtan Dharma are taught :
    matru devo bhava : See God in mother
    pitru devo bhava : in father
    AchArya devo bhava : in teachers, Gurus
    atithi devo bhava : in guests


    That's a good place to start , 5 yr olds can understand this.

    And the few close friends can be our legs , because many times we go the way our friends go. In the same direction. "friend's legs"

    "your fingers" indicate creativity - and all creativity is but the Purusha. It flows from Him, but where does it go ? Nowhere, stays with Him, He alone is. Its ignorance to think its the jiva's - who is a focal point of a fraction/spec of creativity.

    "my arms" indicates ability, which is nobody's except that Advitiya Purusha's.

    "Mother's lips" shows affection as well as wisdom, training. Who forgets mother's wise words , including the "I told you so" -s . Listen to mother, she has seen "many more rainy seasons" - an Indian phrase i.e. seen life, world a lot more than you.

    And finally,
    "Father's strength" - this I really liked. Its so true, we sleep in the comfortable premise of our father's strength, which is nobody else's but that Purusha's. Just as a devotee hands self over to the Lord like a child oblivious to worldly worries , a human child has no clue what he/she is supposed to worry about.

    praNAm
    || Shri KRshNArpaNamastu ||

  5. #15
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    Post Re: Rig Veda Samhita

    Namaste,

    The Rig Veda is perhaps the most important "book" (although I'm not fond of reducing it to a mere book) in the world. Since it contains transcendental knowledge, it cannot be 'read' like a book can be read.

    Sri Aurobindo clearly states this in "Secret of the Veda". This is why it must be learned under the tutelage of a guru. Of course, not all of us have the privilege of a guru or the time necessary to devote to such an endeavor as learning the Veda can take lifetimes!

    Thus, I would think, or at least what I have been doing, is reading a few verses a day (in Sanskrit) and then meditating on them and trying to let it "sink in". I don't necessarily "understand" the verse, but that is actually better in the sense that the mind does NOT meddle in the true understanding; our being absorbs it and it is truly learned. Thus I think meditation and dhyana is an extremely important corollary to learning the Veda. We may not understand the verses now or even in this lifetime, but their imprint has been absorbed by the jIvA and can thus progress through the treacherous "forest of delusion".

    JAI HIND!

    Namaskar.

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    Re: Rig Veda Samhita

    Full 4 Vedas in MP3

    Listen to the Vedas online in this Website:
    http://www.astrojyoti.com/vedamp3.htm

    Generally, Hindus should start with the shAkhA of their traditional Veda as known from their introduction 'abhivAdaye' which tells your gotra, rishis and the veda shAkhA. If you have no such tradition, you might perhaps start with the Rig Veda.

    The vibrations of vedic chanting and just letting them fall on your ears even if you are preoccupied with some other work might do a lot spiritually to your koShas--sheaths and home, so you can just let the audio play online although you can't follow the words and meanings. Keeping the audio playng and the Veda's original Sanskrit text with their accents before you could help a lot in acquiring the ability to read the original text, but it requires immense patience.
    रत्नाकरधौतपदां हिमालयकिरीटिनीम् ।
    ब्रह्मराजर्षिररत्नाढ्यां वन्दे भारतमातरम् ॥

    To her whose feet are washed by the ocean, who wears the Himalayas as her crown, and is adorned with the gems of rishis and kings, to Mother India, do I bow down in respect.

    --viShNu purANam

  7. #17
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    Re: Rig Veda Samhita

    hariḥ oṁ
    ~~~~~~


    namasté saidevo (et.al)

    Quote Originally Posted by saidevo View Post
    The vibrations of vedic chanting and just letting them fall on your ears even if you are preoccupied with some other work might do a lot spiritually to your koShas--sheaths and home, so you can just let the audio play online although you can't follow the words and meanings
    This is especially so with sama ved. Sama ved is ṛg ved that is sung. The sama ved is ~95% ṛg ved centric.

    What does sama ved produce in the listener? Sama... having the right measure , regular , normal , right , straight ,full , complete , whole , entire ; as a noun equability , equanimity , imperturbability .

    Sama is from sāman. What is this word's definition? Calming , tranquillizing , kind or gentle words for winning an adversary , conciliation , negotiation. It is one of 4 ways ( 4 upāyas or means) of success against an enemy , the other 3 being dāna , bheda , and daṇḍa ¹.


    Hence sāman is 'by friendly means or in a friendly way , willingly , voluntarily'.


    I have been taught to listen to sama ved in a relaxed way. Without other activity. You have rightly said 'letting them (the chant) fall on your ears ' . This is without stress or strain. It is softer then 'active listening' and it is not passive listening, so your words are perfect. We let the sounds fall on our ears, the impression is to be made.

    praṇām

    words
    • dāna - giving, giving up; imparting, teaching; offering.
    • bheda - breaking , splitting ; disclosing; bursting forth or out , expanding , blossoming , shooting out , sprouting
    • daṇḍa - a staff or sceptre ; power and sovereignty
    Last edited by yajvan; 12 April 2010 at 05:02 PM.
    यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
    yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
    because you are identical with śiva

    _

  8. #18

    Re: Rig Veda Samhita

    Quote Originally Posted by saidevo View Post
    [b]
    The vibrations of vedic chanting
    Thank you Saidevoji for the audio. I had come across this astro jyoti site last year while looking for the 18 puranas.

    The vibrations of Vedic chanting are always magically divine. They definitely make an imprint, impression , saMskAr as TatTvamAsi was also pointing out.

    I can relate to this on a simpler platform - shlokas learnt in early childhood without understanding them are carried over into later years when they suddenly become very meaningful when the time is right i.e. when we are ready for them. On the same lines, this can happen with Vedas over lifetimes.

    Sama as Rig in the form of song, makes the Gita verse clear
    "Of Vedas I am Sama" - Vibhuti Yoga BG Chapter 10


    praNAm
    || Shri KRshNArpaNamastu ||

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