Mind Expansion Vedanta Since Millennia

Mind Expansion Vedanta Since Millennia

Vedic thought placed great value on expanding in the brah-mana, mind, to appreciate an-anta, infinity and so established a rather expansive framework that enabled Indians to accommodate ideas that came in with Indo-Greek soldiers, Chinese pilgrims, Arab traders, Central Asian warlords, including the Mughals, and later, European colonisers.

When we try and study vedic thought or vedanta — that includes wisdom of the vedas, upanishads, puranas and epics — we realise that we have to dig through layers of literature and ideas that defy dating.

The oldest part of the vedas, Rig Samhita, involved only chanting mantras. The earliest hymns of the Rig Veda could date back to 6000 BCE, because verses refer to autumn equinox in Orion constellation, much before the rise of cities of the Indus and Saraswati valleys. Most hymns emerged after 2000 BCE. They refer to River Saraswati, that flowed parallel to the Indus, that we now know dried up around this time, indicating migration to the Gangetic plains.

The second part of the vedas, Sama Samhita, involved singing mantras using melodies.

The third, Yajur Samhita extending into brahmana texts, promoted chanting mantras during rituals known as yagnas. These two portions emerged perhaps after 1500 BCE.

The fourth, the aranyakas, inspired private contemplation on mantras by isolating oneself alone in aranya, the forest, with the aim of discovering its secrets.

The fifth, the upanishads, emerged from discussions on the nature of reality as revealed by the vedas. This later came to be known as vedanta, or final phase of vedic thought. This could have begun around 1000 BCE.

The sixth, the puranas, came following the rise of monastic orders like Buddhism and Jainism in 500 BCE. Their stories sought to convey vedic ideas, made even more accessible by connecting them to pilgrim spots across the subcontinent. Epics like the Ramayana and Mahabharata introduce us to gods such as Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and goddesses. The focus gradually shifted from karma, ritual, and gyan, speculation, to bhakti, devotion.

The seventh aspect, tantras and agamas, codified temple rituals that acknowledged and incorporated puranic characters. Writen accounts began from around 500 CE.

The eighth aspect of vedanta, bhakti kavya or devotional literature, came into being after 1000 CE, and brought vedic ideas to the common man in popular language. In this phase, ideas that were restricted to Brahmins burst forth and reached the people through the poetry of saints. It saw the rise of regional literature as well as regional scripts.

When the British in India translated the vedas into the English language for the first time, it forced Hinduism to reframe and re-imagine itself. Reactions ranged from the defensive and apologetic to the hostile, for more often than not, the commentary had to fit into the monotheistic European template. Today, this is changing. Thanks to the rise of postmodern studies, people are seeking alternate frameworks to explain vedanta that does not depend on western framework or validation.

Om Namah Shivay