Madhva, one of the principal teachers of Vedic philosophy, commenting on the
Vedanta-sutra (2.1.6), quotes the Bhavisya Purana as follows:
“The Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda, Atharva Veda, Mahabharata [which includes the
Bhagavad-gita], Pancaratra, and the original Ramayana are all considered Vedic literature.… The Vaisnava supplements, the
Puranas, are also Vedic literature.”
We may also include corollary literatures like the Samhitas, as well as the commentaries of the great teachers who have guided the course of Vedic thought for centuries.
Some scholars say that only the original four Vedas—Rig, Atharva, Yajur, and Sama—are genuine Vedic
literatures.
The Vedas themselves, however, do not support this view, nor do the most prominent Vedic teachers, including
Shankara, Ramanuja, and Madhva. The Chandogya Upanisad (7.1.4) mentions the Puranas and
Itihasas, which are generally known as histories, as the fifth
Veda. And Bhagavata Purana (1.4.20) confirms, “The historical facts and authentic stories mentioned in the
Puranas are called the fifth Veda.”
In any case, to be accepted as Vedic, a literature must maintain the same purpose as the original Vedic texts. The Vedic scriptures (sastras) comprise a harmonious whole with a harmonious conclusion (siddhanta). Consequently, we may accept as a bona fide Vedic writing any work that expands on the Vedic
siddhanta without changing its meaning, even if the work is not one of the original scriptures. In fact, the Vedic tradition necessitates further authoritative works that convey the Vedic message according to time and place.
However, to be genuine, these extensions of Vedic literature must strictly conform to the doctrines of the Vedas, the
Puranas, and the Vedanta-sutra.
Vedic literature is neither dead nor archaic. Nevertheless, any literature—be it ancient or modern—must be considered non-Vedic if it deviates from the Vedic
siddhanta Thus Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, though definitely outgrowths of Vedic literature, are not considered Vedic. Even the conception of Hinduism is alien to the Vedic conclusion, as we shall see later.
The Purpose of the Vedic Literature
As its main purpose, the Vedic literature imparts knowledge of self-realization and, therefore, liberation (moksa) from suffering. Generally, scholars agree that the goal of Indian thought is to attain the truth, “the recognition of which leads to freedom.” “Every Indian system seeks truth, not as academic, ‘knowledge for its own sake,’ but to learn the truth which shall make all men free.” Indeed, Indian thought strives not for information but for
transformation.
Bhagavad-gita describes knowledge as “accepting the importance of self-realization, and philosophical search for the Absolute Truth.” Yet if people think they are progressing on the path of material happiness, they will not seek to transform themselves. Hence, another
important realization; janma- mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-dukha-doshanudarshanam:
the “perception of the evil of birth, death, old age, and disease”
(Bhagavad-gita 13.9).
Uncompromisingly, the Vedic literature asserts that despite its apparent joys, material life means suffering. Vedic knowledge purports to free the sincere inquirer from that suffering. According to
Bhagavad-gita (Bg. 8.16),
“From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place.”
Apart from the repeated miseries of birth, old age, disease, and death, the Vedic writings describe another threefold set of miseries: miseries arising from the body itself, miseries inflicted by other living entities, and miseries arising from natural disturbances (such as severe cold, heat, flood, earthquake, or drought). Vedic teachers argue that even if these latter miseries were absent, no one could find happiness in the material world—the forces of time and death force everyone to leave his position. Indeed, the Sanskrit description of the earth is
Mrtyuloka, place of death. It is also dukhalayam (a place of miseries) and asashvatam (temporary) (Bg. 8.15).
On hearing this sweeping analysis of life in the material world, Albert Schweitzer termed the Vedic philosophy “world- and life-negation.” Others have stated that the Vedas teach pessimism and fatalistic resignation. But when we view the Vedas closely, we can discern that they teach quite the opposite; they propose that the purpose of human life is not to resign oneself to a temporary and miserable world, but to strive for permanent happiness. For people who follow the Vedic formula, life means an opportunity to attain victory over death.
In the Vedic conception, a person negates life precisely when he identifies the illusory body with the self and considers the temporary world to be all-in-all. Such a person misses the opportunity afforded a human being—the opportunity to inquire about the Supreme.
The first verse of the Vedanta-sutra (athato brahma-jijnasa) is both a declaration and an invitation to everyone: “Now, therefore, let us inquire into the Absolute Truth.” The Vedas urge that people take to the path of liberation. In one Bengali devotional song we find, “Lord
Gauranga is calling, ‘Wake up, sleeping souls! How long will you sleep on the lap of the witch called
Maya [material illusion]? ”
The Vedas describe liberation as a special prerogative granted to human beings and not to the lower species. For this reason the human body is compared to a boat by which one can cross the ocean of transmigration. A good Vedic instructor who has learned the Vedas is like a competent captain, and the Vedic hymns are like favorable breezes. If a person doesn’t cross the ocean and attain eternal liberation, he is considered unintelligent, for Vedic philosophy denies the importance of any knowledge that does not lead to the cessation of suffering. The Garga
Upanisad advises, “He is a miserly man who does not solve the problems of life as a human and who quits the world like a cat or a dog, not understanding the science of self-realization.”
Origin of the Vedas
The Brhad-aranyaka Upanisad (2.4.10) informs us, “The Rig Veda, Yajur Veda,
Sama Veda, Atharva Veda, and Itihasas [histories like the Mahabharata and Puranas] are all breathed out by the Absolute Truth. Just as one’s breath comes easily, these arise from the Supreme Brahman without any effort on His part.” According to the Vedic tradition, the Vedas are absolute and self-authoritative. They depend on nothing but themselves for explanation. This very principle comes from the mouth of
Sri Krsnna in Bhagavad-gita (3.15): brahmaksara-samudbhavam. “The Vedas are directly manifested from the infallible Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
The commentator Sridhara Svami (Bhavarthadipika 6.1.40) points out that the Vedas are supremely authoritative because they arise from
Narayana Himself. Jiva Gosvami notes that the Vedic scripture
Madhyandina-sruti attributes all the Vedas (Sama, Atharva, Rg and Yajur), as well as the
Puranas and Itihasas, to the breathing of the Supreme Being. Finally, the Atharva Veda states that
Krsna, who in the beginning instructed Brahma, disseminated Vedic knowledge in the past.
Thus, as we have seen, the Vedic scriptures delineate their own origin. The scriptures describe themselves as
apauruseya, meaning that they do not come from any materially conditioned person but from the Supreme (a source transcendental to mundane duality). Vedic knowledge was imparted to
Brahma at the dawn of creation. Brahma then instructed Narada, whose realizations appear throughout Vedic literature.
Vedic knowledge is considered eternal, but because the material cosmos is constantly in flux, Vedic teachings constantly need reassertion. Although the material cosmos is also considered eternal, it goes through stages of creation, maintenance, and annihilation. Formerly the Vedas came down by word of mouth, but later the sage
Vyasadeva compiled all the Vedic shastras in written form. In a separate chapter we shall examine Srila
Vyasadeva’s role and the history of the compilation of the Vedas. We shall also consider how scholars try to understand the origins and history of the Vedic literature through the empiric method.
The Vedic Process of Learning
We can see in the Vedic verses an inexorable link between the substance of Vedic knowledge and the means for receiving it (between the Vedic message, we could say, and the Vedic medium). In contrast with Western conceptions, Vedic epistemology favors the process called
shabda (hearing from Vedic literature), out of three possible knowledge-gaining processes.
The first process, pratyaksa (empiric sensual perception), depends on correction from outside sources. For example, to our eyes the sun may seem no larger than a coin, but from scientific calculation we learn that our senses mislead us—the sun is many times larger than the earth.
The second knowledge-gaining process, anumana (theories based on evidence), cannot give knowledge of what is beyond the range of proof. Charles Darwin’s theories and much of archaeology and anthropology rely upon such inductive conjecture (“It may have been like this, or perhaps it was like this”). According to the Vedas,
anumana cannot independently lead to perfect knowledge. The Vedas assert that objects beyond material nature cannot be known experimentally. These objects are therefore called acintya. That which is acintya cannot be known by speculation or by argument but only by
shabda, the process of hearing from Vedic literature.
Indeed, shabda, the third knowledge-acquiring process, is considered the most reliable and important. For, since human beings are limited and imperfect, their perception, theories, and speculations cannot be perfect. With the exclusion of
shabda, the Vedas estimate all knowledge to be defective in four ways. First, regardless how bright or precise a person may be, the Vedas affirm that he cannot escape mistakes—“to err is human.” Second, a human being is subject to illusion. For instance, the
shastras mention that every materially conditioned being is under the illusion that the body is the self. Whatever his position in the world, a person is under illusion if he thinks of himself in terms of nationality, religion, race, or family. (A person’s first step in transcendental knowledge, according to the Vedas, is realizing that his identity is beyond the temporary material body.)
Third, every person has limited or imperfect senses. For instance, in a darkened room he cannot see his hand before his face. Finally, the Vedas maintain, everyone has a tendency to cheat. For example, a man who presumes to instruct others although defective himself is actually cheating, because his knowledge is imperfect.
Vedic knowledge is shabda, knowledge through hearing from higher authority, and it is therefore considered perfect. The Indian scholar Mysore Hiriyanna writes, “The
Vedanta never dispenses with reason, and the
Upanisads are themselves full of arguments. All that is questioned is the final validity of reason in matters which do not come within its purview.”
To cite a traditional example, if a child wants to know who his father is, he should ask his mother. He may make a survey of the male population, but much more simply, he can ask his mother, the natural authority. In other words, if a person can accept information given by an authority, he does not have to take the trouble to research independently. The
Sabda method, by which we accept authority, is imperative when we inquire about subject matter beyond the purview of the senses and reason. We may note that in the Vedic conception authority has no Western-styled negative connotations. The term refers not to a dictator but to a deliverer of primary knowledge. For instance, Shakespeare himself is naturally the authority par excellence on the works of William Shakespeare.
Aural reception of transcendental knowledge from authority is the Vedic standard. Whereas material knowledge pertains to things within the material universe, transcendental knowledge pertains to things beyond this universe. The Vedas point to a supreme original truth unknowable either by direct perception
(pratyaksa) or by the inductive method (anumana). When, by aural reception from authority, a person gains transcendental information, he becomes completely fulfilled and happy. He transcends the dualities of the material world. On the other hand, when he follows the empiric tradition, he comes to regard anything outside sensual perception or induction as faith, dogma, intuition, or belief. He concludes, as does A. B. Keith, “Such knowledge as is not empirical is meaningless and should not be described as knowledge.”
The Vedic philosophers claim that shabda (hearing from an authority) opens up a realm of knowledge beyond scientific methodology. They hold
shabda to be the only process by which we can know what is unknowable in our present conditioned state. To know his father, a child has no other recourse than to ask his mother. This is a matter not of faith, dogma, or feeling, but simply of hearing from one who knows.
If a person can learn from someone who has received perfect knowledge, he can get free from all misery. “Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master,” the
Gita (4.34) enjoins. “Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth.” In the Vedic tradition, only the person who has “seen the truth” can be the ideal teacher, the guru. In addition, the
Mundaka Upanisad (1.2.12) enjoins that a sincere student has to approach the ideal guru to receive transcendental knowledge and enlightenment.
Madhva, one of the principal teachers of Vedic philosophy, commenting on the
Vedanta-sutra (2.1.6), quotes the Bhavisya Purana as follows:
“The Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda, Atharva Veda, Mahabharata [which includes the
Bhagavad-gita], Pancaratra, and the original Ramayana are all considered Vedic literature.… The Vaisnava supplements, the
Puranas, are also Vedic literature.”
We may also include corollary literatures like the Samhitas, as well as the commentaries of the great teachers who have guided the course of Vedic thought for centuries.
Some scholars say that only the original four Vedas—Rig, Atharva, Yajur, and Sama—are genuine Vedic
literatures.
The Vedas themselves, however, do not support this view, nor do the most prominent Vedic teachers, including
Shankara, Ramanuja, and Madhva. The Chandogya Upanisad (7.1.4) mentions the Puranas and
Itihasas, which are generally known as histories, as the fifth
Veda. And Bhagavata Purana (1.4.20) confirms, “The historical facts and authentic stories mentioned in the
Puranas are called the fifth Veda.”
In any case, to be accepted as Vedic, a literature must maintain the same purpose as the original Vedic texts. The Vedic scriptures (sastras) comprise a harmonious whole with a harmonious conclusion (siddhanta). Consequently, we may accept as a bona fide Vedic writing any work that expands on the Vedic
siddhanta without changing its meaning, even if the work is not one of the original scriptures. In fact, the Vedic tradition necessitates further authoritative works that convey the Vedic message according to time and place.
However, to be genuine, these extensions of Vedic literature must strictly conform to the doctrines of the Vedas, the
Puranas, and the Vedanta-sutra.
Vedic literature is neither dead nor archaic. Nevertheless, any literature—be it ancient or modern—must be considered non-Vedic if it deviates from the Vedic
siddhanta Thus Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, though definitely outgrowths of Vedic literature, are not considered Vedic. Even the conception of Hinduism is alien to the Vedic conclusion, as we shall see later.
The Purpose of the Vedic Literature
As its main purpose, the Vedic literature imparts knowledge of self-realization and, therefore, liberation (moksa) from suffering. Generally, scholars agree that the goal of Indian thought is to attain the truth, “the recognition of which leads to freedom.” “Every Indian system seeks truth, not as academic, ‘knowledge for its own sake,’ but to learn the truth which shall make all men free.” Indeed, Indian thought strives not for information but for
transformation.
Bhagavad-gita describes knowledge as “accepting the importance of self-realization, and philosophical search for the Absolute Truth.” Yet if people think they are progressing on the path of material happiness, they will not seek to transform themselves. Hence, another
important realization; janma- mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-dukha-doshanudarshanam:
the “perception of the evil of birth, death, old age, and disease”
(Bhagavad-gita 13.9).
Uncompromisingly, the Vedic literature asserts that despite its apparent joys, material life means suffering. Vedic knowledge purports to free the sincere inquirer from that suffering. According to
Bhagavad-gita (Bg. 8.16),
“From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place.”
Apart from the repeated miseries of birth, old age, disease, and death, the Vedic writings describe another threefold set of miseries: miseries arising from the body itself, miseries inflicted by other living entities, and miseries arising from natural disturbances (such as severe cold, heat, flood, earthquake, or drought). Vedic teachers argue that even if these latter miseries were absent, no one could find happiness in the material world—the forces of time and death force everyone to leave his position. Indeed, the Sanskrit description of the earth is
Mrtyuloka, place of death. It is also dukhalayam (a place of miseries) and asashvatam (temporary) (Bg. 8.15).
On hearing this sweeping analysis of life in the material world, Albert Schweitzer termed the Vedic philosophy “world- and life-negation.” Others have stated that the Vedas teach pessimism and fatalistic resignation. But when we view the Vedas closely, we can discern that they teach quite the opposite; they propose that the purpose of human life is not to resign oneself to a temporary and miserable world, but to strive for permanent happiness. For people who follow the Vedic formula, life means an opportunity to attain victory over death.
In the Vedic conception, a person negates life precisely when he identifies the illusory body with the self and considers the temporary world to be all-in-all. Such a person misses the opportunity afforded a human being—the opportunity to inquire about the Supreme.
The first verse of the Vedanta-sutra (athato brahma-jijnasa) is both a declaration and an invitation to everyone: “Now, therefore, let us inquire into the Absolute Truth.” The Vedas urge that people take to the path of liberation. In one Bengali devotional song we find, “Lord
Gauranga is calling, ‘Wake up, sleeping souls! How long will you sleep on the lap of the witch called
Maya [material illusion]? ”
The Vedas describe liberation as a special prerogative granted to human beings and not to the lower species. For this reason the human body is compared to a boat by which one can cross the ocean of transmigration. A good Vedic instructor who has learned the Vedas is like a competent captain, and the Vedic hymns are like favorable breezes. If a person doesn’t cross the ocean and attain eternal liberation, he is considered unintelligent, for Vedic philosophy denies the importance of any knowledge that does not lead to the cessation of suffering. The Garga
Upanisad advises, “He is a miserly man who does not solve the problems of life as a human and who quits the world like a cat or a dog, not understanding the science of self-realization.”