MEANING AND EXPLANATION OF SOME VEDIC MANTRAS
First Mantra
विश्वानि देव सवितर्दुरितानि परा सुव।
यद्भद्रं तन्न आसुव।।
-Yajurved 30//3
Meaning- O God! You are inspirer of all the happenings of the universe. May all our evils and griefs vanish and we get all the good qualities and good things.
Explanation- Everyone wants to remove his evils and griefs and to receive good qualities and good things. As such, follower of any sect can pray to God through this मन्त्र without any sort of reservations.
Here, in this मन्त्र, there is a mention of three words, meanings of which need contemplation. First word is prayer. A desire can become prayer only if it contains gravity. There can be imagination or even desire for certain unknown and unpossessed things but it cannot become a prayer. The basic element of prayer is a burning desire to possess a thing and it, that is, burning desire to possess a thing can be had only on understanding the value or meaning of that thing. A person praying for a thing without knowing the meaning of that thing can be called nothing but a fool. Generally, people pray for realization of God, salvation and freedom from the bondage of births and deaths without knowing the meaning of these phrases or words. By making such prayers, they, only, add to their sins. Second word is ‘evil or bad’. Bad is a relative term. A thing can be good or bad from different perspectives. Crux of the meaning of this word is-everything harmful for self for attaining the ultimate goal can be called to be ‘bad’. Presence of even a single evil can make your journey of life impossible. If whole of the body of a person is very strong but a very small cut is there on one of his toes, then, whole of his work will get hampered. As such, in this मन्त्र, God has been prayed for removal of all, repeat all evils. Third word is ‘benevolent or good’. All the things (living and non-living) which aim at removal of obstacles on the path of realization of God can be called to be ‘benevolent or good’.
Here, in this मन्त्र, there is a mention of God’s impelling or inspirational or stimulating power. This can only be understood through a worldly example. When rays of the Sun fall on living and non-living organisms, the rays awaken the energies, already present in these organisms. There is no cause and effect relation between rays of the Sun and the organisms. Just like worldly sun, God, too, stimulates souls. It is wrong to believe that God makes souls act in the way He wants. Souls are totally independent to do whatever they want and God’s inspirational power in no way cause dependency of souls’ actions. If, God wants evils to exist in the world, then, praying for removal of evils becomes meaningless. Again, a worldly example is given for making the concept of God’s inspiration understood in the right spirit. Rays of the Sun inspire both the seeds of chillies and that of mangoes alike. Because of contribution of rays of the Sun, one type of seeds produce tanginess and the other type of seeds produce sweetness. Rays of the Sun do not produce tanginess or sweetness. They only inspire the seeds to manifest their natural powers. Similarly, feeling of theism inspires human beings to manifest their natural powers. On manifestation of their natural powers, malignant, harmful and injurious tendencies and things get automatically removed, in the way, germs of a disease meet their ends on attacking a strong man. Theism raises spiritual powers of man (by manifestation of his natural powers) to such an extent that evils cannot stand before such a person. This is the only difference between a theist and an atheist.
Nothing is received free. Everything has to be earned. Going by the same logic, removal of evils has to be earned by praying for manifestation of natural or inherent powers of the self. Prayers to God for receiving external things are meaningless.
Greatness of God’s inspirational power can be understood through another worldly example. Donation of alms can bring fame to the donator but it does not increase the capability of beggars. But, if, instead of donation of alms, capability of the beggars can be increased, they will not require donations anymore. God’s inspirational power awakens the inherent powers of living and non-living things.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Second Mantra
अग्ने नय सुपथा राये अस्मान् विश्वानि देव वयुनानि विद्वान।
युयोध्यस्मज्जुहुराणमेनो भूयिष्ठां ते नम उक्तिं विधेम।।
-Yajurved 5//36
Meaning- O God! You are the lighthouse and show the right path to everyone. You know everything. For meeting the worldly end, please show us the right path devoid of evils and crookedness.
Explanation- Here, in this मन्त्र, God has been called by the name-‘अग्नि’. ‘अग्नि’ is also the name of the fire. Fire emits light and in the dark, shows the path. The Sun is a body of fire and there is nothing else in this universe equivalent to the Sun, which can be called a lighthouse.
In the beginning of this world, man would have felt the necessity of a guide, who could show him the path. This necessity was fulfilled to some extent by this universe or nature. All the things of the nature from a small piece of grass to huge bodies like the Sun, teach man something or the other and an intelligent person remains anxious to learn from all these natural objects. But universe in itself is not capable enough to be a good teacher of man. We see in the world that small fish are eaten by the big fish. The sacrificing spirit is almost negligible in animals. We do not find husband-wife relationship in most of the mammals and since man, too, is a mammal, institution of marriage in man is considered by some elite to be unnecessary. From all such instances, we can easily conclude that blind following of nature is not advisable. Right path can be shown by a very intelligent entity. Accordingly, some have drawn the meaning of a ‘leader’ from the word ‘अग्नि’. Since, God only is the true leader and guide, it is right to draw the meaning of God from this word.
God has complete knowledge of everything whereas different things of the world throw light only on one or two perspectives of a thing. Since, God has complete knowledge of everything, the path shown by Him is straight and devoid of crookedness. Right path is only one. In a jungle, there may be hundreds of paths from one place to another. Some of them may lead us to the abodes of dangerous animals. These cannot be called right paths. Right path is always harmless. We develop ourselves, through following others but no one would like to follow bad men. As such, there is a prayer to God to direct us on a path, which is free from evils. Wrong paths have attractions but a person, who understands the crookedness of evils, fears from evils, in the way a child fears from fire. Best way to kill temptation of moving on the wrong path is to think of the disadvantages of that evil. An evil-doer finds it impossible to think of the disadvantages of the evil, at the time, it is tempting him. We can see, in the world, that a student, who gets pleasure in wasting time fails to fulfill duties of a student. Such a student fails to notice that his habit of wasting time was behind his failure in examination. A person, who succeeds in thinking of the disadvantages of the evils, is sure to have success.
In many prayers, there are words suggesting that we pray to God for thousand or million times. Pronunciation of such words refer to the burning desire to obtain the thing prayed for. And a person, who has a burning desire to obtain a thing, not only prays but exerts also according to his capability. वैदिक-मन्त्र do not accept the prayers, where, doer of prayer does not exert himself according to his own capacity to obtain the desired thing. Whatever is said, should be put into action by mind and behaviour.
In this मन्त्र, there is a prayer to God for guiding us toward the right path. Such a prayer is meaningful only if, it is made by the mover, who intends to go on that path. For instance, if a person does not intend to go to Delhi, then, the time-table or enquiry for going to Delhi is meaningless for him.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Third Mantra
विष्णोः कर्माणि पश्यत यतो व्रतानि पस्पशे ।
इन्द्रस्य युज्यः सखा।।
-Rigved 1//12//19
Meaning- O Man! See the activities of God. This helps you in following your resolutions. God is the fastest friend of soul.
Explanation- Here, in this मन्त्र, God has been called by the name ‘Vishnu’. By the word ‘vishnu’, omnipresence of God is meant.
The Spirit of theism is- God is creator of this universe. By the phrase ‘creator of the universe’, we refer to all the activities, because of which this universe happens to be a universe, that is, from the first movement in elements which caused the beginning of creation of the universe till the last activity resulting into creation of the universe and the activities because of which this universe is existing as a universe. Doer of all these activities is God. All the theistic sects of the world accept this truth. Activities of man are different from that of God. Maker of clay-pot is not in any way concerned with the causes of existence of clay and the presence of natural laws controlling the maintenance of clay-pot after it has been made, which means that man remains with his creation only till the time it has been made. Unlike this, God remains with His creation all the time, that is, till the time it is dissolved. In accordance with man-made creations, certain thinkers developed the view that God does create the world but does not dwell in it. As there are bad things also in the world, then, how can God exist in the bad things like mud, filth etc.? On the basis of this notion, the idea of separate abode of God called ‘heaven’ developed. Persons of such belief do not accept that God is present in hell as well as in heaven. वैदिक philosophy contradict such view or belief.
वैदिक philosophy accepts that God is not only, creator but also, preserver and dissolver of this world. There is no demarcating line among creation, maintenance or sustenance and dissolution. We cannot say that at a particular point of time creation has been completed and maintenance begins. Actually, creation, sustenance and dissolution refer to a continuous flow of innumerable activities. But, man because of his limited intellect draws boundaries among these activities. Let’s understand this through a worldly example. It is rightly said that movement of the Earth around the Sun creates day and night. But, a man, sitting in a space shuttle, cannot say that on a particular point of time, the Sun has risen and at another particular point of time the Sun has set in. Similarly, we cannot say that activities after creation and before dissolution do not require God. This वैदिक thought is very important. God called by the name ‘Vishnu’ refers to His attribute of omnipresence. There is nothing in the world, wherein God is not present. As such, there is no special abode of God called heaven.
Some thinkers are of the view that God does not come in the bondage of action and He is not doer of any action but only spectator. This is not only against vedaas but also is illogical. The basic difference between living and non-living things is while living things can act on their own whereas non-living things cannot do so. If God cannot act, then, He will come in the category of non-living things. If we do not consider God to be the creator of this universe, then we lose the very ground on which theism stands. Let’s contemplate over this concept through another way. On seeing a watch, you think that it has been made and decide to call the maker of the watch as watch-maker. Accordingly, you think of many attributes of watch-maker and compile the literature of watch-making. If, in the end, it is established that the person, called watch-maker does not exist or he is not maker of the watch but mere spectator, then, whole of the literature of watch-making will come to naught. Similarly, if, we consider that God is not the creator of the universe and this universe has been created by an entity different from God, then, the very basis of theism dwindles. Further, the persons, who consider God to be a mere spectator do not understand the meaning of this term. Spectation becomes meaningful only if, the spectator has the right to affect the observed.
Further, in this मन्त्र, man has been advised to look at the activities of God in order to strengthen his resolutions. Here, ‘looking’ does not mean simple ‘seeing’. Man sees many events of this universe like rising of the Sun, flowing of a river, growing of vegetation, thundering of clouds et cetera but simply seeing does not add to our knowledge leading us to understand the spirit of theism. A servant, who only sees the guest but does not enquire about him and try to know his purpose of visit and a watchman, who only sees the thieves and does not know his duties after seeing the thieves are useless. Many persons had seen the apples falling from trees but it was only Newton, who actually saw this event and discovered the force of gravitation. Here, ‘to see the activities’ means ‘to have knowledge of the reasons because of which these activities took place’. The act of man of looking at the activities of God is not meaningless. By looking at the activities of God, man channelizes his involuntary flow of actions towards meeting his ultimate objective. All actions are not resolutions. Resolutions are only those actions, which help in meeting the objective. It is human psychology to follow others. But the acts, done merely by following others cannot be called ‘resolutions’. As such, we should not try to copy God’s activities but keeping our objective in sight, we should select only those paths, moving on which can lead us to fulfill our objective. Man needs to decide about his resolutions by looking at God’s activities.
In the world, the scientists analyse God’s activities or the events of the nature and follow the same. As a result, on seeing a fish swimming, they invented boats and on seeing the birds flying in the sky, they invented aeroplanes. ‘Following’ is the base of science. But actual objective of science is fulfilled when man understanding the difference in goals of fish or birds and humans, uses the boats and aeroplanes for his own objective. This mantra supports science, whereas many of the prevalent sects consider unveiling the secrets of the world as atheistic. This is the reason of development of the notion that science and religion are two separate or different things, which can never combine. On viewing God’s activities with highest of intellects, we would see that basic rules behind different natural events and souls’ activities are same. Rules of non-violence, truth et cetera control the physical world as well as spiritual world. No one can be a theist by going against nature. It is similar to the fact that no one can be well-wisher of a kingdom by breaking the rules of that king.
But, why should we see God’s activities and follow them? This question has been answered in the last part of the मन्त्र, which says that we should follow God’s activities because He is the greatest and most capable friend of soul. Everything of this world advocates friendship of God and soul. For example, God has not only created eye, which is one of the greatest means of knowledge of souls but also has created the Sun for the help of this eye. There cannot be anyone bigger friend than Him, by viewing whose activities we could meet our resolutions correctly.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Fourth Mantra
ईशा वास्यमिदँ सर्वं यत् किञ्च जगत्यां जगत्।
तेन त्यक्तेन भुञ्जीथा मा गृधः कस्य स्विद्धनम्।।
-Yajurved 40//1
Meaning- Whatever activities and events exist in this world, God’s power penetrates them all. O Man! You enjoy the things of the world with detachment. Do not get attached with anything of the world. Whose money is this? That is, this money belongs to none.
Explanation- Here, in this मन्त्र, the basic criterion of this universe, its relation with the souls and God, probable mistakes of souls while living in this universe and the way of avoiding these mistakes have been mentioned. The basic criterion of this universe is its changefulness. Everything of the universe goes on changing. Some people say that the movement of the world is imaginary as to a person sitting in a moving car, trees on the road side seem as moving. Here, mind of such a person, who considers movements of this world as imaginary has to be considered as live or imaginary. This shows that movement is real & not imaginary. It connotes that the various systems of the world, too, are real. Here, systems refer to collective name of movements. Parts of a machine do not know that they are parts of the machine. Also, a machine does not know that which parts are its own. This knowledge is had by the maker of the machine. Likewise, it becomes necessary that this world, which is a great system has a creator. Some people have a notion that this great system named ‘world’ is automatic. Such people forget that even automatic machines have controllers. Existence of the systems proves that there is a creator of those systems, that is, God. To make the movements possible in everything, He remains present in everything of the world.
Now, what should be the relation of soul with the ever changing things of the world? Moving on a path is possible only if we detach our back foot and place it ahead, that is, we will not be able to move forward, if our feet get attached to the path. Path is a mean of travelling but only if it does not get attached with the traveller. Path on its own does not attach itself with the traveller, rather, it is the traveller, who clings to the path. The travellers, who wish to reach at their destinations must not get attached to the various attractions, present on the way. This world, which is required to be passed by soul, is like a beautiful garden. The soul, who gets caught by the attractions of the garden, cannot cross it to achieve his goal. While crossing this garden, soul can use its various things according to his needs and should consider it a mean of achieving his goal. This is a path to move on and not a place to stay at. Sacrificing spirit is the gist of usage of the various things of the world. Sacrificing does not mean non-usage, rather, it means non-attachment. Real pleasure is received when a thing is enjoyed with detachment. Pain is not in enjoyment but it is in the attachment. We cannot do away with usage of worldly things. It is not possible that we do not eat anything and do not get elated on viewing a beautiful thing. As long as, we are alive, we have to enjoy worldly things and to avoid over-enjoyment, there is an advice of detachment. Last part of the मन्त्र says that things of the world are not for any particular soul. The things of the world at one point of time belongs to one soul and at another point of time belong to another soul. As such, this मन्त्र speaks of four major things-(1) Reality of the systems of the world (2) God to be the master of the world (3) Things of the world are meant for usage (4) Non-attachment with the things of the world.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Fifth Mantra
हिरण्यगर्भः समवर्तताग्रे भूतस्य जातः पतिरेक आसीत्।
स दाधार पृथिवीं द्यामुतेमां कस्मै देवाय हविषा विधेम।।
–Rigved 10//121//1
Meaning- Before this creation, there was an entity, wherein all the things of the world existed in seed form. That entity was the one and only master of the universe. That God maintains this earth and all the celestial bodies. We should worship that God with all our possessions.
Explanation- Questions, which get raised in the minds of all intellectuals on seeing this creation are-How was this world made? Who made this world? What state existed before creation of the world?
For making a thing, three types of causes need be there. First is agental cause. It refers to the maker of a thing. Second is material cause. It refers to the materials out of which a thing is to be made. Third is the general cause like hands, tools, knowledge for making, time and place. To better understand this whole concept, let’s illustrate it with a worldly creation like making of a clay-pot. Now, for making of a clay-pot, firstly, the maker of pot is must, secondly, there must be clay which is to be transformed into a pot, thirdly, the knowledge of making the pot, the means necessary for making the pot- hands etc. should be available. Existence of maker of a thing only cannot make a thing. Making of a thing requires presence of other two causes too. Some sects believe that for creating the world, God did not need anything else. He wished and the world was created out of nothing.
This मन्त्र says that this world was not made out of nothing. Nothing is possessed by everyone including all lazy persons and poor persons. If, something more than nothing is required, effort or exertion is needed for that. If, this world was made out of nothing, then, why there is necessity of sowing the seeds of wheat for having the production of wheat and that of sowing the seeds of mangoes for having the production of mangoes. Further, this मन्त्र says that before manifestation of the things of the world, they existed in the seed form in the womb of God. It could not be womb of nature as nature is non-living. If a goldsmith could make ornaments without gold, then he would be called a magician and not a goldsmith. Creation is not a handiwork of a magician. God never creates without a material cause. Even today, in God’s creation, water is converted into steam and steam further gets converted into clouds. Clouds are neither made of sand nor devoid of water. God is as powerful today as He was before creation of this world.
God not only creates this world but also maintains it. The basic difference between creation of God and creation of man is- while man separates himself from the thing, after it has been made but unlike this, God remains forever with His creation and assumes the responsibility of maintaining the same. He is the controller of all living and non-living things of the world. He is one and not many. Existence of same rules in whole of the universe proves that controller of this universe is one. He is rightly called master of the universe. God, who keeps the universe in its seed form in His womb maintains or nurtures it in its manifested form.
In the last part of the मन्त्र, man has been advised to worship Him with all his possessions. Worship of that great master should be through mind, speech and behaviour. Our minds should contemplate the attributes of the controller of the universe. We should speak only good things and our acts should be for the welfare of others.
This मन्त्र establishes the following things through verbal testimony:
- God was present before creation of the world.
- All the materials, out of which God created this universe were present in God’s womb in seed form.
- He has created this universe and is maintaining or nurturing it.
- He is one and not many.
- We should worship only Him.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Sixth Mantra
इन्द्र मृळ मह्यं जीवातुमिच्छ चोदय धियमयसो न धाराम्।
यत् किंचाहं त्वायुरिदं वदामि तज्जुषस्व कृधि मा देववन्तम्।।
-Rigved 6//47//10
Meaning- O omnipotent God! Be kind enough to give us livelihood. May our intellects be sharp like a sword. May I love you with all my heart and you fulfill all my prayers. May I have the qualities of the great men.
Explanation-
Livelihood
Here, livelihood refers to all the means required for leading a good life. To keep our lives in good shape, we require food, cloths, habitats and medicines. For entertainment, we require beloved ones and friends. To be saved from the attacks of our foes, we require protectors. For mental satiety, we require admirers and followers. All these are means for leading a healthy life. But healthy life, too, needs a goal or purpose. Suppose, we own a vehicle, which is good to look at and strong enough, but, if we are not to go anywhere, then such a vehicle loses its meaningfulness. Everything possesses three qualities-utility, durability & beauty. Out of these three qualities, utility of a thing is the most important. Quality or durability occupies second place. If there is no use of a strong and beautiful thing, then, it is a waste. Use of a thing is possible only if it remains durable for a while. Beauty occupies the last place. It is a relative quality. If a beautiful thing lacks utility, it starts looking ugly. In the world, we see that parents love and prefer the ugly son, who obeys them and remains in their service.
If God has been kind enough to bestow human life on us, then, his kindness is again prayed for, for giving us the right means for leading a healthy life. Foremost of these means is the love for life. May we have the desire of keeping our lives healthy by recognizing His kindness of bestowing human lives on us.
In many literary works, we find the writings saying that a thing received free of cost loses its recognition by the possessor. वैदिक philosophy does not say that life is received free of cost. No doubt, this body is given by God out of His kindness but He gives this body in accordance with our past earnings. As such, we should have love and respect for our life, which should be reflected through all our actions. Life is very valuable and it should be sacrificed for a thing, which is more valuable than life itself. Purpose of creation of this world is more valuable than life. Accordingly, life can be sacrificed for meeting the purpose of creation. As such, to commit suicide is the greatest sin.
Importance of sharpness of intellect
It is really difficult to safeguard such a valuable life. There are many hurdles in this way. Some of these hurdles come in the form of avarice. The basic problem in meeting these hurdles is that we find difficulty in recognizing hurdles as hurdles. Man’s greatest weakness is that he recognises his foes as his friends and his friends as his foes. If we analyse human life, we will find that man gets pains because he considers his foes as his friends and harmful things as beneficial ones. Only a sharp intellect can resolve this difficulty. That person is the weakest, whose intellect is blunt. Use of intellect is discouraged especially in religious fields. Intellect gets sharpened by questioning spirit but religious teachers of many sects discourage this questioning spirit of the people by saying that exploration of the secrets of the world is against the desire of God. But vedaas do not teach this. Without using our intellect, how would we come to know that which principles of which teacher are acceptable and which principles of which teacher are unacceptable? All the sects consider their preachers to be true and preachers of other sects to be wrong. Except intellect, we possess nothing to distinguish between truth and untruth.
It is true that man’s intellect is small and it cannot comprehend subtle matters. It is also true that intellects of all the persons is not equal. Even knives are not equal in sharpness. For hard substances, sharper knives are required as compared to for soft substances. Here, nowhere negation of intellect is meant. If we do not use our intellect considering it small, then, it will bring two disadvantages. Firstly, we will be devoid of the armour we have in our fight against ills. What else, except intellect, we have? Secondly, with the non-use of intellect it will become blunter and blunter. With the regular usage, even a blunt intellect becomes sharper with the passage of time and if, intellect is not used at all, then, even sharp intellect becomes blunt. As such, the greatest foe of ‘धर्म’ is the person, who in the name of his sect advises non-usage of intellect. Intellect can be sharpened only through usage. In the world, we see that everyone from a fruit seller to a preacher of salvation, tries to befool us. Like goodness of fruits, way to the salvation, too, will be judged by the intellect. The वैदिक principle is- a thing should be agreed to, only if, it is acceptable to the intellect. For these reasons, in this मन्त्र, intellect has been compared with a sharp sword and intellect, capable of understanding the ultimate truth has been prayed for.
True worshiper
A true worshiper cannot pray for a thing, which is against the will of God. He does not pray for any specific condition but remains happy in the ways of God, even if those ways are seemingly disadvantageous to him. A worshiper moves closer to God to the extent he accepts the ways of God from his heart. As such, the prayers, wherein, the worshiper clings to his demands are against vedaas.
Objective of praying
In the last part, the मन्त्र specifies that a worshiper prays for the things from God with the objective of becoming a great human being. If the attributes of God do not flow in the worshiper, then his worship becomes meaningless. Meaningfulness of life lies in reaching the level of the greatest of men from the level of ordinary human beings.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Seventh Mantra
सं गच्छध्वं सं वदध्वं सं वो मनांसि जानताम्।
देवा भागं यथा पूर्वे संजानाना उपासते।।
-Rigved 10//191//2
Meaning- O Men! Bring oneness in your walking and talking. May minds of you all meet at one place in your search for truth. By oneness of your thinking, speech and actions, you decide about share of each with love on the foot-prints of learned ones, that is, great men.
Explanation- This mantra preaches about the ways of making and maintaining a good human society and the methods by which the highest benefit can be obtained from it. It refers to the crux of Rigved.
This preaching is for humans, since other animals can be benefited by a disciplined human society only.
Man is a gregarious animal. Animals like pigs, cows, crows, bees, ants et cetera, too, live in groups but it is really a big task to create human societies and maintain them. It needs very intelligent planning. Similar types of organisations of animals other than humans are seen from time immemorial without any need of any social-literature. But, for creation of a good human society, social-literature is regularly made according to different times and different civilizations.
There are three methods of bringing oneness in humans. These methods are-walking, speaking and thinking. Society does not refer to groups. Even, ten organised men can be called a society if, they have the qualities of a good society. Building a good society needs proper planning behind it.
O Men! Bring oneness in your walking. How is it possible? Speed of everyone varies. A slow person does not have the capability to walk faster and why should a quick-walker curtail his speed? But, if, all the people think like this, then, a good society cannot be made and without a good social structure, man cannot progress. Control by quick-walkers over their speeds and exertion on the part of slow-walkers are two means of bringing oneness in walking. Concept of oneness in walking can be better understood by looking at the parade of soldiers. In a parade of soldiers, there are hundreds of men having different speeds of walking. But, their control is such that when, one person raises his right foot, then, all the others, too, raise their right feet. A soldier having the capacity to walk faster controls his speed and lowers the same a bit and a soldier having a slow speed raises his speed a bit. An army, which does not possess the quality of moving at the same speed cannot be called disciplined one and such an army cannot conquer its foes. As such, this मन्त्र reiterates the fact that progress or development of a society does not depend upon the number of its members. Instead, members of a society should be disciplined enough to bring coordination in their movements.
The mean of bringing coordination in the movements is communication through sweet voice. Voice of the commander saying left, right coordinates the movements of all the soldiers. Suppose, a father wants his kid to move along with him. Child says that he has not the capacity to move at the speed of his father. Father replies that the kid need not worry. Further, he says that he will move at a slow speed and asks his kid to hold one of his fingers. Communication inspires the kid to move faster. From this instance, we can rightly conclude that speech or voice is inspirer of feet, where, feet represent movements. Voice is subtler than feet and mind is subtler than both of these two.
This मन्त्र, further, says that all the members of a society should have oneness in their thoughts and this is the greatest mean of making a good society. The origination of conflicts and quarrels lies in difference in thoughts. Difference of thoughts create un-rests in the society. As such, the biggest mean of building a society is to have meaningful meetings. In the meetings, the persons having different view-points sit together and have discussions on a particular topic. Discussions enable man to coordinate his view-point with that of the others. Every thought towards selfish gains includes an element of harm and this element of harm gets visible or understandable through healthy discussions. In politics, there is a great importance of such discussions or negotiations.
Lastly, this मन्त्र points towards the method adopted by the learned fellows for distributions of various assets of the universe among different souls. All the living beings require a portion of this universe for healthy living. Non-learned fellows are guided by their vested interests towards this end whereas for learned ones, welfare of others assumes the priority and the other people take care of the requirements of the learned ones by following their foot-steps. ‘यज्ञ’ means all actions done for the welfare of others. As such, we can say that a good society is built by ‘यज्ञ’ and all persons get their due parts in the universe through it.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Eighth Mantra
कुर्वन्नेवेह कर्माणि जिजीविषेच्छतं समाः।
एवं त्वयि नान्यथेतोऽस्ति न कर्म लिप्यते नरे।।
-Yajurved 40//2
Meaning- Man should wish for an active life of hundred years. This is the only mean to be free from bondage. There is no other way out.
Explanation- This mantra shows the importance of karmas, that is, actions. Main concept of this mantra is-
“Do actions. Only actions can make you free from the bondage”.
This sentence seems to be a paradox, which gets cleared on elaboration. Actions create bondage and to be free from these bondage, only actions are the means. But such actions are of different sort. Let’s explain this concept through an example. Ill-will creates diseases. Here, ill-will refers to actions and diseases refer to bondage. Diseases can be got cured through treatments, which are another kind of actions.
There is a notion that God decides as to who is to remain in bondage and who is to be freed from bondage irrespective of his karmas. This has, further, resulted into another notion that government has built very strong jails and whatever a jailed person may try, he cannot be free from the bondage of jail. To say it in in other words, some people believe that one can do nothing but wait till God wills to free him from bondage. Number of people having such a notion is the highest among the so called theists. Such a notion has resulted into inertness.
All the actions cannot free one from bondage. Actions like breaking the jail or befooling the watchman do not lose bondage, rather, because of such actions bondage become stricter.
All persons live but very few people think about what they will do by living. There is no meaning of living without a desire to do karmas. Had God willed man to lead an inactive life, He would not had bestowed man with knowledge-senses, that is, eyes, ears, nostrils, taste-buds, skin and karam-senses, that is, hands, feet, speaking ability of tongue, genital organ, anus. God has instilled in all our organs some sort of inspiration to be engaged continuously in doing karmas. The karmas, which we do willfully give us pleasure and the karmas, which we do unwillingly become means of our bondage. People enjoy walking but if there is a compulsion or an order to walk irrespective of one’s will, then, even walking would lose its enjoyment. As such, there is an advice, in this mantra, to man to wish to live for hundred years and to lead a life of concrete planning towards moving forward on the path of his ultimate goal. A person, who intelligently plans his karmas and tries to move according to that, breaks the shackles of all bondage. A prisoner, who continuously does his assigned tasks & behaves well with others, becomes free from the bondage of prison one day.
There can be three types of defects in doing karmas-not doing the duty, doing undutiful actions and doing the duty the wrong way. Karmas with any of these three defects become the reason of bondage. When, it is said that we cannot remain for a moment without doing any karma, then, it never means that we should do any action without thinking of its results. Actually, there cannot be any karma without thinking of its result. A farmer before sowing wheat thinks of the benefit he would drive by sowing wheat. Here, the thought of result or fruit is not ignored. What concerns, here, is mentality of doing karma. When, it becomes certain that a particular action is our duty, then, it is not right to go on pondering over the fruit. To understand this concept, let’s take the help of an example. Suppose, you are employed in a company. You accepted the job only when it became certain that you will get so much pay for the job. But, when you are on the job, you think only of the work at hand and do not go on pondering over your salary. An employee, who leaves thinking of his work and remains busy in thinking of the salary cannot be called a good worker.
Some people think that this mantra is not for learned ones and learned fellows do not need to do their duty. There is an assumption that knowledge and karmas are two separate things. But, actually, such is not the case. Only a knowledgeable person can perform his duties well. This fact can be verified from our day to day incidents. When, there is no coordination between mind, hands, feet et cetra, then, it is said to be a state of insanity. Actually, this mantra advises man to do all his duties with thorough application of mind and with proper knowledge as this is the only way to be free from the bondage of actions.
Many knowledgeable persons might have propagated the theory of difference in knowledge and karmas by way of their commentaries of vedaas probably, for the reason of fighting with certain prevalent conditions of their times. But, this was an imaginary remedy which cured one disease and created another. Such sort of commentaries of vedaas drove man away from the knowledge hidden in these mantras.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Ninth Mantra
सहृदयं सांमनस्यमविद्वेषं कृणोमि वः।
अन्यो अन्यमभि हर्यत वत्सं जातमिवाघ्न्या ।।
-Atharv ved 3//30//1
Meaning- I make you a person of good mind and heart. One human being should behave with another in the way cow behaves with her new born baby.
Explanation- In this mantra, there is a great teaching as to how one should behave with others. Here, the sentence- ‘I make you a person of good mind and heart.’ means that the purpose of this teaching of mine is that you become so. The style of all the vedic mantras is such that they are teachings from God to man or from teachers to their disciples or from the preachers to listeners. All the teachings of the preachers should be such that man can improve his behaviour by that.
An ideal human being possesses two basic qualities. First, he possesses a loving heart and does not have any ill feelings towards anybody. Second, he is intelligent enough to comprehend the spirit of everything. If, one has loving heart only and does not possess the decisive power of mind, then he cannot do welfare of the world. An unintelligent person is harmful not only for his own self but also for others. Suppose, you are sleeping and a bee sits on your nose. An unintelligent friend of yours, who loves you very much is sitting beside you. Out of love for you, he intends to save you from his sting. For saving you from his sting, he picks up a stone and strikes the same on your nose. Bee flies and your nose gets hurt. What will you say of such a friend? No doubt, this friend had a loving heart but had no mind. This world is full of such loving people, who do not have minds. Millions of foolish parents out of their love for their children destroy their future. Most of the people get involved in attachment and lust in the name of love, without understanding the real spirit of this word. A foe is said to be intelligent, if, he understands the importance of your friendship for his vested interests and befriends with you for the sake of his selfishness. Likewise, a person is intelligent, if, he understands that his welfare lies in welfare of others and so thinking, he devotes his actions for the welfare of others not for any charitable cause, but, for his own sake. Thinking bad of others is a contagious disease and it can be cured only by the combination of good heart and intelligent mind. This thought is there in many vedic mantras. Whenever, there is an emotion of hatred towards anything or anybody, remember that this mantra reiterates loudly that thinking so is against the purpose of creation as well as against the will of God.
In all the languages, three types of words are used as names of things. First type of words, used for names of things are those, where there is perfect correlation between the words used and qualities or nature of the things named. On a little deterioration, such words refer to mean only particular things possessing qualities or natures embedded in the word. On further deterioration, words used as name of things do not at all relate with the qualities or natures embedded in the words. For instance, there is a Sanskrit word ‘pankaj’, which means growing in water. All the things grown in water can be named as ‘pankaj’. But with a little deterioration, a particular flower grown in water is used to be meant by this word. When a particular person is named as Pankaj, it connotes to the stage when name of things do not at all relate with the qualities or natures embedded in the words.
The word ‘aganya’, used in this मन्त्र means all the things, which should not be killed. But, here, this word refers to a particular animal, that is, cow. Why is this word used to mean cow? Cow’s milk comes after that of the human-mother. For this reason, we happen to develop special regard for cow. Cow is epitome of love and generosity. Cow occupies a very important place in vedic culture. There are two primary needs of a child. First is cleansing and second is food. Human-mother gets occupied so much in her own weakness after giving birth that primary care of the new-born baby is taken by the close relatives of the human-mother whereas first act of cow after giving birth is to cleanse her new-born baby from the filth of the womb. Love of cow for her baby becomes the means of cleansing. Dirty things can be touched by hands or feet, smelled by nose but tongue is considered such a pure part of the body that everyone is disinclined in placing dirty things on his tongue. But, cow cleans the filth of the womb from her new-born baby by her tongue. After, getting cleaned, requirement of the new-born baby is food. Although, every mother is eager enough to feed her baby by her milk but not like cow. Love cannot be explained better by the example of love of cow for her new-born baby. Vedaas have beautifully described ‘love’, through the example of cow. This example teaches us that we should act for physical, mental and social cleansing of the persons coming in our contacts.
If, a rich man distributes cloths or food among the poor people and does not think of removing economic and social ills present in them, then, his act cannot be acclaimed. Most of the charitable or generous acts are done unintelligently and because of this reason, they increase social ills.
In the end, we can reiterate the teachings of this mantra in following sentences.
- Love all other beings.
- Combine your emotion of love with intelligence.
- Behave with others in such a way that there is no room for hatred.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Tenth Mantra
उद् वयं तमसस्परि स्वः पश्यन्त उत्तरम्।
देवं देवत्रा सूर्यमगन्म ज्योतिरुत्तमम्।।
-Rigved 1//50//10
Meaning- Rising above the darkness or evils, we saw light of God. On moving farther, we found more light and on still moving farther, we realized the illuminator of all illumined things, that is, God.
Explanation- Man engrossed in worldly affairs fails to see God, who is present in all worldly things. It is similar to our inability to see the shining sun, when whole of the atmosphere around us is covered by dense fog. Worldly affairs cover up the light just like fog. Everyone does not see God. Had God been visible to every person, all the persons of the world would have been theists and there would not have been any place for darkness or evil in the world. Seeing capacity of all persons is not the same. What to talk of Godliness, even physical things are not seen by all of us alike. The attributes, which a scientist can see in a plant cannot be seen by a kid. Eye of a gardener is more powerful than that of a common man and likewise, eye of a scientist is more powerful than that of a gardener. This fact establishes a very important truth that theism is not obtained instantly like a magic. A child studying letter by letter becomes capable of studying very difficult books after a period of time. If a person wants to become a mathematician, the knowledge of mathematics is not acquired by him in a day. Similarly, obtaining knowledge in any field takes time. In the same manner, theism cannot be acquired in a day. One cannot become a theist or have the knowledge of the biggest entity, that is, God by listening to a few discourses.
When, we are unable to see the sun because of fog, then, if, we move to a height, we will see the bright sun. Why? It is because, we have moved higher than fog. The fact, which applies on physical light, also, applies on mental and spiritual knowledge. For an illiterate person, a book is, as if, someone has spread ink on blank papers but when he starts moving towards literacy, then, every letter becomes representative of knowledge. One, who intends to realize God must raise himself higher than evils. Specific method of realising God has been explained in yog-sutras, wherein realisation of non-violence and truth have been mentioned to be the elementary steps for God-realization and truth et cetra. This method of realising God cannot be acquired or gained in a day. How can the persons, not willing to raise themselves above the darkness of untruth or violence realize God? Lives of great men represent the high altitudes, above which, light of wisdom become visible and for this reason they, that is, lives of great men are great inspirations for common man.
When, one sees a ray of light, he should not be satisfied by that condition. He should go on practicing. Soon, he would be able to see more light. Ultimately, on saturation of practice, he would be able to see the source of light, that is, God.
When, one rises above the darkness of evils, the light, which was earlier hardly visible to him becomes clearer and clearer and he begins to understand that light of God is brighter than all other lights and brightness of all other lights is because of the light of God. All the illumined objects of the world owe their illuminations to the light of God.
Looking in the upward direction for heaven, actually, connotes rising above the darkness of evils. Light of God is visible to that heart only, wherein darkness of evils has lessened. It is similar to the fact that a dirty mirror fails to reflect the light of sun.
In summation of this mantra, we can say that there is step by step development of theism. Higher stage is reached by continuous practice.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Eleventh Mantra
पर ऋणा सावीरध मत्कृतानि माहं राजत्रन्यकृतेन भोजम्।
अव्युष्टा इत्रु भूयसीरूषास आ नो जीवान् वरूण तासु शाधि।।
-Rigved 2//28//9
Meaning- O! Ruler of the world, may I be free from all my debts. May I not enjoy the pleasures earned by others. May the mental tendencies, which seemingly are givers of pleasure and ultimately result into darkness or miseries, do not afflict me, that is, my life is not burdened by any sort of debts.
Explanation– Before we move ahead for the explanation of the mantra, we must understand the meaning of calling God by the names of ‘varun’ or ‘ruler’ and ‘mitr’ or ‘friend’. Worldly rulers (kshattriyas) make use of the penal-provisions to safeguard their territories by spreading various legal rules in it. For instance, rules for moving on the road, rules for building houses, rules for cultivation of land, rules of marriage, rules of trading et cetra. If one breaks a rule, he is immediately caught hold of by the ‘men of the ruler’. In other words, ruler rules his territory by do’s and don’ts and penal-provisions. When God is called by the name of ‘varun’ or ‘ruler’, His quality of having do’s and don’ts and penal-provisions is referred to. There is another way of controlling the others without the use of penal-provisions. This method is used by brahmans, who preach the others to do the right things without the use of any sort of penal-provisions. Since they talk of the welfare of others, they are called ‘mitr’ or ‘friend’. This quality of God is referred to by calling Him by the name ‘mitr’ or ‘friend’. To understand the true meaning of many vedic mantras, one must keep in his mind the meanings of ‘varun’ or ‘ruler’ and ‘mitr’ or ‘friend’.
Key sentence of this mantra is ‘may I not enjoy the pleasures earned by others’ or ‘I may be dependent on my own earnings’. One, who lives on the earnings of others is in a way increases his debt, which has to be returned with interest. This increases worries as well as brings barriers or hurdles in fulfilment of duties. There are innumerable things in the world, but none is received free of cost. One has to pay a price for each of these things. Those, who wish to enjoy the things without the use of their own earnings get afflicted by the thought of returning the debt and those having the tendency of not returning their debts, are not pardoned by God at any cost. Accordingly, God has rightly been called by the name of ‘varun’ or ‘ruler’ in this mantra.
Taking debts is a symbol of lethargy. Not paying the debts is a social crime and such acts are penalised by God. As such, every devotee of God should try to escape debts of all sorts and if debts are taken by him in certain unavoidable circumstances, he should try his best to repay them at the earliest. Pleasures of worldly things can be had by the people, who are free from all debts. Man, burdened by debts prays to God to free him from the bondages of debts, so that he can enjoy the worldly things.
Only that person, who feels the burden of debt and whose dawns have lost their peacefulness, will try to repay his debt and enjoy the worldly and unworldly pleasures. Persons, who have the tendency not to repay the debt go on bouncing from one misery to another in their efforts to forgo their debts.
Pragmatically thinking, it is not possible that man does not have to take any debt during his life-time. The only possible thing is- he should repay his debts. In the initial stage one has to depend upon debt of some sort- economic or physical or ethical. But, till the time, there is a feeling of repayment of debt, social development is not effected in any way. For instance, debt plays a great role in flourishing of small businessmen but, when there are efforts for non-repayment of debt, then, neither banks nor businesses can flourish.
In a way, every man is debited to the others or we can say that we cannot enjoy even a single comfort without being debited to others. Many times, we even fail to know the persons, we get debited for being able to enjoy particular comforts. Suppose, you are going for a morning walk and you experience sweet smell of roses. Now, you are debited to the person, responsible for growing those flowers. If you realize this debt, you can get motivated to do actions for the welfare of others.
In this context, please think over this small story of children. Once a father promised his child to provide him a sweet named ‘Sheermaal’, the next day. On enquiry, father told the child that this sweet is prepared by thousands of men. Next day, when the child started crying about the sweet ‘Sheermaal’, his father bought him a few ‘jalebis’ (an Indian sweet). Child said, “This is not ‘Sheermaal’. ‘Sheermaal’ is prepared by thousands of men and here I cannot see even a hundred men.” His father said to his child, “These ‘jalebis’ are prepared by thousands of men. These ‘jalebis’ are made of flour of wheat. Wheat is grown by the farmers. Think of the contribution of number of men from cultivation of land and sowing of wheat to making of flour.” The child got astonished. His father continued, “You have not given it a deep thought. We have thought of only about flour of wheat. Think in this way about sugar and butter-milk. Then, think of the fire and fire woods on which these ‘jalebis’ have been cooked. Also, think about making of the utensils in which these ‘jalebis’ have been cooked. These utensils are made of iron. Iron is extracted from the iron-ore by the miners and transported to the factories, where these utensils are made.
This small story tells that whatever we enjoy is the result of direct or indirect contribution of millions of people and we become debited to them. The only way to repay this debt is by fulfilling our duty towards the society to our maximum with a feeling of welfare of others.
This world is a joint venture factory, where every man is co-owner. Till the time, every man enjoys its benefits in proportion of his contribution, none is debited to none, that is, all are debited to all. They take debts and repay them. No person has any problem with this system. When co-owners intend to enjoy more than their contributions out of their selfish interests, the factories crumble down.
The only way to be free from the clutches of ‘varun’ is to understand the system of debts and accordingly make a rule of life not to enjoy the worldly pleasures more than your contribution, that is, not to purchase anything by paying less than it’s worth and or to get anything free.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Twelfth Mantra
सक्तुमिव तितउना पुनन्तो यत्र धीरा मनसा वाचमकृत।
अत्रा सखायः सख्यानि जानते भद्रैषां लक्ष्मीर्निहिताधि वाचि।।
-Rigved १0//७१//२
Meaning- As ‘sattu’ is cleaned by filtering it in ‘chalni’, in the same way, intelligent men filter their speech in different subjects through their intellect. Other intelligent men are able to increase their good fortune and happiness by understanding the spirit of that speech.
Explanation– ‘Sattu’ is cleaned by means of ‘chalni’ in order to separate it from foreign and indigestible materials. In the same way, we should speak only after cleansing our speech by means of intellect. In this mantra, a great message has been given through the worldly examples of ‘sattu’ and ‘chalni’. Study of logic has been developed, so as to enable our intellect to understand fine and subtle things and if, vedic rhymes are used after understanding their spirit, only then we will be able to draw advantage out of them.
Our speech must have two qualities. First, it must be true and the second, it must be pleasant. Our speech should not depict untrue picture of things. Today, whatever is spoken in political arena is generally untrue as it is mainly aimed at pleasing the other. We can very easily find men who speak pleasant but untrue things just for certain vested interests. Also, if our speech is true only and is not pleasant, it fails to meet its purpose. It is like ‘sattu’, which contains hard pieces even after grinding. A speech, which has not been carefully controlled becomes a reason of quarrel in spite of being true.
Man is the only being, who uses language. This is the greatness of manhood. Language is the only mean to express thoughts, but the same language is used by many to conceal their internal feelings. The means of cleansing this language is intellect and intellect only. But, when language is used without cleansing it through intellect, then this human race is filled with ills, which even animals and insects do not possess. Whenever there are differences among men or one sect develops wrong notions about the other sect, this is achieved through the use of unfiltered speech. As such, it is rightly said that the speech, which is not cleansed through intellect generates misunderstanding and quarrel.
A preacher, who attains knowledge through the use of intellect and disseminates the same with pure heart is ‘sakha’ or friend and the result of this friendliness is prosperity and good fortune. Eloquence and good oration without the qualities of truth and pleasantness can become the reason of popularity and excitement, but can never be a source of welfare of others.
There are four defects of speech. One is harshness, the second is falsehood, the third is gossiping of all kinds and fourth is irrelevant talking. These four defects convert the eatable ‘sattus’ into non-eatables and convert friends into foes. The only mean of getting rid of these defects is using the speech after cleaning it through the ‘chalani’ of intellect.
When it is said that it is the duty of great men to read and make others read, listen and make others listen to the vedic mantras, then it is meant that those should be followed or put into our practice, only after verifying their meaning through intellect and understanding their spirit.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Thirteenth Mantra
द्वा सुपर्णा सयुजा सखाया समानं वृक्षं परि षस्वजाते।
तयोरन्यः पिप्पलं स्वाद्वत्त्यनश्नन्नन्यो अभि चाकशीति।।
-Rigved 1//164//20 and Atharv ved 9//9//20
Meaning- Two beautiful birds, who intermingle with one another and are friends, are present on a tree. Out of these two birds, one enjoys the fruits of the tree, while the other does not himself enjoys the fruits, but watches the other doing it, like a master.
Explanation– Here, two beautiful birds refer to God and soul, who are living on the same tree and are friends of each other. Tree, fruits of which are enjoyed by one of the birds refer to the Nature or Prakriti. It is astonishing that in the presence of this mantra, which supports and upholds the view held by Aryasmaj that there are three eternal entities-God, soul and nature, many scholars still advocate their theory that God and only God exists.
In spite of having such a clear mantra, different sects of Vedanta have tried unnecessarily to prove that there is only one entity named God in this world. Sayanaacharya has written certain verses in support of the view of vedantists, just for the fear that his works may not go against the prevailing thought pattern of vedantists. But, it becomes evident with a little contemplation that this mantra, in no way, supports the views of vedantists and instead proves the Vedic Trinity. After a thorough study of concerned texts, it becomes clear that how many myths have been spread in the society, just to nullify the teachings of the vedaas, which clearly mention the eternity of Jiva, Brahma and Prakriti. Now, we come to the explanation of this mantra.
This mantra uses ‘Luptopama Alankar in explaining its subject matter. In ordinary simile, the thing, which is to be described and the word through, which that thing is described are mentioned separately and the words ‘like’, ‘similar’, ‘such as’ et cetra are used to complete the simile but, in ‘Luptopama alankar’ these words are omitted. In other words, it can be said that in Luptopama Alankar, metaphor is used instead of simile. The concept will be clearer through an example. If, it is said that Rana Sanga was brave like a lion. The word ‘like’ in this sentence denotes two things. There was a harmony of fearlessness between Sanga and lion, yet Sanga was not a lion, he was a man. But, if someone on seeing Sanga says, “Look! The lion is coming.” Here, the word ‘like’ has been omitted, so that the similarity may shine brighter, and the difference disappears from the sight. This is the special significance of the Luptopama Alankar and keeping this thing in view will give better understanding of the mantra.
Here, in this mantra, tree means the material world or material body. Two birds, sitting on it are Jiva and Brahma. There is similarity as well as difference in them. The first similarity is that both have a residence on the same tree, whereas, the most important difference is that one eats the fruit, while the other does not. This distinction becomes clearer with a little contemplation. Take a look at your own body. You see with your eyes. You feel happy on seeing beautiful things and feel bad on seeing terrible sights. In both the states, you taste the fruit of the tree of the body – both the sweet fruit and the bitter fruit. You are the enjoyer of it. The eye is yours and is under you. If you want to keep your eyes closed, there will be neither joy on seeing a beautiful sight nor sorrow on seeing the ugly sight. But, even if you try, you will not succeed in it for long, because, your inner hunger will force you to enjoy them with your eyes open. If it were not for this inner hunger, the blind would never have longed for their eyes. You are the user of the eye. This is your natural nature. You have always been and will always be the enjoyer.
But, the ‘eye’ is not yours, even though it appears to be yours. You neither made the eye nor can you keep it completely under your command. When the eye is in pain, the eye throws off its submission and rebels against you. The eye is material, inert and void of consciousness. Why should it oppose you, unless there is another motivator? From this, it is known that apart from you, there is another being with the similar consciousness as you and that being is sitting on the same tree along with you. That other being does not make use of the eye itself, but presides over it.
Here, in this mantra, three things have been said to be there. One, you, who see with the eyes. Second, Brahma who makes the eye for you and takes care of it according to the situation, and third, the eye which is inert, that is, there are two birds on one inert tree. The master of the eye does not see with the eye, does not taste the fruit of the eye. But, collects the material for the enjoyer of the eye. Imagine, this presidency. You are the visitor, the guest in this inert creation. The host is someone else, who cooks the food, but, does not eat it. Innumerable creatures of the universe keep their eyes in their bodies for their enjoyment. None of these is the maker of their eyes. Many are so innocent like a child that, even on using their eyes to see the objects, they do not know that they have eyes. The child drinks mother’s milk, but does not know what the milk is and where it has come from. The eye being inert cannot create or destroy its own self. The president is needed for its creation and its destruction. Destruction or dissolution is also a change, which requires consciousness. Yes, one thing is for sure that both the birds- one, the enjoyer and the other, the presiding one, are clinging to each other in such a way that it is not knowable with an ordinary sight the limits of each other’s areas. When sugar and milk get mixed, it is difficult to know how much is milk and how much is sugar. Take another illustration. Sometimes, you must have noticed that two different vines climb the same tree. They are so clinging to each other that if different types of flowers or leaves of those two vines are seen on the top of the tree, it will be difficult to tell which vine belongs to which flower. Similar is the condition of these two birds. Often the intellects of great philosophers are confused whether a particular action is of the domain of soul or of Brahma. Where the enjoyment is clear, the existence of the soul is clearly definable, there. But, where there is no enjoyment, the existence of the president has to be assumed.
Take another example. When a creature dies, its soul comes out of its body. The dying feels that it is leaving its body. Bradlaw was a famous atheist thinker and philosopher from England. At the end of the nineteenth century, he started an Atheism Association. He used to say that if you believe in existence of souls in human beings, then, you will have to believe that dogs, too, have souls. Christian philosophers do not accept existence of souls in dogs. On this basis, Bradlaw did not accept souls in humans. But, it is heard that when he was dying, he felt that some unknown force was pushing him to leave his body. This incident of death is in front of everyone. The difference is only in the interpretation of the event. Nobody wants to die. The body, being inert, cannot take our soul out. We, the souls don’t want to leave our body. As such, we have to assume the existence of the third entity, which is the master of this body and which, forces souls to leave their bodies. Even from this, the analogy of a tree and two birds becomes very clear. Here, we have used the words enjoyer and president in place of the enjoyer and the seer, because, for the reason of not understanding the proper meaning of this mantra, some people got the impression that the soul should be called the enjoyer and the Brahma or God as the mere spectator. If God has no hand in the maintenance of the tree and the maintenance of the living beings, then, what is the meaning of the seer, what is the purpose and what is the glory of seer? But, vedaas clearly mention God not to be just a seer but, controller of prakriti and souls.
Think of any worldly event. You will clearly see these three beings – the inert tree, the less-knowledgeable enjoyer, and the omniscient presiding Brahma. They are connected with each other. No living being is separate from God, nor from nature. Nature, too, is not separate from God and is not such, which is not for the enjoyment of the soul. Neither God is separate from nature and living beings.
Now the question is, are these actually three beings or one? This is a complex question of philosophy. There are many isms like dualism, monism, specific dualism et cetra, and hundreds of texts will be found for the study of these subjects, which have propounded a lot in support of their opinion and a lot of efforts have been made to nullify this apparent trinity. Even though there is similarity between the soul and the Brahma, it is impossible to nullify the difference between these two. Misery and ignorance, are the two tenets which cannot ever be imposed on God. Attributes of less-knowledgeability, inertness and enjoyment are not found in Brahma. Some people think that all the worldly things are for God. It feels good to say this. A devotee can use any language but, the truth is not like this. The rituals concerned with feeding God or his representative is the result of this misconception. We impose nature of souls to enjoy worldly things on God, also. The rituals concerned with feeding God are nothing other than drama and are totally unscientific. The enjoyer is soul, so one should try to feed the souls present in living beings and should not try to feed God. Offering meat of living beings to gods and goddesses is also due to lack of knowledge of this Vedic Mantra.
If the secret of this mantra is understood by the people, then by understanding the relationship among nature, less-knowledgeable souls and the omniscient God, we can avoid many useless tasks and can prove to be more useful to the nation and to humanity, as a whole.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Fourteenth Mantra
ब्राह्मणोऽस्य मुखमासीद् बाहू राजन्यः कृतः।
ऊरू तदस्य यद् वैश्यः पदभ्यां शूद्रो अजायत।।
-Rigved १0//१0//१२, Atharv ved १९//६//६, Yajurved ३१//११
Meaning– The face of man has become a Brahmin. Both his arms were taken as Kshatriyaas. His two thighs are Vaishyaas. Shudraas were born out of feet.
Explanation– This mantra is one of those few Vedic mantras, which is familiar to most of the people. This mantra is considered to be the basis of the present caste discrimination and high and low class hatred prevailing among Hindus. If the myths are completely forgotten, and only the mantra is considered, then this Vedic mantra will prove to be a very strong foundation of Vedic sociology. Cream becomes mud on getting mixed with mud. Gold becomes dirty on coming under the control of fools. The medicine becomes poison on falling in the hands of bad doctor. These are simply the results of ignorance and this mantra is unfortunately a living example of these consequences, which destroyed the Hindu race and tarnished the Hindu civilization. The popular meaning of this mantra is – Brahmins were born from the mouth of Prajaapati, Kshatriyaas from the arms, Vaishyaas from the thighs and Shudraas from the feet. Therefore, Brahmins are the highest and Shudraas are the lowest. As a result, Shudraas are considered as untouchables and they do not have many rights which Brahmins et cetra have. If someone asks that nowadays, Brahmins are not born from the mouth, nor Kshatriyaas from the arms, nor Vaishyaas from the thighs, nor Shudraas from the feet. Nowadays, everyone’s place of origin is same, then why this discrimination? To this, it is answered that this is what happened in the beginning of the creation. In support of popular meaning of this mantra, there is no argument and no evidence of history. But, on spreading of such a belief, the commentators also used certain statements of some texts, without examination of these texts, to be the basis of their commentaries. Sayanaacharya has written that there is a clear word-proof in the Taittiriya Samhita of Krishnayajurveda that “Prajaapati created three varnaas from the mouth.” When it is made famous among the public that such a thing is written in their holy scriptures, then, the public indulges in doing even the most heinous sin, considering it to be a virtue. This is a very faulty result of blindly accepting religious texts. In this age, Rishi Dayanand was the first person, who called the examination of religious scriptures necessary, too and gave the logical meaning of this mantra. It is not that the other commentators did not understand the vainness of such prevailing views. The commentators were not brainless, they were learned and intelligent. They must have been thinking in their minds that how can such a stupid thing be recognized? What could have been the meaning of the origin of the Brahmin from the mouth? But, since ancient times, this disease has been going on and it is considered that religious things are indirect and it is a sin to apply intellect in this field.
In order to understand the importance of this mantra, one should consider the context of the mantra, too. This mantra is a part of Purush Sukta and has come up in Rigveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda with a few simple differences. It has to be seen what is in Purush Sukta?
Purush Sukta is full of luptopama alankar and all the upamaas are related to each other. ‘Purusha’ means ‘body’. Not only physical body, which is inert but, body containing soul, that is, a body, which is alive. A body without soul is nothing but, a corpse. A body is a body only so long as the soul therein is functioning in full vigour. The body is not a union of many unrelated components. The body is an institution or organization, where, every part of it is helpful in the protection of its other organs. The eye protects itself as well as the body. The organs that digest food give strength to the body as well as to themselves. A train engine makes steam, but steam does not give strength to that engine. The more the steam is produced, the more the engine will wear out and weaken, because the engine is not a man, but our stomach is a part of man. By not getting food, the stomach will be destroyed and so will be the whole body. This is a strange quality, which is found in the ‘Purusha’, that is, the body, only.
By analogy to Purusha, the Veda Mantra expresses the subtle secret that just as the body is a Purusha, so is the world. Each part of this world contributes towards its preservation or protection. In all Purush Sukta, the importance of Luptopama has been shown in one way or the other.
Human society has been considered to be similar to human body in this mantra. Every part of society is interconnected with the other parts of the society. There are two qualities of every part – one, each part is different from the other parts, second, every part is complementary to the other parts. Being ‘different’ and ‘complementary’ need to be understood together. Both these characteristics need to co-exist in a segment or part of the society. The part, which is ‘different’ but does not have complementarity is not a part of purusha. There are two eyes in the body. These two are different. Right eye separate, left eye separate. However, each eye complements the other eye in the process of seeing, in a substantial way. A one-eyed man is not like a man with two eyes. Similar is the condition of every organ of the body. If one organ of the body does not complement the others, it is either a sick body or a dead body. Union of different components is not a body. If, just union of different part is a whole, then, there would have been no necessity of specific arrangements or systems. As such, parts of a society should also be well-organized, as are the parts of a healthy body. Sociology is nothing but, mechanism of well-organized systems. Society is not made by the number of human beings. If the head of a body is cut off, then, it cannot be said that only one part has been cut in ten parts, so in the presence of 9/10 parts of the body, it is 9/10 safe. No, with the cutting of head, whole of the body becomes dead, because the system is broken. When you look at the Mantra from the point of view that it is a part of Purusha Sukta and Purush means body with well-organized organs, then the usefulness of this mantra will be understood. Here, in the mantra, organs of body have not been counted- head is Brahmin, arms are Kshatriyaas et cetra. Think about the comparison and the metaphor used. Food makes pure blood in our body. The portion of this blood, which reaches the brain, starts functioning as brain and the portion, which reaches the toes, becomes feet. When the doctor tells the patient to eat almonds for improvement of eyesight, then, he, only, means that the blood which will be made from almonds will go into the eye and become the eye. Now, come to the Veda Mantra. People, foolishly, assumed that in this mantra, difference of body parts have been elaborated. Four varnas are different from each other and are not at all complementary. So Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras got separated. There was no contact with each other, each part tried to protect itself, only. There was no mutual co-operation. By name, there are four varnas, but, actually they are separate from one another. This shows that Hindu society is not a healthy society, but a sick or dead society. This was never the meaning of the Veda Mantra.
The spirit of the mantra was that the most important part of the society will be called ‘Brahmin’ but instead we thought that the people, who would be ‘Brahmins’ would be called head of the society. There is remarkable difference in these two thoughts. The person, who will do the work of treating the other bodies with competence, will be called Vaidya. There is a sign of orderliness in this thought. But, if, we consider that a person, whose name is Vaidya, will take the job of Vaidya. This thought is that of a disorderly society. Today, Hindu society is without varna system and some sects, who call for ‘varna dharma’ for their selfishness, propagate corrupt ideas. This is the fault of following the caste system by birth. The most dreadful and deadly feeling is that the four varnas arose from the four limbs of Prajaapati. Since man is born from the mother’s vagina, therefore, this mantra cannot have such meaning, nor does the popular meaning has any rational basis. The meaning here is that keeping in view the different natures of human beings and the responsibility of each one of them to preserve the healthy body of human society, it is necessary to make such arrangements so that the human society as a whole, keeps progressing and there is no disease in it.
Systemization of society through varna system had two objectives-one, the protection of the individuals and two, establishment of linkage between individuals and the society. To protect the individual, the provision of livelihood was thought of and the duties of the each varna were determined to establish the linkage between individuals of different varnas and the society.
The purpose of the Chaturvarna system is that the society considers aptitude and skills of each individual for its own betterment and progress. Accordingly, duty of every member of the society should be fixed, so that society can take maximum work from him and arrange for means of his life. Good governance is one, in which the ability of every person is tested and according to that ability, he is entrusted with the task in the society. In this way, every member of the society moves the vehicle of the society forward. The name of such sort of system is Democracy. The job of the government is only to make arrangements to ensure that no person is left out, who does not become a participant in the progress of the society in proper measure. Wherever, there is a law in the scriptures that it is the duty of the king to make proper arrangements for the Chaturvarna, it does not mean that by taking a written examination et cetra, it declares that one is of Brahmin varna and can suffix ‘Sharma’ after his name or one is of Kshatriya varna and can suffix ‘Verma’ after his name or one is of Vaishya varna and can suffix ‘Gupta’ after his name or one is of Shudra varna and can suffix ‘Das’ after his name.
Actually, such a system is not Varna system in its spirit. The system, which is prevailing now-a-days increases hatred and discrimination. In fact, the Vedic ideal state would be that where every person, having qualities of brahminhood gets an opportunity to perform the duties of a brahmin and through that he can earn a living. Other people too, are placed likewise. Let no one be haughty, nor starve, nor be inspired to misuse his qualities. In this way, the varna system determines both the action and the fruit. Varna system is not only a spiritual question, it is also an economic question, a question of livelihood. Therefore, one more thing becomes clear, which may seem new, but, considering the Vedaas, it seems appropriate, that Varna System is related only to the householder’s aashram, because the householder-aashram is the basis of whole of human society. The other aashramaas are dependent on the grihastha aashram. In the Brahmacharya Aashram, the question of other sections of the society, that is, grihastha, vaanprastha and sanyaas, does not arise. Every child should be given the opportunity to develop himself to the fullest. The section of the society, to which a brahamchaari pertains can be determined only after the examination of the qualities of each brahamchaari after completion of his education. How can raw fruits be classified? The country, in which, pattern of education of the children is determined by looking at the prestige of the fathers, that country cannot be called advanced. Where, in order to teach the Vedaas, it is necessary to see the history of ancestors of a child, there must be partiality and many children will prove to be unfit in infancy. The marks of class distinction, rites and rituals found in the medieval times do not belong to those of the Vedic period and they must have caused substantial harm to the society during their time. We have inherited such sort of sanskaaras. It also does not seem right to think of varna system in respect of persons of Vaanaprastha aashram and Sanyaas aashram. What is the meaning of brahmin vaanaprasthi, kshatriya vaanaprasthi, vaishya vaanaprasthi, shudra vaanaprasthi and brahmin sannyaasi, kshatriya sannyaasi, vaishya sannyaasi and shudra sannyaasi? Both these aashrams rise above the sectional distinction. When the varna system was accepted as birth-based, there was a division among the sanyasis, too. The sannyaasis were also classified according to the expectations of the respective sects. Only the form of Putraishna, Vittaishana and Lokaishana changed. Putraishna was replaced by Shishyaishana, Vitaishna was replaced by Mathaishana and Lokaishana increased a bit, not decreased. If, the work of Vaanaprastha is austerity and that of a sannyaasi is propagation of religion, then what is meaning of the sect of vaanaprasthi or sannyaasi? All the vaanaprasthis should seek the truth and all the sannyaasis should inspire a universal religion without the expectation of any difference of opinion. Only then, the organs of human society can be cured.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Fifteenth Mantra
इहैव स्तं मा वि यौष्टं विश्वमायुव्र्यश्नुतम्।
क्रीळन्तौ पुत्रैर्नप्तृभिर्मोदमानौ स्वे गृहे।।
– Rigved 10//85//42, Atharav ved 14//1//22
Meaning– You two do not separate or do not live separately. May both of you enjoy the whole life. Have fun in your home, with sons and grandchildren, both of you playing with them.
Explanation– This mantra is the foundation of the householder’s aashram. From this, first of all, it follows that Vedic marriage should be of a man, with a woman. Polygamy and polyandry are against the Vedic system. Neither, one husband should have many women, nor should one woman have many husbands. Different practices are prevalent in different countries and eras. Polygamy has been prevalent among Hindus for a long time, especially among kings. There are mentions of many wives of sages as well, like Yajnavalkya had two wives. But, these are only exceptions and there is no complete historical knowledge of what was the condition of the society at that time, so it is difficult to say, when and why the Vedic system of one husband and one wife was broken. In puraanaas, many illogical stories were concocted to justify these practices. But, such practices were never considered appreciable. It is possible that when the question of bread and daughter arose due to caste discrimination, the leaders of that time may have issued some contemporary arrangements due to the large difference in the number of boys and girls or due to the presence of any political fear, but looking at the Veda Mantras, it becomes clear that only the system of one wife and one husband was considered praiseworthy. It is possible that the disorderly kings in the pride of their power had instructed the scholars for authorising such special arrangements through their writings et cetra. But, polyandry is almost negligible in the world. It is found, only, in certain hilly areas. Although, the practice of polygamy has been accepted in many countries and sects, but its side effects are no less. The story of Ramayana is the result of many-wife-practice. The multiple-wife law among Muslims destroyed many good qualities of Islam. Some of the obstacles in flourishing of Islam were rooted in many wives of Hazrat Muhammad Saheb. If, Khudaijah had not died and Muhammad’s mind had not been shaken, then, Islam would not have had that history, for which the wise followers of Islam have to get ashamed and dismayed.
Veda Mantra says that there are two pillars of a household – one, ‘husband’ and the other, ‘wife’. But, not every woman can be called ‘wife’. The wife is the one, who has a relationship through yajna, that is, marriage rites. So husband and wife should have a sacred relationship by yajna and there is no place for polygamy or polyandry. The logic given in favour of polygamy is- as many animals can be tied in a yupa and one animal cannot be tied in many yupas, similarly, a man can have many wives but, a woman cannot have many husbands. This tactic is not only meaningless, but, is also non-Vedic. There is use of duality in the Veda mantra. Yagnik people have given the law for sitting of husband and wife in the yajna. There is mention of only one wife. The following quote from Shatapatha Brahmana is of great importance in this regard:
“While performing the yajna, the husband calls the wife – O wife! Come, let us both ascend to heaven. This yajna is for both of us. It will be successful only when both of us perform it together.” Why was the wife called? It was because husband is incomplete without wife. As long as there is no wife, there is no child and till that time man remains incomplete and so when he gets a wife, he has a child. Only then, he becomes complete. The husband calls the wife, ‘As long as I am incomplete, how will I move in the yagya?’
This quote from Shatapatha best explains the purity and pride of marriage and householder. Marriage is the stairway to heaven. The husband and wife, together in the householder-aashram, perform a yajna, as if they are climbing the stairs of heaven. Marriage is necessary for child. That is why, the Veda Mantra says- Be a householder and stay there with stability. It is not a momentary relationship between husband and wife for sex. Wherever that is so, it is adultery or prostitution. Children can be born from a momentary relationship, for example, in case of animals and birds, but they cannot be called children or progeny in a true sense. The stability of the marital relationship is necessary. The separation of husband and wife breaks the organization of the household. It has a bad effect on the child. Living together of both is also necessary for longevity of lives. Many scholars have collected data and proved that married people have a longer life than unmarried men and women. It should also be like this, because if the cooperation of man and woman was the reason for the decline of age, then the order of creation would not have been like this. It is true that every rule can be misused and that misuse is harmful, too, but if the dignity of the scriptures is respected, then the householder-aashram helps in prolonging life, also. Therefore, there is a clear order of the Vedaas that husband and wife need to be together as much as possible and be mutually helpful in every work. The purpose of marriage is to make children and not just to produce them. It is the duty of every house-holder to make his or her children religious. So the Vedaas said a psychological thing that one should play with grandchildren. Those, who take pleasure in playing with children, get rejuvenated, even in their old age. Parents, who do not know how to play with children, cannot develop great emotions in their children. If your children are afraid of you, then, understand that there is some error in your parenthood. Mothers, who surrender their children to servants to ease their suffering, do not know that food only is not needed for the growth of the child, love is also a subtle food, which makes the nature of man. Therefore, the love of parents is very important for making of children. There is a natural love in the heart of a mother for her child. She considers it joyful to bear the pains suffered by her during delivery of baby and does not complain about the pains, she has to bear in raising the child. This is a unique quality of mothers and no mother should disrespect this quality.
The role of the father in making of child is no less than that of the mother. There is a confusion among the public in this matter and today’s scientists have increased this confusion a bit. People understand that the soul enters the mother’s womb at the time, when the body is complete or half complete, so the qualities of a father do not have much effect on the progeny. With this, the entire responsibility of making a child is left on the mother. If there are multiple wives and they have different children, the situation becomes even more bizarre and the father loves, only the child of the wife he loves most, but in the Vedic scriptures both the father and the mother are equally responsible in making of children. If the soul had no relation with the father, then, how would the father’s qualities be found in the child? But, it is also seen in animals and birds that both physical and mental qualities of the father are present in the children and they develop with time.
A house is not a home, but, is just a place of a building. Home is a spiritual and social thing, which can be created only by mutual love. Home is the unit of the whole society. Here, the elementary education of the society is given. Every person cannot have a direct relationship with the entire human society without the help of a householder. Some leaders at certain times conducted such tests, in which men and women would produce children without the institution of marriage and the children born were considered children of the country. Similar was the opinion of the famous Greek philosopher Plato, although his proposal was never tested by anyone. When the storm of communism came in Russia, which uprooted and destroyed all the old trees, then, the custom of marriage-tree also collapsed. Then, children were produced without the institution of marriage but, this system became silent without going on for a long time, because its ill effects were seen by Lenin himself to be fatal for the society. By understanding the expressions of Veda Mantras and following them, the defects of present parenthood can be cured. The existence of such pure and transcendental expressions in the very ancient times, when philosophers like Plato et cetra and similar sects were non-existent, proves the glory of the Vedaas.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
Sixteenth Mantra
अनुव्रतः पितुः पुत्रो माता भवतु संमनाः।
जाया पत्ये मधुमर्ती वाचं वदतु शन्तिवाम्।।
-Atharav ved 3//30//2
Meaning– The son should fulfil vows of his father. The son should be such, who satisfies his mother’s mind. The wife should speak sweetly with her husband.
Explanation– In this Veda Mantra, those basic means have been explained by which the householder can remain well organized.
Grossly, it may appear that the things which are explained in this mantra are very ordinary and there is no need of such a Veda mantra. But, from a serious point of view it will be found that many things of this mantra are worth giving a sincere thought. This mantra does not merely say that children should serve their parents and obey them. Today, although everyone knows that children should serve their parents and obey them, but this knowledge is limited to words, only. The obedient Rama is the subject of stories, only. There are some people who consider such teachings as untimely and a symbol of ancient slavery. Why should the son obey his father’s orders? In this way, there are many minor rules of ancient ethics, which are considered to be impediment for future development.
God did not create this world just for amusement. It has been created for development of souls, who can avoid evils and do virtues and thus can progress on their path. The intelligence of animals and birds is so low that God has kept the arrangement of their conduct directly in His hand. Just as a wise father does not burden his little children for making arrangements for their lives, but a mature child is free to make his own arrangements. An engineering college is not required to teach bees how to build a beehive and to teach birds how to build a nest, but a human child has to be taught the method of washing of his mouth. So, it is clear that mankind needs a moral system for its guidance in various actions.
What is a vow? In short, it is a decision taken by an individual that he will renounce falsehood and accept the truth. The founder of Arya Samaj has given special place to this vow in the rules of Arya Samaj. The development of every human being is based on this principle. How can a person follow truth without first finding it out? Those, who take the meaning of ‘Shraddha’ as hesitating from the pursuit of truth and following the practices, as told by their teachers without applying their own mind are totally wrong.
They are unaware of the meaning of the word ‘Shraddha’. ‘Shraddha’ actually means holding on to truth.
Child should respect the vows of his ancestors. That is why it is said that the son should be ‘anuvrat’ of the father. This is the greatest wealth in the inheritance, which a father can leave for his son or an Acharya for his disciple. The question of ‘Anuvrat’ will arise only when there is ‘Vrat’, that is, vow. The conduct of the parents, which is accidental or natural cannot be said to be ‘Vrat’. That is why, the Gurus preach that only those actions of theirs, which meet moral systems should be followed. As such, teachers and parents should do only such actions, which are in accordance with vedaas and the children should follow only such actions of theirs.
Every child, who is born is not worthy to be called a son. He should acquire the qualities as mentioned in our scriptures to be eligible to be called a ‘son’. According to our scriptures, ‘son’ is the one, who saves his parents from going to hell. Grandchildren also come under the definition of ‘son’ as they, too, save their grandparents from going to hell.
Let us understand the meaning of ‘saving from going to hell’. One should think about what this hell-trance is. As per the Puraanaas, hell is a specific place, where sinners go and if son performs shraadh for the dead, his ancestors leave hell and go to heaven. This is completely against the Vedic Karamphal principle. Then the question is, how does a son saves his father from going to hell?
This point will become clear by going through an example. If today, our sons succeed in propagating Vedic language and Vedic-culture in the world, then, when we take next birth, these traditions will help us in that life. If, due to the mistakes of our children, the Vedic traditions are destroyed, we will be born in a world which will be non-Vedic and we will have great difficulty in following vedic traditions, which we had inherited as tendencies. This will be equivalent to going to hell. Imagine if I die and reincarnate in Arabia, where, I find the propagation of non-Vedic Islam. How difficult it will be if, I want to lead a Vedic life, because of the sanskaaraas or tendencies of my previous birth! But if Vedic religion is propagated there in this generation, then, how much convenience will I have! As such, it is the duty of the children to prepare the ground in accordance with the vows of their parents. Here, true meaning of the vow, as already explained, should again be gone through. Individuals die, but cultures survive. The progeny of the races, the progeny of the states, and the progeny of wealth are of far less value than the progeny of the culture. We want children, only, to sustain our culture. Sustainability of our culture is our main objective and children are the means to attain that objective.
Further, it is said that the son should be like-minded with his mother. Mother is the treasure of love. In the world, no one loves more than the mother. Love is a kind of glue, which brings unity by resolving differences. It converts selfishness into selflessness, demonicity into humanity. As such, it is the biggest mean of our mental development. Remember love of the mother. Being grateful to the mother is the first step towards making of man.
In the last step of the mantra, the wife has been advised to speak sweet and peaceful words to her husband. A man is somewhat harsh by nature and a woman’s nature is comparatively softer. If man is the teeth, the woman is the tongue. There is proximity of tongue and teeth. There is a combination of hoarseness and tenderness. Where, there are soft muscles in the whole body, there are hard bones also. If there were only bones and no flesh, it would have been a rock and not a body and if there were only muscles and no bones, we would not have been able to move. As such, hard things need the closeness or proximity of soft things. Just as, oil is required to keep the machine running.
In the complicated life of the householder, the wife brings the soothing effect with her sweet voice. When husband returns home in the evening, exhausted and annoyed by outside businesses, the wife removes all the tiredness with her sweet welcoming voice. The wife actually becomes the protector of the husband. This joy can be attained in married life, only.
-Majority of the thoughts are of Pandit Ganga Prasad Upadhayay
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