Purusha Sukta - Forgotten Books

98

Transcript of Purusha Sukta - Forgotten Books

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2 T HE PURUSHA SUKT A .

spiration from w estern savants, makes the

follow ing remarks on th is Sfik ta*— “ T he

hymn itselfw as composed centuries after thet ime w hen the B igVeda hymns w ere gene

rally composed, as is proved byits languageand its ideas . I t w as c omposed after the R ik

and the Saman and the Yajur Vedas hadbeen sepa rately c lassified (verse and after

the idea of the sacrifice of the Supreme

B eing(unknown elsew here I n the R igVeda )had found a place in the Hindu rel igion.

I t w as composed, as Colebrooke states, after

the rude versification of the B igVeda had

given place to the more sonorous me tre of

a later age . Weber, Max Muller, Muirand o ther scho lars all agree as to th is hymnbe ingcomparatively

'

modern .

!

Muir says that th is Sfik ta w as‘ev idently

produced a t a period w hen the ceremonialof sacrifice had become largely developed,w hen great v irtue w as supposed to

resideL

D ntt'

s Ancient I ndia B k . 1. Chapter 5.

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I N T RO D UCT I O N .

in its -

proper celebrat ion, and when a mys

t ical meaning had come to be a ttached to

the various materials and instruments of

the ritual as Well as to the different mem‘

bers of the v ictim.

'

We leave the question of the rela tive

posteriori ty of the‘

several hymns to the

scho lars o fEurope , w ho seem to have"

a

spec ial aptitude for th is branch of inquiry ,We, I ndians, concern oursel ves w ith w ha t issaid, more than who said it and when. I t

is th is tendency of the Indian mind that

accounts for the absence ofh istorical w orksin our literature and has given a pretty

longte ther to the theorising propensit ieso f w estern Sansk ritists . B ut w e may no te

o ne o r tw o th ings w ith regard to th is hymn.

1 . I t w ill not do to say that the hymnis oflate origin simply because it containsreferences to some of the details . of cere

monial sacrifice. or to the caste~system. . Sac

rifice seems to be the keynote of the R iff

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4 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

Veda as it is indisputably of the o ther

V edas nd hymns may be found in severalMan w h ich have sole reference to thetechnicalities of sacrific ial lore . Indiant radit ion has it that the RigVeda w as com

piled to meet the requirements ofthe Hotar,one of the ch ief offi c ia ting priests at a sac

rifice, and the statement made by Goldstticker that some of the hymns w ill hardly lend themselves to the purposes of sac

rifice w ill no t, even ifsubstantiated, w eakenour position as our content ion is simply tha tthe majorportion of the R ig Veda hymns

refers to sacrificemore or less directly .

W e hold that.

the caste - system existedw hen many of the hymns of the R igVeda.

w ere composed, though not in its present

h ide - bound form and though free from the

blind rigidity of later t imes . We are aw are

that Mr. R . 0 . B utt brings forw ard positive

and nega tive proofs to show that there w as

no caste- system during the Vedic period

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IN T R O D UCTI O N . 5

and the very w ords B ralnnana, Vipra and

Kshatriya are used in the R ig Veda w ith

out any reference to the castes . W e are

also aw are that w estern scholarsh ip w illbe shocked to see such a theory as ours

maintained at a t ime w hen,they th ink , the

question has been finally set tled once for

all . B ut w e are of opinion that the quest ion can w ell bear a re - examinat ion, and

w e propose to offer a few remarks on the

subject in our comments on Rik XIII .2 . Mr . R . C. Dutt maintains that the

PurushaSfik ta w as composed after the Rik ,

the Saman, and the Yajur Vedas had beenseparately classified and bases th is inferenceo f h is on the ninth verse of th is hymn,w here Richas, Samurai and Yan are men

tioned by name . I f th is v erse had been

mmposed after the several Vedas had beencomp iled into dist inc t books, how came th isverse and th is hymn to be found in the

body of one of them ! Does he mean to say

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6 Tm:PURUSHA SUKTA .

that th is particular hymn w as composed

afterw ards and inserted into the body

of the book that it migh t not be regarded

as a later and spurious addition ! W hyall th is to rturing and tw isting to upho ld

a particular theory ! There is no t the

ghost of a reference to the distinct com

p ilo tions of the several Vedas in the v erse .

R iehas , Samcmi and Yujue do no t there

refer to the several Vedas but simplyto R ik

, Saman and Yajus verses and tarts ,

al l ofw h ich w ere and must have been in

existence longbef ore the time of their codification into separa te trea tises and each

of w h ich had a distinc t purpose and appli

cation in sacrific ial ceremonials . V idyaranya does no t in h is commentary take the

w ords to refer to the several Vedas . N o

one w ill th ink of igno ring the plura l f orm

of the w ords used and take the tro uble of

interpret ingthem in the co l lec tive sense

to fall, as the rew ard of th is trouble into

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I N TRO D UCT I O N .

the fallacy of arguingin a c irc le !

3 . T he language of th is hymn is parti

cularly sw eet , rhythmical and polished and

th is has led to its being regarded as the

produc t of a later age w hen the capabilities

of the language had been developed . B ut.

the polish may be due to the artistic sk illof the particular author, to the nature of

the subjec t and to several o ther causes

than mere posteriori ty in t ime . W e migh tas w ell say that Chaucermust have lived

centuries after Grow er, because the languageof the former is so refined and that of the

latter, so rugged . W e mus t a t the same

t ime confess that w e are unable to discoverany distinct linguistic peculiarity in the

hymn w h ich w ill stamp it as of a laterorigin .

4. Rev . Maurice Phillips observesThough human sacrifices w ere know n dur

ing the mantras or the oldest hymns of

1" The teach ingof th e Vedas p . 198 .

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8 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

the Veda, the ev idence is too scanty for us

to conclude that they w ere common. T he

nine tieth hymn of the tenth Mandala of

the R igVeda in w h ic h Purusha , the primeval male , is described as cut to pieces andoffered as a sacrifice by the Gods

show s

that the idea of offering a man,Pm'

asha ,

w as familiar to the anc ient Aryans . I t is

true that the Purusha in the hymn is an

imaginary being but the description of

h is immolat ion is so real and minute as to

justify the conclusion that it w as taken

from the w ell - know n manner in w h ich human heino s w ere sacrificed . Professor Max

Muller also is of opinion that human sacritices, prevailed amongthe ancient Hindus,

(not in the B rahmanic or the Vedic periodbut a t a still earlier age) . D r. Rajendra L al

also inclines to th is V iew L et our

V ide h is History of Sanskrit L i t erature pp. 419 and 420 .

1'We may in th is connect ion refer our readers to the l ife

and le tters of Sambuchandra Mukerji by Mr . Skrine I . C . S. ,

w h ere w e get some idea of th e w ay in w hich D r. R . L .

Mitra h as tried to hunt up for references to human sacrifices .

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IN T R O D UCTI O N . 9

readers study the Purusha Sl’ik ta and judgefor themselves how far the conclusions of

Rev . M . Ph illips are justified.

T he hymn is attributed to a R ish i namedN arayana and is therefore called N arayanai nuvaka . I t is used by th e B rahmans in

their religious ceremonies in a v arietv of

w ays and many w ho cannot spare t ime fo r

a study of the complete Veda generallycontent themselves w i th learningthe Rud

rzidhyfiya and the Purusha Siik ta . W e

propose to deal w ith the Purusha Suk ta

here and expla in it a t some length .

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Gil):murus lmEinldaR I K 1 .

sw fisfir’m assing

-ea

Purushah= T he Supreme B eing,ras

'

irshd==hath a thousand heads , Sahas

rdlcshahz ha th a thousand eyes , Sakasra

pat= hath a thousand feet ; Sah=He , B htl

mim= the Universe , Vis'

ra tah= on all sides .

Vritvd= pervading, D as’

dnyulam= to the

extent of ten inches,A tya tishthat

— lay be

yond .

T he Supreme B eing ha th a thousand

heads, a thousand eyes

,a thousand feet

pervadingthe Universe on all sides , He lay

beyond it to the extent of ten inch es .

T he w hole Universe of existing th ingsanimate as w ell as inanimate is regarded

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R I K II . 11

as the body of Purusha— the Supreme

B e ing. Hence the eyes of all liv ingbe ingsare His their heads , His heads their feet ,His feet . He is thus spoken of as hav inga thousand eyes, &c . T housand is here

used for Countless by w hat is called Upo

lalcshana . Upa la lcshana is defined as

W i émd W W tie. the im

plica tion of someth ing no t expressed,in

addition to that w hich has been expressed .

D as'

dnyalam is also used here by w av of

Upalal'

shana . All that is meant is tha t the

Supreme B eingis someth ingover and above

th is Universe , w h ich forms only a part of

Him.

R I K I I .

as:as 63age! W I

3m masse sses ll

I dam= th is , Sarvam= all (is), Purusha/1

eca rz the Supreme B eingalone, I’

atz w hat,

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14 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA.

diffi cult to say. I t is the indefinable cause

w h ich , by assoc iat ion w ith B rahman, pro

jec ts the appearance ofmaterial w o rld com

prisingdist inct indiv idua l existences . Maya ,by a progressive evo lution ,

modifies itselfinto the several material elements and the

bodily organs of various livingbeings . T he

indiv idual souls are really the UniversalB rahman

, brough t by Maya under her in

fluence . Under the material encumbrancesimposed byMaya

,they are unable to real ise

their t rue nature and so have come to

regard themselves as separa te ent ities dis

t inc t'from the Univ ersal soul . Thus it is

that souls wh ich are only B rahman a re

conditioned,indiv idualised and enveloped

in a material case by Maya and become

age nts and enjoyers . T he actions of

these souls have t heir merit and demerit ,w hose fruits they are to reap in a series of

future existences . A t the end of everyKalpa the who le material w orld is merged

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Rm I I . 15

into Maya and the indiv idual souls lie in a

latent state . B ut the fruits of their Karmahave not yet been exhausted ; so w hen

after the pra laya a new w orld is evolvedout ofMaya, these Souls once more enter

the cycle of birth and rebirth . They are

finally released from this coil of Samsara

w hen they realise their real nature and theirabsolute identity w ith the universal souland the illusory restric tions imposed by

Maya . True know ledge, as taugh t by

S'

ruti and learned from the Acharya after

a preliminary course of self- sacrificingdisc ipline , leads to th is realisat ion and such

realisation brings about the extinc tion of

the seed ofKarma and final emanc ipat ionfrom the thraldom ofMaya .

Th is, in brief, is the teach ing of S'

anka

ra . T he v is ible universe around us con

sists of tw o dist inc t elements—matter and

spirit (Jiva) . Matter is evolved Maya and

Maya, w hatever its essence may be , is but

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18 T HE m sna SUKTA .

to form part of the Supreme B eing.

«same Yad annena atirohati. ~Muir

translates t he expression thus ‘vSince (or

when) byfood he expands.’

Colebrooke alsotransla tes it by He grow s by

3175! (anna) means' food o r nourishment

B ut to say that the Supreme B eing eXpands

by‘

food or grow s by nourishment makes nosense . T he oexPression is pregnant w ithmeaning. I t serves to reconc ile t he inconsistencv be tw een the two preceding state

ments—( l ) All th is (perishable) Universe isHe alone (2) and yet He is the L ord of

immo rtality. And it show s, for w hat purpose

the I mmortal Lo rd also comes to assume

th is transient form. W e have , here as

elsew here, follow ed Vidyaranya and it is

difficult to see w hy h is interpretation has

failed to commend itself to’

these scholars,unless perhaps it be that it is based on the.

theory of re- birth (Janmantara and Karma)- any reference to w h ich theory western

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20 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

Asya His,Mahima

z manifestation of

pow er or glory ; Gho=and, Piirushahz -T he

Supreme B eing(is) , Jyaydnz—much greater

Ala/i m than th is, Vis’

va= all , B hutani==th 1ngs

that exist , (are) Pddah= a fourth , Asya==of

Him. Asya=His , T i ipdd= three- fourths , .

Amritam= being immortal and changeless,D ivi= (remains) in self- luminous effulgence

(as B rahman) .

This Universe '

of exis tingth ings, together

w ith all that w as and w ill be is only a manifesta tion ofHis pow er orglory , not His realnature . For all existing th ings are but a

quarter ofHim, w h ile three - fourths remain

immortal and changeless as the Self- lumi

nous B rahman .

R I K . I V .

T i 'ij idté T hree- fo urth s, P‘

l l O’

UShah= T l le

Supreme B eing, Uda it= w ent up, L’

rdhvah

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R I K I V . 2 1

above (the trammels ofSamsi‘tra) ; Pridahone - fourth , Asya= o i m,

I ha —.here , Abha

ra t= came,Punah= again and again ; T a tah

==then, (th is one - fourth part ofHim), Vya

lerdmat= spread, Vishvany-

z on allsides, Scis

ana—unas’

ane Abhir - over th ings tha t eat

and th ings that do no t eat .

T he Supreme B eingw ho has been calledthe three - fourths portion is above all phenomenon . I t is only a quarter ofHim that

duringprfd aya lies in a nascent sta te and

afterw ards comes out as the v is ible universea round us . I t is th is one fourth part that

s preads in all direct ions as the phenomenalw orld consistingof th ings animate as w ell

as inanimate .

C omment (on Rih'

s 3 and - These tw o rihslay dow n the relat ion tha t exists betw een

the Supreme I ieingand the universe . All

the phenomenal w orld is no th ing but a

portion of the Supreme B eing; o ver and

above th is phenomenalmanifestat ion,there

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22 T un PURUSHA SUKTA .

remains the Supreme Lord w ho is abov e al l

change, w ho never comes w ith in the t ram

mels of Samsiira . That w h ich w e see as

the v isible w orld around us is but a small

portion ofHis Essence , w h ich is absorbed

in Him duringevery p i'

alaga , and comesout

ofHim at th e beginningofeveryKalpa . T he

true theory of vira rta,difficul t tograsp

'

an‘

d

reserved for the last s tage of me taphysicalenquiry, is but barely h inted a t in th e

second R ik and the transfo rmation~thefiory,

w h ich is bandr and easier of comprehen

sion, does excellently w ell as a w orkinghypo thesis and is therefore taken up once

more in the th ird and fo llow ing rilcs for

th e eluc ida t ion of Vedic cosmology. T he

first half of R ik 3 alludes to vicarta and

distinc tly says tha t all phenomenon is but

His glory and He is above all manifestation.

B ut. in the very nex t half the parindma

theo ry steps in and speaks o f one - fourth

and‘three - fourths of God, as if the terms

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R I K I V ‘ 23

part and w hole wh ich can apply only to

matter could be used w i th reference to Spiritw h ich , in ultimate analysis, is O ne, indict!sible and incapable of parts . Th is methodof procedure is called Alandhati - dars'anaN ydya . I t has required the genius of

S'

ankara to grasp the Vivarta theory , workit out in all its b earings and expla in all the

seemingcontradic tions of the Scriptures .

Punah . Vidyfiranya takes it to heequivalent to punah punah , again and agaiii ;

tha t is, after every pralaya , the universew h ich had been dissolved into B rahman

assumes again the v isible material form.

Vishvang==on all sides . Vidyaranya inter

prets it thus .W U!W zfi m sum

ingvariousforms such asgods and animals .

Sds'

ana—anas'

ané. Griffi ths remarks thus ;According toSfiyana andMah idhara

, over

bo th classes ofc rea ted th ings , those capableof enjoyment, that is, w ho can taste the

rew ard and punishment ofgood and evil

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24 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

ac t ions, such as gods, men and low er ani

male, and those who are incapable thereof,

such as mo untains and rivers .

!

Co lebrookea lso translates the expression thus w ha t

does and w hat does not taste ( the rew ard ofgood an dbad actions . )All that we can say is tha t Sayana' does

no t say anyth ing of the k ind. He says

«maxi:immfimmfifiddrawshaman,ca

m :W W I ivingbmngsthat perfo rm the func t ions of alimenta tionand lifeless t hings such as mounta ins and

rivers tha t a re no t capable of such func

tions .

R I K . V .

T asmdt= From Him (i s . the Supreme

Being), Virdt= the sum total of the material

ofw h ich the universe is made up, Ajdyata=

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R I K V . 25

w as bo rn ; Virdjé a dhi= o ver (i .e. pene tra t

ing into ) th is mass of ma tte r, Piirushah=the L ord (transfo rmed Himself into the

animating princ iple of th is universe o f

matter) Jdtah= (After be ingthus) born (i . a.

after th is transfo rmat ion), Sa ll= He, al tyaril

«rhyata=became differentiated as the indiv i

dual souls ofgods, men &c Paschdt= then

B h iimim= (He shaped theshapeless ,primeval

mass ofmatter into the earth and the othe r.

spheres) ; Atho - then, Farah— (out of the

same ma t ter) he prov ided the severalindiv idual souls, tha t w ere lyingunbodied,w ith bodies .

From th is same Supreme B eing w as born

all the shapeless, primeval mass of matter

of the universe . I nto th is mass the Lord

penetrated and became its life principle.

He then became differentiated as the severalindividual souls of men, gods &c , w h ileretainingat the same t ime a dist inc t spiritual fo rm as the presidingDei ty of the uni

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26 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

verse of matter . Then he shaped the c rude

mass of ma tte r into the earth and the

heavenly spheres . Then he prov ided the

several indiv idual souls of gods, men 850 ,

w ith bodies suited to th eir particular condit ions .

Commentw - Thisi

expla ins very briefly andtersely how the w hole universe of spiri t andmatter came into exis tence and the succeeding riles merely expound the details of

creation and the modus operandi bywh ich

th e several classes of existingth ings cameinto being.

O ne thingmust be fi rs t premised . T he

Sfik ta does not propose to explain how all

th is v isiblemul tiplic ityof shapes and beings

first came into existence . N e ither the

Veda nor the’

Vedftnta at tempts the solut ionof the problemof origina l creat ion . T he

mind ofman is limited. and has to stop some

w he re . I t v ainly fabrica tes a fic t ion that

there w as a time w hen there w as absolutely

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2 8 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

c omplica ted disguises, it is equal ly v ic ious,e qually unth inkable . B e it a fragment ofmat

ter,o rsome po tential fo rmo fmat ter, o r some

more remo te and sti ll less imaginable cause,o ur concept ion of its self- existence can . be

fo rmed only by jo iningw i th it the no tion ofunlimitedduration through past time . And as

unlimited durat ion is inconceivable, all thoseformal ideas into w hich it ente rs are incoac eivable , and indeed, if such an expressionis allow able

,are the more inconceivable in

propo rt io n as the o ther elements of the ideasare indefinite . So that in fac t , impossiblea s it is to think of the ac tual universe as

self- exist ing, we do butmultiply impossibilit ies of t ho ugh t by every a t tempt w e maket o explain its existence .

!

[For further

information v ide pp. 30—36 . Herbert

Spencer’

s First Princ iples of Synthetic

A ll tha t the rik does is simply to point

o ut how creat ion proceeds at the end‘

of a

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R I K V . 29 .

zw alwyn and at the beginning of a Kalpa .

Duringpralctya, the souls ofall liv ingbeings

w ith the latent possibilities of their past

Karma. are merged into B rahman (the Sn

preme B e ing) ; and al l matter, becomingex tremelv a t tenuated and etheria lised is

ultima tely reso lved into Maya and th is

Maya is likew ise abso rbed into B rahman

Thus duringpr

alaya, one alone exists and

tha t is . B rahman, containingw i thinHimself.how ever, numberless po tential existences .

At th e end of the pralnya , Maya first gets

out ofB rahman and becomes a crude nebularmass ofmatter, w h ich is technically know nas Virdi. Then B rahman breathes a par:ofHimself. into this inert mass of matter

and becomes its animating and sus tainingprinc iple and its presiding Deity , who is

technically know n as Prajcipati . T hen the

several souls ofgods, men, beasts

had been absorbed in B rahman w ith th e:accumulated force of their. past Karma .

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30 . T HE PURUSHA SUK ’

I A .

po tent ial but no t ext inc t, issue out as

Jivcis , ready to take such forms as are determined by t heir former deeds .

T he fi rst Jivcis that came of B rahman are

the gods and the Sadhyas and they

c ontempla te on and pray to Prajapat i forthe c rea tion of the o ther th ings of the

Universe . Then the c rude mass ofmatter

is s haped out into the several spheres and

the remainingnubodied souls that had issuedo ut of B rahman are prov ided w ith . bodies .

T he sequel explains the several details of

t his Uttarc Srishti or later crea tion .

I t must be no ted tha t all th is mat ter and .

the spirits proceed out of w hat has been

c alled in B ike 3 and 4 as the one - fourth part:

o f the Supreme B eing. I t is th is one - fourth

part that becomes Prajapat i . or the'

v ital

princ iple of the Universe . I t is fromth is .

one-fourth part that the material Universe .

and the several souls issue out . This one

fourth part that becomes thus subject to !

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R I K V . 31

these s everal changes and transformat ionsunder the influence ofMaya is technicallyknow n as the remainingthreefour

ths that never undergo any change

const itute w ha t is called S'

uddha B ra/imam.

Tasmdt (From him) h ere therefore refers to

the one-fourth portion. ment ioned in . the

precedingriks . Virdj is-

the produc t ofMaya ,

w h ich comes out of I s'

vara in the'

formof

B rahmanda or the mundane egg. Mr. Wallisin his ‘Cosmo logy of the B igVeda

baa ths

follo w ingno te on the w o rd . f‘ Virtij w hosename (in Rig-Veda X 159, 3) appears to

mean ‘queen’

w ould seem to be the female

counterpart of Purusha as Adit i of Dakshain'X124, 5 c . f. B rihadaranyaka Upanishad

4 . 2 . Th is is true in a sense ; for

Maya'

represents thefemale essence of I s'

vara

and Virdj is the product of Maya. I t is

needless to state that all these explanat ionsare only provis ionally true, Vydvahdrika,not Pdra

i

mdrthika, be ing based on the

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32 T HE PURUSHA SUK '

rA .

prov isional hypo thesis of Pa rimima .

Paschc‘

t‘

t t imz'

mAtI to Purah . Vidyaranya

interpretspurah thus, «mmi l

fll'

fibh bodies w h ich are made up o f the

seven k inds of t issues, muscles, bone &c .

Th is interpretation has no t commended itselfto w estern scho lars . They are ev idently ofO pinion that it is far fetched, and take the

expression to mean ‘eastw ard and w estward

over t/16 earth’

t'

. 6 . bo th before and beh ind theearth . They all translate th is rile more or

less in th is stra in —“From h im Viraj w as

born ; again Purusha fro in Viraj w as bo rn .

A s soon as he w as. bo rn he spread eastward

and w estw ard over the earth .

!

W e w ish toknow what these scholars mean by sayingthat from. Purusha Viraj w as born and from

Viraj w as Purusha born . Does this not

look like a paradox ! Curiously enough

none of these scholars think it necessary

to explain the inconsistency.

T he fac t is that to those who are not

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RI K VI . 33

sa turated w ith the ideas ofVedantic ph iloso

phy, the interpretat ion ofV idyaranya must

seem unfamiliar and forced . B ut w ithoutth e clue furnished by Vedanta , the passage

w ill be dark as the darkest . oracle —and the

only w ay of escaping out of the difficultyw ould be not to a ppear to not ice it .

V I . R I K .

5187 W ‘m !Hafi z

Ya t=w hen, D evcih=the devas or th e gods ,A tanva ta=performed, Yajnam=the (mental)sacrifice, Purushena= w ith t he Supreme

B eing, Haviskdz as the Items or the sacrificial offering, Asya, for th is (sacrifice) ,Vasantch=the

sacrific ial butter ; Grishmah=t he summer,

I dhmah=(became) the fuel ; S’

ara t=the

autumn, Havis=(became) the offering (of

purodss'

a&c . )When the gods performed the mental

3

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34 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

sacrifice w ith Purusha as the offering, thespring formed the sacrific ial but ter ; thesummer wa s the fuel and the autumn w as

theh oly offering.

Comment —I t has alreadybeen remarkedthat the gods w ere the first to come out of

the Supreme Beingafter pra-l aya and to be

provided w ith bodies . Among these gods

are also inc luded certain semi- divine fbeingscalled Sfidhyfis and R ishis or sages , the

Vedic seers . T hese gods, Sadhyz'is and

R ishis, Vidayaranya regards as the representa tives of the life and the senses of

Prajapa t i—th e presiding Dei ty of Viraj.

Just as life ~ and the senses draw out the

ac tivity of a person, so these powers bringout the latent poss ibilit ies of Prajapa t i .When they thus came out , they saw nothingbut the B rahmanda or the mundane egg, a

shapeless mass of nebular matter, w hich

the Supreme B e ing animated as its v i tal

princ iple and presiding Deity. T he gods

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36 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

and all that is, lives and moves and has its

beingin Him. I t is a pity that th is significant conception ofPurusha

s Sacrifice shouldhave been distorted into a reference to

human sacrifice .

V I I . R I K .

Asya=For th is (mental sacrifice) , Asc otthere w ere, Sapta=sev en, Parid/taya lt

sacred enclosingsticks ; flassapta= thriceseven, Samidhah=fuel - st icks, Kritcth=w ere

prepared ; Yat=w hen,D eed/t: th e gods,

Tanvdndit=performed, Yajnamz the sacrifice ,Abadhnan=theybound, Pumcskamz the

Supreme B eing, Pas’

um==as th e v ic t im.

For th is sacrifice , there w ere seven paridln

'

s or fenc inglogs and thriceeseven fuel ~

sticks w ere prepared w hen the'

gods per

formed . th is sacrifice, they bound“

the

Supreme B e ing (to the sacrificial o

post) . as

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R I K V I I . 37

the v ic tim (to be immolated) .

Comment. Th is rileoccurs as the fifteenth

in the R igveda Samh ita ; but is placed as

the seventh in the T aittiriya Aranyaka .

We have follow ed the T aittiriyic arrange

ment , as th is verse forms a natural continuat ion of the sixth rile.

T he same figure is kept up in th is rile asalso in the sequel . Enclosingthe sacrificialfires on all sides are placed certain sacred

tw igs, seven in number— three round the

Ahavaniya fi re,

‘three round the Uttara

vedt'

and one represent ing the sun . And

a bundle of tw entv - one small st icks is

throw n into the fi re as a preliminary to thesacrifice .

“T here are three sacred fires pertaining to sacri

fice: — that w hich is perpetuallymaintainedbya grihapa ti or householder, w hich he receives

from his father and transmits to his descendants, andfrom w hich fires for sacrificial purposes are lighted .

(2 ) Aha vaniya— the eastern fire burningat filmvane or

a sacrifice , taken from the gdrhapatya fire. The sacri

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38 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

T he rile gives us no clue as to w ha t

th ings , in th is mental sacrifice, representedthe sevenparidhis or enclosingtw igs and thetw enty - one sticks . Vidyaranya says that

the seven Vedic metres such as Gavatri ,

Anushtup, Jagati &c . , here represent the

seven paridhis . These sev en metres w ere, it

must be admitted, no t in ac tual existenceat the time of this allegorical sacrifice for

w e find it expressly stated in a la ter rile

that rik, yajus , edman and the several metresissue out of th is same sacrifice . B ut it is

believed that the Vedas and, by implication ,

the Vedic me tres are eternal and therefore

must have existed in the minds of the gods,the Sfidhvas and the R ish is , w ho are the

flea proper is performed in this fire . (3) D ak shinathe sacred fire (also called anvdhéryapachana )—placedsouthwards, used in the anvfiharya sacrifice, w hich isan expiatory ceremony performed for the removal offaults of omission or commission that may have creptin, in the course of the sacrifice proper and in w hichfood, gifts and sac rificial ofi erings are presented to theR itti ks or officiating priests . Utteravedi is the

northern altar made for the sacred fire .

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R I K V I I . 39

performers of th is figurative sacrifice . I t

is the above-mentioned R ish is, that receive

the ligh t ofrevelation through div ine inspi

rat ion and through w hom it is made know n

to the world . Stripped of the figure, the rift

w ould mean that the eternal Vedic truth

illumined the minds of these div ine and

semi-div inesacrificersand they contemplatedon the nature of the Supreme Lord as w e

find it set forth , la ter on, in Vedic metres .

R . T . H . Griffi ths observes that Mah idhara ,

another commentator, is of opinion that theseven oceans may have been intended bythe seven parid/tis ; but w e

'

fa il to see

the appropriateness of the interpretation .

Vidyaranya says that the tw elvemonths

the five seasons, thethree w orlds and the

sun are intended by the tw enty - one sticks .

T he,

tw elve months and the fi ve seasons"

m m (spring) including sha ttra and mis'ékha. grit/mmthe

,summer) the next tw o months ;pram-i t ( the rainy season)

0 next two ; a'crat ( autumn) the next tw o ; r

'is'tra and

hw m ta comprising. the las t four month s of the year beingh ere regarded as one season—that of dew .

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40 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA

as represent ingt ime may w ell have been

meant here ; but the three w orlds,and the

sun, a t the t ime of th is sacrifice

,w ere yet

to come into existence and so the appro

priateness of these last hav ingbeen intendedby the fuel - sticks is not very clear .

They bound the Purusha or the‘

L '

ord (tothe sacrificial po st) , as the v ict im to be

offered ; ev idently because there w as

no th ing else-

to be oflered up as sacrifice .

From Him sacrificed, w as to proceed al l

the universe of existingth ings and to Him

w as the sacrifice offered. Probably in a

metaphorical description of th is k ind w e

should no t be do ing just ice to the spirit ofthe author of the hymn,

if w e shouldexpec t the metaphor to ;stand on all fours .

A ruth less analysis of an expressive figure

maygo to strip many a beaut iful passage,here as elsew here, of its intrinsic charm,

may perhaps be indicat ive of a st iff- necked

sc ientific spirit, but is certainly subversiv e

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Rm V II I . 41

of all canons of goo d taste and generous

critic ism.

A ll that is implied by th is as w ell as the

precedingrile is that the D evds, thed hyds

and the Rishis contemplated for a longw h ile on the glory of the Lord— such gloryas w e find set forth in th e Vedas, prayed toHim devout ly and regarded Him as both

the sacrifice and the Lord of the sacrifice ,that is, as bo th the material and the

effic ient cause of the universe .

Inc identally, these tw o riks show that

at the t ime of the hymn the ceremonial of

sacrifice must have been considerablyelaborated . Th is is

,how ever, true ofmany

another hymn of the R igveda . As w e have

already remarked, sacrifice is the keynote

of th is Veda, as it is clearly of the others .

VI I I R I K .

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42 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

Tam=that , Yajnam=sacrific ial offering,Purusham=the Lo rd, Jcitam=born, Agrata/a.

before all th ings, Proulcshan=they immolated, B arhishi=on the sacrificial fire ;T enaw ith th is thegods,Ye (andthey) w ho (w ere), d hydh=tlie Sfidhyfis ,

R ishayascha z and the R ishis, Ayajanta r

performed the sacrifice .

T hey immolated on the sacrific ial fire

that sacrificial offering, Purusha, w ho w as

born before all other th ings ; w ith th isoffering, the Gods , the Shdhyfis and the

Rish is performed the sacrifice .

Comment—I t should be no ted that th isimmolation of Purusha , is also to be takenfigura tively . A t the time of th is mentalsacrifice, the one- fourth part of Purushahad, as already remarked, assumed tw o

forms—one , Prajapat i or, as He is know n

in later systems of ph ilosophy, I s’

vara,and

the o ther, nebular ma t ter called Viraj,w h ich th is Prajapat i animated as its v ital

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44 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

T he expression is capable of bo th the

interpretat ions . There is no materialdifference betw een the tw o ; yet w hat w e

w ish to po int out is that it w ill not be safe toset aside Vidyaranya

s meaning unless for

very strongreasons, and even then, such

reasons should be explic itly stated. W e

have know n Pandits of immense learning,

w ho w hen they fa iled to understand Vidyaranya, did no t how ever proceed to condemn

h im but sincerely set it dow n to their ow n

ignorance and regarded the condemnat iono fVidyaranya as little short of heresy .

d /zyd/z—Wallis, in h is ‘Cosmology of the

Rigveda’

has th is no te on the w ord .

‘T he

Sfidhyas w ould seem to be div ine ancientsacrificers . Compare X,

10 9, 4 ; also X ,

191,2; V I I ; 2 1 . 7; and X Vidya

ranya h as these remarks on sadhyas and

R ish is .

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R I K IX . 45

i .e,’ Those w ho , (by their penance)

w ere'

capable of accomplishing the w ork of

creation—gods w ho , as already no ted, re

presented the life and senses or the act ive

pow ers of Prajapati—and the vedic seers .

R I K . I X .

W W W !T asmat From that , Yajndt= sac rifice ,

Sarra - ka tak=in w h ich , all , t . e, Virad

purusha, w as offered up, Prishad-ajyam=

ghee mixed w ith curd, Sambhri tam=w as

produced ; Chalcre=He (Prajapat i) (then)created, Tdn=(all ) these, Pas

zinz animals ,

Ye d avycin that have the air for their

deity,Aranydn=those liv ing in forests,

Grcimyds cha=and those liv ingin v illages .

From th is sacrifice in w h ich V irt‘

ij w as

sacrificed w as produced ghee mixed w ith

curd . He (Prajapa t i) then created all the

animals—those liv ingin the air, and those

that are w ild as w ell as domest ic .

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46 T HE PURUSHA SUKT A .

Comment. Th is sacrifice is termed

sarvaha t’

, because sa rva i .e. , V iraj, w h ichcontained the germ of a ll the th ings of the

universe , w as regarded as the oblation to

the Lord . Ghee mixed w ith card’

is used

here, by w ay of Upalakshana , to deno te all

those th ings that serve as sustenance to all

liv ing beings . Animals are said to have

Vayu or the God ofwmd for their presidingdeity ; Vidyaranya quo tes T aittiriya B rah

mana I I I— l 2—3 in suppo rt of this fact .

Wallis thus translates the rile ; Whenthe sac rifice w as completed, they co llec tedthedrippingfat from it , it formed the beasts

of the air, of the w ild places and of th e

v illage .

! Wa llis th inks that the fat drippingfrom the sacrificed v ic tim formed the

animals w ild and domestic . B ut accordingto V idyaranya , from th is universal sacrifice,w ere produced al l th ings that serve as

sustenance and similarly He created . all

animals w ild and tame .

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R I K X . 47

Tasmdt=From that , Sarvahutahz univer

sal , Yajncit=sacrifice, R ichah=the rile verses ,Sdmdni—(and) the Stiman verses, Jajnire=

w ere born; Tasmdt=from that , Chhanddmsiz

the metres, Jajnire=sprang Yaju8==theYajus texts, ajdyata=sprang, Tasnuit=fromtha t .

From tha t universal sarifice“

w ere born

the rih:and the edman verses ; the severalmetres such as Gdyatri &c .

,w ere also

produced from the same ; the Yajus texts

w ere born therefrom.

Comme nt. T he Vedas are regarded as

e ternal, be ing the w ord of God ; but herethey are expressly sta ted to have been born

o ut of th is sac rifice . T he tw o s tatements

are not to be taken as mutually conflic t ing.

Veda is eternal truth o r sacred know ledge

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48 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

and lived in the Supreme B e ing. Whenthese Sfidhyas and R ish is contemplated on

Him and prayed to Him, He illumined the irhearts w ith the div ine know ledge , and th e

Eternal Truth flashed on their minds w ithsuch v iv idness and brilliancy that theyseemed to see and hear it . Hence it is that

the w ord ofGod is termed S’

ruti or w hat

w as heard, and the R ish is w ho w ere the

rec ipients of th is div ine know ledge are

termedmantrdrishta‘

ra h, i .e. ,those that saw

the hymns . T he present rile conveys the

same idea, namely , that the Vedic truths

came out of th is sacrificed Purusha and the

recipients thereof, the Sadhyas and the

R ish is,w hose minds had been thus illumined

gave out these truths to the w orld inmetricalform, w hose harmonious outflow is also

attributed to the same div ine agency. Th is,in short , is the orthodox theory of the

div ine inspiration and eternity of the Scrip

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R I K X . 49

T he ment ion of Ri/c, Yajus and Sdman in

th is v erse has led many scholars to believetha t the R igVeda , the Yajur Veda and the

Sauna Veda alone w ere in exis tence a t fi rst

and th e Atharva Veda came la ter on intoexistence . There is noth ingin the v erse to

support th is V iew . T he w o rds r iehas , sdmdni

and yajus canno t here mean the severalcomp ila tions bearing these names . Such an

interpre tat ion presumes tha t th is verse mus thave been w rit ten after the three distinct

compila tions had been comple ted . I f so ,it

has to be pro ved w hen and by w hom, t hisverse came to be w ritten and inserted in the

body of one of them. B ut the meaning is

plain and s imple . A t the t ime w hen many

of the hymns of the R igveda w ere sany,

(composed, no t comp iled) , the ceremonial ofthe sac rifice had been considerably dev eloped and Vedic songs and composit ions hadbeen classified into three distinc t varieties

,

the fundamentum divisionis being their

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50 Tm:PURUSHA SUKTA .

subjec t mat ter, the sacrific ial purposesthey serv ed, and th eir me trical and musica l

( in the absence of a mo re accura te expression) peculiari ties Thus any Vedic verse

o r passage must come under any of these

t h ree heads hence th e Vedas w ere designated by the compreh ensive term

,T ray! or

T rayi Vidyd. T he expression Tmyi Vidydthus comprises the A tha rva Veda also , as

the songs of th is Veda are riles , though

many o f them are no t to be met w i th (andnecessari ly so) in the R igvedic compila t ion .

I t w as only at a la ter stage that these v erses

and texts w ere codified into dist inc t books,to mee t dist inc t , sac rific ial and o ther

requirements . T ill then, these v erses and

texts lived on, in thememory of the people,loosely and unstrung, but each and everyo ne of them labelled as a R ik, Yajus or

Stimc‘

tn according to its variety and each

serv inga distinc t purpose ; and such songs

and texts as w ere new lygiven out by w ise

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52 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

tha t the B igVedic and the Atharvana Vedicsongs mus t hav e existed side by side and

represent tw o concurrent streams of though t .

Chhanddmsi . Griffi ths th inks w ith Wallisthat th e w ord may be taken to mean“spells and incantations

!

. He is probablyof opinion that the w ord may therefore be

regarded as indirec tly referring to the

A tharvana Veda w h ich mainlv consists of

spells and incantations . B ut, as w e hav e

pointed out abov e,the Atharvana Vedic

songs are sufficiently included under the

terms B ichas, Sdmdni and Yajus . Vidyar

anya takes the w ord to mean Gdya tryd

d ini (Gayatri and the other metres) , and no

reason can be assigned to set aside th is

interpretat ion .

W W W :7hsmdt= From that , Aj oy

anta=w ere born Ye Ke Cha=and all those,

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R I K XII . 53

Ubhaydda tah=th a t have tw o row s of tee th ;

T asmdt=from tha t , d ahz cow s,Ha=(an

exple tive), Jagnire z w ere born ; T asmdt

from that, Aja - a oayah

=goa ts and sheep .

From th is sac rifice w ere born ho rses and

a ll (cat tle) w i th tw o row s of tee th . T he

cow s w ere also genera ted from the same ;

and from it w ere producedgoats and sheep .

Comment— Th is verse should, properly

speak ing, be placed immedia tely after verse

IX,as both th ese verses desc ri be the c rea t ion

of all the low er animals and thus t reat of

the same subj ec t .

XII .

flats; Wigwam 811m l

0

Y at=w hen, Vyadadhah=they div ided

,

Purusham=the Lord (sacrificed) , Katidhd=

into how many parts, Vyalcalpayan=did

they form Him ! K im=w hat w as, Asya

His, Kau=w hat tw o, Ush

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54 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

yete—have been called

, Behal f -His arms,

Kanz w hat tw o, Ur il==

-(His) th ighs, PdddsHis feet .

When the Devas, the Shdhyas and the

R ish is, w ho represent the v ital ac tiv ities of

the Lord or Prajapati, cut Him up into

several parts to be offered up in th e

sacrifice , into how many parts did they

div ide Him,w ha t w as His month , What.

w ere called His arms , w hat His th igh s andfeet !

Comment. T he hymn now proceeds to

explain the creat ion of the several castes

&c . and puts th e mat ter in the form of

questions and answ ers . T he questions keepup the figure ofsacrifice . T he v ic tim to be

offered up is cut up into parts and the

several parts into w h ich the Lord w as

div ided are enumerated in the next verse ;

B rahma S'

ri S’

rinivasa S'

astri in h is com

mentary on the Shk ta , thus interprets theR ik .

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R I K XII I . 55

When they created man, w as he born

as a single type or w ere several distinc tc lasses of men brough t into exis tencesimultaneously T he context w ould not

allow us to interpre t Purusham vyadadhuh

to mean “theycrea ted man

!

; but the po intis w orthy of note that the objec t of the

quest ion proposed in the verse seems to be tobring into prominence the belief that w henman w as created several classes of men

came into beingand no t a. single class .

XIII

W W W :W @ W | I

B rdhmanah=T he B rahman, Asit=w as (i . e.

came from), Asya=HisI ll a/cham=mouth Rdjanyah=the Kshatriya ,

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56 T HE PURUSHA Suk '

rA .

Jfritah=w as made (i . e . proceeded from H is) ,B dh ii z tw o arms ; T ad=then, Yad Vais

'

yah

— the Vais’ya , Asyd=(came from) His, Urdtw o thighs, S

'

ddrahrz the S'

udra , Ajdya ta

sprang, Padbhydmz from (His) tw o feet .

T he B rahman w as born from the mouth

ofPrajapa ti ; the K sha triya , fromHis arms;

the Vais’ya , fromHis th ighs ; and the S'

udra

w as bo rn from His fee t .

Comment 1 . T he S'

udra alone is repre

sented in th is R ik as h av ings'p rangfrom the

fee t of Prajapa t i . The three h igher castes

a re here represented as consti tuting some

spec ified limbs of Prajapati . Probably theauthor of the hymn had some dis tinc tion inV iew ; the w ordingof the r ile seems to implythat

,in the author

s v iew, the th ree h igher

castes w ere coeval w ith the Div ine B eingand lived as parts of Him before theyassumed their several forms, - w hereas the

S'

udra sprangout of His feet . Vidyaranya ,

how ever,does no t note th is difference.

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R I K XIII . 57

9 T he Rik must ev idently be taken

figura tively . I t suggests tha t the caste

system w as originally based on a div isionof labour. T he mouth is typical of learningand teach ing and the B rahman w as the

repository of all learningsacred and seen

lar and t o h im alone w as entrus ted the

task of spreadingthe ligh t of know ledge .

His life indeed w as consec ra ted to the

pursuit and the dissemina tion ofknow ledge .

T he arms of Prajapa t i represent physicalstrength and the K sha triya therefore

typifies the strength of arm that secures

peace and order in the realm and pro tec ts

the country from foreign invasion T he

th ighs are symbol ioial of trav el (and com

merce) and the Vais’ya thus represents the

several arts and trades ; and the S'

udra, as

sprungfrom the feet of Prajapati , w as the

servant of all the o thers .

3 . T he Rik may be also regarded as

implying that the B rahman came first in

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58 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

the order of rank and the o thers came after

h im in due order . I t does no t speak ill ofthe Indian mind that the representative of

the national intellec t should have been

accorded the h ighest place in the soc ialscale .

4 . Mr. R . C . Dut t , fo llow ing the leadof w estern scholars, is of opinion that thecaste - system did not exist during the t ime

w hen the R igveda hymns w ere generallycomposed. He argues that if that w onder

ful system had then exis ted,it is no t

possible to explain how there is no allusion

to th is fundamental principle of soc iety inthe ten thousand verses of the R igveda .

He th inks that the solita ry mention of the

four castes in th is Sfik ta canno t w eaken

h is argument , as the Sfik ta itself w as

composed centuries after the general bulkof the R igvedic hymns . He also says thatw ords like Kshatriya , Vipra , are used as

adjec tiv es in the sense of strongand w ise

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60 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

several cas tes ;and th is is more than any

of the scho lars has a ttempted . As w ell mayi t be said that there w ere no r ishis in the

R igvedic days, because w efind the w ord rishi

used in the sense of al l - w ise and applied to

Indra and o ther Gods,as fo r instance in VIII

6,41 . 553

q gala" &c . w h ich Vidyaranva thus

interprets .

‘a‘zfi

'fi firs t ails:sa nsApart from the numerous references

to th e castes in the Tai tt . Samh ita w here

in the seventh Kanda , l st B ras'

ma, a detailed

account of the origin of the castes similar

to the one in the present Sfik ta is given, w e

migh t say that in the R igveda itselfment ionis made of the B rahman &c . in several

places some of these references w ill beexamined on a future occasion but one

instance may be quoted here .

T he passage w e refer to is R iks 16 , 17

and 18 in the 35th Sfik ta of the VIIIMandala .

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R I K XIII . 61

They are as follow

M anama faith s with (triennial:I

es teem !fines t gear elem na it

Th ese B iks exac tlv agree w ith one

another except in the beginning. T he

portion w h ich is common to these riksinvokes the As

v ins to come w ith Surya ,

partake of the yajamdna’

s libation of soma ,

and destroy th e Rakshasas . Tha t portionw h ich is spec ial to the first Rik prays to

the As'

v ins to mak e the B rahman happyand st imulate h is understanding (or ac tiv ities, according to Vidyaranya) . T he

spec ial portion of the second R ik similarlv

prays that the As’

v ins should make the

K sha triya h appy and bless the w arriors

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66 T HE PURUSHA SUKT A .

rish'

i means is . th is:“ Urged by a desire

for w ealth , each of us is engaged in a

different pursui t . I . am a composer of

hymns ; my father (or my son) is a bhishalc;

mv mother is a grinder of corn. As cow s

w ander severally in pursuit of pasture , sow e go our several w ays in pursui t of

w ealth . T hus absorbed in money -makingavocations, w e have hardly t ime to th inkof mat ters spiritual . W e thus stand in

Spec ial need of div ine grace . O h Soma,

flow ,therefore, for I ndra .

!

A modern B rahman poet , born and bred

up in the present h ide- bound artifi c ial net

system of sub- castes, can exclaim w ithoutany the least impropriety, O h L ord,

what mad men ha th love of money made

of us all ! B ehold, my father toils andsw eats as a Vaidika B rahman eager for

dalcshind. My mother k neads dough for

house- hold consumpt ion and pinches and

starves to make bo th ends meet ; and I go

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R I K XIII . 67

about singingpra ises of rich men and tryingto get money from them. Thus severallyengaged, w e have hardly time to th ink of

T hee . Therefo re O h Lord have mercy on3,

us . I t w ould be as safe to argue from

such‘

a specimen tha t there are no castes

now .

(6) I n the particular ri/c relied upon by

Mr. Dutt , the R ishi calls h imselfa composer

o f hymns— a proper avocat ion for a

B rahman ; h is mo ther grinds corn, w hich iso ne of the legi timate occupat ions of the

mistress of a house in a B rahman family ;h is father is (even as understood by Muirand o ther w estern scholars) a physic ianand there is no th ingto show tha t a B rahman

could no t be a t the same time a physician .

I t is true that ih'

the Dharma Sutras of

Apastamba and Gautama, there is no

mention of th is profession among those

w h ich a B rahman can follow in an emer

gency. B ut Aya rceda has been regar ded

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68 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

as a Vedé‘

mga ; a particularsanct ity has everbeen at tached to this art . T he div ineAs

vins are the first teachers of th is a rt

and its first promulgators, like Dhanvantari ,Charaka and S

'

us’

ruta are'

regarded as

B rahman and accorded a

'

semi - div inehomage . I n these circumstances , there is .

noth ing in the rik w h ich w ould conflic t

w i th the v iew tha t at the time w hen it

w as composed all the four castes migh th ave been in existence .

(c) B ut , ifV idvaranya is to be accepted,

the rik is innocent of all reference to the

physic ian He says

‘fss afi’

term I ass as sins:

So , accordingto V idyaranya , the passage

means “ My fa ther is the ! superintendingpriest at a sac rifice and Vidyaranya sup

ports th is interpretation byano ther passagefrom the S

'

ruti,w here w e have the very

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R I K XIII .

w ord w Which dec ides the po int ,

furt her le t us‘

remember that V idyaranya

has ;no particular hobby to ride likewestern scho lars and proposes alterna tiv emeaningsw herever he th inks the passages

admi t of the same and no conv incingreason

can be given to show tha t the interpretat ion of w estern Sanskritists is any w ay

better than Vidyaranya’

s or more sui ted tothecontext . Yet it is on the strength of

passages like these that these scholars

e stablish some of their most cherishedtheories !

Yet one more point and w e have done .

T he Parnshaszilcta may be admi tted to be

o f later origin than the general bulk of the

hymns of the R igveda ; but it is undoubtedthat it must be centuries earlier than the

t ime w hen the R igveda w as compiled, as, if

t here had b een then the sligh test suspic ionof its later origin it w ould not have been

incorporated in the Samhitd. B ut the caste

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70 T HE PURUSHA SUKT A .

system must be of even earlier date than

th is hymn. For the present rile does no t

betray any consc iousness of the human

origin of caste . Grant ing then that the

cas te- systemw as a human institution or, a

gradual grow th , it must have been in

existence (of course only in its broades t

outlines) so long before the time of th isSukta that it should have been thought at

that t ime '

to be coeval w ith the beginningof th ings ; there is no cause to show that

the interval oft ime that w e presume betw eenthe incept ion of the caste - system and th e

present Sfikta is shorter than that w h ich ‘

is

believed to separate hymns like th is one

from the earlier ones .

T he innumerable sub- sec ts among the

four castes‘

are certainly of very late origin ;they find no sanc tion in our sacred w orks

for th eir raison d’

etre. These are due to theseveral w aves of Aryan emigra tion into

Southern I ndia , to differe nces of local

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72 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

breath , d ah==the air, Ajayata=w as

produced.

Simarly the moon w as born of His

mind, and from His eyes came the sun ;

from His month proceeded I ndra and Agniand from His brea th w as the air produced.

XV .

33stW :dismal imamN dbhys rom (His) navel , Asitz w as (i . e

°

came) , Anta rilcsham= the intermediateregion betw een heaven and earth ; Sir

shnah=from (His) head ; D yans:h eaven,Samavartata=proceeded Padbhydm=from

(His) feet, B hamih -z (came) the Earth ,

S'

rétrdt:from (His) ear, the

direc tions . T a thd=in th is manner (did

the several limbs ofPrajapati) , Alca lpayancreate, L olcdn= the (several) w orlds .

From His navel came the atmosphere

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R I K XV . 73

from His head, the sky ; from (His) . feet

proceeded the Earth and from His ears

came the several direc tions . I n th is mannerdid His several limbs create . the severalw orlds .

Comment on B ilos I 4 and

.

15; Grantedthat these passages are figurative , it need

scarcely be po inted out h ow appropriatelythe several limbs are chosen to typify the

various members of the Universe . T he

subtle band of connec tion betw een the mindand the moon has been recognised amongmore na tions than one . Similarly the sun

is very appropria tely represented as the eye

of the Lord. With regard to the connec t ionhere mentioned betw een the ear and the

direc tions it should be no ted that in latersystems o f Indian ph ilosophy the ear is

regarded as no th ing more than dlcds'

a

c ircumscribed w ith in the cav i ty of that

o rgan and tha t s’

dbda or sound is regarded

as the distinguish ingcharacteristic ofdkds'

a .

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74’

T HE PURUSHA SUK '

rA .

T he rest do not call for anyspecial remark .

D hirahr -T he all - w ise Purusha , Yad=yahw ho, Sarcdni=beings (such as gods, men

Vichintya=bringing into existence ,N dmdni K ritrd=(and) giv ing names (to

them) , Aste==re1nains, Abhivadan=calling

them by their names, E tam—th is, P-

arush’

am,

=Purusha , hfahdntamz w ho transcends all

attributes, Adityavarnam:(and) w ho sh ineslike the sun, Aham=l , Veda=know ,

T a r

but (He exists), Pdre=on the shore,

T amasah=of ignorance .

Exp lana tory meaning.

I t has been given to me to know (by.

direc t intuit ion) th is all - w ise Purusha w ho ,

li fter bringinginto exis tence all beings such

as men , gods and the like and giv ingthem

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Rm XV I . 75.

names, goes on (sus ta ining the universe)

calling every creature by, its name , w ho

transcends all attributes , w ho is resplen

dent like the sun, and w ho lies beyond theocean of ignorance .

Comment - Th is and the next ri/c are no t

to be found in the R igveda text of the

Si‘ik ta . T hey are however met w ith in thetext of the Snk ta as given in th e T ait tiriya

Aranyaka . T hey are in a more pol isheds tyle than the rest of the miles, and in a

more developed metre . Moreov er they

bear a more direc t relation to the teach ingof the Vedanta as expounded in th e Chhan

dogya and o ther Upanish ads and in the

Vedanta Sfi tras . And Sayana interpre t sthem agreeably to the teach ing of the

Vedantic pll llO SO plly. For these reasons

the tw o ri/cs w ill be considered by w estern

scho lars as a la ter addi tion . B ut it is the

T aittiriya Text that is . in gene ral use in

Southern India and besides, the riks them

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76 T HE PURUSHA SUKT A .

selves are interestingand so follow ing th e'

T aittiriya text w e have inserted these tw o

riks also .

XVII .

margrtgwgmg'

ri I traw l-

Emagfigrawla:It hat fia sqzigs slaw l sw armstalemate! I IYamz w hom, t td=Prajapati,Parastdt

fi rst , Uddjahdra=made know n, Sa lorah:

Indra ( then made kno w n) , Pra vidvdn=w ellknow ing, Chatasrah Pradis

'

ah (all the

beings liv ing in all) the four direc tions,

T am=Him,E vam Vidvdn=he w ho know s .

thus, B havati=becomes, Amritah=immorta l,in th is life ; N a - anyah no

o ther Panthd path , Vidya te=there is,

Ayanaya:for eternal bliss .

Prajapati fi rst made known (the E ternal

truth about) Him then Indra know ingthe (beings living in all the) four quarters

( taught the truth to the w orld) . Tha t man

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R I K XVII . 77

w ho comes to know Him thus , becomes

immortal ev en in th is w orld . There is no .

o th er path that leads to e ternal bliss .

Comment on riks 1 6’

and 1:1 . Mahdntam==I nfinite, zinconditioned .

T he objec t of th e tw o riks is to identify th e

crea tor of the w orld (w ho is technicallyknow n as I s

'

vara in the Vedantic systemand w ho is often called Prajapat i in theearlier litera ture) w i th the N irguna B rah

man— the Absolute , the O ne w ithout a

second . Accordingto S'

ankara’

s unqualifiedAbsolutism,

even I s'

vara is Mayopadh ika .

I s’

vara has only a phenomenal existence . He

does no t exist in the real sense of the term.

He can be said to exist only in tha t sense

in w h ich th e v is ible univ erse is said to exis t .

I n Pdramdrthiha reali ty , N irguna B rahmanalone exists ; and to explain the creation o f

the univ erse w h ich has only a phenomena lor Vydz

'

ahdri/ca existence a phenomenallyexisting I s

vara is brough t in . T he difl'

er ~

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T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

ence betw een absolute and phenomena l

existence may be thus briefly , though

inadequately , illustra ted. Aman, w hen

'

he

is hypno tised, undergoes many experiencesh e sees, for instance, duringh is hypno tisedc ondi tion a grand palace . So longas the

hypno tic condition remains, the man regards

h is experience as genuine ; to him,for the

t ime being, the grand palace really exis ts .

I t is only w hen he gets out of th is conditiont hat he comes to see tha t the palace w as

o nly an illusory appea rance conjured up

into a temporary existence by the mayi !

pow er of the hypno t iser . N ow to applyt h is analogy . T he Supreme B eing is the

grand hypno tiser . All beings in the

universe are under the influence of His

hypno tism. When one comes to know di

r ectly that all th is phenomenal universe hasbeen projec ted into existence by His mayic

pow er, the illusion vanishes and one sees

t hat all the w hile the illusion lasted, there

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80 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

w a ter (prov ided the larger sheet'

ofw ater is

near enough ) and the air in the pot becomesinextricably mixed up w ith the atmosphere .

Only Vedantic ph ilosophy does nO t profess

to explainhow th isfl

hypuotismbegan orw hen,

or how so many be ings came to be under

i ts spell . I t is enough fto know t hat this

hypnotism now exists ; and the only th ingone can do under the c ircumstances is to

see how one can get cut of its influence ,and naturally the only w ay ofgetting out

of it is to know that it is no thing but

hypno tism,that the hyp

n'

otist alone reallyexists and causes all th is Wonderful appear

ance . Sfiyana therefore explains the w ord

mahdutam thus survuguuairadhikam=trans~

cending all attributes i . e.

,unconditioned,

absolute.

2 . like the

sun .

"

T he Absolute is not to be regarded

as possessingsplendour but as srapmktisa

r ilpa . I f He be r egarded as hav ing

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R I K XVII . 8 1

Splendour it w ill become an at tribute of

His and th is w ill conflic t w ith the prev iousstatement that He transcends all attributes .

Hence the expression should be taken to

mean tha t He is Ligh t , the L igh t of chit (M ) ;He is essentially Spirituality .

3 . T amat astu Pdre. Tamas is Mayaor

ignorance . He is no t under the influence ofMaya. I t is w e tha t are under the

hypno tic spell ofHis Maya. T he Supreme

B eing should therefore be dist inguishedfrom I s

'

vara w ho is h imself Mdyds’

aba litu

and w hose phenomenal existence is

postulated to expla in all the rest of the

phenomenon .

4 . He gave al l th ings a name and a

shape and it is He tha t remains ca llingthem

by their names . T w o th ings are stated here .

First . He is the source ofall crea ted th ings .

Secondly,He it is tha t goeth about callinn'

th ings by th eir names . That is , it is He

alone that is engaged in the several pursuits6

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82 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

of Samsara . This is contrary to our

o rdinary experience. I t is men and the

several crea tures that w e find engaged in

the various ac tiv i ties of life . Moreover

the second statement conflic ts w i th the

fi rst , w hich says that it is He tha t has

c rea ted a ll beings W hom w e find busy in

the several w alks of life . How then is th isinconsistency to be explained !T he Chhandogyopanishad th us explains

the matter (V I Chapter, Sec t ions II and III) .

A t first This alone w as B eing, O ne onlyw ithout a second. I t w illed thus:I w illmultiply and be born.

I t created T ejas

(Fire) ; then w ater (W ) came into being; andthen earth Hav ingthus brough t intoexistence the several elements (air and e ther

being inc luded by implication) , that Deity

w illed thus:‘fi fi fimfiflfifl m s

7

c Enteringthese threedevatds (earth, w ater

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R I K XVII . 83

a nd fi re ) in the forms of Jiva I shall he

manifest in various forms and names .

!

Thus w e see tha t the phenomenal

universe is no t a distinct entity brough t intoe xistence by the W ill of a Supreme B eing,w ho remains distinct from all phenomenon.

B ut He it is that has become manifest asse veral fo rms and names . I t is in th issense alone that He can be said to

h ave created al l th ings . Thus the indiv idualsouls tha t are seen tossed about in th e sea

o f Samsara are no t entities distinc t fromHim but they are even He only they nowappea r condi t ioned and c ircumscribed by“eye.

O ne diffi culty natura lly presents itselfhere . I t maybe thus sta ted and explainedin the w o rds ’

of S’

ankara in h is comment

on th is passage . I t may be said that it

w ould no t appear consistent for a div ine

rendered by D r. Rajendra L al nitra ( B ibl iotheca.I ndica) .

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84 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

omnisc ient Deity intelligently to w ish to

enter a created body , the receptacle of

innumerable evils and undergo the frui ts

thereof. N or is it consis tent that , beingindependent , He should cease to be so by

amalgamat ion w i th a subordinate . I n

reply I admi t that i t w ould no t be con

sistent if tha t Deity w ere to enter a bodyand undergo the sufferings indiv idually ,w i thout any transformation . B ut such is

no t the case . How so B ecause the w ords

in the text are I n the form ofJiva Jiva

is but th e reflec tion of the Supreme DeityI t is produced by its relat ion to intelligence

(B uddh i) and o ther subtle elements,like the

image o f the sun in w ater o r ofa man in a

look ingglass . T he re la tion to B uddh i,of

that Dei ty of inscrutable and endless pow er

and th e reflec tion of His intelligence havefor their instrumental cause the ignorance

ofHis true nature , and from them proceed

the feelings of I am happy , I am suffering,

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R I K XVII . 85

I am igno rant &c’

entering into mundane

objec ts in the form of a reflec tion, that

D eity in His own self is no t involved in any

co rporeal pleasure or pa in . A human

beingor th e sun entering a mirror or w ater

in the form of a reflec tion canno t h imself

acquire the defects of the reflectingsurface .

So is the case w ith the Dei ty .

!

For a detailed eluc idat ion of this v iew

w e may refer our readers to the thirteenthAdhikarana of the 3rd Pada of the Second

Adhyaya of the Vedanta Sutras, w here

S'

ankara examines the several posnions indetail .5 . 1) 1t (itd D htitd or theo riginal

progenitor of the human race and I ndra are

stated in the Upanishads to have been the

first promulgators of the Vedantic truths .

V ide for instance Chhandogya , V I I— l 5—1 .

6 . T hese tw o riks,though no t found in

the R igveda yet occur in ano ther Samhitci

(Vfijasaneya -Samhitit 31—8) in a sligh tly

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86 T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

different form. T h e tw o riks in the Tai tt .

A ranyaka v ersion canno t therefore be set

dow n as the latest produc t ofVedic ac tiv ity ,though a rela tive posteriority may be

assigned to them among the produc ts of

wh at w estern scholars call ‘the Chhandas

period .

I t may be no ted tha t the rik as

given in the Vajasaneya -Samh ita is alsorepeated in the S

vetas’

va taraUpanishad ( I I I

Chap .

XVIII .

fi dwflw fi w fi sfilfimmw lei l

D evdh=T he w orsh ip

ped, Yajnam the sacrifice (namely, Lord

Prajapati) Yajnena=by the sacrifice (of

Contemplat ion) Asan (thus) came ,

Pruthamciniz the fi rst and essential, Tuni

(and) w ell know n, D harmdni=law s (byw h ich the universe isgoverned) ; ill uhimcinab- those great souls (that w orsh ip Prajapat i)

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T HE PURUSHA SUKTA .

the Sac rifice . Vidy“aranya explains N dlcum

M W W — no th ing but union w ith

the Lord .

HERE EN D S PART I .

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PA R T I I.

UTTARA PURUSHASUKT A.

R I K . I .

was:Hutu:Elamfinfifiw:enafiarfil Iawardmew

This universal ma t ter kno w n as Virdt,

Sumblnttah=sprang, Adbhyah=trom the

w a ters, Chuz and, Rasdtz from the w ateryessence , Prithivyui=bltumydh=of the earth .

T he presidingdeity of the universe , know na s Viratpurusha , Adhi=w ith all h is ex

c ellence, Samavartttta=sprang, Vis'

va lcar+

manuh=from the Universal Creator ; T vashtti- Th is Universal Creator, Vidadha t=bringinginto existence, R 12pam=the form, Tusya

of the V irittpurusha , E ti=busies Himse lf.

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90 T HE U'

I'

I‘

ARA PU’

RUSHA SUKTA .

T a tsarram —All th is, Purushatsyuz presided

over by V iratpurusha , Ajdnam=( thusspread) on al l sides, Agrez at th e beginning(of creation) .Th is universal ma tter know n as Virdt

sprangfrom the waters and from the w atery

essence of the earth . T he Dei ty presidingover the universe, Himself know n as V irat

purusha , sprangw i th al l his excellence fromtheUniversalCreator . This Universal Creatorbrough t into existence the outward form of

V irfitpurusha , w h ich consists in the v isibleuniverse about us . Thus did all th is

presided o ver by Viratpurusha spread on

all sides at the beginningof creation .

Comment . 1 . Th is Anuvdlca is the sequelof the Purusha-Sfik ta proper, and is calledUttara

I

drdyuna Anuzidlca, and is ascribed to

the same R ish i N arayana.2 . Adbhyas &c . This rik , agreeably to

the teach ingof the former part , postulatesthe existence of tw o Div ine B eings . T he

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R I K I . 91

fi rst is called Vis’

vu/carman or T ra s/ttri

the Prime Source of all th ings created

From th is B e ing, know n as B rahman in

Vedant ic philosophy , sprang a second

B eingcalled Viratpurusha—the presidingDeity of the v isible universe . Jus t as the

human body corresponds to the indiv idualsoul w hich resides in it

, so the w holeuniverse is regarded as the body of the

V iratpurusha .

'

Th is body is know n as

V irat . V irat is said in th is rik to have

sprungadbltya/t , from w a ter. (Byw ater is

probably meant w hat is know n as nebularmatter) . All w ater came out of the fluid

part of the nebula and all earthly mat tercame out of the th icker part of nebula . I t

appears thus that the theory of creat ion as

given here is a succinc t statement of the

theory of evolution, one of the proudest

ach ievements ofmodern sc ience . Originalnebular matter gradually cooled a nd th ickened and earth and w ater are but th e

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92 T HE UT’

I‘

ARA PURUSHA SUKTA .

produc ts ofva rious degrees ofc ondensation .

So says also Sayana in his comment on th is

passage .

Heismfigai‘

sgs ited-invent 513110d

asses—s ir( 3mggfi fi

'

fim E ager:«as set to:await!! can:m alaise EFfl

W e may truly transla te the passage thusFrom ja la that w as spread on all sides

sprang th is universal globe, l ike c ream fromthe midst of milk . N o t simply from the

liquid but also from Pdrthiva essence (the

essence of matte r) ; the th icker part of thescum became so lid ma tter and the liquid

parts of the scum became the wa ters . So

says the Veda ,“ T he th icker is the solid

earth and the liquid part is the w aters .

!

T he rik i tself briefly h ints a t the evolat ion theory and Sayana, livingas he did in

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R I K II AN D I I I . 93

the 14th century A . C, could hardly be

suspected of reading nineteenth centuryscience into th is hoary passage . Such an

instinctive grasp of sc ientific truths in t imesalmost pre- h istoric is perhaps the bes t

comment on the inspired charac ter of th e

Vedas .

R I K . II .

aft-

Jags gin ssFé'

l

afi afifii ads:sitar!“ai l! limi ts s

e data

Th is Rik has already been explained inthe First Part .

R I K III .

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94 T HE UTTARA PURUSHA SUKTA

Prujdpatift z T he Lord of beings, Anta ltCharatiz mo ves through , Garb/tex th universeAjdyamcinah=tho ugh birthless, Viidyatez Heis born, B uhudhci z in several fo rms D hirdft

the w ise, Pa rijtinanti=w ell know , Tass/a x

His ; Yonim=rea1essence w h ich is the sourceo f c rea tion These w ise men

,Ved/tasah:

(becoming) the Lords of creation, I c/whhanti—W ish fo r (andobtain) , Pudumz

- the (exal ted)state , JI aric/aindm=of Marich i (A tri and

o ther Prajapatis) .

T he Lord ofbeings pervades all th ings .

T hough no t subjec t to bi rth He is yet bornin several fo rms . T he

"

w ise w ell know His

real essence and know ing it w ish for and

o btain the exalted s ta te ofMarich i and the

o ther Prajitpatis and become the lords ofc rea tion .

Comment. 1 . Anton C/turati =I t is He

t hat pervades and susta ins the unive rse and

«direc ts all c reatures in their severala ctiv ities and pursuits . He is jthe Ania /yd

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96 T HE UT TARA PURUSHA SUKTA .

Prayapa-tis , h is mind- born sons, w ho c om

pleted the w o rk of c reat ion .

A ccording to ano ther account,Maric h i

w as the son of B rahma his son w as K as’

yapa from w hom sprangVirusmt . FromV ivasva t w as born Manu w ho w as th e

pro- creator of all human beings .

T he R ik thus means that those w ho kno w

th e real na ture of the Supreme Lord become

immo rtal lords of creat ion and a ttain tha t

blissful sta te of existence , w h ich is enj oyed

by Marich i and the o th er Prajapatis .

B rahmas’

ri S’

rinivasa Sastri giv es an

al ternative interpre ta tion o f Marichindm.

l l l ctrichindm Padam— the path of rays or

w hat is called in la ter ph iI O SO phv as

archirtid'

t mdrgam - th e pa th tha t through

the sun and the moon leads on to eternal

bliss .

w m l wfi fiflgw éflr l

véii w th a ws:wfil samws’ml

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R IK7I V . 97

Ya/t=w ho , D evebhyuh z on account of the

Devas, Atupatiz sh ines everyw he re ; Yul:w ho , P the priest , D erdmtm~

of the Devas ; Yahz w ho , Ja‘

,tult=w as bo rn,

Pnrvah=antecedent , D et~ebltya it=t o all the

Devas ; N amuh=salutat ion,Ta sma i r to that,

Rucluiya=resplendent, B rti/tmrtyez Supreme

Lord .

Salutation to that resplendent SupremeLord w ho sh ines everyw h ere on account

of the D evas, w ho became the priest of theDevas, and w ho w as born befo re the Devas .

Comment. ( 1) D et eb/tyo/t Atoputi . Vi

dv“aranya thus explains it . 23TH!mm

«was 3371163101 new wrhfiafi . 11 i s the

Lord that enters into the heart o f eve1yDeva and sh ines there as the spiri tual ligh t

w ith in . I t i s th is Divine es sence shining 111

them more than in o ther beings , tha t. hasexalte d them to the rank ofgods .

(2) D evttndm Pnrohita lt . B rihaspat i ,accordingto Vidyaranya . I t is the Supreme

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98 T HE UT T ARA PURUSHA SUK’

I‘A .

Lord that has assumed the form of B rihas

pati , the priest of the Devas, and is guidingthem by his w ise counsels .

(3) D evebhyuh Pdrva la=T he Lord before

1al creation became manifest as

Himnyagarbha (the golden egg) and from

Him proceeded all creation . Compare the

Vedic passage“m il:mafia wit!

(4) B rdhmaye. Vidyaranya interpretsit in tw o w ays . (1)

'Pum6rahmasvarzipdya

w ho , in His real essence, is the Supreme

Lord (2 ) B rahmand= Vedena Pratipddydyu-

z

w hose nature is set forth in the B rit/amend .

or the Veda .

V .

Agrez l n the beginning of the creation(after the pralnya) , Junaycntal t= w h ilebringing o ut, Ruchttm=the intellec tuallight , B rit/imam=of the Supreme L ord,

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Rm V . 99

D eed/t -

z the Devas , Abruvft n=(thus) address

ed, Tul=it ; B rethmanalt z T he B rahman, Yak

=w ho , Vidydt knows,T voi Thee , E nam

thus, D evdh=the Devas (i . e . w e) , Asun=are'

,

Tasya, Vas’

e-

under h is control .

I n the commencement of creation after

the pralaya , the Devas, w hile.giv ingout for

the benefi t ofthe w orld the truenature of theintellectual essence of the Supreme Lordthus addressed it:O h , Thou essence of the

Lord, he w ho know s T hy real nature (asdescribed in the above riks), under his

control do w e Devas come .

Comment. T he true know ledge of the

nature of the Supreme Lord is believed tohave been communicated to mankind by

the Devas w ho, as remarked in the

precedingpages, w ere instrumental in the

completion of creation bytheir contemplation. What the Devas mean by the ir

address is that he w ho comes to know the

real nature of the Lord becomes one w i th

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10 0 THE U'

I‘

TARA PURUSHA SUKT A .

Him and thus becomes the -Antarg/dmin of

a ll the gods and rules them. Vidyaranya

quo tes from the Vajasaneyins (i . e . the

w hite Yajur Veda) in support of th is sta tement .

W W W e w s fi m l

m fi a ww ifi u

He w ho know s h imself to be identicalw ith B rahman becomes all th ings h imselfand over h im the Devas have no pow er .

V I (Yajus) .

swim w t l was! we! I

O h Lord!Hri/t Cha z Hri and, L aks/tmisc/tu

Lakshmi , Te=are T hy, Putnyau=tw o

w ives ; Alw rdtrez day and night , Pdrs’

ve

(are T hy) sides . N akehutrdni=T he stars ,

I t’v‘

qutm=are T hyform. As’

vinau= the tw o As’

v ins, Vycittamz mre T hy) openedmouth . O h

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Rm VI . (Yams ) 10 1

Lor dof such glory ! Mantishdna=grant us,

[slammz our desires (i . e. know ledge o fSelf) .

Amumz a ll th is (w ealth) th at w e see ,

i ll unisltdna=grant us SurvamManislutm

grant us all .

O h Lord ! B ri and Lakshmi s 1e T hy tw ow ives day and night are T hy sides ; thestars are T hybbdyand the As v ins are T hymouth . Grant us (know ledge of Self)w h ich w e desire, w ealth and all o ther good

th ings .

Comment.Vidyaranya takes Hri to mean L uiicibkb

mdnini D eratd, the presidingGoddess of

shame and L akshmi to mean A'

is'

varycibhi

r utuini D evatd=“the presidingGoddess of

w ea lth . Probably the idea is. this . Hri or

T; ajjfi. is the surest preserver of v irtue ; itis this feeling tha t keeps us from do inganyth ing mean or sinful . Hence, Hri is

used here to deno temi (Dharma) and L akshmi, Sui (Artha) ; D harma and Artha , the

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102 T HE UTTARA Y uansHA SUKTA .

fi rs t tw o purushdrthas , beinghere regarded

figuratively as the w ives of the Lord .

2 . As’

vinuu is the name of tw o divine

beings w ho a re said to appear in the sky

before the daw n in a golden carriage

draw n by horses . They are believed to

bring treasures to men and avert misfor

tune and sickness . They are ment ioned hereas perhaps represent ing Kama, (w orldlye njoyment), w hich is the th ird purushdrthu.

T o regard the stars as His body and day

and nigh t as His tw o sides is a sublimeconception of the Supreme D eity, w hose

sublimity even familiarity has no t been

able ent irely to efiace .

I shtam T hough the w ord means w hat

is desired in general , Vidyarauya here

takes it to refer to a particular one— the

know ledge of Self w h ich leads to the

a ttainment of the fourth purushdrtha or

final bliss .

l s .