SRUTI AND SMRTI----1

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I have received a mail from one of the members who writes as follows:-QuoteSir, I have been reading your postings for the past 2 months or so and I find them interesting and educative in the spiritual realm. In some of your postings you have referred to Manusmriti and at another place you have mentioned about Sruti. I am not very familiar with these. Can you kindly explain for the benefit of people like me as to what are Smrutis and what is Struti? Awaiting your postings in this regard. Thanks in advance."UnquoteBy sruti, we mean the Vedas. Let me explain with the help of some extracts from" Hindu Dharma" by Pujya Chandrasekhara Saraswati,former Sankaracharya of Kanchi mutt before I proceed further:-"The Vedas speak of a

variety of matters....... They mention anumber of sacrifices like agnihotra, somayaga, sattraand ishti and other rituals in addition........What are the rites to be performed at a marriage? Or at a funeral? How best is a kingdom(or any country)governed? How must we conduct ourselves in an assembly? You will find answers to many questions in the Vedas......The Vedas tell you about the conduct of sacrifices,ways of worship, methods of meditation.How is the body inspired by the Self? What happens to it(the body) at the end? And how does the Self imbue the body again? We find an answer to such questions in these sacred texts. Also we learn the methods to keep the body healthy, the rites to protect ourselves from enemy attacks........." ...... Sruti, Smruti and the Puranas, all the

three belong to the same tradition..... To discriminate between them is not correct. Adi Sankaracharya is said to be the abode of the three(Srutismrutipuraanaam alayam )....... The rites that are not explicitly mentioned in the Vedas but are dealt with in the smrutis are called smarta karmas and those that are explicitly mentioned are called srauta karmas. This does not mean that the smriti rites are in any way inferior to Srauta.... Vedic mantras are chanted in all these. Those who composed the Smritis and laid down the performance of such rites must have been fully aware of the spirit of the Vedas. It is not proper to think that the Smritis are inferior to the

Vedas......Manu, Parasara, Yajnavalkya,Gautama, Harita, Yama,Visnu, Likhita, Brahaspati, Daksa, Angiras,Pracetas,Samvarat,Acanas, Atri, Apastamba and Satatapa are the eighteen sages who mastered the Vedas with their superhuman power and derived the Smritis from them. The works are known after them like Manusmriti, Yajnavalkya smriti,Parasarasmruti and so on, and they contain all that we need to know about all the dharmas to be adhered to and all the rituals to be performed during our entire life.......... What we find in one Smriti may not be found in another. There may also be differences between one Smriti and another. These give rise to doubts which are sought to be cleared by works called"Dharmasastra Nibhandhanas". There are some Smritis which do not contain instructions with regard to all observances. For instance, some do not mention Sandhyavandana. The reason must be it is such a

common rite that everybody is expected to know it. Some omit the shraaddha ceremony and some others are silent on various types of "pollution"(for instance, that due to the birth of a child in the family or death of a relative). Certain matters are taken for granted. After all, we do not have to be told about how to breathe or eat.".........(to be continued)G.Balasubramanian