Symbolism of Vedas

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The Vedas are the most sacred scriptures of Hinduism. According to tradition, when God creates the worlds, He reveals the Vedas for the welfare of the worlds and when He ends the creation, He takes them back again. Some people say that all human knowledge is available in the Vedas in symbolic form and that the knowledge of all our discoveries and inventions is already contained in the Vedas. It is true that the Vedas are not mere books of some magical chants. They are loaded with spiritual knowledge, which reveals itself to the degree we are spiritually advanced.

 

Hymns from the Vedas

The Vedas are very exhaustive scriptures. Each veda contains several sections and thousands of hymns.

 

The Vedas are believed to be revealed scriptures, because they are considered to be divine in origin. Since they were not written by any human beings but were only heard in deep meditative states, they are commonly referred as "srutis" or "those that were heard".

The principal Vedas were originally only three in number, namely, the Rig veda, the Yajur veda and the Sama veda. Atharva veda, the fourth one was added later on. Together the first three were called "trayi vidya", which constituted the threefold knowledge. The name 'Rig veda' was derived from the root word 'Rik' which means 'to worship'. The name Yajur Veda came from the root word 'Yaj' which also means the same. But in course of time the Rig Vedic hymns became popular as hymns for chanting and recitation, while the hymns of the Yajur veda came to be associated more with the sacrificial ritualistic aspects of yajna worship.

The name 'Sama veda ' came from the root word 'saman' meaning music. Most of the 1549 hymns of the Sama Veda are derived from the Rig veda. But in the Sama veda they acquired musical connotation. During the yajna or sacrificial worship, the priest would chant hymns from all the three vedas in a systematic manner. The Hotr priest would chant hymns from the Rig veda. The Adhvaryu priest , would busy himself with the chanting of the hymns from the Yajur veda and the performance of various sacrificial acts according to detailed specifications, while the Udgatir priest would sit and sing the hymns from Sama veda to the accompaniment of some musical instrument such as the lute or vina.

The Atharva veda was recognized as the fourth veda during the later vedic period. It contains hymns which deal mostly with the practical and philosophic aspects of human existence The hymns deal with such themes as social conduct, success in trade and agriculture, relationships, human welfare and such practical matters.

Each Veda is divided into four parts. The first part is called the Samhita, which is the mantra proper. The second part is called the Aranyaka. The third part is called the Brahmana, which deals with the sacrificial and ritualistic aspects of the Vedas in prose form. The fourth part is called the Upanishad, which deals with the esoteric mystic aspects of the Supreme Self and the inner self.

The Vedas throw considerable light on the scope and nature of vedic religion and the life of the early Aryans. We have presented a few sample hymns from the Rig veda and also representative links to different vedas to acquaint the readers with the basic concepts of the four Vedas. We have also added the complete translation of the four Vedas to our sacred scriptures archives which you can now download into your computer and read at leisure.

 

Symbolism in Sanatana Dharma: The Vedic Deities

The vedic deities are not only forces of nature, but also forces that exist in the physical body and help the individual in his spiritual progress to overcome certain impediments. Symbolic significance of the Vedic deities is discussed in detail by Shri Aurobindo in his book entitled, "The Secret of the Vedas." The views expressed here are based upon his interpretation.

According to Shri Aurobindo, one should not consider the vedic imagery as mere imagery. The gods, goddesses and the demons mentioned in the Vedas represent various cosmic powers. They play a significant role in the drama of creation not only in the external world but in the inner world of a human being.

When a person is making spiritual progress it is imperative that he has to ensure the development of these godheads in him also so that the required spiritual perfection is attained at all levels. The gods have to be strengthened and the demons have to be slain in order to attain perfection at all levels- "in the wideness of the earth, our physical being and consciousness"

According to the key provided by Shri Aurobindo, the outer form of a Vedic ritual has an inner corresponding ritual. A ritual is a sacrifice, an attempt to fulfill the purpose of creation, to elevate the status of man to that of a godhead or a cosmic man.

In such a ritual at the inner level, Agni is the divine spark in man, the inner soul. The ghee or the clarified butter that is offered to him is the mind. The sacrificial food or annam, consisting of grains, seeds etc, stands for the physical body which is but an altered state of annam or food only.

Once the divine spark (Agni) is invoked, he wakes up the latent energies or divine powers hidden in man, (the various gods and goddesses), to share the fruits of the sacrifice and assist the individual, (the performer of the sacrifice), in his spiritual awakening, transformation, purification and evolution.

The symbolic significance of the Vedic gods is further explained from here on. Indra is the awakened mind or the illumined mind, who in the mythology appears as the lord of the heavens and exists in the body as the Lord of the senses, one who has attained control over his senses. Vrata the snake demon, whom he slays in order to release the waters for the people of earth, is the dark mentality, the mass of negative and ignorant consciousness which hides all the cows( the rays of Truth) in the caves of panis or sense-driven life.

The Rudras and the Maruts are the positive forces which aid Indra in his fight against evil forces. The Ribhus are the seasons, which stand for the various stages or phases through which a person has to undergo the process of spiritual progress.

Once the senses are controlled and the mind is stabilized through slaying of all the dark powers, comes the awakening, the goddess of Usha, who brings along with her Ashwins into the world of inner consciousness. These Ashwins are the horses, the spiritual energies that enable the individual to make a swift progress towards enlightenment.

After Ushas appear Aditi, the Primal Sun, the God of Light, first as Savitr,who represents the Divine grace essential for all spiritual success, and then as Mitra, who as the Divine love is considered as a friend of the illumined mind(Indra)and his associates (the other gods.

After the Sun of Truth, appear Ritha (Truth in Action) and Ritachit (Truth consciousness. The various Goddesses also appear at this stage, Ila (Goddess of Truth vision), Saraswathi (Goddess of knowledge and wisdom), Sarama (the intuitive mind) and Dakshina (goddess of discernment and and ability).

The Vedic Yagna is therefore an act of supreme sacrifice, if performed well at the spiritual level would lead to enlightenment and salvation.