Dharma Moolam

Today, long before the Sun rose, I could see ananda rising in your hearts, for you woke up long before dawn and got ready to come here for the inauguration of this Yajna (vedic ritual of sacrifice)! I had suggested 9:30 as the time for this event, but others suggested an earlier muhurtam (auspicious hour), due to the showers that came this morning. My Sankalpa (resolve) prevailed, and we are meeting here to inaugurate the Yajna at 9:30 itself! Ananda is ultimately based on food; food is derived from rain, rain is the gift of God in exchange for Yajna offerings. Yajna is a rite done as per the Karma-kaanda, a part of the Vedas dealing with action. So, the Veda-purusha (vedic God-head) is the spring, out of which ananda wells. That is why this Yajna is called Veda-purusha Yajna.

Yajna (sacrifice) is the destiny of every living being. Life is sustained by the sacrifice of the living. Every being, from the tiniest amoeba to the most profound scholar, is perpetually engaged in Yajna. The mother sacrifices for the child, the father for the progeny, the friend for the friend, the individual for the group, the present for the sake of the future, the rich for the poor, the weak for the strong—it is all Yajna, sacrifice, offering. Only, most of it is not conscious; most of it is not voluntary; most of it is not righteous. It is done out of fear, greed, or with a view to the fruits thereof, or by mere instinct or primal urge. It must be consciously done, it must be for spiritually elevating purposes, especially in man. Then, when life becomes Yajna maya (sacrifice-filled), egoism will disappear and the river will merge in the sea.

Bring Out The Priceless Pearls Of India's Past

The stream of Yajna is the river Saraswati of the vedic Triveni; the meaning and significance of every single hymn and rite of the Vedas is Yajna. Every single syllable of the Vedas is a name of God; it has about thirteen lakhs of such syllables. When the river Saraswati underneath the twin rivers, Ganga and Yamuna, dries up, it will be a terrible tragedy; so also, when the stream of Yajna dries up, it will be a great loss of spiritual wealth, because when that happens, India cannot continue to be India. Bharatavarsha is called Karma-bhoomi, since Yajna is the karma that is the most worthwhile. It is Veda-bhoomi (land of Vedas), not the Vedana-bhoomi (land of anguish) it is fast becoming. Vedana or suffering can never come if the Vedas are learnt and practiced again.

Do not be satisfied with simply collecting a few gaudy shells from the shore of this ancient culture. Dive deep into its past and bring out the priceless pearls.

"Vedokhilo Dharma Moolam" - The Vedas are the root of all dharma (virtue). If the roots are injured, the tree will die. If the roots are alive, the tree can grow again; it can survive the lopping of the branches, the denudation of the leaves, but once the roots decay, there is no hope. The Vedas and the shastras are the two eyes of India. But, by blind imitation of Western cultures and by blind carping on the native culture, these two eyes have become dim. Those who have no vision have to be led by others. Indians, too, were thrown into this plight, when they allowed the Vedas and the shastras to be neglected. They are reduced to dependence on others, who showed them the way to their own culture.

Man Has Bandaged His Eyes With Egoism

Do not cry out for help to the rulers or the governments, if you desire to revive the Vedas. No, the Veda belongs to those who crave for it, who know its value, who are afflicted with an insatiable thirst for it, who desire to practice it, and who are eager to derive the joy and calm which it can impact. No one else has the right to patronize it and talk highly about it; such talk will be insincere and therefore, valueless and even false. People, who do not know how to distinguish between the fleeting and the fixed, the right and the wrong, the true and the false, sit in judgement on the Vedas and strut about pompously in their narrow, conceited circles, but others keep aloof from such critics. To say, as some of these do, that the Vedas are contraptions put together by a few Brahmanas for their aggrandizement, is the height of folly; it is the case of the mentally weak judging a thing beyond their ken.

A fish, even if it is put into a golden bowl, struggles desperately to return to the sea, from which it was pulled up. It is in mortal agony until it reaches its primal home. It wants water all around it to be happy and alive. Man too is of the nature of ananda (divine bliss); he cannot survive without ananda. He is amrita-svarupa (immortality embodied); hence, it is difficult for him to imagine that his body will fall off and he has to die one day. He has bandaged his eyes with egoism and he says the darkness is very congenial; the curious shapes of things he sees darkly, he takes as true.

Vedic Scholars Must Save The Vedas

There are some disciplines and some dharma to follow if you desire to take off the bandage and see the light and all things in the new light. This bhava-roga (worldly disease) can be cured by the vedic drug and the regimen of restrictions and regulations, the various do(s) and don't(s), which these Brahmanas are following. Do not dismiss these restrictions and regulations as mere superstitions; no one will practice them for the fun of it all; they are very hard limitations on conduct and; food the details of daily life. It requires great faith, courage, and hardihood to hold them as true and put them into practice. Honour those who have that faith and that courage. I know the sincerity, with which they have been leading this regulated life, for I have been with every one of them for years.

By long neglect, the road laid down by the vedic seers is overgrown with thorns; it is now well-nigh unrecognizable, what with potholes, scoutings, hollows, and brush. Just as some travelers spoil the very rest-houses, where they are given shelter, the Vedas have been covered with calumny by the very people, whom they have blessed and elevated. When a country is in danger of invasion, the army that is a part of the population, selected carefully and trained systematically for the specific purpose of war, rushes to ward off the invader. Similarly, when the Vedas are in danger, this well-trained, selected band of dedicated vedic scholars must take up the task.

These pandits and scholars were struggling in agony because they felt forsaken and alone. Now, look at them, sitting gaily dressed as brides in the marriage pavilion, with joy in their faces and hope in their hearts. They had no one hitherto, even to listen with patience to their scrupulously correct recitals of the vedic mantras (holy letters, words). Henceforth, they have no reason to fear.

My task comprises Veda samrakshana (protection of Vedas), vidvat poshana (fostering vedic scholars), and dharma-sthapana (establishment of righteousness). All three are interdependent. Vidvat poshana helps both Vedas and dharma, and so, I assure them that their scholarship and sincerity will not go unrewarded. The era of neglect has ended.

First Veda Purusha Saptaha Jnana Yajna: Prasanthi Nilayam, 1-10-1962