A Brief Introduction to Vedas

Vedas are the primary source of all knowledge, both spiritual and mundane.  The Vedas were originally an oral transmission, handed down from teacher to disciple for many centuries.  The Vedas form the basis of all subsequent Indian thought and philosophy.  The Vedas cannot be studied without the Vedangas, which are six in number.

The Vedas were accurately passed down from generation to generation in India by virtue of an extremely methodical system of oral transmission which involved chanting each verse in ten different ways to crosscheck for integrity.  The Vedas state that we are a soul distinctly different from the body and mind. While body and mind undergo changes over a period of time, we have a feeling that we are the same person that we were some years ago.  The Vedas were handed down by word of mouth for hundreds of years until about 500 BC, when the Aryans learned to write.  The Vedas, therefore, made detailed studies of the stars and the movement of planets across the sky.  The Vedas represent the vast treasury of spiritual knowledge revealed too many different sages at different times in their transcendental meditative state and were handed down from one generation to the next by oral tradition.

Classification of Vedas:
The Vedas are classified into four groups, called Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda and Atharva Veda. The Rig-Veda is primarily concerned with panegyrics to the gods in the heavens, and is the main book of mantras. The Yajur Veda is classified into the Krishna (black) and Sukla (white) recensions. The Yajur Veda contains mainly sacrificial formulae in prose and verse to be chanted at the performance of a sacrifice. The Sama Veda consists mostly of verses from the Rig-Veda set to music for singing during the sacrifice. The Atharva Veda abounds mainly in spells and incantations in verse meant for different lower purposes than the purely spiritual.  Each Veda consists of four parts – the Samhitas (hymns), the Brahmanas (rituals), the Aranyakas (theologies) and the Upanishads (philosophies). The collection of mantras or hymns is called the Samhita. The Brahmanas are ritualistic texts and include precepts and religious duties. Each Veda has several Brahmanas attached to it. The Upanishads form the concluding portions of the Veda and therefore called the “Vedanta” or the end of the Veda and contains the essence of Vedic teachings. The Upanishads and the Aranyakas are the concluding portions of the Brahmanas, which discuss philosophical problems. The Aryanyakas (forest texts) intend to serve as objects of meditation for ascetics who live in forests and deal with mysticism and symbolism.

Rig Veda
The Rig-Veda is a collection of over 1,000 hymns, which contain the mythology of the Hindu gods, and is considered to be one of the foundations of the Hindu religion. It is the oldest of all vedas. Rig Veda contains over 1,000 hymns directed to the gods.  The content of these hymns includes praises, blessings, sacrifices, and curses.  These hymns are the major way in which the Aryan people praised their gods.  The subject of the hymns is the personification of the powers of nature.  The hymns are written in poetic form.

Sama Veda
The Sama Veda, is also known as The Veda of Chants or Book of Songs. It contains the required melodies and chants recited by priests for special sacrifices. It is a collection of spiritual hymns, used as musical notes, which were almost completely drawn from the Rig Veda and have no distinctive lessons of their own. One Vedic scholar said that if the Rig Veda is the word, Sama Veda is the song or the meaning; if Rig Veda is the knowledge, Sama Veda is its realization; if Rig Veda is the wife, the Sama Veda is her husband.

The Sama Veda resembles the Rig Veda. Most of its mantras are taken from the Rig Veda, but the order is modified for chanting. It is divided into two books called ankas. It has twenty-one chapters and contains 1,875 mantras. These mantras are addressed to Agni, Indra, and Sama.

Yajur Veda
The Yajur Veda, known as the Veda of Sacrificial Texts, a collection of sacrificial rites. It is also sometimes called a book of rituals. Simply put, it is a liturgical collection including the materials to be recited during sacrifices to the gods.

The Yajur Veda serves as a practical guidebook for the priests who execute sacrificial acts, simultaneously muttering the prose prayers and the sacrificial formulas (yajus).  There are no less than six complete recensions of the Yajur Veda — Madyan-dina, Kanva, Taittiriya, Kathaka, Maitrayani, and Kapishthala.

The Yajur Veda inspires humans to walk on the path of karma (deeds), so it is also called Karma Veda. It comprises hymns taken from the Rig Veda and adds explanatory notes in prose form. It contains fifty chapters each, which are subdivided into kandikas, or paragraphs, numbering 1,975 mantras.

Atharva Veda
The Atharva Veda is the Veda of the Fire Priest, consisting of occult formulas and spells. This Book of Spells, the last of the Vedas, is completely different from the other three Vedas and is next in importance to Rig Veda with regard to history and sociology.

A different spirit pervades this Veda. Its hymns are of a more diverse character than the Rig Veda and are simpler in language. In fact, many scholars do not consider it part of the Vedas at all. This Veda consists of spells and charms prevalent at the time it was written, and it portrays a clearer picture of the Vedic society.

The theology of the Vedas was later developed in the Upanishads. At the end of the Rig and all of the Vedas, the Hindu Brahmins added a summary of the philosophy of the Veda. The Upanishads became the basis of Hinduism.  For the Hindu person, they serve as a summary of all of the knowledge of the Veda as well as a commentary on them. Although the Vedas are seldom read or understood today, even by the devout, they no doubt form the bedrock of the universal religion or “Sanatana Dharma” that all Hindus follow. The Vedas have guided our religious direction for ages and will continue to do so for generations to come. And they will forever remain the most comprehensive and universal of all ancie

Carnatic Music

Carnatic music, known as karnataka sangitam (in Indian languages) is the classical music that originated in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamilnadu and Kerala i.e southern part of India.

Lyrics in Carnatic music are largely devotional; most of the songs are addressed to the hindu deities. There are, besides, a lot of songs emphasizing love and other social issues which have been composed in Carnatic music, although some of them, especially with the ‘Rasa’ (emotion) of love, continued to be composed and are widely popular, that rest on the concept of sublimation of human emotions for union with divine. Thus, for instance, a young woman in a modern classical composition, will be yearning for one of the deities, such as Krishna, as her ‘lover – the purpose of such musical pieces being at once to provide an outlet for human emotions and unlike in the normal rum of motion pictures, to address God rather than another human being. Carnatic music as a classical form is always thus required to be a culturally elevating medium.

As with all Indian classical music, the two main components of Carnatic music are raga, a melodic pattern and tala, a rhythmic pattern.

Origin, Sources and History
Like all art forms in Indian culture,  Indian classical music is believed to be a divine art form which originated from the Devas and Devis(Hindu Gods and Goddesses), and is venerated as symbolic of nada brahman.  Ancient treaties also describe the connection of the origin of the swaras, or notes, to the sounds of animals and birds and man’s effort to stimulate these sounds through a keen sense of observation and perception. The Sama Veda, which is believed to have laid the foundation for Indian classical music, consists of hymns from Rig Veda, set to musical tunes which would be sung using three to seven musical notes during Vedic yajnas. The Yajur Veda, which mainly consists of sacrifical formulae, mentions the veena as an accompaniment to vocal recitations. Reference to Indian classical music are made in many ancient text including epics like the Ramayana and Mahabharata. All ancient sangam literature songs had been set to complex musical notes. The Yajnavalkya Smriti mentions vinavadana tattvajnah srutijivisaradah talajnascaprayasena moksamargam niyacchati(“The one who is well versed in veena, one who has the knowledge of srutis and one who is adept in tala, attains salvation without doubt”).

Owing to Persian and Islamic influences in North India from 12th century onwards, Indian classical music began to diverge into two distinct styles, being Hindustani music and Carnatic music. Commentaries and other works, such as Sharngadeva’s Sangita Ratnakara, furthur eloborated on the musical concepts found in Indian classical music. By 16th and 17th centuries, there was  a clear demarcation between Carnatic and Hindustani music; Carnatic music remained relatively unaffected by Persian and Arabic influences. It was at that Carnatic music flourished in Thanjavur, while the Vijaynagar Empire reached its greatest extent. Purandara Dasa, who is know as the father(Pitamaha) of Carnatic Music, formulated the system that is commonly used for the teaching Carnatic Music. Venkatamakhin invented and authored the formula for the melakarta system of raga classification in his Sanskrit work, the Chaturdandi Prakasika(1660AD). Govindacharya is known for expanding the melakarta system into the sampoorna raga scheme – the system that is in common use today.

Carnatic Music was mainly patronized by the local kings of the Kingdom of Mysore and Kingdom of Travancore in the 18th through 20th centuries. The royalty of the kingdoms of Mysore and Travancore were noted composers and proficient in playing musical instruments, such as the veena, rudra veena, vilin, ghatam, flute, mridangam, nagaswaram and swarabhat. Some famous court-musicians and royalty proficient in music were Veena Shashanna(1852-1926) and Veena Subbanna(1861-1939), among others.

With the dissolution of the erstwhile princely states and the Indian independence movement reaching its conclusion in 1947, Carnatic music went through a radical shift in patronage into art of the masses with ticketed performances organized by private institutions called sabhas.

Peepal tree weds Neem tree

The Peepal tree which is called Ashvattha in sanskrit should get married to Neem tree. Both of them are generally grown together or in some cases it is a coincidence that a neem tree raises where exactly the Peepal tree grows.

They consider Peepal tree as male while Neem is female and Peepal tree must be elder to Neem tree. This marriage is to be conducted on Suklapaksha (waxing moon) during utharayana period (January 15th to June 15th). Even in suklapaksha, one needs to avoid first, fourth, eighth and ninth phases of moon.

Those days our ancestors advised that married woman who are infertile to go to this scared trees and offer prayers by walking around the tree for few times a day. There is a scientific reason behind this. We know that some trees produces fragrance in certain season and most of the trees are good sources of oxygen during day time when they are exposed to sun. Some tree products and plants have medical properties. When Peepal tree and neem tree are together they produce a magnetic field. This field along with pure air and focused minds influences the body tissue and organs which could simulate Follicle Stimulating and Luteinizing Hormones and one such missing factor helps in the reproductive process. 

Scientific Research has revealed that among trees, Peepal tree is the only tree which produces oxygen in abundant quantity day and night. Sound and interacting flow of wind, with peepal tree, slowly but surely kills infection bacteria as well. According to the book of ayurveda peepal tree leaf, bark and fruit are killers of diseases. Peepal tree leaf has both sweet and bitter taste and  has a cooling property. Licking honey placed on peepal tree leaf is believed to cure speech irregularities. Its bark yields tannin which is used in treating leather. Its leaves, when heated in ghee (clarified butter), is used in curing wounds. Ingesting the bark, fruit and buds with different combination of things cure diseases related to phlegm, bile, inflammation swelling and indisposition etc. The soft barks and buds of the tree cure “Prameha”(a disease in which sperms emanate through urine). The powered form of the fruit increases appetite and also cures many diseases. 

Varalakshmi Vratham -- A Women's Prayer

            The Hindu festival Varalakshmi Vratam is celebrated on second Friday of Sravanamasam that is, in the month of July – August. It is a festival to propitiate the goddess Lakshmi, the consort of Vishnu, one of the Hindu trinity. Varalakshmi is one who grants boons (varam).

It is said that Lakshmi will enter the house of anyone who thinks of her and bless them. There are many festivals in the year dedicated to Goddess Lakshmi. Among them, Varalakshmi Vratham is considered very auspicious because it is marked by strict observance of certain practices and austerities. It is also called Varalakshmi Nomu. It is more significant for newly married woman. On this special day, they clean the place tidy and there they place a wooden plank. On that they place rice with turmeric, on top of it they place Kalasam(representing the deity). Lakshmi being consort of Vishnu loves Allamkarana, so decorating her with as many flowers is part of puja.

History of Varalakshmi Vratam 
In the kingdom of Magadha of Yore, there lived a Brahmin woman named Charumathi in a town named Kundina. The prosperous town was the home of Charumathi and her husband. Impressed by her devotion to her family, Goddess Mahalakshmi appeared in her dream and asked her to worship Varalakshmi(Vara= boon, lakshmi (Goddess of wealth) and seek to fulfill her wishes. Varalakshmi is yet another form of Lord Vishnu’s consort. When Charumathi explained her dream to her family, she found them encouraging her to perform the pooja. Many other women of the village joined her in performing the pooja in a traditional way and offered many sweet dishes to the Goddess Varalakshmi. they prayed with deep devotion.

”Padmaasane Padmakare sarva lokaika poojithe Narayana priyadevi supreethaa bhava sarvada“

On this occasion women worship Goddess Lakshmi with utmost devotion offering sweets and flowers, usually a kalasam (representing the deity) will be decorated with a saree, flowers and gold jewelry with offerings placed in front.

The name Vishnu really means pervading everywhere, and Lakshmi, his consort, is symbolical of the forces found everywhere. Eight forces or energies are recognized and they are known as Sri (Wealth), Bhu (Earth), Sarasvati (Learning), Priti (Love), Kirti (Fame), Santi (Peace), Tushti (Pleasure) and Pushti (Strength). Each one of these forces is called a Lakshmi and all the eight forces are called the Ashta Lakshmis or the eight Lakshmis of the Hindus. As health, wealth and prosperity depend upon the rythmic play of these forces, the worship of Lakshmi is said to be to obtain these three. Hence this festival is observed, invoking the blessings of Lakshmi.