History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c95.280

v7.c95.280

A side issue has been very much debated by some eminent scholars, viz whether the cherishers of the Vedānta thoughts were originally the Kṣatriyas and not the Brāhmaṇas. The present author dealt with that question in a brief compass in H. of Dh. vol. II. pp. 105-107 and note 222. Deussen in 'Das System des Vedānta' (1883 pp. 18-19) and Ph. Up. (tr. by Geden pp. 18-19) and Dr. R G. Bhandarkar in 'Vaiṣṇavism and Śaivism' p 9 hold the view that the kṣatriyas were the original possessors of Vedānta doctrines Deussen relies mainly on six passages and Dr. Bhandarkar on two only (Chān. V. 3 and 11) and besides Deussen (in Ph. Up. p 19) admits that his conclusion is not absolute certainty but has a high degree of probability. Barth in 'Religions of India' p. 65, Hopkins in 'Ethics of India' (1924) p. 63, 'Vedic India' by Macdonell and Keith (vol. II. p. 206), and Tuxen on 'The religions of India' (Copenhagen, 1949, p. 88) do not subscribe to this view. Deussen went so far as to aver (p 19) 'this teaching with regard to the *ātman* was studiously withheld from them (the brāhmaṇas), that it was transmitted in a narrow circle among the kṣatriyas to the exclusion of the brāhmaṇas'. The present author had not set out the passages on which reliance was placed by Deussen and those who followed him. They will be set out here and will be examined as to the context in which they appear and the subject with which they deal But it must first be emphasized that the most important doctrines of the main and ancient Upaniṣads are two, viz. 'non-difference of the individual self from the Supreme Self, and (2) transmigration of the self depending on his deeds and conduct. Both these doctrines are expounded by Yājñavalkya to king Janaka in various places in the Upaniṣads e g. in Bṛ. Up IV. 4. 4-7 and following passages. Deussen regards this part of the instruction as deepest, truest and noblest (Ph. Up. p. 348 quoted above on p 1547) and this passage is (acc. to him) the leading passage on the doctrine of transmigration and on what accompanies the self in its transmigration (Ph. Up p. 281). Besides, the words of Yājñavalkya in Br. Up. III. 2. 13 'He who does good is born good' and in IV. 4. 5 'He who does good is born good, he who does evil is born evil, he becomes righteous by righteous works &c.' are declared by Deussen himself (Ph. Up. p. 410) as 'the oldest in which a doctrine of transmigration is found'. Therefore, according to Deussen himself, the original possessor of these two fundamental doctrines of the Upanisads is the brāhmaṇa Yājñavalkya who in the same Upanisad (Br. Up. II. 4. 1-14) propounds to his wife Maitreyī the identity of the self and elements and everything else with *brahma* (idam sarvam yadayamātmā). Not only so, there are other brāhmaṇa teachers of these. For example, Uddālaka Āruṇi expounds at great length to his son Śvetaketu the doctrine of identity in the famous words 'tat-tvamasi' (Chān. Up. VI. 8-16).