Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c5.s1: Vedic Beliefs
Early Monastic Buddhism v1.c5.s1
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Vedic Beliefs
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The history of Indian religion and thought commences with the appearance of the Vedas, say about 3000 B.C. when the people were very simple in their habits and thoughts, and were in fact, children of nature, who looked upon the physical forces as so many friends and foes created by the Almighty Father for their reward and punishment. To them Dyaus (sky) was the father and Pṛthivī (earth) the mother, and other natural phenomena, viz., Uṣas, the Aśvins, Agni, Parjanya, Sūrya, the Ādityas, the Maruts and so forth¹ were the children of Dyaus. To Varuṇa, they accorded the place of the ruler, dispensing justice and preserving ethical laws of the world and maintaining at the same time the order of the universe (ṛta) in the interest of sentient beings. With the growth of cosmological ideas, Varuṇa was superseded by another god and that was Prajāpati who was made the creator, ruler and preserver of the universe.² He was self-created, the first principle, the unity behind the diversity of the universe, and to him all gods and sentient beings owed their origin. He was in short the "material and efficient cause of the world."³ As the highest being he had no concern with moral laws,⁴ the maintenance of which was entrusted to Varuṇa.
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¹ Keith, *Religion and Philosophy of the Veda*, p. 95; Dalal, *History of India*, pp. 51 ff.
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² Keith, *op. cit.*, pp. 101, 437.
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³ *Ibid.*, p. 438.
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⁴ *Ibid.*, p. 110.
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Most of their hymns are nothing but invocations to and adorations of the gods to help them in gaining their worldly ends. They were optimistic and possessed a strong desire to live the life of the world. Their prayer was mainly for cattle and victory over the Dasyus,¹ who lived in fortified cities and offered them effective opposition. Their constant struggle with the Dasyus hardly gave them any respite to give their thoughts to matters spiritual.
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¹ Were they the builders of the cities discovered at Mohenjodaro and Harappa?
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They were not devoid of any religious belief: to them nature in her beneficent aspect was a constant friend, and to her they approached for having their wants fulfilled. They conceived of Indra and other gods as so many replicas of human beings, endowed with supernatural powers, which they exercised in aid of those who satisfied them by offering sacrifices. Indra was always ready to help his votaries; so also other gods whose aid was constantly sought for by their worshippers.² They were mainly physiolators. The pessimistic view of life in this world was yet unknown and hence to them, the question of liberation from the worldly existence did not arise.³ The theory of transmigration did not trouble them nor the influence of *Karma* in shaping one's destiny. They, however, had a fear for the unknown which in fact led them to perform sacrifices.⁴ They knew that a punctilious performance of the rituals of a sacrifice was all that was necessary for a happy life not only in this world but also in the next. A heavenly existence was all that they sought for by means of sacrifice.⁵ This outlook on life and the world continued among the Vedic Indians up to the close of the *Brāhmaṇa* period (8th century B.C.) and it was only with the appearance of the *Upaniṣads* that we notice a change in their outlook, their mind turning from the outward to the inward, culminating in the appearance of the philosophy of *anitya* and *Brahman*. In short, the physiolatry of the Vedic people gave way in course of time to the idolatry and sacrifices of the *Brāhmaṇas*, the *Upaniṣads* representing a further development from the objective to the subjective.
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² Keith, *op. cit.*, p. 441.
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³ *Ibid.*, pp. 243-257.
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⁴ Dalal, *op. cit.*, p. 125.
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⁵ Keith, *op. cit.*, p. 461.
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The simple hymns of the *Ṛg Veda* were followed up by the *Sāma* and *Yajur* which had already come to look upon the sacrifices as a means to worldly successes, heavenly bliss and emancipation and prescribed rituals for the sacrifices, the proper performance of which was believed to ensure to the sacrificer all the benefits prayed for by link.
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After these came the *Brāhmaṇas*, the well known *Śatapatha* and *Taittirīya*, the *Aitareya* and *Pañcaviṃśa* and several other texts devoted solely to the sacrificial rituals. Side by side with the *Brāhmaṇas* there grew up another class of sacrificial literature known as the *Āraṇyakas*, the only difference from the *Brāhmaṇas* being that these prescribed shorter rituals for the sacrifices suited to the conditions of the *Vānaprasthas* and *Yatis*, cogitation of the Supreme forming its chief feature.
Cites (1)
- Ṛgvedasaṃhitā — Sanskrit