The Religion and Philosophy of the Veda and Upanishads v2.c39.s5.4

v2.c39.s5.4

The real distinction in the Brāhmaṇas is between what is normally perceived (*pratyakṣa*) and what is beyond mere perception (*parokṣa*), and, as the gods prefer the latter, so men recognize that mere appearances are not the essence of reality. Hence the foundation is laid for the doctrine of forms (*rūpa*) which lie at the basis of the interminable and seemingly absurd identifications of the texts. Philosophically the view has a real importance, for it points to the development of the pantheistic doctrine which asserts the unity of the individual self and the universe; the individual is no more than an aspect of the universal. What is obvious is not what is ultimately true; what is *pratyakṣa* for men is *parokṣa* for the gods; what is *parokṣa* for men, is *pratyakṣa* for the gods.³ Hence, although the importance of sight as a source of knowledge is asserted, at other times the emphasis is laid on the necessity of thought to penetrate reality, but this stage is not consciously reached until the Upaniṣad period. In the Brāhmaṇas what we find is the assertion of special insight through the power of asceticism, which enables the seers to behold the rising of the metres to the heaven.⁴ By asceticism or even without it the seers discover the sacred texts and the rites, for already these are regarded as beyond human creation or invention; they must be seen, learned, or found, not created. Indra himself in visible form reveals the Stomabhāga formulae to Vasiṣṭha, a Sāman converses with Keçin Dālbhya, a voice unseen instructs Devabhāga, a golden bird, a maiden possessed by a Gandharva reveal secret lore. Çrautarṣi Devabhāga discovers the right way to divide the sacrificial victim, but dies without revealing it to any one; a supernatural being tells it to Girija. The great texts trace their revelation to such gods as Āditya, Indra, Prajāpati, or Brahman, though no purposeful action is ascribed in this regard to these deities.