Chandramouli had questions about my choice of word 'Sacred' to describe Bhagavata and also answered them:
What are the names of these "sacred " books ? Who are the authors ?
Hindu tradition considers these three books alone as SHRUTI (= Eternal ).
According to the three Acharya's( Shankara, Ramanuja, Madhwa and may be Vallabha) the following are to be considered " sacred "
1. Vedas- in particular the " Upanshads : "That which was heard "
2. Bhagavad Geeta- referred to as Panchama Veda- Krishna as reported by Vyaasa
3. Brahma Sutras of Badarayana
The above three are named as PRASTHANA THRAYA
The Epics are considered as SMRITI- " in memory "- both oral and written down.
Bhagavata Purana is one such Smriti. Both Ramayana and Mahabharata are Mahapuranas; Bhagavad Geeta excluded. There are 18 other Puranas as well. Then there are hundreds of Kshetra and Sthala Puranas..
I am glad my choice of word 'Sacred' helped to clarify! In fact, I first heard the word 'Purana' in the form of a scolding! I was asked to stop this 'Kanthe Purana' (Bundle of silly excuses?) by a teacher. It is not unusual!
The word 'Sacred' is taken very seriously and it is not something we mess with. It is claimed that our sacred texts are in the original without any distortions. I remember asking a guru, how could we be so sure that Veda has not changed as it was recited only orally before Vyasa put it in writing. The guru was a bit offended that I had doubts. But he assured me that Veda was constructed in a such way that it could be memorized without distorting it.
The volumes with me are Srimad Bhagavatam by Krishna Dvaipayana Vyasa as explained by His Divine Grace A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada founder of ISKON
As I scanned the book I saw a condition that 'No part of the book may be reproduced or copied etc., ...Breach of this condition is liable for appropriate legal action. Wonder how serious it could become as I have been blissfully quoting from books without any worries so far. Surprising that while Maharishi Vyasa's work is not protected by the copyright law, commenting on it is protected!
It is tempting to think, if we borrow this idea from the Brits, how money collected as Royalties could easily support many worthwhile causes.
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Anyway I picked up the first volume and even the dust jacket of the book itself was amazing! I learn about the existence of the original spiritual planet, called Golaka Vrindavana, the abode of Lord Krishna, the original personality of Godhead.
The golaka throws off brahmajyothi a spiritual ray of effulgence... Within this unlimited brahmajyothi there are unlimited numbers of spiritual planets as there are material planets...the inhabitants there are ever-liberated living beings. They are all four-handed. The lord there is known as Narayana, and the planets are known as Vaikunthas.
I am now all set to discover more about Maharishi Vyasa's vision of the Universe! I remember being thrilled by the Hubble telescope pictures and now to learn that Vyasa envisaged Billions of Universes such as ours is truly exciting!
2 comments:
- Prasad said...
- Dear Srinidhi
Would it make any difference to Srimad Bhaghavata by classifying it as a Purana or otherwise. No doubt it is an
epic and sacred to those who believe
in it. Its greatness remains untarnished even if commentators are critical in parts or entirety.
Await your study and comments / synopsis of various legends in this epic.
Regards // Prasad, Malaysia - 8 November 2014 at 14:33
- Raghunath said...
- Discovered your blog in an obscure corner of the computer. We have discussed the subject in the meanwhile.
The present volume you are going through is biased towards the ISKON founder. Probably a more objective translation would be suitable.
Raghu - 26 November 2014 at 22:05
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