Wendy Doniger Rig Veda on Death - III

Table Of Contents

CREATION
CREATION - II
Death
Death - 2

సృష్టి
సృష్టి -- II
మృత్యువు
మృత్యువు - 2

1 Do not burn him entirely, Agni, or engulf him in your flames. Do not consume his skin or his flesh. When you have cooked him perfectly, O knower of creatures, only then send him forth to the fathers.

1.అగ్ని దేవా! కాయాన్ని పూర్తిగా దహింపవద్దు. దాని చర్మాన్ని గాని, మాంసాన్ని గాని నాశము చేయవద్దు. నీవు తగినంత దహించిన తారువాత వానిని పితృ దేవతల వద్దకు పంపించు.

2 When you cook him perfectly, O knower of creatures, then give him over to the fathers. When he goes on the path that leads away the breath of life, then he will be led by the will of the gods.

2.వానిని తగినంత దహించిన పిదప పితృ దేవతల వద్దకు పంపు. అతడు శ్వాస నిరోధక పథంలో దేవతలచే నడిపింప బడును.

3 [To the dead man:] May your eye go to the sun, your life’s breath to the wind. Go to the sky or to earth, as is your nature;¹ or go to the waters, if that is your fate. Take root in the plants with your limbs.

3. మృతుని నుద్దేశించి: నీ కన్నులు సూర్యుని వద్దకు పోగాక; నీ శ్వాస వాయువులో లీనమవుగాక. నీ అభిమాతాన్ని¹ అనుసరించి ఆకాశం లేదా భూమి లేదా జలాన్ని ఆశ్రయించు. అలాకాకపోతే నీ కర్మేంద్రియాలతో ఓషథులను ఆశ్రయించు.

4 [To Agni:] The goat is your share; burn him with your heat.² Let your brilliant light and flame burn him. With your gentle forms, O knower of creatures, carry this man to the world of those who have done good deeds.³

4. అగ్నిని ఉద్దేశించి: ఈ మేక నీ వంతు. దానిని నీ జ్వాలలతో దహించు². నీ ప్రజ్వలిత కాంతి గల జ్వాలలతో దాన్ని దగ్దం చేయి. మృతుని మంచి కర్మలు చేసినవారల లోకానికి తీసికొని పొమ్ము. ³

5 Set him free again to go to the fathers, Agni, when he has been offered as an oblation in you and wanders with the sacrificial drink.⁴ Let him reach his own descendants, dressing himself in a life-span. O knower of creatures, let him join with a body.

5. వానిని నీకు ఆహుతి చేయగా, హవిస్సుతో తిరుగుచున్న వానిని పితృలోకానికి వెళ్లడానికై విడిచిపెట్టు. నూతన జీవితంతో వాని సంతతిని కలుసుకోనిమ్ము. వానిని నూతన శరీరంతో సంయోగము చెందనీ.

6 [To the dead man :] Whatever the black bird has pecked out of you, or the ant, the snake, or even a beast of prey, may Agni who eats all things make it whole, and Soma who has entered the Brahmins.⁵

6. మృతుని ఉద్దేశించి: నీ దేహాన్ని నల్ల పక్షి, లేదా చీమ, లేదా పాము, లేదా క్రూర మృగము భక్షిస్తే అగ్ని దేవుడు నీ దేహాన్ని పూర్ణముగా చేయుగాక. లేదా సోమ రసమును భుజించిన బ్రాహ్మణులు⁵.

7. అగ్ని తీవ్రతను తగ్గించు కొనుటకు ⁶ నిన్ను గోవు యొక్క కాళ్లతో చుట్టబెట్టుకో; అలాగే జంతువుల క్రొవ్వుతో. ఎందుకంటే అగ్ని దేవుడు నిన్ను దహించుటకు మిక్కిలి కుతూహలముగా ఉంటాడు.

7 Gird yourself with the limbs of the cow as an armour against Agni,⁶ and cover yourself with fat and suet, so that he will not embrace you with his impetuous heat in his passionate desire to burn you up.

8. అగ్నిని ఉద్దేశించి: ఓ అగ్ని దేవా, ఈ పాత్ర⁷ దేవతలకి మరియు సోమ రసమును కోరే వారలకు ప్రియమైనది; దేవతలు దాని నుండి త్రాగుతారు; అమరులైన దేవతలు దాని నుండి తప్ప త్రాగుతారు.

8 [To Agni:] O Agni, do not overturn this cup⁷ that is dear to the gods and to those who love Soma, fit for the gods to drink from, a cup in which the immortal gods carouse.

9. నేను దేహాన్ని భుజించే అగ్నిని దూరముగా ఉంచుతాను. అతడు యమధర్మరాజు⁸ ఏలే వారల వద్దకు మలినములను తీసికొని పోవుగాక. కానీ జీవులను తెలిసికొన్న అగ్ని ఇక్కడకు వచ్చి మా ఆహుతులను దేవతల వద్దకు చేరవేస్తాడు. ఎందుకంటే వానికి ఆ పథము ముందే తెలుసు గనుక.

9 I send the flesh-eating fire far away. Let him go to those whose king is Yama,⁸ carrying away all impurities. But let that other, the knower of creatures, come here and carry the oblation to the gods, since he knows the way in advance.

10. దేహాన్ని భక్షించే అగ్ని నీ ఇల్లు చేరింది. అది జీవులను గూర్చి తెలిసిన అగ్నిని గాంచింది. నేను దేవుని పితృదేవతలు ఆచరించే యజ్ఞానికి తీసుకు వెళ్తాను. అతడు వేడి రసాన్ని¹⁰ అన్ని దిక్కుల చివరలకు తీసికొని వెళ్ళు గాక.

10 The flesh-eating fire has entered your house, though he sees there the other, the knower of creatures ; I take that god away to the sacrifice of the fathers.⁹ Let him carry the heated drink¹⁰ to the farthest dwelling-place.

11 Agni who carries away the corpse, who gives sacrifice to the fathers who are strengthened by truth – let him proclaim the oblation to the gods and to the fathers.

11. దేహాన్ని మోసే అగ్ని, ఎవరైతే సత్యముచే ధృడమై యున్న పితురులకు యజ్ఞము చేయునో, ఆహుతులను దేవతలకు మరియు పితరులకు చేర్చు గాక.

12 [To the new fire :] Joyously would we put you in place, joyously would we kindle you. Joyously carry the joyous fathers here to eat the oblation.

12. నూతనమైన అగ్నిని ఉద్దేశించి: నిన్ను ఆనందముతో ఆహ్వానింతుము; ఆనందముతో వెలిగించెదము. ఇక్కడున్న ఆనంద భరితులైన పితరులు ఆహుతులను భుజించుటకై తీసికొని పొమ్ము;

13 Now, Agni, quench and revive the very one you have burnt up. Let Kiyamba,¹¹ Pakadurva, and Vyalkasa plants grow in this place.

13. అగ్ని దేవా! నీ తీక్ష్ణతను తగ్గించి, ఎవరి దేహాన్ని దహించేవో వానిని పునరుద్ధరించు. అలాగే కియంబ¹¹, పకదుర్వ, మరియు వ్యాల్కస మొక్కలు ఇక్కడ మొలచుగాక.

14 O cool one,¹¹ bringer of coolness ; O fresh one, bringer of freshness; unite with the female frog. Delight and inspire this Agni.

14. ఓ శీతలుడా¹¹, చల్లదనాన్ని ఇచ్చేవాడా, ఓ తాజా దనాన్ని ఇచ్చే వాడా, ఆడ మండూక్యముతో కలియుము. ఈ అగ్నికి ఆనందమును ప్రేరేపించు.

NOTES

వివరణ

1. Literally, your dharma. Sayana links this with karma, interpreting it to mean that the dead man will be reborn according to his good works, to enjoy their fruits in heaven; it may have a more general meaning, according to the way the worlds are arranged in general. But the simplest idea would be ‘according to your natural affinities’.

1. స్వధర్మము సూచింపబడినది; శాయన మహర్షి కర్మతో ముడిపెట్టి, మృతుడు కర్మానుసారము స్వర్గ సుఖాలను అనుభవించుటకు పునర్జీవుతుడవును అని చెప్పెను. లోకాల తారతమ్యాలను అనుసరించి దీనికి ఒక సాధారణ అర్థము ఉండవచ్చు. తేల్చి చెప్పాలంటే "నీ యొక్క అభిమతానుసారము"

2. This refers to the practice of placing the limbs of a scapegoat over the dead man, so that Agni would consume them and not the corpse with his violent flames.

2. అగ్ని యొక్క తీవ్రతను తగ్గించే ఒక గోవు లేదా మేక యొక్క కాళ్ళు సూచింపబడినది. ఎలాగంటే అగ్ని వాటిని దహించి మృత శరీరంపై తన తీక్ష్ణతను తగ్గిస్తాడనే విశ్వాసం.

3. Cf. 10.14.8 and 10.154 for joining with good deeds and the doers of good deeds in heaven.

3. 10.14.8 మరియు 10.154. స్వర్గములో మంచి కర్మలు లేదా మంచి కర్మలను ఆచరించే వారితో ఏకమవుటకు.

4. The Svadhâ offered to the gods at the funeral. Cf. 10.14.3.10.14.3.

4. అంత్యక్రియలో దేవతలకు సమర్పించే శ్వధా (10.14.8 మరియు 10.154)

5. Soma appears here in his capacity of god or plant (cf. The cooling plants in the final verses), or simply as the Soma juice inside the priests.

5. ఇక్కడ సోమ దేవతని లేదా వృక్షాన్ని సూచించియుండవచ్చు (చివరి పాదాల్లో చెప్ప బడే శీతల వృక్షాలు). లేదా పురోహితులు త్రాగిన సోమ రసమును సూచించియుండవచ్చు.

6. This refers to the limbs and caul (inner membrane of the embryo) or skin of a dead cow which would be used in addition to or in place of the scapegoat, while the corpse would be anointed with fat and suet.

6. అగ్ని తీవ్రతను తగ్గించుటకు గోవు కాళ్ళు, లేదా అప్పుడే జన్మించిన లేగ దూడ చుట్టూ ఉండే మాయ, లేదా గోవు చర్మము సూచింపబడినవి. అలాగే మృత దేహము జంతు క్రొవ్వుతో కప్పబడుట.

7. A wooden cup that the dead man had used in life to make Soma offerings to the gods and to ‘those who love Soma’ (i.e. the fathers) was placed at the corpse’s head, filled with melted butter.

7. మృతుడు జీవించి యున్నప్పుడు దేవతలకు మరియు పితరులకు సోమ రసమును సమర్పించే పాత్రను మృత దేహం యొక్క తల వద్ద పెట్టబడినది. అది నెయ్యతో నింపబడినది.

8. The fathers.

8. పితృ దేవతలు

9. This could be a sacrifice by the fathers to the gods, or, more likely, a sacrifice to the fathers.

9. ఇది పితరులు దేవతులకై చేయబడిన యజ్ఞము కావచ్చు, లేదా పితృదేవతలకై ఆచరించబడే యజ్ఞము.

10. The hot oblation for the fathers, who either come to the sacrifice (brought by the non-flesh-eating Agni) or have Agni bring them the drink.

10. పితరులకై వేడి ఆహుతి; వారు దేహాన్ని దహింపని అగ్ని యజ్ఞానికి తీసికొని వచ్చి యుండవచ్చు లేదా అగ్ని వారికి రసము తీసికొని పోయి ఉండవచ్చు.

11. The plants in verses 13 and 14, some called by obscure names, others by descriptive epithets (‘cool one’), are water plants. These verses accompany the ritual of dousing the fire with water so thoroughly that it produces a marsh where water-plants and frogs may thrive. In later rituals, these items were actually used; here they are merely metaphorically invoked. The female frog, in particular, is a symbol of rain and fertility (cf. 7.103). Thus new life sprouts at the end of the funeral.

11. 13 మరియు 14 పాదాలలో గుర్తు తెలియని వృక్షాలు, శీతలమైనవి, జలాల్లో పెరిగేవి కావచ్చు. దహన సంస్కారము పిదప ఆ ప్రదేశము జలముతో ప్రక్షాళనము చేయబడి, ఒక జలాశయముగా నుండి, మొక్కలకు, మండూక్యములకు నిలవు కాగలదు. తదుపరి ఆచారములలో వీటిని వాడెదరు; ఇక్కడ వాటి ఉనికిని మాత్రమే చెప్పబడినది. ఆడ మండూక్యము వర్షానికి లేదా గర్భానికి సూచన (7.103). ఈ విధముగా అంత్యక్రియ తరువాత క్రొత్త జీవులు పుట్టెదరు.

Wendy Doniger Rig Veda on Death - II

Table Of Contents

CREATION
CREATION - II
Death

సృష్టి
సృష్టి -- II
మృత్యువు

10.16   చితి

10.16   The Funeral Fire

అగ్ని దేవుడు అనేక రూపాలలో వ్యక్త మవుతాడు: చితిగా, యజ్ఞ ఆహుతులను దేవతలకు అందించే వాహనంగా, మృతుని పితృదేవతల వద్దకు చేర్చేవాడుగా. మొదటి భాగంలో ( 1-9), అగ్ని దేవుని మృతుని సున్నితంగా కాల్చమని, పితృదేవతలకు మృతుని దేహాన్ని పూర్తిగా దహింప చేయకుండా అందింప యోగ్యునిగా ఉంచమని కోరడమైనది. రెండవ భాగంలో (9-12) క్రొత్తగా అగ్నిని రగిల్చి ఆహుతులను దేవతలకు అందించి, మృతుని యమునికి అందించమని కోరడమైనది. అనగా మొదటి భాగంలోని అగ్ని మృత దేహానికి మరియు పితృదేవతలకు సంబంధించినది. రెండవ భాగంలోని అగ్ని ఆహుతులు మరియు దేవతలకు సంబంధించినది. మూడవ భాగంలో (13-14) చితి ఆర్పివేయబడును. పలుమార్లు జాతవేదుడు అనగా పవిత్రమైన, ఆహుతులను మోసే అగ్ని దేవుని ఉద్దేశించి ప్రయోగింపబడినది.

కానీ ఇక్కడ దేహాన్ని కబళించి ఆరగించే అగ్ని అనే వ్యంగ్య అర్థం కూడా వస్తుంది. 9 వ పాదంలో మృత దేహం పూర్తిగా కాక ఒక మోతాదులో వండబడి, కాలుష్యము తొలగింపడిన తరువాత, అగ్నిని దేవతలకై నియోగించి, మృత దేహాన్ని పితరులకు అందజేయునని చెప్పబడినది. అటు పిమ్మట మరొక పవిత్రమైన అగ్నిని రగిల్చి ఆహుతులను పితృ దేవతలకు, అగ్నిలో వేసిన అన్ని పదార్థాలు దేవతలకు అందజేయబడును. కానీ మొదట రగిల్చబడిన పవిత్రమైన అగ్ని, పితృదేవతల యజ్ఞమునకై పంపబడినది. ఈ విధంగా రెండవ మారు దేవతల కొరకై రగిల్చిన అగ్ని వలె, పవిత్రమైనది. ఏ విధంగా చూసినా మొదట రగిల్చబడిన అగ్ని, రెండవ మారు రగిల్చబడిన అగ్ని, అగ్ని దేవుని స్వరూపాలే. కాబట్టి అగ్ని దేవుని మృత దేహాన్ని పూర్తిగా దహింపక, దానిని దేవతలకు ఆహుతిగా అందజేయమని కోరడమైనది.

Agni appears here in various roles: he is the cremation fire, who carries the oblation as well as the dead man to the fathers. In the first part (vv. 1-8), Agni is asked to burn the corpse gently but not too much, to temper it to perfection (à point, as Renou puts it) and to send it to the fathers, but not to destroy it. In the second part (vv. 9-12), a new fire is lit to carry the oblation to the gods and to lead the dead man to Yama. Thus the first fire is associated with the corpse and the fathers, and the second fire is associated with the oblation and the gods. In the third part (vv. 13-14), the funeral fire is extinguished. The recurrent epithet ‘Knower of creatures’ (Jatavedas) is usually said to apply only to the auspicious, oblation-bearing form of Agni; but here it is also used to invoke, perhaps euphemistically, the corpse-eating Agni as well (vv. 1, 2, 4, and 5). The two fires interact in other ways, too: in verse 9, when the corpse is sufficiently ‘cooked’ and has undergone purification after its funeral pollution, the first, corpse-burning fire is dismissed to serve the gods and to carry the body to the fathers; at this time, a new, pure fire is summoned (kindled) to carry the oblation to the fathers and to carry to the gods whatever is laid upon it. But the first fire, now purified, is also sent to the sacrifice of the fathers, thus taking on a function similar to that of the second, pristine fire (participation in sacrifice) while retaining its original association with the fathers (in contrast with the gods, the masters of the second fire). This is a transformation, rather than a confusion, for in verse 9 the one fire becomes the other; as both are forms of Agni, he is merely asked to stop burning the corpse and to start carrying the oblation (a role prefigured by the reference to the ‘gentle forms’ in verse 4). In verse 11, both forms of Agni unite, and in verse 5 the corpse itself becomes the oblation.

అనేక అగ్నుల ప్రస్తావన, మృత దేహం గురించి ప్రస్తావన వలె కొంత తికమక పెట్టేది. 3 వ పాదంలో దేహం ఆకాశం, భూమి మరియు జలంలో కలిసి పోతుందని; కళ్ళు, శ్వాస, కర్మేంద్రియాలు సూర్యుడు, వాయువు, ఓషథులలో మమేక మవుతాయని చెప్పబడినవి. జలము భూమ్యాకాశాల మధ్య సంచరించే వాయువుతో అనుసంధానమై ఉంటుంది. అంటే మృత దేహము మూడు లోకాలలో కలవబడేది. కానీ దేహాన్ని ముల్లోకాలు లేదా కోరుకున్న లోకంలోనికి పంపబడుతుందా అనే విషయము స్పష్టంగా తెలపబడలేదు. దేహంలోని అంగాలు--కళ్ళు, శ్వాస మరియు కర్మేంద్రియాలు--పంచ భూతాలకు చెందగా, మరణించినవాడు ముల్లోకాలకు చెందినవాడు.

The ambiguous nature of Agni in this hymn finds a parallel in the ambiguities surrounding the body of the dead man. Verse 3 states that the body will disperse into sky, earth, and water, while the eye, breath, and limbs go to their cosmic equivalences: sun, wind, and plants. The waters are often identified with the air, the middle realm of space between sky and other ; this would mean that the body disintegrates into the three worlds. But it is not clear whether the body is dispersed into all three places or whether one may choose one or the other; parts of the body (eye, breath, limbs) are specifically distributed, while the dead man himself is said to go into the three worlds.

This might imply that the soul of the dead man goes to these worlds, while his physical parts are distributed elsewhere. But the verse says that the limbs go to the plants, the place to which the soul is consigned in the Upanisads, where the doctrine of transmigration is first expounded. Moreover, the breath (often identified with the soul in

the Upanisads, and here called the Atman, the word that came to designate the transmigrating soul) is here said to disperse separately into the wind. Indeed, it seems to be the body, not the soul, of the dead man that Agni is asked to lead to heaven, to Yama, to the fathers, and to the gods, the body that is the focus of the entire hymn. It would thus appear that here, as in several of the more speculative creation hymns, the poet has tried out various, perhaps conflicting, views of the afterlife. These views overlap in the liminal figures of the hymn, for Yama and the fathers are both mortals and immortals, both pure and impure, the ones who receive the corpse but also the ones who receive the oblation and the Soma; moreover, the dead man himself begins as an impure corpse but becomes, by the end of the hymn, himself one of the fathers to whom the oblation is sent.

అంటే ఆత్మ ముల్లోకాలకు చెందగా, దేహములోని అంగాలు మరొక చోటుకి పంపబడును. కానీ కర్మేంద్రియాలు ఓషథులకు చెందగా, ఉపనిషత్తులలో ఆత్మ స్థానము కూడా ఆదేనని చెప్పబడినది. శ్వాస --ఉపనిషత్తులలో చెప్పబడే ఆత్మ -- వాయువుతో కలిసిపోతుందని చెప్పబడినది. ఇచ్చట అగ్ని యముని వద్దకు, పితృ దేవతల చెంతకు, దేవతల వద్దకు తీసికొని పోయేది దేహమునే కాని ఆత్మని కాదు.

ఇచ్చట ద్రష్ట మరణానంతరము జరిగే ప్రక్రియ గూర్చి అనేక సిద్ధాంతాలను ప్రస్తావిస్తాడు. అవి పరస్పర విరుద్ధంగా ఉండవచ్చు. పితృదేవతలు యముని వలె అమరులు కారు. అలాగే వారు పునీతులు కారు. ఆహుతి చేయబడిన దేహాన్నే కాకుండా సోమ రసాన్ని కూడా పొందేవారు.

అలాగే మృత దేహం అగ్నిచే దహింపక ముందు పరిశుద్ధంగా ఉండదు. అటు పిదప శుద్ధం చేయబడి మృతుడు పితురునిగా పరిణామం చెందుతాడు.

ఈ పరిణామాలు ఇంకా క్లిష్టంగా మారుతాయి. మృతుడు తన పరివారాన్ని కలవడానికి ఒక క్రొత్త దేహం పొందుతాడని చెప్పబడినది (10.14.8). ఇచ్చట వాడబడిన "శేష" శబ్దము అనేక ఊహలకు దారితీసింది. శాయన ఋషి శేషమనగా దహనము తరువాత మిగిలిన అస్తికలని చెప్పెను. అలాగే శేష మనగా సంతప్తులైన తక్కిన పరివారము కావచ్చు. లేదా మరణించిన పూర్వీకులు కావచ్చు. ఒక విధంగా శేష శబ్దము మిగిలిన పరివారము లేదా క్రొత్త దేహాన్ని ధరించి, క్రొత్త జీవితాన్ని గడపగా వచ్చే పరివారమును కూడా సూచించవచ్చు.

These problems are compounded by verse 5, which states that the dead man will get a new body (cf. 10.14.8) in order to reach his descendants. This latter word, literally ‘remaining’ (sesa), has provoked several interpretations that attempt to circumvent the paradox. Sayana suggests that it refers to the body that remains after cremation (i.e. the bones); or it may refer to the survivors of the dead man, i.e. the mourners, or to those who have been buried before, i.e. the ancestors whom the dead man will join. But it more likely means the posterity of the dead man, i.e. the people that he has begotten or will beget with his new life and his new body. Is this body to exist in heaven or on earth? A few verses of the Rig Veda (and more detailed passages in the Brahmanas) give ample evidence for the concept of the new body in heaven, depicting the afterlife as an improved replica of life on earth, a place where one raises children and watches them grow up. But the idea of a new body on earth is supported by the Brahmana funeral ceremonies, the Sraddha offerings in which a man’s descendants create for him, ritually, a new body in which he is reborn on earth. If this is the meaning of the verse, it is an early prefiguration of the doctrine of reincarnation.

దేహము స్వర్గంలో ఉండేదా లేక భూమికి పరిమితమా? అనేక ఋక్కులు -- అలాగే బ్రాహ్మణాలు -- క్రొత్త దేహము స్వర్గ వాసమునకు అని సూచిస్తాయి. అంటే స్వర్గ వాసము భూలోకముకంటే ఉన్నత మనే భావన. మరియు అచట పిల్లలను కని వంశ అభివృద్ధిని చేయుటకు అనుకూలమని సూచించబడినది.

కానీ బ్రాహ్మణ అంత్యక్రియలు క్రొత్త దేహము భూలోక వాసానికని సూచిస్తున్నాయి. పరివారము చేసే శ్రాద్ధ కర్మలు భూలోకంలో పునర్జన్మ పొందినపుడు పొందే దేహానికై యని తెలుస్తున్నది. అదే నిజమని అనుకుంటే, ఈ ఋక్కు భవిష్యత్తులో వచ్చే పునర్జన్మ సిద్ధాంతానికి నాంది పలుకుతోంది.

Finally, if the dead man is to have a new body anyway, what is the motivation for the desire to keep the old body from being burnt too much (a concept that conflicts paradoxically with the idea of cremating the body in the first place) and to keep it from being destroyed by unclean animals (in verse 6, which may in fact refer to damage done to the live body in the past as well as to the corpse; cf. 10.14.8, where apparently natural ‘imperfections’ of the body are to be removed)? It would appear that Agni cooks the corpse, a function regarded as the opposite of eating it (as he usually does); cooking raises it to a higher state ( fit for heaven), while eating reduces it to a lower state ( fit for animals). The wild beasts who would eat the corpse are kept away, as is the omnivorous Agni; instead, the corpse is to be cooked to prepare it for the gods, like the prepared Soma. And Soma, the healer, is asked to assist Agni in cleansing and healing the body (v. 6).

మృతుడు క్రొత్త దేహాన్ని ఎలాగూ పొందుతాడు గనుక, అగ్ని దేవునికి పాత దేహాన్ని సున్నితంగా దహించమనే విన్నపం అవసరమా? దేహము గ్రద్దలు లేదా మృగాలకు ఆహారంగా అవ్వకూడదనే విన్నపం అవసరమా? నిజానికి అవి బ్రతికున్న దేహానికి కలిగిన హానిని మరియు మృత దేహాన్ని దృష్టిలో పెట్టుకొని చెప్పబడి ఉండవచ్చు (10.14.8) అంటే అపరిపూర్ణమైన దేహాన్ని పూర్ణమైనదిగా చేయమని సూచింపబడి ఉండవచ్చును. ఇంకా అగ్ని దేహాన్ని వండుతాడు అనే సూచన దేహాన్ని తింటాడు అనే వ్యంగ్య అర్థానికి తావులేకుండా చేస్తుంది. సాధారణంగా జంతువులు తింటాయి, దేవతలకై పదార్థాలు వండ బడతాయి. సర్వాన్ని తినే అగ్ని వలె దేహాన్ని తినే క్రూర మృగాలు దూరం పెట్టబడ్డాయి. కాబట్టి దేహాన్ని సోమ రసం వలె దేవతలు ఆస్వాదించుటకై వండబడినది. 6 వ పాదంలో వైద్యం చేయగల సోముని దేహాన్ని శుద్ధి పరిచే కార్యక్రమంలో అగ్ని దేవునికి సహాయం అందింప వలసినదిగా కోరడమైనది.

Is Vedic Astrology Based On Vedas?

The curriculum prescribed in my school days had a "Varaha Mihira's" story. There is no need to rehash it other than as establishing the credibility of vedic astrology in predicting far ahead of ensuing events, including life and death. The hindu mindset that astrologers can foretell what the planets have conspired goes deeper than grand canyon. The modern astrologers use astrophysics, cosmology and even quantum physics to justify their claims.

The key information vedic astrology needs is called "lagnam" which refers to the Zodiac Sign rising on the Eastern horizon at the time of a person's birth. It is significant in any type of astrology as it represents the entry point into an individual's life and is used to determine various astrological aspects. A day is divided into 12 lagnas, each lasting two hours, and a person's lagnam is the one they are born under.

Needless to say the accuracy of time of birth is crucial in vedic astrology. It need not be the case in sun or moon-based astrology. It is not clear how to take into account international time zones and datelines, not to mention the latitude and longitudinal information at the time of birth. I think vedic astrology is applicable to all those born in Bharatavarsha, not necessarily what the "hindutva" people say "Akhanda Bharat".

There are two kinds of vedic astrologers: (a) those who create the lagnam for a newborn and give the major milestones as the child progressed to adulthood; back in the olden days, before cesarean births became popular to get over the time paradox, with high infant mortality rate, they performed jataka karma; (b) those who predicted the course of a nation, kingdom or anything beyond; these days we see them appearing on TV and internet; this is one way for astrologers to insert themselves into macrocosm and claim to fame in the grist of election cycles.

With regard to the vedic astrology, one might wonder if it is based on vedas; if so, did vedas predict the future of mankind including the minutiae of a man or woman's life? The obvious answer is no because if they did, we wouldn't need itihasas and puranas describing the avataras of Sri Maha Vishnu, the war fought in Kurukshetra as per the epic Maha Bharata and most of all the Ramayana. Vedas mention puranas only in the context of Brahmanas. Many think the astrologers in the bygone days hijacked the passing mention of puranas in vedas to concoct the term vedic astrology.

Sticking to vedic astrology, what is it that parents of a newborn are looking for? The simple answer is Raja Yoga because every parent wants their child to achieve the highest success the ancient people aspired for. Even devatas are desirous of the position of their ruler Indra. Mortals have to do with the trappings of an elected office or a leadership role in the society, given that the kings were crowned by dynastic succession.

The vedic astrologers have a biographic template where they fill in the details of the planetary movements and their impact on the "native". For example, a native who suffers under the influence of sani/saturn early on in life is likely to enjoy the munificence of budha/jupiter later in life. The question then is how long before the onset of budha's munificence? For someone like Adi Sankaracharya, who passed away in his 30's, the budha's influence had been there forever, perhaps carried over by the karma phala in his previous birth. Similarly an artist's work appreciates much after his demise and names such as Ravi Varma, Michael Angelo, Jakkana et al. remind us of their accomplishments for as long as our civilization lasts. It is another matter they might have died penniless or in ignominy.

Going back to Raja Yoga, it seems to be the one to seek for a hopeful parent, but for the native it is nothing but immortality which is yet another trapping for the rich and powerful who are trying to transmigrate to another planet or in search of elixir/amruta using all scientific means. Kings in the olden days engraved their names and good deeds on stone in their quest for immortality. This tradition continued to this day when elected people erect statues and marble stones with their names and so on. For the sages who knew very well that all things born must die one day, samadhi is most covetous.

In the category of immortals we have Veera Brahmam who prognosticated the major events in Kali yuga; a Bulgarian called Baba Vanga who prophecized about politics, natural disasters, wars and even the end of the world; besides, any number of prophets in biblical times.

In sum, parents who believe in vedic astrology, implying astrology based on vedas, should take comfort in knowing that their child's arrival on earth is predestined by the paramatma who loves all no matter how they end up in one life. So even if they aren't as successful in this life, the benevolent god will give another life to fulfill their wishes. As for sun/moon astrology and horoscopes predicting ephemeral matters, enjoy while it lasts!

Regards

Why Texas Instruments' Calculators Don't Have a Genius Button?

TI has been in India since 1985 and a pioneer of calculators we grew up with which is just a sliver of their overall product line up that includes Analog Semiconductors, Embedded Processors, Microcontrollers, Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), Power Management Chips. Not exactly a who's-who list to be excited about. But their calculators made the lives of students, traders, professionals, etc. simpler. In the Indian context, a store may not have a computer, but always has a calculator. Then came Casio watches with a calculator but they didn't make a big splash. HP introduced calculators where the students could program a series of steps such as the Runge-Kutta method in numerical analysis. They even sold pre-programmed chips that could be inserted into their calculators. I don't think the evolution of calculators went much farther.

You see why TI calculators didn't have a Genius button? It's because they are Clairvoyant, beyond mere genius. You can win competing with a genius, but a clairvoyant is beyond oracle, ESP and what have you. Most importantly a clairvoyant is humble. In the case of TI, they could have sold their calculators for any price, but they made a fair mark up as there was no expensive supply chain where outsourced parts -- bits and pieces of the hardware--were required. Everything was made in-house except for the India connection.

So what did India contribute to the TI calculator? The obvious answer is software. But what kind of software? You see in the '90s the Presidents of the USA were talking about digital-divide, like haves and havenots in the context of access to information. TI's calculators were handy but don't fit the agenda. Besides, many techies considered them as analog. So the real battle is between analog vs. digital. To understand the difference let's do a Schrodinger cat experiment that is contrived to elaborate on this. You place your cat inside a box and close the lid. You wait for a few minutes and I ask "What is the cat doing now? " If you are digital, you would answer it as "The cat is either dead or alive". Whereas if you are analog you would reply "The cat could be sleeping, licking its paws, rolling on its back and so on". As you can infer, the possibilities with analog are endless.

Given the versatility of analog devices that TI pioneered, why are we using digital computers, digital-this or digital-that? The Chinese found an answer to this conundrum when they made a breakthrough in analog computing. Going back to the cat experiment, your analog response lacked specificity by enumerating many possibilities that would throw someone to tizzy. On the other hand, the digital response is limited to two possibilities with 50% accuracy each. If you bring in probability the analog response could be refined as: the cat is licking its paws with a 0.2 probability, rolling on its back with a 0.1 probability, etc. The issue now, as a mathematician would say, all the probabilities should add up to 1 or unity. Only a clairvoyant knows the correct answer in this case.

But wait, aren't we thinking just like the analogues? If we are digitalists we would only see black and white and nothing in between. We see a variety of shades, so we are not digitalists. Then how come digital computers don't have a problem in displaying shades between black and white? To figure this out we have to ask the geniuses who are called Neurologists if the digital devices have true colors because those of us not color blind ascribe it to them?

At this point, I take a short cut and give one possible answer: it is very likely our brain operates like a digital device and our mind is able to convert it to analog information. So we need both digital and analog to carry out thinking. Going back to what the Chinese did recently, they came up with an analog device that is more energy efficient, fairly accurate and likely cheaper to manufacture than an equivalent digital device.

Imagine you are in a farmer's market in India. The farmer has an analog calculator and you are carrying a digital calculator. If you ask the price of his produce, the farmer comes up with a number. You punch in the number into your calculator and think it is going to be expensive. So you decide to bargain. Because the farmer is holding an analog calculator, he will quote a price "in the ballpark" of what you might be willing to pay. At this stage you can throw away your digital calculator and make the purchase or walk away with your prized possession. Wait, there is another possibility: you can thank the farmer for his willingness to play along.

A genius like Sakuntala Devi might say you are wasting your time by wavering between analog and digital. The crux is learning to count, multiply and divide from a master. You are making your god-given brain lazy by not putting it to good use. You see folks, the human computer, Sakuntal Devi, is not just a genius, but also clairvoyant when applied to AI. She didn't have to change, but we all have to find other uses for our brain/mind that is freed up from cumbersome problem-solving because of TI.

Regards

Shock, Awe and Dumbfound

When William Shockley and his awesome team announced a transistor back in 1947, essentially an on/off electronic switch, much of the world had been tuning to Marconi's (1874) radios for news. It took five more years to commercialize transistor-based radios. I remember my grandfather's transistor radio blaring in the house. A digital radio came next replacing the transistors even though the latter are more portable and convenient to pack in a limited space for a globetrotter. Why am I reminiscing about this, when an AI can summarize these trivia for anyone curious enough?

The AI you see and experience has gone through similar evolution that is hidden behind the scenes. If you ask AI itself, its evolutionary path you would get a timeline starting with Alan Turing, the father of computers who is famous for his Turing test that discriminates between a human and a computer/AI in a double-blind test.

To be human is to be fallible. The history of humans is replete with this axiom. We have no idea how many glass bulbs Edison broke, before one lit up. King Ashoka though won the Kalinga war, failed in the end by converting to Buddhism and abandoning his kingdom. Much earlier, Lord Krishna failed to bring peace among yadavas and ended his avatar. Lord Rama failed as a husband in taking care of Sita and his children.

Yet we all know success has many friends and try to live up to it fully aware people will take advantage of us. Like fire flies some never learn until the final moment of shock and awe. Is this the reason the ancient rishis of Bharat proposed their theories and left their implementation to the posterity? When we say vedas are infallible, we mean our rishis. If all they did was imagine or hypothesize several situations and predict their outcomes based on an active imagination, they are like a demagogue who runs the country on executive orders because the act of legislation is too hard and time consuming.

We all get bright ideas, but feel like not sharing with anyone lest we should be perceived as coming short of expectations. We all are capable of writing books, especially autobiographies, much easily in our mother tongue, but not everyone is sure about privacy. The Shor's algorithm, for instance, a cornerstone of quantum encryption, if implemented in the future in the quantum computers and made available to one and all, then we can all be sure of keeping our secrets among a few trusted ones and protecting our IP. Until then, we have neither privacy nor patentable ideas.

So you see the survival of human creativity, in one sense, rests on researchers creating a quantum computer, an exercise in futility so far. What the heck is quantum computing you ask? Imagine you buy apples by the dozen but don't feel like consuming them all at once. Then you need a refrigerator to store them. The fridge lowers the temperature and prolongs the life of apples. You can say whatever chemical processes that are taking place internally in the apples, are slowed down in low temps. This also is the principle behind frozen foods, vaccine storage, organ transplant, etc. Thus, a quantum computer is a fridge for electrons.

Having said that, I invite ridicule in the form of "Is an electron then like an apple with life?" Maybe not. However, we can say an electron has consciousness. It is smart enough to know when someone is observing it or trying to measure its attributes. Indeed this is the fundamental basis of quantum physics and Young's double-slit experiment.

From looking around, we note all conscious things are alive. How about plants and microorganisms? Based on your belief system, i.e. a Jain, a Budhist or a biologist, you make your own judgment. Similarly an electron is conscious, by extension, alive!

Going back to quantum computing vs. regular computing, if you take your laptop or desktop and drop it inside a "fridge" whose temperature is lowered to 0 Kelvin, way way below the temperature of ice, then you can see the quantum effect. Perhaps. The major hurdle here is achieving the magic temperature with the current capabilities of thermodynamics. Physicists tell us that at 0 Kelvin the electron has neither spin nor linear motion. That means it can be harnessed for our desired ends such as encryption. But does it have life? Maybe not. It will be like "Jack the boy, all work, no play". Therefore, the end of creativity. It is upto each of us to decide if this is acceptable and worth pursuing.

Regards

Yagna, Yaga, And Agni Hotra

My childhood favorite movie was titled "Sri Krishnaarjuna Yudham" (1963; exchange of weapons between Krishna and Arjuna). It portrayed a fictitious event in the backdrop of Maha Bharata where Krishna and Arjuna compete for a bride: one seeking arranged marriage and the other a romantic one. As if this was not controversial enough, the director imagined Agni deva suffering from indigestion and burning Khandava forest, full of healing herbs, to relieve his symptoms.

We may dismiss the movie as made for the entertainment of the masses. Fast forward to 2025 and visit the website of University of Applied Vedic Sciences (UAVS). If you are wondering like me if there isn't a catch here, you will be proven right. The web site cuts to the chase and presents a questionnaire for prospective students. I don't see any surprises there. However, the founder has a youtube channel where he shares his vedic knowledge--truly yeoman service--with a single practical application in the form of a yagna.

When I visited SriPuram near Vellore (Tamilnadu), before entering the golden temple, I saw a yagna being performed where the ritviks were pouring ghee into the fire. We can have any opinion of Sri Puram as a money-making-machine for the trustees, but the fact remains the temple is serving the underprivileged students and the people on the lowest rung of the economic ladder by drawing devotees from all over the world. Besides, I don't know of any temple, save Zoroastrian ones, that performed yagnas 24 x 7 x 365.

I made Zoroastrian temples an exception even though there are less than a quarter million Zoroastrians in the world, mostly in Iran and India, who worship Agni deva. I surmise they perform fire rituals that aren't a world apart from vedic yagnas. There could be a common ancestor linking them with the people like UAVS founder. This is all speculation.

I can imagine the recourse to yagnas, when one is faced with an impossible situation, to appease gods so that his/her lot is saved from a calamity such as a cyclone, ash from an volcanic explosion, drought and famine, or simply prarabda karma, as there is nothing else a common man could do.

Hindus traditionally perform "agni hotra", a miniature yagna, in various ceremonies such as marriages or on a daily basis. Chandee Yagam is popular among the Indian diaspora where the goddess is prayed for bestowing wealth and health to the family performing it.

If you are wondering what's the difference between yagna and yaga, it is the intention. A yagna is performed for the larger good, community welfare and world peace. All the other fire rituals are meant for the well-being of the individual and family.

Now turning to science, can a yagna affect the environment that is plagued with pollution, green-house gases, depleting ozone layer, global warming, melting of glaciers, etc.? May be in the light of quantum physics being merged with mainstream physics by the announcement of nobel prizes this year. One can say the smoke from a yagna is made up of quanta of positive energy that spread in all directions and produce beneficial outcomes such as healing the ozone layer, cooling the atmosphere, producing rains over a region in drought, etc. The quanta emanating from yagna act as catalysts in a chemical reaction.

The obvious question is, why doesn't our government have a Ministry of Yagnas that is entrusted with the job of conducting yagnas 24 x 7 x 365? With the abandonment of Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA in USA) by the developed/developing countries, it seems like a reasonable ask. A yagna is the panacea the governments all over are seeking, in a cost effective manner. While continuing with fossil fuels and other pollution causing activities, yagnas could be conducted simultaneously. The gods will smile down on us.

As for what and how of yagnas, the faculty of UAVS could be enlisted in the selection of right herbs and coordinates on the map with the highest impact, training of hotas or priests performing yagnas, and general logistics. The seculars might object to mantras and ask if they are necessary. The mantras are like background music to the yagnas and keepers of timing. Otherwise, as shown in the aforementioned movie, the Agni deva will consume all you pour into the fire happily!

Regards

Judges and Dedication

Now in the finale of this series on the American judicial system, let me first mark my dedication to Subrahmanya Vedam who served 43 years in a US prison on a wrong conviction. His only fault seems to be being close to a mleccha with a limited lifespan or "akala mrutyu". You can read all about him online and the sham trial that took place in 1983. It should raise a sky-high stink about the American judicial system which, like vaccines alleged to be causing autism, serves the few who are mighty or privileged.

None can guarantee that a similar conviction won't happen ever again, but we can agree it all depends on the judges. Because in the jury system, the judge interprets the law and decides on the punishment called incarceration after deferring the fact finding and sifting to the jury. It is like a college professor delegating his tasks to teaching assistants and reserving the grading part to himself. So often we hear the college professors and judges in the same line as they have similarities such as tenure and independence from close scrutiny.

You can surmise by now what I am going to say about the judges applying for professors as well. They both are elevated to the highest pedestal of a foundation that sits on a fragile framework of trust and reward. You might have heard of American professors inviting foreign students to study in their universities knowing fully well that the students pay their way for an OPT visa that enables them to work off campus. Neither the professors nor the judges have anything to do with OPT directly, but as you will find out they are conspirators in a strange way. Before an OPT can be issued, the professors have to give passing grades to the foreign student. If a student on OPT has to be deported for any reason, it has to be done by a judge. As simple as that!

The mainstream media paints the federal judges as either subservient to republicans or democrats based on their ascendance or in parlance nomination. Of course, they would never agree to subservience, but statistically speaking their judgements often reflect the puppet masters' wishes. The professors, on the other hand, depending on federal grants for their research activities, naturally, have to tow the party lines. The hue and cry about the vaccines causing autism is all about research and data that has been generated or gathered to fit a narrative of total control on nature vis-a-vis disease.

If you go through the thesis of Prof. Salk, who developed the first vaccine ever to prevent the spread of Polio by injecting de-activated polio virus, you will find that some percent of the people may have a reaction or worse die from them. It is like 6-sigma in a factory making advanced electronic chips where one in a million chips fail quality checks because of human error. Similarly people administering vaccines could be responsible for some of the adverse outcomes. Just like the economists tell you to follow the money, follow the germs and you will get the answers.

The judges believe they hold the ultimate wisdom about the law of the land. When you have legislators who pass a law on the value of pi, as they had done in Indiana a long time ago, you will have to appoint judges who agree with them. Any judge who says pi is an irrational number that can't be boxed in a finite value will have to look for a job in the real world, not in the citadels. Judges being elected in progressive communities like legislators are reflective of this sentiment.

Like some professors of the private institutions, the judges might say they are self-funded and not smooching from the taxpayer troughs. While this seems laissez-faire we have instances of professors faking data to promote the sponsors like in highly contested pharmaceuticals and electronics operating on patents. And judges bending backwards to please the cartels or organized criminals. In India this is called kickbacks such as when they found bags of currency in a Supreme Court advocate's guest-house. The grand jury system in the US is supposed to take care of this, but that is for another day.

However, we can talk about an Arizona judge relieving herself in stupor. The mainstream media dumbed it down by saying it is her husband's fault. The judge ended up resigning unapologetic as she is appealing to, shall we say, a higher calling! We shouldn't say all judges are alike and apply the same standard of jurisprudence. Some are sharp, others need prompting and almost all of them are witless.

With those few words, I rest my case.

Regards