Today, long before the Sun rose, I could see Ananda rising in your hearts; for you woke up long before dawn and got ready to come here for the Inauguration of this yajna (Vedic ritual of sacrifice)! I had suggested 9-30 as the time for this event, but others suggested an earlier Muhurta (auspicious hour) due to the showers that came this morning. My sankalpa (resolve) prevailed, and we are meeting here to inaugurate the yajna at 9-30 itself! Ananda is ultimately based on food, food is derived from rain, rain is the gift of God in exchange for yajna offerings.
Yajna is a rite done as per the Karma Kanda, a part of the Vedas dealing with action. So, the Veda Purusha (Vedic God-head) is the spring out of which Ananda wells. That is why this yajna is called Veda Purusha Yajna.
Yajna (Sacrifice), is the destiny of every living being. Life is sustained by the sacrifice, of the living. Every being, from the tiniest amoeba to the most profound scholar, is perpetually engaged in yajna. The mother sacrifices for the child, the father for the progeny, the friend for the friend, the individual for the group, the present for the sake of the future, the rich for the poor, the weak for the strong---it is all yajna, sacrifice, offering. Only, most of it is not conscious; most of it is not voluntary; most of it is not righteous. It is done out of fear or greed or with a view to the fruits thereof, or by mere instinct or primeval urge. It must be consciously done, it must be for spiritually elevating purposes, especially in man. Then, when Life becomes yajna maya (sacrifice-filled), egoism will disappear, and the river will merge in the sea.
Bring out the priceless pearls of India s past
The stream of yajna is the river Saraswati of the Vedic Triveni; the meaning and significance, of every single hymn and rite of the Vedas is yajna. Every single syllabus of the Vedas is a name of God; it has about thirteen lakhs of such syllables. When the river Saraswati underneath the twin rivers, Ganga and Yamuna, dries up, it will be a terrible tragedy; so also when the stream of yajna dries up, it will be a great loss of spiritual wealth; because when that happens, India cannot continue to be India. Bharat Varsha is called Karma Bhumi, since yajna is the karma that is the most worthwhile. It is Veda bhumi (land of Vedas), not the Vedana bhumi (land of anguish) it is fast becoming. Vedana or suffering can never come if the Vedas are learnt and practised again.
Do not be satisfied with simply collecting a few gaudy shells from the shore of this ancient culture. Dive deep into its past and bring out the priceless pearls. Vedo akhilo Dharma mulam – the Vedas are the root of all dharma (virtue). If the roots are injured, the tree will die. If the roots are alive, the tree can grow again; it can survive the lopping of the branches, the denudation of the leaves, but once the roots decay, there is no hope. The Vedas and the Shastras are the two eyes of India. But by blind imitation of Western cultures and by blind carping on the native culture, these two eyes have become dim. Those who have no vision must be led by others. Indians too are thrown into this plight, when they allowed the Vedas and the Shastras to be neglected. They are reduced to dependence on others, who showed them the way to their own culture.
Man has bandaged his eyes with egoism
Do not cry out for help to the rulers or the Governments if you desire to revive the Vedas. No, the Veda belongs to those who crave for it, who know its value, who are afficted with an insatiable thirst for it, who desire to practise it and who are eager to derive the joy and calm which it can impact. No one else has the right to patronise it and talk highly about it; such talk will be insincere and therefore, valueless and even false. People who do not know how to distinguish between the fleeting and the fixed, the right and the wrong, the true and the false, sit in judgement on the Vedas and strut about pompously in their narrow-conceited circles; but others keep aloof from such critics. To say, as some of these do, that the Vedas are contraptions put together by a few Brahmins for their aggrandizement is the height of folly; it is the case of the mentally weak judging a thing beyond their ken.
A fish, even if it is put into a golden bowl, struggles desperately to return to the sea from which it was pulled up. It is in mortal agony until it reaches its primal home. It wants water all round it to be happy and alive. Man too is of the nature of Ananda (divine bliss); he cannot survive without Ananda. He is Amrita swarupa (Immortality embodied); hence, it is difficult for him to imagine that his body will fall off and he has to die one day. He has bandaged his eyes with egoism and he says the darkness is very congenial; the curious shapes of things he sees darkly, he takes as true.
Vedic scholars must save the Vedas
There are some disciplines and some dharma to follow if you desire to take off the bandage and see the Light and all things in the new Light. This Bhava-roga (worldly disease) can be cured by the Vedic drug and the regimen of restrictions and regulations, the various do s and dont s which these Brahmins are following. Do not dismiss these restrictions and regulations as mere superstitions; no one will practise them for the fun of it all; they are very hard limitations on conduct and on the details of daily life. It requires great faith, courage and hardihood to hold them as true and put them into practice. Honour those who have that faith and that courage. I know the sincerity with which they have been leading this regulated life, for I have been with every one of them since years.
By long neglect, the road laid down by the Vedic Seers is overgrown with thorns; it is now well-nigh unrecognisable, what with pot-holes, scouting, hollows and brush. Just as some travellers spoil the very rest-houses where they are given shelter the Vedas have been covered with calumny by the very people whom they have blessed and elevated. When a country is in danger of invasion, the army, that is a part of the population, selected carefully and trained systematically for the specific purpose of war, rushes to ward off the invader. Similarly, when the Vedas are in danger, this well-trained, selected band of dedicated Vedic scholars must take up the task.
These Pundits and scholars were struggling in agony because they felt forsaken and alone. Now, look at them, sitting gaily dressed, as brides in the marriage pavilion; with joy in their faces and hope in their hearts. They had no one hitherto even to listen with patience to their scrupulously correct recitals of the Vedic Mantras (holy letters, words). Henceforth, they have no reason to fear.
My task comprises Veda samrakshana (protection of Vedas), Vidwat poshana (fostering Vedic scholars) and Dharma sthapana (establishment of Righteousness). All three are interdependent. Vidwat poshana helps both Vedas and Dharma and so I assure them that their scholarship and sincerity will not go unrewarded. The era of neglect has ended. (SSS Vol.2)
Naturally, I always speak of Dharma. For, I have come to re-establish it. I have no other work here. I give what is Paanakam (sweet drinks) for the ignorant and what is Amritha (nectar) for the illumined. You cannot infer that Dharma is declining only in India, because all the. Avatars you know took place here; the Avatar has to take shape. in the place where the Dharma originated and where it is still studied and valued. The rest of the world is but the branches of this tree. For Me, there is no native land or foreign land. All humanity has to be brought back to the path of Dharma. The Veda is Apaurusheya---’Not ascribable to human skill or authorship;’ the Veda Purusha (Soul of Veda) is not ascribable to any one country. Veda emanates from wherever you yearn for it. All religions and Dharmas are but proliferations of Vedic truths. (SSS Vol.2)
Bhagavatam was the subject of the discourse by Kalluri Veerabhadra Shastry today; but do not think that it has no relevancy to the Veda Purusha Saptaha Jnana Yajna (Seven-day Vedic ritual of Sacrifice of Spiritual Wisdom for the Supreme Being of Veda); for the Bhagavatam contains Vedasaram (esssence of Veda) itself. The Veda speaks in hymn after hymn of the Glory of God, known by various names as Indra, Varuna, Mitra, etc. It is all Upasana – worship filled with bhakti, devotion to God, whom the Veda itself declares as One, ‘though endowed with a variety of Names.’ The Bhagavatam is the Vedasara (the essence of Veda), made available for easy assimilation by all. It is just a limb of the Vedic literature and as limb it is an inseparable part of the Vedic tradition. The same blood flows in this limb too; it makes the Veda beautiful and charming.
Just as juveniles are shown pictures and made to learn names of the objects which they represent, the Bhagavatam teaches the Akshara (Imperishable) through the Kshara (perishable). You cannot attain the subtle without experiencing the gross, without the instrumentality of the gross.
After rising to the heights of the Cit (Awareness), with jada (dull witted) as the instrument, you have to also make the jada so suffused by Chaitanya (Supreme Consciousness) that the difference does not persist! In dhyaana, the picture first felt has to be transformed into the picture of the purified imagination, and that again has to be rarified into the subtle abstract principle only. Then only can the dhyeya or Form meditated on, be transcended and the highest Vision of Universal beauty, wisdom and strength obtained. The Bhagavatam helps in this spiritual education, taking the student through all the lessons from the primary to the postgraduate levels.
Look for the real meaning of Vedas
Most of you always by-pass the real meaning of the legends, tales and descriptions given in the ancient scriptures. Brahma s lotus is not stalk that grows in mud and rises above the waters to catch the rays of the sun and blossom, but the many petalled Lotus of the Heart, each petal being the direction in which a particular tendency attracts the individual. The Bull on which Shiva is said to ride is not the animal called by that name, but the symbol of Dharma or Righteousness which has the four legs, satya, dharma, shanti and prema. Gopala did not graze cattle, but protected and fed jivas (living beings) known also as Go . In the study of the Veda, you should look for the meaning that satisfies the heart, and not rest content if the meaning satisfies the head! A sentence may be quite right grammatically, but may still be sheer nonsense!
Ganapathy Shastry, for example, while describing the reason why the earth from ant-hills is recommended for the sacrificial mound, said that white ants are deemed to have powerful latent skill, which is put at the service of the Gods, for they once ate up the cord of Vishnu s bow! When Vishnu s bow was thus released from tension, its end hit Him under the chin and the impact removed His Head and carried it aloft into the sky! Now, if you take that story as applying to Lord Vishnu who is also known as Narayana, then it is something that belittles the Glory of God. But take it as applicable to the all-powerful, all-embracing Narayana aspect of the Godhead. How can we accept the explanation given for the white ants eating up the cord? The reason given is that the Gods wanted to prick the bubble of Vishnu s pride. Now, how can Narayana be accused of pride? How can the Gods conspire to depute white ants to manoeuvre? in such a sly way to take off His head? No. The story obviously refers to a minor God, a Devata, one among the many in the Vedic heaven, who bears the name Vishnu; that is all.
There is no need to besmirch the grandeur of Narayana by identifying the minor God Vishnu with the Chief of the Gods. Prefer the meaning that elevates and you will always be right. (SSS Vol.2)
The Vedas, which are the most ancient scriptures of man, have laid down that man has to utilise the special gifts that God has endowed him with, (namely, an intelligence that can look into the future and decide on a long-term basis what is profitable in the ultimate analysis, and a capacity to discard and keep away from satisfactions of a temporary nature so that one can pursue undisturbed the lasting satisfaction of eternal Bliss). That is the reason why this Yajna Saptaha (Week-long sacrificial ritual) is called Veda Purusha Saptaha Yajna; the Veda Purusha is to be propitiated by the adoration of the Vedic Gods, especially the Sun and Fire, through ceremonial Namaskar (for the Sun) and oblations of ritually sanctified ghee (for the God of Fire). Rudra is adored by the worship of the thousand Lingas every day and the Mother aspect of God (which is most revered during the Navaratri is adored by means of the puja which you see performed with scrupulous correctness. The Vedas are recited with authentic syllabic exactitude, just as it was recited centuries and millennia ago on the banks of the river Saraswati or Yamuna, by the simple sages of Aryavarta. By this means, the reciters, the worshippers, the performers and the participants, listeners and those who are vibrating to the holiness of the place, wherever they may be, are filled with bliss and peace.
Yajna maintains order of the Universe
Yajna means sacrifice; the Mantras emphasise this, the ritual symbolises this; the namaskar (prostration) is but the physical act which highlights this; indeed, all life is a sacrifice of a portion of one s span of life every day to the Sun, of a portion of one s time and strength and attention to someone or thing every moment. There can be no progress without yajna (sacrifice). Yajna maintains the order of the Universe. Sacrifice pleases the gods; the gods send rain; the rain feeds the crops; the crops yield harvest, the harvest strengthens the limbs and widens the outlook; it broadens the heart, clarifies the vision, until man reaches the goal, where there is no more struggle or death.
The highest and the most fruitful sacrifice is that of the ego. Crucify it and be free. Dedicate it to God and be rich beyond all dreams. Prepare yourself for this supreme status, by engaging in holy karma, that is to say, karma cleansed in the crucible of dharma, and attain Brahman (the One Indivisible Absolute), which appears as all this multifarious Universe.
The Mahabharata is also eligible to the reverence due to the Vedas; it is revered as the Fifth Veda by those that know. There, we find the eldest of the Pandavas (pure) brothers called Dharmaraja (dharma-born).
But, all his success was due to the fact that he had, on his right hand, Bhima (the embodiment of strength) and on his left hand, Arjuna (unsullied virtue). The strength that comes from the mastery of the senses and the fortitude and equanimity won through the conquest over impulses, emotions and passions are both valuable reinforcement for dharma to scale the bastions of Brahman.
Five steps in the path of dedicated living
The Vedas have prescribed five steps, to enable the individual to cultivate the spirit of Yajna Deva yajna (adoring God in the domestic altar); Pitra yajna (keeping in mind the debt one owes to the parents who endowed this body and fed the lamp of life); Manushya yajna (feeding guests and those who come seeking shelter and food); Brahma yajna (the study of the sacred scriptures and the initiation into the spiritual path) and Bhuta yajna (the feeding and fostering of pet animals, of cattle, of horse and sheep and dog which are the helpmates and comrades of man). The Vedas insist on every householder to attend to these five rites, every day and thus, he is encouraged along the path of dedicated living to reach the goal of total surrender to God.
The cow grants man milk, butter, curds, ghee---all valuable nutrients; they consume only grass and drink that which is undrinkable by man; and they bestow on man, in return for the care and kindness he evinces, life-giving and strength-sustaining food! Gratefulness demands that man should not neglect or injure them. So too, man should not allow plants and trees that he has grown to suffer from hunger and thirst and go dry and wither. You must have seen people placing sugar or flour at the mouths of ant-hills. It is a flash on the universal compassion which must mark out the heart of man. It is as much Bhuta yajna as the care of cows, though it does not reward the giver. (SSSVol.10)
Dharma is powerless without purity of character
The Mahabharata is the epic that holds forth the grand ideals of the past, in a clear unmistakable manner. The five Paandava brothers triumphed over impossible odds, as a result of Divine Grace, which they won through the exercise of Dharma (Righteousness), personified by the eldest brother, named appropriately Dharmaraja, supported by the strength of Dedication (the second brother, Bhima) and the strength of Purity (the third brother Arjuna, meaning Pure). At present, we have Dharma, in plenty, in books and perhaps, even in the words we speak. But, without the strength derived from dedication and faith, and from purity of character and conduct, Dharma is powerless to earn the Grace of God. That is the situation in which we are today.
But, there is no reason to lose heart. When the Sun sets, people lament that it has gone; but, the Sun never sets. It is the earth that has rolled by, and that will roll forward again to receive the illumination and the warmth. When the ignorance that has enveloped it is removed, Dharma will again shine forth and sustain the world. The Veda Purusha Jnana Yajna is one of the means to make Dharma shine.
Five types of yajnas prescribed for man
There are five types of Yajnas that have been prescribed for man to make him approximate to God. For these, there is no need to have intermediary priests, or costly materials, or elaborate ceremonies. Every householder can perform these and achieve the fruits.
- Deva Yajna: Yajna for the Gods. This means the surrender of all one’s acts at the feet of God; it means that one dedicates all his thoughts, words and deeds for the glorification of God.
- Pitru Yajna: Yajna for the manes, the offering of food or consecrated water in the name of the deceased father, grand-father, great grand-father, and of the mother, grand-mother and great grand-mother, identifiable with Gods (Vasu, Rudra and Aditya). Offering the tribute of gratitude is the essence of the Pitru Yajna.
- Brahma Yajna: Yajna for sages and spiritual lore: This is performed by the study of the Scriptures, the Shastras or other sacred texts which arouse the craving for liberation.
- Manushya Yajna: Yajna for mankind. This is done by means of hospitality to guests, and relieving sickness, pain and poverty.
- Bhuta Yajna: Yajna for living beings. This entails kindness to animals, especially domestic animals that yield milk and slave for us in the field. It includes pets, cats and dogs, sheep and all things that creep and crawl, including even ants. The heaping of grains over anthills in order to feed them is done as an expiation for the destruction of such ants as might have taken shelter in the fuel that we burn!(SSS Vol.7, p. 256)
There are also a few more yajnas prescribed in the scriptures. Jnana Yajna is one of such. Jnana is usually taken to mean knowledge gained from scholars and books and acting in accordance with that knowledge. But derived knowledge cannot be jnana. Knowledge can never ripen into wisdom so long as the ego persists in craving for results which can satisfy desire. When the ego fades away, Knowledge can shine as Wisdom. Jnana reveals that in the Veda Purusha sacrifice performed here and in all other yajnas celebrated elsewhere, God is the Prompter, the Promoter, the Sacrificer, the Sacrifice, the Product achieved and the Recipient of the product.
Many people perform yajnas without cleansing themselves. Only those yajnas that have, like this one, the peace and prosperity of the world (Loka-Kalyan) as the avowed purpose, can reach God. For He is Yajnabhuk (the consumer of the offering); He is Yajna-bhrith (guardian of the yajna) and Yajna krith (performer of the yajna). He is all; it is only when He is all that the act becomes genuinely yajna. (SSS Vol.11, pp. 154-155)
People resort to Gurus to receive Mantras (mystically powerful formulae to be recited by them for their spiritual uplift); others seek medicine men and holy monks to get yantras (esoteric talismans to ward off evil forces); some others learn from Pundits, tantras (secret rites for attaining superhuman powers). But all this is wasteful effort. One should accept the body as the tantra, one s own breath as the mantra and one s heart as the yantra. There is no need to seek them outside oneself. When all words emanating from you are sweet, your breath becomes Rig Veda. When you restrict what you listen to and prefer only sweet speech, all that you hear becomes Sama gaana. When you do only sweet deeds, all that you do is Yajur homa. Then, you will be performing every day the Veda Purusha Yajna, the yajna which propitiates the Vedic Spirit. (SSS Vol.15)
Sum and substance of all five types of yajnas
The Veda Purusha Jnana Yajna is the sum and substance of all these five types of Yajnas, and elaborate paraphrase of the rite. Along with this yajna every evening, we have explanatory discourses from Vedic Pundits concerning the basic tenets of Sanathana Dharma (eternal universal religion), with emphasis on the rites being done here.
Eight years ago, Vedic Pundits were brought together into an Organisation named All India Prasanthi Vidwan Mahasabha, with the late Dr. Burgula Ramakrishna Rao, as President, in order to propagate the Vedic way of life among the people of this land and outside. The fundamental lesson that the Vedas seek to instil is that there is only One, not two, what appears as two is only One, seen twice, or as two. Even a hundred cannot happen without one happening. One happening a hundred times makes a hundred! The One is the basic thing. The child persists in the boy, the youth, the adult, the middle aged, the old, the senile. The One persists through all the modifications and additions. This day we have the Annual Day of the Sabha that seeks to propagate this Truth among the people, so that they may have Light, Love and Joy. (SSS Vol.10)
THE Veda Purusha Saptaha Jnana Yajna, being celebrated every Dasara at Prasanthi Nilayam, is a rite that promotes the welfare and prosperity of the whole of mankind. But, it is difficult to convince doubters and disbelievers that this is the truth. Many feel that since such Vedic ceremonies can be performed in orthodox style, with all the Mantras uttered in correct style, only in India, their efficiency, if any, is confined to this land only, and so, they ask, how can this be beneficial in other regions where people have no faith in such rituals and hymns? Such doubters restrict the meaning of the word, Yajna. Yajna means, any activity dedicated to the glory of God, not merely, this activity prescribed in the ancient scriptures. Activity dedicated to the glory of God is being done, and can be done in all climes, in all realms, by all races. The dedication ensures success. Without it, there will inevitably arise anxiety, fear and faction. Every activity in the world is God-directed, God-ward moving, whether you know it or not. Only one has to be aware of it and share in the thrill of that knowledge. If God is not the inspirer and motivator, how can the Universe be moving in harmony, wheeling so smoothly? Else, there will be chaos, anarchy and an inferno of gamble.
Charity and self-control are integral parts of Yagna
Do not think that the Yajna is only this ceremony performed in this enclosure, marked out as specially holy, attended by readings and recitals from sacred texts and the chanting of Vedic hymns, and nothing other than this. No. Yajna is a continuous process; everyone who lives in the constant presence of God, and does all acts as dedicated to God is engaged in Yajna.
Three processes go together in spiritual discipline, as laid down by the sages: Yajna, Dana and Tapas (Sacrifice, Charity and Self-control). They cannot be partitioned and particularised thus. Charity and self-control are integral parts of yagna. That is why Yajna is translated as Sacrifice, for, the process of charity or Dhaana is essential in yajna. Also tapas, that is to say, strict regulation of emotions and thought-processes, to ensure peace and faith.
There are various yajnas prescribed by the Vedas. This is the Veda Purusha Yajna, a sacrificial ceremony dedicated to the Purusha extolled in the Vedas, the Purusha mentioned in the Purusha Sukta as constituting the Universe and subsuming it wholly as the limbs of His Cosmic Body.
The Veda Purusha is the Purushottama (the Supremest Person) for by His Will He manifested Himself as the cosmos and its components, out of Himself. There is nothing that is not He; so, how can you be different? In these matters, faith comes first; it has to. Believe that you are Divine; conduct yourselves in accordance with that sovereign status; then, you will be blessed with the Anubhuti – the experience, the vision, the realisation, the awareness, the bliss. And, as a result, you are merged in that everlasting Ananda.
The only one God can be reached by a thousand Names
Remember, you cannot have the anubhava (experience) and the Ananda (Bliss) first. And, you cannot postpone faith, until you get them. You cannot bargain: ‘Give me the Ananda and then, I shall have faith.’ See the Purushottama in all purushas. Purusha means, he who lives in the pura (port, city, or town). Each one of us is the resident and the sole resident of a distinct house of God. But, the Purushottama – the Supreme Resident in all the cities – is God. You can recognise this Purushottama, if you educate yourselves properly.
Take this Yajna performed here. In this One Fire, offerings are made concurrently with the recitation of the names of God, enclosed in elaborate hymns. More than 3560 offerings are made each day, for seven days. Each name describes God as having a special form. But this One Fire consumes all the offerings, and through its intermission every one of the offerings reaches the One God, the One that really IS.
Or, consider this: you perform worship with 1008 Names, a rite called Sahasranama archana. You keep an idol or picture before you and offer one flower at a time at the feet of that symbol of God, repeating the names, one at a time. The one symbol of the One God is only One, though He can be reached by a thousand names. Though you are acknowledging only One in all these rites, proclaiming the One Advaitic (non-dualistic) Divine, your sense and your intellect and your mind, its pack of desires, insist on running after the Many. This is the Maya (delusion) that casts its enchantment on weak and ignorant men. It urges man towards wild prolific greeds of the many-faced senses.
When you take food, do it in a prayerful mode
To realise the One, the Universal Absolute, which personalises itself into God and Creation, there is no discipline more valuable and more effective than SEVA. All the 1008 Names of the Sahasranama archana reach the One. All the 1000 names of thousand-faced society connote only the One God that plays in those 1000 roles. The One appears as if it is enshrined in the 1000 bodies. This is the truth you have to realise and cherish as the most precious in life.
You have observed that the Vedic Pundits (priestly scholars) are pouring ghee into the Fire, every time the recitation of a hymn is over. Every day, when you take food, you are offering eatables to the Fire that God has lit in you to digest food. You have to eat in a prayerful mode, in profound gratitude. The Geetha says that the fire which cooked the meal is God, the meal is God, the eater is God, the purpose of eating is to carry on the work entrusted by God or pleasing to God, and that the fruit of that work is, progress towards God.
You must perform another yajna too, every day. Pour the egoistic desires and emotions, passions, impulses and acts into the flames of dedication and devotion. In fact, that is real Yajna, of which these are reflections and prompters, guides and prototypes. This yajna is only the concrete symbolic representation of the abstract underlying Truth. Just as a child is taught to pronounce the words, head, net, wave, garland, by making it associate the sounds and the letterforms with pictures of the objects so named, through this kshara (temporary) symbol the Akshara tattva (the Eternal Principle) is brought before the consciousness.
Make every thought a longing for God
This Puja, this Yajna, and this Homa, are arranged here every Dasara, in order to help you to learn that other, ever-lasting, abstract Yajna, which every one of you has to do, to save yourselves from fear, grief and anxiety.
You must have noticed that the Pundits close each day s Yajna with a prayer that calls for World Peace, peace for all mankind, peace and happiness, for there can be no peace without happiness and no happiness without peace. . Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu they pray. ‘May all the world have happiness, and peace.’ Peace of mind cannot be gained by wealth or fame or scholarship or skill. For that, you have to clean the mind, purify the heart, yearn for service of the divine forms that move around you. Do every deed as an act of worship; make every thought a longing for Him; change every word that comes from your tongue into a hymn in His praise. This is the lesson that you have to learn from Prasanthi Nilayam, every Dasara, during the week the Yajna is celebrated. (SSS Vol.11)
Since several centuries and millennia, yajnas (Vedic rite or sacrifice) like the Veda Purusha Saptaha jnana yajna (Seven-day Vedic Wisdom-sacrifice) which is being inaugurated here now, have been observed in India for the welfare of the world. These yajnas are not performed to benefit an individual, a family, a sect, a caste or those who follow a particular faith. The aim is universal and the beneficiaries are all living beings, for such yajnas calm the elements and propitiate the deities presiding over the earth, water, fire, wind and sky. The sages of old chose some place away from the habitations of man, either on the bank of a river or in the recesses of a forest, for the celebration of yajnas. No one or no group of persons can claim any special attention being given to them.
The yajna is everybody s privilege; it becomes a success through everyone s effort. No one person can pride himself that he is indispensable. Handfuls of grain brought by those who had sincere desire to participate were heaped together and handfuls of ritual fuel sticks brought by the priests were stacked together. This was done as a symbol of the union of minds and hearts and as an assurance that each one can share in the blessings of the Gods invoked by the Mantras (sacred formulae). When the ego of a few is given free play and fame is offered to one or many, as often happens in yajnas today, they are rendered unholy and infructuous. This is the reason why yajnas have become occasions for ridicule and adverse criticism.
Among yajnas, there are two types---the outer and the inner, the outer being a reflection of the inner. The inner yajna is the bird in the hand; the outer, the bird in the bush. But since the sanctified vision and urge are absent today, what is happening is the release of the bird in the hand with the attempt to catch the bird in the bush. The value and significance of the inner yajna have to be understood first. It involves awareness of the Divinity that is dormant but decisive in the very centre of our Reality. Worship It, propitiate It, please It, become It.
All animal traces of man must be sacrificed
The mind is the altar. Place the animal which is to be offered as oblation (the evil aspects of your character, behaviour, attitude etc.) and sacrifice it to the deity invoked. Though born as a human, man is burdened by animal instincts and impulses that have attached themselves to him during his previous lives as an animal. He has passed through many an animal existence and each has left its mark on his mental make-up, like a scar on the skin when a wound has healed. For example, man is afflicted with the disease of aggressive conceit, what is called mada in Sanskrit. This is not a natural trait of man, but a relic of a former elephantine life.
Man is sometimes pitiably a murkha (foolish), which is a relic of his past existence as a sheep. Some have an inborn tendency to steal, which may be reminiscent of their past of creatures such as a cat, which is also a sly poacher. Some are endowed with profuse unsteadiness and waywardness, an inheritance of their monkey existence. Man is known in Sanskrit as nara and the monkey as vanara. When vaa (valam, tail) is subtracted, vanara is reduced to nara. Man has lost the tail but he has still all the waywardness and unsteadiness of that animal. All such animal traces must be sacrificed on the altar of the mind as part of the inner yajna. The outer visible yajna is a means to convey this inner purpose and message. When children are taught to read, the objects which they can see and identify are placed beside the written words which bespeak them. Under the picture of a chair, the word chair is printed and the child is taught to discover that c-h-a-i-r reads ‘chair.’ Later, the picture is discarded as superfluous. So, too, until the lesson is learnt, the external ritual of fuel sticks being offered to the sacrificial fire has to continue. The ritual is the casket, and the destruction of the animal impulses, the gem that it is designed to keep safe.
Significance of the activities at the yajna
Here we see ritwiks (priests performing the rites) who are specialists in the different stages of Vedic sacrifice. We hear the recitation of Vedic hymns; we have Pundits reading the Ramayana (History of Rama), the Bhagavatam (Legends of divine Advents) and the Devi Bhagavatam (Exploits of Divine Universal Mother) from the original texts; we have the ceremonial worship of Devi on the lines of Shastric (ethical) injunctions; a Pundit is engaged in prayer of the thousand lingas (Symbolic Form of Divinity), while another priest propitiates the Sun God by means of ritual prostration to the accompaniment of Mantras, praising His Glory. Godhead, in all Its Manifestations of elements and forces, is thus being adored for seven days as part of the Veda Purusha yajna. The fives senses and their impact, the five sheaths that enclose the Atman, are all symbolised in these activities.
The outermost kosha (sheath) is the annamaya kosha, composed of the material body made of anna (food). Anna, the body built by anna, and the man, all are products of the self-same substance, bhumi (soil, earth). To fill the material body with Ananda (felicity), the vital, mental and intellectual sheaths need to be sublimated. All the koshas have to be finally merged in the Illumination of Jnana (Beautific Wisdom). The homa (the oblation in the sanctified flame) is a symbol of this consummation.
The Vedas are the embodiments of Truth
The fire you see is fed by fuel sticks and ghee, so that the flames of wisdom may burn out the last traces of ego, ignorance and desire. And what exactly is ghee, which feeds the flames? It is clarified butter---butter that is churned from curd which is in fact curdled milk. Milk is drawn from the four-legged cow which symbolises the four Vedas. So symbolically, the Vedas themselves help the Light of Wisdom to shine. The Vedas are Embodiments of Truth. Recitation of the Vedas purifies the environment and strengthens the will to become Truth. This is symbolically conveyed by the various ceremonial rites which are part of this yajna (sacrifice).
Many who are unaware of this significance find fault with those who partake in such yajna; they criticise the loss of grain and ghee and bemoan the waste of precious materials resulting from the irrational behaviour of the priests. But the seers who declared the Mantras and the Vedas which prescribe the rituals, and those who faithfully celebrate the yajna, are not foolish at all.
Ignorant people lament the loss when the farmer scatters bags of grain on a ploughed field, for they do not know that when the harvest comes around, the farmer can collect from the field ten times more grain than was scattered by him.
A single tin of ghee offered with appropriate Mantras in the holy fire will result in a million tins of ghee for mankind. The vibrations of the Mantras and the effect of the oblations will ensure prosperity and welfare the world over. The sages and the seers of yore prescribed these yajnas, prompted by universal compassion, in order that they may result in the welfare of mankind. Thus all beings benefit from the persistence of the Hindhus in observing the teachings of the rishis.
The Mahabharata declares that what is not in Bharat does not deserve reverential consideration; and in Bharat the message has always been: tolerance, respect for all faiths and the practice of the essential teachings of love and service with the giving up of hatred, envy and pride. This yajna will help you to understand this message and live in accordance with it. (SSS Vol. 14)
Without faith adoration is artificial
Aham hi, Aham hi, Sarvaya jnanam: ‘In all yajnas, I am the Doer, the Donor, the Consumer, the Acceptor.’ This is the reason the Chief Priest in a yajna such as the Veda Purusha Yajna we are inaugurating now, is named Brahma. The priest nominated as Brahma has to guide the rest of the ritualists; he must have his wife by his side, or else, his credentials are inadequate. The wife represents faith (shraddha). Without faith, praise is hollow, adoration is artificial and sacrifice a barren exercise.
Really speaking, the heart is the ceremonial altar; the body is the fire place; the hair is the holy grass, darbha; wishes are the fuel-sticks with which the fire is fed; desire is the ghee that is poured into the fire to make it burst into flame; anger is the sacrificial animal; the fire is the tapas we accomplish. People sometimes interpret tapas as ascetic practices like standing on one leg or on the head. No. Tapas is not physical contortion. It is the complete and correct coordination of thought, word and deed. When this is achieved, the splendour of fire will manifest.
Talking of thought, word and deed in the context of the Veda Purusha Yajna, I have to tell you that the Rig Veda is vaak (speech) taken form. The Sama Veda contains hymns that are sung. It is srotra (hearing) which has taken form. Whenever the speech is saturated with truth and compassion, or inspired by service to others, it becomes Rig Veda. Good deeds are Yajur Veda. There is no compulsion that you should have an external altar as here. Only, you should be vigilant about the purity of the words you utter or listen to and the deeds you engage in. (SSS Vol.15)
The Yaga was called Veda Purusha Saptaha Jnana Yagna and it consisted of two sections, the morning sessions for seven days of Athi-Rudra homa with all its complementary rites, and the evening sessions of a Jnana yajna, where distinguished exponents of the Vedas explained to the vast gathering, the meaning and significance of the scriptural rites. Since the Festival had to high-light the efficacy of Vedic injunctions, Baba said that scrupulous care should be taken to observe them all, down to the minutest detail. Therefore, the number, size and situation of the pillars of the Yaga-mantap, the number and shapes of the sacrificial pits, the location of the shrines of subsidiary deities like the Yoginis, the Vastu purusha, the Kshetrapalas like Abhayamkara, and the Navagraha, were all correctly fixed. The kusa grass seats for the participants were prepared in accordance with the do s and dont s that the Sastras prescribe. The materials for the sacrifice, like ghee prepared from cow s milk, earth from ant-hills and royal equestrian stables and royal elephant stables and royal palace enclosures, the banyan tree twigs, the spoons made of special wood, were all collected under His personal supervision. Altogether 2,26,270 spoonfuls of ghee were offered during the seven mornings into the sacrificial fire, with the concurrent invocation of the appropriate Name of the Lord, describing one among His manifold characteristics! The Yaga was certain to promote, according to the Vedas, the welfare and peace of the world. ‘Shanti kamastuhomayeth’; those who desire the establishment of peace have to do this sacrifice’, say the Vedas. Baba, in one of His Discourses during the week, referred to the derision with which even many Hindus react, when they see so much ghee being poured in the Fire. He spoke of such critics as dwellers in the realm of cash books, persons who clamour for jars of ghee and bundles of fuel, rather than the more precious and the more lasting joy of having invoked and pleased the Gods. The very performance of an ancient honoured rite gives a satisfaction that cannot be expressed in cash. ‘These questioners have consumed hundreds of bags of rice since birth and they have drunk pots of ghee so far. Let me ask them, whether they have had a single day of happiness themselves or whether they have been able to give a single day of joy to their kith and kin. But, this Yaga gives great joy to many; it gives peace and joy to the world. I and My people are delighted; that is enough compensation. When ghee is poured into the Fire, those who do not know or believe in the Vedas say it is a waste. Those who do not know agriculture may cry that casting seeds in the furrow is a colossal waste; they do not know that the tiller will get the grain back, a hundred fold. This is also like that. Letters reach the addressee only when they are duly stamped with Mantras and dropped into sacrificial Fire. This is a science as much as any other.’ (SSSm Vol.2)
Baba Himself announced, on the opening day of Dasara, ‘To celebrate Dasara at Prasanthi Nilayam is indeed a rare chance, replete with wonder and joy, ensuring peace by the extinction of the six inner enemies.’ His Mission is to put mankind again on the rails of peace and joy. So, when the Hon ble Minister for transport, Andhra Pradesh, announced that he would shortly initiate steps to improve the road to Prasanthi Nilayam and make it a tarred high way, Baba said
‘The body looks forward to a smooth drive over a tarred road, but the heart prefers the road of tranquility and humility, so that it may reach the goal, God, and merge in that ocean of glory. I am more interested in that Road. I am not enthusiastic about tarring the road, for, that would make even the little discipline of ‘slow and careful driving’ superfluous for people coming here! Life is not all smooth sailing. It is full of ups and downs, sharp turns and sudden diversions. India has always taught the first lesson in safe travel, here and hereafter: ‘Start early; drive slowly; reach safely!’
Since thousands of devotees had to sleep under the sky, piling their belongings around their beds, the rains that poured during three nights caused a great deal of discomfort and dislocation. Referring to these, Baba said,
‘Some people came running to Me saying, Swami! Stop the rains! Well, getting a little wet is a trivial bother, when compared to the benefits of timely rains. The Veda Purusha Yajna is celebrated to persuade the Gods to shower rain, that is its raison d Ítre as the Vedas assert. While the rite is on, the rains have come: it demonstrates that the Pundits did the Yajna on strict Vedic lines. The rains will ensure a good harvest and prosperity for the countryside.’
On the 20th of October, 1969, the valedictory Rite of the Yajna was performed. Baba created a nine-gemmed necklace for the chief priest who officiated; he was a scholar in Vedanta and Vedic grammar. During the Abhisheka or ritual bath of the image of the previous incarnation, the Sai Baba of Shirdi, Baba created a sparkling eight-starred jewel of gold and placed it on the forehead of the silver idol; it stuck! Dr. S. Bhagavantham and Mr. Tideman Johanessen who were among the audience wondered at this: How could gold stick on silver, without adhesive? Baba knew their thoughts. He told them a few hours later, without their asking Him or anyone telling Him,
‘If I can create the jewel, can I not make it stick, too? When you doubt one incident, you start doubting all. Accept Me for what I am. Then, no doubt can interfere with your faith.’ ‘You complain that God is hardhearted; that He does not respond to prayer, or give signs from His portraits, or speak from nowhere to assuage or assure; but let Me tell you, God is Love, Love is God. When there is no response you have to infer that the cry from your heart is insincere, it is mere play-acting. It is set to a pattern, addressed to someone alien to you, someone accepted by you as a far away tyrant or a taskmaster. Know that God is your nearest and dearest kin.’ (SSSm Vol.3)