Indian
Culture and Traditions
The
Spiritual Heritage Of India
By Dr. Sudipta Dutta Roy
Vivekananda’s Perspective
According to Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902), a great
spiritual leader, thinker and reformer of India,
spirituality is the very backbone of India. He observes that every
nation has a particular ideal running through its whole existence, forming its
very background. With some it is politics, while with others it is social
culture, intellectual culture, and so on. Vivekananda says, …. Our motherland
has religion and religion alone for its backbone, for the bedrock upon which
the whole building of its life has been based.’ Since spirituality is the
essence of religion, we
should mark that Vivekananda has used the term religion in the same sense as
spirituality
If we study the history of Indian culture we find even in
the Rig Veda, the oldest of scriptures, the Indian mind experiencing the
intimation of something divine and immortal within itself. The inward search of
man gathers volume and power in the Upanishads. The Upanishads seek to realize
the transcendental dimension of man-the dimension of Divinity transcending
humanity. In this spiritual direction human awareness goes beyond the body, the
sense and the surrounding world: man realizes himself as the immortal Self.
Coming in the wake of the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita works out a complete
philosophy of life, reconciling the sacred and the secular, work and worship.
The spirituality that proceeds from the Vedas and the Upanishads, and
reinforced by Sri Krishna, Buddha, Shankara and others, is liberated into
universality by Swami Vivekananda. He invests religion with the power to
illumine and guide human life as a whole. The present paper is an exposition
and analysis of Vivekananda’s interpretation of Vedanta, which is also known as
the Hindu religion.
We shall strive to focus on the points where his interpretation regenerates the
spiritual, heritage, making it fit for the modern world.
The Nature and Goal of Religion in
Vivekananda’s View
The spiritual thoughts of Vivekananda have their moorings in the Vedanta philosophy, which is a systematic exposition of the Upanishads. However, he gives a modern interpretation of the ancient ideas to make them practical. He says, The Vedanta, therefore, as a religion must be intensely practical. We must be able to carry it out in every part of our lives.’ (2.291)
The spiritual thoughts of Vivekananda have their moorings in the Vedanta philosophy, which is a systematic exposition of the Upanishads. However, he gives a modern interpretation of the ancient ideas to make them practical. He says, The Vedanta, therefore, as a religion must be intensely practical. We must be able to carry it out in every part of our lives.’ (2.291)
The fundamental and most universal principle of the
Vedanta is that the individual soul is identical with the supreme Soul.
Vivekananda expresses it thus: Each soul is potentially divine. The goal is to
manifest this Divinity within… (1.257). In his view, purity and goodness are
inherent characteristics of the soul, and religion is nothing but the
manifestation of this true nature. In order to make religion practical, Swamiji
begins with emphasis on the importance of morality and moral behavior. Religion
for him means living in a way that helps us manifest our higher nature, truth,
goodness and beauty through our thoughts, words and deeds. All impulses,
thoughts and actions that lead one towards this goal are naturally ennobling
and harmonizing, and are moral in the truest sense. Hence morality, which is
indispensable to being truly religious, is simply a matter of being what one
really is, simply radiating the true light of one’s own soul all around, under
all circumstances, at all times.’ Thus by spirituality Swamiji does not mean
anything occult or mysterious. It is the spontaneous response of man’s true
nature or divine nature
Method of Realization
As already mentioned, in Vivekananda’s view religion is the realization of man’s real nature. As he puts it, ‘Religion is realization; not talk, nor doctrine, nor theories, however beautiful they may be. It is being and becoming, not hearing or acknowledge; it is the whole soul becoming changed into what it believes. That is religion. Such an interpretation makes it evident that spiritual realization is not something that happens by itself. The seeker has to strive and work for this consummation. In Vivekananda’s view this struggle towards realization is what is dynamic spirituality, which stands for the steady spiritual growth of man.
As already mentioned, in Vivekananda’s view religion is the realization of man’s real nature. As he puts it, ‘Religion is realization; not talk, nor doctrine, nor theories, however beautiful they may be. It is being and becoming, not hearing or acknowledge; it is the whole soul becoming changed into what it believes. That is religion. Such an interpretation makes it evident that spiritual realization is not something that happens by itself. The seeker has to strive and work for this consummation. In Vivekananda’s view this struggle towards realization is what is dynamic spirituality, which stands for the steady spiritual growth of man.
He emphasizes that such spiritual growth can be achieved
only through a comprehensive spiritual technique called yoga. The word yoga
(‘union’), he clarifies, primarily signifies the process by which an aspirant
is unified to his highest ideal In order to suit the different natures and
temperaments of men, there are different forms of yoga. For the spiritual
development of four main types of personality - the intellectual, the active,
the emotional and the psychic or introspective - the respective forms of yoga
are jnana yoga, karma yoga, bhakti yoga and raja yoga. Through hard practice of these
yogas, the ancient sages of India
realized spiritual truths and prescribed them as ways of
verification of these truths. As Swamiji observes, ‘The teachers of the science
of Yoga, therefore, declare that religion is not only based upon the experience
of ancient times, but that no man can be religious until he has the same
perceptions himself. Yoga is the science which teaches us how to get these
perceptions.’ (1.127)
In jnana yoga, on the basis of the teachings of Advaita
Vedanta, Swamiji elucidates the divinity of the individual soul, the
non-duality of the infinite Soul, the unity of all existence and the harmony of
all religions. Jnana yoga shows the way to realize the oneness of the
individual soul with the supreme Soul through the discipline of discrimination
between the real and the unreal. Karma yoga shows the way to perfection for
the active man of the world. In it, Swamiji reshapes the cardinal teachings of
the Gita, keeping in view the necessity of its application to the ethical needs
of contemporary India.
Here he guides us to learn the secret of doing work with non-attachment. Bhakti yoga
teaches man how to train his emotions in order to attain his spiritual end.
While the first part of it deals with details of concrete worship, the second
concerns the practice of higher discipline-love for love’s sake, devoid of fear
of punishment or expectation of reward. Through such love, the devotee realizes
the oneness of the lover and the Beloved. Raja yoga is the exposition of the
contemplative technique of Patanjali. However, Swamiji supplements it with
other texts and crowns it with a Vedantic orientation. Apart from the various
practices of concentration and meditation for mind control, Swamiji shows that
the mind possesses unlimited power, which through proper execution enables man
to realize the spirit as separate from the body. Swamiji holds that each of
these yogas, if followed to its logical conclusion, will lead to the highest
spiritual realization. It is up to the individual to discover the path that
suits him most and follow it. In his words, ‘Do this either by work, or
worship, or psychic control, or philosophy-by one or more or all of these…’
(1.257). A harmonious blending of the teachings of the yogas, in Swamiji’s
view, helps to develop a well-balanced spiritual character. Through these
different methods of spiritual realization, Swamiji underlines the scientific
nature of religion.
Unity of Religions
The Rig Veda proclaims, ‘Ekam sat vipra bahudha vadanti, Truth is one but sages call it by different names.’ This universal Vedantic truth lived and taught by his illustrious guru Sri Ramakrishna, and his own realization form the basis for Vivekananda’s message of the unity of all religions. In his view, though the different religions of the world differ from one another, their underlying purpose is the same-God-realization. He illustrates this point in the following way. Just as the same water can be collected in vessels of different sizes and shapes, Truth can be seen through different religions. In each vessel (of religion), the vision of God comes in the form of the vessel.
The Rig Veda proclaims, ‘Ekam sat vipra bahudha vadanti, Truth is one but sages call it by different names.’ This universal Vedantic truth lived and taught by his illustrious guru Sri Ramakrishna, and his own realization form the basis for Vivekananda’s message of the unity of all religions. In his view, though the different religions of the world differ from one another, their underlying purpose is the same-God-realization. He illustrates this point in the following way. Just as the same water can be collected in vessels of different sizes and shapes, Truth can be seen through different religions. In each vessel (of religion), the vision of God comes in the form of the vessel.
Swamiji draws our attention to the fact of unity in
diversity, which is the very plan of the universe. The same thing can be viewed
from different standpoint and yet be the same thing. A human being is different
from an animal, but as living beings man, woman, animals and plants are all
one, and as pure existence man is one with the whole universe. Through such
illustrations, Swamiji attempts to establish that ‘all the religions, from the
lowest fetishism to the highest absolutism, mean so many attempts of the human
soul to grasp and realize the infinite [God], each determined by the conditions
of its birth and association, and each of them marking a stages of progress’
(1.332). The existence of differences in races, cultures and temperaments
explains the existence of different religions. Recognizing difference as the
very sign of life, Swamiji
preaches the universality of religion. However, he reminds us
that by universal religion, he does not mean an amalgam of the best elements of the
different religious systems like Christianity, Buddhism, Islam
and Hinduism. Never
does he want a Hindu to be converted into a Christian or a Muslim into a
Buddhist. The import of his universal religion is that one must stick to one'’
religion and yet feel the underlying bond of unity among all religions
As an assurance of the possibility of universal religion, he holds, ‘If it be
true that God is the centre of all religions, and that each of us is moving
towards Him along one of these radii, then it is certain that all of us must
reach that center. And at the center, where all radii meet, all our differences
will cease.’ (2.384-5). Friends if only the Muslims and Christians shared
Swamiji’s views the world would be a much better place to live in.
According to Swamiji, two essential
corollaries of the unity of all religions are tolerance and universal
acceptance.
In the history of India,
we find concretization of these two ideas all throughout. Through centuries, India has
sheltered the persecuted and the refugees of all religions and all nations of
the earth. At the Chicago Parliament of Religions Swamiji referred to this
glorious chapter of our cultural history: ‘I am proud to belong to a religion
which has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance. We believe
not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true’ (1.3).
through his words Swamiji intends to make us aware of our spiritual heritage so
that we live up to that standard.
Hence a universal religion, which for Swamiji is the ideal
for mankind, must be one, which will have a place for every human being - from
the lowest savage to the highest man. It will ‘recognize diversity in every man
and woman, and whose whole scope, whose whole force, will be created in aiding
humanity to realize its own true, divine nature’ (1.19). The recognition of a
universal religion, Swamiji hopes, will put an end to worldwide disputes and
bloodshed in the name of religion, and generate feelings of loved and sympathy
in the hearts of men.
Conclusion
The above study brings to light how Vivekananda rejuvenates the spiritual heritage of India by his humanistic, practical, rational and scientific interpretation of it. Stripping Hindu religion of all its narrowness and rigidity, he lifts it to the status of a universal religion meant for all mankind.
The above study brings to light how Vivekananda rejuvenates the spiritual heritage of India by his humanistic, practical, rational and scientific interpretation of it. Stripping Hindu religion of all its narrowness and rigidity, he lifts it to the status of a universal religion meant for all mankind.
Swamiji’s interpretation of religion manifests the
features of humanism all through. It is in his fervent desire to elevate man
that he identifies man with God. By holding that man in his true nature is the
immortal spirit identical with the Absolute, Swamiji instills in man a sense of
dignity. Defining religion as the manifestation of the inherent divinity of
man, he makes man strive for the ideals of truth, goodness and beauty. By his
emphasis on spiritual realization through detached action, knowledge, devotion
and control of mind, Swamiji wants a harmonious development of man. It is to
kindle man’s sense of responsibility for his own destiny that he stresses the
practice of yoga.
As he looks upon man as the embodiment of Divinity, the
meaning and significance of service become clear. We are inspired to serve man
as God. Vivekananda’s interpretation clearly points towards his practical
outlook. He is aware that religion must be in tune with the times. The modern
age is one of science and reason; hence he attempts to make his exposition
rational and scientific, and alive to its needs.
For Swamiji, spirituality or religion is not a matter of
belief or assent. He affirms time and again that religion is essentially
realization or an experiential certainty. His concern is not with metaphysical
speculations about the nature of God and afterlife. He gives us a message of courage
and hope that God is latent in every one of us and can be realized if we have
the passion for it, irrespective of the path we choose. That
every man is potentially divine gives man a hope of infinite progress.
In Swamiji’s view the four yogas constitute the practical
means for attaining the end of religion. He clarifies that the practice of the
yogas does not require you to deliver your reason into the hands of the
priests, or to give your allegiance to any superhuman messenger. Yoga tells you
to cling to your reason and to take the work in your own hands. Swamiji asserts
that religion, like science, can experimented upon, its practices can be
deduced from verified truths, and its truths can be demonstrated in personal
life. He also shows that just as every physical science is a pursuit for
exploring the unity of all phenomena, even so the search of religion is aimed
at reaching the unity of all existence.
Finally,
through the unity of all religions, he shows a practical way leading to peace
and harmony in the world. In short, all through his efforts, Swamiji brings a
new awareness of our spiritual inheritance.
Surya,
The 'Destroyer Of Darkness'
By Vimla Patil
For centuries, many civilizations in the world have
worshipped the sun, an effulgent star that lights up the whole world
every day. Many religious cultures hold the sun as the life-giver of the
earth and the illuminator of human intellect. Prominent among these
nations is India,
which hosts the best sun temples of the world….
Japa Kusuma Sankasham, Kashyapeyam Mahadyutim
Tamorim Sarva Papaghnam Pranotosmi Divakaram…
Tamorim Sarva Papaghnam Pranotosmi Divakaram…
This is the famous hymn to the sun that is sung in
millions of Indian homes every day. In translation, it means: ‘Oh Sun,
red-blooming and glorious like the Hibiscus flower, son of the Sage
Kashyap, lord of magnificent lustre, destroyer of darkness and sin, I
salute you, the lord who brings us a new dawn every day!’ The powerful
Gayatri Mantra too is a prayer to the sun’s power and luminescence which
guides us to seek knowledge and illuminate our inner selves. Learned
sages of the Vedic age regarded the sun as the deity with inexhaustible
power and radiance. Surya or Aditya was the celestial power that
sustained all life on earth. The origin of Sun worship in India – and other countries like Iran –
thus goes back to several millennia.
Today, according to archeologists, there are seven
major temples of the sun spread across the various regions of India. Of
these, three are famous and visited by millions: Konark in Orissa,
Modhera in Gujarat and Martand in Kashmir.
These three are vibrantly resurrected and give visitors a fabulous
glimpse of India’s
architectural and spiritual glory. Of these, Martand alone has daily rituals
of worship. The names of the other five lesser-known ones are:
Dakshinaarka temple in Gaya, Bihar;
Suryanaar Koyil in Tamil Nadu; Suryanarayana in Arasavilli, Andhra
Pradesh; Surya Pahar in Assam
and Bhramanya Dev
Temple in Unao in Central
India. Apart from these, innumerable smaller shrines
dedicated to the sun god stand all over India and are also featured
in temples dedicated to other deities.
Clearly, from early ages, Indians worshipped the sun
to seek spiritual enlightenment and knowledge. Over the centuries, sun
worship became a dynamic cult that led to the creation of some of world’s
most beautiful temples and shrines with such architectural excellence
that they are now counted among the world’s greatest heritage sites.
Among the famous sun temples of the world, the majority – and probably the
best conserved – are in India
where sun worship has continued over the millenniums. Not only do India’s
sun temples and sculptures attract millions of tourists and pilgrims,
great artists like S H Raza are inspired by the sun’s power to create the
most beautiful paintings. Artists like Shrikant Kashelkar have dedicated
their entire shows to portray their vision of the sun god and his famous
temples to bring back the age of their glory.
Among all sun temples in India,
Konark in Orissa, Modhera in Gujarat and Martand in Kashmir
are considered the acme of architecture and proportions of beauty.
Standing near the blue expanse of the Bay of Bengal,
the Konark sun temple was built in the 13th century in the shape of
a giant chariot with carved wheels drawing the sun’s spired ratha or car.
Each wall and the spire have some of the most admired sculptures, proving
the mastery of the architects and artists who worked to create this
masterpiece. History says that this gigantic temple was built by the
Ganga Dynasty King Narasimhadeva of Kalinga (1234-1268 AD) in 1250 AD to
commemorate his triumphs against invaders. Legend says that the temple
was built to be a centre of power with two gigantic magnets built into
the spire of the temple. These magnets helped European sailors to
navigate their ships but also caused disasters, giving the spire the name
of ‘black pagoda’.
Like many other temples, Konark was sacked by
Islamic invaders in the 15th century. Legend further says that the main
statue of the sun was taken away secretly to nearby Jagannathpuri, while
the temple itself was desecrated. With no daily worship, the temple fell
into disuse and the sea and changing climate continued its destruction
until a project to resurrect the temple was made by British
archeologists. They cleared the mound of sand that covered the monument
and cleaned the temple to bring back much of its lost glory. The only
mistake they made was that they placed the four sculptures of the sun
(sunrise, mid-day, evening and night) in wrong places because of their
ignorance of the concept. Some of the major sculptures of the sun god
were moved to museums in Delhi, Kolkata and London.
The renovation of the temple brought back its glory
so well that the British called it an ‘a temple of overwhelming grandeur
even in its decay!” Today, it is a world heritage shrine and attracts
millions of visitors to see its unique construction concept. The temple
is built in the form of a huge chariot for the sun god – with twelve
stone-carved wheels – which is pulled by seven horses. Only one of these
survives the ravages of time. The temple itself symbolizes the
unrelenting passing of time of which the sun is the master.
The seven horses represent the seven days of the
week and the twelve pairs of wheels are the months of the year. Each has
eight spokes to show the qualities one needs to attain salvation. The
temple faces the east and has a dance hall, a hall for devotees and
pillars and walls which carry magnificent sculptures of the dancing
Nataraj and other deities. The roof, which collapsed centuries ago, lies
in a pile of nostalgic rubble in the courtyard, still giving a clear idea
of the grandeur and size of the temple.
One of the sanctums holds a statue of the sun god
carved out of beautiful green chlorite stone and is considered a
priceless masterpiece. However, the main sanctum is empty with the idol
of the sun either destroyed or taken away. The walls, niches, porches and
door frames are embellished with sculptures based on the Kamasutra.
Diametrically opposite to these are the war scenes and celebrations of
conquests which are carved on the gigantic wheels.
To see pictures of Sun Temple Konarak http://www.esamskriti.com/photo-detail/Sun-Temple-Konark.aspx
The second beautiful sun temple that is a proud
heritage of India
stands in Modhera in Gujarat. Built in 1026
AD on the banks of the River Pushpavati by King Bhimdev of the Solanki
dynasty (1022-1063 AD), the temple is so built that the sun’s ray’s fall
exactly on the deity’s face on every equinox day. History says that the
Solankis were Suryavanshis – originating from the lineage of the sun god
– and therefore raised many shrines to him all over Gujarat.
It is said that the famous temple
of Somnath, which
was rebuilt by King Bhimdev after its desecration by Allauddin Khilji,
had twelve sun temples in its environs. But these too, fell to the
ravages of invaders.
However, the Solankis rose to great power and built
the sun temple as their homage to their family deity. Modhera is
partially in ruins today due to the invasion of Allauddin Khilji but
still stands in grandeur as a great monument of unique architecture. The temple
has three prominent features. The Surya Kund is a magnificent
carved, stepped tank named after sun god and has 108 auspicious shrines
built into it. The Sabha Mandap is a hall for religious events and the Guda
Mandap is the sanctum where the idol of the sun once stood. Both these
spaces have niches where the twelve different aspects of the sun are
consecrated. The intricate carvings – including outstanding toranas –
show what an architectural marvel this temple once was!
To see pictures of Sun Temple Modhera
The last of the three great sun temples of India stands – surprisingly – in Martand, Kashmir. This temple, unique in architecture and
standing against Himalayan snow-clad peaks, is considered the most
beautiful temple built by King Lalitaditya of Kashmir,
(724-760 AD) belonging to the solar Karakota dynasty. Experts say
this temple is unique in world architecture and a tribute to the Kashmiri
genius of the king who built many cities which now are in ruins.
Martand – or Matan as it is colloquially called – is celebrated as one of
the world's great architectural marvels of Kashmiri architectural art as
well as for its magnificent location. Built of limestone and with
Greek-pattern pillars, the temple reminds one of the powerful reign of
King Lalitaditya, who was not only the builder of a vast empire –
reaching Afghanistan
and even Turkey
– but also a patron of art and architecture of Kashmiris which he
influenced for six centuries.
The sun
temples of India,
though partly in ruins, are unique and magnificent. The nostalgia they
generate is so deep that standing in front of each of them, one is taken
back in time to an age when temple building was an unmatched skill of
Indian builders and architects. The grandeur of the edifices proves that
even today, Indians have the ability to live in several ages – from the
Vedic era to today tech-savvy age – with an inborn ease. They also prove
that India
has the world’s most valuable and unmatched treasure of heritage sites!
Om Tat Sat
(Continued...)
(My
humble salutations to Dr.Sudipta Datta Roy,
Vimla Patil ji and hindu samskrit dot com for the collection)
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