A short preview of Hindu Dharma ( its interpretations and misinterpretations)

This note (though not exhaustive) is to share an overall perspective and preview of our Hindu Dharma. 

The Vedas, Smriti, Puranas, Science of logic and all Agamanas unanimously treat the Oneness of the Supreme (whom we refer as Param-Atma)

Since there is nothing but the eternal Bramhan ( Supreme Being)  to be dealt with in the whole of our sacred literature, all the mistaken notions of world have to be unavoidably explained as the modifications of the Brahman only until the ultimate truth is arrived at.

The present Dharmic (some call it religious) ignorance of most of the Hindus coupled with his devotional tendencies was probably taken advantage of, to propagate the westernised absurdities of Hinduism in India itself, as if the local deteriorations were insufficient for the immediate ruin of the Hindu.  They (The alien creeds) have trespassed too much upon our sacred dharma (religion) in their experiment to extract the essence of Hinduism along with that of their religion.

The Theosophists, local pundits, western Indologists, many authors ( both Indian and foreign) and writers  take the Mahabharata and the Ramayana as actual human histories and deal with them in their usual confounding style, unnecessarily applying to them all sorts of irrelevant theories.  They have not been able to perceive the real contents of the Mahabharata or the Ramayana.

Mrs Annie Besant, the so called Theosophical, Max Muller and other authoritical figures of the previous century and several other authors after them including the present day authors is completely blind even to their whereabouts. They believe that Rama and Krishna were born in Ayodhya and Mathura in India and died like ordinary men.

Theosophy has succeeded in somehow misleading many educated men in India, more by confusion of facts, theories and ideas and that by their definiteness and under the circumstances explained alone. It is no wonder that the results has been what it is.

The very concept of God in every other religion is far from scientific or philosophical. The accounts of the creation of this material universe (preached to the world at present) is unscientific and unphilosophical.   Hinduism sensibly provides every variety of intellect with the means of securing the benefits of Dharmic (read as Hindu Religion by westerners) devotion according to its own capacity.

Ahimsa, truthfulness, non-stealing, cleanliness and control of the senses are the common duties of all Hindus irrespective of the so called class, caste, creed etc. Ahimsa is the first duty of man to quality himself for mere admission into the Dharmic (Hindu religious) field. Consumers of flesh and fish (even though they are Hindus by birth) cannot think of laying claim to the privilege belonging to our most significant and scientific religion. I am saddened to see many of my Hindu friends enjoying flesh of dead animals.  Our ancient and holy religion starts with Ahimsa.  Himsa and religion are contradiction in terms.  As long as Hinduism continues, the deepest gulf between the carnivorous and the vegetarian could not be bridged over except by a complete conversion of the former into the latter, but never by the conversion of the latter into the former.

Through ignorance, man identifies his physical body with Atman and wrongly attributes the differences of Jati such as vipra etc. to the Atman itself.

This Avidya exists without beginning but it ends with the acquisition of Gnana. That Gnana refers to the knowledge of the Vedanta.

An ancient religion of such unique value and of high cosmopolitan type could not be so easily or conveniently secure appreciation and sympathy from quarters proudly influenced by narrow views and sectarian obstinacies, curiously appearing too often in the disguise of broad and enlightened opinions.

In our sacred Dharmic texts there is no human history treating of the life or exploits of a comparatively insignificant descendent monarch, nor is there the geographical description of a narrow strip of land on the surface of the material earth where the said ruler displayed his short-lived human greatness.

There are deceptions in every walk of life.  False Vedantism is unfortunately too common in this world.  It has developed into a fallacious political and social theories in these enlightened days.   Such deception are however least acceptable here as they would prove most dangerous to the very basis of our sacred dharma.

Each person is responsible for his or her own actions.  Man’s intention is invariably the main point for consideration.

The extremely scientific character of its basic divinity and the similar philosophic account of the evolution and involution of this mundane existence can never be affected by the profound attacks of the worldly wise man.

The rapid advancement of modern science cannot ruffle or frighten the pious Hindu dharma.

Every scientific discovery is doubtless the product of the exercise of a developed intellect and not of the physical man.  The scientific discoveries pertaining to the dead matter and consequently limited to the material sphere could not come up to the high plane of sacred religion.

The ultimate goal of Hindu dharma is the highest possible development of this human intellect or ‘Buddhi’ in its spiritual region.

Many of the Sanskrit Pundits in India who have all along been the interpreters of our religious literature, have for various reasons degenerated and the western critics no doubt obtained mostly second hand information from this class of professional pundits who did not do proper inquiry in depth on the technical essence of the Vedas.   Even if all the pundits in the world join together and begin to inquire on this subject of the origin of this universe they must soon come to a pause in every department of life.  

Our 'so called' Veda pundits, purohits, scholars and some self-styled Vedic writers had/have been systematically misrepresenting everything and supplying ridiculous stuff to the west over the last two hundred to three hundred years for the manufacture of the three Alien religions. (In fact this approximately might have started from the arrival of the east India Company).   These alien creeds constituted by simply borrowing from our literature and caricaturing the borrowed stuff with hateful feelings of anti-Hinduism.  

For example:  The bible says that when Christ was crucified he ‘gave up the ghost’ from his body which plainly means that his Jiva was devilish and that his physical body was pure and sacred. This would have been a direct mis interpretation of our literature wherein it says ‘the Yogis are said to throw away their bodies when they desire to do so. The westerners preserve the dead bodies as more important than the ‘Jivas’ that left them. 

• Could this  be Anti-Hinduism with a vengeance?  

The author/s  of the book that time would not have evidently cared to perceive in their angry mood that it was their anti-philosophy and anti-religion. 

• Could ignorance be better? 

We need to get out of the ‘mire’ into which we have been thrown by our own orthodoxy and pundits.  A study of our own literature will in itself disclose many more wonderful facts of history.  It staggers all human comprehension even to think of the creation of this world of multifarious things.  Nothing can originate without the help of time and space. Noting originated thru nature.

Science analyses and analyses things until it reaches a tipping point because it cannot proceed further.  It denies any scope beyond it.  It ends in gravitational, electricity, electromagnetism, protoplasm, proteins electrons and so on.

If these are entities in themselves, the religion of the scientist must be polytheistic, not atheistic.  We in India were never strangers but our scientists were all philosophers too. Ignorance of philosophy is in every way suicidal to the scientists.

Several of the important problems are based upon the ignorance and unauthorised interpretations of the pseudo pundits and the consequent criticisms of foreigners who could not naturally be entirely free from bias or apathy against alien religion and socialism.  Neither the learned pundit nor the so called civilised Hindu gentlemen ever cared or cares to understand the Vedic texts in their proper light.

• Have the western scientists hitherto established that the subtle mind could originate from gross matter?

One of the important factors in the conception of the Jagat is the human perception.  By sheer differences in nature of the perception one and the same woman is conceived as wife, daughter in law, husband’s sister, husband’s brothers’ wife, Mother and so on.

The object created by Iswara( Supreme Being) like a gem for, remains unchanged, and is perceived in different ways according to the variation in the mental aspects of the perceiver.

The man who obtains the gem perceives it as an object of great pleasure.  The man who fails to obtain it perceives as an object of great anger. A yogi though he perceives the same gem feels neither pleasure nor anger.

Science has never established a causal relation between matter and minds.  The pseudo pundits feel satisfied by occasionally adding one nonsense to another to create consistency. The cultured gentleman often thinks it beneath his acquired dignity and a waste of his precious time to approach the time barred absurdities of his forefathers.  He entirely forgets at the same time that his borrowed ideas of civilisation and gentlemanliness proceeded from the west where such utter indifference to ancient civilisation is only treated with contempt.

He starts believing that the ultimate goal is the same in every religion, the methods of procedures are entirely different. This is a very absurd statement most people make. (For additional reference I would also urge you to read the book “being different’ authored by Sri Rajiv Malhotra)

To venture criticism without the least knowledge or study of subject is called ‘Kutarka’ while a detailed study of a subject and to analyse the same by resorting to critical thinking and art of debate is called as 'Tarka' (or purva paksha).

Of course there are some learning from the Western Civilisation:

a) Strength of character, 
b) Thoroughness in the investigation of a subject, 
c) Critical spirit of enquiry and several other valuable virtues peculiar to the western civilised nations demand grateful admiration.  

They are not so fickle or unsteady to be easily carried away by momentary alternations of views on serious matters.

Writings in Vedic periods

The word Akshara, letter or alphabet “lipi’ writing, mudrith stamped or printed abundantly found in ancient literature will disprove that writing was probably unknown in the Vedic period.  The yantras and chakras drawn in geometrical designs are filled with letters making up the mantras.

And as I type these sentence I remember an old saying which goes like this “Rejecting the sweet porridge at home, a fool begs for alms elsewhere!!!”

It is the knowledge of the immateriality of the objective world by a proper scientific analysis that is demanded for the attainment of Nirvana and not its non-perception in the waking state of life.

The modern attempt to comingle all possible varieties of religion, science and philosophy in the world with the hope of producing a diverse system congenial to all mankind without distinctions of any kind is surely a ‘logical impossibility’ demanding no arguments for its refutation.

Theosophist’s, preachers of Hinduism, admires Buddhism, behaves in some other 'isms' and probably practices none of them.

The exact appearance of the original is observable without any of its qualities or attributes.

Everyone is personally responsible for his own actions and rigorous law to enjoy or suffer according to the merit or demerit of his karma as must be obeyed.

The main object of this note as well as my future writings is and will be to ‘seek for reasonable explanation available in the texts themselves with a view to remove the mistaken impressions and if possible to create a scientific in the so called mythologies. (Hello Mythologists please make a note)

Most valuable and scientific truths contained in the sacred literature became mythical at first to the Indian Pundits themselves owing to their degeneration and subsequent incapacity to understand them in their proper light. For example:  "Puranas" and "Itihasa" refers to the technical commentaries to understand the "Vedas". Puranas and Itihasa is not ancient or absurd Indian history or meaningless mythologies as misinterpreted and misquoted. Puranas etymologically signifies that which explains from where all this vast universe originated in ancient times.  That which is narrated in the form of an interesting or funny story is called “Itihasa" (derived from Iti-Haasya). Itihasa is not history as misinterpreted by many.

It is therefore no wonder and certainly no injustice that alien (western) nations with their present advanced civilisation should criticise the same in the manner they do.  It is however only surprising that they are so tolerant in spite of the very flagrant absurdities shamelessly exhibited in the local interpretation.

In these circumstances it is highly necessary that a general description of the practical process prescribed for religious advancement should be noticed here at least as briefly as possible.

Every text on the subject starts with Yoga (refers to Dharmic development).  Every Dharmic karma prescribed for the Hindu, such as Sandhya vandhanam, homa, Yegna, Pooja is mainly intended for the purpose of removing the obstructions caused by these terrible Mandehas and Rakshasa ( lower desires).

The root meaning of Yoga gives the exact application namely ‘yuj’ to join the lower self with the higher- the jivatma with paramatma.

That the sins (vastu) of the man does not torment him, vastu Pooja (self-purification) process is performed.  Every evil has been provided with a religious (dharmic) remedy which is thoroughly scientific and philosophical.

A correct interpretations of our sacred literature (Vedas and Upanishads) will plainly disclose the utter worthlessness of the literature of every alien creed.

A mantra explains specifically what the devotee has religiously to do so by way of meditation. Such a meditation saves man from the bondage of samsara and hence it is called a Mantra.  A mantra is thus a verbal expression which explains the nature of Brahman itself.

The material sciences have not virtually discovered the ultimate basis of anything and they could not. Material sciences could never over- ride our most philosophical and scientific religion.

The ignorance of the fundamental principles of our religious (Dharmic) philosophy in ancient days led to the origin of Buddhism and other isms and in recent years has reduced our sacred religion to human history and meaningless mythology.( thanks to the modern authors and writers who have even commercialised these by making tele-serials and shows).

The Dharma begins where the boasted material sciences are forced to end. It is thus the most general term used in the technology of most part of this blog.

Let me end this note by saying that Hinduism does not stand in need of beliefs for its existence. It can stand on its own scientific legs without the help of beliefs for its support. In these days of civilization no educated man even in the West could be forced to believe in absurdities and falsehoods in the name of religion. As a matter of fact, the Western Christian Countries themselves are full of nonbelievers, in spite of the great fuss created by the religious authorities who are personally interested in keeping up their dignity and maintaining their livelihood. Religiously, all they do is mere show.

I am confident that more and more Dharmic Vedis who will make time to read, research and analyse the Vedas technically and understand the nuances and the mantras. This will help us strengthen and master the sacred Vedas and of course to practice and preach  our Dharma.

I am also certain that there are far more experienced writers, Vedic philosophers and Gurus who would have known all the contents that I write, but, for some unknown reasons have kept quiet, has become passive and surrendered to time and space. I would request them to wake up, debate and confront the anti Dharmic brigade in a meaningful way. I also request all my fellow Dharmic friends to continue/revive practicing our dharma (Hinduism in all its true sense).

 HariOm