Lets try to study a hymm of rg veda called nAsadIya sUkta consisting on 7 verses. It defines the creation of universe.
तम॑ आसी॒त्तम॑सा गू॒ळ्हमग्रे॑ऽप्रके॒तं स॑लि॒लं सर्व॑मा इ॒दं।
तु॒च्छ्येना॒भ्वपि॑हितं॒ यदासी॒त्तप॑स॒स्तन्म॑हि॒ना जा॑य॒तैकं॑॥ ३॥
tama̍ āasī̱ttama̍sā gū̱ḻhamagre̍’prake̱taṁ sa̍li̱laṁ sarva̍mā i̱daṁ |
tu̱cchyenā̱bhvapi̍hitaṁ̱ yadāsī̱ttapa̍sa̱stanma̍hi̱nā jā̍ya̱taika̍ṁ || 3 ||
At first there was only darkness (tamas) wrapped in darkness (tamas).
All this was only unillumined water.
That One which came to be, enclosed in nothing,
arose at last, born of the power of heat.
(Later verses explain the creation.)
Why is it called as darkness covered with darkness? Here how should we interpret tamas gUNa?
We all know that ISvara created this world through is mAyA. mAyA is trigUNAtimikA i.e. having three gUNa-s. It is never said that ISvara first created his mAyA. mAyA was always present with ISvara. Hence mAyA is called as anAdi (beginningless).
In above context, lets understand the word 'tamas'.
tamas here would mean inactivity or dormant. It could also mean unmanifested universe. w.r.t to mAyA, we can conclude that all three gUNa-s were present but in dormant form. But there was something which covered this. That which covered veiled these three gUNa was tamas i.e. tamas gUNa was the most dominant. The first two verses in nAsadiya sukta indicate supreme brahman above or beyond the reach of three guNa but seems to be veiled by mAyA just like sun seems to be veiled by clouds.
Hence the first tamas is indirectly referring to sat or truth which is Brahman and second one is referred by mAyA which is inactive and hence mAyA has not manifested universe.
To further simplify, we can say that, when there was no creation there was only brahman (sat, truth), and his mAyA was dormant.
If we take a meaning that there was a time when there was no brahman, it would contradict vedAnta. If we say that there was only tamas gUNa and no other gUNA was present, it would mean that other gUNA-s were absent and hence mAyA was absent. You can create things with the material that you have. If mAyA did not have other two gUNa-s (sattva and rajas) then mAyA would not be able to create anything. It would also contradict those verses which say that there was there was no time then there was no ISvara, like in gita krUShNa bhagavAna has said.
Hence we have to take it that during the time, when there was no creation, there was
sat (brahman and
mAyA in dormant state, veiling brahman (like clouds seems to veil sun)
nAsada means nA-asata meaning no non-existence. This verse also refutes zero state where there is only void and no Self (brahman), establishes nirgUna brahman as always present.
नास॑दासी॒न्नो सदा॑सीत्त॒दानी॒म् नासी॒द्रजो॒ नो व्यो॑मा प॒रो यत्।
किमाव॑रीव॒: कुह॒ कस्य॒ शर्म॒न्नंभ॒: किमा॑सी॒द्गह॑नं गभी॒रम्॥१॥
nāsa̍dāsī̱nno sadā̍sītta̱dānī̱m nāsī̱drajo̱ no vyo̍mā pa̱ro yat |
kimāva̍rīva̱ḥ kuha̱ kasya̱ śarma̱nnaṁbha̱ḥ kimā̍sī̱dgaha̍naṁ gabhī̱ram ||1||
Neither existence nor nonexistence was there Neither matter nor space around
What covered it, where it was and who protected?
was there that plasma, all pervading, deep and profound?
न मृ॒त्युरा॑सीद॒मृतं॒ न तर्हि॒ न रात्र्या॒ अह्न॑ आसीत्प्रके॒तः।
आनी॑दवा॒तं स्व॒धया॒ तदेकं॒ तस्मा॑द्धा॒न्यन्न प॒रः किञ्च॒नास॑॥२॥
na mṛ̱tyurā̍sīda̱mṛta̱ṁ na tarhi̱ na rātryā̱ ahna̍ āasītprake̱taḥ |
ānī̍davā̱taṁ sva̱dhayā̱ tadekaṁ̱ tasmā̍ddhā̱nyanna pa̱raḥ kiñca̱nāsa̍ ||2||
Then there was neither death nor immortality
nor was there then the torch of night and day.
The One breathed windlessly and self-sustaining.*
There was that One then, and there was no other.
OR
Neither death nor immortality was there
And there was neither day nor night
But for that breathless one breathing on its own*
There was nothing else, surely nothing
*Breath here refers to sustenance and not physical breathing. It is symbolic in the sense that inhalation meaning withdrawing everything within and exhalation means creating universe. Here the breathless breathing means the sustain without creation and destruction. Since there is a period of silence between inhalation and exhalation, where there is no activity (recaka and kumbhaka), it means no activity.
तम॑ आसी॒त्तम॑सा गू॒ळ्हमग्रे॑ऽप्रके॒तं स॑लि॒लं सर्व॑मा इ॒दं।
तु॒च्छ्येना॒भ्वपि॑हितं॒ यदासी॒त्तप॑स॒स्तन्म॑हि॒ना जा॑य॒तैकं॑॥ ३॥
tama̍ āasī̱ttama̍sā gū̱ḻhamagre̍’prake̱taṁ sa̍li̱laṁ sarva̍mā i̱daṁ |
tu̱cchyenā̱bhvapi̍hitaṁ̱ yadāsī̱ttapa̍sa̱stanma̍hi̱nā jā̍ya̱taika̍ṁ || 3 ||
At first there was only darkness wrapped in darkness.
All this was only unillumined water.
That One which came to be, enclosed in nothing,
arose at last, born of the power of heat.
OR
It was darkness concealed in darkness
And an uninterrupted continuum of fluid
Out came in material form and shape
That one lying deep inside, on its own intent.
*Fluid or un-illumined water is mAyA
काम॒स्तदग्रे॒ सम॑वर्त॒ताधि॒ मन॑सो॒ रेत॑: प्रथ॒मं यदासी॑त्।
स॒तो बन्धु॒मस॑ति॒ निर॑विन्दन् हृ॒दि प्र॒तीष्या॑ क॒वयो॑ मनी॒षा॥४॥
kāma̱stadagre̱ sama̍varta̱tādhi̱ mana̍so̱ reta̍ḥ pratha̱maṁ yadāsī̍t |
sa̱to bandhu̱masa̍ti̱ nira̍vindan hṛ̱di pra̱tīṣyā̍ ka̱vayo̍ manī̱ṣā ||4||
In the cosmic mind, all pervading
Desire, the primal seed made its first appearance
And the wise men, seeking deep in their heart
Could see the link between ‘that is’ and ‘that is not’.
(तिरश्चीनॊ विततॊ रश्मीरॆषामध: स्विदासी ३ दुपरिस्विदासीत् ।
रॆतॊधा।आसन्महिमान् ।आसन्त्स्वधा ।आवस्तात् प्रयति: परस्तात् ॥५॥)
ति॒र॒श्चीनो॒ वित॑तो र॒श्मिरे॑षाम॒धः स्वि॑दा॒सी ३ दु॒परि॑ स्विदासी ३ त्।
रे॒तो॒धा आ॑सन्महि॒मान॑ आसन्त्स्व॒धा आ॒वस्ता॒त्प्रय॑तिः प॒रस्ता॑त्॥५॥
ti̱ra̱ścīno̱ vita̍to ra̱śmire̍ṣāma̱dhaḥ svi̍dā̱sī 3 du̱pari̍ svidāsī 3 t |
re̱to̱dhā āa̍sanmahi̱māna̍ āasantsva̱dhā ā̱vastā̱tpraya̍tiḥ pa̱rastā̍t ||5||
Reins of the link, a grid of crisscross lines,
Holds all the seeds and mighty forces,
Microcosmic forces within
And macro forces out above.
OR
And they have stretched their cord across the void,
and know what was above, and what below.
Seminal powers made fertile mighty forces.
Below was strength, and over it was impulse.
Seminal fluid is literal meaning. Ii means begetting which can mean manifesting something from within.
को अ॒द्धा वे॑द॒ क इ॒ह प्र वो॑च॒त्कुत॒ आजा॑ता॒ कुत॑ इ॒यं विसृ॑ष्टिः।
अ॒र्वाग्दे॒वा अ॒स्य वि॒सर्ज॑ने॒नाथा॒ को वे॑द॒ यत॑ आब॒भूव॑॥६॥
ko a̱ddhā ve̍da̱ ka i̱ha pra vo̍ca̱tkuta̱ āajā̍tā̱ kuta̍ i̱yaṁ visṛ̍ṣṭiḥ |
a̱rvāgde̱vā a̱sya vi̱sarja̍ne̱nāthā̱ ko ve̍da̱ yata̍ āaba̱bhūva̍ ||6 ||
But, after all, who knows, and who can say
Whence it all came, and how creation happened?
the gods themselves are later than creation,
so who knows truly whence it has arisen?
इ॒यं विसृ॑ष्टि॒र्यत॑ आब॒भूव॒ यदि॑ वा द॒धे यदि॑ वा॒ न।
यो अ॒स्याध्य॑क्षः पर॒मे व्यो॑म॒न्त्सो अ॒ङ्ग वे॑द॒ यदि॑ वा॒ न वेद॑॥ ७॥
i̱yaṁ visṛ̍ṣṭi̱ryata̍ āaba̱bhūva̱ yadi̍ vā da̱dhe yadi̍ vā̱ na |
yo a̱syādhya̍kṣaḥ para̱me vyo̍ma̱ntso a̱ṅga ve̍da̱ yadi̍ vā̱ na veda̍ || 7 ||
That one, out of which the creation came
May hold the reins or not,
Perceiving all from above, That one alone
Knows the beginning – may not know too.
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