THE RIG VEDA'S RITUAL - YOGA OF SACRIFICE AND MEDITATION

As fascinating as the artifactual evidence of the lndus-Sarasvati civilization is, it is insufficient to establish definitively that any version of Yoga existed during that time period.

When we read the artifacts with the evidence contained in the Rig Veda songs, however, the situation alters dramatically.

The image that emerges is of a highly ceremonial society rich in proto-yogic concepts and behaviors.

Surendranath Dasgupta, a famous Indian scholar, correctly classified Vedic religion as "sacrificial mysticism." Because sacrifice (yajna) lies at the core of the lndus-Sarasvati civilization's religious beliefs and rituals.

There were two kinds of sacrifical rites:

griha, or home sacrifices,

and shrauta, or public sacrifices.

The former were private rituals with just one fire and a single family.

Numerous priests, three flames, and huge throngs of silent participants were needed for the latter.

They lasted many days, and in some cases, weeks or months.

The entire village or tribe would congregate on special sacrificial occasions to participate in large-scale sacrifices, such as the famous agni-shtoma (fire sacrifice) and the ashva-medha (horse sacrifice), which were only performed on rare occasions to ensure the continued reign of a great king and the tribe's or country's prosperity.

Every "twice-born" (dvija) household, whether they were brahmins, warriors, or agricultural/trading families, was required to make the fire sacrifice (homa) every day at sunrise and dusk.

The immediate family and any local followers were present for this relatively modest sacrifice, which was performed by husband and wife jointly.

The primary offering was a mixture of milk and water that was poured into the fire.

Recitations were performed as part of the event.

The underlying goal of all sacrifices was to restore universal order (rita) inside the bodies of the sacrificial priest, the sacrifice patron, and the onlookers.

The sacrifice was ostensibly made to gain the favor of a certain god.

The deities were mostly male Gods like Indra, Agni, Soma, Rudra, and Savitri, although a few Vedic hymns were dedicated to Goddesses like Vac (Speech), Usha or Ushas (Dawn), Sarasvati (the river and her cosmic counterpart), and Prithivi (Earth).

The Vedic people did not seem to have temples, and public sacrifices were conducted outside, as previously stated.

Their religion was imbued with a sense of urgency and energy, and they prayed for a long, healthy, and wealthy life in accordance with the cosmic order.

There were also those who had a more mystical bent, as evidenced by Vedic hymns, aspiring to communion with their favorite God or Goddess, or even merging with the ultimate Being (sat) that has no name and was also described as Nonbeing (asat) because it is not limited by any finite form, corresponding to the later concept of the Void (shunya).

The priests were not the Vedic people's spiritual heroes, but they were regarded in great regard.

But it was the sages or seers (rishi) who "saw" the truth, who saw the hidden reality beyond the veil of visible life with the inner sight.

Many of them were members of the priestly class, while some came from the other three social groups.

They were the enlightened sages, whose knowledge was expressed via rhythmic poetry and highly symbolic language in the Vedic hymns.

These seers, also known as poets (kavi), revealed the lumi nous Reality beyond all spiritual darkness to the average, unenlightened person.

They also demonstrated the route to that everlasting Being, who is single (eka) and unborn (aja), yet has countless names.

The Vedic seers earned their holy visions by their own inner labor, austerities, and a strong desire for spiritual enlightenment.

They saw themselves as "children of light" (Rig-Veda 9.38.5), with their sights set on the "heavenly light," or ultimate Light-Being (Rig-Veda 1 0.36.3).

Those who were devoid of sin or guilt in this life might look forward to a pleasant afterlife.

Sinners, on the other hand, were believed to be sent into the black pits of hell, but the Rig Vedic hymns do not focus too much on this dreadful destiny.

The Vedic seers, according to British historian Jeanine Miller, favored a positive outlook.

She also said that there are two distinct thinking trends:

The desire for earthly life with its corollary avoidance of death, notwithstanding the fact that physical life and immortality are not always synonymous.

The latter's goal was, in the end, the quest of every mortal.

Meanwhile, the common man was happy with a long life of a hundred years of vigor, a blessing for which many a prayer has been offered; therefore, one step at a time sums up the attitude: enjoy this earthly life first, then the heavenly recompense.

There are many sections in the Rig-1,028 Veda's hymns, totalling I0,600 lines, that are particularly relevant to the study of the Vedic.

Proto-Yoga is a term that refers to a kind of yoga that Yoga researchers should pay special attention to the following hymns:

1.164: This hymn is a collection of deep metaphysical puzzles, with fifty-two verses.

For example, the sixth stanza inquires about the nature of the unborn One who is yet the cause of the visible world.

The two birds that share the same tree are discussed in verses 20-22.

One is said to consume its fruit, while the other just observes.

The tree may be seen as a symbol for the whole planet.

Egoic impulses drive the unenlightened creature to consume the tree's fruit.

The enlightened being, or sage, on the other hand, abstains and just observes.

The tree may also be seen as a representation of the tree of wisdom, whose fruit the sage enjoys but which the ignorant do not.

The following is a more strictly Vedantic interpretation:

The uninvolved Self outside the domain of nature is represented by the onlooking bird, whereas the other represents the embodied being entangled in conditioned life.

The startling and oft-quoted statement that the nameless one Being is named variously by the sages is found in verse 46.

Dirghatamas ("Long Darkness") is the name of the author, or "seer," of this particular Rig-Vedic song.

He was definitely one of the most profound thinkers, or envisioners, of his time.

Dirghatarnas are the type of all men of philosophy and science who have thrown their eyes of understanding on the visible world, according to Indian scholar Vasudeva A.

Agrawala, who has written a comprehensive study of this so-called asya-vamiya-sukta.

Their emphasis is on the unseen source, the First Cause, which was a mystery in the past and is still a mystery now.

Dirghatamas sits at the pinnacle of them all, posing the question: "Where is the Teacher, who knows the answer? Where is the student seeking revelation from the Teacher?

He shoots fast photos of the Cosmos itself, pointing to a plethora of symbols that tell the story of its mystery.

The Seer seems to believe that, while being a true Mystery, the imprisoned heavenly brilliance is present in every visible form and is understandable.

3.31: Many important elements of Vedic philosophy may be found in this invocation to God Indra, which is translated here.

3.38: The holy work of composing vision-based songs of praise, which was essential to the rishis' Vedic Yoga, is revealed in this hymn, which is reproduced here.

3.57: This hymn, which is sung below, is dedicated to the "Single CC'w," which provides sufficient spiritual nourishment for both deities and humans.

4.58: The esoteric symbolism of the ghee (ghrita) used in the fire sacrifice is revealed in this song.

Ghee is believed to pour from the ocean of the heart (verse 5).

The "mouth of the Gods" or "navel of immortality" is its codename.

Soma is described as a "four-homed buffalo" with three feet, two heads, and seven arms (verse 2).

"The entire universe is stationed in your brilliance (dhaman) inside the ocean, within the heart, in the life-span," says verse I I.

5.81: This hymn, which is translated below, introduces the Solar Yoga, which is fundamental to the Vedic civiliza tion's spirituality.

6.1: Without God Agni, the majestic substance underlying the sacrificial fire that transports oblations to the holy realms, Vedic mysticism would be inconceivable.

This hymn elucidates some of the newly discovered symbolism surrounding Agni and the fire rite.

Vaishvanara describes God Agni as the "immortal Light among humans," "swifter than the intellect," and "stationed in the heart" in this magnificent invocation.

8.48: This song, dedicated to Soma, the God of immortality's ambrosia, provides numerous insights into Vedic spirituality.

10.61: This rather lengthy hymn, which has twenty-seven lines, is rich with Vedic symbolism related to the mystery of the sun.

It was written by Nabhanedishtha, whose name means "one who is closest to the navel," the navel being an esoteric term for the sun, as verse 18 explains.

This, along with song 10. 62 (also written by Nabhanedishtha), enabled the Angirases reach Heaven, according to a tale recounted in the Aitareya-Brahmana (5. 1 4).

"I am all this, the twice-born, the first-born of the [cosmic] Order," the great seer exclaims ecstatically in verse 9 affirming his oneness with the sun.

10.72: Another cosmogonic hymn, this one addressing the mystery of the universe's beginning.

The word uttanapad, "one whose feet are pointed upward," is used in the third and fourth verses, and is a name of the Goddess Aditi ("Boundless"), who gave birth to the universe.

This unusual phrase is reminiscent of the uttana-carana posi tion mentioned in Y ajnavalkya's Smriti (3. I 98), a book on ethics and jurisprudence that is usually dated to the early centuries c.E. but includes elements that are definitely much earlier.

As with the shoulderstand, this position is achieved by raising the legs above the ground.

10.90: The purusha-sukta, or "Hymn of Man," is one of the most remarkable of the many cosmogonic hymns that are essential for a study of ancient Yoga because they explain not only the development of the universe but also the origin of the human mind.

The primordial man (purusha) is supposed to have encompassed the whole creation and stretched 10 digits beyond it in the first verse.

This is intended to imply that the Creator transcends his creation, and that the manifest universe originates from but does not define transcendental Reality.

The Atharva-Veda has a more complex rendition of this song ( 1 5.6).

10.121: The hymn's seer imagines the world emerging from the Golden Germ (hiranya-garbha).

The ruler of the universe who has securely established both Heaven and Earth is proclaimed to be the great sin gular Being, whose "shadow is immortality."

The refrain "Which God should we serve with oblations?" appears in nine of the 10 verses of this hymn.

10.129: Also known as the "Hymn of Creation," the nasadfya-sukta foreshadows the later metaphysical theories of the Samkhya school of thought, which was so closely associated with Yoga.

10.136: This is called the keshi-sukta, or "Hymn of the Long-hair," and it is also translated into English below.

The keshin is a non-Vedic ascetic who has been seen as a precursor of the later yogin by certain academics.

Each stanza of this hymn was written by a separate sage, according to subsequent Sanskrit commentators: Juti, Vatajuti, Viprajuti, Vrishanaka, Karikrata, Etasha, and Rishyashringa.

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