SECOND BLUFF-RELIGION (continued)

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SECOND BLUFF- RELIGION (continued)
ALL THE BLUFF- CALL THE BLUFF

COMMON MAN AND GOD

The common man’s concept of GOD tends to be of a personalized form even for those who have been specifically instructed by their religions to consider God as formless. The common reflex actions are to look up in the sky, point upwards and bow down as if God in some form is standing there. The three adjectives used for such an imaginary definite form are omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient, completely forgetting that no FORM human or otherwise can possibly exist that way. This sane realization leads to two lines of argument immediately. First GOD becomes formless instantly but with these qualifications intact and secondly, GOD is with this definite form only but is ‘not visible to everyone’. The same old story is repeated again as mentioned earlier. The ‘neo diehards’ and ‘diehards’ are in full swing. To make HIM visible all sorts of arbitrary and indigenous prescriptions ranging from funny to serious, possible to impossible rituals are recommended by those pundits of the game who themselves have never seen their professed GOD. The common man already diffident starts feeling guilty as if he is a bundle of faults only (मैं मूरख खल कामी) which are coming in his way of realizing GOD. Immediate balm is applied by making him aware of certain more attributes of that formless and with form GOD. HE is the creator, HE is the destroyer, He is the protector and HE is the ultimate dispenser of justice as HE alone is perfect. All human beings are imperfect. So don’t worry and keep on doing whatever you have been told and one day you will be rewarded. In HIS kingdom there is delay alright but no injustice (उस के घर देर है पर अंधेर नहीं). That’s how a common man has been conditioned to believe about GOD by all the religions of the world. Is there any justification for this bluff?

JUSTIFICATION FOR BLUFF AND REMEDY

A strong argument by the perpetrators of bluff of religion and its four aspects is an honest admission that an element of fear is necessary for inculcating, upholding and preserving the moral values in the fabric of society. Imagine the society in which it is moral to have the matrix based on fear. Such a morality can be the last excuse of a scoundrel. I think morality is in Tagore’s words, “Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high. Where the knowledge is free”----- (“जहाँ निर्भय चित्त हो मस्तक ऊंचा, ज्ञान हो बाधाहीन”) Denial of access to knowledge for the sake of arbitrary morality is definitely sinister morality. It appears to be a strange coincidence that a common man all over the world irrespective of his religious interpretations believes in earlier mentioned four aspect only of it viz God, Soul, Rituals and Ethics. In my opinion, this cannot be a coincidence. We are definitely the teacher of the entire world (विश्व गुरु) in spreading this misinformation by concocting religion and its four aspects for the simple reason we must be the oldest chronologically and the rest followed with their freedom to interpret these aspects. That’s why the aspects are the same but interpretations are arbitrary and different. We have based our misinformation on the authority of VEDAS interpreted as ‘voice of God’ (अपौरुषेय) revealed to such and such with different versions. The religions that followed have copied the same concept of ‘revealed knowledge’ in totality. They had the added advantage of not struggling for the concept of religion and giving it a name. We had already manufactured the nonexistent concept of religion for them. But look at the irony; we are still struggling for the name of our religion. We can’t accept it as VEDIC RELIGION (वैदिक धर्म) because, first we know that Vedas are not the books professing any religion by name and secondly, the proponents of SANATAN DHARM (सनातन धर्म) will straightaway reject it as a word of recent origin only i.e. a word coined by ARYA SAMAJ (आर्य समाज) of SWAMI DAYANAND (स्वामी दयानंद). How can our religion be only hundred odd years old? They will argue. Ours is the oldest religion. Therefore, the name SANTAN DHARM (सनातन धर्म) which means old literally befits us. This name also besides being of recent origin only and obvious opposition from the proponents of VEDIC RELIGION (वैदिक धर्म) who consider Vedas being the oldest knowledge, their nomenclature as the apt representation; invites criticism from many on the grounds of various concepts propagated by this name (सनातन). How could we be so intolerant, insensitive and unreasonable as practitioners of untouchability, atrocities towards women, human beings classified of low stature by birth, not permitting and even punishing people for entering temples reserved for higher castes and meaningless mumble jumble etc as a matter of religion? Should we accept VAISHNAV (वैष्णव), SHAIV (शैव) or BRAHM (ब्रह्म) as our religion? We can’t as these are all sects and were at each others’ throat historically. We can’t accept the name Hindu (हिन्दू) for many reasons. The word is an invention of the dark ages of our history and came into circulation when BHARATVARSH (भारतवर्ष) became HINDUSTAN (हिंदुस्तान) sometime between 15th and 16th centuries thus again a word of recent origin only. Many of us seem to have accepted this word as our identity and there are many who consider it hegemony, fundamentalism and an imposition. Many religions in India are actually the reaction against the Brahmanism, a term coined to give some identity to the corrupted Vedic thought for scholarly purposes. Why should we accept a name which was coined by invaders for our religion also? To be very exact there is a lot of truth in Dr Amartya Sen Nobel laureate’s argument in his book The Argumentative Indian. I quote- ‘The often repeated belief that India was a Hindu country before Islam arrived is of course, a pure illusion---Unquote. I quote further- “Another serious problem with the narrow reading of ‘Indian culture as Hindu culture’ is the entailed neglect of many major achievements of Indian civilization that have nothing much to do with religious thinking at all The focus on the distinctly Hindu religious tradition effectively leaves out of the accounting rationalist and non-religious pursuits in India. This is a serious neglect, particularly for a country in which some of the decisive steps in algebra, geometry and astronomy were taken, where the decimal system emerged, where classical philosophy dealt extensively with epistemology and logic along with secular ethics, where people invented games like chess, pioneered sex education and initiated systematic political economy and formal linguistics”.-Unquote. For many it is a political wish to be identified as such more as a reaction than as a reason. So we have been caught in the snares of that bluff which we only had created. We have become a geo-political entity completely confused about religion and still following as scared and terror stricken people of a concept of our own creation. This was an expected, natural and God sent opportunity in common man’s language to rectify the folly of our creating the initial bluff of ‘religion’ as explained earlier. But again as usual as per present human behavior pattern we are trying to cover it up by another bluff ‘secularism’ (धर्म निरपेक्ष) by giving it a meaning and applying it arbitrarily in a way which is nowhere near its dictionary explanation. The arbitrariness differs from party to party and then individual to individual just like our interpretations of religion and its four aspects and still we refuse to accept it as a bluff. The dictionary meanings are: (a) the rejection of religion or its exclusion from a philosophical or moral system and (b) the belief that religion and religious bodies should have no part in political or civic affairs or in running public institutions, especially schools. I am of the firm opinion that instead of getting into or forcing the progeny into the quagmire of bluffs it is high time we accept that whatever was handed over to us needs a reappraisal and rectification. For that we will have to take steps as under:

· We stop accepting the bogey of self created, fear generating religion any more and start considering the charter of duties for each and everyone as a matter of ethics to be effective and useful member of the society as the main stay of DHARM (धर्मकर्त्तव्य) as explained earlier. We will have to forget the contradictory ethical standards (धार्मिक नैतिकता) spread in the name of various religions and follow the concept of practical ethics (व्यवहारिक नैतिकता) involving all. We can try to devise means to ensure that it does not again degenerate into the present day like stuff which it will as long as we are in the bluffing stage of evolution. We can learn from our experience so far that the present mess is mainly due to playing upon that fear which generates the desire for non-existent reward and punishment of heaven and hell, the ledgers for which are maintained by some CHITRAGUPT (चित्रगुप्त).The minimum we can do is to wipe out at least those fears which are imaginary and unverifiable.

· We stop accepting the bogey of fear generating concepts of SOUL and start paying attention to knowing self i.e. आत्म within and without and not आत्मा as discussed in FIRST BLUFF- SPIRITUALISM.


· We stop believing in meaningless RITUALS (कर्म कांड) as the way to find out GOD and start really believing in and following the dictum, ‘Work is worship’ and consider that only way of realizing GOD is through hard work i.e. तपस्या

· We find out about GOD (.ब्रह्म ज्ञान) that inspires and existed long before the religions which created fear and awe generating gods. Such an inspiring GOD does exist in Vedas.


That way by undoing what we had done i.e. rectifying the misinformation that we had spread we will actually become the pioneer-the teacher of the entire world (विश्व गुरु) and stop basking in the imaginary falsely created self admiration. In many fields we are. This is the area we ought to be GURU i.e. the remover of darkness. GU (darkness) + RU (remover) in the real sense of the word; because we only spread this darkness. Instead of moving from one bluff to another bluff as our human tendency is at present, we as a whole can make a beginning in the direction of enlightenment. We in Bharat can do it like a fish taking to water as we already know through our Vedic knowledge that it is also ultimate human tendency to move from bluff to enlightenment ‘तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय’.

GOD IN VEDAS –CONCEPT AND ANALYSIS

GOD has been depicted as KNOWLEDGE only in its myriad forms. These myriad forms can be covered under three heads i. e. WHAT TO KNOW, HOW TO KNOW and HOW TO APPLY as discussed earlier. The symbol (ॐ) used primarily in VEDAS for KNOWLEDGE is pronounced as OM which stands for Sanskrit word PRANAV प्रणव. Various synonymous words of this symbol like BRAHM ब्रह्म, ISHWAR ईश्वर, BHARG भर्ग, SOM सोम, DEVTA देवता, PRAJYA प्रज्ञा, DHI धी, PURUSH पुरुष, SHIV शिव, SAVITA सविता, VISHNU विष्णु, INDRA इन्द्र, VARUN वरुण, ASHWA अश्व, GAU गौ, PRAKASH प्रकाश, RUDRA रुद्र, VIDYA विद्या, VIVEK विवेक, BHAGWAN भगवान्, PRAKRITI (प्रकृति) etc have been used depending upon the area of KNOWLEDGE from its myriad forms that is being discussed in the texts at different junctures. These are all qualitative words which acquire meaning in the context and co text they are used in the books of knowledge. It is just like us today using an idea of suffix, say –LOGY which stands for knowledge, to give name to a subject that covers the knowledge of a particularly discovered field and to differentiate it from the others. All such synonymous words of knowledge in VEDAS convey the sense of – LOGY. The comparison ends here only. The symbol OM ॐ has not been used as a suffix any where to differentiate between two types of knowledge. Rather it has been used in the form of a symbol in the beginning of the most of the hymns of VEDAS. Why and how this symbol only was designed? Does it indicate any area of knowledge? All this can be a matter of research. But the one purpose of the authors of these texts could be a forceful reminder because of the phonetic depth alone of this symbol; to the readers and the listeners alike to always remember that the KNOWLEDGE was all around and ever present and this fact should never be lost sight of in any human effort In other words Help is at hand and next door only. However, by the passage of time this symbol of KNOWLEDGE i.e. OM ॐ read GOD was reduced to the level of a ceremonious word only and one of main subject areas of the authors of VEDAS i.e. BRAHM JYAN ब्रह्म ज्ञान meaning knowledge of entire creation, ‘knowledge of supreme KNOWLEDGE’ i.e. knowledge of GOD was changed to BRAHMA JYAN ब्रह्मा ज्ञान i.e. knowledge of one personalized god BRAHMA ब्रह्मा; who was never to be worshipped as he was cursed by the saint BHRIGU भृगु That way the entire efforts and perspiration of the authors of Vedas were negated. It was definitely an affront to those ancestors of ours who in their passion for finding out KNOWLEDGE had shown the path of desirelessness and selflessness by setting personal example of not even mentioning their names as authors of this unique compendium of VEDAS, the translation means ‘knowledge’. We can appreciate it better in the present age where trade mark and patent rights are the norms. This kind of ‘desirelessness’ (complete absence of desire to promote oneself) is not achieved by accident. A lot of discipline and hard work must have gone into it. They must have found out the insignificance of little and the conceit accompanying it only because they had found out the magnificence of THE KNOWLEDGE. They were all Newton- ‘who was playing like a child with the pebbles at the seashore whiles the vast ocean of knowledge lies unexplored in front of him’. .In their passions to find out each and every aspect of KNOWLEDGE, the authors of VEDAS were able to pinpoint exactly the reasons of its automatic flawless functioning. When knowledge functions, it becomes intelligence and if it functions flawlessly it becomes ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE or FUNCTIONAL KNOWLEDGE. We can call it OM ॐ or GOD. For Vedic authors in reasons alone must be hidden the secret of functioning. These are

· PRINCIPLES OF EXISTENCE

· PRINCIPLES OF ORGANISATION

These principles are the corner stones of Vedic knowledge and were the perennial source of entire inspiration. Today also these remain the same source for all those who are engaged in the activities of finding out anywhere. But as per our human nature we created from these principles the bluffs of omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient attributable to one PERSON only. These are misnomers because no person can possibly be any of these. It is interesting to find out the meanings of these principles as given in Vedas and the mechanics of bluff.

PRINCIPLES OF EXISTENCE OF ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE

A glance only at the principles and we know that no human form is capable of existing as per these principles. The ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE alone can. The principles are:

· BEYOND TIME LIMITS

· LIMITLESSNESS

· SOURCE OF ENTIRE KNOWLEDGE

· SOURCE OF ENTIRE INTELLIGENCE

BEYOND TIME LIMITS

ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is not bound by the limits of time. The limits of time are past, present and future. These limits are non-entities for ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE. IT existed in the past, exists today and will always exist. It just exists at any point of time and all the time. It cannot be destroyed. Patanjali while defining GOD (ईश्वर) puts it in the second part of his YOG SUTRA 1-26 as under:
(कालेनाऽनवच्छेदात) which means that time cannot pierce and bring GOD read KNOWLEDGE into its shackles of any FORM which takes birth and dies as per the wish of TIME (काल / महाकाल). KNOWLEDGE has created time. Time cannot create GOD. All the concepts of AVTAAR (अवतार), sons or messengers of GOD are thus nothing but bluffs created by us only. It is high time we accept the fact that these so called sons, messengers and reincarnations (अवतार) were actually our ancestors who were great YOGIS (योगी) i.e. Persons who by their hard work (तप/तपस्या) had acquired FUNCTIONAL KNOWLEDGE / ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE read GOD, and tried their best by setting personal examples, to remind us of our bluffing nature and get out of it. Respect them as such and stop devaluing the very concept of GOD by making them subjects who fall victims to the wishes of TIME. Stop putting words in his mouth like “Whenever and whenever there is decay of Dharm in Bharat---- (यदा यदा ही धर्मस्य ग्लनिर्भवति भारतः ---). And if we still prefer to then at least try to understand the purport of his teaching that ‘it is only through intelligent application of knowledge that the decay of Dharm (कर्तव्य) on this earth can be stopped’ and not by idle idol worshipping. Don’t make him so naïve that he still can’t see the decay which we all can see. At least respect him for his practical wisdom and stop finding out another bluff for our inertia that we are waiting for Him to fulfill his promise. Don’t make him an ordinary mortal. Let him remain GOD No form including human can exist without the limits of time. Only KNOWLEDGE can. Let him remain knowledge.

LIMITLESSNESS

The ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is equipped with unlimited knowledge. It is so limitless that if you ‘take out entire from the entire, the entire is still left’. There is no end to it (NETI-NETI -नेति नेति). To describe this Principle of Existence Patanjali, again in his YOG SUTRAS (योग सूत्र) 1-25 regarding definition of GOD uses the term NIRATISHAYAM (निरतिशयं) meaning ‘there is nothing more than this’. The idea of vastness of the expanse of knowledge can be gauged by a simple imagination that even if we are able to devote a complete life time say hundred years for one subject only, the chances of knowing it fully are as remote as chasing a red herring. For knowing about self only i.e. .ATM JYAN (आत्म ज्ञान) one area of Vedas under ‘WHAT TO KNOW’, besides hundreds of branches in various medical sciences alone there are branches, sub-branches of psychology, sociology, anthropology and what not and number increases daily due to modern version commonly referred as ‘knowledge explosion’. Whatever is known today becomes history tomorrow to be rejected, rectified or recycled. To amplify further just consider the hard facts. I quote a news item from the study published in the online edition of the journal Nature Genetics. Quote, “In a study on the need for sleep in animals, scientists at North Carolina State University have identified almost 1,700 genes associated with the variability of sleep in fruit flies. Led by Dr Trudy Mackay, the study has shown”-----Unquote. If 1,700 genes vital to sleep only can be identified, just imagine the mind boggling number of genes for innumerable behavior patterns. Another study says that our ability to make friends also depends upon genes and a few countries and some states of USA have leaned so heavily on genetic behavior that they have permitted the bluff of same sex marriages. On one hand some Austrian is punished for keeping his daughter as sex slave for twenty four years and on the other there are three European nations France, Spain, Portugal and Romania trying to follow suit which do not consider incest even a punishable act on the grounds of their so called more intelligent appreciation of genetic behavior. For them it is not at all nausea tic. Rather the bluff of whatever is immoral need not necessarily be illegal makes them more liberal and advanced than their contemporaries in their own eyes only. All this is part of only one branch of recently discovered knowledge Genetics. I have specifically chosen the examples from this little known field to demonstrate vastness of knowledge for the reason that the same area had been of special interest to Vedic authors in their studies of self (आत्म ज्ञान) which helped them to arrive at the reasons of bluffing behavior pattern of human beings and ultimate switch over to enlightenment by the race as a whole and the possibility of any individual attaining it anytime through a technique developed by them and given the name YOG (योग). I shall discuss it in details in my next posting THIRD BLUFF – YOGA. Add to this knowledge of self the other dimension of Vedic knowledge under ‘what to know’ i.e. knowledge of entire creation (ब्रह्म ज्ञान) that includes entire nature with all its visible and invisible operations, cosmos, universe, stars and galaxies and any subject which the human mind has so far thought of or is going to discover in future. I have not yet included the subjects of the other two areas of Vedic knowledge coming under ‘how to know’ and ‘how to apply’. I think Patanjali (पातंजलि) is apt when he uses the word LIMITLESS (निरतिशयं) for this knowledge read GOD. .

SOURCE OF ENTIRE KNOWLEDGE:

It is obvious that the source for knowing anything for the entire humanity is that ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE only which is complete and is ever present every where. All the teachers have drawn their inspiration from this source. You approach this ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE as you approach a teacher for IT is the teacher of all teachers past and present Patanjali in first part of YOG SUTRA 1-26 has said the same thing (स पूर्वेषामपि गुरुः). This principle of existence edged the authors of the ‘compendium of knowledge’ to conclusively decide the two out of four subject areas of Vedas i.e. ‘knowledge of self’ ATM-JYAN (आत्म ज्ञान) and ‘knowledge of entire creation’ BRAHM-JYAN (ब्रह्म ज्ञान) as given earlier under ‘WHAT TO KNOW’. We, as neo diehards, knowing it fully well that no person can ever be capable of possessing entire knowledge came out with the bluff of three roles of CREATOR (ब्रह्मा), PRESERVER (विष्णु) and DESTROYER (शिव) to prove the self given attributes of omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent.. Thousands of deities like INDRA (इन्द्र), VARUNA (वरुण), AGNI (अग्नि), VAYU (वायु), YAM (यम्), SURYA (सूर्य) and MANGAL (मंगल) etc were created to be worshipped as gods to give company as representatives of various branches of knowledge completely forgetting that we were again creating individuals only. On realization of the mess we covered it up by another bluff saying. ‘These all are actually the same for one person only; in Vedas also after all they denote the same thing’ Yes, in VEDAS also they denote the same thing and that same thing is KNOWLEDGE only and nowhere the knowledge has been depicted as a person. We again got busy now creating the wives, sons and daughters by giving them names like SARASWATI (सरस्वती), LAKSHMI (लक्ष्मी), PARVATI (पार्वती), GANESH (गणेश) and SHANI (शनि) etc and making them behave as victims of ordinary human emotions like love, hate, lust, jealousy, fear and what not. The kingdom of INDRA (इन्द्र) having courtesans like URVASHI (उर्वशी), MENKA (मेनका) is the first one to come under threat (सिंहासन डोलने लगता है) the moment a human being indulges in efforts of finding out knowledge through hard work (तपस्या) and he starts running from pillar to post seeking help from all and sundry and indulging even in treachery and deceit as weapons. This clearly indicates how pursuit of knowledge was shunned even calling it inferior knowledge on one hand and making it exclusive realm of gods on the other where no human should dare trespass. We created these bluffs of gods because we knew that it was next to impossible for any one person to be the source of entire knowledge and ended up by making them caricatures only. Swami Vivekananda is relevant here when he says, (quote) “Kick out the priests who are always against progress. They are the offspring of centuries of superstition and tyranny” (unquote).
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SOURCE OF ENTIRE INTELLIGENCE:

There cannot be intelligence without knowledge. Intelligence is ‘how to know’ and ‘how to apply’. Broadly speaking these are the two areas of intelligence. .Patanjali in order to explain the concept of GOD uses the terms ‘limitlessness of knowledge’ (निरतिशयं) and ‘intelligence’ (सर्वज्ञ) together in his YOG SUTRA 1-25 as under:
तत्र निरतिशयं सर्वज्ञबीजम्. ‘There only is the source of entire knowledge and entire intelligence’. It is a master stroke of the authors of Vedas to include the subjects covered under the areas of ‘how to know’ and ‘how to apply’ as separate and specific parts of GOD read KNOWLEDGE in addition to their all inclusive subjects ‘knowledge of self’ (आत्म ज्ञान) and ‘knowledge of entire creation’ (ब्रह्म ज्ञान) already covered under ‘what to know’. It can be their broad vision only when they considered that knowledge in its entirety cannot be a mere ‘collection of facts’. But how the facts are collected and put to application is rather more or equally important than mere collection. Hence the ‘limitlessness of knowledge’ (निरतिशयं) of ‘self’ (आत्म) and ‘entire creation’ (ब्रह्म) must be supplemented with intelligence (सर्वज्ञता) of ‘how’. Therefore, for them GOD is not only source of entire knowledge but source of entire intelligence also तत्र निरतिशयं सर्वज्ञबीजम्. Knowledge alone is meaningless if it is not put to use. For them ‘experimentation’ (यज्ञ) under ‘how to know’ and ‘practical ethics’ (व्यवहारिक नैतिकता) under ‘how to apply’ became inseparable parts of knowledge. This conclusion had another pressing reason for them. That helped in finding out the ‘Principles of Organization’ of ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE.

PRINCIPLES OF EXISTENCE AND GAYATRI MANTRA

The four principles of existence of GOD read KNOWLEDGE as explained by Patanjali appear to have been derived from Gayatri Mantra found in Rigved and Yajurved. It also hints at the principles of organization. The Mantra with its probable explanation is:
ॐ भूर्भुवः स्वः तत्सवितुर्वरेण्यम भर्गो देवस्य धीमहि धियो यो नः प्रचोदयात
OM BHURBHUVAH SWAH TATSAVITURVARENYAM BHARGO DEVASYA DHIMAHI DHIYO YO NAH PRACHODAYAT.
(OMॐ) The knowledge (Bhurभू) that was present (Bhuvahर्भुवः) that is present (Swah स्वः) that will be present i.e. it is BEYOND TIME LIMITS. (Tat तत्) The same knowledge that is (Savitur सवितु) spread all around like ‘LIGHT’ (Vrenyam र्वरेण्यम) is worth aspiring for. It means it is LIMITLESS like light. (Bhargo भर्गो) The same knowledge is ‘FLAWLESS’; a ‘principle of organization’ that has been discussed in details in succeeding paragraphs. (Devasya देवस्य) The people who impart knowledge have been addressed as gods (DEVTA देवता) in Vedic knowledge as is evident from ‘MATRA DEVO BHAV” मात्र देवो भवः, PITRA DEVO BHAV पित्र देवो भवः, GURU DEVO BHAV गुरु देवो भवः, ATITHI DEVO BHAV अतिथि देवो भवः.It means mother, father, teacher and guest are like gods (DEVTA देवता) because they impart knowledge. Such people’s (Devasya देवस्य) source of enlightenment also is the same (Dhimahi धीमहि) KNOWLEDGE. Overall it means that GOD is the SOURCE OF ENTIRE KNOWLEDGE for all those who impart knowledge. (Yo nah यो नः) The same knowledge is the (Dhiyo धियो) STOREHOUSE OF (Prachodayat प्रचोदयात) ENTIRE INTELLIGENCE. All the principles of existence and organization of ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE have thus been incorporated in GAYATRI (गायत्री) mantra. That’s why it is GAYATRI (गायत्री), the mother of all mantras.

PRINCIPLES OF ORGANIZATION

The authors of the Vedas had found out the principles of existence of the ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE which provided answers to many of their riddles. They knew what to know and how to know and still wanted to know how to put it into practice. Their concern was WHY. They wanted to know why this ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is automatic, flawless, without any chaos and rhythmical in its operation. Was the secret hidden in its organization? If so the human beings can also apply these principles in their tasks and operations and they too will not meet failures then. This was the concern and the concept of Self Realization leading to Realization of GOD. This too was corrupted beyond recognition by designing an unapproachable, unrecognizable and unrealizable GOD of fantasy. However, their search for the reasons of too frequent and too prevalent human failures yielded results. They found out that if any human effort is organized in such a way that it is based on any of the four considerations given below it is bound to fail:

· Imaginary Specific Intelligence (KLESH क्लेश)

· Manipulation for Reward / Punishment (KARM कर्म)

· Presumption of Good / Evil (VIPAK विपाक)

· Desire (ASHAYA आशय)

The organization of ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is such that it is not based on any of the above four flaws. Therefore, IT never fails; IT is functioning without any chaos. These are human flaws and all human functions are invariably based on these considerations only. Therefore they fail every now and then. Patanjali puts it across in first part of his
YOG SUTRA 1-24 (क्लेशकर्मविपकाशयैरपरामृष्टः)
He uses the term APARAMRISHT (अपरामृष्टः) which means ‘completely devoid of’. The ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is completely devoid of these flaws. The word BHARGO (भर्गो) in GAYATRI (गायत्री) mantra also means ‘flawless intelligence’.

WHAT IS (ISI) IMAGINARY SPECIFIC INTELLIGENCE (क्लेश)?
The phrase IMAGINARY SPECIFIC INTELLIGENCE with the abbreviation ISI is the English translation for i.e. KLESH क्लेश. It is entirely my concoction as it conveys the nearest explanation given by PATANJALI पतंजलि for KLESH). To be devoid of ISI we must first understand its nature and scope. In their analysis of self i.e. (आत्मज्ञान) the authors of Vedas found that human beings were nothing but bundles of innumerable specific intelligences (VRITTI वृत्ति) each responsible for executing a limited, well defined and specific task. In today’s language you can call them genes. These genes were classified into five groups. One of the groups is called IMAGINATION (VIKALP विकल्प).The genes in this group are capable of creating, simulating and stimulating genetic functions by imagining make believe situations even when these are non-existent in reality at that time. Such situations have been defined as imaginary specific intelligence (क्लेश) in Patanjali YOG SUTRAS. These are AVIDYA, ASMITA, RAGA, DVESHA and ABHINIVESHA.

अविद्याऽस्मितारागद्वेषाऽभिनिवेशाः क्लेशाः 2-3

· Ignorance: (AVIDYA अविद्या) This situation is born out of the condition of inability to distinguish between pain (दुःख) and pleasure (सुख) between temporary (अनित्य) and permanent (नित्य) between evil (अशुचि) and good (शुचि) and lastly between not-mine (अनात्म) and mine (आत्म). Patanjali (पतंजलि) puts across the same idea as अनित्याशुचिदुःखानात्मसुनित्यशुचिसुखात्मख्यातिरविद्या 2-5. It is a day to day and very common experience with all of us that whatever we consider to be something at one moment turns out to be the exactly opposite at some other moment. All human relations of father, mother, wife, son etc fall into this category. For example, in India if a son is born he is considered to be the source of pleasure (सुख). The same son becomes the source of pain under hundred odd conditions when he starts growing up. Source remaining the same can’t be faulted. Obviously fault lies in our inability to distinguish and appreciate between pleasure and pain because of our conditioning designed by some bluff might be even generations ago; whatever mine was till yesterday becomes not-mine today. Whatever was permanent till a second before becomes transitory and we are left crying over the spilt milk (अब पछताए होत क्या जब चिरियां चुग गयीं खेत). Not that these opposites, the antonyms (द्वंद) don’t exist but our inability to distinguish between the two and substitute one for the other in our imagination is definitely ignorance (अविद्या) a part of ISI . The absolute intelligence cannot be based on ignorance.
· Conceit: (ASMITA अस्मिता) - This situation is born out of the condition of inability to distinguish between the properties of vision and the properties of the objects perceived. To consider both to be the same is conceit, a kind of egotism. This is also a kind of Ignorance (अविद्या) Patanjali puts it across as दृगदर्शनशक्त्योरेकात्म्तेवाऽस्मिता in YOG SUTRA 2-6. In this situation a subject thinks that the object, viewpoint inclusive is exactly the same as seen by his eyes or interpreted by him; completing negating the properties of the object which might have influenced his opinion. A very common example is mirage (मृगतृष्णा). Just extend this logic of giving due weight to the properties of the seen object. Then a star does not remain a star. It may become an extinguished body billions of years ago. If a non-existent object can become existent because of its properties then an existent object can be made to disappear just by taking into consideration its properties of reflection and refractive index. Then we know why a Hitler is anti-Semitic, a terrorist is anti-humanity, a snob is a snob, a fundamentalist is mired with his fundamentals and a victim of faith refuses to listen to reason. Absolute intelligence can never be based on such an aberration called ASMITA (अस्मिता) a part of ISI.
· Attachment: (RAGA राग) – Again a kind of ignorance this situation is born out of pleasure (सुखानुशयी रागः) according to Patanjali YOG SUTRA 2-7 The comforts give pleasure. That’s what they are meant for and that’s why they are created. All of us want comforts and there is practically a race for acquiring as many as possible. Besides material comforts the human relations also provide satisfaction an offshoot of pleasure only. Pleasure and satisfaction may lead to attachment a kind of dependence on attraction, subjugation and helplessness. This kind of attachment is born out of false presumptions of ‘mine’ and ‘permanence’. A presumption of ‘mine and permanently mine only’ is ignorance that will lead to efforts doomed to fail. The fear of failure strengthens the hopeless attraction towards that object of attachment which caused this mess. Dhritrashtra (धृतराष्ट्र) in Mahabharata (महाभारत) is depicted a person afflicted with RAGA (राग) a part of ISI for his kingdom of Hastinapur (हस्तिनापुर) and his son Duryodhan (दुर्योधन). A very pertinent question arises here. Do all the pleasures and satisfactions lead to RAGA? The answer to this question can never be YES/NO.A positive answer will completely negate the entire concept of putting in efforts (कर्म) by the human beings in order to achieve the only cherished goals of finding out knowledge. If efforts are leading to fear and ultimate failure, nobody is going to put them in. The only sane answer is, therefore, that efforts must be put in and it should be ensured that the tendency (VRITTI वृत्ति) from the group of IMAGINATION (विकल्प) is disabled to produce the properties (गुण) of ISI called RAGA (राग). If once any property (गुण) like mine, permanence and attraction etc of RAGA (राग) is produced, it will nullify any other tendency (VRITTI वृत्ति) of effort. So powerful is the VRITTI of imagination ( VIKALP. विकल्प)

· Hatred / Repulsion: (DVESHA द्वेष) - Again a kind of ignorance this situation is born out of pain (दुःखानुशयी द्वेषः) according to Patanjali YOG SUTRA 2-8. Pain is a universal phenomenon afflicting the human kind. For Thomas Hardy, “Happiness is but an occasional episode in the general drama of pain” Pain and poetry go together for a poet and for a dramatist it is the tragedy that rules the roost. “Our sweetest songs are those that tell our saddest thought”. वियोगी होगा पहला कवि आह से उपजा होगा गान. The Sanskrit word SHLOKA (श्लोक) meaning an expression in verse is supposed to have its origin as first rendition of spontaneous pain (शोक) by VALMIKI (वाल्मीकि) on seeing a she-heron shrieking on the killing (क्रौन्चवध) of her mate . With such a seemingly overwhelming intellectual majority eulogizing pain or scared of pain; it appears that this world is really a resting place of pain and sorrow only. (यह संसार दुखों का डेरा) Unlike pleasure which ultimately produces fear of losing by passing through the stages of attraction, subjugation, helplessness and false presumptions etc; pain straightaway produces fear as it is born out of having lost; in both the cases it is fear. In earlier case it is pre-stage of fear that produces ATTACHMENT (राग). In latter case it is the post stage of fear that produces HATRED/REPULSION (द्वेष). Again a pertinent question props up here. Is pain/sorrow really so prominent and ultimate that it envelopes pleasure also? The positive answer is again a bluff denying the very existence of pain and pleasure. The sane answer is again in their appreciation and disabling the tendency of imagination (विकल्प) to produce DVESHA (द्वेष) and RAGA (राग) Patanjali in YOG SUTRA 2-15 explains it as under: (परिणामतापसंस्कारदुःखैर्गुणवृत्तिविरोधाच्च दुःखमेव सर्वं विवेकिनः) He thinks that wise consider all such experiences as painful which are capable of producing that property (गुण) known as DVESH (द्वेष), which can nullify any other VRITTI (वृत्ति) of effort. In other words RAGA and DVESHA are such properties (गुण) i.e. the IMAGINARY SPECIFIC INTELLIGENCES created by imagination (विकल्प) which can destroy any other effort (वृत्ति) placed in opposition to them.

· Blind Possessiveness: (ABHINIVESHA अभिनिवेश) This ISI is such that even knowledgeable and rustics behave exactly the same due to this ignorance. Patanjali puts it across as स्वरसवाही विदुषोऽपि तथारुढोऽभिनिवेशः 2-9. This is a situation born out of blind clinging to live life eternally. This desire might be born out of fear of death in spite of the rosiest pictures of life after death painted by all the religions of the world. This desire might also be born out of any imaginary specific intelligence (क्लेश) mentioned above viz AVIDYA(अविद्या) ASMITA (अस्मिता) RAGA (राग) DVESHA (द्वेष) Nobody even at death bed wants to go to that heaven or emancipation (मोक्ष), the bluffs one had ardently believed throughout his life. One will exchange even 10 to 15 minutes of more life for any price at that time. This situation is a theoretical assumption only. But then heaven and hell are also theoretical. Nobody knows why one will behave that way. The probable reasons can be the knowledge of either a sure award of hell the tortures of which can be saved for another 15 minutes by this bargain or realizing the bluff of heaven and deliverance at the last moment. Then how do we explain suicides, fanatic suicide bombers, supreme sacrifice of life by a soldier for the sake of duty or patriotic fervor of innumerable martyrs, non-violent resistance in face of brutal violence, once practiced and still worshipped sati or the practice of JOHAR (जौहर)? None of them has the fear of death and none of them has shown a blind clinging to life. Are they above ABHINIVESHA (अभिनिवेश)? Or is the very concept a fallacy? Are they victims of some bluff? Are they mad? Have they been brainwashed? Are they having some extra gene (वृत्ति) or deficient of some gene? Can they be grouped together or should they be studied as independent unique characters having nothing in common and showing similar behavior pattern accidentally? There are hundred questions which go to prove the inadequacy of our knowledge about self (आत्मज्ञान). Vedas are right; there is no end to it. Human religion (कर्त्तव्य) should be an untiring effort to find it out.

It will be an interesting exercise to go to our great epics MAHABHARAT and RAMAYAN here and find out the characters that have been created symbolically to become victims of any of the five ISI i.e. (क्लेश KLESH) mentioned above; and we know the exact reason of their failure /downfall. It just couldn’t have happened any other way. Now come to any jointly conducted modern day activity of human mind or any individual effort; and find out if it is afflicted with any of the five ISI and make an emphatic prediction. You can be rest assured that your judgments cannot go wrong. The problem is that we still wonder WHY this economic system or that political system or that social system failed, while the answer to this WHY was given long ago in VEDAS The finest artistic rendition of this thought was done in the epics mentioned above by the authors who had the poetic license to create characters like RAMA and KRISHNA who rose above the tentacles of IMAGINARY SPECIFIC INTELLIGENCE. (क्लेश), thus realizing GOD i.e. ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE. They were normal human beings born to normal human beings who died also as normal human beings. Don’t make them unapproachable, unrecognizable and unrealizable Gods, only because you are afflicted with ISI (क्लेश KLESH). This is going against their personal examples and teachings and you will again be left wondering WHY this religious system failed!

MANIPULATION FOR REWARD / PUNISHMENT (KARM कर्म)

THE ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE cannot hanker after such actions which are designed to give either reward or punishment. It is no knowledge to act only to seek rewards or get punishments in the absence of tutored action. Animals are trained that way. Human beings are not animals. Rather the actions of human beings should be so designed that all efforts aim at wiping out all traces of KLESH क्लेश, KARM कर्म, VIPAK विपाक and ASHAYA आशय - the negative traits (गुण) or flaws as mentioned above. This Vedic concept of action and effort (कर्म); was again corrupted beyond recognition by keeping the Vedic term ‘KARM’ कर्म intact but filling it with arbitrary awe inspiring and fear generating never to be seen contents of reward and punishment in heaven (SWARGस्वर्ग) and hell (NARKनर्क).An imaginary personal GOD was created who doles out reward and punishment. Further an element of idleness bordering lethargy was also introduced taking the plea that since God was above these flaws so anyone aspiring for realization must be above KARM कर्म, free from KARM कर्म and therefore, should not do any KARM कर्म except remembering HIM through specially and mischievously designed rites and rituals (कर्म काण्ड). For this remembrance umpteen rituals (POOJA, पूजा PAATH, पाठ and ARTI BHAJAN आरती भजन) etc were created to invoke and beseech for the blessings, what a travesty! It is an affront to the very basics of Vedic KARM कर्म i.e. to be industrious and diligent which were thus buried and replaced by idleness and idolatry. KNOWLEDGE never comes to you; you have to go to KNOWLEDGE (read GOD) to acquire it.
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PRESUMPTION OF GOOD / EVIL (VIPAKविपाक)

We have seen that KNOWLEDGE (read GOD) functions smoothly because it is devoid of the concepts of reward and punishment in its organization. Similarly the concepts of good / evil (पुण्य / पाप) also cannot form the basis of organization of the ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE (read GOD). It has got to be devoid of this flaw which is a human trade mark. Knowledge is knowledge only when it is colorless. It cannot be good or evil. It is in human hands that it becomes good or evil depending upon its use. Then it is interpreted arbitrarily as good or evil according to the first flaw discussed earlier i.e. IMAGINARY SPECIFIC INTELLIGENCE (क्लेश) of an individual extending to a group. My GOD or for that matter anything mine becomes good and his GOD or for that matter anything his becomes evil. In his eyes the reverse happens. That way a personalized GOD has to become either good or evil. Substitute a simple word KNOWLEDGE for GOD and the coloring evaporates because knowledge is not a personal paternal property. It is universal. So this mutilation of good and evil was done just in order to personalize GOD so that meaningless rites and rituals (पूजा पाठ) etc could flourish. The Vedic concept of achieving GOD i.e. KNOWLEDGE through hard work and penance (तप) alone was thus reduced to mumble jumble (जप) of arbitrary concoction of mantras. Such gods were created who felt threatened if human beings indulged in relentless efforts (तप /तपस्या TAPASYA) of finding out KNOWLEDGE. These gods left no stone unturned to negate their efforts It was further stretched to ludicrous limits by another group that accepted it alright that GOD is above ‘good’ and ‘evil’. But they argued since good and evil are immaterial to God; HE can be achieved through EVIL also. For this they created their set of mantras and bizarre practices of violence. Anyway both created personal gods achievable by rites and rituals for which no effort was required. They forgot completely that GOD as KNOWLEDGE existed long before their versions of personal gods.

DEVOID OF DESIRE (आशय)

“Let there be Light’! There is no such desire on the part of Vedic GOD. Complete absence of desire is the last fundamental of organization of ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE i.e. the Vedic concept of GOD. Only KNOWLEDGE a formless concept of GOD can be free of desire. A god with any form is bound to have the inbuilt functions of love, lust, hate, envy, competition, wealth, fortune, success and imagined happiness etc...The mechanics of desire has been discussed threadbare in Vedic literature. It begins with a simple ‘wish’ and eagerness to fulfil it makes it ‘avidity’ (TRISHNAतृष्णा). After fulfilment it does not stop here. Avidity gives birth to more and more of it till it is converted into a kind of passion bordering on ‘lust’ (VASNA वासना). It doesn’t stop here also. Lust gives birth to more and more of it and it becomes a tendency, a ‘gene’ (SANSKARसंस्कार) that is capable of genetic behaviour of mutation like the genes falling in the group of ‘memory’ (SMRITIस्मृति). All created gods having a form are victims of this desire. Only the GOD as understood by the authors of VEDAS is above desire. The Vedic term SANSKARसंस्कार, a genetic tendency and the concepts of Form and Formless were again mutilated beyond recognition.

COROLLARIES FROM THE PRINCIPLES

From these principles of existence and organization certain corollaries can be derived which are further attributes of FUNCTIONAL KNOWLEDGE. None of these like the principles from which these have been derived, can be applicable to a human form.

· Complete (पूर्ण): Such ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE which exists at all points of time cannot exist as half baked at any point of time. IT is bound to be complete at all points of time. It cannot exist half baked because then it will not function. The test of completeness is, therefore, ability to function. The authors of Vedas must have found out through inductive and deductive approaches that the elements of nature mentioned by them do have definite abilities to function which they enumerated as properties DHARM (धर्म). For example, the functions of creation are being performed since time immemorial by fixed proportions of light, heat, water and earth etc. Hence these are complete. If the results are not as per human expectations due to changed proportions, the elements are not to be faulted because these elements with the change have still performed the new job of creation of waste; the awareness of which has been added to human pool of knowledge. The whole concept of completeness of ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE was converted into two bluffs. First thousands of ‘complete’ gods for each and every item of human use were created who were miseries wreaking and revengeful if not worshipped .Secondly, Vedas were made the books containing ‘complete’ knowledge, contrary to the claim of even the authors who had just talked about the very attributes and functions of knowledge and the probabilities and not the specifics of a modern day subject as we understand today.
· Non-Resultant (अपरिणामी): Such ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE which is complete at all points of time cannot be part complete at any point of time waiting to be completed as a result of something. IT is non- result oriented. In a way it is cyclic in its operation. You can never say about any point on the circumference of a circle that it is a starting point or an end. All points can be so.
· Indestructible (अनश्वर) and Omnipotent. ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is not bound by the limits of time and is thus indestructible. Does a thing become omnipotent if it can’t be destroyed? Obvious answer is an emphatic No. But we were made to believe through creation of thousands of ‘gods’ (देवता) who were indestructible because they had all consumed elixir (अमृत) and still scared of evil people RAKSHAS (राक्षस) and not potent enough because the RAKSHAS had a teacher (गुरु शुक्राचार्य) who knew the trick of reviving dead people. They were not potent enough for we the gullible because the crown of OMNIPOTENCE (सर्वशक्तिमान) was reserved for the master of all gods – again a person who alone through every conceivable trick was capable of destroying each and every RAKSHAS (राक्षस) viz NARKASUR (नरकासुर), BAKASUR (बकासुर), BHASMASUR (भस्मासुर) HIRNYAKASHYAP (हिरण्यकश्यप), RAVAN (रावण), KANS (कंस) etc. We were never made to pursue the purport of indestructibility as ever presence of nature (प्रकृति) again meaning ‘knowledge’ even in void (शून्य) which may or may not be the source of entire creation as per Vedic knowledge. Yes, omnipotent cannot be a Vedic idea for the simple reason that Knowledge can create power; potency cannot create knowledge. The word omnipotence appears to be a contrived form substituted for Vedic concept of indestructibility.
· .Omniscient (सर्वज्ञानी): This word for ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is also a misnomer like the word omnipotent discussed above and does create confusion. It gives the impression of a person who knows everything. This is humanly impossible. To attribute it to a person even to a super human being who lives in heaven is a bluff. In one of the earliest philosophies attempting to find out the content of Vedas the author of SANKHYA (सांख्य)-the sage KAPIL (कपिल मुनि) has strong reservations about the concept of personification of KNOWLEDGE. For this reason he has been labeled as atheist. This corollary has been manufactured to be used as a bluff from two principles of existence viz ‘source of entire knowledge’ and ‘source of entire intelligence’. Better word for explaining this attribute would have been like GYANADHI (ज्ञानधि) or SARVGYANADHI (सर्वज्ञानधि) on the lines of JALADHI (जलधि) etc where suffix DHI (धि) stands for ‘storehouse’ as in the word DHIYO (धियो) in GAYATRI mantra.
· Omnipresent (सर्वव्यापी): Such ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE which is complete, non-resultant and exists at all points of time cannot be confined to a place of choice. IT is bound to be Omni-present. Just look within and without; IT is all there. No human can ever be omnipresent. To make it present in human form we manipulated the expression KAN KAN MEIN BHAGWAN (कण कण में भगवान) into a bluff of presence of form in each and every particle instead of accepting the presence of knowledge everywhere. On realization of the mess of creating innumerable BHAGWANS we moved forward into a series of bluffs of creating choice gods at choice places, in choice stones, in choice people, in choice dates, in choice directions, in choice objects and in choice what not.
· Cyclic and Automatic (स्वयम्भू स्वचालित): To understand this attribute we must begin with a question. Can there be intelligence without knowledge? No, it can’t be. Then knowledge must exist. Yes, it does exist and we may call it nature in its myriad forms, inside out. We may be aware of some of its functions, may not be aware of it or may be in the process of knowing it. Can we make use of this knowledge? Yes we can and that’s what we are doing daily and this is what we understand by intelligence. Can we make use of this knowledge or make this knowledge function for us when we are mad or dried up of that source of power wheresoever it resides in us and understood by us as intelligence? No, we can’t. It means the ‘source of power’ that doesn’t dry up must always be there to make knowledge function. No human being can be that for first we are so far perishable only and secondly, our source can dry up easily due to innumerable unknown reasons. Is there a perennial and imperishable source? Yes it is there in nature. We already know that it is indestructible, omnipresent and complete. Can it produce automation? Yes it can if the source and product are inter-dependent. Source is transformed into product and product is transformed into source in a cyclic operation. Cause becomes effect and effect becomes cause. ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is cyclic also because it is non-result oriented (अपरिणामी). Hence it is automatic in its functions.
· Without any chaos (ऋतंभरा): ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE is full of rhythm (NAD नाद) in all its operations. PATANJALI puts it across in YOG SUTRA 1-48 RITAMBHARA TATRA PRAJYA (ऋतंभरा तत्र प्रज्ञा).The third Veda SAMVED (सामवेद) having a total of 1875 mantras is a musical rendition of 1504 mantras from RIGVED (ऋग्वेद) only, considers that the entire universe is controlled by RHYTHM (नाद) only (नादम अधीनम् सर्वं जगतम). Otherwise it would be chaos. Why is there no chaos? In GEETA (गीता), KRISHNA (कृष्ण) says, “VEDANAM SAMVEDOASMI (वेदानां सामवेदोऽस्मि) I am SAMVED among Vedas”. ‘I’ (GOD) stands for knowledge. Does it mean knowledge (GOD) to be complete i.e. without chaos; should be so organized that it incorporates rhythm? The mantras of RIGVED were already highly organized in poetic form. Was rhythm necessary to be free of chaos? Yes rhythm is the life force which can ensure freedom from chaotic and chaos producing tendencies of KLESH (क्लेश), KARM (कर्म), VIPAK (विपाक) and ASHAYA (आशय) as explained above under the principles of organization. It appears to be strange logic that the absence of these social and human tendencies was highlighted for the smooth functioning of that GOD which PATANJALI addresses as PURUSH VISHESH ISHWAR (पुरुष विशेष ईश्वर). Why should ISHWAR (GOD) be explained through human traits (गुण)? In YOG SUTRA 1-24 (क्लेशकर्म विपकाशयैरपरामृष्टः पुरुष विशेष ईश्वरः) Patanjali says when you think of GOD you must presuppose that HE is completely devoid of (अपरामृष्टः) of these traits. That’s why he has been depicted allegorically a person extra ordinary (पुरुष विशेष) It only means that GOD is no imaginary, unattainable and unrealizable fundamental and it does not remain strange logic if we just substitute this presently circulated imaginary concept of GOD with real functioning knowledge and apply the logic of inverse proportion to knowledge and chaos tendencies i.e.Knowledge ∞ 1 ÷ chaos. If zero value is substituted for chaos then only knowledge becomes infinite which it is. So the knowledge must be completely devoid (अपरामृष्ट) of chaos producing tendencies. Then only it becomes full of rhythm and (ऋतंभरा).

IS GOD MYTH, BLUFF OR REALITY?

God as knowledge is an initial reality and an ultimate reality. But in between religions were created that made God an ethereal myth and the followers use this myth as a bluff due to various reasons including vested interests.. They first bluff themselves, then their children, relations and acquaintances around and the vicious circle thus not only keep on widening but the tendency gets genetically mutated. Notwithstanding the postulation of this blog that the very process of creating religions, laws and systems etc is nothing but a ring in the overall process of human nature of passing through bluffing stage, it is also interesting to find out about the reality of God as projected from the viewpoint of two philosophies which supplement the fact of bluffing excellence. These are the last two chronologically of six Indian philosophies that are presumed to be the exponents of the contents of Vedas. One is known as MIMANSA (मीमांसा) by sage JAIMINI (जैमिनी) and the other is VEDANT (वेदांत) by BADRAYAN VYAS (बादरायण व्यास).It is an atheistic philosophy and deals with. RITUALS (कर्मकांड) and interprets Vedas as books of rituals only. It gives a fair clue to the earliest attempts in mechanics of bluff. The scholars of MIMANSA do not think that GOD is a subject matter of Vedas. GOD is not a reality for them. For MIMANSAKS (मीमांसकों) GOD appears to be a definite myth. That’s why on one hand they don’t accept the concept of GOD in any form in Vedas and on the other they only are instrumental in having created thousands of mythical gods to be worshipped as per their laid down procedures of RITUALS (कर्मकांड) which they think is the only subject matter of Vedas. If this is not bluff then what is!
On the other end is the philosophy of VEDANT (वेदांत) which encompasses all the contradictory theories about GOD and gives them the sanction even to atheistic MIMANSA if these theories claim their authority for sustenance and derivation from Vedas but for the philosophy of SANKHYA (सांख्य) by sage KAPIL (कपिल) which it brands atheistic though KAPIL’S primary subject matter is enumeration of twenty five true principles as he found them in Vedas called TATTVA (तत्त्व) discussed under PRAKRITI (प्रकृति) and PURUSH (पुरुष). If this is not bluff then what is!
The rest of the philosophies like SANKHYA also do not primarily deal with GOD as their subject matter in Vedas. VAISHESHIK (वैशेषिक) of KANAD (कणाद) found seven heads of ‘predicables’ laying stress on particular VISHESH (विशेष) in Vedas and sage GAUTAM (गौतम) found twenty six principles of natural justice or logic in Vedas and explained them in his NYAYA (न्याय) philosophy. Similarly PATANJALI (पतंजलि) found eight essentials (अष्टांग) in Vedas for human development and discussed them in YOG (योग) philosophy. But the scholars of VEDANT (वेदांती), the latest of the Indian philosophies interpolated GOD in all the earlier philosophies and interpreted it arbitrarily whether the actual authors meant it that way or not.. If this is not bluff then what is!
The philosophy of VEDANT revolves round two concepts of DWAIT (द्वैत) and ADWAIT (अद्वैत). Both the terms are conspicuous by their absence in Vedas. These terms are so flexible that any interpretation is possible as long as GOD is considered the creator, controller, unknown and nothing but to be worshipped. DWAIT means presence of two and one must be God, the other can be anything. SANKHYA had said earlier, only NATURE (प्रकृति) and SOUL (पुरुष) and invited the ire of VEDANT. ADWAIT means absence of two, can be presence of one only or presence of more than two. One only has to be GOD and more than two have to be GOD + +. We generally succumb to the concept of Creator. With this argument of creator we get enmeshed into fallacies of logic. We are dazed with all this around and we argue that there must be a creator and completely forget that with the same argument then there must be a creator of that creator and so on and so forth. This is the fallacy of the absence of finality of the egg and the hen. Realizing the fallacy we immediately return to the first conceptual imaginary creator and start giving him absolute powers; first being the ability to be parentless and an anthromorphic GOD is born Patanjali puts across this idea in YOG SUTRA 4-4 “Minds of the people have the imaginary specific ability (ISI) known as conceit (अस्मिता) of creating non-existent things” (निर्माण चित्तान्यस्मिता मात्रात). A super human GOD is thus created whom we start now giving powers of being omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent. The GOD who once in our imagination was supposed to be a creator with definite purpose and an intelligent designer becomes a victim of human teleological whims. If all this is not bluff what is!

GOD - FORM AND FORMLESS - AN ENDLESS DEBATE

A lot of heat is generated between the followers of ‘form’ and ‘formless’ concepts of GOD. A common man instinctively votes for both. His simple logic is, “God is God, and IT can do any thing”. The Vedic God is also definitely with form as well as formless. So a common man votes for the one depending upon the company he is in. Yes, this company, this environment has influenced us over a period of time to forget how and why of GOD being both at the same time and we have become victims of environmental influence to the extent of changing our inbuilt mechanism also through mutation of genes (SANSKARS संस्कार) as discussed under ASHAYAआशय. Is this process reversible? Yes, it is. That is what the Vedic knowledge is. If environment alone is responsible for this sorry state of idleness which refuses to listen to reason, then the same environment can make us responsive and alert which we all want to be. Only a beginning is to be made to find out the how and why of GOD being both at the same time. .

COINAGE OF SAGUN AND NIRGUN CONCEPTS OF GOD

The reason for the controversy mentioned above is hidden in the coinage of these two words (SAGUN सगुण) meaning ‘with form’ and (NIRGUN निर्गुण) meaning formless. This is another link in overall willful design of corrupting the very basic Vedic concept of GOD which stands for nothing else but KNOWLEDGE. Here the Vedic term GUN (गुण) i.e. quality/property has been corrupted by suffixing with SA (स) meaning ‘with’ and NIR (निर्) meaning ‘without’. Yes, I mean to say that there are no such terms in VEDAS but the content, qualities and properties of KNOWLEDGE / ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE are very much the concerns of the authors of VEDAS.

VISIBILITY AS THE DECIDING FACTOR

A God with FORM: So far we know that GOD has been discussed in Vedas by various names which all mean KNOWLEDGE only. This KNOWLEDGE functions as ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE. If we look at functions we find that these are innumerable to the extent of limitlessness. KNOWLEDGE manifests itself through these innumerable functions which are either visible or invisible. The visible functions are manifestations of KNOWLEDGE in two forms i.e. animate (CHETANचेतन) and inanimate (JAR जड़) or living / non-living respectively. Therefore, whatever is visible must be having FORM. That is the concept of GOD read KNOWLEDGE having a FORM. That is how GOD again read KNOWLEDGE is all around, outside and present everywhere in whatever is visible and we call it omnipresence. With such presence it has got to be limitless. This property of KNOWLEDGE being visible can be easily addressed as SAGUNसगुण.

A God without FORM: Now come to invisible functions, which are again manifestations of KNOWLEDGE in the above mentioned two forms. The functions, the processes that are happening inside the animate and the inanimate forms are not visible to us. We cannot see them, we do not know about them; we are only in the process of knowing about them. These processes are limitless. This is the GOD read KNOWLEDGE without FORM and this knowledge is again bound to be omnipresent and limitless. We can comfortably address this property of KNOWLEDGE being invisible as NIRGUN निर्गुण.

PRINCIPLES AS DECIDING FACTORS

We can look at ‘form’ (सगुण) and ‘formless’ (निर्गुण) from another angle also. Going by the meaning of these words; the word SAGUN (सगुण) conveys something ‘with these properties’ and NIRGUN (निर्गुण) conveys something ‘without these properties’. Now consider ‘The Principles of Existence’ and ‘The Principles of Organization’ of ABSOLUTE INTELLIGENCE given in Vedas and aptly summarized in GAYATRI (गायत्री) mantra. KNOWIEDGE is सगुण because it is something ‘with these properties’ i.e. The Principles of Existence. IT is NIRGUNनिर्गुण because it is something ‘without these properties’ as given in The Principles of Organization. Finding out these basics about GOD read KNOWLEDGE was in fact the main concern of the authors of Vedas, so that the humanity at large could move from ‘darkness to light’ (TAMSO MA JYOTIR GAMAYA तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय) and the aim of ‘prosperity and happiness for all’ (SARV JAN HITAYA SARV JAN SUKHAYAसर्व जन हिताय सर्व जन सुखाय) could become achievable.

WHY OF CORRUPTED VERSIONS OF SAGUN AND NIRGUN

In spite of these laudable aims and clear exhortations laid down in Vedas, that knowledge if it is to be functional; cannot and should not be organized on the basis of imaginary specific intelligence, reward / punishment, good / evil and desire (क्लेश, कर्म, विपाक and आशय) somewhere down the line the human beings preferred to be the victims of these considerations only. For example the desire compelled us to accept the manifestation of KNOWLEDGE i.e. GOD in all the animate and inanimate objects at ‘lip service’ level only. We argued how God could be present in dirty stones, in dirty places, in evil people and so on so forth. We knew in our heart of hearts that Knowledge could. So we did not accept KNOWLEDGE as GOD as given in VEDAS but chose and chiseled choice stones and gave life i.e. (PRAN PRATISHTA प्राण प्रतिष्ठा) to them or sanctified them by mumbling, jumbling of some holy hymns / ‘mantras’ (wish we could actually give life to something by this so simple a ritual / bluff) and erected structures at choice places to imprison those stones. The state and clergy then declared that visiting these places alone will give us peace, prosperity and happiness and god will condone all our misdeeds. What a mockery of the entire Vedic concept! We did not stop at this categorization of stones and places only. We imagined a hundred shades of good and evil in days, dates, time and fractions of time, directions, trees, plants, animals, stars and planets and what not---.Even human beings were not spared. They were arraigned from abysmally low to ecstatically high category just depending upon one’s birth only which was the result of imagined reward and punishment doled out by imaginary gods. Ultimately, we did not spare even god by creating his umpteen varieties and forcing them to behave like us under the influence of KLESHक्लेश, KARMकर्म, VIPAKविपाक and ASHAYA. आशय. We wanted to indulge in all kinds of intoxications and created gods who become party to it and fabricated rituals where all kinds of silly sacrifices were demanded by gods. The very basic concept of Vedas that ‘knowledge means to rise above these angularities only’; was thus thrown to winds. To summarize the concept of GOD I quote the relevant formulae (सूत्र) from PATANJALI YOG SHASTRA (पतंजलि योग शास्त्र), the meanings of which have already been explained:
KLESH KARM VIPAK ASHAYA APRAMRISHT PURUSH VISHESH ISHWAR -1-24
क्लेशकर्मविपकाशयैरपरामृष्टः पुरुष विशेष ईश्वरः 1-24
TATRA NIRATISHAYAM SARVAGYA BEEJAM 1-25
तत्र निरतिशयं सर्वज्ञबीजम् 1-25
SA PURVESHAMAPI GURU KALENA ANAVCHHEDAT 1-26
स पूर्वेषामपि गुरुः कालेनाऽनवच्छेदात 1-26
TASYA VACHAK PRANAV 1-27
तस्य वाचकः प्रणवः 1-27 i.e. HE IS ALSO ADDRESSED AS OM (ॐ)

SECOND BLUFF-RELIGION

SECOND BLUFF – RELIGION
ALL THE BLUFF –CALL THE BLUFF

GLIMPSE OF THE KEY THOUGHT

God existed long before the concept of religion came into existence. Still the entire humanity has been hoodwinked to accept those gods which have been created by various religions. None of these gods have any thing in common. They are all superior to each other in the eyes of their followers. They are all saviours and benefactors of their people only. One should be scared of one’s God only as the others’ Gods can’t do anything. So the other God can be abused, sullied and destroyed. Just extend this logic a bit and all these man-oriented Gods created by various man-originated religions meet the same fate. The knowledge of such Gods cannot be worth pursuing as they are all partial, fear generating and destructible. It has got to be bluff only. This is what the human history of religions is all about. Many have come and many have gone and many may still come because we tend to resolve the ills of one bluff by another bluff. Can’t God exist independent of these religions? Yes, it can and it does and it has been depicted that way only in the earliest books of knowledge i.e. VEDAS from the Indian continent. The GOD as explained in VEDAS is the subject matter of this presentation. Religion in Vedas is a thought oriented concept in these books and has got entirely different meaning as there is no imposition of any name of a person or no intention of mandating any ‘religion’. There is no such name or intention to propagate any religion as VEDIC RELIGION in these books of knowledge. Vedas are not books of any religion. These are just compendium of knowledge which deals with ‘what to know’, ‘how to know’ and ‘how to apply’. The very concept of religion as understood today by various human civilizations is an afterthought and an outright bluff. For knowing how, read on and be fully equipped to call this BLUFF of religion.

WHY OF THIS BLUFF

Like spiritualism this human activity is also a roaring business all over the world. The accounted and unaccounted assets of the religious institutions may run into mind boggling astronomical figures which are immune to either inflation or recession. There are states which pride themselves in having religion as their official recognition of existence. The Papal State of Vatican City though the smallest in size yet is treated the First in Order of Precedence by the international community of nations. It is an obsession with a sizeable human population. In spite of such a tremendously large following, the twentieth century witnessed the folly of Communism in calling religion a bluff and failing completely even after banishing it ruthlessly from the society and state infra-structures. Are these two deterrents i.e. the voluminous statistics in favour and failure of a powerful state in calling it a bluff; criteria good enough to not to call it a bluff? On the contrary, there is a reason good enough in tremendous numbers to call it ignorance employing the tools of bluff to spread itself. The reason is not far enough to locate in communism’s failure. We go back to VEDAS and PATANJALI’S YOG SUTRAS The humanity as a whole is passing through a ‘bluffing stage’ in its process of evolution and we tend to resolve our one bluff with another bluff. Thus we meet a failure and employ another bluff to counter it. Communism was again a bluff only perpetrated by the state to counter the bluff of religion; which too was instituted by the state and clergy only at some point of time in history. To find out how religion is being perpetrated as bluff; we must first know what religion is in the eyes of a common man.

RELIGION AND COMMON MAN

All human actions are guided by some or the other aspect of religion. For a common man these aspects are:

· GOD (ईश्वर)

· SOUL (आत्मा)

· RITUALS ( कर्मकांड)

· ETHICS (धार्मिक नैतिकता)

The tools of FAITH / BELIEF (आस्था) have been employed successfully by all the religions of the world to create followers of the above four aspects of religion. There is an imaginary race to get the label of being more faithful, better believer; better god fearing and thus higher evolved than the people around and surprisingly there is no judge of this race. It has been presumed by each participant that he is being judged. The only condition and the easiest one for which no effort is required, to take part in this race is to forget about reason because faith/belief is beyond reason or a higher stage above all reason. (मानो तो शंकर नहीं तो कंकर). So we have been indoctrinated to believe. The irony is that for such a conclusive and definitive statement all the proponents, all the participants must have a strong reason which they prefer not to know and therefore, cannot articulate. This behavior is easily explainable. Since there is no reason there cannot be any articulation and it is explained as dumb man’s taste of sweet (गूंगे का गुड़). So the only reason is that we have been conditioned to follow quietly because if speech is silver silence is golden. What a misplacement of reason! Yes, FAITH (आस्था) is a misplacement of reason. If there is any faith it has got to be conviction only and conviction comes from knowledge (read GOD, ईश्वर) which can be attained by hard work (read TAP तपस्या) alone. There is no short cut to it. Faith is a short cut meaning blind following only, designed with a view to swelling the numbers of followers. By falling victim to the clutches of faith we deny ourselves the very existence as human beings. The specific endowment of reasoning alone distinguishes us from the animals. Rather the animal world still maintains its uniqueness and distinction by its endowed expertise as is evident in innumerable species. Only the human beings have preferred to discard their endowed expertise i.e. reason; this unique gift of God. Or we en masse have not yet reached the stage of employing reason and prefer to bluff ourselves by advancing it as reason as we are still passing through the ‘bluffing stage’ of evolution. I think latter explains better our present state of behavior. That is what the authors of Vedas had found out conclusively about human behavior in their search of SELF. We are so enthralled by the captivating charms and imagery of this illusory ‘Bluff’ which some of us call MAYA (माया) that we are convinced of it being the higher form of reason or above mundane reason. I am of the firm opinion that any individual anywhere can get out of this bluffing stage the moment he decides to do so. I shall be discussing the methodology of why of this stage and how to get out of it in my next posting i.e. THIRD BLUFF- YOGA as explained by PATANJALI. Presently suffice to say that different religions, because of this bluff, advance arbitrary and contradictory versions of all the above mentioned four aspects of religion each claiming its version only to be the correct, authentic and worth emulating. Here enters the element of bluff. Had religion been any knowledge it wouldn’t have required any authenticity. It would have just existed like an apple falling on the ground irrespective of Newton noticing it or not.

RELIGION AND GOD:

It might be politically felicitous to say that there is one God but that one God is not the same. The methods of worshipping are so varied and diametrically opposite that entirely different Gods happen to come into existence. Then it becomes sacrilegious and blasphemous to worship a particular God with a method other than the prescribed one in that religion. A personalized God is bound to differ from person to person, sect to sect and religion to religion. ALLAH, GOD and ISHWAR are, therefore, always at loggerheads because they are three distinct entities. They are three distinct entities because ARABIC MAZHAB, ENGLISH RELIGION and SANSKRIT DHARM evolved differently in varied environments as the needs of bluff dictated. These words are not synonyms; they don’t convey the same sense. These are just translations of convenience.

RELIGION AND SOUL:

The souls like Gods are poles apart in all the religions. Extremely divergent concepts of soul are making the rounds on this globe. For one it is passing through eighty four lakhs births in as many species while for the other it is just waiting in the cemeteries for the Day of Judgment. Some make them present in all animate and inanimate things while for some these are present in living beings only with their sex permanently allotted to them. For others the sexual identity keeps on changing from birth in one species to birth in another species. For some it is a parallel world populated by all the ghosts and the spirits who are virtuous and evil and the opponents dismiss it as trash and figment of imagination. For them these apparitions are nothing but hallucinations or some other disorders of mind. The bluff of this concept of SOUL has already been discussed in my previous posting under FIRST BLUFF – SPIRITUALISM.

RELIGION AND RITUALS:

There are so many rites and rituals associated with all the religions that element of identification and exclusiveness in matters of dress, languages etc have become a kind of crazy obsession with many. Most of the time people follow these rites and rituals in the name of tradition without actually ever knowing or understanding even the meanings of the words of the languages e.g. Sanskrit, Latin or Arabic used for such performance / preference. It gives them the satisfaction of being religious not so much in their own eyes but presuming that they are getting a label from others for being so. New rituals are being added every day by anyone and there are instant followers lest they are ostracized as irreligious or unorthodox. New gods and goddesses take birth everyday and new rituals are manufactured to worship them.

RELIGION AND ETHICS:

Who is bluffing whom? First we bluff ourselves individually. Then we start bluffing as a group to influence other non conforming groups and justify it as a matter of right ETHICS to indulge in crusades and ‘jihad’ wherein extreme violence and bloodshed are also used as weapons to propagate one’s view point The ethical standards prescribed by various religions are so much at variance that it is well nigh impossible to reconcile. One man’s food is other man’s poison. New rules and standards of ethics and morality are being coined and introduced everyday by anyone and anywhere. Whatever was ethical yesterday is being decried as highly reprehensible and barbarous today or vice versa

INDIAN PERSPECTIVE AND VEDIC CONCEPT OF DHARM

IN India the malaise has become so deep rooted that any individual anywhere, howsoever high or low, believer or non-believer has to confront daily any or more of the above four aspects of religion. The result is bewilderment and a kind of helplessness leading to drowsy activities of a chain of rituals bereft of any logic. Nobody asks the reason for this eerie and opiate behavior for fear of being dubbed as irreligious or unnecessary trouble creator. A logical and scientific approach is propagated as inferior knowledge by religious pedagogues and pedants alike. All the organs and agencies of state consider it a holy cow and a matter of faith (आस्था) as if all of them are in league and part of some conspiracy. This happens in a country which can pride itself of the birthplace of the earliest scientific approach towards any curiosity of human mind as discussed in the four books of VEDAS. By the passage of time this fact about the content of these books of knowledge has been so twisted, corrupted and misconstrued, all in the name and with authority of Vedas, to the limits of indoctrination by the agencies of the family and society at large that we have been fooled to rest on some imaginary past laurels and indulge in self praise of being ‘the teacher of the world’ (विश्व गुरु). Yes, all those above mentioned four aspects of common man’s concept of religion as understood by the common man or as he has been made to comprehend are non-existent in Vedas. These aspects have been packed as Vedic knowledge in an awe inspiring capsule circulated as RELIGION. How? Read on.

GOD, SOUL, RITUALS AND ETHICS IN VEDAS

VEDAS are just the books of knowledge as the literal translation suggests and these. Books deal with:-

· WHAT TO KNOW

· HOW TO KNOW

· HOW TO APPLY

The four aspects of common man’s concept of religion i.e. God ,Soul, Rituals and Ethics have been manipulated to exist as if derived from ,based upon and authenticated by the above three factual areas of Vedic subject matter. In order to attract, only the label is Vedic; the bottle and the contents are spurious. There is nothing Vedic about any of the four aspects of common man’s concept of religion.

WHAT TO KNOW:

The areas of knowledge that have been discussed in details by the authors of Vedas in ‘what to know’ are:-

· Knowledge of Self (आत्म ज्ञान) .This area of Vedic knowledge was corrupted to mean knowledge of common man’s concept of SOUL under religion the mechanics of which I have already presented in ‘FIRST BLUFF-SPIRITUALISM.
· Knowledge of Entire Creation (ब्रह्म ज्ञान). This area of Vedic knowledge was corrupted to mean knowledge of common man’s concept of GOD under religion. The details of the concept of GOD in Vedas and the mechanics of its corruption are discussed in the succeeding posting-SECOND BLUFF- RELIGION (continued)

HOW TO KNOW:

The happenings in nature were keenly observed by the Vedic authors. They observed, inferred and conducted experiments to confirm their inferences. That is how the human mind is engaged in pursuit of knowledge today also. They also did the same and gave the name YAJYA (यज्ञ) to this entire process of observation, inference and conducting experiments. This area of Vedic knowledge deals with methodology of experiments (यज्ञ विधान) as presumed by the authors of Vedas. It has been discussed in details which can be grouped as under:

· Experiments going on in nature

· Experiments undertaken by the authors

Both these subjects were corrupted to mean common man’s concept of RITUALS under religion. These studies of the systems of functioning of various natural elements ultimately led the authors of Vedas to know the rules, principles, laws and secrets of entire creation. This helped them to form opinions about knowledge of their ultimate aims of finding out about self (आत्म ज्ञान) and its relation with entire creation (ब्रह्म ज्ञान). Their conclusion was, “As the self is so is the universe”. (यथा पिंडे तथा ब्रह्मांडे). The term that is found in Vedas to describe this branch of knowledge is YAJYA i.e. the science of experimentation. YAJYA (यज्ञ) means experiment. The entire concept of experimentation thus can be studied as YAJYA VIDHAN (यज्ञ विधान). They observed and inferred that in nature a kind of experimentation was going on all the time and there were definite rules of existence and functioning. They identified these experimentations / happenings in nature with definite nomenclatures like ASHWAMEDH (अश्व मेध); PURUSHMEDH (पुरुष मेध), SARVMEDH (सर्व मेध), GAUMEDH (गौ मेध), NARMEDH (नर मेध) and PITRAMEDH (पित्र मेध) etc. In these nomenclatures the suffix MEDH (मेध) stands for happenings, experimentations (यज्ञYAJYA), while the prefixes are used as nouns denoting the sources of Energy responsible for these happenings. Hence the word ASHWA+MEDH (अश्व +मेध) will mean happenings/experimentations in nature due to source of energy known as ASHWA (अश्व) i.e. LIGHT. To find out the exact meanings and the contexts of the Vedic words a separate branch of knowledge dealing with words i.e. NIRUKT (निरुक्त) Philology under VEDANG (वेदांग) was developed by sage YASKACHARYA (यास्काचार्य) who himself has made frank and honest admission that he had been unable to find out the exact connotations of about four hundred words used in Vedas. The authors of Vedas also conducted individual experiments and identified these also by definite names. They found out the principles of Permanence, Completeness, Cause and Effect, Prediction, Sound, Sequential logic, Parallel logic, Accidental discovery, Rhythm, Existence and Organization, Probability, Statistics, Mathematics Astronomy and Justice etc.. The words used for the happenings in nature and their individual experiments were such that they acquired different meanings in different contexts. It appears that multi-meanings were foregone conclusions because the authors were using a highly developed and rich language where similes, metaphors etc are the ornamentations of a language. In English language these ornamentations are limited to simile, metaphor, alliteration, onomatopoeia, stress, intonation and some Miltonic and Shakespearean meters only; while in Sanskrit language these ornamentations in the forms of ALANKAR, RAS and CHHAND run into hundreds. For example, they gave the general name ASHWAMEDH (अश्वमेध) for the happenings (MEDH / YAJYA) in nature due to ASHWA (अश्व) i.e. LIGHT and they gave the specific name ASHWINI KUMAR (अश्विनी कुमार) for their experiments and findings about the functions of rays of light (अश्विनी कुमार). But then there are other meanings of the words ASHWA and MEDH i.e. the ‘horse’ and ‘sacrifice’ respectively Similarly the general name AGNIHOTRA (अग्निहोत्र) was given for the happenings / experiments in nature due to AGNI i.e. heat and fire and specific names TAP / TAPSYA (तप / तपस्या), HOM / HAVAN (होम / हवन) again meaning HEAT/AGNI were given to their individual efforts and experiments. These could have as well been the experiments conducted to find out the functioning of HEAT/FIRE as source of energy. Vedas are replete with words which indicate individual experimentation in various branches of knowledge. YOG (योग) is one such branch of knowledge i.e. a. bigger experiment which encompasses the methodologies of various individual experiments like POSTURE (आसन), BREATHING (प्राणायाम), RESOLUTION (धारणा), CONCENTRATION (ध्यान) and MEDITATION (समाधि). All these Vedic experiments were misconstrued even at times to bizarre imaginations of violence and pornography so much so that western philosophers considered VEDAS either as songs of shepherds or a symbol of some savage and barbaric civilization. The entire concept of experimentation i.e. YAJYA (यज्ञ) was converted into YAJYA KARM (यज्ञ कर्म) which degenerated into meaningless RITUALS (कर्म कांड).

HOW TO APPLY


This area of Vedic knowledge deals with Practical Ethics (व्यवहारिक नैतिकता) for human beings and uses the term DHARM (धर्म) which does not mean common man’s religion at all. The term DHARM appears to have been lifted from this area of Vedic knowledge and combined with arbitrary rules of conducts i.e. ethics to give birth to an imaginary and non-existent concept of common man’s concept of religion. The common man was thus duped to follow those arbitrary rules of conduct i.e. Religious Ethics (धार्मिक नैतिकता).This name gave the impression as those rule only were authenticated by DHARM as mentioned in Vedas. Practical Ethics (व्यवहारिक नैतिकता) of Vedas meant for all human beings was thus propagated to become Religious Ethics of individual religions only. So in the name of Vedas a bluff called Religion was instituted which by the passage of time has acquired the uncontrollable and irretrievable state of mind that refuses to listen to reason.

Practical Ethics of Vedas: After knowing the areas of knowledge and the methodology of finding the knowledge it became imperative for the authors of Vedas to lay down the rules for applying this knowledge for the ‘benefit of all’ and the ‘prosperity of all’ (सर्व जन हिताय सर्व जन सुखाय). The word DHARM (धर्म) is used in Vedas here to convey the sense of self discipline i.e. duty The English translation Religion does not convey the sense of the Vedic term DHARM (धर्म). In Vedas this term conveys two distinct usages:

· DHARM (धर्म) stands for DUTY (कर्तव्य)
· DHARM (धर्म) stands for PROPERTIES (गुण) and functions of various basic elements like earth, air, water, fire and vacuum

The authors of Vedas in their efforts to find out about ‘self’(आत्म ज्ञान) had concluded that since the human beings were compositionally above mentioned basic elements only; their behavior was bound to be affected by the DHARM (धर्म) i.e. properties and functions of these elements. Besides this natural structure of ‘self’, they also found out two more natural behavior patterns which come what may the human beings will follow. The names given to these were VARN (वर्ण) and ASHRAM (आश्रम). They were of the firm opinion that these two were also subject to DHARM (धर्म) or offshoots of DHARM and here the term DHARM (धर्म) was used to denote DUTY (कर्तव्य).

Dharm (धर्म) as Duty (कर्तव्य) for Varn (वर्ण) and Ashram (आश्रम): In Vedas there is no individual, male or female who has been spared the charter of duties. Each has been exhorted to fulfill his obligations i.e. (धर्म).It might appear an out of the world concept in modern days where every body is crying for the rights without an inkling of ever feeling an obligation for duties. There is a charter of Fundamental Rights in our Constitution but no mention of Fundamental Duties. Hopefully, it is added in due course of time. It is interesting to analyze the Vedic concept of Duties (धर्म) encompassing all without exception. With what classification of human beings did they achieve this impossible looking aim? Their modus operandi was down to earth simple and practical. They did not presume that human society existed as a manipulation of some class composition of rich, poor, high, middle, low or something in between and betweens. They neither presumed that it existed as a caste, creed, race, nation or sexual identity. They were of the firm opinion that all individuals have to perform two inter-dependent functions irrespective of any other consideration. Any performance of functions is possible only when acquired knowledge is put to use. Performance means application of knowledge; so for covering the entire humanity they decided to define and lay down explicitly these functions and the applications i.e. the duties (धर्म DHARM) associated with them. These functions are:

· FUNCTIONS OF VARN (वर्ण के कर्त्तव्य): Any individual must put to use or apply his gained knowledge. There are only four fields of activity where knowledge can be used. These fields were known as VARN (वर्ण) meaning color. In other words knowledge can acquire only four shades for its manifestation / application. An individual is engaged in any of the following four-fold pattern of duties at any point of time.
a) Duties of a Brahman (ब्राह्मण),
b) Duties of a Kshatriya (क्षत्रिय),
c) Duties of a Vaishya (वैश्य)
d) Duties of a Shudra (शूद्र).
Any individual is a mix of all the above four VARNS i.e. the areas of duty. The remarkable contribution of Vedas is to define explicitly and exclusively these duties in a way that an individual knows that at one point of time he is a Brahman and at the other he becomes a Kshatriya. The same person applies his knowledge as a Vaishya or Shudra at some other point of time.

· FUNCTIONS OF ASHRAM (आश्रम के कर्त्तव्य): Any individual for gaining and applying knowledge must pass through a chronological order of age so that he can live life meaningfully. The name given to this order was ASHRAM (आश्रम). These are also four in number, each Ashram spanning 25 years of life. The period of 25 years is more a presumption of mathematical ease than actual practice because the Vedic concept of longevity was minimum 100 years for each (जीवेम शरदः शतम). In actual practice the time period is bound to differ due to differences of sex and rates of achievements. But the concept of duties to be performed by each and everyone during these four periods of life is infallible. The range of duties in these four periods is so wide and varied that practically all human beings have been covered in it by the authors of VEDAS. Just to give an idea of mundane universality ; there are duties of a student, teacher, husband, wife, children, father, mother, son, daughter, host, guest, ruler and his administrative functionaries, executives and judges, householder, master, servant, and friend etc. The four chronological periods known as ASHRAM through which each individual must pass are:

a) BRAHMCHARYA (ब्रह्मचर्य आश्रम) –A period for duties of gaining education
b) GRAHSTHA (गृहस्थ आश्रम) – A period for utilizing education for duties of married life –a householder
c) VANPRASTHA (वानप्रस्थ आश्रम) – A period for duties of tendering advice and guidance to own children and
d) SANYAS (सन्यास आश्रम) - A period for duties of being more useful for the society at large).

So their criterion of covering the entire humanity was based on VARN and ASHRAM, the two concepts which were later on joined together to malign and bluff as VARNASHRAM SYSTEM.(वर्ण आश्रम व्यवस्था) The authors of Vedas knew it fully well about human behavior from their conclusions of ATM JYAN (आत्म ज्ञान) that any classification of human beings was bound to be based on ‘ignorance’ and hence unreliable and bound to fail being a bluff.. So they laid down the duties of each VARN (वर्ण) and ASHRAM (आश्रम) ensuring freedom to, know, decide and fulfill one’s duties so that there is no clash. It must be a repulsive idea for them to presume an evolved human society existing without duties. For Vedic authors demand for rights was an instinctive behavior based on ignorance and a sure sign of animal existence. They considered evolution as passing from the stage of ‘ignorance’ i.e. bluff to the stage of ‘enlightenment’. In other words evolution is passing from the stage of ‘demanding rights’ to the stage of ‘performing duties’. An individual performs his duties in four ways only because knowledge can possibly have only four applications. That way knowledge has only four colors i.e. VARN (वर्ण) and each individual keeps on performing his duties (धर्म) depending upon the color of the cloak that he has chosen to put on at that time .These VARNS (वर्ण) are, therefore ,the traits present in all the human beings at all the times. These were not the groups, divisions or castes of the society as is understood today. This corruption in the meanings of these VARNS (वर्ण) is the result of various processes working in the society. The foremost duties of these VARNS (वर्ण) were laid down as under:

· BRAHMAN (ब्राह्मण)-To use his gained knowledge during BRAHMCBARYA ASHRAM (ब्रह्मचर्य आश्रम) to acquire further knowledge and to spread knowledge.
· KSHATRIYA (क्षत्रिय) - To use his gained knowledge during BRAHMCHARYA ASHRAM (ब्रह्मचर्य आश्रम) to acquire the capabilities to protect and to increase strength.
· VAISHYA (वैश्य) - To use his gained knowledge during BRAHMCHARYA ASHRAM (ब्रह्मचर्य आश्रम) to acquire the capabilities to generate wealth and to increase wealth.
· SHUDRA (शूद्र). - To use his gained knowledge during BRAHMCHARYA ASHRAM (ब्रह्मचर्य आश्रम) to acquire the capabilities of providing comforts and to increase comforts.
An individual was free to choose as his livelihood / profession also from any of the four VARNS (वर्ण) above after gaining his initial knowledge during BRAHMCHARYA ASHRAM (ब्रह्मचर्य आश्रम). All were supposed to have been grounded thoroughly in this ASHRAM before making any choice of livelihood. Majority went to VAISHYAवैश्य and SHUDRA (शूद्र). professions as all the vocations catering for the needs arising out of the desire to earn money were covered by these two VARNS only and those who chose or allotted the VARNSवर्ण of BRAHMAN (ब्राह्मण)-and KSHATRIYA (क्षत्रिय) as their professions were few in numbers as it depended upon the need of the state. They became the responsibility of society and the State respectively and all their livelihood interests were looked after by the state as they were performing their duties in the interest of the state only. State and society were their supreme interests and those self interests that result from desire for wealth came in the end. In other words effort for creating and possessing wealth was not supposed to be ‘either their virtue or vice’. They were supposed to be above greed and enticement. A Brahman was preparing the posterity for the overall benefit of the state and society and a KSHATRIYA soldier in the words of Chanakya to King Chandragupta “While the citizenry of the State endeavors to make the State prosper and flourish, the Mauryan soldier guarantees it continues to exist. To this man, O Rajadhiraja, you owe a debt for that very guarantee which is a vital sine qua non to our nationhood. Please, therefore, see to it suo motu, that you are constantly alive and sensitive to the soldiers legitimate dues in every form and respect, be they his needs or his wants, including his place in the social order, and ensure that he receives them in time or ahead of time, in full measure, for he is NOT likely to ask for them himself “. Similarly the population falling under the chronological age groups of BRAHMCHARYA (ब्रह्मचर्य आश्रम) and SANYAS ASHRAMS (सन्यास आश्रम) was again the responsibility of society for their boarding, lodging, requirements of academic and training pursuits and comforts. This was catered for the simple and down to earth reasons. A student (ब्रह्मचारी) was being groomed for the needs of society only, so that he turns out to be a useful member and responds to his obligations towards society willfully. A SANYASI (सन्यासी) had put on the mantle of a BRAHMAN (ब्राह्मण) a professional teacher and was engaged in pouring his entire accumulated experience for each and everyone without any bias or selfish interest. One of the methods for achieving this end was to keep on moving from one institution of learning to another. In understanding the concept of VARN (वर्ण) nobody ever compromised the understanding that an individual was in all the four roles at any stage of his life with inbuilt capabilities of administration. For example an individual is BRAHMAN (ब्राह्मण) when he is teaching his children or telling the people around whatever he knows or reading a book or collecting some information or is in the process of learning. .The same person is a KSHATRIYA (क्षत्रिय) when he is trying to protect himself, his kiths and kins or the unknown people from hostile environment. It might as well be helping in calamities. He is a VAISHYA (वैश्य) when he is acquiring wealth and planning to increase his resources and the same person is a SHUDRA (शूद्र) when he is trying to make himself and others comfortable by providing his expertise and skills of maintenance and production. This VARN (वर्ण) system was never to be understood as a water tight compartmentalization of a bluff called Caste System. Is caste system really a degenerated form of VEDIC VARNASHRAM System? Let’s find out.

PERTINENT QUESTIONS AND THE MECHANICS OF BLUFF

It is evident from above that in India, only the term (धर्म) Religion not its purport encompassing Duties was lifted from ‘How to apply’ discussions of Vedas. The concept of Vedic Duties (व्यवहारिक नैतिकता) enshrined in VARN and ASHRAM was replaced by the religious duties meaning Ethics (धार्मिक नैतिकता) of a particular religion for a common man. Then it was stuffed with terms found in ‘What to know’ and ‘How to know’. From ‘What to know’ the terms ATM (आत्म) and BRAHM (ब्रह्म) were lifted from Vedic ATM JYAN (आत्मज्ञान) and BRAHM JYAN (ब्रह्म ज्ञान) respectively and mutilated into ATMA (आत्मा) i.e. the SOUL and BRAHMA (ब्रह्मा) i.e. the GOD to give shape to a common man’s concept of SOUL and GOD under religion. The entire concept of experimentation from ‘How to know’ i.e. YAJYA (यज्ञ) was converted into YAJYA KARM (यज्ञ कर्म) which got degenerated into meaningless RITUALS (कर्मकांड) But this simplistic explanation of how the non-existent concepts can be made to exist; can also give birth to certain pertinent looking questions. That is what the mischievous beauty of ‘bluff’ is. We have been tuned to accept bluff as excellent reason and on confrontation of failure, move from one bluff to another. How has it happened in this case of religion?

For that let me first take the two sets of pertinent looking questions.

FIRST SET
· Is RELIGION really a degenerated form of Vedic Dharm?
· Is SOUL really a degenerated form of Vedic Atm Jyan?
· Is the concept of RITUALS really a degenerated form of Vedic Yajya?
· Is GOD really a degenerated form of Vedic Brahm?
· Is ETHICS really a degenerated form of Vedic Dharm?

Now sample another set of pertinent looking questions:

SECOND SET
· Is CASTE SYSTEM really a degenerated form of some Vedic Varnashram System?
· Is UNTOUCHABILITY really a degenerated form of some Vedic classification of human society?
· Was practice of or / is glorification of SATI system (voluntary / forced immolation by the widow) really a degenerated form of some Vedic Dharm?
· Is FORCIBLE SECLUSION and observance of INHUMAN PRACTICES by a widow really a degeneration of some Vedic Dharm?
· Is DOWRY SYSTEM and the formalities connected with it in observance of some duties by the girl’s kiths and kins really a degenerated form of some Vedic Dharm?
· Is CLASSIFICATION of relationships as higher or lower in hierarchy (like ‘gainer’ or ‘loser’) really a degenerated form of some Vedic Dharm?
· Is DESIRE FOR A SON as an offspring really a degenerated form of some Vedic mandate covered under Dharm of a son?
· Is practice of ELIMINATING GIRL CHILD really a degenerated form of some Vedic Dharm?
· Is labeling a girl child as SOMEBODY ELSE'S PROPERTY (PARAYA DHAN) really a degenerated form of some Vedic Dharm?
· Is MALTREATING a girl child because she is PARAYA DHAN really a degenerated form of some Vedic dictum?
· Is practice of CHILD MARRIAGE and then SECOND MARRIAGE (GAUNA) really a degenerated form of some Vedic mandate?
· Is practice of SHRADH / TARPAN funeral feasts really a degenerated form of some sacred duty Dharm of Vedas?
· Is BEGGING INDUSTRY or THUGEE practice of William Bentinck’s period / or its modern day version DAAN a practice of filling the coffers of religion, really a degenerated version of some factually exalted and glorified mandate of charity in Vedas?
The list can be unending. The answers to the second set of questions will differ from die-hards to rationalists. The die-hards will justify each and every action (highlighted in bold letters) howsoever obnoxious and inhuman it might be with the pretext of sanctity of Vedas as a matter of religious Ethics. Majority of these die-hards will go into hibernation the moment the authority of law is unleashed and the fear of punishment is made to appear real to them. It happens because they were the products of the State and its instruments only at some point of time in history. They will reemerge the moment State weakens. They are actually the first line of ‘bluffers’. The rationalists on the other hand immediately see the unfavourable aspects of the highlighted actions but still justify their newly concocted versions again as a matter of religious Ethics. They see in part a degeneration of that Vedic value system which they had interpreted and presumed to be correct. They refuse to accept any other opinion. Their arguments run like this: “Actually it meant this in Vedas; it was introduced for this and that reason etc”. And these new meanings and new reasons are so innumerable that we get enmeshed into a situation which can be best described as ‘bluff after a bluff’. They form the second line of ‘bluffers’-a kind of neo die-hards and they immediately get the blessings and protection from the state and society. In course of time they become die-hards. That is what the mechanics of bluff is: to make a non-existent thing exist till it meets failure and then create a new one. Now come to the answers to the first set of questions. Both the die-hards and neo die-hards or so called rationalists will immediately vouch for the highlighted words i.e. Religion, God, Soul, Rituals and Ethics as understood by a common man or as he has been indoctrinated to understand as highly laudable concepts existing in Vedas. Our malaise is so deep rooted that we cannot even see the obvious symptoms of a sick mind as reflected in the highlighted words of above mentioned SECOND SET of questions and we try to justify them as sanctioned by Vedas. It is nothing short of Talibanisation. We refuse to accept that such obnoxious behavior patterns cannot be the part of Vedic thought from any imagination. So how can we accept that such holy looking words viz religion, God, soul, rituals and ethics cannot be the part of Vedic thought? Yes- all highlighted words of the first and second set of questions enumerated above are non-existent in Vedas and against the spirit of very KNOWLEDGE these books set to profess. We have experimented with bluffs only in calling and believing it to be Vedic knowledge. And that’s how humanity will keep on behaving till it reaches the next stage i.e. the stage of enlightenment. This is the prediction of Vedic knowledge. In this prediction also we have bluffed ourselves by substituting words like destiny, fate and God’s will etc. Actually we have never given even a fair trial to any Vedic thought. Now just take the example of so called and unfavorably debated Vedic Varnashram System. Has it really been discussed as a system in Vedas? The concept of VARN has been discussed in RIGVED under PURUSH SUKT and the concept of ASHRAM has been discussed in different chapters of YAJURVED. We join the two terms together, call it VARNASHRAM, face the music of our bluff and malign it as a degenerated version of Vedic thought? The first pre-requisite of this entire Vedic edifice is acceptance by the state and society a responsibility to provide free education to all its subjects during BRAHMCHARYA ASHRAM (ब्रह्मचर्य आश्रम). We have converted education into a profit generating industry for a few and hope that a product of this industry will do something beneficial for that society which had initiated him into the art of fleecing! The state is a party to this exploitation as it provides protection and incentives to those who are engaged in making education a noble industry! The second pre-requisite for this Vedic concept is acceptance by the state a responsibility to look after the entire interests of those who have chosen at the behest of the State the profession (VARN) of (BRAHMAN) i.e. teaching related aspects and the profession of (KSHATRIYA) i.e. soldiering and related aspects. Now just have a look at the ground realities today. About the status of a teacher and a soldier lesser said the better. Contrary to Vedic thought of providing and maintaining SPECIAL EDUCATION ZONES i.e. the BRAHMCHARYA ASHRAM the state pursues zealously the policies of creating SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONES and considers it a panacea and provides all enticing facilities to a selected few only engaged in VAISHYA and SHUDRA duties forgetting completely that a corporate primary concern is filling its own coffers and never an activity which caters for the benefit of all and the prosperity for all. On failure we are left wailing only or move to another bluff. In the next posting I shall discuss the mechanics of how a common man has been duped to have faith in GOD of VEDAS which does not exist at all in VEDAS under the TITLE- THE SECOND BLUFF-RELIGION (continued)