The principle,shadango vedodhyeyojneyascha makes it mandatory for the student to learn the shadangas and the Vedas, by knowing their meanings. The shadangasaccord the pride of place to shiksha, which denotes the art of pronunciation. The precept, shiksha ghrananthu vedasyaindicates that the nose is the organ responsible for pronunciation. The breathing process transpires through the nasal cavities.
Maharishi Panini had declared, punarvyakthi karishyami vacha uccharane vidhim. This relates to the pronunciation of words in the Vedas. However, mere knowledge of shiksha does not help the practitioner to understand the meaning of the words. In order to acquire comprehensive knowledge of the Vedas, the practitioner must have command over grammar, niruktha and other sciences.
It is an established fact that a scholar is a person who has mastery over the different aspects of the Vedas. The sikshasastra teaches about the original and transformed versions of the Vedic principles.
Yo jatamatravid brahma sandijno vishnuruchyathe|
Eswara sarvasandhijna – ithye varshibhi reerithaha||
The person who has mastered the jata lessons attains the Brahmatwa. He who has knowledge of the gunavridhi and the combined forms of yana, desasandhis attains the Vishnutwa. Finally, the individual who has acquired comprehensive knowledge about the Vedas, in their entirety, attains Eswaratwa.
The Maharishis Vyasa and Koundinya provided the lessons, commencing from jata to the Ghanaor end of the transformed versions of the root principles.
Jata mala sikha rekha dhwajo dando radho ghanaha|
Ashtau vikruthayaha prokthaha kramapurva maneeshibhi||
The Vedas are fortified by eight transformations, namely, jata, mala, shika, rekha, dwaja, danda, radha, and Ghana. Krama purva implies that the student should first read about the original form of the words. As such, the root forms of the words have to be considered as the original words from the Vedas.
Samhitha prakruthihi proktha padsyaiva kramasyathu|
Jatayaha prakrithi sthyaisha evam nithyam nibodhatha||
The samhitha is the original form of the pada and krama words and the kramapatha is the root form of the jatapatha. At present, the first transformation jata and the eighth transformed version Ghana are taught in the study of the Vedas. The remaining six versions are not given much importance and are not in vogue.
The ghanapata plays a significant role in the vikruthilessons and the individual who masters this is designated a Ghanapati. Such a person is honoured. The Maharishi Koundinya has heaped praises on the ghanapata in his monumental work, the sikshagrandha.
The Prominence of Ghanapata
The Brahmins who regularly read the transformations from jata to Ghanasecure such great power that they can cleanse the people around them and absolve them of their sins. An individual who reads these, even once, becomes the embodiment of the Holy Trinity.
The reading of the ghanapata provides instant results, and destroys the accumulated sins of a millions births. Those who study the ghanapata receive the benefit of donating a thousand cows. The individual who respects and worships the persons who have read the ghanapata receive excellent outcomes. Moreover, such persons attain the plane of Brahma and enjoy the bliss in that plane. The reading and hearing of the ghanapatabestows good health and increases longevity. Those who worship the masters of ghanapatabecome the recipients of every type of fortune and prosperity.
Some of these declarations may seem to be exaggerations, and the reader may assume these to be mere praise or even sycophancy. The underlying objective is to encourage the study of the Vedas, and to this end such descriptions are warranted. They have a psychological effect on the people and drawthem towards the study of the Vedas. Moreover, such endeavours fortify the availability of Vedic knowledge for the future generations. Every Vedic letter provides the effect of chanting the name of Lord Hari. The vikruthi versions pacify the mind and promote concentration. They eliminate the vacillation of the mind and install stability. As an end result, the practitioner learns the meaning of the mantras. There are several sentences in the Vedas that encourage people to acquire Vedic knowledge.
The study of the Vedas provides perfect health even to the dying patients. Some sentences, even declare that the dead will be resurrected. Due to the chanting of the Vedas, rains fall regularly, and the barren bear childless. These are some of the outcomes, narrated in the Vedas. The meemamsa sastra attempts to synchronise and integrate such sentences.
In order to gain the fruits of activities, several conditions have to be satisfied. Some of these are mental purity, concentration, clarity in utterance, purity of the material used in the activities, and a clean environment at the place where these activities are conducted. For instance, newly married couples do not have children, immediately. If they perform good deeds, they will have good children, who will grow up into good citizens. This is an exaggeration. However, such antitheses are employed, so as to encourage married couples to perform good deeds. The benefits mentioned have to be understood from this perspective, and not with the intention of finding fault.
If all the contributing factors are satisfied, then the results will of a certainty be realised. Belief is crucial and it is the greatest feature. Sri Padmapadacharya had believed in the capacity of his Guru, and this enabled him to walk on water.
As such, belief plays an important role in every issue. The good deeds that are performed with a strong belief and a pure mind will definitely provide the desired outcome. The Vedichymns state that reading and listening provide the same merit. It is mentioned in the epics that only the activity of listening has result. However, the interpretations of Vedic sentences served to establish that those who read and hear the Vedas with the utmost commitment and devotion, obtain the desired outcome. The Maharishis destroy the sins of such people. As such, the reading and hearing of the Veda parts, like the Samhitha, Pada krama, jata, Ghana, and brahmanaranya provide excellent results.
Similarly, reading the Upanishads provides great benefits. The sthoba words in the Samagana do not have any particular meaning. However, they are read in every yajna because they provide virtuous results. The only basis for these traditions is the teachings of the maharishis. The standard of any particular scripture is the presiding maharishi of that particular tradition to which the scripture belongs. Maharishi Vyali had mastered the Rigveda and maharishi Kaundinya the yajurveda. They obtained divine results. These Maharishis have impressed upon us that similar results can be procured by adhering to the texts established by them, in those branches. Another factor is the power of the past karmas of the practitioner. It ensures results and the stronger the past karmas, the faster the results.
Some aspirants may obtain immediate results while others may have to struggle for years. The maharishis had performed centuries of tapas, and only then they received divine results. Thus, they are the only witnesses for us.
The knowledge of exclamation and the importance of sruthi
The Maharishis, like Vyasa, Panini, and Kaundinya established the importance of the Vedas. However, there is no standard regarding the apaurusha scriptures, other than listening. This is because the Vedas are not in a written form. They are passed on from generation to generation, only through listening. In this context, the siksha texts lose their credibility and become unsupported.
The Taittareeya Upanishad states:
siksham vyakhyasyamaha| varna swaraha| matra balam| sama santhanaha| ithyuktha sikshadhyaha|
It means the books that contain swara and letters are the books that are written based on hearing their sound. These texts deal with the pronunciation; describe the letters, swaras of different types, the pause periods, such as longer pause and shorter pause, the effort; and the procedures to be adopted in pronunciation.
The siksha is the instruction of the subject, which is studied by the learner. In this manner, the Taittareeya Upanishad defined the process of siksha. The maharishis followed this system and wrote books on this subject.
According to the Vedas, the emergence of the science of grammar is as follows. In the beginning the Vedic sounds were in a single tone, like the sound of the ocean. The deities requested Indra to divide this single sound into different sounds. Indra acquiesced and created grammar through the application of prakruthi – prathyaya.
Indra established a brief account of the grammar. Subsequently, the maharishis Panini, Katyayana, and Patanjali developed an elaborate grammar in the form of the sutravarthika commentary. From this it can be surmised that the other scriptures had also developed in this manner. All of these were initially formulated in the sruthi based form. They were first heard and later compiled into scriptures.
Viloma
The jata pata contains two types of lessons, namely the anuloma and the viloma. Anulomaindicates samhitha, while Viloma is the opposite of anuloma. Should anyone read the lessons in the reverse order? Does reverse reading result in a different meaning? Whether such a system is acceptable under the sastra principles?
In the Vedas, the viloma comes in several places. In Pravargya yaga, the mantra divida imam yajnam will be chanted in the regular way and chanted in the reverse order, as yajnam imam divida. The brahmana sentence of this mantra states that the chant of this mantra in regular order promotes the performer of the yaga to Heaven. To denote this, the mantra must be chanted in the reverse order. As such, the viloma chant does not contradict the regular chant.
In the same chapter, another anuloma lesson contains a mantra prudhivi samit. It is chanted in the regular order as antariksha samit and dyau samit. This mantra is also stated in the reverse order, namely as dyau samit, antariksha samit, and prudivi samit.
It is to be understood that in the homas, the anuloma and viloma mantras invoke the deities. The performer of the homawill receive longevity, radiance, and other fortunes. As such, both the anuloma and viloma systems provide the same benefit. This proves that the sastras accept the viloma system.
During the Satra-yaga, the Abhiplava shadaha yaga is to be performed for six days. In the first three days of the yaga, the yajnas of jyothishtoma, goshtoma, and ayushtoma have to be performed in accordance with the anuloma system. During the last three days, these yajnas have to be performed in the reverse order, namely, ayushtoma, goshtoma, and jyothishtoma. If these three yagas are performed in one day, then the six-day kratu is deemed to have been completed.
The sruthi states that the anuloma in the beginning and the viloma in the end are in the jyothi sabda. As such, the yaga is called ubhayathojyothi. The performer of this yaga will remain in Heaven, till such time as his virtue lasts. His sojourn at that place is with respect and devoid of insults.
The Vilomasystem in the Yagas
In the one-year long Satra yaga, the Soma juice is collected in the atigrahya pots. During the collection of the juice, mantras have to be chanted in anuloma and viloma cycles. The period of six monthsis termed as masashatkam. There are two masashatkas in a year.
The day between the first masashatkam and the second masashatkam is called vishuvatavas. The three days that precede the vishuvat day are collectively called parassama and the three days that follow it are called arvaksama.
In the first three days the anuloma system has to be followed. The Soma juice has to be collected in the Agneya, Indra, and Souryaatigrahya pots. The mantras during this time have to be chanted in the anuloma system.
During the three days that follow the vishuvat day, the Soma rasa has to be collected in viloma system inthe Sourya, Indra, and Agneya pots. The mantras at that time are chanted in viloma system.
On the vishuvat day, both systems are followed to collect the soma rasa first in anuloma and then in the vilomasystems.
The person who performs the yaga in this manner will win the three worlds, namely earth, sky, and Heaven. He will experience all sorts of luxuries in these three worlds. After his virtue is completely exhausted, he will come back to the earth in the viloma system, i.e, from Heaven to space and then to earth.
In the pitrumedhaprapathaka, the mantras are chanted in anuloma and viloma orders. If there are any mistakes in the atrijya procedures, then expiatory homas with the dashahotru mantra, have to performed. In the viloma system, the dasahotru mantras are commenced with the term samadhwaryuhu, which is the last word. The mantras are concluded with the first word chittisruk. In this system, the homa has to be done with every sentence. As such, the pratiloma system is considered as the annexure to the homa.
With regard to the rashtrabru ddhoma the sastra suggested to perform some applications in the prathiloma order. For example, abhicharata pratiloma hothavya.
Thus, the pratiloma order is authorised by the sastras. The examples are the dasahotru mantras and the gayatrimantra. These mantras eliminate the sins arising from the mistakes or wrongdoings in the performance of homas. However, the viloma mantras belonging to the group from jata to Ghana provide attainment of the Brahma plane.
The Taittareeya Upanishad describes the sequence in creation, by means of the example of the viloma mantra. The Subala Upanishad quotes the viloma mantra prudhivyapsu praleeyate apastejasi, in order to indicate the end of the world or the order of destruction of creation.
In the Gayatrijapa, the mantra is chanted in the anuloma order starting with bhurbhuva suvaha and then the mantras of vyahruti. It ends with the words suva rbhuva rbhoo in viloma order.
Moreover, in the jata lesson, the second word in the anuloma is to be joined with the vilomamantra. This system is also used in the Vedas. Although the riks in the shodasisastra are in different prosodies, they have to be applied with the chandas to form the riks of anushtupchandas. The reason for this rule is that the anustup will be in the form of speech, and the speech producing organ is the greatest among all the sense organs. Hence, the performer has to transform the riks into anustup chandas based mantras. This helps him to achieve his desired results.
In viharana system, a rik of the shodasi sastra has 28 letters, another rik has 38 letters, and yet another rik has 30 letters in it. All these riks have to be changed into anushtup chandas sentences.
The principle involved is that of the dwathrimsa daksharanushtup. The anushtup chandas has 32 letters. If 32 letters out of 38 letters in the rikare transformed into anushtup chandas, 6 letters will remain. The sruti states that these 6 letters indicate the six seasons, and that the performer will have an abundance of everything in all the six seasons.
If 4 letters from these 6 letters are joined with the 28-lettered first rik, then the resulting rik will be anushtup chandas rik. The 4 letters indicate the quadrupeds, and the performer will possess a large number of cattle.
If 4 letters are aspirated from the 6 letters, 2 letters will remain. If these letters are joined with the third rik, then it becomes an anushtup chandas rik. These 2 letters indicate bipeds, and the performer will have a large number of friends, relatives, and servants. In this manner, the three rikscontain the anushtup chandas in them.
Word orders – Sruthi standards
The samhitha part is long established in the Vedas. It has not been created by man. The Maharishis like Atreya established the order of words. The samhitha is the root form of such word order. The kramapatha is the original form of the jata patha.
The Aithareya Aranyaka states that prudhivyayathanam nirbhujam divyayathanam prathrunnam antharikshayathana mubhaya mantharena. According to Sayanacharya, nirbhujadenotes the samhitha. It has to be meditated upon in the form of the earth. The prathrunna indicates the pada krama. It has to be assumed as the reflection of the Heaven.
Ubhayamantharena means krama patha. It is to be imagined as the form of the space. The krama patha is the original form of the jata lesson.
Jatadi knowledge – removal of the doubts
The group of lessons starting from jata toGhana are the transformations of the original forms. There is nothing wrong in teaching the viloma order. The teaching of changed forms like jata and others is not prohibited in the Vedas, and it is incorrect to impose such intentional prohibition on teaching changed versions. It is also wrong to interpret the opposite meaning of jata lessons, in order to disprove them. The pronunciation and knowledge of meanings are not mandatory for learning the siksha sastra. The reading and listening to the Vedic words provide benefits to the people.
Maharishi declared issues
The present day scholars and critics write reviews about various books and their contents. They express doubts, whether the details in those books had been provided by the original authors or whether some of the particulars had been appended at a later date by other writers. Faith and belief are the only standards that can prevail in this controversy. This is also applicable to the knowledge and issues discussed in the Vedas. The Vedas have stood the test of timeand have been in existence from millennia. They were transmitted from generation to generation. Humans, with their limited knowledge and mental outlook, cannot recognise the grandeour and lofty features of the Vedas. Moreover, man has a limited memory, and there are quite a few number of people, who find it difficult to recall what had transpired the previous day.
Under these circumstances, it is difficult to prove the issues in the Vedas, which had taken place thousands of years ago. The only available standards are the teachings of our ancestors. We do not have any resources to disprove the Vedas. The entire world operates on the basis of faith and belief. This feature is applicable to the Vedic activities, mantras and the reading of the Vedas. Even governments, communities, and families function on the concept of mutual belief.
It is unnecessary to determine the name of the maharishi who had written the book. Maharishi Vyasa had authored Ashtadasa Puranas, Maha Bharath, Bhagavatham, and Brahma Sutras. We cannot decide whether he had written the Viloma principles, on the basis of the style of writing. Readers have to retrieve the knowledge in the book instead of wasting time to find out the name of the author. In general, the notes of the author, regarding the issues raised in a book are taken into consideration, whiledeciding upon the objective of the book. The viloma patham is established by maharishis and is to be read as such.
The study of the lessons fom Jata to Ghana is a difficult task. The scholars who master these topics are honoured as Ghanapatis. Offering respect and honour to such great Ghanapatis provides excellent results to the offerors. People who listen to the mantras will also receive outstanding benefits.