Shvoong Home
>
Books
>
Back to the Vedas Summary
.
>
Back to the Vedas
Summary rating: 5 stars
(1 Ratings)
Visits : 192
Comments : 0
words : 900
Book Review by:
agniketu
Author :
sages
Published: November 27, 2006
Back to the VedasDid you ever see Star Trek? On Sundays, it was the one
reason to get out of bed early-ish
. Take off on a mission to explore the galaxy and make contact with alien beings, seemed just the right recipe to creep into a Sunday. Not so, for three sisters who took a five-minute walk to the next block from their home, to attend Sunday school, quite reluctantly, I may add. Well, not exactly Sunday school, but Baal Vihar
classes run by the Chinmaya Mission. The sounds of the star ship, Enterprise, would accompany the three all the way to class. Once in class, it would take some time to actually land on terra firma. At nine, the youngest of the three, even the rest of the class would go in a semi-conscious state. They chanted shloks
, told stories, had discussions, but, the only thing I understood, at the time, was the yum Prasad
that we received at the end. It also signalled the fact that if we walked home real quick, we would reach in time for ‘Different Strokes’. It took another nine years to realize that these classes were the beginning of another, more exciting exploration, to make contact with one’s own being. One shlok
stood out for three reasons. It was simple, so was easy to chant; it had three words that I could understand all by myself and the third reason was more of a question, ‘what was the connection between these words?’The three words were Light,
Death
and Peace. The shlok:Om
Asato ma Sadgamaya; Lead us from untruth to the truth;
Tamaso ma Jyotirgamaya;
meaning: from darkness to light;
Mrityorma Amritam gamaya. from death to immortality.
Aum Shantih, Shantih, Shantih! Aum Peace, Peace, Peace!
I had to find out more.In ancient times, there flowed the
river
Sindhu
, better
known
as Indus. By the river, there lived a group of people known as the Aryans. The people across the river called it the Hindu
and called the people by the river, Hindus
. Much later (in a world fond of ‘isms’), their Way of Life became known as ‘Hinduism’
. The Aryans knew it as Manav Dharm
or ‘
Religion
of Man’. Another name was Sanatan Dharm
or Eternal Religion
, a religion founded on eternal truths based on questions such as these: where did the universe come from and how? Is there a Creator, what is she/he like? What is the relationship between the Creator and us, the created, if any? What happens to us when we die? Do we exist after our death? Did we exist before our birth? What is our purpose on this earth? Great Seers have pondered on these questions and, the basis of Hinduism
today
, could be considered as the eternal and super sensuous truths discovered by them. It is the essence of the Vedas and is what makes it truly timeless. It is as relevant today as it was thousands of years ago. In true Vedic spirit, Hinduism is not a religion in the Western sense of the word; it is a system of spiritual development, covering all aspects of life as aids to self
-realization.In the oldest and the most authentic of Vedic texts, the Rig Ved and the Yajur Ved, it is said that the Aryans enjoyed a high standard of material comfort. Yet, they spoke of
heaven
and there is practically no mention of
hell
. Today, we have access to a higher level of material comfort and are more familiar with ‘hell’ than we are with ‘heaven’. We seem to need the fear of hell to be able to see the possibility of a heaven. We are of the concept that heaven must be a place away from this earth
! They talk of karma, without being fatalistic. The belief that our present actions create our future, encourages taking complete responsibility of our own
actions and inaction, thus, determining what becomes of us. Good
was encouraged over the pleasant,
as what seems pleasant may not always be good. Use, not abuse of the body was inculcated. Shariramadyam khalu dharmasadhanam
meaning the body is the primary instrument to practice religion or dharma. It is considered the temple of the soul/higher self/God. Physical austerities were encouraged to the extent that it strengthens the mind. The renowned sage Pathanjali founded the yoga
that has gained so much ground today. Asans
and Pranayam
are a part of Raj Yog, which is a part of Pathanjali’s Yog Sutras. This is most suited for those with a tendency to explore, know and gain absolute control over one’s mind, by first mastering one’s body. To keep in balance is fundamental, whether physical or mental. Sarvam Atyanta Garitam
or too much of anything is bad is
also reflected in the words of Mark Twain,
“Everything in
moderation
, including
moderation
”.
More reviews about the Back to the Vedas
Bibliography
Back to the Vedas
by
sages
various
1900
Please Rate this abstract :
1
2
3
4
5
Please Rate this abstract :
1
2
3
4
5
Thank you for your rating
>
Tags
Vedas
Hinduism
Hindu
Light
Moderation
Shantih
Peace
Words
Tag this abstract
Comments & Reviews about Back to the Vedas
Add your comment
More summaries by agniketu
all the worlds a stage
More
------
Translate
Write
Print
Send
People who read this abstract also read:
Understanding Human
23 Minutes in Hell
Gateway To Heaven
HEAVEN and HELL
TERRORISM A POLITICAL WEAPON
A WANDERER IN THE SPIRIT LANDS
Build Your Windows Home Server
Sales Secrets
Sell Bennefits not features
Recent Shvoongers
More in Books
The summoner
Servant of the bones
Everyday Use
The Dangerous Book for Boys
William Shakespeare (1564-1616) -Biography
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Most Popular
.
.
Sign up
About
Sign In
Email
Password
Sign In
Summarize Human Knowledge on Shvoong
›
Join us!
«
»
Books
Internet & Technology
Movies
Science
Arts & Humanities
Business & Economy
Law & Politics
Social Sciences
Medicine & Health
Newspapers
Write now
Popular Subjects:
Archeology
Labor Law
Mystery & Thrillers
Short Stories & Novellas
Mystery & Thrillers
New on Shvoong
Languages |
▼
ภาษาไทย
čeština
Dansk
Deutsch
English
Español
Français
Indonesia
Italiano
Magyar
Melayu
Nederlands
Norsk
polski
Português
Română
suomi
Svenska
Tiếng Việt
Türkçe
Ελληνικά
Български
русский
Српски
Узбек тили
עברית
عربي
فارسي
हिंदी
ქართული
한국어
日本語
简体中文
繁體中文
Summarizer
Write
Blog (New!)
Forum
Contact us
Tags
Advertise with us
Link to us
User agreement
Contact us
Site map
Affiliates
About
Blog (New!)