Dear Sri Tks,
ref your post #68
Could you please provide your explanation for the 2 hymns quoted above that can stand the scrutiny of reasoning and understanding?
thanks
As I explained in post #68, p
roper interpretations for first verse will require something similar to Sayana's commentaries which I dont have access to. I do not find anything unusual to invest time in these verses to find out more and I do not want to spend the time of my teachers on this either.
Though I am not answering your question about providing explanation of these specific verses, let me respond to what I see are assumptions inherent in the request.
1. Often it is not possible to get the meaning of verses by simple translation
2. Without complete understanding of the context of what the subject matter is about it is not possible to get the right interpretation of many verses. Commentaries do help since the author may have digested the overall meaning before presenting the interpretation. Even that is not sufficient
3. Most verses are not that significant for our knowledge and growth
4. There is a need for a qualified teacher without which it is not possible to get the interpretation.
I am saying all this from my limited personal experience in my attempts to learn.
Forum like this can enable one to get curious and interested in learning but cannot provide a medium of learning in my view. That is why I do not provide limited responses to even serious questions.
It is easy to find , especially in forums both electronic and in real life , people who just put forward whatever they have made up. There are all kinds of superstitions that some justify using wrong interpretations of Vedic verses which are taken out of context. For most part such people are harmless to society in my view.
However there are some that cause harm by their lack of context, proper infrastructure and a qualified teacher. They may point out worst things with literal translations supported by words of other ignorant people.
There are about 15 or so universities in USA that offers PhD in Hinduism research.
University of Chicago is one of those. They have given PhDs to people who researched and provided interpretations that Swami Ramakrishna Paramahamsa was a homosexual pedophile. Such PhD students actually visit India and find some people who are ready to put down Hindu religious icons, provide literal translations of symbolism and say the most vile things about Hindu deities. The so called research in some of the areas have been proven wrong on academic grounds thanks to donations for research by a few people. Here is a
book worth knowing about. These university and their research are well funded and supported by Indians who are more than happy to dish out harmful interpretations with no knowledge. Responses are often inadequate.
My point is that literal translations that are out of context, superstitions that are inappropriately referenced with verses in sacred texts , and use of pseudo-scientific theories (Mantras and vibrations etc) have hurt Hindus, IMO. There are many young Hindus in USA that sign up for classes in Hinduism only to learn the vile things. In about 50+ years there is a possibility that Hindus may be affected in terms of how they are treated since vile ideas coupled with " Hindu hating Hindus" do have consequences.
Anyway, I do not usually engage in literal translations and attempt to provide explanations for verses that are usually taken out of context.
Finally let me make a point about why a qualified teacher is needed to learn this subject matter based on my understanding.
Some verses have the entire knowledge of the subject matter of Upanishads included in just that one verse and only someone that knows the entire Upanishads can correctly explain the context while describing the verse. However for someone to know the whole subject matter, they have to know all the key verses. This is a catch 22 situation and resolved by learning from a teacher who knows the entire subject matter and therefore can interpret the verse from the context of knowing the whole. That person learnt from another teacher who knew the whole teaching.
As you may know, Lord Dakshnamurthy is
symbolically thought to be the first teacher that communicated the full knowledge. (It is the icon I chose for my ID here)
Rather than focus on the verse you asked about, let me suggest another verse that occurs in Bhagavad Gita in Chapter 2 for learning.
Right after Arjuna in the story has a panic attack about killing his teacher, grandfather, and family members Sri Krishna says the following verse whose literal meaning makes no sense, and does not even make sense even with the context of the story.
Yet to explain this correctly and precisely, one would require a teacher who has mastered all of Gita, and all of the key Upanishads. Most books provide a silly translation and then do a stretch to include another vague set of concept etc.
I am providing this example that contain the 'whole' and yet will seem meaningless (by literal translation) and out of context in the conversation between Sri Krishna and Arjuna in the B Gita.
नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सतः |उभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभिः ||२- १६||
Literal Translation:
- For the non-existent, there is no existence
- For the existent, there is no non-existence
- The certainty of these two is seen
- by those who perceive truth