Hiranyakasipu represented the gradual development of material and
intellectual evolution, till the highest point was reached.
Then there was a period of intellectual abuse. The Intellect of man
tried to get a supremacy over the established order of things: Ravana
sought to make Nature subservient to his own purposes. The universe
existed for man, and not man for nature. This was the perverse idea that
guided the people of the Atlantean Continent. The intellectual giants,
maddened by this material grandeur, did not look for any world beyond
the one they lived in. They cared not for Svarga, nor for the sacrifices
that led to Svarga. The flow of evolution, the breath of Ishvara seemed
to stand still for a time as it were. The human will tried to override
the divine will. There was chaos and disorder, which tended to cause
dissolution in the universe. Hence Ravana was a Rakshasa. The Tamasic
Kumbhakarna with his six-monthly sleep was the back ground of Ravana.
The spiritual forces that were called forth to put an end to this state
of things were equal to the occasion. The great Atlantean Continent was
washed away by the sea. The sacred Ganga came rushing forward from the
heights of the Himalayas, and eventually Rama appeared to give a
finishing stroke to the evolutionary work of the time.
Vishvamitra and others had paved the way for the great work undertaken
by Rama. They propounded the Karma Kanda of the Vedas.
Men who knew nothing but the joys and sorrows of this short span of
earthly life, and whose ideas and aspirations were all confined to that
life, made a great advance when they were taught of an existence after
death. When they further knew that life in Svarga was infinitely happier
and far more lasting than what they called life on this earth, they made
the beginning of a really spiritual life. The Vedic Devas are permanent
dwellers in Svarga, and the Vedic Sacrifices establish communion with
them by means of Apurva, a spiritual force generated by the performance
of sacrifices, and life in Svarga becomes prolonged for a very very long
period. People took time to understand this truth, but in time they
accepted the performance of Vedic Sacrifices as the only religion for
man.
There was however a re-action. The intellectual giants, called
Rakshasas, looked down upon Vedic Sacrifices, and they did not care for
any life after death. They were the worst enemies of the Vedic Rishis.
Vishvamitra took the help of Rama in protecting the Rishis in the
peaceful performance of Yajnas.
But people had grown old in their ideas about Vedic sacrifices. The
first seceders were some Kshatriyas. They did not understand why Vedic
Sacrifices should be the monopoly of Brahmanas, and they aspired to the
position acquired by them. The foremost of these Kshatriyas were the
Haihayas and Talajanghas. But they were defeated by Parashurama, who
re-established the supremacy of the Brahmanas.
But a silent revolution was going on, in which the Kshatriyas and
Brahmanas equally took part. King Janaka and Rishi Yajnavalkya gave the
finishing stroke to the Upanishad movement, and side by side with Karma
Kanda grew up the Jnana Kanda of the Vedas. Rama brought the two
divisions of the Vedas into closer union, as he was himself the resting
place of both. And as Vishnu himself, He became the object of Upasana.
The three Paths appeared, that of Karma, Bhakti and Jnana. Vedic
Sacrifices held their own, and a school grew up which accepted these as
the highest Karma which man could perform. Another school, following the
very old teachings of Kapila, dissected the transformable parts in man
and discriminated the same from the non-transformable. A sister school
followed up the teaching with practices in conformity to these, and
taught how to concentrate the mind on the discriminated Atma. Another
school confined itself to the properties of matter and mind, soul and
oversoul, and remained wonder-struck at the superior properties that
divided Jiva from Ishvara. Schools of independent thought grew up. Each
school had its followers. There were differences and dissensions. There
was disunion, self-sufficiency, pride, envy, jealousy and other evil
traits of human character that thinks too much of itself. Every one
followed his own faith and hated the follower of other faiths. This was
the cycle of Shishupala and Dantavakta.
Jarasandha performed Vedic sacrifices, and he put in chains the
Vaishnava kings. There were those who believed in the existence of two
primary causes, (_Dvivid_). Men, like the king of Kashi, prided
themselves on mock wisdom. Religious faiths existed in all possible
shades, and their difference was accentuated by dogmatism and mutual
jealousy. "The Vedas are different, the Smritis are different. He is not
a Muni, who has not some distinctive opinion of his own." This well
known verse related strictly to the period of which we are now speaking.
Shishupala had respect for the Munis. He was essentially a man of the
period.
Sri Krishna taught harmony. He gave the essence of all religions, the
eternal truths that formed the ground work of all faiths. He proclaimed
in the clearest language possible the One underlying the Many, the
eternal Brahman as forming the essence of Jiva and Ishvara. He
particularly emphasised the relations of man, Ishvara and the universe,
and the duties that followed from these relations. Religion became a
science, the law universal, and all teachings found there respective
places in the universal religion which He proclaimed. The Rishis bowed
down their heads before Him. The Upanishads were never explained so
lucidly before. The key-note of all truths and all religions was
unravelled beyond all doubt. Such knowledge could proceed only from
Ishvara Himself. The Rishis recognised Sri Krishna as the Lord. But
Shishupala was slow to believe in this novel revolution. He did not
understand why the Rishis gave the first place to Sri Krishna at the
Rajasuya sacrifice performed by Raja Yudhisthira. The difference formed
a religion with Shishupala. But the age of differences was doomed. The
age of unity, of harmony, of spiritual glory was now to reign in the
Universe. Hundreds and hundreds of years have passed away, but the
scriptures one and all proclaim the glory of the Lord Sri Krishna. What
He has done for our universe, we shall see later on.
Danta-vakra was the Tamasic counterpart of Shishupala.
The Asuras advanced as the Kalpic age advanced. There was no end of
advancement from the standpoint of self. There is no big jump from
individual self to universal self. Though the essential idea of
spirituality is unity and the essential idea of materiality is
diversity, the one idea develops into the other idea, by an ever
widening view of things. Our duties enlarge. Our relations increase. The
range of life widens, till it includes the life in Svarga. Vedic Yajna
is then performed, though from a pure motive of self-advancement. The
advanced self comes very near to the universal self. The performance of
Vedic sacrifices is Asuric in so far as it is selfish, but it minimises
the self of earthly existence, and gives a transitory character to our
worldly joys and sufferings, and it gives the idea of an enlarged self,
of widened existence and of higher duties. The Karma Kanda of the Vedas
therefore opens the door widely to real spiritual life.
This explains why Vishvarupa, an Asura, guided the Devas for some time.
The three heads of Vishvarupa represent the three Vedas. The swallow
head is the Rik, the sparrow head is the Saman, and the Tittiri head is
proverbially the Yajur. This refers to the prevalence of Karma Kanda.
But when better times came, Indra killed Vishva-rupa. The place of
Vishva-rupa was however speedily taken, up by Vritra. And Indra had
recourse to Atharva, the fourth Veda and to Dadhichi, a votary
(represented as the son) of Atharva Veda, the very ideal of
self-sacrifice.
And who is this Vritra? The Vedas say: -- _"Sa iman lokan Avrinot etat
Vritrasya Vritratvam."_
He spread over (_vri_) all these Lokas, this is the Vritraship of
Vritra.
The Bhagavata says: -- "These Lokas are spread over by him in the form
of Tvashtri's Tapas. Hence he is called Vritra." VI. -- 9-xviii.
The invocation of Tvashtri is thus described in the Bhagavata: -- "Rise
up, O Indra -- Shatru, never give up enmity." VI -- 9-xii.
The word _shatru_ means enemy. Tvastri meant to say "he who is to become
the enemy of Indra." But by proper grammatical construction, the
expression means, he of whom Indra is to become the enemy. The
invocation was therefore defective and it produced a contrary result.
Panini points this out as an apt illustration of what bad grammar leads
to.
The Vedas thus speak of the invocation: -- "As he said-_Svaha_! O
Indra-Shatru! rise up -- so Indra became the enemy of Vritra."
Notwithstanding his wisdom, Chitra-ketu was anxious to have a son. He
wept bitterly, when the son was lost. He was a votary of Sankarshana,
who presides over Ahankara or Egoism. So by devotion he became the king
of the Vidyadharas. This selfish devotion, the worship of Gods for the
gratification of selfish aspiration, which is so universal, is Vritra.
Vritra was killed by a weapon made of the bones of Dadhichi the Rishi of
self-sacrifice. We want to kill thee for thy bones, for they will be of
service to the universe, so said the Devas. And Dadhichi felt the height
of pleasure in giving himself completely up, that the universe might
prosper.
We are told that the fight with Vritra took place in the Vaivasvata
Manvantara. The readers will easily understand why this is so.
The fight between the Devas and the Asuras is only a counterpart of
struggles on our earth between the forces of materiality and
spirituality. With the appearance of Lord Krishna, the ascendancy of the
Asuras is virtually over, and however self-seeking we may be by our
nature, we bow down before the ideal of unselfishness, of One Life
pervading all beings, so prominently held before us by that greatest of
all Avataras, and the circle of those that follow this ideal is daily
increasing.
But why is Atharva Veda spoken of as the Veda of unselfishness? The
popular idea about that Veda is quite the contrary.
People resort to it for Tantric malpractices. The Vajra or thunderbolt
is an electric current, which in the hands of Indra has the power of
spiritualisation. The Asuras dread the subtle forces of nature which
reach them even in the regions of Patala. Who knows what purpose the
electric discharges serve in the economy of nature? Who knows of the
subtler currents of spiritual forces that silently bring about the
grandest revolutions in nature? Atharva Veda inculcates an intimate
acquaintance with the subtle forces of nature. It opens the door alike
to White as well as Black Magic. But at the present day, the Black Magic
only survives, making the Atharva a name of opprobrium and reproach.
Marut is Vayu. The Maruts are forms of Pranic energy. They are 49 in
number, corresponding to the 49 forms of Agni. These 49 forms include
all sorts of Pranic energy in the spiritual, intellectual and material
planes. As the whole process of evolution is dependent on life
activities, and as life itself is essentially divine, the Maruts are the
companions of Indra. As by life, we understand individual life as
imprisoned in Jivic centres, the Maruts are by birth Daityas.
We have lingered so long over the Daityas. The Danavas are also called
Asuras, but they are essentially different from the Daityas. Every
individual has got two aspects -- Prakritic and Purushic. The Purusha
aspect in him is limited by the individual Prakriti. The individual
limitation appertains to the Daityas. The Prakritic element in man is
Danavic. The chief Danava, Maya, is an aspect of Maya. Maya is a great
magician, as the essence of Prakriti is illusion. Duryodhana and his
brothers could not discriminate between the illusory aspect of the
assembly-ground prepared by Maya. To the Pandavas, the followers of Sri
Krishna, there was no illusion. The Danavas lead men away from
spirituality, so much so that they may be estranged completely from
their spiritual nature. These dark forces in nature have no redeeming
feature in them. Fortunately for the history of the universe, we do not
hear much of them.