Rig Vedic Civilization Chapter 3: Terminologies of Vedas (Second portion)

In my previous article, I have shared definitions of few Terminologies related to Vedic Parampara. In this article, I will share more such terms that are needed to understand the core ideas of Vedas. So, let's begins...

1. Bhagavan:- In simple English translation people use the word "God" to refer to the meaning of the word Bhagavan. But, I can assure you that Bhagavan doesn't mean God. First, I'm going to describe the definition of the word God. So, the word God means as per the Oxford Dictionary...

1. (in Christianity and other monotheistic religions) the creator and ruler of the universe and source of all moral authority; the supreme being.
2. (in certain other religions) a superhuman being or spirit worshipped as having power over nature or human fortunes; a deity.

Now, I'm going to describe the meaning of the word Bhagavan. Which is as follows...

उत्पत्तिं प्रलयं चैव भूतानामागतिं गतिम् |

वेत्तिं विद्यामविद्यां च स वाच्यो भगवानिति ||

Pronunciation:- Outpattim Pralayam chaba Bhutanamagating Gatim| Baytim Vidyamvidyam cha sa Baachou Bhagavaniti||

Translation:- That is or he is Bhagavan who or which has the wisdom about the manifestation and transformation of the status of all living and non-living entities of this Cosmos from Creation to Annihilation and also possesses the wisdom of Vidya and Avidya.

Interpretation:- This sloka is present in the Visnu Puran (6.5.78). In this sloka speaker identifying Bhagavan as an entity that is beyond the impact of Birth or Death or in other words beyond the Creation and Annihilation process and because that entity is beyond these two events so it automatically goes beyond the in-between transformation of these two events which can be seen in everything that exists within this Cosmic Existence. So, the first line of this sloka says two things. One is every living entities and Non-living entities of this Cosmos must go through the process of Transformation and the second thing is that this process always follows the clockwise direction means it would always go from Creation to Annihilation but the entity Bhagavan is beyond all these phenomena. In the second line, Speaker says that this entity Bhagavan also possesses two things one is Vidya and another one is Avidya. This sloka enlightens us that the entity Bhagavan neither a living entity nor a non-living entity but it possesses two opposite concepts Vidya and Avidya. So, as per this sloka the two definitions of the word God collapse in front of the meaning of the word Bhagavan.

Moving on to the next definition of the word Bhagavan which is also written in the Visnu Purana (6.5.47). That is...

aiśvaryasya samagrasya vīryasya yaśasaḥ śriyaḥ |

jñāna-vairāgyayoś caiva ṣaṇṇāṁ bhagam itīṅganā ||

Translation:- All riches, all strength, all influence, all wisdom, all beauty, all renunciation these are the six opulences.

Interpretation:- The word "Bhagavan" has constituted by the confluence of two words. First, one is "Bhag" which means "Special Opulence" and the second one is "Van" which means "Ultimate possessor of" or "King of" or "Ruler of" etc. This word "Van" falls into the list of Indeclinable Words as per the Sanskrit Language which can be used to identify all the three genders of Sanskrit Language. In the above mention sloka which is spoken by Maharishi Parashar (Father of Maharishi Bhagavan Krsna Dwaipayan Ved Vyasha), he has identified in that sloka, the six opulences, which are all riches, all strength, all influence, all wisdom, all beauty, all renunciation. So, all these opulences can be possessed by anyone both male and female, even by the human, animal, bugs, insects, etc even by the non-living entities like Fire, Water, Sun, Moon, etc. and when one of these have all the six of them then that particular entity can be called Bhagavan. I will explain each of these opulences in detail but not in this article because these are bit complex things.

2. Purohit:- In today's time the word only means Priest but as per the Vedic Tradition this word can be divided into two different words. One is "Puro" and another one is "Hit". The word "Puro" means "Gosti/Samaj" or "Community/ Clan/Society" and the word "Hit" means "Kalyan" or "Welfare/Well being of". So, the word Purohit means the person who constantly involve in matters related to "Welfare of Community" or "Well being of Clan".

3. Ishwara:- This word also translates as "God" in English but the reality is, it doesn't mean so. This word also the result of the confluence of two different words. One is "Ish" and another one is "Wara". So, the word "Ish" means "Kalyan" or "Welfare" and the word "Wara" means "Highest level of Expert in/Genius/Cognoscente/Proficient/Resourceful, etc.". The word "Wara" belongs to the Masculine gender (Pung Lingaa) as per Sanskrit Grammar so the word Ishwara can be used for Males only. And the Word means "A male who can execute the welfare of this world". The female version of this word is "Ishwari", the meaning is the same but this word can be used for Females only.

4. Brahman:- This is a complex concept of Vedanta and does not mean "God" for sure. I will explain it in later articles when I discuss the Vedanta.

5. Atma/Atman:- In a very crude sense "Atma/Atman" means "Self", but in the Upanishad section of Vedas "Atman/Atma" word is used as an indicator to indicate something beyond the physical and metaphysical realm or domain of this infinite multiverse. It is a purely dedicated to the Vedanta Darshan so I will discuss this when I discuss the Vedanta.     

6. Param-atman/Paramatma:- The word is constituted by two different words. One is "Param" which is an adjective and another one is "Atman/Atma" which is a noun as per the Sanskrit language. Here also the word "Atma/Atman" means "Self" and the word "Param" means "Greatest among greats". So, the word "Paramatma/Paramatman" means "The Self which is greatest among greats". This is also a topic that is discussed in Vedanta Darshan.   

7. Yagya:- This is constituted by two words. One is "Ya" and another one is "Agya". The word "Ya" is indicative and it means "That which is" and the word "Agya" means "What remains or leftover". So, the word "Yagya" means "That which is leftover". So, Yagya is a way of conducting actions. It is strictly individualistic. When someone takes the initiative to execute a plan in real-time for the welfare or well-being of the Society, Eco-system, Nature, Bio-diversity on both small and grand scale then that particular action is called Yagya. Now, a question arises here and that is...

Q. What is the leftover portion in this idea or concept?

A. So, Actions that are dedicated to the welfare or well-being can not be covered in one go, there will be something which will be leftover in an executing plan, and to cover that you need new planning. This way this process continues. That why's, the Yagya is a continuous circular process. Once someone takes a code of actions for the welfare of something/someone or a group, community, clan, etc. then that person has admitted himself or herself in a cyclical process because he/she needs to make a new plan after completion of his/her old one because something always there which will leftover in a present plan.

That's why, as per the Vedas, the Yagya is a must conducted deed for every individual as per the capabilities of that person and the requirement of the situation and place and time.                 

8. Yog/Yoga:- The most famous word of Vedic parampara and I must say the most misinterpreted word. Maharishi Patanjali had written "YogSutra" which is the foundational manual for any person who wants to know what this god damn system Yog is? In a very crude sense word "Yog/Yoga" means "Unionism" or "Addition". But this is not fully correct. Because the word Yog is itself system and to know the true meaning of it a person needs to go through that system. It is a vast and diverse system ever made or discovers by humans.  

9. Homam/Homa:- It is a system of exchange. Normally, it means pouring ghee(Purified Butter) into a fire ritual which is conducted to please Devtas. But, in the true sense, Homam/Homa is a system of exchange where give and take policy is encountered by two parties as per their requirements. I can confidently say that the Demand and Supply theory in Economics is a perfect example of Homam/Homa because there a certain demand is fulfilled by each party when they execute this theory. Let's understand this with the help of an example...

For Example:- Consider this suppose the market has a demand for product X and ABC company started manufacturing that product and create an SCM(Supply Chain Management) of that product, people started buying that product as per their need. In this example, Consumers pay a certain amount to buy that product X and that amount helps the manufacturer of that product to enjoy the profits. Even the employees who work in the manufacturing unit are also conducting the Homam/Homa because they are also getting a salary for the skills they have which they use to manufacture that product X which ultimately helps that ABC company to meet the demand of the market. 

So, everything is Homam/Homa where the Give and Take policy is executed between two parties.

10. Rajan:- The word "Jan" means "People" and the word "Ra" is indicative of "Raj" which means "Administration". So the word "Rajan" means "Administrative Head of the people belongs to a particular region". Do not translate the word "Rajan" as "King", because in Vedic parampara Vedas expound "Democracy". In the Rig Ved, 10th Mandala, Sukta/Suktam number 191 defines and acknowledges "Democracy", so there is no Kingship/Autocracy in the Vedic model of administration but it is also true that the idea of democracy which is expressed in the Rig Ved is a little bit different than the idea of democracy we know today. I will write a detailed article related to this concept of Vedic Democracy. 

11. Havan:- In a normal sense people consider the word "Havan" as a synonym of the word "Homam/Homa". But these two words are dissimilar but it is also true that there is a similarity between them also. The word "Ha" in the word "Havan" is the root word which is in a "masculine nominative singular form" and as per the Pāṇini Dhātupāṭha it uses to indicate "Tyage/Gatau" means "Going or Motion/Abandoning" and in a layman's perspective the word "Van" means "Jangle/Forest". So, Havan means "Going to Jungle or Forest" and it also means "Abandoning  Jungle". Both the meanings are contradictory to each other. This is the reason why people generally misinterpret this word. So, in the truest sense, Havan is a ritualistic system that is pre-organized to achieve the pre-listed goals. So, this word carries different meanings in different scenarios and it can be found throughout the Vedic Parampara. 

Q. What is the ritualistic system?

A. The definition of Ritual is:- a religious or solemn ceremony consisting of a series of actions performed according to a prescribed order. So, the ritualistic system is a set of activities in a predefined format that can not be shuffled. The best example of Havan is Cooking apart from this Studying, Workout at Gym, Worshiping of any deity (even Prayer in Church and Namaz Adha will also consider in it), Analysis of a topic, etc. also fall in this category. 

Let me explain this in a bit more detail. The word "Van" means "Forest/Jungle" and the nature of any forest is, it should be like a maze (a network of paths and hedges designed as a puzzle through which one has to find a way), so a person needs to find a way out from that it is like solving or analysis of an issue and the best way to solve an issue is taking the algorithmic approach, here "Abandoning  Jungle" condition applied and now look at the "Cooking", the chef has few different ingredients and he/she mixed those in perfect quantities and in a perfect sequence to make a dish out of it, here "Going to Jungle" condition fits in because here simple things mixed up to generate a complex finish goods.

Now, moving to a set of terms that are inter-related with each other. But before that, I have to mention a mantra from Rig Ved, Mandala 2nd, Suktam/Sukta number 1, and Mantra number 2. The Mantra is...

तवाग्ने होत्रं तव पोत्रमृत्वियं तव नेष्ट्रं त्वमग्निदृतायतः । 

तव प्रशास्त्रं त्वमध्वरीयसि ब्रह्मा चासि गृहपतिश्च नो दमे ॥२॥

Pronunciation:- Tavagne hotram tava potramrtviyam tava nestram tvamagnidrtayatah| Tava prasastram tvamadhvariyasi brahma casi grhaspatisca nodame|| 

Translation-1:- Agni, the light of life and the leader of the humanity, yours is yajna and spirit of Charity yours is piety and purity yours is the conduct and the organization of the holy plans and projects in time and season, yours is the message and the mission,  yours is the truth and fiery knowledge of life and advancement, yours is the teaching, law,  governance, and administration yours is love and the gift of charity for the growth of all, you are the highest priest and presiding presence of nature and humanity,  and you are the life within and brightness of the happy family.  Lord of the light and life, we pray to be the light within of the individual and protector and preserver of peace and joy of the family in the home for all.

Translation-2:- Thine is the Herald's task and Cleanser's duly timed; Leader art thou, and Kindler for the pious man. Thou art Director, thou the ministering Priest: thou art the Brahman, Lord, and Master in our home.

This mantra is dedicated to Agni Devta or Devata and the names of the Rishis who witnessed this were Angirasa Shaunahotra and Bhargava Shaunaka Grtsamada. I'm not getting into the interpretation of this mantra because it is vast and complex and not needed right now. I shared this mantra because this above-shared mantra it is enumerated four categories of people who need to accomplish the Havan process. Those are as follow:- hotṛ, potṛ, neṣṭṛ, agnīdh, prashāstṛ (meaning the maitrāvaruna) and adhvaryu. To get into the details let consider an example it will help to understand the concept in a profound manner. So, the example I'm going to use is a ritual where the fire is light up in a squared place or a squared hole filled up with wood, and then mantras are chanted in that place with that the ghee(purified butter) is poured into that fire. I use this example because this is the common image of Havan among people so it will be easy for me to describe these terms and after the definition of each of these terms I will give an example that will help you to get the diverse nature of this concept.

12. Hotṛ:- The hotṛ was the reciter of  Mangalacharan (Invocations and litanies). These could consist of a single mantra also known as "ṛca", strophes (triples called "Tṛca" or pairs called "Pragātha"), or entire sukta/suktam, drawn from the Rigved. As each phase of the ritual required an invocation, the hotṛ had a leading or presiding role. The potṛ, neṣṭṛ, agnīdh, prashāstṛ are the job roles under the guidance of the Hotr.

Example:- This is the definition and it is too technical, now let's understand this with an example like "Cooking". Consider Restaurant, in that restaurant, there will be many chefs but among those, there will be a Head Chef every other chef are beneath his guidance they can suggest or present his/her opinion but the shorts will be called by the Head Chef at the end. Hotr is the Head Chef, he is the leader and has the presiding role to play in the kitchen of that Restaurant.        

13. Adhvaryu:- The adhvaryu was in charge of the physical details of the sacrifice (in particular the adhvara, a term for the Somayajna). 

According to Sir Monier-Williams [(12 November 1819 – 11 April 1899) was the second Boden Professor of Sanskrit at Oxford University, England. He studied, documented, and taught Asian languages, especially Sanskrit, Persian, and Hindustani.], the adhvaryu "had to measure the ground, to build the altar, to prepare the sacrificial vessels, to fetch wood and water, to light the fire, to bring the animal and immolate it," among other duties. Each action was accompanied by supplicative or benedictive formulas (yajus), drawn from the yajurved. Over time, the role of the adhvaryu grew in importance, and many verses of the ṛgveda were incorporated, either intact or adapted, into the texts of the yajurved.

Example:- Again consider that restaurant and let's give it a name 'ABC Restaurant', there will a Sous Chef who is next to the Head Chef, 2nd in command. Adhvaryu is exactly that same thing who's job is to prepare the kitchen for Restaurant Menu. 

14. Udgātṛ:- The udgātṛ was a chanter of sukta/suktam set to melodies (sāman) drawn from the sāmaved. This was a specialized role in the major soma sacrifices: a characteristic function of the udgātṛ was to sing sukta/suktam in praise of the invigorating properties of soma pavamāna, the freshly pressed juice of the soma plant. 

Example:- Again think about ABC Restaurant, In that, there will be a specialist who has mastery over the desert dishes of the Menu of the restaurant. He/She has creativity and different idea related to sweet dishes. This is the role of an Udgatr. This person is the specialist in a certain area of the Havan process.        

15. Brahmana:- Don't confuse spelling with the "Brahman" which I mentioned in the 4th number of this article, that is a concept from Vedanta but this a Job profile. To mitigate this confusion I add an extra "a" at the end of the spelling of this word. The brahmana was the reciter of sukta/suktam from the atharvaved who was largely silent and observes the procedures and uses Atharvaved mantras to 'heal' it when mistakes have been made.

Example:- Again let's go to our own ABC Restaurant, in that Restaurant, there will be a person who will be employed in a job role where he needs to do supervising and when there will be need damage controlling within the restaurant over any issue then this person will jump into the game so in one word it is called Manager. Brahmana is acting as the Manager of the Havan process managing the entire system.

So, it is a system where the distribution of work in a Havan process can be seen. It is based upon a theory where participation of people who have skills or resources are essential to execute the havan process and as per my understanding, every organization throughout the world follow this model of work and not only in organizations but also in the household, people follow this model to run the household in an organized way.       

16. Maya:- It is a concept in the Vedanta, in a crude sense it means both illusion and delusion.  

17. Darshan:- In a very crude sense "Darshan" means "Philosophy" but it is a little bit different. First, the word Philosophy came from the Greek word "Philosophia" which means "Love of Wisdom" and from this word an old French word born which is "Philosophie" which also carry the same meaning as its Greek version and from that in the Middle English era this "Philosophy" word born. If I split this word then two words can be formed out of it, one is "Philo" which means "Loving" and "Sophy" which means "Wisdom"; so "Philosophy" means "Loving Wisdom". Now, the word "Darshan" actually means "Perspective/ Observation". "Darshanat sa Darshana" means "That which is beheld". Someone wakes up early in the morning and witnesses the sunrise, that is the simple example of Darshana. If someone gets to know that when a person drinks alcohol that person is damaging his/her liver and kidneys and after that this someone never touches the drinks in his/her life this also Darshan. So, basically "That is Darshan which a person has learned through his own experience or observation".

These are the mainframe Terminologies from the Vedas, apart from these there are lots of other Terms also present but that will I discuss when I will mention them in an article. 

Thank you🙂🙏