What The Thunder Said. . .
Among my favourite pieces of scriptural literature is the brihad-aranyaka upaniṣat, which I personally call the great (brihad) forest (aranyaka) of wisdom. Summed up by Chitrita Devi, a Bengali scholar, “this upaniṣat has mingled love with knowledge, forests with cities and the practicality of daily life with the hope of immortality.”
In this upaniṣat, I discovered a central character, a sage called yagnavalkya, a great teacher and a colorful personality, known for the famous yagnavalkya-smriti authored by him– a smriti which forms the basis of hindu family law in India today.
I admire his several dialogues with various people throughout the brihad-aranyaka upaniṣat and the manner in which he applies his acquired knowledge for the help of others, a quality that I try and emulate in my daily endeavours. yagnavalkya teaches us more than any other teacher or sage about what the upaniṣats mean by freedom, in his own universal albeit inimitable style.
However, what I am writing about today is on three principal virtues as enunciated in the brihat-aranyaka. The famous English poet, T S Eliot wrote a poem called, The Wasteland, which speaks about a human soul seeking its release. In this poem, in a section called, “What The Thunder Said”, he speaks of three words – dAmyata, datta and dayadhvam – originally from the brihad-aranyaka upaniṣat*.
त्रयाः प्राजापत्याः प्रजापतौ पितरि ब्रह्मचर्यम् ऊषुः देवा मनुष्या असुराः उषित्वा ब्रह्मचर्यं देवा ऊचुः ब्रवीतु नो भवान् इति तेभ्यो हैतद् अक्षरं उवाच द इति व्यज्ञासिष्टा इति व्यज्ञासिष्मा इति होचुः दाम्यत इति न आत्थेति ॐ इति होवाच व्यज्ञासिष्टेति ।
अथ हैनं मनुष्या ऊचुः ब्रवीतु नो भवान् इति तेभ्यो हैतद् एवाक्षरं उवाच द इति व्यज्ञासिष्टा इति व्यज्ञासिष्मा इति होचुः दत्त इति न आत्थेति ॐ इति होवाच व्यज्ञासिष्टेति ।
अथ हैनं असुरा ऊचुः ब्रवीतु नो भवान् इति तेभ्यो हैतद् एवाक्षरं उवाच द इति व्यज्ञासिष्टा इति व्यज्ञासिष्मा इति होचुः दयध्वम् इति न आत्थेति ॐ इति होवाच व्यज्ञासिष्टेति ।
तदेतदेवैषा दैवी वागनुवदति स्तनयित्नुः द द द इति दाम्यत दत्त दयध्वम् इति तदेतत्त्रयं शिक्षेत् दमं दानं दयां इति ॥
trayāḥ prājāpatyāḥ prajāpatau pitari brahmacaryam ūṣuḥ devā manuṣyā asurāḥ uṣitvā brahmacaryaṁ devā ūcuḥ bravītu no bhavān iti tebhyo haitad akṣaraṁ uvāca da iti vyajñāsiṣṭā iti vyajñāsiṣmā iti hocuḥ dāmyata iti na āttheti om iti hovāca vyajñāsiṣṭeti
atha hainaṁ manuṣyā ūcuḥ bravītu no bhavān iti tebhyo haitad evākṣaraṁ uvāca da iti vyajñāsiṣṭā iti vyajñāsiṣmā iti hocuḥ datta iti na āttheti om iti hovāca vyajñāsiṣṭeti
atha hainaṁ asurā ūcuḥ bravītu no bhavān iti tebhyo haitad evākṣaraṁ uvāca da iti vyajñāsiṣṭā iti vyajñāsiṣmā iti hocuḥ dayadhvam iti na āttheti om iti hovāca vyajñāsiṣṭeti
tadetadevaiṣā daivī vāganuvadati stanayitnuḥ da da da iti dāmyata datta dayadhvam iti tadetattrayaṁ śikṣet damaṁ dānaṁ dayāṁ iti
The triple offspring of prajāpati, the Creator – gods (devā), men (manuṣyā) and demons (asurā) – lived with their Father as students to obtain sacred knowledge.
When they completed their studies, the gods asked him, “Please instruct us, O venerable One”. To which prajāpati uttered one syllable da and asked them “Have you understood?” The gods replied, “We have understood. You said to us dāmyata, control yourselves.” He said, “Yes, you have understood.”
Then men said to Him, “Please instruct us, O venerable One”. To which prajāpati uttered the same syllable da and asked them “Have you understood?” The men replied, “We have understood. You said to us datta, give.” He said, “Yes, you have understood.”
Then the demons said to Him, “Please instruct us, O venerable One”. To them also, He uttered the same syllable da and asked them “Have you understood?” The demons replied, “We have understood. You said to us dayadhvam, be compassionate.” He said, “Yes, you have understood.”
This very thing, the heavenly voice of thunder repeats, da, da, da, that is control yourselves, give and be compassionate. One should practice this same triad – self-control, charity [to the best of one’s ability] and mercifulness.
Peace
S
(* V.2.i-iii of the upaniṣat)