LIBERATING INDIAN MIND -31
EVOLUTION OF SANANATANA DHARMA
To be born a man does not grant that you know what humanity is; what humanism is. Physical fitness does not entail that you know about your anatomy,physiology, and psychology. Your social exposure does not certify that you know about the social institutions and organizations. This is truism. We shall readily accept it. But our wit is so circumscribed that most of us believe that they know about Hinduism as they belong to a Hindu family. This is the total asset on the basis of which most people bash or en-cash Hinduism. Knowing anything is limited to appearance unless you know its history. In this tricky way history does not belong to the past, but is a deeper understanding of the present.
On the basis of what we have discussed, we may reiterate that Sanatan is the only Dharma in the world; all other manifestations of Dharma or obligation are its corollaries.
It makes two paradoxical claims. The one relates to its universal and everlasting aspect. Everything, everywhere exists because of its adherence to Dharma. In that there are as many Dharmas as the elements and things in the world but none of them can miss its Dharma. At the same time it talks of its resilience or elasticity to adjust to changed environments. They called it Yugadharma, in which many of the practices and permissions of the bygone days are strictly prohibited (tabooed).
For instance, the larger family of gathering-hunting days knew no other distinction between creatures except Yin and Yang, male or female, nor cared for other expectations of later days. There was no consideration for age as well as is common among animals. Even a father could mate his daughter or grandmother her grandson. It has been frankly recorded a bit allegorically through august characters such as Brahma and Manu.
Later a stage came when a loose bond also prevalent in some of the animals living in pair, but without attaching much importance to the sanctity of relation, was common in which the spouse could go temporarily with another with his permission. A practice common in Tahiti a century back as noted by anthropologists and other visitors. It was common in piedmont Himalayan tribes till the last century as well where a guest was entertained with consent offering company of a lady. Something close to live-together practice becoming common recently. This is mentioned in a legend with Galava (गालव) as the character, which was resented and the institution of marriage came into existence, to the credit of an individual, (श्वेतकेतु) These legends are symbolic, and have nothing to do with individuals. Social systems change under the pressure of changed economic condition as the earlier one is incompatible. This could be the beginning of small family units with nominal privatisation and readiness to meet the needs of others, whereas the marriage is indicative of private property in land and animals. These changes made minor modifications if public behaviour and did not affect the value system.
These developments have nothing to do with Hindu and perhaps India alone. What is specific to Hindus was the fact that Hindu did owe the entire historical past known to it through any source with pride, without showing scant disregard for those who were primitive, sharing the best from them that was valid, making space and showing resilience for the new and vibrant. He invited his manes on festive occasions to participate and showed gratitude for the vision and initiative due to them. This is what he called Sanatan Dharm. Religions had no place for any of them. All the religions have pathological fixation to zero time and zeroed space. They have no regard for reason and no tolerance for science. The two cannot coexist. This makes these religions fundamentalist, rigid, incensed and fragile.*
{*nb Earlier Christianity was a hurdle in progress of science, later with sciences advancing with their awe-inspiring certitude, Christianity has no grip left even on those who for reasons of rites and festivities call them Christian except a dwindling number of moribunds. Jews overcame it as early as they took to trade and commerce while Islam under western instigation is striving to revert to zero time having lost unsought for golden opportunities to capitalize on its own resources. Worldwide export of Islamic fundamentalism is not from Arab countries but from American diplomacy through Arab countries in order to consolidate its hold on their wealth throwing them off-gear.}
Shift to agriculture was the first epoch making change that called for a new concept of Dharma to be appended to the traditional one. Here end decided the means and values had to be adjusted accordingly. In that the pioneers were not to blame as they had to clear the land for embedding the seed for which they initially burnt the shrubs and trees which had been the source of sustenance so far. The environmentalists (Rakshasas) had no work to do but to collect so far and as such were dead against agriculture. Except this small group the entire ‘humanity’ , i.e., Asuras, was against them. This led to bloody rifts in which the innovators had to suffer heavily. They could not challenge the conservatives, and had to resort to pretensions, lies, secretiveness and occasional resistence..
Thus those who advanced from gathering-hunting to productive adventures, were pestered and chased away from wherever they went. This is the bare fact of origin of farming in India.
The little shift in detail from west Asian mythological version is that those who chased away were Asuras not gods and the ones who had to flee were devas (later taken for gods). They finally decided to shift to hilly terrains and although in India it is said to be the North East quarter, in fact they appear to have spread in piedmont region from Nepal to Anatolia. In India the area in the vicinity of Gandaki appears to be earliest. The band that moved westward appears to have settled in the so-called Fertile Crescent although in the legend they are said to have been driven from that quarter as well :
देवासुरा वा एषु लोकेषु संयेतिरे, त अस्यां प्राच्यां दिशि संयेतिरे, तांस्ततो असुरा अजयन् ते दक्षिणस्यां दिशि येतिरे, तांस्ततो असुरा अजयन्, ते प्रतीच्यां दिशि येतिरे, तांस्ततो असुरा अजयन् त उदीच्यां दिशि येतिरे, तांस्ततो असुरा अजयन् ते एतस्मिन अवान्तरं दिशि येतिरे,य एष प्राङुदङ ते ततो जिग्युः, इति। एतरेय ब्रा.
ते प्रतीच्यां दिश्ययतन्त तांस्ततोऽसुरा अजयंस्त उदीच्यां प्राच्यां दिश्ययतन्त ते ततो न पराजयन्त। …शतगथ, ब्रा..
What percolates from this episode, is that we are proud progeny of the wise men, who were not ill advised by (Satan) the the embodiment of satya (truth/ knowledge), but it was their own observation and meditation, their own vision and enterprise and proverbial determination in the face of violent resistance by gatherers, that laid the foundation of agriculture.
Another modification in the Sanatan dharma was forced by division of labour which we shall cover in the next post,