Essentials of Hinduism - Krishna Yajur Veda

Essentials of Hinduism

Krishna Yajur Veda - Samhita

The particulars for the Devatas Aditya, Agni, Aswinis, Indra, Parjanya, Prithivi, Rudra, Saraswati, Savita, Soma, Sun, Varuna, Vasus, Vayu, Vishnu and Water that are part of the Krishna Yajur Veda Samhita have already been presented in detail in the Rig Veda Samhita. Therefore, these are not repeated again.

Truths about Yajnas:

Yajnas are the primary Karmas of the Vedas! Yaga is another name for Yajna. Therefore, Yajna and Yaga, both are the same. We will continue to use the name “Yajna” throughout the Book to maintain the consistency.

There are several kinds of Yajnas: Somayajna, Vajapeya, Rajasuya, Purushamedha, Sarvamedha, Ashvameda etc. To bring out the inner meaning of Yajnas, Upanishads and Niruktas have been used. Yajnas point to all good deeds, good People, good Animal, good Material thing. Yajna is Mahavishnu’s name. Yajna is a Chariot that bears all superior things. The Creation of the Universe is referred to as Yajna. The Vedas, the Prajapati, the Devas, the Stars (Nakshatras) and the twelve months are all referred as the Yajnas. Jyoti, Agni, Aditya, Day, Fire, Direction – all these are a kind of Yajnas. Even Man’s life is a form of Yajna. First year after birth is morning Yajna; next 44 years day-time Yajna, the last 48 years evening-time Yajna.

Ashvamedha:

The Horse Yajna is known as Ashvamedha. A Horse is made to roam freely. The Person who stops it should be defeated. Probably Horse is a fictitious name, because, Usha is described as the Horse’s head, Surya the eyes, Vayu is prana, Agni is mouth, Year is the atma, Akasha is the stomach and so on as described by the Yajur Veda. Ashvamedha tells the secret of the vedic life.

Knowing the Vedas:

If you protect the Vedas, the Vedas will protect you! You learn the Vedas and teach that to others!

It starts with the Gayatri Mantras, followed by Shanti Mantras, then Purusha Sukta, Sri Sukta and so on. All these are already described in the Sandhya Vandana, as well as, Rig Veda Chapters and so will not be explained here again. Just one feature of Shanti Mantra – at the end we chant Om Shanti Shanti Shantihi. Shanti means Peace. We chant Shanti three times to get rid of three types of grievances of our every-day-life. The first Shanti is to get rid of our Personal Grievance – Body sickness, Mind related Grievances and this is called Adyatmika; the second Shanti is to get rid of our Grievances caused by others and this is called Adi Bhoutika; the third Shanti is to get rid of Grievance that might result from rains, lightning, thunder, fires and so on and this is called Adidaivika.

ANUVAKA 1

Darsha means New Moon (Amavasya). On the New Moon day, the Surya, Chandra and Bhumi all are formed in on one line. Darsha Yajna is performed to gain Strength.

Vayu! You will come close. Let the Intellect (Devasavita) be stimulated. Let the diseases be far away. You are the Prana! Please stay inside our Body in a steady manner.

ANUVAKA 2

You are the Yajnya’s prime person. You are prompted by the Devas. You grew with the help of rains. O Darbha! I have to maintain your position steady and not move you back and forth – Dharba is the grass of the Devas. Please protect us. You are proceeding to the Devas. Please maintain your sanctity for Deva-Yajna. Be favorable to Vayu.

This Anuvaka then talks in praise of the soma in particular, as well as, Agni, Vayu, Visvedevas, Savita, Indra, Surya, and, Jyoti. O Jyoti! I pray to you. Jyoti, you are shining and I pray to you. Jyoti, your flames shine and I pray to you. Jyoti, you are growing in size and I pray to you. Swaha to you. O Vishnu! During Yajna, I proudly chant “Vowshat” to welcome you. Now the Anuvaka 2 explains Ayushya Homa and soma Yajna briefly. Salutations to Pasupathi! Swaha – let the Devas accept this. Rudra! This Yajna is for you. Please be satisfied and provide us our needs. Maruts! Please bring us the Rains. All the Pitrus! Prayers to all of you.

STARS (NAKSHATRAS)

There is no one who is not familiar with the Stars (Nakshatras) that sparkle in the night sky (Akasha). It is essential to know about them, because, we live with them. Their power and energy affect our everyday life.

Meaning of Stars (Nakshatras):

The word Star is widely found in the Vedas, as well as, Ithihasas, Puranas and Kavyas. The word “Naksha Gathow” is the origin word for “Nakshatra” (Star). “It goes from one place to another place” is the meaning. This is true in the case of the Stars. Nakshatra, Ruksha, Pum, Tara, Taraka, Udu – these are different names. However, Nakshatra is the name in Veda and Vedanta. Also, there are different kinds of Niruktis stated. “A Person performing good deeds during the period of a good Star goes to the Heaven” is a belief. During the past, King like Prabahuka born in the Kshatriya Families were not strong enough and called as “Nakshatra”. Here the word “Nakshatra” gets the meaning “not strong”. Also, “destructionless” is another name for Nakshatra. From “Rishi Gathow” came the word “Risha” to mean “those kept high”. In the ancient times, the Sapta Rishis were called “Riksha” that means “bear”. In English, the Sapta Rishis were known as “The Great Bear”. In Veda, Nakshatras were also called “Taraka”. During the time of Pralaya, the Stars went higher above the Water and got this name. Another name “Rochana” for Stars – because, in the clear open Sky, the Stars sparkle and shine. People in the Bhu-loka associate their Karmas with Indra. In Mantra, we get a meaning that it is the Indra that appears as Stars in the Sky. This Mantra is stated in the Ashvamedha Yajna. Just because the Stars are scattered across the Sky, the Stars also got the name “Strupihi”.

Agastiya Nakshatra:

There is a Star known as “Agastiya Nakshatra”. In our Panchanga (Almanac), we will find the rising and setting time for this Star. This Star has an unique feature. The light that comes from this Star falls on the Earth. Therefore, disturbed Water in the river, Lake etc becomes clear Water. “Kumbayoni” is another name of Agastiya.

Chandra:

Some Stars appear small and some appear large owing to their relative distance from the Earth. This is the opinion of a normal Person. Based on this, there is an imagination – Chandra appears big compared to the Stars. Although it gets the light from the Surya (Sun), yet it appears bright and appealing to the eyes. During the New Moon, the Chandra is not visible to the eyes. On the Full Moon night, the Chandra appears full, bright and beautiful. The Veda describes the Full Moon as follows: “Chandro Nakshatra-lumatipati” – Chandra is the King of the Stars. Different meaning is -

The Stars are Moon’s Wives – also stated by Mahakalidas in his Kavya. There are lot of Veda Mantras associating the Devatas Surya and Chandra. This mention is also there in the Itihasa Puranas.

It is estimated that the Sky has a count of 7000 Stars in the Sky and Surya (Sun) is also counted as a Star. The Vedas say that although Surya appears big compared to the Stars, yet, there are Stars bigger than the Surya.

Nakshatra Devatas:

Each of the twenty seven (27) Stars (Nakshatras) have their own Devatas and Adhidevatas. The Vedas have established several Yajnas pertaining to the Devatas. Each Yajna has certain benefit. So a Person will perform a particular Yajna to achieve the desired purpose and the Person gets his desire fulfilled by the Devata. This is the Veda Sampradaya (Veda Practice) from a long time in the past.

Vedas prescribe different Homas in a Yajna for different Devatas: 1) Prithivi; 2) Antariksha; 3) Akasha; 4) Surya; 5) Chandra; 6) Stars. Note that Homas are prescribed in the Vedas for the Nakshatras too that are considered as Devatas.

Time factors:

In accordance with that which is established, we perform Sankalpa (Commitment) before performing any Karma. During the Sankalpa, we mention the Tithi, Day of the Week, Nakshatra, Yoga and Karana. With the help of the Nakshatra, we identify the time back during the Vedic days, and, even today we kind of follow this Practice. All the twenty seven (27) Stars are a part of this calculations. In addition, we also state the six Ruthu names, and, Ayana (Uttarayana and Dakshinaya). Jyotisha is considered as the eye of the Vedas and this is treated in detail in Chapter 29.

Stars (Nakshatras):

The Stars are classified into two groups. From Kartika to Vishaka is one group of fourteen Stars called as Deva Nakshatras; from Anusha to Bharani is the other group of thirteen Stars called as Yama Nakshatras. The belief is, the first group of Stars move close to the Devaloka and the second group of Stars move close to the Yamaloka. Veda emphatically prescribes that all auspicious Activities should be performed during the period of the fourteen Deva Nakshatras. In the Northern Sky, we will be able to identify the seven Stars identified as “Sapta Rishis”. In the Vedic times, the Stars were counted starting from Kartika. However, in the today’s times, the Stars are named starting from Ashwini and ends in Revati. Back in the olden days, there use to be one more Star called “Abhijit” means big success - not identified as a Star in today’s times. The Star names are identified in the Vedas with appropriate reasons. Examples: Rohini obtained the name from the original name “Ruha” means climbing up – Devatas climbed up in status in this Star period. Ruha became Rohini eventually; Punarvasu – Vasu means Wealth, Puna means again. Punarvasu means the Wealth will come to him again and again; Satabishak – Satam means hundred, bishak means medical treatment; hundred times the treatment was given. Among all the Stars, Veda recognizes Krittika to be a very significant Star. Krittika is a collection of six Stars. Krittika is considered Agni Devata’s Star. The Krittika Stars stay in the East all times.

Finally, the big question arises – who created the Stars? Veda provides the answer to this question - Parameswara created the Surya, Chandra, the World of Akasha, the Suvarloka, Antariksha, Bhuloka by doing the Sankalpa. Let us believe this Statement!

Nakshatra-ishtiga -

There is a practice in the Yajna called “Agnichayana”. A Homakunda is prepared to protect the Agni for an indefinite period of time. In the end, they make this Homakunda with the images of an Eagle, Garuda and so on. The mud slices called “Ishtika” are set by chanting the names of the 27 Nakshatras. “Nakshatrayshtaka Upadadhati” is the Vedic injunction that states this. Two other Verses (not stated) say – Only due to the shines from the people who did lot of Punyas, the stars are sparkling.

This article is a snippet from the Book Essentials of Hinduism, Authored by G.S Nilakantan. Hinduism for All is available online at www.giri.in and across Giri Trading Agency Private Limited, A chain of Speciality Stores dealing in all kinds of products needed in Indian Culture and Tradition.