asato ma sadgamaya | Lead me from the asat to the sat.
tamaso ma jyotirgamaya | Lead me from darkness to light.
mrtyorma amrtam gamaya | Lead me from death to immortality
(Brhadaranyaka Upanishad – I.iii.28)
Introduction
I remember being a child and hearing narrations of how Brahmarishi Vishwamitra (formerly known as a warrior named Vishwaratha) rose through the ranks to become a Brahmarishi based on pure merit and the power of his Tapasya. As I grew up and became more socially aware, I wondered why I was labelled a Brahman simply due to the fact that I had completed my Upnayana Sanskara – Sacred Thread Ceremony. I simply could not reconcile the hard work Brahmarishi Vishwamitra had put in against my title which was given to me just by birthright. The more observant I became of current times and compared it to our history, the more disappointed I became. My Western education pre-disposed me in to thinking that Brahmans were but an oppressive community which only served the purpose of suppressing and disenfranchising the lower communities. My curiosity grew tenfold. Upon deeper study of this topic, I came to realize that the culprit was the notion of birthright. When society matured, social systems got corrupted and groups decided to protect their own interests. Over the last few thousand years, our society has been on a steady decaying trend – much of which, as I argue can be attributed to birthright. The notion of birthright has effectively killed true Brahmanatva – or Brahmanhood.
Objective
The objective of this short essay is to discuss how to get rid of this malaise of claiming to be a Brahman by birthright or what we would call Janma Siddha Adhikar. I am sure that a fair amount of community members will agree that the Vedic Varna Ashrama/Vyavastha has been heavily adulterated over the past few millennia. It is not my mandate to provide historical, anthropological, political and socio-economic analyses as to why and how this Varna Ashrama/Vyavastha got adulterated. But one would definitely benefit from reading the candid and noteworthy commentary of late Indo-Canadian scholar, Dr. O.P. Dwivedi1. My mandate in this short essay is to help revive the true spirit of Brahmanatva, which seems clouded and perturbed by two competing forces: 1) the undeserved sense of entitlement of being Brahman simply due to birthright, and 2) the social pressures of pseudo-secularism which has begun to make some members of the younger generation self-loathing and ashamed.
My inspiration
I would like to emphasize that I am not driven to write about this topic due to any pseudo-secular brainwashing by my Western education. In fact, I got my motivation to write this essay from none other than Goswami Tulsidas. He prophetically spoke of our current problems in Sri Ramcharitmanas (Uttar Kand, Dohas 97-98) as he accurately prophesised that Kaliyuga – The Dark Age has come by listing out four anomalies: 1) Piety is swallowed by Greed, 2) Adherence to Varna Ashrama/Vyavastha is severely diminished, 3) People no longer have the ability to discern between virtuous men/women and cheats, and 4) Those who are pompous liars (in thoughts, words, and actions) are considered great speakers.
How do we fight the regression of Brahmanatva in our community?
My answer is quite simple: Go back to the basics. Our lives are governed by answering the most fundamental question: What is the purpose of human life? The short answer lies in the four Purusharthas – Aims of Human Life: Dharma – Righteousness, Artha – Wealth, Kama – Pleasure, and Moksha – Liberation. The end goal is that through our births and rebirths, our souls eventually attain Moksha i.e. freedom from rebirth where our Atma – soul meets the Paramatma – Supersoul. But what does this have to do with Brahmanatva? The Purusharthas are materialized through the roles we play (Varna Vyavastha) and the stages of life in which we play them (Varna Ashrama).
The sytems
In order to understand Varna Vyavastha and Varna Ashrama, we must visualize society with a government that only tolerates balanced budgets and an economy running fluidly in a full-employment state. This society gives precedence to the greater good of the people rather than the individual. The role players in this society (Varnas) consist of Brahmans – Priests and Scholars, Kshatriyas – Rulers and Warriors, Vaishyas – Business People, Shudras – Laborers and Farmers. These role players live their lives in four sequential stages (Ashramas) namely: Brahmacharya – Student Life, Grihastha – Household Life, Vanaprastha – Retired Life, Sannyasa – Renounced Life. The role players earn their roles (Varnas) during their student lives. This is a system of meritocracy where movement and mobility within the Varnas is encouraged and enforced based on the Gunas – Abilities/Qualities exhibited by the student. The short and the sweet of it is that all roles in society matter and are afforded their due dignity.
Diksha, Shiksha, Pariksha – The learning process
The need of the hour is to rekindle an appreciation of our ancient Guru-Shishya Parampara & Gurukul system of education. Young pupils dedicated their entire childhood and teenage in service of their Guru and their pursuit of knowledge. The process of education has three stages: Diksha – Initiation, Shiksha – Learning and Pariksha – Endless Examination. Who are the teachers? Sanatana Dharma states that we have two sets of teachers: 1) Mother, Father, and Guru, and 2) Guru Brahma, Guru Vishnu, Guru Mahesh. On the earthly existence plane, the teacher held in highest regard is the Mother – followed by the Father and Guru. On the spiritual plane, Guru Mahesh (Philosophy) is the ultimate Guru followed by Guru Vishnu (Devotion) and Guru Brahma (Fundamentals). A student who follows this system of education is peerless and is destined for great things. How about we all try to revive this system?
The KPIs (key performance indicators) of students
Through dedicated adherence to discipline, an ideal student is said to exhibit the following qualities: Kaag Cheshta – The Crow’s Resolve and Persistence, Bako Dhyanam – The Crane’s Attention, Swaang Nidra – Light sleeper like a Dog, Alpahaari – Light eater, Grih Tyagi – One who doesn’t miss home and luxury. A Guru evaluates his/her pupils based on the five KPIs above. Hopefully, by the end of the student’s education, he/she possesses the qualities of his/her Varna to contribute to the betterment of society.
What is the litmus test of a Brahman?
It is said in the Bhagavad Gita (18.42) that a Brahman possesses and exhibits nine qualities: Peacefulness, self-control, austerity, purity, tolerance, honesty, knowledge, wisdom and religiousness. As we know from sociological studies, some of our qualities are natural and some of them are dependent on our environment. And so the nine qualities above should be interpreted as qualities that are both natural and earned through one’s environment. One is truly a Brahman if he/she possesses the aforementioned qualities and demonstrates them through the stages of life.
Conclusion
I would like to conclude by motivating our community to be modest and humble just like Sri Adi Shankaracharya. The great Advaita Vedanti was once visiting Kashi and was on his way to a temple to offer prayers when a Chandala – outcaste surrounded by four dogs came in his way. With a sudden burst of arrogance, Sri Adi Shankaracharya demanded the Chandala to clear his path. The witty Chandala retorted by asking Sri Adi Shankaracharya whether it was his body that should move away from him or his soul. Sri Adi Shankaracharya’s sharp intellect came to the rescue as he realized that Lord Shiva and the Four Vedas (assuming the form of the Chandala and the four dogs) were testing his Advaita Vedanta philosophy. The great champion of Sanatana Dharma composed the Manisha Panchakam then and there. The moral of the story is that social constructs like castes are completely irrelevant when one has attained Self-Realization. This is true Brahmanatva!
Suggested Readings and References:
The Four Vedas (Rig, Yajur, Sama, Atharva)
The Four Upavedas (Ayurveda, Dhanurveda, Gandharvaveda, Sthapatyaveda)
The Mukhya Upanishads (there are over 200 but one can focus on main dozen or so)
The Puranas: Ramayan, Mahabharat, Vishnu Puran, Shiv Mahapuran + Durga Shaptashati (by Markandeya), Bhagvad Puran/Gita, Yoga Vashisht (Indian Existentialism), etc.
Manisha Panchakam by Sri Adi Shankaracharya
Advaita Vedanta by Sri Adi Shankaracharya
Dwivedi, O.P. (2012). Chapter 7: Hinduism: Historical setting. In M.D. Palmer & S.M. Burgess (Eds.), The Wiley-Blackwell companion to religion and social justice (1st ed., pp 110-123). New York, NY: Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
I wish you all the best in your attempt and journey towards Self-Realization through the role that you play during the various stages of your life.
Your humble servant,
Abhaya Shanker Dube
Toronto, Canada
The guru instructed Shankara to write a commentary on the Brahma Sutras and propagate the Advaita philosophy. Shankara travelled to Kashi , where a young man named Sanandana , hailing from Chola territory in South India , became his first disciple. According to legend, while on his way to the Vishwanath Temple , an untouchable accompanied by four dogs came in the way of Sankara. When asked to move aside by Shankara’s disciples, the untouchable replied: “Do you wish that I move my ever lasting ?tman (“the Self”), or this body made of flesh?” Realizing that the untouchable was none other than god Shiva himself, and his dogs the four Vedas , Shankara prostrated himself before him, composing five shlokas known as Manisha Panchakam .