Shri Aurobindo’s Secret of Veda - Veda Saar

 

One of the flourishing and foundational orchards of the vast and glorious plantation of Bhartiya Sabhyata ( Indian Civilization) are the Vedas. The Vedas are a majestic and unparalleled heritage of all Indians, despite their caste, creed, panth (religion). The fruits of Vedas have nourished our land for the past 5000 years or even more. Hence I thoroughly believe that we as Bhartiyas (Indians) should at the very least have a basic understanding of its essence. 

Rig Veda is the most ancient and most voluminous of the four Vedas and also serves as a foundational text for the entire Vedic Corpus. Through a rich tapestry of poetic verses, Rig Veda conveys various philosophical, spiritual, and cosmological ideas. Over the centuries many Rishis, Acharyas and commentators have tried to translate and interpret it. In my limited knowledge and reading, I found ‘The Secret of the Veda’ by Shri Aurobindo, to be a profound and critical examination of the core message of the Vedas. 
 
I initially found it challenging to grasp the essence of the book, despite multiple attempts. However, after persevering, I believe I now understand its core message. I will first present Shri Aurobindo’s insights as concisely as possible, followed by my own reflections and learnings derived from it. As a disclaimer, I would like to mention that Shri Aurobindo explores multiple dimensions in his work, including the historical, the metaphysical, and the symbolisms and parallelisms between the Gods of the Vedas with spiritual entities/aspects. In this post, I will limit myself to the essence of his writings, as expounded in the chapter titled ‘The Doctrine of the Mystics’.

The Doctrine of the Mystics

In the chapter ‘The Doctrine of the Mystics’ (He refers to Rig Veda as this doctrine), Pg: 371, Shri Aurobindo writes, “The doctrine of the mystics recognizes an Unknowable, Timeless and Unnameable behind and above all things and not seizable by the studious pursuit of the mind”... 
Here he defines ‘Paramatma’ and also says that, “ The Godhead ‘Paramatma’ is the original cause and final result”. Hence ‘Atma’ started from Paramatma and will end there when in Moksha. 
“He is Rudra, Vishnu…Surya, Agni.. and all the Gods..”  Hence all the Gods worshiped in the Vedas are all the expressions/representations of ‘Natural forces’ like Agni, Varun, Surya and heroes like ‘Rudra, Vishnu…’

He further writes, “The Godhead has built this universe in a complex system of worlds which we find both within and without” 
The few paragraphs then mention about the parallelism of inner and outer universe and it concludes with “This contrast of mortality, we are and the immortal condition to which we can aspire is the key of Vedic thought and practice. Veda is the earliest gospel we have of man’s immortality and these ancient stanzas conceal the primitive discipline of its inspired discoverers”. 

On Page 376, he writes “Our normal life and consciousness are a dark or at best a starlit Night. Dawn comes by the arising of the Sun of that Higher Truth”. This higher truth is ‘Sat’. This light is the ‘Jyoti’. We will delve deeper into these terms later in the article.

On Page 377, he writes, “Our sacrifice is the offering of all our gains and works to the powers of high existence” This is the philosophy which then later distills to ‘Nishkam Karma’ and ‘Karma Yoga’ in Vedanta. “By the hymn of prayer and God… by the hymn of God attainment and self-expression man can house in himself the Gods, build in this gated house of his being the living image of their deity”

On Page 384 he writes, “The soul of a man is a world full of beings, a kingdom in which armies clash.. The gods are our guest and which the demons strive to possess…The chants of Vedas are episodes of the lyrical epic of the soul in its immortal ascension”

Essence of 'The Secret Doctrine' - 'Saar'

So basically we as humans - our essence/soul (atma) can rise to the level of Param-atma. In my opinion this is the whole secret of Veda and it can be summed up in 

 अस्तो माँ सद गमय 

तमसो माँ ज्योतिर्गमय 

मृत्यो माँ अमृतमगमय

‘Sat’ means not only the truth. It is a metaphor for ‘Moksha’ or ‘Paramatma’ as well. One meaning of this can be taken as We move towards the state of moksha if we move towards truth. 

If we move from darkness to light we move towards Moksha (तमसो माँ ज्योतिर्गमय). Now what does this light mean? Light means the light of knowledge, represented by Maa Saraswati. Saraswati was not only a river flowing in its full might and beauty when Rig Veda was compiled, but also a metaphor for the inspiration and source of this knowledge. 

Take me from mortality to immortality (मृत्यो माँ अमृतमगमय) is the whole jist of the aspiration of moving towards ‘Paramatma’ from this current state.

To summarize, Rigveda in a poetic way tells many things, the key ones that I interpreted through Shri Aurobindo’s work are:

• The Atma (आत्मा) has the potential to rise to the level of Paramatma (परात्मा). This ascent is not merely an ideal but a reality that can be achieved.
• Next question that comes up is ‘How to Rise?’ Veda and then Vedanta goes in to detail about many ways:
• Gyaan Yoga (ज्ञान योग):  Discover the truth that this rise is possible. Knowledge is the key; understanding this truth is the first step towards spiritual elevation. The Advaita Vedanta by Adi Guru Shankaracharya emphasize the importance of self-realization: “तत् त्वम् असि” (Tat Tvam Asi) - "You(Atma) are that (Paramatma)," reminding us of our inherent unity with the divine.
  
• Nishkam Karma (निष्काम कर्म) - Karma Yoga: Perform all actions in the spirit of sacrifice without attachment to the results. This aligns with the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita, where Lord Krishna states: “कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन” (Karmanye vadhikaraste ma phaleshu kadachana) - "You have the right to perform your duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your actions."
  
• Bhakti Yoga (भक्ति योग): Cultivate devotion to the divine. "Sing these hymns to the Gods" emphasizes the importance of surrender and humility. The Vedas encourage reducing the ego and engaging in prayer:
  
• After the Question of ‘How to rise’. The next question that comes up is ‘What does this rise do?’ What does this state of Paramatma or Moksha mean? ‘
• On Page 373 Shri Aurobindo throws some light. He states ‘Sat Chitta Ananda’ is the characteristic of the state of ‘Paramatma’. It is the characteristic of ‘Moksha’. In Moksha, there is Only Truth, Only Consciousness and Only Bliss. 
• Another way to look at it is that when your ‘Chitta’ (Consciousness) reaches the state of ‘Ananda’(Bliss) you reach closer to ‘Sat’ (Moksha), you can ascend to the level of Paramatma. When you have inner peace(Chitta is Anandit) you are closer to the state of Moksha. 
• One more way to look at it is when ‘Light of Truth’(Sat) illuminates our Chitta (Consciousness) our state of existence is more blissful. We are closer to the state of ‘Param ananda’. 
• In essence all three complements each other and when an Atma (Self) is at the Supreme(Param) or Utlimate state of each of these qualities, it is at the state of Paramatma/Moksha 

To conclude, the teachings of the Rig Veda and the interpretations of Sri Aurobindo illuminate the transformative journey from the individual soul to the Sat-Chit-Ananda (The Supreme Consciousness - The Paramatma - The Brahma).  In this state, we not only transcend our mortal existence but also align ourselves with the eternal essence of the Paramatma, experiencing profound bliss and inner peace. This ascent is not merely a theoretical ideal but a practical path accessible through Gyaan Yoga, Karma Yoga and Bhakti Yoga. Each of these paths guides us toward realizing our inherent unity with the divine. Thus, the journey towards the light of knowledge becomes a sacred aspiration, guiding us from darkness to enlightenment.