From: sp2@cec1.wustl.edu (Sundara Pandian)
Subject: Atharva veda, Manu, common sense ( Re: A thought...)
Organization: Washington University, St. Louis Mo.
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1992 17:40:54 GMT

In article <ck.716051487@reading> ck@csug.cs.reading.ac.uk (Chandrasekhar Kambhampati) writes:
>
>Sometime back (some three years back) there was a flurry of postings on
>subhasitas. The recent postings on the vedas etc brought to mind a few.
>They are rather apt, given the circumstances, and the nature of the
>discussions. Here are a few:
>
>(once posted by : jayanth@hathi.eng.ohio-state.edu)(This is a real gem)
>
>  " Shakyo vaarayithum jalena hruthabukh chathrena sooryathapo
>   Nagendro nishitankooshena samadho dhandena gaurgardhabaha
>   Vyadhirbheshaja sangrahaishcha vividhaihi mantraihi prayogairvisham
>   Sarvasya aushadham asti shasthrey vihitham MOORKHASYA NAASTI
>   AUSHADHAM "
> 
>Meaning:
>
>It is possible ( Shakyo ) to control/put down/.. ( vaarayithum ) fire
>( hruthabukh ) with water ( jalena ) ; suns heat ( sooryathapo ) with
>an umbrella ( chathrena ); an elephant, "king of snakes" ( Nagendro )
>with a sharp instrument ( nishitankooshena ); stubborn donkeys and
>cattle ( samadho gaurgardhabaha ) with a cane/stick ( dhandena );
>diseases and poison ( Vyadhi & visham ) with a collection (
>sangrahaishcha ) of a variety ( vividhaihi ) of medicine and mantras.
>There exists ( asti ) a cure/medicine ( aushadham ) for everything (
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>Sarvasya ) in the shastras/scriptures ( shasthrey ) but there is no
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
>cure ( NAASTI AUSHADHAM ) for a fool ( MOORKHASYA ).

       There is a wrong opinion among many people that the fourth veda,
 Atharva veda is full of hymns about cures to all diseases- a complete
 medical science. The thirteenth part of Atharva veda has about 41 hymns
 on healing art for things like winning a spouse,to win a woman's love,
 to win affection,to cure jealousy,to compel a man's love,for virile
 power, etc. This healing art is composed of charms, incantations,prayers,
 and the like. This is also observed among the tribal peoples surviving
 in many parts of the modern world. But this is not the rationalist 
 medicine that is being advocated in the modern world.

>
>and one more
>
>         " yatra naasti swayam pragnya, shastram tatra karoti kim
>           lochanabhyam viheenasya darpanam kim karishyati"
> 
>Meaning:
> Where there is no commonsense, of what use are the shastras
>(or knowledge in books)? Of what use is a mirror to a man without eyes?

      What do the shastras speak of the common-sense ?
 Manudharma sastra says,
   " The vedas are called sruti and dharma-shastras are smriti; the
 two are beyond the purview of mimansa (argument) in every respect..
 The dvija ( twice-born people, [ Brahmin,Kshatriya and Vaisya ])
 who disobey either sruti or smriti on the strength of logic ( hetu
 shastra ) should be driven out of good society, because one who
 vilifies the Vedas is a heretic."
                                                          - S.Pandian
                                                   sp2@cec1.WUSTL.edu
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
>regards
>chandrasekhar


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