A PROVEN METHOD TO UNDERSTAND PURANA & ITIHASA
Recently a heated debate raged over a Telugu piece on Sitadevi. The person who wrote that is a Xtian missionary & a known Hindu hater. I didn’t read that piece but read the snippets posted on the Facebook updates by a few friends. Such attempts are not new to Hindus. Hinduphobia has long been mainstreamed and is being funded extensively – all in the garb of “Being Progressive” or “Being Humane.” But in such madness, many useful and crucial aspects are being destroyed for no reason. This article is NOT about that bigoted article or its author but is a humble attempt to present an ancient but proven methodology that teaches some important basics of “How to read or understand Purana and Itihasa?”
Every paurANika & aitihAsika narrative will have two sets of backgrounds.
- prasanga [context]
- prasakti [connection/relation]
One context can have multiple connections & sometimes a prasakti itself could be a context within! Unless a seeker could link as many connections as possible, the whole context will remain disjointed. Hence the study of our Purana & Itihasa calls for patience & consistency. Our ancient commentators have spent years to write one commentary in their life for this reason only.
As an example let us examine the context of Rama’s exile [Sri rAma vanavAsa]. I read a [popular] book which cites Dasharatha’s lust as the only reason for Rama’s exile. Is this true? Let us explore it by applying the ancient Context-Connection method. First let me give at least 4 prasakti-s that led to the prasaMga of rAma vanavAsa.
- Curse given by Shravana’s parents to Dasharatha.
- Dasharatha’s 3 boons to Kaikeyi.
- Manthara’s brainwash of Kaika.
- Kaika’s untimely demand of fulfilling her boons.
prasakti-s mentioned in previous tweet are from rAmA’s time i.e. trEtAyuga. But there is a 5th prasakti that goes back to kRutayuga when Jaya & Vijaya get cursed by Sanaka & other 3 sages to be born as daityA-s & the assurance given by Vishnu to end their curse in 3 births. Unless a reader adds up all these prasakti-s [connections] & link them to Rama’s exile, the extant of the vanavAsa context [prasaMga] can’t be understood in its totality. Any gaps left out could lead to many speculations & suppositions that end up as disinformation.
One of Sri Vedavyasa’s brahmasUtra-s tat samanvayAt” calls for an integrated study by connecting Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, Itihasas & AptavAkyA-s of AcharyA-s. Another brahmasUtra says that such study must be done within the framework of Shastras only [shAstrayOnitvAt]. The need of the hour is to equip ourselves with such integrated study of Shastras & strengthen our resolve to thwart the attempts made by lumpen elements hellbent to tarnish our culture. Their shallowness must be exposed with our deep understanding & not otherwise.
