[Advaita-l] Qualifications to Recite Vedas - A doubt

[Mahadevan Babu]

Thank You Bhaskarji and Raviji,

The reason I am asking this is in context of few people sincerely  
wishing that Vedas should be imparted to all whomsoever eager, which  
is very genuine and sincere.
They are also of the opinion that this is the reason that many Veda  
Shakhas have been lost in due course of time and that they want this  
to flourish by imparting to all without any discrimination.

However, we know that Vedas are Shruthi, which is taught in Guru -  
Shishya parampara that is  " Guru Mukhena Vedithavyam ".  So, if I  
want to impart to others, I should have the permission from my  
Teacher, who does not permit me to teach to persons without  
UpanayaNam, which I sincerely abide by as this is also Sasthra  
PramaNam and Shradha is " Guru Vedantha Vakyeshu Visvasaha: ".

As you very rightly say, I tell them the same thing as for Self  
Knowledge and Bhakthi, chant Vishnu Sahasranamam , Bhajans and  
Bhagawat Gita.  But, the aspirants are eager to go to the root of the  
knowledge being Veda.

You are right, most of the purohits remain in the Veda Purvam as it is  
their profession and I am sure it will be leading them to the Veda  
Antham and I dare not judge by external observance on their spiritual  
progress.

I am of the opinion that Veda Purvam = Religion and Veda Antham =  
Spirituality.

Many of the aspirants want to learn Vedas from the Veda Antham aspect  
of Spirituality as well. This is where the dilemna lies.

SRI GURUBYO NAMAHA

M.Babu

On 11/06/2008, at 3:33 AM, Ravi Parimi wrote:

> On Tue, Jun 10, 2008 at 12:54 AM, Mahadevan Babu
> <babunim at optushome.com.au> wrote:
>> Dear Great Pandits,
>>
>> I have a doubt on the subject matter and would much appreciate if you
>> can shed some light. I am asking this out of purely seeking the right
>> knowledge and not for argument.
>>
>> Q: Who is qualified to chant Vedas?
>
> Even before raising this question, it would be interesting to ponder
> over "why should anyone chant vedas?"  What is the end goal of
> chanting a certain text? Is it a boost to the ego so that one may
> consider onself superior to others who cannot chant with the correct
> svaras? Is it a means of bhakti or seeking God for fulfillment of
> desires?  If you are considering a career in paurohityam (performing
> pujas, karmas etc. and thereby earning money) learning the right way
> to chant is recommended. If you are a sadhaka who wants to learn
> chanting so you can do some parayna everyday at home, or if you have
> plans on performing vaidika karmas chanting mantras with correct
> intonation is definitely required.
>
> Although it is off-topic, I'd like to mention that chanting vedas has
> nothing to do with knowledge of the self. Take a look at the majority
> of veda pundits in India who can chant a sizeable portion of veda and
> many of its variants like krama, jata, ghana etc. A quick peek into
> their lives/mental states shows that many of them are deeply vested in
> samsara and have no interest whatsoever for self-knowledge.
>
>> Doubt:  I believe persons who do not have Upanayanam or  
>> Brahmopadesham
>> done cannot chant Vedas.
>
> You can find many people all over the world, including women, who
> chant the veda even with going through upanayanam etc. Are they
> violating dharma shastra? It is certainly not our job to worry about
> it.
> _______________________________________________
> Archives: http://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/archives/advaita-l/
>
> To unsubscribe or change your options:
> http://lists.advaita-vedanta.org/cgi-bin/listinfo/advaita-l
>
> For assistance, contact:
> listmaster at advaita-vedanta.org

Dev Babu
babunim at optushome.com.au