Dictionary of Asian Philosophies by Nauman St. Elmo

Author:Nauman, St. Elmo. [ST. ELMO NAUMAN, JR.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Taylor & Francis (CAM)
Published: 2011-09-19T16:00:00+00:00

IV.

THE EPICS

The Rāmāyaņa was written by the poet Valmiki, the earliest poet known to classical Sanskrit literature and the pattern for all such poets following. It is dated (by Zimmer) between 400 B.C. and 200 A.D., in its present form, but its present form is greatly expanded from the original, including many rewrites of the poems or incidents of the epic, a sort of anthology of Indian poets added to by whoever was copying the manuscript over again.

The Rāmāyaņa, the Epic of Rama, Prince of India, deals with the conflicts between Aryans and the native Indian population. The hero of the epic is Sri Ramachandra, whose conduct makes him the best example of a dutiful son, ideal husband, and king. Lakshmana is an ideal brother, who shares the fortunes of his eldest brother in city and forest, joy and distress. Ravana and Vali are two who seem to prosper despite their evil deeds. Sita is the beautiful and memorable wife, devoted to her lord in thought, word, and deed, whether in her own palace or in the enemy’s camp. The Rāmāyaņa is used as a text-book of morals for young people to “inspire them to higher and nobler ideals of conduct and character” (P.P.S.Sastri).

The Mahābhārata (including the Bhagavad GĪTĀ) was written by a poet named Vyasa. It is dated (Zimmer) between 400 B.C. and 400 A.D., in its present form (Chandradhar Sharma dates it between “500 B.C. and 0;” Noss says the Bhagavad Gītā was added to the Mahābhārata around 300 A.D.). It tells the story of a great battle between the five Pandav princes and their hundred evil cousins, the Kurus. In the midst of the battle, an old warrior is wounded. His dying words are expanded into sermons to his descendants. By the time this process was completed, by the additions of generations of scribes, the epic contained large sections of history, philosophy, law, and religious codes. It is a sort of poem plus an encyclopedia of the times. It is now eight times as long as the Iliad and Odyssey combined. The effect, as Broomell remarks, of reading some parts is as if we opened the Bible and read that Moses took leave of the Israelites, going up Mount Nebo to die, reciting the complete Code of Motor Vehicles on the way. “If you do not find it in the Mahabharata,” Indians say, “you will not find it in the world.”

The Laws of Manu (Manu Shastra), which also dates from this period, is the most famous of the Dharma-Shastras, Law Books, or treatises on justice and righteousness. Other Shastras include the Artha Shastra of Kautilya (the Prime Minister of the Magadha empire) on economics and politics, and the Kama Shastra (or Kama Sūtra) on sex and pleasure. Manu was supposed to be the son of Brahma, and to have preserved the ancient Vedas from destruction in the Flood. Some of the statutes from the Laws of Manu are:

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.