~BRAHMIN, THE PRECEPTOR OF THE VEDAS

Nanak Kanti Sen

In almost in all parts of rural area & in some places of the cities & towns & in the suburbs, the so-called literates & illiterates are still dependant upon those brahmins who are holding the sacred thread only. If any word is told to them, they began to hold their fathers & forefathers responsible by uttering the words in title of this feature given as like as a pet parrot. This is as like as `Dhoopi ka Gadha i.e. `The ass of the washerman. Let me say the tale in details. A washer-man would wash all the royal garments in a kings palace. One day he has come in the royal court, That day his head was shaved. The king wanted to know the cause of sudden shaving. The washer-man informed the king that his `Ram sing had died. After the departure of the washer-man, the king began to think that the washer-man had shaved his head due to the death of Ram Sing. Ram Sing certainly might be a great fellow. Then I should shave also my head because that great fellow would live in his kingdom. Thinking it, the king shaved his head. Having seen the shaved head of the king, the minister & his general also shaved their own heads. Having seen the shaved head of these three, the mass people began to shave their heads too. After shaving the head, while a fellow went to his house, then his wife wanted to know the cause of shaving to him. The husband asked his wife whether she had got the news of the death of Ram Sing or not. His wife enquired of Ram Sing to her husband due to the death of whom, her husband had shaved his head. The husband replied, `Thats I dont know. Wait a while, let me ask to that fellow by following whom, I had shaved my head. Next day that very husband came to that fellow & enquired of Ram Sing to him. That person replied, `I dont know whereabouts about Ram Sing. I have shaved my head following another. Everyone was asked but none could reply. Last of all, the question was raised to the king. The king replied, `I dont know. Let the washer-man come. We shall know whereabouts of Ram Sing from him. Next day, while the washer-man came to the royal-house, the king asked the washer-man about Ram Sing. The washer-man replied, `Your Highness, I had an ass which I would love with all my hearts. I would named that ass `Ram Sing. My beloved ass had died, oh my king, so, I am expressing my mourn by shaving my head. The king then was able to realize their foolishness that all of them had shaved in the death of the ass of the washer-man. This is the pen- picture of most of the people of our society. We make our fore-fathers responsible almost in all rituals but we dont think a while that there was no right of our fore-fathers to go through any scripture. They did not dare to open any scripture. The section of the society who have done business monopoly with the scripture by stealing the rights of others have mastered the society as their will & our forefathers were nothing but a puppet in their hands. Now it is the high time to unveil the mask of that business-minded brahmins & it is the solemn duty of all the conscious sections otherwise none a single debt of the five debts as prescribed in the scripture will be repaid. The term `Brahmin, The Preceptor of the Vedas is true as a whole but its application is going reverse. There was no cast-discrimination in the earlier 1

ages of the Vedas. He, who made sacrifice by fire would worship too, even he had to hold weapons if necessary, he had to engage himself in cultivation, trades etc. too, in a nutshell, he had to perform all types of works. Gradually, the sage people observed that no work was possible to perform well if one was to perform all types of works. So, considering all the sides, they introduced the cast-system in the society. But the cast-system in the Vedas & the cast-discrimination running in present society are not synonymous. We hold the Vedas in mouth but ignoring the words of the Vedas, we are giving indulgence the cast-discrimination as a fool. Custom was then introduced that after the ceremony of investiture with the holy thread in the ascertained time, the brahmin boy was to study the Vedas & other scriptures through his living in the house of the preceptor. After completion of study, having permitted from the preceptor, he would attain the right to enter into house-hold culture i.e. marriage. By the influence of Kali (Koli), Oh the Ram ! Oh the Ayoodhya ! Now-a-days, in almost cases, the ceremony of investiture with the holy thread is not being performed in the ascertained age. As a result a brahmin-child is becoming shudra. Besides this ceremony is being observed in the non-hindu practices (Mlecchachar) in almost cases. The invited guests are being entertained with restricted meat in this ceremony of investiture. Through such works, they are proving their scripture-ignorance. Moreover, just after the completion of the ceremony, everyone is becoming restless to immerse the stick ( Danda). They have said good-bye to the study of the scripture earlier. These types of brahmin have not been termed as the preceptor of the vedas. Brahmin is not a cast but quality. The scripture does not mention him as a brahmin who does not possess nine qualities i.e. (1) Cessation mental restraint (2) Control of mind (3) Austere worship of God (4) Sanctity (5) Termination (6) Simplicity (7) Perception (8) Special knowledge & (9) Belief in God. They can never be the preceptor of the vedas. The brahmin who is not aware of the Vedas, did never study the Vedas can never become the preceptor of the Vedas. Bhishmadeva has told Pandavas in Mohabharata, ~ `Pay the due honour to those brahmins who have studied the Vedas as well as know the punishworthy brahmins who have not studied the Vedas. Manu said, `Those numbers of heated iron-balls will be feeded to the performer of the obsequial rites, the numbers which a brahmin having no study in the Vedas will eat in the obsequial rites. Atri-samhita has mentioned, `Such a brahmin is compared with a beast who is not aware of the Vedas but express pride with the holy thread. Yet it is a very regretful matter that our conscience is not being grown having observing the decay of the society day by day through giving these people the dignity of a brahmin. The literature-emperor Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay told correctly, `The downfall of the hindu society have begun from that day while they have started to bow their heads on the feet of quality-less brahmins. Just you see, the hymn without the utterance of which, a brahmin-boy becomes a shudra, the onlooker fellow of that Veda-mata ( The mother of the Vedas) Gayatri is Bishwamitra who was not a brahmin but a kshatriya. The Oitariya Upanishada without studying of which, a brahmin does not attain the right

to access in the Vedas have been compiled by a shudra. ( Shashwata Bharat : Suboodh Kumar Chakrabarty). Vyasdeva, who had divided the Vedas in four divisions having felt the shortness of Kali (Koli) was born in the womb of a virgin fisherman girl. The divine sage Narada took birth in the womb of a maid-servant. Vashishta was born in the womb of a heaven- prostitute. Both the singer and the listener of Gita, the milk of the Vedas are Kshatriya. The son of Jobala who had no identity of his father becomes a superior brahmin due to intently devoted to truth. The hermit Suta was not born in the womb of a brahmin but he adorned the Vyasasana in the meeting presided by the great hermit Shounak in Naimisharanya. In this Kaliyuga, Yaban Haridas who was brought up by yabana had achieved the dignity of a brahmin to Mohaprabhu, the sanctifier of the sinners of Kali from damnation, the supreme brahmin, the sannyasi, the paramount scholar. Roy Ramananda was a shudra, yet he had been dignified as a brahmin. Naroottam Das Thakur came from a kayastha family, he had also been dignified as a brahmin. Raghunath Das Goswami, who was one of the six goswamis came from a kayastha family. Narendranath Dutta came from a kayastha family who became Swami Vivekananda later on. Keshava Chandra Sen came from a vaidya family & was dignified as a brahmin. Dabir Khas & Sakar Mallik ( Rupa Goswami & Sanatana Goswami) were non-hidus by their own utterings. Bankim chandra Dasgupta was born in a vaidya-family who became Dr. Mohanambrata Brahmachary later on. They are nothing but the day-blinds (Owl) to whom description about `The preceptor of the Vedas is required to be described after giving a lot of instances. Who will save him from his downfall who does not become carefull having seen his own downfall ? Of course, it is a consolation for us that Bhagawan has incarnated Himself again & again to drive away all the darkness from our heart but a section did not give their ears in the message of the incarnation. So long this universe will exist, fight between the truth & false will continue.