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Whither Saivaism - 21st Century?
V.Siva Subramaniam 8 May 2006
Saivaism shares common philosophical roots (the Vedas) and history with
Hinduism. Historically both successfully met the challenges in the environment
they originated and grew up in. To replicate their past successes in the complex
environment of the 21st century the Saivite (Hindu) community including those
living overseas has to re-invigorate itself spiritually.
A historical back-drop
The Upanishadic revival
A brief review of the faith’s past successes in revivalism serves as a guide to
present day Saivites striving to restore the spiritual purity of Saivaism.
According to better researched religious literature, the Age of the Upanishads
which produced the Vedanta (the philosophical foundation of Hindu/Saivite faith)
was one such revival. The intellectual and spiritual ferment that conditions (an
elaborate system of sacrifices and complex rituals buttressed by the
varnadharma-caste system) then produced, delivered Hindu and Saivite
spirituality freedom from the strangle-hold of an emerging priestly class.
Buddhism and Jainism were revolts against the priestly excesses from outside but
the first (Upanishadic) revival was a cleansing movement from within. Revivalism
did not totally extinguish these taints (excesses). Hence they re-surfaced
periodically providing the environment for subsequent revivals. Accordingly the
faith produced the age of the Vedangas and Sutras, the Epics. the puranas, the
dharshanas and the agamas and Bhakthi (the early Saivite contributors being
seers,
Jnanasambandar,
Appar
and Sundarar).
Hindu revival (19 & 20th Century )
Similar conditions were created with the invasions (Muslim and Western colonial
powers) and internal wars when the faith (intellectually and spiritually)
suffered a period of stagnation in the face of vigorous Christian missionary
activities, the obsession of the elites or intellectuals with the secular
pursuits (jobs in the colonial civil service) and the re-emergence of the
excesses of the pre-Upanishadic period.
These drove substantial sections of the faithful to Christianity. More than the
patronage of the colonial rulers the missionaries exploited successfully the
grievances of the social classes that suffered under varnadharma (caste
practices). These provided the faith with the reformist fervour that moderated
harsh practices such as varnadharma, stri-dharma (sati), animal sacrifice in
temples, polygamy, enforced widowhood, prejudice against divorcees and
untouchability.
Far more important was that the revivalists pioneered activities to adapt
spiritual teachings to the socio-economic changes when colonialism brought with
capitalism, crude material values. The Brahmo Samaj, the Ramakrishna mission,
other similar organizations and religious teachers by going back to the
Upanishads and the
Gita re-stated the basic
concepts of the faith in a proper perspective concentrating on Brahman and the
personal god (ishwara), the law of karma and rebirth and the three-fold paths of
karma, bhakthi and jnana. These disabused the perceptions the missionaries were
creating that Hindus and Saivaites worshiped many deities and the teachings were
life negating. The treatises of Radhakrishnan interpreting Hinduism to both the
faithful and the outside world raised the status of Hinduism as a great world
religion. Thus the revivalist tradition of the faith should enthuse Saivites
into action to restore its purity and strength.
Role for 21st century Revivalism
Tasks awaiting completion
From a historical perspective it is evident that Revivalism has been and is a
continuous process. Despite its achievements it has much more to achieve. The
teachings of the revivalists hitherto have not sunk deep enough into the psyche
of the faithful, especially amongst the vulnerable sections of the Hindu youth
who easily succumb to the ridicule of other religionists about the worship of
idols, many gods and some of the practices.
The caste system is
still entrenched at the social level throughout the Hindu world. There are
vigorous protagonists who claim a divine origin for the caste system quoting the
Manu smritis (scriptures) and who still use the suffix “dharma” (varna-dharma)
when referring to it. This causes much unease amongst educated Hindus. Hindus
and Saivites look forward eagerly to the day when the word varnadharma (like
Stridharma -sati) disappears from the Hindu lexicon for good. Large numbers of
devotees have settled overseas. They are exposed to values that are alien to the
core Saivite beliefs and the potential for a drift away of youths from Saivaism
is a cause for concern amongst Hindus/Saivites. Hence the need to re-invigourate
the Saiva Revivalism.
Newer tasks – addressing issues arising from
globalization, attitudinal and life style changes
The piece “Saiva (dharma) Neri –
its spirituality (a perspective)” by this author in the Tamilnation.org web
pages briefly analysed the implications for values and spirituality caused by
crude materialism, consumerism and globalization. The effects are evident most
in the attitudinal changes especially amongst the young. Hindu/Saiva parents
toil long hours just to provide the many things (material) that the children
“Had to Have”. Trips, lavish homes, laptops, music systems, night life, eating
of dinner anywhere but at home, lavish birthdays and wedding anniversaries (for
young and old), designer clothing and jewels, Omega wrist watches and so on and
so on.
These (not spirituality) form the topic of conversation feeding egos to be
amongst the elite. When thoughts are about finding the means to satisfy such a
growing lists of desires where is the space for spiritual thoughts? The
phenomenon of “conspicuous consumption” poses a far graver threat to
spirituality than anything that Hindus/Saivites faced at any time in the past.
The excesses of pre-Upanishadic or Brahmana era pale into insignificance. To
create a more conducive environment for spirituality, spiritual teachings have
to accept and adjust to the irreversible socio-economic changes in the
environment focusing on moderating the monstrous urges that consumerism
nourishes amongst the faithful. Historically the inherent strength of
Hindu/Saivite teachings is its capacity to adapt to the changing environment
without compromising on the core teachings.
The radical societal changes of the 21st century have produced irreversible
changes for the Saivite faith. In the societies of our ancestors simple and
intense bhakthi was a rewarding path to spiritual deliverance. The study of the
scriptures was confined to a small section (the brahmanas) of the faithful. In
the present complex and literate Saivite community the faithful irrespective of
class seeks spiritual deliverance through other yogic (karma and gnana)
disciplines besides bhakthi. The discipline(s) a devotee follows is a function
of his spiritual inclinations.
Hence revivalism has again to re-invent and re-invigorate itself to remain
relevant and serve the spiritual aspirations of devotees at this critical
juncture.
Versatility of Saivite teachings
The scriptures (these drive spiritual practices) served as the ballast for the
Hindu/Saivite faith through the ages. Whenever a gulf occurs between the
teachings and practices Revivalism finds answers to issues arising out of
changes in the environment. For the 21st century this task becomes more
challenging especially in the light of the radical nature of the changes in the
environment that bridging the gulf between teachings and practice will
necessarily require ingenuity and tremendous effort. The faith’s experience with
varnadharma suggests that the gulf between teachings and practice may remain
without ever being satisfactorily bridged.
The bhakthi tradition – the strength of the Saivite faith
In the ages gone by, the bhakthi and rituals had a major role in nurturing
Saivite spirituality. For the mass of Saivites then, spirituality was bhakthi
oriented and hence an unquestioning acceptance of the priestly Vedic teachings
and rituals in the faith. The guru ship role of the priests was an important
pillar in Saivite piety and spirituality. These changed. With the socio-economic
evolution, the priestly classes moved away from the role assigned in the Manu
smriti (the study and teaching of the Vedas) to secular vocations. The
non-priestly classes on the other hand for their own spiritual development
showed interest in the study of the Vedas and related scriptures themselves.
Although for some of the rituals the priestly class offered no coherent
explanations the devotees accepted the rituals as sacred and without dissent.
Despite these attendance at temples grew stronger and stronger. The implicit
acceptance of rituals is attributable to the strong bhakthi trait in the Saivite
community.
Temples - rituals and spiritual teachings
Revivalism encouraged growing temples attendance. It also offered other forms of
worship besides pujas and festivals thus improving the contribution of temple
programs to spirituality. The scope for temples to serve as places for quiet
meditation and centres of spiritual learning were (and are) raised from time to
time. The Bhakthi component in spiritual teachings predominated in the
traditional (thevarams and katha-pirasangams centred on the puranas) teachings;
this changed when the revivalists broadened the teachings to include other yogic
disciplines.
The widespread teaching of the Gita a respected treatise on spirituality shows
the growing interest amongst Saivite devotees in broadening their knowledge of
spiritual truths. The growing circle of devotees of this category is evidence of
the results that revivalism has and is producing especially in delivering
spiritual truths more effectively in the more literate 21st century environment.
Besides the temples, the missions and ashrams, Hindu and Saivite organizations
are involved in improving the quality of the spiritual teachings. This is
especially important in an age when the decline in the observance of moral
values (dharma) and the gulf between morality and spirituality is widening. The
faithful are now dispersed around the world where material values predominate.
In the heartland of the faith itself materialistic Western moral values and
life styles pre-dominate over the thought of the divine. One cannot be spiritual
without being moral first. The revivalists through the agency of the sannyasins
of the Ramakrishnan Mission, ashrams and other religious teachers following on
the footsteps of personalities like Dr Radhakrishnan,
Mahatma Ghandhi,
Aurobindho Ghose, and
Tagore show an extra-ordinary capacity to extricate the faith and the moral
order from priest ridden rituals and alien values that erode Saivite
spirituality and delivering a revitalized bhakthi discipline. The vitality that
the Revivalists have shown gives hope that the faith will cope with the
challenges of the 21st century.
In Saivaism sages achieved spiritual deliverance principally through the
bhakthi. Interest in the scriptures replaces desires with the thought of the
divine in devotees; an important step in purifying the soul for spiritual
deliverance (moksha). Gnana yoga is an arduous yoga for which only a few are
endowed with the necessary inclinations. This means that a revitalized Bhakthi
discipline involving temple worship will continue its dominant role in the
Revivalist agenda for the 21st century.
Quality of Spiritual teaching
The Ramakrishna mission and like organizations began imparting cleansed
scriptural truths (i.e. omitting those rituals and teachings that have lost
relevance with societal changes) for decades. Devotees who missed the teachings
continued to practice ritualistic worship. Revivalism saw success in focusing on
core concepts like Brahman, ishta deivam, the law of karma amongst others, yet
there are commentaries originating from respectable sources that mis-quote the
scriptures justifying sinful practices like varna dharma. In the West, feudalism
(equivalent of the caste system) just disappeared when capitalism arrived.
Although the politico-economic structures that supported the caste system
crumbled at the social level it continues to plague the lives of Hindus
(especially Indians).
Saivites scriptures including the
Kural did not offer much support philosophically for these practices as the
Manu smriti did. Most disturbing is that commentaries still misquote the
scriptures – a practice that damages the philosophical foundations of the faith
and in the absence of robust rebuttals from devotees and commentators who
disagree (Hindu publications included) such commentaries continue in
publications. This means the message of revivalism on the varna dharma failed to
accomplish its objective that revivalists have to continue to battle on with
greater vigour to win over more and more devotees away from such practices
Discussions and publications that articulate the practice of misquoting of the
scriptures are important to raise the quality of the scriptural teachings and
guide devotees studying the scriptures. Revivalism has a major challenge here.
Conclusion
The whole gamut of spiritual activities that Saivite devotees engage in today
(worship in the temples and homes, arduous pilgrimages, attending discourses,
observing dharmic behavior) remain bhakthi oriented. Given that the thought of
the divine in bhakthi prepares the soul for the spiritual deliverance, the study
and practice of scriptural truths act as the stimulus to light up the divine
spark revitalizing the bhakthi discipline.
In the past rituals in temples and homes, spiritual retreats under the guidance
of sages or rishis in ashrams provided the spiritual succour for devotees. These
produced the environment for sages to attain spiritual wisdom. In recent times
Revivalist organizations offer religious discourses, retreats and opportunities
for social service for devotees to gradually replace worldly thoughts with the
thoughts of the divine. Present day conditions demand more of this from
Revivalist organizations. Ordinary devotees receiving teachings (from sannyasins
of missions and ashrams) are also keen to pursue scriptural studies themselves.
For them the scriptures are a bewildering web that cleansing them by codifying
and identifying core scriptures and quality commentaries are important. Devotees
to receive quality spiritual teachings is achievable by improving the quality of
the temple priests (most of whom now merely perform the rituals
mechanically).
Priests capable of imparting spiritual teachings and explaining the significance
of rituals to spirituality will improve the faith of devotees especially the
young in temple worship and the rituals. Depending on the stage of life, the
Hindu/Saivaite faith offers devotees more and more choices to tailor their
spiritual pursuits that meet their spiritual inclinations.
Equipping parents with basic scriptural knowledge is urgent to provide the
environment in the home for the children to cultivate and include the thought of
god within their childhood activities. Inculcating faith in the divine when
young insures against the risk of children drifting away as they grow up.
Although spirituality and achieving spiritual deliverance in the last resort is
dependent on a devotee’s own divine inclinations and striving, temples and
religious organizations had and have a role. The missions, the ashrams, temple
management, voluntary organizations and dedicated individuals provided the
motive power behind the Revivalist movements. These activities needs direction,
leadership and coordination on a world-wide basis to be more effective. The
revivalism in Saivite community looks forward to strong leadership in view of
the changed character of the challenges for the faith in the 21st century.
APPENDIX
Pitfalls in studying commentaries that mis-quote the scriptures - A
varnadharma case study
The purusha legend
Examining the commentary of a reputed Varnadharma apologist, illustrates the
nature of the pitfalls that devotees have to avoid in relying on quotes from the
scriptures in commentaries. ..‘the system of the four varnas was already
settled....’ from Vedic times. There was a thriving, occupation based, agrarian
society in which gunas (or inherent qualities not birth) apparently determined
the functional division of society. Aryan influence super-imposed on it a birth
based (hereditary) caste system. How and when this change occured and when the
colour (varna) dimension was added to it carrying with it associated prejudices
is not clearly established.
The apologist refers to the purusha legend in the sacred Purushasukta (Rig
Vedic) hymn 10.90 to explain the creation of the caste classes. The apologist’s
commentary reads; “...purusha is said to have produced the Brahmana from his
mouth, the Kshatriya from his arms, and the Vaisha from his thighs and the
Shudra from his feet”. The quote from the Manu smriti verse (1.31) is; “But for
the sake of the prosperity of the worlds he caused the Brahman, the Kshatriya,
the Vaisya and the Sudra to proceed from his mouth, his arms, his thighs and his
feet”. The quote from the pre-Manu, the Rig Veda Sruti (10.90.11 & 12) reads:
“…When they divided Purusha how many portions did they make? What do they call
his mouth, his arms? What do they call his thighs and feet? (11)”…. “The Brahman
was his mouth, of both his arms was the Rajanya made. His thighs became the
Vaisya, from his feet the Sudra was produced”. (Rig Veda 10.90 (12)
It is interesting to note the import of the words used in the three quotes
above. The key words in the apologist’s commentary is “produced” compared to
“caused” and “proceed” in the Manu and “call”, “was”, “made”, “became”,
“produced” in the Rig Veda. Clearly the apologist takes the imagery in the verse
and the (purusha) legend literally implying that castes are a creation of God
and varnadharma is a divine message. The commentary accepts a (Manu) Smriti 1.31
over a Rig Veda Sruti 10.90 (11 & 12) (a revealed truth) which overrides a
Smriti (a subsequent commentary). The Manu smriti is a much criticized scripture
for the reason that it appears to have been edited indiscriminately at different
times by different scholars (who invariably were the Brahmanas). Manu was a
great sage and the Manu Smriti a great scripture but its relevance in the
context of the assertions in the commentary is dubious. A comparison of the Manu
smriti and the Saivite kural explains why Saivite jati practices were “kinder’
and “gentler” than the harsh prejudices practiced under varnadharma.
The law of Karma explanation !
To improve the quality of the spiritual teachings the attention of devotes needs
to be drawn to spiritual commentaries where an apologist uses the Law of Karma
to justify varnadharma using a four line oblique narration in Chhandohya
Upanishad V.10.7). Both (the Upanishad quote and the commentary) are quoted to
support this observation.
“Those whose conduct here on earth has been good will quickly attain some good
birth-birth as a Brahmin, birth as a kshatriya or birth as a vaisya. But those
whose conduct here has been evil will quickly attain some evil birth- birth as a
dog, birth as a pig or birth as a chandala” - Chhandogya Upanishad V 107
“.. a person’s birth in a particular form, as Brahmana, or
Shudra depends on his karma in a past birth. His varna is thus
the consequence of his past actions....A man’s varna is part of
the retributive justice that pursues the self from birth to
birth…It is by fulfilling faithfully the duties of his varna and
status that one may ascend in the social scale ….birth in a
varna is the result of the combined effect of the innate guna of
the self and its actions(karma) as moulded in the past births…Translated
into terms of purusharthas, the first varna stands for Dharma,
the second and third for Artha and Kama and the last for only
animal desires (Kama)”.
According to Chhandogya Upanishad scripture in the category “good birth” it
included the brahmin, kshatriya and vaisya. These classes lived well in the
social context then. The apologist however omits mention of kshatriya and vaisya
in the “good birth” category in his commentary. In effect according to the
apologist the conduct of all brahmanas is good and are duly rewarded with good
birth as brahmanas. What an interpretation of the law of karma and the scripture
(Chhandogya Upanishad)? Readers are left to judge the prejudice in the
observations (in italics) in the last sentence of the commentary quoted above. |
