Shudras and Sanskrit: A Small Note
Shudras and Sanskrit
"70. He should not have a tuft of hair on the head ṇor should he wear the sacred thread. He should not even utter Saṃskṛta language. He should not read a Vedic passage nor should he resort to Trairātra (fast for three nights)."
However, we should analyse this passage in full:
"54. If a Brāhmaṇa pilgrim does not beg for alms despite being in difficulties, if he is truthful and resolute in meditation, he renders service to the Tīrtha itself.
55. Puṣkara in Kṛta Yuga, Naimiṣa in Tretā Yuga, Kurukṣetra in Dvāpara and Prābhāsika in Kali Yuga (are most important and sacred).
56. A man may stand on a single leg for a thousand Yugas. Another performs the pilgrimage (yātrā) to the Prābhāsika Kṣetra. The latter may or may not be equal to the former.
57. O lady of excellent countenance, after reaching the centre of this holy spot a man must leave off his vehicle and walk on foot.
58. He should roll on where even the deities had rolled. Then as a true pilgrim, he should go to Lord Someśvara after visiting Kapardin. He should proceed ahead dancing, laughing and singing.
59. On seeing such a man standing before Someśvara, the Pitṛs always become pleased and the grandfathers shout for joy.
60. “One belonging to our family has set off towards Lord Someśvara, in order to redeem us.” O goddess, after going to Someśvara, a devotee should get himself (i.e. his head) shaved.
61. In the Tīrtha the requisite Upavāsa (fasting) should be observed. Understand the procedure from me. There is no Tīrtha on a par with Gaṅgā. There is no resort on a par with a Kratu (Yajña).
62. There is no Jāpya (Mantra) like Gāyatrī; no Homa like that with the Vyāhṛtis (Om bhūḥ etc.). Within water there is nothing that quells sins more than the Aghamarṣaṇa (Mantra).
63. There is no meritorious act like non-violence. There is nothing greater than Dāna. There is no greater austerity (penance) than observing fast or resorting to Tīrthas.
64. O goddess of Devas, there is nothing superior to fast observed in a holy spot as a means of quelling sins and causing pleasure to the good.
65. Fast has been particularly prescribed in holy spots of deities. In the case of a Brāhmaṇa abstinence from food is called the greatest austerity.
66. Taking food once in three days is mentioned as the greatest austerity in the case of a Śūdra. In the case of persons born as a result of mixture of castes, one day is glorified (as an interval between two meals).
67. If at all anywhere a Śūdra performs a penance greater than (taking food) once in three days, it should be known that there is loss unto the nation and a great danger befalls the king.
68. A Śūdra should perform austerity within his capacity by regularly taking food once in three days. A Śūdra shall never pull out or uproot Darbha grass. He should never drink the milk of a Kapilā (tawny-coloured) cow.
69. O beautiful woman, he should never take food in the middle leaf of Brahmavṛkṣa (Mulberry or Palāśa tree). He should not utter the Praṇava Mantra (Om), nor shall he eat Puroḍāśa (sacrificial oblation).
70. He should not have a tuft of hair on the head ṇor should he wear the sacred thread. He should not even utter Saṃskṛta language. He should not read a Vedic passage nor should he resort to Trairātra (fast for three nights).
71. Certainly the fulfilment of the holy rites in the case of a Śūdra is with a mere, bow of salutation. If he does anything prohibited he sinks down (in hell) along with his Pitṛs."
This passage is talking about Pilgirimage and the etiquets of pilgrimage. For a Shudra, all he must do while on pilgramage is merely bow and fast only for three days. Every other words prohibition is Arthavada to emphasize that a Shudra must not do any Twice-Born related things while on pilgramage. Thus the prohibtion of Sanskrit is to be restricted to the context of pilgrimage. This should not prohibit Sanskrit learning for other things, like dramas, poetry, songs, or secular treatises.
The next comes from the Brhadddharma Purana (Uttara Kanda, 4.15):
"नचैवमाचरेत्धर्मं वैदिकं लौकिकं तथा। पुराणपठनं वेदपठनं नापि चाचरेत्॥ शास्त्रार्थकथनं चैव न शूद्रः क्वचिदाचरेत्। विप्रं क्षत्रं विशञ्चापि पाठयेन्न कदाचन॥ वर्णान् व्याकरणदीन् वा श्लोकं श्लोकार्थमेव वा। शूद्रो विद्यां ग्रहीतारं ब्राह्मणं पातयेदधः ब्राह्मणोऽपि पठन् शूद्रादात्मानमेव घातयेत्॥
(A Shûdra) shouldn't perform activities related to the Vaidika & folk practices. He should never read the Vedas & the Purânas. He should never discuss the meaning of the scriptures. A Shudra can't impart knowledge about alphabets, grammer, verses or their interpretations to Brâhmanas, Kshatriyas & Vaishyas. The Brâhmana who imparts knowledge to a Shûdra falls down (in hell) & the Brâhmana who gets knowledge from a Shûdra kill himself (i.e inflicted with the sin committing suicide)"
These verses come from a passage regarding Varna Dharma. Here it is mentioned that a Shudra's Dharma is to serve the Brahmanas. Thus these passages are merely emphasizing that the domain religious erudition (associated with the Twice Born) is not overlapping in domain of the Shudra's occupation.
The curious thing is the prohibtion of folk practices (Laukika Dharma). As in the Mahabharata we have:
"Sacrifice has been laid down as a duty of the three other orders. It has been ordained for the Sudra also, O Bharata! A Sudra, however, is not competent to titter swaha and swadha or any other Vedic mantra. For this reason, the Sudra, without observing the vows laid down in the Vedas, should worship the gods in minor sacrifices called Paka-yajnas. The gift called Purna-patra is declared to be the Dakshina of such sacrifices. 4 It has been heard by us that in days of old a Sudra of the name of Paijavana gave a Dakshina (in one of his sacrifices) consisting of a hundred thousand Purnapatras, according to the ordinance called Aindragni. 1 Sacrifice (as has been already said), is as much laid down for the Sudra as for the three other classes. Of all sacrifices, devotion has been laid down to be the foremost. 2 Devotion is a high deity. It cleanses all sacrificers. Then again Brahmanas are the foremost of gods unto their respective Sudra attendants. "
(https://sacred-texts.com/hin/m12/m12a059.htm)
In Manu 10.126-127:
"For the Śūdra there is no sin; nor is he worthy of any sacraments; he is not entitled to any sacred rites; but there is no prohibition against sacred rites.—(126)
If those who, knowing their duty, and wishing to acquire merit, imitate the practices of righteous men, with the exception of reciting the sacred texts, they incur no guilt; they obtain praise.—(127)"
The Shudra is given the rite to religious rites that don't invovle the Vedic mantras. This should imply folk practices (Laukika Dharma). It seems that the passage from Brhaddharma Purana is exagerating allttile, and thus should be taken with a grain of salt.
Now, why are the domains o religious erudition and servitude not overlapping? The Shudras are meant to render service and do labour. In the modern context, they would be wage workers that would run nine-to-five shifts. Their role was vital as they would maitain the foundation of society; hence, religious learning and learning Sanskrit is a watse of time for them and for others.
This is at least what the ancients thought:
Baudhayana Dharmasutra 1.5.10.30:
"30. The (study of) the Veda impedes (the pursuit of) agriculture, (the pursuit of) agriculture impedes (the study of) the Veda. He who is able (to do it), may attend to both; but he who is unable (to attend to both), shall give up agriculture"
However, the above is aimed at Twice Borns, and for the Shudra there is no Vedic learning for he is not alloted Upanayana. A Shudra would first have to join a Bhakti Era sect (like Gaudiya Vaishnavism) in order to change his Varna before getting Upanayanam. Hence for a Shudra, he is naturally to foresake Vedic learning and all that comes with it for the sake of agriculture and manual labour.
And that brings me to my next point. The Shudra is denied Vedic learning (chanting the Vedas), and naturally the limbs of the Vedas such as Kalpa and Chandas, are useless to him. It would be a waste of time to teach a Shudra or for a Shudra to learn this. The knowldge of Phonetics and Grammar (i.e. Sanskrit) is also for aiding in the learning of the Vedas, and thus it would be useless to him. However, this shoudn't preculde the learning of Sanskrit for non religous things like poetry, songs, and secular treatise. Of course, this is only if the Shudra has enough time on his hands to fease this.
(Not only that, but we have a perceptible reason for the prohibition (I take the statement regarding Hell as a metaphor) and as per Mimamsa rule, Smriti statements based on wordly motives (hetudarshAt) are not authoritative)
We actually have historical evidences of Shudras learning Sanskrit.One famous Sanskrit scholar of Shudra origin was Ramananda Raya, the governor during the Gajapati Kingdom. Ramananda Raya’s shudra status is well known from Sri Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya Lila Chapter 8:
“[21] Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then inquired whether he was Rāmānanda Rāya, and he replied, “Yes, I am Your very low servant, and I belong to the śūdra community.
[22]: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then embraced Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya very firmly. Indeed, both the master and the servant almost lost consciousness due to ecstatic love.
[23]: Their natural love for each other was awakened in them both, and they embraced and fell to the ground.
[24]: When they embraced each other, ecstatic symptoms — paralysis, perspiration, tears, shivering, paleness and standing up of the bodily hairs — appeared. The word “Kṛṣṇa” came from their mouths falteringly.
[25]: When the stereotyped, ritualistic brāhmaṇas who were following the Vedic principles saw this ecstatic manifestation of love, they were struck with wonder. All these brāhmaṇas began to reflect as follows.
[26]: The brāhmaṇas thought, “We can see that this sannyāsī has a luster like the effulgence of Brahman, but how is it He is crying upon embracing a śūdra, a member of the fourth caste in the social order?”
36: “You do not fear the Vedic injunctions stating that You should not associate with a śūdra. You were not contemptuous of my touch, although in the Vedas You are forbidden to associate with śūdras.”
Ramananda replied:
37: “You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself; therefore no one can understand Your purpose. By Your mercy You are touching me, although this is not sanctioned by the Vedas."
Ramananda Raya’s famous Sanskrit work is a beautiful play by the name of Jagannatha Vallabhi Natakam. Below is Verse 4 of the Opening Chapter:
“laghu-taralita-kandharam hasita-nava-sundaram gajapati-pratAparudra-hrdayAnugatam anudinam sa-rasam racayati ramananda-raya iti caru | |4|”
“The light rocking neck and smiles of beauty new and followed by the heart of Gajapati Prataparudra, daily, with essence, wrote thus the charming Ramananda Raya about”
It is curious that Chaitanya, said to be God himself or at least his Amshavatar, did not condemn Ramananda Raya for learning Sanskrit despite being a Shudra by birth. On the contrary, he recieved Chaitanya's grace. So Shudras learning Sanskrit is not at all far fetched.
Moreover, in the same passage in the Brihaddharma Purana, allows a Brahmana to give Vedic learning to Shudra in times of distress. The Kali Yuga is a time of distress, in which Hinduism is facing attack and criticism from everyone, and so few people are adequetly learned in their religion. While I am not saying we blindly give everyone Vedic learning, it would indeed be a blessing if even a Shudra could read the Sashtras and Puranas in Sanskrit and help recontextualise the religion in the modern world and respond to criticism by atheists and Abrahamics.
The conclusion is that the Shudra can be entitled to Sanskrit if he has the time and dedication to learn the language and if it is with a view of secular purposes like poetry or plays or acedemia (as opposed to with a view of Vedic learning). If he is of good temper and joins a Bhakti Era sect, he could read the Itihasas and Puranas and perhaps the non-Samhita Shrutis, but this is a stretch. Even I, a student busy with college assigments and who knows Sanskrit have to rely on English translations of the texts because it is very difficult for me to understand the Sanskrit. However, I will leave it with this.
Comments
Post a Comment