Veda Vyasa
The 'Mahabharata' remains a marvel in the literature of the world. Veda Vyasa was the sage who gave the world this storehouse of realism, wisdom and compassion. And he was the guide to whom seven generations of the high and the humble looked up in hours of sorrow and darkness.
About the Book :
Valmiki universally acclaimed as the adikavi is the cynosure of Indian literature. The only work available of the great sage-poet. The Ramayana has not only established the poet's timeless fame, but has also inaugurated a lasting tradition creative writing in Indian idiom based on a systematized synthesis of prophetic vision and poetic articulation
The monograph recreates the massage conveyed by the sage-poet through his characters, their thoughts, words and deeds depicted in a delightful diction, a continuous source of inspiration and guidance to the world through centuries. The Seven chapters of the book provide a deep insight into Valmiki the man as also Valmiki, the poet of epic magnitude. A brilliant Introduction to the study of the mastermind behind the immortal work. The Ramayana, the monograph also brings into focus the epic poet's magnificent vision of human existence and the philosophical core of this deathless masterpice that will live on as long as man and nature survive.
About the Author
The author. Dr. I. Panduranga Rao, is a prolific writer in Telugu, Hindi and English, with about 50 publications to his credit. He has specialized in comparative literature and Indian Philosophy. Particularly in Ramayanas in Indian languages. A brilliant scholar, he has also delivered a number of lectures on Ramayana in India and abroad. He is Presently working as Director, Bharatiya Jnanpith.
Authorship of the great Sanskrit language epic poem of India, the Mahabharata, is attributed to the sage Krsna Dvaipayana Vyasa. This study focuses on the depiction of Vyasa in the Mahabharata, where he is an important character in the tale he is credited, with composing.
Other scholars have interpreted Vyasa as an incarnation of Narayana Visnu. This study, however, demonstrates that he is so depicted only very rarely in the epic, and that elsewhere the Mahabharata portrays Vyasa as corresponding meaningfully with Brahma. Vyasa is, in fact, the earthly counterpart to Brahma in the Mahabharata, as Krsna is of Visnu, etc. The interpretation of Vyasa is enriched by the different perspectives provided by other literature, including dramas, Jataka tales, Arthasastra, and Puranas.
BRUCE M. SULLIVAN is a professor of Religious Studies in the Dept. of Humanities, Arts and Religion, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, USA. He did his".". (1975) in Religion, concentration in Asian Religions. He further got Ph.D. degree (1984) in the History of Religious Discipline from the Dept. of South Asian Languages and Civilizations, the University of Chicago. His other works include: Historical Dictionary of Hinduism and The Sun God's Daughter and King Samvarana, and a number of articles.
It is with pleasure that I thank those who have encouraged me to reprint this book, originally published as Krsna Dvaipayana Vyasa and the Mahabharata: A New Interpretation (Leiden, The Netherlands: E.J. Brill, 1990). The title for this second edition is the one I originally proposed to Brill, but their suggestion prevailed. I would especially like to take note of the persistence over several years of Mr. N.P. Jain of Motilal Banarsidass, who repeatedly asked to publish this work. I considered extensively revising it for publication, as so much excellent work has been done on the Mahabharata in the past decade since this work went to press originally, but decided instead to reprint. The book with only a few corrections. I am hopeful that this reprinted edition of my work will be of use to others interested in the Mahabharata.
Many are the imponderables in the history of Indian philosophy. One such is the attribution of the authorship of the Badarayana Brahmasutra to Veda Vyasa. An attempt is made here to probe into why and how it might have happened with what consequences.
The Adyarlibrary and Research centre
The Adyar library and Research Centre was founded in 1886 by Henry steel Olcott, first president of the Theosophical Society, for research in Eastern Civilization, philosophy and Religion. Its aim is to promote understanding among the peoples of the world through knowledge of the higher aspects of their respective cultures.
The collections of the Library consist of about 18,000 manuscripts containing about 45,000 works, both palmleaf and paper and some 2,00,000 printed volumes. The manuscripts are mostly from India and in Sanskrit. The printed books include old and rare Indological works and also a fine collection of books on the different religious and philosophies, in Sanskrit, English and various other languages eastern and western; and volumes of important Indological Journals.
Brahmavidya, The Adyar Library Bulletin is being published annually since 1937, presenting papers and studies on religion, philosophy and various aspects of Sanskrit and other oriental literature as well editions of ancient texts and translations.
The early Vedantin-s like Upavarsa and Sri Samkara held Badarayana to be the author of the Sariraka Brahma Sutra and considered him as different form Veda Vyasa. However around the eighth and ninth centuries, the Advaitin-s, on some assumed grounds, thought it Veda Vyasa, the renowned composer or compiler of the great Indian epic Mahabharata. This led to the identification of Badarayana with Vyasa, which is patently an anachronism. But the scholars were oblivious of this fault. Since the eleventh century, the teachers of the non-Advaita Vedanta schools took up this identification as an established fact and built upon it some of their weighty arguments and conclusions. Thus this anachronism passes for the correct position in all schools of the Vedanta.
No doubt the Advaitin-s can now at least let go of this faulty identification and revert to their earlier stand since they seem to have taken it up as a means to serve some assumed purpose. And by doing so they would not lose anything except their empty pride that their Sutrakara is the great Veda Vyasa. Of course whether they would be prepared to do so is a different question. On the other hand one is not sure whether the masters of other schools of the Vedanta can easily forsake this fault since it is mistaken for their vitality. The evidences to prove the contrary would be overshadowed by certain preferences and prejudices that had accumulated in the course of the long history of the schools concerned and they cannot be easily eradicated now. The present day scholarship does not have control over them.
The paper 'Badarayana and Vyasa as Authors of the Brahmasutra: A Historical Analysis' appearing in the Adyar Library Bulletin, vol. 67 (2003) is an attempt to study in depth the above anachronism. Because the historical background and ramifications make an interesting study the paper is presented as number 58 in the Adyar Library Pamphelt Series, so that a larger number of scholars may know the true position.
Valmiki and Vyasa, as author of the two great Epic poems, the Ramayana and Mahabharata, have influenced cultural, artistic and religious life not only inb India, but in several other parts of the world. Writing in the post Vedic and Upanishadic period, they became the precursors of classical Sanskrit literature. Their works enjoy great popularity and provide inspiration for artistic creations in literature, drama and music, even today.
In the course of time, due to their hoary antiquity, their personalities have become shrouded in folkores and beliefs.
The present volume, written by well known scholars throw more light on their life and personality and give a readable account of the two sages.
About the seires
The object of the series is to offer the general reader authentic accounts of the life and work of the great figures since the earliest times who have contributed in large measure to the culture and thought of India and influenced the mind and life of its people. The series will include about 125 such names seers and philosophers, poets and dramatists, mystics and religious leaders, writers on science, aestheticians and composers.
The books are intended for the average reader who is keen to learn more about the past but who has no knowledge of details and is not interested in finer academic issues. Dr V. Raghavan, an outstanding Sanskrit Scholar and Indologist was the General Editor of the series.
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