Rethinking Hinduism-1

Having been familiar with the Tamil sacred literature right from early days especially the Bakti literature that emphasized LOVE and UNIVERSALISM, it came always a surprise to me to read that Hinduism is caste infested, that it was IndoAryan in origins having the Vedas as the foundation with Sanskrit as Deva Bhasa and which served as the civilizing force of the whole of India etc. I knew that these are great lies and that they came into circulation only recently and perhaps all as part of Aryanism that was fostered by some Western powers and which finally fed into the birth of Nazism and such other racialism of the most obnoxious kind and to which even Indians especially the Northern Indians and some Brahmins in the south fell as preys and because of which there was the birth of the Dravidian movements of various kinds with hatred towards the Brahmins Sanskrit language and so forth. It is also unfortunate that this deep seated hatred towards the Brahmins and Sanskrit language generalized itself to Hinduism as a whole under the mistaken impression that it is all the product of Brahmins overlooking the fact that the genuine Saivism and VaishNavism, of preAryan origins, were quite fierce in their battle against VarNasrama Dharma in which even the Brahmins participated, forgetting in all these their brahmanahood.



It is against such backgrounds that I came across Sumerian literature in the School of African and Oriental studies of the University of London. It was in early seventies when I was doing my masters in Educational Psychology and where I used to do my studies in the very comfortable Library of SOAS. After just glancing at Dumuji’s Dream Suruppak’s Neri Enhudu Anna’s Sirbiyam (my titles) and so forth, it was quite obvious to me that the language was a strange kind of Tamil and because of which I called it Archaic Tamil. I spend about three months studying very intensively some of these texts and wrote my first paper “ Sumerian: Tamil of the First CaGkam” and which published in the Journal of Tamil Studies. Since then I never looked back despite many kinds of nasty comments and rebukes and which arose only because of the novelty that shattered the Aryan Ego and the Brahmin Ego that went along with it. Any historical understanding that uproots the existing paradigm will certainly meet such a violent rebuke but this itself being a sign that the new paradign is a truth, something they can’t brush aside. So am sure I have to just go on, writing continuously the TRUTH that Sumerian is Archaic Tamil and that Hinduism was already well formed even during that time and hence Prevedic etc. Later I also discovered that the language of Rig Veda etc, Rigkrit is another later variant of this SumeroTamil and pointing out that there were cultural movements (along with mass migrations) from the Middle East areas into India and where the Dravidians settled in the South and isolated thus continued developing their original culture to great heights. Now there may be also a prehistory to all these to explain why the Dravidians took deep roots in the South and not elsewhere. The Kumari, to which even Sumerian make reference may after all be some submerged land mass South of Tamil Nadu.



So I begin now the RETHINKING of Hinduism by pointing out what are BASIC BOOKS that one should read to get a FEEL of genuine Hinduism. I wish to thank S.Sathia for initiating this line of thinking.


Hinduism During the Third Millennium



The primordial and primary books of Hinduism come from the Third Millennium world where En Hudu Anna's Sirbiyam (Exaltations of Inanna) and Kes Temple Hymn (and other temple hymns) are the most outstanding. Sirbiyam discloses a very matured form of Bakti and Icon Thinking and the Kes Temple Hymns and so forth show the Temple-centeredness of genuine Hinduism as it is even now. From Sirbiyam we also learn that Yajna (Su. eji, ejen: fire, fire festival) etc was simply a temple ritual (as it is even today) showing that perhaps Vedism was generated later by isolating this kind of ritual (especially for the prosperity of the royalty)



To this we must add Suruppak’s NeRi (there is, I think, a reference to Suruppak in Rig Veda) that we can date to around 3000 BC or thereabouts and where we have Jiusudra, the Biblical Noah as the son of Suruppak and for whom the moral instructions were given. We can see the beginnings of the most fundamental motivational dynamics of Tamil language and culture and which may be the secret why it has survived so many historical upheavals. He says there in line 246: nignam kal-kal-en nig.e me-kal-kal (Ta. nigaz.nam kalkaliyen nigavee meykal-kal: anyone who studies the happenings around would learn great truths). Even a Tamil child will understand with some explanations that this is a primitive kind of Tamil for such words ‘kal’ ‘mey’ and so forth are still in use and with the same meanings. Only convoluted minds very thick in their prejudice against anything Dravidian will refuse to SEE that this is Archaic Tamil and raise questions not with the genuine scholarly interest but more as expressions of racial animosity, disguised hatred and so forth.



Now to this list we can also add Sulgi’s Mutariibiyam - more popularly known as Hymn B. For we have here the mention of not only Siva but also the first expression of essence of Tamil Culture - that one must live in truth and nothing else.



73-74 : sipa ildum-ma-bi su-bi hu-mu-dug, u me-da u-ul-li-a-se



Ta. Siva ezutummabi suurbi emmu tuukk.u uNmeyodu uu uuzi-a see : Towards Siva who has brought into presence all, I raise my hands so that I can live in TRUTH till the end of the whole world.



Thus we can see that there was already a LINK between the worship of Siva (sipa) and living in TRUTH , something that even Sambantar recalls in his Hymn as follows:





3:54-11.



aRRanRi yantaN maturait tokai yaakkinaanum

teRRenRu teyvan teLiyaar karaikoolai teNNiirp

paRRinRi paaGketirvin uuravum paNbu nookkil

peRRenRu uyarnta perumaan perumaanu manRee



Meaning:



Siva who rescued from death all the celestial beings from the most potent poison by swallowing it and keeping it in His throat, also disclosed Himself as the essence of the various compendiums of the Tamil poems developed in Madurai and as part of the Academies that flourished there and the President of which was Siva Himself. Now while textual productions of those ignorant of BEING disappeared in the floods, the Tamil texts survived swimming across the tides and thus standing as deathless. We should understand that Tamil survives perhaps because Siva who rides the Bull of Infinite Fertility patronizes it.



The Tamil language and culture survives only because as a whole it is organized as for TRUTH and hence Saivism as its foundation. The word ‘si-pa, si-ba” really means that which or he who (pa/ba) illuminates the mind (si, ci) and which is retained even now as the mantra si-vaa-ya etc. Saivism has been a religion of Natural Metaphysics where truth seeking was enshrined as its central dynamics and with it producing individuals who are Mey KaNdaan, those who have witnessed TRUTH.



It is interesting that this message is also available in the Upanishad’s: Satyam Eva Jayate (also another species of Archaic Tamil)





(to continue)1




Rethinking Hinduism-2


The Culture and Language of Vedas



The only historical memory the Tamils have of their deep and glorious past is that of the Three Academies the references to which are scattered in the CaGkam classics and some post CaGkam literature such as Cilappatikaaram and so forth. These accounts are substantially accurate as far as the Third Academy goes and hence it is also probably true that there was a Second Academy perhaps somewhere in India, assuming that the First Academy was in Sumeria. May be it was in the North and perhaps related also to the notion of Sangka (< Su, sag-ga) of the Buddhists who also developed culture with universities and so forth. We do not have any books surviving from this Second Academy though some scholars maintain that parts of Tolkaappiyam belong this Academy. However despite all these we can study the Vedas and Upanishads to gain an understanding of some of the later developments of Hinduism which later fed back into the mainstream Agamic Hinduism along with also giving rise to the birth of VarNasra Dharma which was never accepted by the Dravidians. They had their own understanding of the essence of Vedic Culture and which they also supported till very recent times. Raja Raja Chola, along with appointing nearly 400 Othuvars for singing Tevaram hymns, also patronized the chanting of Vedas within the temple precincts. The Veda Neri was NOT seen as alien till the advent of European Indologists who isolated the Vedas and Sanskrit and forced linkages with the European tribes by racializing the nonracial concept of “aryan” which strangely enough, is Dravidian. The language of the Vedas, Rigkrit is certainly a branch development of Archaic Tamil but less archaic than Sumerian and hence considerably later. We cannot understand the true meanings of the Slokas unless we RECOVER the original shape of the Slokas and with reference to SumeroTamil and classical Tamil and with that recover also the original meanings. This is a task I have undertaken and though only at the intial stages of it, enough have been gathered to say something useful and illuminating. The worship of Fire, Agni Ilee, where I think the meaning is the fiery destroyer (eri> eli> Ilee? Su, ugnim> agni?) is perhaps the same as Rudra and which is derived from Su. urudu: copper perhaps named thus because fiery. However it may be possible that it is this form of BEING that was rendered by the notion of Kaalaagni Rudra (kaal- naa-agni: the fire that does not allow anything to establish itself) and incorporated as the primordial essence of BEING and because of which He is also the generator of all, the antam-aati of MeykaNdar. Now even this concept was already in the Vedas themselves. For while BEING as the Fiery Fire is the Agni, but as the Dark and cool generating power we have BEING as Mitra where ‘mi’ is Sumerian “gi, mi” meaning both dark as well as the female. Dumu-mi means the female child where dumu.nitah means the male child. Thus Mitra is the tiram ( Talam, tiiram) where reside the female powers (mi), the creatrix. Thus Agni and Mitra may be actually another way of rendering the Sumerian In-anna-An complex, the Father-Mother or Siva-Sakti complex and which is icon form of the metaphysical notion of antam-aati: the Power of destruction-regeneration.



Now I should point out some phrases that can easily be intuited as Tamil in the body of Rig Veda itself and which is also philosophically important.


The seventh sloka of the first hymn goes as below:

upa tvaagnee dive-dive doshavastar dhiya vayam/namo bharanta emasi



Here ‘doshavastur dhiya vayam’ can be reconstructed as ‘ toosha vastu-ire tiiya vaiyum” i.e. burn the evil and filthy stuff.



dive-dive : corresponds to Ta. tinam tinam: everyday

dhosavastar (< dhosa-vastu-ere) We have Tamil equivalents like "toosam" meaning faults defects etc that has the root Ta. tuuci : dirt, dust etc. The word Ta. tukaL meaning also dirt , powder etc carries the metaphysical state of being impure, being evil etc. The ' vastar' can be the 'vastu" , substance and hence 'dhosavastar' the "tooca vastu" or Ta. tuuci vastu : the metaphysical stuff that makes one evil and ignoble, the 'malam' , the mind darkening stuff. The ‘ere’ is plural also available in SumeroTamil as a variant of ‘ene’ meaning a collectivity and which exists in Tamil as ‘inam’ to this day. This meaning fits better as a contrast to agni who is said to be "tuu" i.e. Pure. dhiya vayam: This can be taken as Ta. tiiya vai-am meaning "cause them to be burnt off" a meaning that fits well with the meaning of 'dhosavasatr' as Ta. tuucu vastu or tukaL. Thus we see that the primary metaphysical concepts where the anma is seen as already in dirt, filth and that only Agni can burn off these stuffs and with that purify the anmas are available here and which also constitute the basic notions of Saivism to this day. The notion of Sivam comes along with the notion of Purity, the meaning of existence itself is seen that of becoming Cuttam, Pure and Clean. This also discloses why Yajna was isolated as the most important ritual. It should also be noted that such words as ‘yajna , yajamaan’ and so forth are clearly SumeroTamil where we have ‘eji’ (fire:” ejem, ejen ( festival) and forth and which exists in Tamil as ‘yaakam’. Thus VeLvi or Yaakam is NOT something foreign to the Dravidian folks and it has been a part of Temple ritual right from Sumerian times at least. The word ‘ejen’ might have also given us the word “vizaa, vizan, vizavu” etc (with -j-> -lh -)



Now briefly towards the Upanishads where they can also be seen products of Dravidian culture with the language itself again as a variant of Archaic Tamil.


Dravidian Elements in the Upanishads



As an addition to this kind of study I want to bring to the attention of scholars the presence of SumeroDravidian elements in the Upanishads, something I noted more than twenty years ago when I studied the Upanishads, transliterated and translated into English by Prof. Radhakrishnan himself along with Sumero-Dravidian studies. The Upanishads, not only abound with Sumero-Tamil lexical items but also with vivid descriptions of traditions and doctrines of ancient Dravidians also prevalent in ancient Sumeria. Here I want to show the presence of distinctive MATRIARCHAL elements , which by universal acceptance is the essence of ancient Dravidian culture. Polyandry and Marukakkttaayam system of lineage and property transfer , so characteristic of this system is still practiced widely among the Todas of Nilgiri and till recently widely practiced in Kerala specially among the Nayars. The exceptional importance of Maman, male siblings of Tamil women , more important than even the husband , in practically every aspect of cultural life points to an ancient matriarchy, perhaps defunct now, even among Tamils.

We may note here the word 'Upanishad' may itself be Sumero-Tamil where 'upa' is Tamil 'uppar/ umpar" 'ni' the same as Sumerian 'ni" and ancient Tamil locative-genitive case marker' -in' and 'sad' a variant of ancient 'saaRRu" also available in Sumerian. What it means is : declarations coming from the heavens i.e. mystical disclosures,a meaning that fits well the essence of the Upanishads. And for which there is also a Sumerian parallel Ubar-tu-tu ( speech coming from above)

With these preliminaries , let me point out the following.

1. Female Guru Parampara.

Among the Egyptians we do not find female Pharaohs though women played important roles in politics. However in Sumeria we find females erecting temples for their own with contributions coming from themselves. We also have women as Temple Priestess, in conflict quite often with the male rulers of the city states. En Hudu Anna, the Daughter of Sargon, said to be the first man to rise to the status of an Emperor, was not only the head of a famous temple in Ur, but a mighty philosopher/mystic of her own reputed to have authored the famous "Exaltations of Innana" and numerous Temple Hymns widely recited for thousands of years in the whole of the ancient Middle East. Neither the Aryans or the Semitics are known to have fostered matriarchy and along with it the worship of the Woman , the Mother just as divine as Man or Father.

In Brhad- AraNyaka Upanishad, the Fourth Brahmana that deals with Procreation Ceremonies ( very ancient Tantric practices are described here) ends up with a succession of Teachers and Pupils as listed below ( only a part is given)

" Now the line of teachers . The son of PautimAsi (received this teaching) from the son of KAtyani, the son of KAtyani from the son of Gautami, the son of Gautami from the son of Bharadvaji, the son of Bahradvaji from the son of Parasari, the son of Parasari from the son of Aupasvati....." and so on.

Notice here that though the teachers are MALES but they are noted as sons of certain woman, their mothers. i.e.. their identity follows from the mother and not father, and in this discloses the matriarchal system of lineage and hence culture. Radhakrishnan notes that Sankara tries to account for this peculiarity by providing an excuse: that a mother plays an important place in the training of children which is ridiculous because in the same Upanishad there are other lists where the sons are known after their fathers and not mothers.

But despite the Parampara hailing from a matriarchal system, the doctrines are ultimately traced to divine principles and hence equally sacred as any other: .. Kasyapa Naidhuri from Vac( speech), Vac from Ambhini, Ambhini from Aditiya (the sun).

Here Ambhin(>ambuli: the moon?) is probably the Moon, as Aditya is clearly the Sun. Here we have references to ParaBindhu and ParaNatham, the TWO fundamental Siva Tatvas from which emerge Speech or Vac and hence all mystical doctrines.

2 Satyakama, the Son of JAbAla, a woman.

Internal evidences for the prevalence of polyandry and hence the identity of siblings in terms of the mother who bears them , is also available in the story of Satyakama , as recorded in Chandogya Upanishad, another famous Upanishad just as ancient as the Brihad Aranyaka.

The story goes as follows:

1. Once upon a time SatyakAma JAbAla addressed his mother JAbAla, " Mother, I desire to live the life of a student of sacred knowledge. Of what family am I?"

2. Then she said to him: " I do not know, my child, of what family you are. In my youth, when I went about a great deal, as a maid servant, I got you. So I do not know of what family you are. However , I am JAbAla by name and you are SatyakAma by name. So you may speak of yourself as SatyakAma JAbAla (the son of JAbAla)

3. Then he went to Gautama, the son of Haridrumat and said, "I wish to become a student of sacred knowledge. May I become your pupil, Venerable Sir."

4. He said to him" Of what family are you, my dear?" He replied, " I do not know this ,sir, of what family I am. I asked my mother. She answered " In my youth, when I went about a great deal as a maid-servant, I got you. So I do not know of what family you are. I am JAbAla by name and you are Satyakama by name. So I am SatykAma JAbAla, Sir"

5. He then said to him, " None but a BrahmaNa, could thus explain. Bring the fuel, my dear, I will receive you, as a pupil. Thou hast not departed from the truth..."

A number of conclusions can be made from this story.

a. Polyandry must be quite prevalent as such ways of conceiving a child as that JAbAla, was not considered a sin and Satyakama a bastard son . Legitimacy was accorded through simply identifying the child in terms of the woman who bears him. Hence the practice of naming the child after the mother as in the Guru Parampara list above must have been widely prevalent pointing out the strong presence of the matriarchal system .

b. Divine knowledge was NOT denied because of the accidents of birth as was promulgated in the Manu Smiriti etc. and hence at that time and perhaps within a dominant Matriarchy, the notion of VarNasrama Dharma was NOT prevalent.

c. The original meaning of BrahmaNa is the seeker of Truth, he who stands in Truth and lives in Truth and in which case the root must have been Brahma, true understanding. Though SatyakAma was born OUTSIDE socially sanctioned marriage, that fact was NOT brought in to deny admission to learn sacred knowledge. And in this sense the word BrahmaNa carries the same meaning as " meykaNtaan"

d. It may possible that Varnasrama Dharma of Manu Smirti is a later day social stratification arising out of the imposition of Patriarchal system of marriage and lineage. It may be possible that Varnasrama Dharma cannot exist within Matriarchy where women enjoy sexual freedom and which the institution of marriage is rather different. Note :Troubathai of Mahabharata was Aivarukkum Theevi and aziyaatha Paththini. The kaRpu was here understood fidelity towards NOT one man but FIVE brothers

3. Equal Rights of Women for Sacred Knowledge.

Another aspect of Matriarchy shows itself in the rights women enjoyed towards hearing, understanding and discussing sacred lore. This emerges in the story of Yajnavalkya, the most famous Rishi of the ancient world and the central figure in Brihad aryNyaka Upanishad. We should note that the name is SumeroDravidian coming from 'ezen-bal-ki-a" meaning a man who hails from a place full of festivals. The word" ezen" in Sumerian means festival and is still available in such words as "eje-maan" meaning the leader of the yajna in the Upanishads but now simply the leader.

This Yalnavalkya had two wives , KAtyAyani and Maitreyi ( The rishies of the Upanishad period quite often had more than one wife.) Here when Yajnavalkya expresses his desire to renounce the stage of householder and enter that of anchorite, the vanasprastha, an interesting philosophical conversations transpires between Maitreyi and Yajnavalkya. I give below only parts of it.

1. "Maitreyi," said Yajnavalkya, ' verily, I am about to go forth from this state (of householder). Look, let me make a final settlement between you and that KAtyAyani.

2. Then said Maitreyi: " If , indeed, Venerable Sir, this whole earth is filled with wealth were mine, would I be immortal through that?" " No," said Yajnavalkya: " Like the life of the rich even so would your life be. Of immortality, however, there is no hope through wealth."

3. Then Maitreyi said: " What should I do with that by which I do not become immortal?. Tell me that, indeed, Venerable Sir, of what you know (of the way to immortality)"

4. Then Yajnavalkya said: " Ah, my dear, you have been dear (even before), and you (now) speak dear words. Come sit down, I will explain to you. Even as I am explaining reflect (on what I say)

The dialogue continues but this much is sufficient for our purposes. We should note the following:

1. Yajnavalkya did NOT hesitate to enter into a philosophic dialogue with Maitreyi just because she happens to be a woman. The most profound knowledge was NOT denied to her because of femininity or because she happens to be his wife. The only factor that is seen as qualifying her for instructions on Sacred knowledge was her INTEREST and readiness for seeking such redeeming knowledge as opposed to earthly wealth.

2. There is unquestioning acceptance of the competency of Maitreyi for sacred wisdom showing that Yajnavalkya (praise be to him) recognized that woman are EQUAL to men even in such matters. Of course the subsequent astute questioning of her own Guru, validates thoroughly this estimation of Maitreyi. And Yajnavalkya demands that she REFLECTS on what he says and thus essentially Hermeneutical; was keen to make her UNDERSTAND rather than simply memorize and later regurgitate.

I take it that such an attitude towards woman, not only with regard to their RIGHTS but also COMPETENCY points towards the strong presence of Matriarchal system and thought processes and values emanating from that kind of social structure, a fact that we note to this day among the Dravidians especially among the Keralites who have recorded 100 % literacy even among the females. The Tamil tradition retains this as well as a strong undercurrent to this day for there are women poets, mystics, linguists, philosophers and Siddhas among them.




Rethinking Hinduism-3


Tolkaappiyam ( Marabiyal) and The Recovery of the PreVedic Roots



The whole of the Vedas and Upanishads, perhaps covering the period 1500 BC-500 BC resulted in two major developments. One is the degeneration from the initial four fold social organization of society that was KarNasrama Dharma, i.e. a Homo Hierarchicus that allowed mobility into the higher to all on the basis of merits, into the birth-based VarNasrma Dharma that promoted the Brahmanah caste into the highest and so forth and which was maintained as a birth right. The second is the degeneration of the ancient Natural Metaphysics into Idealism as in the Vedanta Sutras where the inquiry into the essence of Brahman was said to be the essence of philosophical endeavors forgetting or overlooking the existential import and metaphysical relevance of the NATURAL world, the nig.nam (> Ta. nikaznam: the happenings around) for gaining insights into the Great Truths( Suruppak: Mey kaL kaL )



These are cultural degenerations for both eliminate LOVE and its cultivation as important elements of culture and the need to witness TRUTHS for this purpose.



We can see that along with Buddhism and Jainism that arose as metaphysical movements that protested vehemently against these cultural degenerations, we have also the culture of Tolkaappiyam rising against it and finally emerging victorious in giving to rise to the Bakti movements and the associated philosophies and which also defeated the godless Buddhism and Jainism, reinstating LOVE but within theism



Here I must point out that a careful study of Tolkaappiyam indicates that Marabiyal that comes along as an appendix to Tol. is in fact an independent book and perhaps belongs to the Second Academy and which was forged in a cultural atmosphere where the CaturvarNa notions persisted. Thus it may belong to a period several centuries earlier than Tol proper(c. 300 BC) and noting the camel, a beast non native to S.India but to some parts of the North around Rajastan, is mentioned, it may have been composed somewhere near Dwaraka, near Bombay now submerged and perhaps was also the seat of the Second Academy. There are some notes in CaGkam classics mentioning that the VeLir Kings of Tamil Nadu drifted down from this Tuvarai, about 49 generations ago.



Anyway, I should point out some elements of Marabiyal that links it with the EARLIER and probably the Upanishadic or Bagavath Gita period along with the ancient Sumerian academic culture.


Caste-like Social Organization



First of all we have mention here of Kings, AntaNar, Vaicikan and VeLaan Maantar which though parallels the CaturvarNa concept is not exactly the same. The Sudras as such are not mentioned at all but in its place we have only the Agriculturists and who were not at all low in any way. Some of these Kizaars were connected with the royal families through marriage and some Kizaars were even made the Royal Purohitas, all indicating a social fluidity. However there are some elements resembling the VarNasra Dharma concepts - the various kinds social rights were parceled out among these people and in terms of these social groupings. It is also interesting that there is mention of a group called ‘izintoor’, the lowly kind who were not given even the rights to participate in wars and battles wearing the appropriate weapons and so forth (Mar. 1583. villum veelum kazalum kaNNiyum, taarum aaramum teerum vaaLum, manpeRu marabin eenoorkkum uria; 1584. anna raayinum izintorrkku illai). Now certainly these people are not the latter day untouchables but rather people who actually belong to the royal families (manpeRu marabu) but because of lowly conduct were deprived of such rights as head garlands, neck garlands, war weapons, chariots and so forth. Thus we can see that there were presence social measures that would deprive individuals traditional rights should they prove themselves undeserving by their lowly conduct.



Secondly we have a concept of Marabu, or tradition as something that should NOT be changed for then there will be chaos and disorder (1500: maaRRa arunj ciRappin marabu: the Tradition that is difficult to change; 1591: Marabu nilai tiriyin piRitu piRitaakum: if the traditional is allowed to be changed then there will be chaotic changes, each going in its own way)



This organization of society as a changeless Marabu, tradition, is something that is also seen in the Flora and Fauna and hence something genitival (?). The organization of Human Society is similar to that of the Flora and Fauna; the human society is also an Organism with genetic roots (by way of Karma?) divided into the rulers, priests, traders, agriculturalists and so forth and all should adhere to this traditional given social structure for the effective functioning and survival of society as a whole.





Into these sociology was inserted another notion- that of uyarntoor and who are said to set the precedents for all others to follow as models or exemplars (1502: vazakku enappaduvatu uyarntoor meeRRee, nikazcci avar kaadu aakalaan: what transpires as the various practices are in fact because of the configurations of events as such by the lofty individuals)



These Uyarntoor resembles the Sumerian Ur-sag (Ta. caan-oor> caanRoor), the great ones, who rises to great heights irrespective of birth.



Thus we see a situation which is NOT strictly the VarNasra Dharma where however some kind traditionally sanctioned social groupings with different kinds of privileges were allowed to be enjoyed along with provisions for uyarntoor, the caanRoor who can also climb up the social ladder and set precedents for others to follow.


The Literary Hermeneutics and the Birth of Hermeneutic Logic



The literary culture is also seen as proceeding in terms of the historical processes perpetuating itself in terms of traditions. The founding books are known as Mutal Nuul, and the secondary books that perpetuate it is the Vazi Nuul, the derivative and to which later the Caarbu Nuul, the associated books were added. While these notions need to be studied in greater depths, we shall jump to the last sutra of Marabiyal wherein we have notion of Utti, in connection with school pedagogy, the arts of understanding a difficult text and instructing on such effectively. Thirty-Two such Utties are listed and explained and which parallels those in Artha Sastra of Kaudilya and Shisrutha Samhita, the former a political and latter a medical treatise. This commonality and which consists the essence of Hermeneutic Science discloses a common cultural ethos that was shared by both such Sanskrit and Tamil texts. Perhaps there was a common cultural milieu in which scientific treatises both in Tamil and Sanskrit were composed.



I have also pointed out elsewhere that the notion of Utti goes back to the Sumerian school pedagogy where there were already analysis of such movements of the mind



However the most important aspect of this Literary Hermeneutics of Marabiyal is the birth of Hermeneutic Logic which later fed into the Naiyayika Logic and with that the whole of Indian Logic. For we have in the concept of KaaNdikai Urai, the birth of Circular Logic where a sutra is asserted (pratiknja) and shown for others to SEE the truth with Reasons (eetu) and illustrative examples (eduttukkaaddu) and recovered as a commonly accepted truth (Nigamana)



Despite all these caste-reinforcing concepts available in Marabiyal, as we shall next, it is this Hermeneutic Logic that served as the most important insight for the recovery from the degenerations Hindu culture suffered from the sociology of VarNasrama Dharma and the idealistic metaphysics of Vedanta Sutras.



For here we have also the notion of “vinaiyin niiGki viLagkiya aRivin munaivan”, the illustrious individual (munaivan) who shies with TRUTH because the understanding is FREE of prejudices, articulates a notion of personal excellence that links with spiritual and intellectual attainments and NOT AT ALL with birth. No one can be a munivan just because of birth alone as the kings and AntanaaLar, Vaicikan and so forth can be. No matter of what birth, unless a person wages wars with his own prejudices and becomes PURE at heart, he will not raise to a position where what he says will count as TRUTHS and hence authoritative.



We shall see that the notion of “vinaiyin niiGkutal” that gets articulated here became the ‘vinai tiirttal’ and so forth and the very meaning of religious life as understood during the bakti period.



( to continue) 3





Rethinking Hinduism -4


The AntaNar and Munaivar of Marabiyal





Marabiyal, is a text that I suspect belongs to the Second Academy sharing a cultural milieu with Artha Sastra Sisruta Samhita and forth, and that emphasized the notion of Tradition, marabu and noted that it acts as unchangeable institutions generating a society with fixed norms. While this may be true with kingship which was perhaps hereditary and hence tradition as something biologically transmitted, it was not clear that such genitival configurations can be extended to the trading class, the Vaicikan, and the farming class, the VeeLan Mantar. Except for the royal lineage, perhaps there was some fluidity with respect to trading and farming, the farmers sometimes also turning out to be traders and so forth.



However such genitival or non-genitival traditions or institutions certainly did not apply to another two classes of people - the AntaNar, the sages and Munivar , the well-illuminated scholars. Though the Brahmins, with their greediness to appropriate any term of approbation to their caste, would conflate this with the term Brahmin, nowhere it is said that an AntaNar or Munaivar are so solely by virtue of birth and lineage or even tradition. The AntaNar is similar to Plato’s Philosopher-king, someone who can assume the political post of governing the nation should the situation demand it. And the Munaivar is one who becomes so solely by virtue of scholarship and in which he attains supremely clear and objective understanding (vinaiyin niiGki viLaGkiya aRivu) and by virtue of which he becomes authoritative.



In the subsequent cultural history of the Dravidian folks and which served to drive away both the VarNasrama Dram and godless religions of Buddhism and Jainism, these notions of AntaNar and Munaivar played very important roles as we shall see.





The Birth of Ecological Thinking



The most significant feature of Tol. is the birth of Ecological Thinking and which seems to have graduated from the geographical related to subsistence level economic behavior to the inner ecological thinking where the personal features are seen to be configured by the inner ecologies and most of which are ordained by deities.



Tolkappiyam retains the Marabiyal notions of Vazakku and CeyyuL- that in order to understand the world, existence and gain truths about them, we have to analyze the natural language, the vazakku and composed literature, the ceyyuL. Implicit in this view is that it is LANGUAGE as such that provides the avenue for reaching out the metaphysical depths and which orientation led to Mantrayana proper as opposed to the Vedic Dwani science of tones and their different aesthetic modulations. The mantras are NOT tones that are only of aesthetic interest but rather capsules of real powers the recitation of which will enable one to wield such powers as embodied in them and attain various kinds of Siddhies.



Now we can see that the professions such as aayar (herdsmen) veedduvar (hunters) paratavar (fishermen) and so forth are determined solely by the forces of natural ecology as would also the VeeLan Mantar and so forth. But we can also see that such a way of explaining the genesis of social classes do not apply to many others. The kings, traders, sages and scholars do not have any such clear geographical ecology that would produce them. On top of it all, we have the institution of FAMILY that cuts across all such divisions as a universal feature and also SEXUALITY and the behavior conditioned by it as something COMMON to all. Thus the human situation is very complex indeed and in which referring only the geographical ecology alone is NOT sufficient to make sense of it all.



It is perhaps of such failures in sociology and dilemmas in understanding that it must have dawned that their INNER ECOLOGIES, the Interior Landscapes that are real determinants of behavior and personality traits.



The Inner Ecologies and Behavior.





A man is what he is because of the Inner Ecology that pervades his interior and which configures his personality and that he can CHANGE to something else provided he changes the Inner Ecology - this understanding became the most important insight of the CaGkam Tamils and in which they also saw an important place for PEDAGOGY in such transformations. As ARivudai Nambi, a Pandiya King observed, no matter of what birth one is, only the truly educated commands the respect of all.



Along with it was also recognized that the SEXUALITY provided the appropriate parameter for the socio-psychology and that all behavior can be comprehended in terms of Akam and PuRam where the Akam is the sexual and the PuRam is the non-sexual. In addition to this it was also recognized that the SEXUAL is more basic than the non-sexual where the various divisions of the PuRam are social extensions of the various divisions of the Akam.



Some details are in order here.



The whole of Akam types of behavior are divided into SEVEN classes (TiNai): kuRinjci Mullai Marutam, Neytal and Paalai and which are also names of geographical ecologies. There are TWO divisions of behavior, the KaikkiLai and PerunTinai that are devoid of such inner ecologies indicating that they can erupt into any of the above five. Now it is also said that there are such seven divisions of PuRam - Vedci, Vanjci, Uzinjai, Tumbai, Vaakai, Kaanjci and PadaaN. Each of these divisions of PuRam are said to be the EXTERNAL or social manifestations of the sexual akam - The Vedci as that of KuRinjci, the Vanjci as that Mullai, the Uzinjai as that Marutam, the Tumbai as that Neytal, the Vaakai as that of Paalai, Kaanjci as that of PeruntiNai and PaadaaN as that of KakkiLai.



There are many very interesting insights into the PSYCHOLOGY of human behavior is such a classification and understanding the dynamics of human behavior. Let me just illustrate this a little bit. It is said that KuRinjci is an inner ecology of immoderate (though not unethical) sexual urges and that Vedci is the social expression of it. And this kind of political behavior is concerned with CAPTURING (or stealing) the cattle of the enemies under the direction of the King. This kind of behavior is also said to be KoRRavai Nilai, meaning also that involves KILLING people and so forth. Thus the inner situation of intense sexual urges is related to the social behavior of immoderate acquisitive behavior where even killing is seemed to be normal.



Now of special significance is Vaakai which taken as the social expression of Paalai, the sexual TiNai of separation and so forth. It is here that we have the mention of various classes of people of ancient Tamil Polity - six kinds of Brahmins or Paarppaans, the five kinds of kings or political leaders, the six kinds of other political leaders, the ARivars who seek out transductive perceptions that transcend time, the eight kinds of Yogies (taapatar), the different types of warriors and so forth. When the Paalai TiNai pervades their Inner Space they all become the seekers of Vaakai, Victory over others by their excellence, which they establish in a combat.



Now Kaanjci as the social expression of the PeruntiNai, is that of lamentations over the DEATH which is recognized as something inevitable and because of which the whole of existence is seen as Nillaa Ulakam, something that does not stand there permanently. The external of KakkiLai is PaadaaN TiNai and where Tol. locates the Bakti or Love dominated behavior directed towards the deities, children, kings, sages and so forth.



We can see that it is this PaadaaN TiNai form of behavior and literary productions that became the norm during the Bakti period several centuries later.


The Ordaining Deities - Love and Ethics.



Now we have also the re-appearance of the very ancient notion of the divine powers as the ordaining deities of the inner ecologies but with the difference. While in the Sumerian period and even after, the presence of deities were NOT linked with LOVE, we see that here in Tolkaappiyam. For the inner ecologies of KuRinjci Mullai Marutam and Neytal are said to be pervaded and hence configured by Ceeyoon (Murukan) Maayoon (Tirumaal) Indran and VaruNan and in which both Indra and VaruNa are Vedic deities. The Paalai is ascribed to Paal, the Radiant Supreme (Siva?) and from which, it is implied that the other deities take shape just like it is by the transformation of Paalai that kuRinjci and so forth are generated.



These five are said Anbin AintiNai and by implication the PeruntiNai and KakkiLai as NOT so. Where there is the PRESENCE of the deities there is LOVE as the configuring principle of social interactions and where sexual unions are realized through mutual consent. Now the deities and hence divine regulations are ABSENT in PeruntiNai and KaikkiLai and because of which we have one-sided love and improper love and so forth.



Thus we have here the emergence of the ingredients that later flourished magnificently constituting the essence of Dravidian Hinduism and which also spread the whole of the length and breath of India. For here first of all we have LOVE being highlighted and linked with Divine Presence and secondly the Ethical is also understood as that which is favored by the divine powers.



As we shall see, Love and Ethics became the powerful ingredients of Dravidian Hinduism and which overthrew both the godless religions of Buddhism and Jainism and Loveless religions of the Vedic Brahmins.