There has never been an Age of mankind when the Vedic Knowledge was not there. The Vedas is the Knowledge that has gone into creation, is inbuilt in creation, pragyaprasrato purano. Hence we can say it has always been there since the origin of creation itself. In each Age and every group of mankind, this secret Knowledge and Power that has gone into creation has been explored and expressed through mystic lore. To take just one example, if we take the ancient Chaldean wisdom, we can clearly see a close correspondence to the Vedas. But as the Vedas itself declare that they received it from their forefathers so we can imagine that dating it is not only a difficult but meaningless task. Even if we take it this way that the Veda emerged from the mouth of Brahma, the Rishis only received the inspiration, then it is even more difficult to date them. However, if we take it that the Vedas were already there by the time of the Ramayana, the Treta Yuga, and since the Ramsetu has been roughly dated, we can say that they existed at least 20000 years earlier. The modern historians would not agree, as deeply influenced by the Western thought about the origin and evolution of life, everything for them is in the range of 5000 years at the most, which is absurd.
In this cycle of chaturyugas, the task of preserving the Vedas is given to India. The Rig Vedas are the oldest, while the Atharva is the more recent one. This, and the other fact that the Vedas are not the creation of one Rishi itself, indicates that it is not a book that was finished in one straight and single effort. That is why the thought of the Vedas is so wide and pluralistic because the One Truth is approached by different Rishis in different ways.
2. Many scholars suggest that a significant portion of Vedic knowledge has been lost. Could you please comment on this?
Yes, especially because the knowledge was preserved largely by the oral tradition and quite likely much was lost. But equally, there is much yet to be written as humanity evolves and receives the inspiration. Unlike the Quran, the Vedas are not a book that were meant to be finished, as that would amount to saying that the faculty of inspiration and intuitive ceased with the Vedic Rishis.
3. Although Indra appears as the most prominent deity in the Veda, I somehow feel that Aditi is its central deity. Is this understanding valid?
Aditi is no doubt the most important, as it is she who gives birth to Indra himself, but Indra is the most highly praised, along with Agni. In the Vedic Age, Aditi seems to be largely in the background while Indra, Surya and the other gods are more prominent and active in the forefront.
4. Why are there four Vedas? What is the distinctive subject or purpose of each?
The Veda is one, but Rishi Vedvyasa classified it into four distinct categories based on the subject. Of course, the traditional story relates it to the four heads of Brahma as well as, the first three to Gyana, Karma, Bhakti yoga, respectively. The Rig Veda lays the base or the foundational knowledge, the Yajur give us the mantras for the Yagya. The Sam reveals the glories of the Divine in the form of songs. The Atharva is more about the occult mysteries of existence. The classification is a matter of convenience rather than anything else.
5. In the Gita, Sri Krishna says, “Among sacrifices, I am Japa.” Could you please explain the deeper significance of this statement?
Sacrifice is some action done with a higher purpose. The action itself must be given as an offering with a higher deeper intent. Japa is the very name of the Lord and the action involves the highest human faculty of speech hence it is the highest.
6. May I understand it correctly that Sri Aurobindo’s Integral Yoga is an exclusively psycho-spiritual and largely internalized Yagya, in which surrender and self-offering to the Divine are primary?
Yes. Quite so.
Affectionately,
Alok Da
