a 4 BHAVAN’S BOOK UNIVERSITY HINDUISM Maca Vala laa G. Rajagopalachari GENERAL EDITORS K. MMUNSHI R. R. DIWAKAR ~ a BHARATIYA VIDYA BHAVAN, BOMBAY7 Hi fis = ses mT a : Lee Lal yo oo eee Hod - L | i Scar a comin Bharatiya Vidya Stands for Bharatiya Shiksha must ensure that no promising young Indian of oharacter having faith in Bharat and her culture: Bharatiya Vidya should be left without modern oducational equipment by reason merely of want of funds. 2. Bharatiya Shiksha must be formative more than in- formative, and cannot have for its end mere acquisition of knowledge. Its legitimate sphere is not only to develop natural talents but so to shape thein as to enable them to y absorb and express the permanent values of Bharatiya Vidya. 3. Bharatiya Shiksha must take into account not only the full growth of a student's personality but the totality of his relations and lead him to the highest sclf-fulfilment of which he is capable. =~ 4. Bharatiya Shiksha must involve at some stage or other an intensive study of Sanskrit or Sanskritic Janguages | Sem! | and their literatufe, without excluding, if so desired, the | pes study of other languages and literature, ancient and ee rn. on ene ! | i5. The re-integration of Bharatiya Vidya, which is the primary object of Bharatiya Shiksha, can only be attained through a study of forces, movements, motives, ideas, forms and art of creative life-energy through which it has expressed itself in different ages as a single continuous process, 6. Bharatiya Shiksha must stimulate the student’s power of expression, both written and oral, at every stage in accordance with the highest ideals attained by the great literary masters in the intellectual and moral spheres. : 7. The technique of Bharatiya Shiksha must involve— (a) the adoption by the teacher of the Guru attitude which consists in taking a personal interest in the Student; inspiring and encouraging him to achieve distinction in his studies; entering into his life with a view to form ideals and remove psychological obstacles; and creating in him a spirit of consecration; and (b) the adoption by the student of the Sahitya attitude by the development of— (i) respect for the teacher, Gi) a spirit of inquiry, Gi) a spirit of service towards the teacher, the institution, Bharat and Bharatiya Vidya, 8. _ The ultimate aim of Bharatiya Shiksha is to teach the younger generation to appreciate and live up to the permanent values of Bharatiya Vidya which is flowing from the supreme art of creative life-energy as represented by Shri Ramachandra, Shri Krishna, Vyasa, Buddha and Mahavira have expressed themselves in’ modern times in the life of Shri Ramakrishna - Paramahamsa, Swami Dayananda Saraswati, and Swami ~ Vivekananda, Shri Aurobindo and Mahatma Gandhi, 9. Bharatiya Shiksha while equipping the student with kind of scientific and technical training must teach the studen to sacrifice an ancient form or attitude to an unreasoning passion for change; not to retain a form or attitude which in the light of modern times can be replaced by another form of attitude which is every t, not a truer and more effective expression of the spirit of Bharatiya Vidya; and to capture the spirit afresh for each generation ta present it to the world,aU AY am: weet arg fare: | Let noble thoughts come to us from every side Rigveda, 1-89-i a BHAVAN’S BOOK UNIVERSITY General Editors K. M. MUNSHI R, R. DIWAKAR SRy Rama Try Aart wew Decal -Q.7d 53. 4847 HINDUISM DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE BY (©. RAJAGOPALACHARI. Be Thanks are due to. Messrs. Hindustan Times Ltd., New Delhi, the original Publishers, for their kind permission for reproducing this book in this series: “BHAVAN’S BOOK UNIVERSITY Organising Committee : Litavatt MUNSHI—Chairman Pes RP Brea & ga” 7 SGP NEVATIA J A, Dave ‘s. "RAMAKRISHNAN- BHAVAN’S BOOK UNIVERSITY Say Rana Taya New vets 2S QOS HINDUISM DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE By C, RAJAGOPALACHARI 1970 BHARATIYA VIDYA BHAVAN Cuaupatty, BOMBAYCopyright and rights of translation and reproduction reserved. Ist Edition 1959 2nd Edition 1964 3rd Revised Edition 1970 Price : Rs. 3.00 EA. IN INDIA By P, H. Raman at Associ: m at A fated Advertisers, & Printers, 505, Tardeo Wikir Rosd Bombeys4. and Published. by S. Ramakrish Executive Secretary, Bharatiya Vidya Bea Bombay-7. mnGENERAL EDITOR’S PREFACE The Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan—that Institute of Indian Culture in Bombay—needed a Book University, a series of books which, if read, would serve the purpose of providing higher education. Particular emphasis, however, was to be put on such literature as revealed the deeper impulsions of India. As a first step, it was decided to bring out in English 100 books, 50 of which were to be taken in hand almost at once. Each book was to contain from 200 to 250 pages. It is our intention to publish the books we select, not only in English, but also in the following Indian languages: Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam. This scheme, involving the publication of 900 volumes, requires ample funds and an all-India organisation. The Bhavan is exerting its utmost to supply them. The objectives for which the Bhavan stands are the re- integration of the Indian culture in the light of modern know- ledge and to suit our present-day needs and the resuscitation of its fundamental values in their pristine vigour. Let me make our goal more explicit: We seek the dignity of man, which necessarily implies the creation of social conditions which would allow him free-6 GENERAL EDITOR’S PREFACE dom to evolve along the lines of his own temperament and capacities; we seek the harmony of individual efforts and social relations, not in any makeshift way, but within the frame-work of the Moral Order; we seek the creative art of life, by the alchemy of which human limitations are pro- gressively transmuted, so that man may become the instru- ment of God, and is able to see Him in all and all in Him. The world, we feel, is too much with us. Nothing would uplift or inspire us so much as the beauty and aspira- tion which such books can teach. In this series, therefore, the literature of India, ancient and modern, will be published in a form easily accessible to all. Books in other literature of the world, if they illustrate the principles we stand for, will also be included. _ This common pool of literature, it is hoped, will enable the reader, eastern or western, to understand and appreciate currents of world thought, as also the movements of the mind in India, which, though they flow through different linguistic channels, have a common urge and aspiration. Fittingly, the Book University’s first venture is the Maha- bharata, summarised by one of the greatest living Indians, C. Rajagopalachari; the second work is on a section of it, the Gita, by H.V. Divatia, an eminent jurist and a student of philosophy. . Centuries ago, it was proclaimed of the Mahabharata: “What is not in it, is nowhere.” | After twenty-GENERAL EDITOR’S PREFACE : 7 five centuries, we can use the same words about it. He who knows it not, knows not the heights and depths of the soul; he misses the trials and tragedy and the beauty and grandeur of life. The Mahabharata is not a mere epic; it is a romance, telling the tale of heroic men and women, and of some who were divine; it is a whole literature “in itself, containing a code of life, a philosophy of social and ethical relations, and speculative thought on human problems that is hard to rival; but, above all, it has for its core the Gita, which is, as the world is beginning to find out, the noblest of scriptures and the grandest of sagas in which the climax is reached in the wondrous Apocalypse in the Eleventh Canto, Through such books alone the harmonies underlying true culture, I am convinced, will one day reconcile the dis- orders of modern life. I thank all those who have helped to make this new branch of the Bhavan’s activity successful. 1, Queen Victoria Road, New Delhi: K. M. MUNSHI 3rd October 1951CONTENTS Chapter VI vil Vil General Editor’s Preface Foreword Introductory Disharmonies Ancient Yet Modern The First Step The Vedantic Postulate Maya Karma The Vedanta Ethic Conclusion PageFOREWORD Wuetuer the claim made in the introductory chapter that Vedanta can create a conscience for social obligations is ac- cepted or not, this book will have ‘served its purpose if it gives to those who read it a clear idea of the philosophy of the Hindus and the way of life flowing from it. Hinduism has been the subject of study by quite a number of earnest men from foreign lands. Some, repelled by features of the social structure still in existence among Hindus, have con- demned Hindu philosophy itself as worthless. Others have found great and rare things in it, but in trying to give ex- pression to what they admire, they confuse and mystify their readers and leave them sceptical. This is only what may be expected, for while difficulties of language and idiom can be overcome by patient scholarship, the complex product of the gradual synthesis of philosophy and social evolution, that is to say, of the eternal with the ephemeral, which has taken place through millennia and which reflects vicissitudes of a chequered history, is not easy for a foreigner to under- stand or explain. It is hoped that this book will be found to present in a brief and fairly understandable form the ele- ments of Hindu faith and ethics, a knowledge of which will enable one to grasp the ethos of India. Half the population of the world lives in Asia and pro- fesses allegiance to religious and moral ideas that undoubted- ly originated in India. Sir Henry Maine has stated that,Le FOREWORD barring the blind forces of nature, there was nothing that lived and moved in the world which was not Hellenic in origin. This may be true, but it must be remembered that Hellenic thought owes a good deal to India. Philosophic speculation had well advanced in India before the time of Socrates. The conceptions of Indian seers travelled to Greece and could not have failed to make their impression on Hellenic thought. Even from the point of view of the mere scholar, it would be helpful to have a clear knowledge of the basic elements of Hindu religion and philosophy. India has her importance in the world, and knowledge of the basic elements of India’s culture would enable people to understand her better. The Government of India is secu- lar in the sense that the State does not support one re- ligion or another but is firmly pledged to impartiality towards ople of all faiths. But this does not mean that the peo- te of India have given up the spiritual and moral doctrines in which they have been brought up, which form the basis of all their culture and which qualify and shape all future additions to that culture. This book deals with the spiritual and ethical doctrines that have given to India its way of life. Names of gods “do not make religion any more than the names of men and women make up their personality. Names are originally given and used without any idea of comparison or contrast with other names. They are handed pests Yn ee _ Fetes ee | | | | ! |FOREWORD . 13 down by tradition. Custom gathers fragrances and associa- tions around them that are not perceived by any but those who have for generations been brought up in. the use. of those names. Each name by which the Most High is known is hallowed by. the ecstatic religious experience of seekers, and gathers round itself the light and fragrance and the healing strength born of. the rapturous adoration of genera- tions that have sought and found Him. Whether. it be God, Jehovah, Bhagwan, Ishwar, Allah, Hari, Siva or Narayana, it is the same Being that in vague manner is recalled by every devotee when he utters the name which he has been brought up to associate with the mystery of the universe and. the urge of worship. To an outsider or unbeliever the most exhaustive collection of such names can bring no help ' to understanding. : The writer must. make it clear at the very outset that he does not profess to prove anything but seeks to present the body of faith called Vedanta to those who are not fami- liar with it. It is his belief that while agnosticism or scepticism may do no harm and on the contrary may do much good to the minds of an enlightened few that find satis- faction in it, in the mass, scepticism inevitably and steadily leads to positive denial. A divorce between action and moral responsibility follows. This is not good either for the present or for the future generations. It is the writer’s conviction that Vedanta is a faith as suitable for modern times as it was for ancient India, and more especially so, as the world14 ‘ FOREWORD is now fully and irreplaceably permeated by the discipline and knowledge that have come to stay through science and are. bound to-grow as time advances. Mahatma Gandhi has made it clear that-he disapproved of seeking to convert people from one religion to another. Conversion would mean asking them to give up the use of names, symbols and rituals in which they were brought up from. childhood and inducing them to adopt a new set of names, symbols and rituals. At the same time, people who follow one religion should understand the other religions professed. by their fellow citizens. Most certainly, at least the religion of the vast bulk of our people which necessarily influences the life of the nation, should be understood by those who have been following other faiths. Integration does not mean the giving up of any creed or customs or the adoption of those of others but consists in all round sym- pathetic understanding. _If we desire the sincere cooperation of people following other religions than Hinduism, we must make them also understand Hinduism. Ultimately all religions, all the ways adopted by men and women to offer obeisance and adora- tion to the Most High are the same. arama, afd et met TeaR ATT | waaamemet: Ferd wht wot 1FOREWORD. , 15, As all the waters falling as rain from the sky ultimately reach the ocean, so does reverent obeisance paid to what- ever God ultimately reach Kesava. There are differences in forms and rituals. A know- ledge of Hinduism will make Hindus better Hindus, and Christians better Christians, Muslims better Muslims, and all of us better citizens in a consolidated nation, C. RAJAGOPALACHARICHAPTER I INTRODUCTORY HINDuISM is a modern word. Vedanta is the best among the numerous names given to the religious faith of the Hin- dus. He who professes and practises Vedanta is a Vedan- tin. This name has not so far been solely appropriated by any single Hindu denomination. If regulated cooperative economy must replace indivi- dual competition, it calls for some spiritual and cultural basis, and the ethic and culture rdoted in Vedanta can un- doubtedly fulfil this purpose. Every one now realizes that the scheme of life which held the field till recently and which gave what was called prosperity in the nineteenth century is now out of date. The prosperity resulting from the eco- nomy of private competition necessarily carried with it in- equality of distribution, Indeed, the prosperity was based on this very inequality. Some people either in the same country or elsewhere had to live in varying degrees of squa- lor in order to build up and support that prosperity. But a change has now come about and unhappiness in any sector of society or in any part of the world is considered as an intolerable disgrace and it is the conscious aim of all classes and all people to reach much higher standards of general, physical and moral comfort than now prevail. Inequality is no longer considered either necessary or even tolerabie. The old scheme of life based on private competition and laissez faire is definitely condemned as anarchic. It has come18 HINDUISM—DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE to be looked upon as a revised edition of the law of the jungle. It is now widely recognized that what was hitherto thought to be the private enclosures of individual life must in the interest of society as a whole be trespassed upon and regulated by the community. The common weal has the dominant claim in every national State. It is also realized that, as far as possible, regulation should be deemed an in- ternational obligation, since the nations of the world and their needs have become so interrelated that it is now an established rule that national boundaries should no longer mark the limits of economic control. What is felt, however, by large sections is that while regulation is necessary, the economy resulting from it should be so designed as not to stifle individual liberty and indivi- dual initiative and kill the sense of joy which issues out of the exercise of that liberty and initiative. Some have no hope of this reconciliation and deny its possibility. But others stoutly maintain that it is quite possible and that there is an economy that can combine the necessary overall regulation with the basic freedom of the individual. There is so much joy in individual initiative that it is worthwhile to make an attempt to find a solution which will preserve it, if not wholly, at least in great part, while imposing regu- lation in the interest of the community. It is never good to give up the battle for freedom as lost. Whichever view may ultimately turn out to be true, one thing is certain, that the pain of a regulated economy is due to the fact that regulation comes from outside, imposed by an external authority, Not only does this compulsion by external autho-INTRODUCTORY 19 rity create pain, but it prejudicially affects the working effi- ciency of regulation itself. Judged, therefore, from every point of view, an ordered economy as distinguished from laissez faire calls for the general acceptance of a code of values and a culture that can operate as a law from within and supplement whatever external regulation it may be neces- sary or feasible to impose. Such a code of spiritual values and such a culture will help in the preservation of a sense of individual liberty and initiative in the midst of complicated State regulations, to keep which sense alive is the aim of those who seek to reconcile the new order with old liberty. Even those who look upon this liberty as an outmoded iilu- sion and plump unconditionally for regulation must agree that a law operating from within is more efficient than one externally imposed, and also less liable to evasion. The baser elements of society try to exploit regulation and make of it an opportunity for illegal gain either of power or wealth. One of the most difficult practical problems in regulated eco- nomy is how to meet this evil. A well accepted ethic and culture is the only solution. The question, then, is whether there is any ground for hoping that we can devise and make people accept a culture or an ethic that can effectively operate in this manner. Can we devise and promote a religious faith that will assist large- scale regulation of the life of the individual for the benefit of the community? It may be admitted at once that it is not an easy task, even if it be assumed as possible of achieve- ment, now to found a new religion to serve a particular secu- lar purpose. But Vedanta, for which I claim the virtue of20 HINDUISM—DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE appropriateness to the new economy, is not a new religion. It figures in the most ancient calendar of faiths, and it is the living faith which ostensibly guides the lives of three hundred millions of men and women. The common folk living in the greater part of Asia profess religions and moral ideas very closely related in origin to the religion and the moral ideas of India. Although the West has for long ac- cepted Christianity, the faiths that inspired the literature and philosophies of Greece and Rome were faiths that in a large measure absorbed and assimilated Vedantic currents from India. An exposition of the basic principles of Vedanta may, in addition to giving adequate information to those who are interested in the religions of the world, secure some attention from important persons concerned in re-ordering the world in secular matters. Political ideas that are crumbling under the weight of events are clung to by their adherents with the fanatical des- _ peration of last-ditchers. Disaster threatens. Thinking men have to cast about for some sounder foundations for civili- zation and for the principles of international conduct if catas- trophic misfortune is not to befall the ‘human race. If indeed one of the most ancient of the world’s heritages can serve as such a foundation, its principles deserve to be set out in as clear a language as possible for examination and ac- ceptance by earnest men. Tope spe mg Be mE eeCHAPTER II DISHARMONIES TRUTH IS ONE and indivisible and the seat of harmony or unity of thought is the human mind on which all external impulses impinge. It is impossible for the mind to accept a truth for some purposes and reject it for others. We can- not be doing wisely in entertaining contrary disciplines of mind. The discipline of physical science has come to stay. Indeed, it is by far the most dominant discipline of modern times. Material objects and forces offer themselves for the closest examination and the greatest variety of experiment. It is not therefore surprising that the advance of knowledge in that field is more rapid and substantial than in morals or philosophy. The forms of thought and reasoning im- posed in the discipline of physical science must be accepted and taken as models in shaping other disciplines. It is no good running counter to them. Acceptance of the scienti- fic method is not a defeat for religion, but is acceptance of the sovereignty of truth, which is only an aspect of religion. It is a correct view of religion that it can never be out of harmony with science. But it is too well known how often the propositions of religions are contrary to the accepted axioms of the scientific world. Even greater is the divergence between religious and moral doctrines on the one hand and the principles of ex- pediency governing political activities on the other. The contradictions are ignored or treated as inevitable and no22. HINDUISM—DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE attempt is made to reconcile them with one another. It has become another accepted axiom that contradictions between religion and practical affairs must be deemed unavoidable! This is not a form of reconciliation, but chronic disharmony, and it must result in injury to the minds of men and conse- quently to social well-being. Hypocrisy cannot become harm- less by being widespread and taken for granted. It acts like a consuming internal fever which is worse than an obvi- ous and acute distemper. Human energy is wastefully consumed in the disharmo- nies involved in the prevailing contradictions in science, re- ligion, national politics and the conduct of international affairs. We have no doubt got on for a good length of time on this wasteful plan of life. But, is it good or wise to continue thus? The problems we have to face are increasing in difficulty and the disadvantages of error increase in ac- celerated ratio with the size and number of the difficulties we have to overcome. What did not materially affect the position when the problems were simple assumes tremen- dous proportions when they have grown bigger and become more complex. The laws of nature that we have come to know, the philosophy we believe in, the statecraft that we practise should all be made to accord and harmonize with one an- other if we hope successfully to face the problems that con- front us in the present most complicated world. Have we a real belief in truth? This is the vital question. If we have that belief then we must summon the needed courage—— DISHARMONIES _ 23 and act. Previous generations had simpler problems, but it must be admitted that they grappled with them more courageously and with a greater spirif of adventure than we seem inclined to show in tackling our more difficult pro- blems. This weakness is unfortunate, whatever the causes. We should not, however, despair but, drawing inspiration from our forebears, summon all the spirit we can command. to restore basic harmony of thought and to make all neces- sary modifications in our fundamental beliefs and axioms for that purpose. When our minds dwell on scientific research and stu- dies, we implicitly accept certain truths. It is a mistake to believe that by a mental fiat these accepted axioms can be dismissed and forgotten when we deal with God and the things of religion, Neither truth nor the human mind is so docile as to submit to such unnatural repression. But does it not look as if we have accomplished this success- fully during all these years of steady scientific progress? The explanation is that faith divorced from truth has be- come hypocrisy, and the achievement of the impossible was only a delusion of the mind. Two contrary faiths could not possibly remain as faiths and secure the allegiance of the mind. The one or the other must have deteriorated and changed its real substance while masquerading as faith. As for the contradictions between religion and that class of worldly activities of intelligent men called politics, the divergence is even greater than that between science and religion. We practise the art of holding contrary faiths24 HINDUISM—DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE when professing and expounding religion and morality as against the principles followed when dealing with affairs of State. We accept certain firm axioms at one time and expect them to lie dormant in a corner the next moment when we deal with statecraft. Indeed, it is generally considered folly for anyone to base the practice of politics on the principles of religion. Even so good and pious a man as Sir Walter Scott wrote in his personal journal, “The adaptation of religious motives to earthly policy is apt among the infinite delusions of the human heart—to be a snare.” He meant definitely that re- ligion and politics had better remain in different pigeon- holes and that it would be folly to attempt to reconcile the basic axioms of religion and those of politics. This is ac- cepted almost as o truism in daily life but is not the less harmful for such general acceptance. It has been, through- out the ages, considered reasonable and wise to resort to various forms of self-deception to carry in one mind the load of these two isolated disciplines of worldly wisdom and religion. Worse still, it is also considered wise to prac- tise fraud on the minds of our children for the purpose of handing this scheme of isolation down to the next gene- ration. Each one of us has the responsibility of bringing up a certain number of children and shaping their tender minds. Parents and schoolmasters both practise deliberate fraud where they owe their most sacred duty and abuse the trusting plasticity of the young mind to fulfil this ‘sacred’ object of perpetuating disharmony of thought and handing ‘it intact to the next generation! The unpleasant task isDISHARMONIES 25 often sought to be transferred by father to mother or vice versa, and by both to the schoolmaster. The work is done in the untidy way in which all unpleasant tasks are bound to be done, but it is done so far as the mischief is concerned. The child is taught absolutely to accept certain principles as right and taught also at the same time to discard those principles in action wherever worthwhile worldly results are to be obtained. A simultaneous acceptance of contradictory ideas is not possible except in the form of an illusion. Even if it be accomplished in a bona fide manner, it cannot be a healthy process. We cannot employ untruth as a servant without paying the heavy wage it demands, viz., spiritual death. It is just another aspect of the great truth that was embodied in the significant words that the wages of sin is death. If we continually practise error, we cannot prevent the wells of the spirit from going dry. The injury done by disharmony is to the mind, which is the thinking and feeling machine,—the very engine-room in the power-house of human energy. When the engine is damaged, what else can we expect but serious injury to the cause of human progress? Even if we look upon civiliza- tion as a business concern, its most precious capital asset is the sum-total of the minds of its men and women. The depreciation to which this asset is subjected by reason of the chronic contradiction of principles is ruinous. The hope of mankind must be restored by stopping this rot,26 HINDUISM—-DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE In the olden days the contradiction between science and religion was not so great as it is at present. The very backwardness of science was a factor that reduced the differ- ence. As a result, in those days fervent adherence to re- ligion and philosophy not only did not cause serious dis- harmony but on the contrary spiritualized research and led men to great achievement. This was possible because they did not try to believe in contrary things. There are numer- ous instances in the pages of ancient history as well as in the early history of modern times of great pioneers in science being devout men of God who regarded research as the service divinely ordained for them. But science has now grown and has an immensely wider circle of followers than ever before. As a result, the maladjustment is at present much more serious and the mischief tremendous. The con- tradiction between religion and politics is greater than the divergence between religion and science. It is indeed a miracle that earnest Christians preserve both their faith and their psychological health under the conditions of current national and international activities. The State permits, aids and abets the wholesale infringe- ment of what is daily read and formally taught as the word of Christ. Yet, almost all the citizens of the State profess religion and believe themselves to be Christians. They duly celebrate Christian rites and festivals.’ The reign of relent- less private competition, the right to make maximum pri- vate profit at the expense of others and the exploitation of every advantage got by accident or acquired by enter-DISHARMONIES 27 prise, so that the differences between man and man may grow in geometric progression, are all plain denials of Christ. For the execution of deep-laid plans based on the so-called fundamental right to private competition, gigantic corpora- tions equal in respectability to the Church and far richer, grander and more awe-inspiring than the Church’s most im- pressive manifestations are established under the authority and protection of democratic States. Yet, almost every citi- zen of those States is a Christian or belongs to some other faith equally opposed to inequality and exploitation. The anti-spiritual significance of the hypocrisy generated by such contradictions is tremendous. Civilization must crumble corroded by this contradiction if nothing is done to avert the catastrophe. It may be argued that this is an exaggeration, that there are many individuals who are faithful to professions and who continually protest against the, misuse of wealth and power. A great deal of dissent is no doubt honestly and bravely expressed in every country against the neglect of religious principles. Even war in just causes is opposed and the volume of pacifist literature may be considered as standing proof of the validity of this plea. But this dissent of individuals is allowed to be expressed only because it does not materially interfere with the existing order. It even serves in its own way as an ally of the dominant hypocrisy, for by providing a vent and an escape for guilty conscience, it relieves the pressure and allows the crime to continue.CHAPTER II ANCIENT YET MODERN ‘THE QUESTION may be asked, all this being accepted, what then? Is not the contradiction inevitable? It is true that religion or philosophy contrary to modern science is bound to become sham and hypocrisy, but is there any possibility of removing the maladjustment or averting the mischief? Can we offer to the world a new religion which is not con- trary to science? While it may be true and may be ac- cepted that to secure a firm basis for progress all disharmony between science and religion and between religion and statecraft must be removed, and an integrated and well-adjusted body of thought and feeling must be established, is there any hope, it may be asked, of finding a solution in that direction? Are we not leading to the position that religion must be given up altogether? Is it not obvious that the contradiction pointed out can only be removed by the total abandonment of religion? Is it pos- sible, at this stage of human history, to build a religious fab- ric around scientific truth as it has evolved and is still evoly- ing? Vedanta is the answer. It is not necessary to build a new religion. In India, we have a religion, and a philosophy attached to it, as old as civilization itself which is remark- ably consistent with science as well as politics.ANCIENT YET MODERN 29 The claim may to outsiders seem strange, especially to those whose knowledge of Hinduism has been derived from the information supplied by the Christian missionaries of an older generation. As we are not, however, living in the times of the proselytizing Christian missions whose one func- tion was to show that Hinduism was good for nothing, it may be hoped that the claim made here will receive a fair exa- mination at the hands of sincere thinkers. In any event, readers in India would stand to benefit by a reassessment of their own heritage in the light of modern conditions and requirements. Put in precise words the claim is that a code of ethics and a system of values were evolved by Hindu philosophers out of the religious philosophy known as Vedanta, which is not only consistent with science, but is admirably suited to be a spiritual basis for the juster and more stable social orga- nization that good people all over the world desire and are working for. The attempt everywhere has been to bring about economic and social reorganization on the stre; only of State authority. It imposes a great strain on that authority, and is subject to inevitable flaws in execution, J, has also this defect of all repressive State actions—that it jg irksome to the citizen and creates a mental state unfayouy. able to cooperation, whereas the furnishing of a code of spiritual values through religious faith and practice would reduce the strain, minimize the flaws in execution ang pro- duce a happier integration of thought and action which b jtself would be a priceless gain and a source of strength,30 | HINDUISM—DOCIRINE AND WAY OF LIFE It goes without saying that spiritual values proposed as the basis of a sounder social organization must not be an improvisation or an invention of expediency designed to further material interest by cloaking it with sanctity. A spurious scheme of so-called spiritual values to serve a sor- did purpose would be a delusion if self-imposed, an im- posture if offered for acceptance. Honesty is the best policy; but it is not as policy that honest conduct was made part or continues to be part of every religion. Similarly, Vedanta is bound to help a regulated economy but it is not for that reason that it was conceived or should be accepted as a faith. It claims to be accepted on its intrinsic appeal and worth. If accepted, it will serve also the other purpose. Truth, it may be repeated, is one and indivisible. Politics, religion and science cannot rest on mutually contrary axioms nor can the mere expediency of any of them enable it to pass for truth, unless it is true in the sense at least of its present- ing no vulnerable point for attack by reason of inconsistency with established truths. The Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita are two most im- portant source-books of Vedanta. It is a remarkable achieve- ment of intellectual imagination—it would not be incorrect to call it inspiration—that the rule of law in science was anticipated in the ancient Hindu scriptures. The God of Vedanta is not an anthropomorphic creation with human capriciousness and desire for power—a conception against which the veriest tyro in modern science can launch a suc- cessful attack. Divine sovereignty is explained in the Bhaga- vad Gita in language which anticipates and meets the diffi-ANCIENT YET MODERN 31 culties that modern science raises against religious cosmo- logy. According to the Bhagavad Gita, the sovereignty of God is exercised in and through the unchangeable law of cause and effect, that is, through what we call the laws of nature. All this world is pervaded by Me in form unmani- fest; all beings abide in Me, but I stand apart from them. And yet beings are not rooted in Me. Behold the scheme of My sovereignty, Myself the origin and the support of beings, yet standing apart from them! Using nature which is Mine own, I create again and again all this multitude of beings, keeping them dependent on nature. In the scheme of My sovereignty, nature brings forth the moving and the unmoving, and in consequence of this the world evolves, This is what Bhagawaan says to Arjuna in the ninth chapter of the Gita. Rat dated ad arena | areata aye A ATE Aeaafera: All this world is pervaded by Me in form unmani- fest; all beings abide in Me, but I stand apart from them. IX-4 ma Wea aaa FT atTaaTTy | ANA T FATET ATTA: And yet beings are not rooted in Me. Behold the scheme of My sovereignty, Myself the orign and the support of beings, yet standing apart from them! IX-532. HINDUISM—DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE _ sete carracrey faerie FA: GA: | yearend Ererreet cea TTT Using nature, which is Mine own, 1 create again and again all this multitude of beings, keeping them dependent on nature. IX-8 areata eft: Yat TATATH | agra steer orfzafeada In the scheme of My sovereignty nature brings forth everything, moving and unmoving, and keeps the world going. IX-10 A study of the Upanishads will show that Vedanta pos- tulates that the universe is the result of a gradual unfolding of the creative power inherent in the primordial substance. In fact, it may be said that the philosophy of Hinduism anti- cipated the basic theories of biology and physics. The very approach to things in the Upanishads, the insistence on adher- ence to truth and on tireless investigation, is remarkably in the nature of an anticipation of the methods of science. ait TeTEATT BT aA aera Teraion Fre | aT satfertat fe Yat a cea aera: aitoratar: | Truth, penance, true understanding and purity of life are essential requisites for the revelation of the spi- rit within. When thus revealed, He shines spotless and resplendent within oneself. The seckers who have freed themselves from sin are vouchsafed the vision. Mundakopanishad—III-i-5 weata waa ara aetet Tea feratat Fara: | . TETRA UAH aa ae To FreeANCIENT YET MODERN 33 Victory is ever with truth. Untruth cannot win. The path to the Divine is through truth. The sages with desires quenched walk on that road to reach the Ultimate Being. Mundakopanishad—IIl-i-6 Francis Bacon who gave to modern science the method of experimentation and inductive reasoning wrote (1612) in one of his essays: “I had rather believe all the fables (collected in books) than that this universal frame is without a Mind .. They that deny a God destroy a man’s nobility. For certainly man is of kin to the beasts by his body; and if he be not of kin to God by his spirit, he is a base and ignoble creature. It destroys the incentive to the raising of human nature.” Just as Vedanta appears to have anticipated science and prepared the ground for meeting the contradictions that were to appear between science and religion, so also the code of conduct and the spiritual values that were developed by Hindu seers on the basis of Vedantic philosophy seem to have fully anticipated the socio-economic problems that civi- lization has had subsequently to face. The profit-motive and the civic right of private competition were definitely asked to stand back in favour of a rule that everyone should work for social welfare, as clearly set out in the Bhagavad Gita. We are now told by social and economic reformers that the34 HINDUISM—DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE State should see to it that men and women work without aiming only at personal gain but with an eye also to the wel- fare of the community. And this is just what the Bhaga- vad Gita laid down. The way of life taught in this living spring of Hindu ethics is based expressly on the equal dig- nity and sacredness of every form of labour that falls to one’s lot.- All work, it reiterates with solemn emphasis, should be done honestly and disinterestedly for lokasangraha —welfare of the community—and not for the satisfaction of personal desires. Indeed, the Gita lays down in a unique manner the whole socialist doctrine by characterizing work as a religious offering in the truest sense. The performance of one’s allotted task is specifically described in the Gita as an authorized and accepted form of worship: a ea anteofaza: dfafa wat az: 1 wamifree: fata aan faafa aeay 1 aa: safer ara ar adit aay 1 eaanion aered fats farefir arta: earahrad at gaareitfer Fefeary 1 _ Best at whet eater a Tata | wre fe Rao qienfafearqar: samqatg: ata farerent faraeyg: | aonciteta qeat aernterferreata If a man is devoted to his particular duties and performs them, he wins beatitude. When a man per- corms his proper duty, he worships Him from Whom the world has issued and by Whom all that we sce is pervaded, and thereby he attains beatitude. It is better for one to do even inperfectly the duties thatANCIENT YET MODERN _ 35 fall to one’s lot, than to do those of others perfectly. If a man does the work that comes to him by bi no blemish will attach to it, whatever kind of work it may be. One should not abandon one’s natural duty. even if evils attach thereto; every human activity in-- volves some evil as fire carries smoke. He whose mind is in every way detached, whose self is conquered, who has freed himself from selfish longings, attains by dint of that detachment the attributes attached to workless- ness. —Gita XVIII 45 to 49 The very definite form in which the doctrine is enun- ciated that the proper performance of one’s allotted task is an act of worship in the most religious sense of the term is worthy of note. Yet, these very texts have lent themselves in the hands of prejudiced critics to the interpretation that these verses are an apology for the preservation of the privileges of the higher castes! Perversity and prejudice can convert elixir into poison. Every statement in an ancient book should be interpreted in the context of the then prevailing customs, _ Everywhere now in the civilized world, men want a wise allotment of work to individuals as well as groups in ac- cordance with the demands of common interest in place of nal choice or caprice. They feel they have had enough of laissez-faire and of the ‘divine’ right of making un- limited private profit. If it is essential that individual efforts should be regulated and controlled in the interest of society,36 HINDUISM—DOCTRINE AND WAY OF LIFE this vital duty cannot be left entirely to the spy and the policeman employed to keep watch over citizens. We must build up a social conscience and a cultural incentive to co- operate from within and create a spiritual yearning which makes a joy of restraint and strenuous discharge of duty. The terrors and risks and the very guilt and savagery of a violent revolution might by a natural reaction bring into being a fanaticism that serves to back a new economic order that was brought into existence at supreme cost and sacrifice. This fanaticism may function as a kind of spiritual incen- tive. But the same cannot happen when the revolution is attained by a mere Act of Parliament. The spiritual value of things depends on the price paid for them in suffering and sacrifice. An easily achieved revolution has not the same psychological virtue as one paid for in blood and tears. Where there is no backing of revolutionary fanaticism or its after-effects there must be found something else to operate as motive power. The only thing that can do this effectively is a faith that operates as a law from within and cooperates with the State. In Vedanta, we have a teaching rooted in immemorial tradition and associated with the sacred names and memories of a long line of seers, which can serve as the spiritual and cultural basis for a new and more just eco- nomy of life; if not all over the world, at least in India itself. Whether the claim made by me that Vedanta can create a conscience for social obligations is accepted or not, let us understand the philosophy of the Hindus and the way of life flowing from it.