Epics (Ithihasas)

Ithihasa is a historical narrative in allegory and symbolism composed in classical literary style. Ramayana composed by Rishi Valmiki and Mahabharata composed by the Sage Veda Vyasa are two epics which have influenced literature and various art forms for centuries all over India, Indonasia. Ramayana accepts the principles of Santana Dharma and duties of ruler in particular. The aim of the epics is to teach the laws of right living according to Sruthis and Smrithis by means of exploits of the great national heroes – Rama and Krishna. Ramayana is the account of the deeds of a divinely great hero – Rama – who set example in application of Dharma, the Laws of divine Virtues, in every aspect of private and public life of kings and commoners. It portrays in the life of the hero the ideal of humaneness, brotherhood, firmness of character, honesty, sacrifice and goodness. Ramayana is depicted in 24,000 verses.

Mahabharata has a more profound theme which involves history, mythology, ethics, and metaphysics. It is the history of Bharatas, a royal family of North India which divided into two parties – Pandavas and Kauravas – and a war between them for dominion. It is an encyclopedia of Hindu Dharma. Mahabharata consists of 200,000 verses.

Bhagavadgita is a part of Mahabharata. Mr. W.Q. Judge in his rendition of the Bhagavadgita in English wrote the following:

“The Bhagavad-Gîtâ tends to impress upon the individual two things: first, selflessness, and second, action: the studying of and living by it will arouse the belief that there is but one Spirit and not several; that we cannot live for ourselves alone, but must come to realise that there is no such thing as separateness, and no possibility of escaping from the collective Karma of the race to which one belongs, and then, that we must think and act in accordance with such belief. The poem is held in the highest esteem by all sects in Hindustan except the Mahommedan and Christian. It has been translated into many languages, both Asiatic and European: it is being read to-day by hundreds of sincere Theosophists in every part of the world” (The Bhagavadgita, the Book of devotion, published by Theosophy Company (India) Pvt. Ltd.)

Schools of Philosophy which Reject the Authority of the Vedas

Hinduism, so called, admits all viewpoints even when they are opposed to the basic tenets of the Vedas in a spirit of tolerance. As said before the scriptures which are based on the Vedic tradition are called Astika schools and those opposed to it are called Nastika schools. The former was detailed in the foregoing. The latter is given below in brief. Details cannot be gone into but a brief description of them is given:

The school of Carvaka

It is a materialistic school which denies existence of God. It is also called Lokayata. Charvaka literally means sweet tongued or pleasing (charu) speech (Vach). It is the precursor of modern western school of empiricism. According to them the only source of valid knowledge is what is derived from senses perception. That is, nothing exists except what is perceived by the five senses. They speak of external and internal perception; the first is perception through senses and the second by operation of mind which operates on the impressions received from the senses.