The first part of this four part series establishes how Sanatana Dharma is the same as Hinduism and draws the connection between it and the caste system.
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IN a recent episode of the ANI Podcast with Smita Prakash, advocate and noted author J. Sai Deepak talks about Sanatana Dharma and its conflict with the Dravidian Politics of Tamil Nadu.
In the interview, which aired on September 8, 2023, Deepak vehemently opposes the remarks made by the minister of Youth Welfare and Sports Development of Tamil Nadu, Mr Udhayanidhi Stalin, on Sanatana Dharma and questions the silence of the people on it.
Deepak alleges that fissures were created between Hindus by the missionaries, colonialists and the Dravidian movement.
In order to better comprehend this conundrum, it is only suitable for us to refer to the literature that Deepak might consider canon to his belief system.
Firstly, a big thanks to Deepak for admitting that Sanatana Dharma is the heart of Hinduism, for it makes it easier for us to understand and analyse the recent controversies revolving around the topic.
In addition to Deepak's admission, in order to fully comprehend what constitutes Sanatana Dharma, it is imperative for us to find its meaning from a 1904 publication called Sanatana Dharma An Advanced Text-Book published by the Board of Trustees of the Central Hindu College, Benares, founded by the forerunner of the Home Rule Movement, Annie Besant, which is the predecessor of the present day Banaras Hindu University, founded by Madan Mohan Malaviya who is also the founder of Akhil Bharat Hindu Mahasabha.
Since Deepak has high regard for Besant and feels that she was sidelined for being "Brahminical" just because she vehemently opposed the Dravidian movement, it would be fair to consider the views of the text published by the institution founded by her.
“As per this text, the Smritis prohibit the Shudras to study, understand or even hear the Vedas. The text compares a Shudra to a cemetery and says that the Vedas should not be recited anywhere near his vicinity. The text also prescribes gory punishments to Shudras if they try to acquire the knowledge of the Vedas.
The text says that Sanatana Dharma is a religion that is based on the four Vedas, i.e., Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharvana, and these Vedas are the final authority in the Aryan religion.
Further, the book talks about the Aryan race and its settlements and also interchangeably uses Sanatana Dharma to describe the Aryan religion.
The text also talks about the division of the four castes, i.e., Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Shudra, as the foundation of social polity according to Sanatana Dharma which also gains sanctity through Shri Krishna.
Interestingly, the book offers a view that good conduct and not merely birth designates a person his caste, i.e., a Shudra can become a Brahmin by way of good conduct.
But the same book says that the fruits of such good conduct will bear fruit only in the next birth. This means a Shudra, despite exhibiting the best of conduct, has to "serve ungrudgingly" the other castes till his next birth to reap the benefits of his actions.
Since it has been undisputedly established that Sanatana Dharma is based on the Vedas, it would make sense to delve a bit into its texts to interpret and analyse them.
The 'Purusha Sukta' of the Rig Veda lays the foundation for the creation of the four castes from "Purusha"— the supreme being. The Brahmin is born out of the Purusha's head, the Kshatriya from his shoulders, the Vaishya from his thighs and the Shudra from his feet.
The Krishna Yajur Veda goes further and says that Shudras and horses were born from the feet of the Supreme Being, and their duty is to serve the castes above them.
It also says that since they are born from the feet, they ought to survive through the same means. Since Deepak says that Upanishads and Vedanta are a part of the Vedic tradition, it is only fair to probe into one of the 'Prasthana Trayi', i.e., three sources of Vedanta.
The Brahma Sutra is a canonical text of the Vedanta, written by Badrayana, and the Brahma Sutra Bhasya is a commentary of the same authored by Shankaracharya.
In a chapter titled 'Apasudradhikaranam', in the Brahma Sutra Bhasya, Shankaracharya lists down the rights of the Shudras according to the Brahma Sutras.
As per this text, the Smritis prohibit the Shudras to study, understand or even hear the Vedas. The text compares a Shudra to a cemetery and says that the Vedas should not be recited anywhere near his vicinity. The text also prescribes gory punishments to Shudras if they try to acquire the knowledge of the Vedas.
It says if a Shudra hears a Veda, his ears should be filled with molten lead and lac. If he pronounces a Veda, his tongue should be slit; if he preserves the Veda, his body should be cut open.
A little digression from the topic to match the pace of the interview, Deepak, despite alleging that Jayalalitha was targeted merely because she was a "Brahmin woman", refused to "stand up for her because of her treatment towards the Kanchi Shankaracharya".
“It says if a Shudra hears a Veda, his ears should be filled with molten lead and lac. If he pronounces a Veda, his tongue should be slit; if he preserves the Veda, his body should be cut open.
Hence, it would refer to 'Deivathin Kural' (Voice of God), a compilation of discourses by the 68th Shankaracharya of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam.
In this text, the Shankaracharya says that a person's caste is based on his birth and not conduct. He states that growing the shikha at age three and undergoing the upanayana at age five or seven are samskaras (rites of passage) performed according to a person's caste.
He further says that the samskaras of different castes that are performed at a very early age differ from each other; hence, the argument that the intent of the Moola Shastras that only a person's character and not birth determines his occupation gets defeated because it is impossible to determine a person's character at such an early stage of life.
The Shankaracharya also refers to the Bhagavad Gita in this context and says, "The Gita does talk of Varna being according to Guna and Karma, but Guna and Karma are inherited by birth".
He also says that it is evident from the Bharata, Bhagavada and Vishnu Puranadhis that during the time of Lord Krishna, the shastras divided the castes based on birth alone and formed the dharma pramana (knowledge of dharma), thus refuting the view of the contemporary researchers that the division of caste by birth came only after the lifetime of Lord Krishna.
He further quotes the Gita and interprets it by saying that he who violates the rules of the shastra and takes up profession in the grip of his own desires will have no siddhi, sukha or moksha.
He thus states that there can be no doubt that Lord Krishna urges that birth forms the basis of caste.
Another text to be taken into consideration in this context is the Smriti Mukta Phalam, a publication by the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam on behalf of the Veda Dharma Sastra Paripalana Sabha. It is a compilation of the views of various rishis on the Vedas intended for their practice in the present age.
The text comprises six parts, the first of which is a canto of the Varnashrama Dharma. The introduction of this text says that the Varnashrama Dharma part is the root of the other five parts of the series.
“Unfortunately for J. Deepak, the constitutional provisions of India become applicable to each of us the moment we are born in this country, and it doesn't wait for our successive births.
Further, this text attributes caste to the birth of a person, and to cement that fact, it says that the son of a Brahmin father born to a Brahmin wife who undergoes purification ceremonies is called a Brahmin.
The views of Swami Nischalananda Saraswati, the shankaracharya of the Govardhan Math, Puri also reiterates that jati is nothing but the present birth, which is based on the karmas of the past life.
Thus, taking into consideration the views of Deepak and the interpretation of the literature revered by him, it can be concluded that Sanatana Dharma is nothing but Vedic or Vaidika religion, and Varnashrama Dharma is a significant part of it.
The classifications of Varnashrama Dharma are based on the birth of a person and good conduct can only change the varna of a person in his successive births. This forms the basis of the caste system.
Unfortunately for Deepak, the constitutional provisions of India become applicable to each of us the moment we are born in this country, and it doesn't wait for our successive births.