207VedaBasisOfSmrtis
By Priyava
Translation by V. Krishnaraj
வேதமே ஸ்மிருதிகளுக்கு அடிப்படை : தெய்வத்தின் குரல் (இரண்டாம் பகுதி) = Vedas are the basis for Smrtis: Deivathin Kural, Part 2
http://www.kamakoti.org/tamil/2dk7.htm


The word of Mahākavi (the greatest poet) is the greatest authority. The explicators and followers of our religion, Sankara, Ramanuja, Madhva…advised adherence to and practice of Veda. This is not an authority. These religious leaders are sectarian. Their goal is to uphold the traditions of their individual sects. Therefore, they will not venture outside of their sectarian values. The poet does not have such restrictions. He has no compulsion to establish, maintain and advance an idea or a sect. He follows what he perceives as truth without sectarian ideology.
Kāḷidāsan, the foremost among the great Mahākavi talks about Smṛti in his creation, Raguvamsam.
Dasaratha is the father of Rama. Ajan is the father of Dasaratha. Raghu is the father of Ajan. The name of the Great Grandfather was applied to Rama. Rama was Dāsarathi, after his father. Generally, grandson is named after Grandfather. Rama was never called after his grandfather, Ajan. He is mostly called after his Great Grandfather, who lived with great name and fame. Rāghavan also means he came in the family of Raghu.
Raghu’s father was Dilīpaṉ, who was childless for a long time and whose Kulaguru (Family priest) was Vasiṣṭha. Dilīpaṉ implored with the Guru he should help him with a child for continuity of progeny.
Vasiṣṭha had a cow, Nandini, the daughter of Kamadhenu. Vasiṣṭha gave the calf (Nandini) to Dilīpaṉ and told him if he cared for her by bathing, grazing, worshipping and raising her, he will beget a child.
He is a king. If Vasiṣṭha advised the king to care for a calf, it must have been very humiliating to Dilīp.
Since that day, King Dilīp in the style of a humble cowherd, took Nandini to the forest, grazed, bathed… and cared for the calf with sincerity and dedication. The king took a bow and arrow to protect the calf from harm from the forest animals and followed her from behind. He scratched and grazed her. If it stopped, he stopped. If it laid down, he did the same. He followed her like a shadow, which did what a living being did. Kālidāsan says that the king cared and protected her as a shadow.
Dilīpaṉ took the calf for grazing daily while his wife Sudhakāṣinai followed them from behind and came back home after bidding them goodbye. The wife served her husband by sending him away in the morning and waiting for his return in the evening. The king followed Nandini as a shadow. The queen followed her husband as his shadow.
King Janaka noted during Sita’s wedding the wife’s loyalty to her husband and told Rama, ‘My child Sita will follow you like a shadow. Valmiki makes this observation in Valmiki Ramayana. Kālidāsan reiterated Valmiki’s Ramayana and mentioned about the twins Lava and Kusa (Children of Rama and Sita) and also Rama’s ancestors in Raghuvamsa. Just mentioning the name of the ancestral Raghuvamsa purifies the tongue.
Kālidāsan makes a mention of Rishis composing Smṛtis, while referring to Sudhakāṣinai following her husband. He says, “Nandini goes in front, Sudhakāṣinai with fixed attention walked on the hoofprints of Nandini.” The hoofprints of Nandini raise dust. Sudhakāṣinai sees the rising and purifying dust, steps right on the hoofmarks and walks a short distance, says Kālidāsan.
Better than other poets, Kālidāsan offers an analogy. That is his greatness. Each poet shows his special attribute in his presentation. When Kālidāsan talks about Sudhakāṣinai bringing up the rear as a shadow on the hoofprints of Nandini, he talks about the Smṛti following in the wake of Veda as an analogy.
Pāmsu is dust which rises from the hoofprints. She followed the holy and the pure dust raised by the hoofprints.
The cow’s dust from hoofprints are special. (In Hinduism, cow, its body parts and products are pure, divine and sacred.) It purifies all places. If the dust from an ordinary cow is pure, how great and lofty is the dust from the hoofprints of Kamadhenu? Sudhakāṣinai, exposed naturally to the supreme sacred dust, is not subject to any history of dirt and dust (= ignominy).
Abāmsu is free of any dust (and dirt). She is a Jaṉma (embodied soul) free of any blame or stain. Such noble Sudhakāṣinai stepping on the pure dusty hoofprints of Nandini pursued the pure path and moved forward. Kālidāsan says the Smṛtis by Maharishis adhered and followed the meaning of the Vedic Śṛutis as Sudhakāṣinai followed the pure path.
She followed. Here Veda-Sṛuti is the example for the cow. Its hoofprint is the meaning.  Smṛti follows the meaning of the Veda as Sudhakāṣinai followed the hoofprints of the cow. She did not go all the way with the cow but only a certain distance. Likewise, Smṛtis did not mention all that was in Veda. Smṛtis were notes from memory, based on Vedas with no deviation in its substance.  Smṛti did not list all the thousands of Mantras in Vedas. Smṛti delves into the ways the Mantras can be of use. Smṛtis follow the path of the Veda to a certain extent.
The analogy (object) is superior to the subject for comparison. If you say that a person’s face (subject) was like the lotus flower or the moon, obviously the analogic moon and lotus flower (objects) are superior to the face (subject for comparison).
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