RIDDLE NO. 7
THE TURN OF THE TIDE OR HOW DID THE BRAHMINS DECLARE THE VEDAS TO BE LOWER THAN THE LOWEST OF THEIR SHASTRAS ?
I
The religious literature of the Hindus includes (1) The Vedas, (2) The Brahmanas, (3) The Aranyakas, (4) Upanishads, (5) Sutras, (6) Itihas,
(7) Smritis and (8) Puranas.
As has been pointed out there was a time when they occupied the same status. There was no distinction of superior or inferior, sacred or profane, fallible or infallible.
Later on as we have shown the Vedic Brahmins felt that they must make a distinction between the Vedas and other classes of their religious literature. They made the Vedas not only superior to other classes of literature but they made them sacred and infallible. In evolving their dogma of the infallibility of the Vedas they made a distinction and divided their sacred writings in two classes (1) Shruti and (2) Non-Shruti. In the first division they placed only two of the eight classes of literature spoken of above namely—(1) Samhitas and (2) the Brahmanas. The rest they declared as Non-Shruti.
II
When this distinction was first made it is not possible to say. The more important question, however, is on what basis was this division made ? Why were Itihas and Puranas excluded ? Why were Aranyakas and Upanishads excluded ? Why were the Sutras excluded ? One can well understand why Itihas and Puranas were excluded from Shruti. At the time when the division took place they were too elementary and too undeveloped and in all probability included in the Brahmanas. Similarly one can well understand why the Aranyakas are not
This is a 21-page typed MS originally entitled ‘The Supersession of the Vedas’, with several corrections and modifications by the author himself. This chapter seems complete as the last para of this chapter is concluded in the handwriting of the author.—Ed.