The fire within the Atharva Veda

Hindu religion is one of the richest in history and tradition in the world. Its structure is very complex and confusing although throughout all schools one can trace a certain central theme. This theme is derived from a human’s most sacred and important function of earth-the realization of the fire within given to a human by God. The Atharva Veda is a sacred text of Hinduism, part of the four books of the traditional Vedas. It derives from the Indo-Aryan name Atharvan, a term which is usually taken to describe a fire priest in Vedic Sanskrit. More specifically, the Atharva Veda was mainly composed by two clans of fire priests known as the Bhrigus (also called Atharvans) and Angirasas. Additionally, it also includes composition of certain other Indo-Aryan clans such as the Kaushikas, Vasishthas and Kashyapas. The Atharva Veda, although definitely belonging to the Vedic period, is often considered younger than the other three Vedas. In this sense, it is the "Fourth Veda" of the turiya, or the four original sacred texts in the Hindu religion. Judging from its contents, it is clearly intended for "private" ritual, dealing with sickness, love potions, and other domestic issues, such as charms for cattle and security of harmony, as opposed to the "public" rituals described in the Yajur Veda.

The most important feature of the viewed Veda is the first notification of the whole new philosophical trend. "Agni (fire) is in the earth, in the plants, the waters hold Agni, Agni is in the stones; Agni is within men, Agnis (fires) are within cattle, within horses. Agni glows from the sky, to Agni, the god, belongs the broad air. The mortals kindle Agni, the bearer of oblations that loveth ghee", those are the mantras of the Cosmogonic and Theosophic Hymns, of the part XII of the Hymns to Goddess Earth. Those hymns are very important for the comprehend understanding of the whole Atharva Veda philosophy. They are announcing that the "The earth, clothed in Agni, with dark knees, shall make me brilliant and alert!" The entire universe is entitled to obey and to coincide with Agni, the mystic fire, the source of life as it is. Life in everything, from stone, water, and air to complex human souls. In those hymns one can trace the first implication of the unification of all life on earth, nature and humans being a whole entity which is united by one mutual component. Everything in existence is described as conglomerated system encompassing all the smallest to the largest articles. The foundations of Vaishheshika, the highest of the Hindu Darshanas is expressed in the mantra XII.1.26 in which the atoms (Paamsu) are described forming the stone, the stones agglutinating to form the rocks and the rocks held together to form the Earth: "To this golden-breasted earth I have rendered obeisance.", thus hinting on the one common ground that everything sticks too. An early pantheistic thought is seen in the hymn as well and describes the common thread running through all manifest and un-manifest existence as the Skambha. This Skambha element is described as something that poured out of the Hiranyagarbha that was the forerunner of the complex world in a very simple form (X.7.28). This Skambha is Indra and Indra is the Skambha which describes all existence. The hymn also describes the pantheistic nature of the Vedic gods (X.7.38): Skambha is the heat (tapas) that spreads through the universe (Bhuvana) as waves of water. The units of this spreading entity are the gods even as branches of one tree again reminding of the united nature of the universe. This is one particular and central theme that repeatedly presents itself in various interpretations that abounded in later Hindu philosophies and can be considered one of the most fundamental expressions of Vedic thought.

The one element that is believed to give life to all things and to unite all of them according to Vedas is the light or the fire. Both of them are the same thing only in different stages though and have to be viewed as interconnected particles. Indra, Mitra, Varuna, Agni-all are His names, the name of God, He is also the golden-winged bird of light. He is the one, the seer-rishis have called him in many names, sometimes as Agni, sometimes as Yama and sometimes as Maatarashvin. The Devas are the so called higher and divine powers that are within us and to which the fire worship in offered and through which a person could ascend the spiritual ladder of Indra, the light. We shall promote the higher powers in us that are called Gods (devas). The worshipper of the Vedas offers himself to these devas, and thus raises these powers in him. This is the secret of the fire ritual (yajna or Sacrifice). In front of this yajna is Agni or the power of tapas, therefore, Agni is situated in front. In this way, the worshipper puts Agni to guide him and is asking Him to call the devas, therefore, he is hotaa (caller). So we see that the caller has to make an actual conscious effort to seek for the fire within him. Elsewhere, Agni is also called vahni, because he carries the devas, that is, brings up the worshipper in the midst of higher powers. Agni is doing this every day (divedive), in truth, therefore, he is called ritvik. The fire of tapas (askesis) brings into the worshipper Divine energy or yashasam viiravattamam, Divine knowledge (chitrashravastamam) and Divine treasures (ratnadhaatamam, the radiance of jewels). This ability of Agni is in the consciousness of Divine Works, therefore, he is kavikratu and he is the manifestation of Truth (gopaam ritasya). The worshipper thus becomes angirasa (worshipper of Agni). Therefore the worshipper needs to work hard in order to see the divine light, the works of the spirit not earthly labor. This complicated system of Agni and the light that it brings needs a deep understanding and ought to be looked at very closely in order to get closer to the ancient truth. The major problem that can be encountered by people unfamiliar with Agni studies can be caused by multiple layers of the Vedas system. To simplify that we should just call Agni, or Indra, God, thus we will be talking about one thing without using various names. In order to rich real results while practicing Athave Veda one has to distance one self from the earthy desires that is probably what is meant where written that the worshipper should promote tapas, pushing one self into some state of mind. From the point of view of modern religion it is a rather barbaric way of finding God. However it is clear that human needs to make an effort to sweep the mind clean off the earthly matters and to let the divine power flow into you, although it seems easy, from the texts of the Vedas and constant repetitions of certain things in them, it is definite that people need continuous practice to be ready for the acceptance of God in their lives. The Devas are the things that bring out the divine in us, the divine that was there already at our births. They reside in our senses and we need to be trained to see the God’s ways through them. Thus Fire became speech and entered into the mouth, Air became Breath and entered into the nostrils, the Sun became Sight and entered into the eyes. All of those senses were given to us by God (Agni) not only for us to manage worldly matters, but to be able to see what else is there in a divine department. The hymns of the Athava Veda, although at times may seem as purely atheistic are calling to nature and all things that constitute nature: Mother-Earth, Heaven and Air and all the things that bring life. They do not take them apart and view as different but rather as a whole universe which sleeps under the cover of one almighty God. The core issue of this religion is to find a way to see God through all of those things and to worship and thank him for all his creations. And this could be done through inner growth and seeking the light within, as we are a part of the system and God has poured his fire into us so that we could come to him and enjoy his presence in our lives here on earth. Although most of the mantras might look like black magic and non-christian way of worshiping God, the complete picture shows that those stanzas are in perfect harmony with the world and do not contradict the main thought of unity. Besides in Athava Veda a very ancient piece of literature one can find notes of the medical importance. They were one of the first texts that included the description of the black entities with dusky patches, which are considered lichens used as antibiotics. This was the sign of the educated society not an undeveloped barbaric tribe as some people still consider Indians to be.

Ukkhishta, the father of the generator, the grandson of the spirit (asu), the primal ancestor (grandfather), the ruler of the universe, the lusty bull dwells upon the earth. Order (rita), truth (satya), creative fervour (tapas), sovereignty, asceticism, law and works; past, future, strength, and prosperity, are in the ukkhishta-force . Those lines are found in the sacred text of the Athava Veda hymns under the title Appotheosis of the Ukkhishta, the leavings of the sacrifice. These words are very deep and again bring us back to the central meaning of the viewed philosophy. Ukkhishta is said to be a deposited name and holds a deposited quality of all things, the world is deposited in it the first line of this part of the hymn writes. That could only mean that this universal quality is some component that absolutely everything from stars in the sky to the smallest grain of sand can relate too. It is everything is nothing at the same time. Life and death, food and hunger- that is Ukkhishta. All desires of the heart could be satisfied through it. A mysterious phenomenon of Ukkhishta is very unique to the world of religions but at the same time it is understandable when it’s researched deeper. This concept encompasses the idea of life and creation itself, the ultimate seed of life that was there before the beginning of times and is reflected in every atom on the planet and outside its boundaries. The Fire and the Light, those elements are the primary and necessary for human life and any type of life, thus Ukkhishta which carries and gives birth to it, is the ultimate treasure that we humans should seek for and cultivate within our souls. The inner light of things, the spark that brings everything to life and gives meaning to all living, the spirit that dwells in the soul of the universe- that is Ukkhishta and Agni at the same time. Agni is the derivative of the first one, although it is hard to imagine God being a secondary element. To avoid confusion, there needs to be made a division between the two although it is difficult to make a concrete one, as these concepts are greatly philosophical and hold no specific physical measures. One has to realize that Agni is a spark that is glowing in the creations of the world and is through constant tapas we as people should cultivate the knowledge of it and should learn to see it and derive happiness from it. Through repetitions of certain mantras and efforts of the soul one can reach the inner sight of the light, the Godly fire and through that fire get closer to the creator. Therefore for us humans words such as Agni are simply signs for us to distinguish things that we have lost in the long process of being born to life here on the earth. On the other side of the coin, there is Ukkhishta to the meaning of which humans could probably never get close. Describing it with words, Atharva Veda creators used all possible comparisons for us to better comprehend the idea of it. Suggesting that there was and will always be forces upon which the universe was created and everything is still operating, most probable explanation would be the combination of the physical powers and natural processes. It is true for most things that happen and are created in life however there are many more of those to which humans still have not found the answer. One of those eternal questions could be the creation of life in the universe and the development of it to the present level. Ukkhishta gives us a hint that there is something that controls absolutely everything and is within everything and is everywhere, only humans can see it through the fire within themselves. The tapas divine energy in us is the key to the possible insight into the world of the creator whoever or whatever that might be. As was already mentioned this divine energy was given to for us to cultivate in if we want to get to know who we are in reality. The mirror in our souls is already existent we just need to clear it so that the small ray of light could become a real flame of creative fire that should be burning in our hearts. Creativity in the meaning of accepting life and understanding life so deeply that everything would be an echo of the Godly providence. Those who are called by the fire within and are training themselves to hear it, will be developing spiritually and growing in God, thus happiness for them being a state of mind not a sequence of events with good or bad results. For Hindus such a way of viewing the world is usual and natural and is shown in the ancient mantras clearly. The mantras themselves do not mean anything if they are not taken as the major truth of life and are not followed with all heart. Peoples of India are one of the most lovable and peaceful people in the modern world despite of vast poverty. These unique people are the light in the world although not many of them see much light in their lives in our Western understanding. This feature of Indians could only mean that they have found a way to accept happiness as it is and see fire where no one else could see a dimmest ray of light. In the famous hymns of the Atharva Veda there are lots of sections and each of them could seem odd and strange at first for people of the Western world. For Indians though such things as Prana (power of life that comes with breathe), their holy cows, the sun in the sky, the earth, the food, the charms for the removal of evil characteristics and the mystic prayers for the royalty are ordinary matters. All of those things they accept and try to find common language with all of them through the one thing they actually have in common, the fire of the life which was the primary substance of all creation. By living such lives of agreement with the rest of the world and by training their souls to recognize omnipresent breathe of God in the air, they reflect the nature itself in its unspotted beauty.