yoga system (25)

three plus one
edcational norm

By Kulamarva Balakrishna

( discussion,debate welcome)

Vienna,Friday,Februay 29,2008: The education
system of the ancients was made up of a three
tier arrangement.I have already pointed out the
special system meant for play boys.For the
general education, the three tier method worked
in the following way:authoritarian, =prabhu
samhita= ,reserved for the Vedas meant to be
followed or enforced,they are based on unalterable
words,=suhrutsamhita=, the territory of the epics
and vertical gossip puranas,used for learning from
friends and relations,where the message involved
is important,and finally =kanta sammita= used for
a co-education with lover, who help one another
to learn through heart.The last part is played by
general liiterature including prose and poetry,
fiction and non-fiction.

Learning for the play boy princes were not by the
courtesans as Vikram Seth would like us believe.
He is right for the recent past but not for the ancient
times.In ancient times, the five fold tactical behaviour
was designed as Pancha tantra by Vishnu Sharma,
a great scholar, which became all time best seller
through out the world.

This system of education was operative unbroken
several thousands of years.When it became inadequate
Buddha began educating in plain folk language of
Pali without resorting to use the enriched Samskrit
language.The teachers´ standard by Buddha´s time
had greatly deteriorated.Although there were intellectuals
of highest order of whom we can be proud even today
numbering over a dozen, the Buddha Gauthama
created a one man revolution also based on his yogic
awareness.Shamanism was running amok as we
see today caricature educated langoti monkies, or
pantie clad langoors.It was indeed the shamanist
=damaru= or =dunger= that caused Panini explain
the architecture of the enriched language Samskrit.
Panini is placed before the Buddha in time who
tried by explaining the language in grammatical
terms understandable to the deteriorating teaching
class.As the grammarian sage was set on mediation
he heard the beating of a shamnist single hand held
drum called =damaru=.He received the sounds
in the following order ounted fourteen beatings:
aiun,2.ruluq,3.eonq,4.iauch,5.hayavarat,6.lan,
7.namaqnanamam,8.jhabhan,9.ghadhadhash,
10.jabagadash, 11.khaphachathathacatatav,12.kapay,
13.shashasar,and 14.hal. At once he got the
structure of the entire phonetic language in the
sounds.The first four sounds covered the vovels.
The next two revealed the out step letters like
ya,ra,la,va,sha, sha,sa and ha, nine letters.Then
he got the five nasal sounds,to be followed by
between four groups of four letters with hard and
soft pronunciations as sixteen diphthongs.
From this reception of the remote sensing he
wrote the law for the language in about 2000
sutras divided in eight chapters.However,it
did not make things easy for the layman
student.That motivated Gauthama Buddha´s
revolutionary step to teach simple folk´s
language,universal language for every one.

However, Panini´s efforts were not in vain.
He helped to understand the earlier teaching
of the authoritarian teachings known as
=shruti=, meaning that was heard by ears.
The entire body of literature of all kinds then
heard and memorized was enormous at a time
men had no means to jot down things.These
then have to be learned and retained in tact
for use,application.This awareness of linkage
to the knowledge and application remains
almost lost in today´s Indian,who is inheritor
of the learning of the ancient sages.It is
said: =laukikano hi sadhunam aratham vag
anuvartate;rusheenam punaradyanam vacha
martho nu dhavati=,meaning current learned
ones (sadhus) follow the meanings of the words.
But what the ancient spoke was followed by the
meanings.(end)

Comment for discussion:
From Prof.K.P.Rao, Manipal 29-02-2008

I have a word on learning that you discuss in
one of your letters (and postings). The learning
in ancient sense involved two things- learning
the grammar and language possibly by the way
you described and learning texts by a different
procedure. especially in connection with Vedas
and similar texts it is Shiksha and we have
paratishakhyas- the books on linguistics-
which may be very specific and regional. My
grand father was considered an authority in
taittiriya Prathisahakhya and I ad the privelege
of learng it from in my early days. I had a
Chance to discuss the linguistics of the
parathishakhyas with many learned people
and found them to be very accurate in some
parts and the commentators especially
Shivaswamy had made a minor mess as he
was impressed by the colossal work of Panini.

The roting technique for Archival of text as
practised in Kerala in particular with the ghana,
jataa etc. versions (again attributed to Veda Vyaasa)
is the ultimate method of saving text better
than printing as there is no typogrpahy, script
and hence printer's devil.

regards,

KPRao
Response: Thank you for additional info.Do
make a note and when you visit Pune to go
to Sanskrita Vaidic Sahitya Sanshodhan Mandala
at Tilak Vidyapeeth to find a short film on
the Ghanapatha technique. It is all India,
practiced in Pune,Rajmundry, Gokarna if
I am not mistaken even in Kashi.Shiksha,
Vyakarana, Chandas, Nirukta,Jyotisha
and Kalpa are meant get into the core of
the Vaidic Text.Yoga is Darshana shastra
and used to keep it in compressed
memory.Thank you Prof.Rao once again.
Readers are welcome to participate with
serious inputs.
Kulamarva Balakrishna