Rachana singh
‘Environmental Education’ is a very new and latest
area of study but it has very ancient roots in our culture since Vedic Period. Man has been very conscious about
his environment since the very beginning of his religious and cultural development.
The ancient Indian heritage had already provided a spacious spiritual home for
the environmental ethos. It is interesting to know that the Vedas have several
references in them on environmental protection, ecological balance, weather
cycles, rainfall phenomena and other environment related prospects directly
indicate the high level of awareness of Vedic people. Ecology was sacred
science for them. The ancient sacred literature of the Vedas enshrines a
holistic and poetic cosmic vision.
This paper presents an attempt to appraise the concept
of environmental awareness in ancient Vedic literature.
It is widely recognized that
scientific advancement has considerably altered our way of life. Unlimited
exploitation of nature by man has disturbed the ecological balance between man
and environment. Rapid industrialization has left us with polluted air, water,
soil, wild life and exhausted natural resources. The pollution is a necessary
evil of all development. It is very difficult to think of man as something
separate from physical environment because life and environment are
interdependent. To check the degradation of the environment and to restore the
balance of nature is the most important challenge to mankind.
Vedas are ancient treasure of vast
knowledge which reveals a full cognizance of the environmental concerns. Many
of the Vedic hymns therefore vividly describe it. Rigveda is considered to be
the oldest text. It consists ten mandals with 1028 hymns. Rigveda describes the
importance of environment to the great extent. In this period man and
environment were very closely knitted. They worshipped a large number of gods
in form of the different natural phenomena. Whenever the aryans perceived
lively power they created god, such as the sun, the moon, the sky, the dawn, thunder,
wind, Air etc. According to Vedas a relationship between man and nature is of
reverence, respect and kindness. Rigveda has specially enjoined man to be
respectful to the nature.
Rigveda imparts so many hymns on
importance and sanctity of environment. The Vedic people worshipped heaven,
Antariksha, Prithvi, Aushadhi, Vanaspati for their peace, prosperity and
happiness. As they were very well aware of this fact that nature is integral
part of their well being.
The basis of the religion in
Rigvedic period was the worship of nature in its various forms as all their
gods represent one or another phenomenon of nature. Mythology was developed
around the natural phenomena. The god of Rig-Vedic period numbered thirty
three. Broadly the Rig-Vedic gods were classified into the following three
categories.
(A) The Terrestrial Gods, Such as Prithvi,
Agni, Brihaspati, Soma etc.
(B)
The
atmospheric Gods, Such as Indra, Rudra, Marut, Vayu, Parjanya etc.
(C)
The
celestial Gods, such as Surya, Usha, Savitri, Vishnu, Varuna etc.
Prithvi,
was universal mother, dispenser of all good and great. She was ‘the
nourisher of beings’. It was the basis of life. By Prithvi they mean mountain,
deserts, oceans, rivers, lakes, trees, planets, animals, stones, underground
minerals and treasures, weather, climate and seasons. By worshipping Prithvi
they worshipped and admired all the gifts nature bestowed to human beings. The
Vedic Hymn to the Earth, the Prithvi Sukta in Atharva Veda, is
unquestionably the oldest and the most evocative environmental invocation. In
it, the Vedic seer solemnly declares the enduring filial allegiance of
humankind to Mother Earth: 'Mata Bhumih Putroham Prithivyah: Earth is my
mother, I am her son.' Mother Earth is celebrated for all her natural bounties
and particularly for her gifts of herbs and vegetation. Her blessings are
sought for prosperity in all endeavours and fulfilment of all righteous
aspirations.
Indra,
the god of thunder and rain occupied the chief place among the Vedic gods.
His physical power and proportions were supposed to be stupendous, almost
cosmic. He was supposed to cause the rain and relieve the dryness of earth.
Agni,
god of fire, was personification of the sacrificial fire. He was considered
to be an intermediary between heaven and earth i.e. between god and men. He
dominated the domestic hearth and marriages were solemnized in his presence.
Fire destroyed dirt and germs and hence Agni was considered to be pure. The
importance of Agni can be related to that of the yajna.
Varuna,
the god of sky, was the upholder of the natural order of the universe. He
was supposed to enjoy the over lordship of Rta,
the cosmic order, a concept which has highest flight of Rig vedic through. The
world takes it regular course, day follows night and seasons succeed seasons,
because of Rta, man must live according to Rta. Marut, (The storm god), Vayu
(the wind god), Usha, (the
goddess of dawn), Saraswati, was the
river deity, Surya, (the god of
light), Dyaus, (the shining god of
heaven) were some of the other prominent gods who represented the different
phenomena of nature.
Vedic man works to enjoy the
blessings of these gods because they realize the importance of natural forces
around them. They worshipped them for their property. It has been stated in the
Rigveda “The dust of mother earth and
light of father sky should remain be associated with full brightness for our
welfare.” From the Rig-Vedic period man and environment were interdependent
and interrelated.
The planets, trees, forests, animals
and wild life are very useful for the survival of man. Rigvedic society was
very much aware of the fact that destruction of the plants and forest would
result in disease and pollution of the atmosphere. Soma was the master of plants. The entire ninth mandal in the
Rigveda was devoted to soma. Soma in fact was the juice of plants, which was
consumed sacramentally and offered to the gods. It was a divine drink. Vedic
Rishies realized that plants are important for the survival of mankind so they
were included in religion so that they can be preserved and protected by man.
Various trees were worshipped by the people i.e. Tulsi, Peepal, Vata, Kadamba, Ashok, Mango, Bel, Banyan etc. The
word ‘Vanaspati’ is used in several
suktas. The ‘Aushadhi’ (medicine)
were made from the plants which cures the disease. Forest was called as ‘Vanraj’. Not only plantation was
treated as a sacred ceremony but cutting of green trees was also prohibited.
This all shows the level of awareness and concern about environment.
Prevention of animals was also advocated
in the Rig-Veda. Animals were also considered as part of religion. It has been
mentioned in the suktas to preserve and protect animals. Worship of cow has
been given special place. Several animals have been named as vehicles of
Gods/Goddesses.
Today when air is unfit for
breathing, water is unfit for drinking; soil is unfit for agriculture and so on
... Vedic philosophy for environment has become very significant and relevant.
According to Vedic Rishies the body is composed of earth, water, fire,
ether and air. So they believed in the sanctity and
purity of them. Rigveda teaches us to have respect and reverence for everything
god has created. It deals with respectful conservation of the environment. They
maintained a well balanced life free from pollution by obeying the rural and
religious norms. They realized the dependence of human welfare on the nature.
Thus environment and man were deeply knitted in the Rigvedic period.
Sources :
1.
Guryee,
G.H. – Vedic India.
2.
Keith,
A.B. – The Religion and Philosophy of the veda and upanishads.
3.
Majumdar,
R.C. – Vedic age.
4.
Miller
Jeanine – The Vedas.
5.
Ramanathan,
A.S. – Vedas and weather science in India.
6.
Pandey,
G.C. – Vedic Culture.
7.
Verma
Rajendra – Vedic Cosmology.
Dr.
Rachana singh
Asstt.Professor
Department of Med and Mod History
ISDC,
University of Allahabad.
