Book Reviewed: The rig Veda: First Mandala, by David R Slavitt

Rig-Veda Mandala-I: The translation of sacred texts

This book is a translation of Mandala-1 (Book One) of Rig-Veda which contain esoteric and mystical verses. The author has offered his own translation. One of the most important hymns of Rig-Veda in spiritual and philosophical terms is found in the hymn 164 of Mandala-1. There are 52 verses in this hymn and some of the profound thoughts seems to emerge from the seer of this hymn. This hymn may have influenced the seers and scribes of early Upanishads that dealt with physical reality and quantum consciousness. This hymn is addressed to Visvedevas (viśve-devāḥ "all-gods"); various Vedic gods taken together as a whole. The rishi or the scribe is Dīrghatamas. He was well known for his philosophical views in the Rig-Veda, and the author of hymns 140 to 164 of Mandala-1. He was the chief priest of King Bharata (Aitareya Brahmana VIII.23), after whom the nation was named as Bharata (the traditional name of India). Despite the fact that schism of Western scholars that does not acknowledge the wisdom in Rig-Veda, and treat it merely as a liturgical text, one can understand the mind of the seer of this hymn who remains calm and unflinching in the analysis of reality and the cosmic creation.

The highlight of Mandala I (RV I.164) is the verse 46, this is the first documentary evidence for strictly the monotheistic nature of Rig-Veda that later evolved conspicuously in Upanishads, Brahma-sutra and Vedanta philosophy. The Hindu belief system acknowledges that there is only ONE God, but He is worshiped in different forms. This verse assures us that Vedic faith is not a polytheistic religion. Hence, the source of all origin of all creations is really the One Unit-Absolute, the Truth – a divine hawk (like Lord Garuda) swooping down with nectar. But sages designate him by different names; Indra, Mitra, Varuna, Agni, Yama, Matarishva, etc. (indraṃ mitraṃ varuṇamaghnimāhuratho divyaḥ sa suparṇo gharutmān; ekaṃ sad viprā bahudhā vadantyaghniṃ yamaṃ mātariśvānamāhuḥ).

I prefer R.T.H Griffith’s English translation which is readily available online, and the Sanskrit version with transliteration of Rig-Veda is also available online at sacred-texts.com. This author’s translation to English is adequate and this is certainly a good reference book for readers interested in Rig-Veda and ancient Hinduism.