Question about The Vedas, The Upanishads

[Crystalsun]

Namaste,

I need a little help.Excuse for the intelligent questions, but no other way.I generally in the past, have had found myself being confused when reading writings of Hinduism. So, here I am again.

I want to read The Vedas and the Upanishads.

In some sites it said that Upanishads are part of the Vedas. I don't really know that and what exactly is are their purposes.

I have downloaded:

"Four Vedas - Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda & Atharva Veda." So i just want confirmation , that these are the real, actual writings.

"The Upanishads" by Swami Paramananda. It says, there are three Upanishads in that book.All editions of the Upanishads I could find, in English or my Native language are all not more than 120-smartphone pages, which usually is not much information. And seems to be small amount of data for the Upanishads. Unless, i am just wrong.

----------!

I ask these questions, because I want to read the actual writings. And I have experience in the past with false information.

If you want to suggest a very particular edition or a guru who has intepretated the writings and/or a credible download source i am very open to auggestions.

Thank you.
Om!

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by Crystalsun

Namaste,

I need a little help.Excuse for the intelligent questions, but no other way.I generally in the past, have had found myself being confused when reading writings of Hinduism. So, here I am again.

I want to read The Vedas and the Upanishads.

In some sites it said that Upanishads are part of the Vedas. I don't really know that and what exactly is are their purposes.

I have downloaded:

"Four Vedas - Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda & Atharva Veda." So i just want confirmation , that these are the real, actual writings.

"The Upanishads" by Swami Paramananda. It says, there are three Upanishads in that book.All editions of the Upanishads I could find, in English or my Native language are all not more than 120-smartphone pages, which usually is not much information. And seems to be small amount of data for the Upanishads. Unless, i am just wrong.

----------!

I ask these questions, because I want to read the actual writings. And I have experience in the past with false information.

If you want to suggest a very particular edition or a guru who has intepretated the writings and/or a credible download source i am very open to auggestions.

Thank you.
Om!

Namaste.

There have been so many translations and purports given to the original Vedas and Upanishads, that unless one can read and understand Sanskrit, it is ALL pretty much up for interpretation - it is why I leaned Sanskrit.

However, when I get lazy, what I like to do is to compare translations of the same Upanishad (or Veda) by different scholars.

Max Muller has been criticised by academics, but his translations are perhaps the easiest to understand for a lay person.

https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=...elNG0HgkA0057I

Then, Swami Krishnananda from the Divine Life Society wrote some rather good translations on the Vedas and Upanishads...

https://www.swami-krishnananda.org/hist/hist_1.html

However, in the digital age, enter the glorious beauty of Android Apps...

https://www.google.com/search?q=upan...obile&ie=UTF-8

*just click on the down arrow to see them all*

The same can be done for the Vedas:

https://www.google.com/search?q=veda...obile&ie=UTF-8

This will give you a good starting point to proceed at your own pace and not get overwhelmed with large words or convoluted concepts.

....and yes, the Vedas and Upanishads are all surprisingly SHORT!
120 Smartphone pages is about right.

There are many different translations...many different authors...some will have their favourites, some will be biased and will say either this translation or that one is "definitive" thus confusing people even further..

Just graze amongst it.

Aum Namah Shivaya

[Crystalsun]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Namaste.

There have been so many translations and purports given to the original Vedas and Upanishads, that unless one can read and understand Sanskrit, it is ALL pretty much up for interpretation - it is why I leaned Sanskrit.

However, when I get lazy, what I like to do is to compare translations of the same Upanishad (or Veda) by different scholars.

Max Mueller has been criticised by academics, but his translations are perhaps the easiest to understand for a lay person.

https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=...elNG0HgkA0057I

Then, Swami Krishnananda from the Divine Life Society wrote some rather good translations on the Upanishads...

However, in the digital age, enter the glorious beauty of Android Apps...

https://www.google.com/search?q=upan...obile&ie=UTF-8

*just click on the down arrow to see them all*

The same can be done for the Vedas:

https://www.google.com/search?q=veda...obile&ie=UTF-8

This will give you a good starting point to proceed at your own pace and not get overwhelmed with large words or convoluted concepts.

....and yes, the Vedas and Upanishads are all surprisingly SHORT!
120 Smartphone pages is about right.

There are many different translations...many different authors...some will have their favourites, some will be biased and will say either this translation or that one is "definitive" thus confusing people even further..

Just graze amongst it.

Aum Namah Shivaya

Thank you very much for your help.

(@)--------/-----

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by Crystalsun

Thank you very much for your help.

(@)--------/-----

You are very welcome.

I just included a link to the free PDF of Swami Krishnananda Saraswati's treatise on The Vedas.

The Divine Life Society is as good of a place to start as any on this subject.

I wish you all the best and please don't hesitate to ask if you have any questions that need clarification.

Aum Namah Shivaya

[Crystalsun]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

You are very welcome.

I just included a link to the free PDF of Swami Krishnananda Saraswati's treatise on The Vedas.

The Divine Life Society is as good of a place to start as any on this subject.

I wish you all the best and please don't hesitate to ask if ypu have any questions that need clarification.

Aum Namah Shivaya

I have a question and you might help. I remember a long ime ago I saw that "Indiana Jones" and the tample of the doomed movie. I am sure you have seen it.

The first time i saw indian people, they were Shiva devotees, actually.They seemed very kind and spiritual and respectful. I just liked them.

I am interested how such people live in their everyday life. Just thei culture, relations ,customs, and their life generally. And spiritual life.

I guess i need a book like a novel, like from an indian author. Just some ordinary story, something Indian. Sth. that can show what are they like and how do they live ( and their spirituality).

You understand me. :)

[Shivani Devi]

Originally Posted by Crystalsun

I have a question and you might help. I remember a long ime ago I saw that "Indiana Jones" and the tample of the doomed movie. I am sure you have seen it.

The first time i saw indian people, they were Shiva devotees, actually.They seemed very kind and spiritual and respectful. I just liked them.

I am interested how such people live in their everyday life. Just thei culture, relations ,customs, and their life generally. And spiritual life.

I guess i need a book like a novel, like from an indian author. Just some ordinary story, something Indian. Sth. that can show what are they like and how do they live ( and their spirituality).

You understand me. :)

Of course I understand you.

Shiva devotees are usually and for the most part, peaceful, serene and loving people who are in tune with nature and the cosmic forces.

I like that Indiana Jones movie, by the way.

The Vedas and Upanishads are all pretty much impersonal...the latter in particular...basically, and when all is said and done, the message is: "Dont look outside yourself to find Shiva, because you ARE that".

There we go, I have just saved you months of reading.

However, for a few of us, that is too cut and dried, or it raises more questions than it answers. We like to find the path that leads from the without TO the within and from the within, back to the without and mythology suits that purpose..

...and who cares if it is "true" or not? It may be...it may not be...nobody knows for sure and that's the whole beauty of mythology, because noboby knows for sure if what they perceive as being "real" or "true" is thus anyway.

If you would like to see a book about how the devotees of Shiva live, let me introduce you to Swami Krishnananda's Guru, Swami Sivananda Saraswati and his book, "Lord Siva and His Worship":

https://www.google.com/search?q=lord...obile&ie=UTF-8

For some reason I cannot get the exact URL on my mobile phone, but I am sure you can find it.

This was the first book I ever read on Lord Siva.

For the more adventurous, Youtube has episodes of the Shiva Maha Purana subtitled in English:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=E62xx3mjEwI

Just follow each episode from there and it goes into ALL of the stories of Shaivism and Hinduism one by one....if you watched each episode back to back, it takes about 6 weeks to see them all.

If you want to go into the more esoteric side of it, there are two books that explain it all....neither of them are free though:

Shiva and the Primordial Tradition - Alain Danielou
Bali - Sekala and Niskala - Fred Eisman

There we go, you have just exhausted all of my reading, watching and listening material which should keep you very busy for the next six months.

All the best and good luck with it.

Aum Namah Shivaya

[kris]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

There have been so many translations and purports given to the original Vedas and Upanishads, that unless one can read and understand Sanskrit, it is ALL pretty much up for interpretation - it is why I leaned Sanskrit.

Couldn't agree more! I learned Sanskrit for exactly the same reason. I am now translating Ādiparva of Mahābhārata.

[Miss Hepburn]

Originally Posted by Shivani Devi

Namaste.

Max Muller has been criticised by academics, but his translations are perhaps the easiest to understand for a lay person.
https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=...elNG0HgkA0057I

Then, Swami Krishnananda from the Divine Life Society wrote some rather good translations on the Vedas and Upanishads...

https://www.swami-krishnananda.org/hist/hist_1.html

However, in the digital age, enter the glorious beauty of Android Apps...

https://www.google.com/search?q=upan...obile&ie=UTF-8

*just click on the down arrow to see them all*
The same can be done for the Vedas:

https://www.google.com/search?q=veda...obile&ie=UTF-8

Aum Namah Shivaya

THANK YOU! How nice of you to take the time to post all these!

[Crystalsun]

By the way, I just want to mention - i used to like Indiana Jones, but now I see, that, in my opinion, it tries to make that little Indian society, that village to look like some religious idiots, who are ignorant and definately being inferior to the western culture. This i dont like.

[ajay00]

Originally Posted by Crystalsun

By the way, I just want to mention - i used to like Indiana Jones, but now I see, that, in my opinion, it tries to make that little Indian society, that village to look like some religious idiots, who are ignorant and definately being inferior to the western culture. This i dont like.

The film showcases the thuggee cult, which indulged in human sacrifice.

This is a superstitious practice, like sati, which had no basis in the Vedas.

In fact, you can see in the Ramayana, Rama's lieutenant Hanuman battling and killing Mahiravana who indulged in such human sacrifice.

Similarly, in the Mahabharatha, Krishna along with Arjuna and Bheema, challenged Jarasandha, who similarly indulged in thuggism or human sacrifice, which Krishna deplored, and slayed Jarasandha.

For superstitious reasons, such practices persisted, and they were wiped out few centuries back.