The best way to introduce the subject of Vedic interpretation is to begin with the Vedic concept of breathing cycle. As I said before, the Vedic texts are a curious mix of symbolism, poetry, philosophy, rituals and stories of a very cryptic nature, frequently interspersed by certain references to psychosomatic relationships of an unknown nature. When you open a book of Veda it would probably look like what you see under the hood of an automobile (if you are not an engineer).. a complex arrangement of parts which seem to take you nowhere.
This article will help you get initiated into the exciting world of Vedas the same way you may have felt the first time you took a driving lesson; and at the end of this article I bet you would come out confident you can go places, like how you felt when you just got your license.
Now imagine how you would feel, in addition to getting your license, you also get a key to a sedan of your dreams! This article will give you precisely that at the end: a master key to exploring the intricate meanings of Vedas. Sounds too easy to be true? Read on..
sAma is a sanskrit word that combines together the meanings comparison, equality and equalizing. The Sevenfold sAma is known to be the essence of sAmaveda. (sAmaveda is among the four categories of the veda, namely Rk, yajus, sAma and atharva).
sAma is a cycle. It is also a song, rather it is a song of a cyclic nature. sAma has a beginning, reaches a climax and it ends. sAma is present everywhere in the nature. The Sun rises, reaches the zenith and sets. The clouds form, they rain and rain stops. Thoughts originate in the mind and they dissolve. Even the breathing cycle has a beginning and an end.
The sAma has two definite movements - upward and downward. Any song has two kinds of sequences of notes: aarohaNam (ascending) and avarohanam (descending).
The upward movement has four parts. These are called himkAra, prastAva, Adi and uthgItha. The downward movement has three parts namely pratihAra, upadrava and nidhana. The terminology such as himkAra is preferred because in Veda every word is phonetically engineered to give the desired result even if one does not know its meaning. Each of the seven parts of the sAma has a distinct meaning, each has a distinct mood. These aspects are now discussed with interpretations for human behavior and breathing cycle.
The phase of the Sun before rising is called himkAra. The adjustments the body makes before inhalation, such as inward contraction and upward stretching of abdominal muscles are part of himkAra. This phase denotes the strength of conviction a person has, because the body's faculties join together in strength to acquire the needed air during this stage. This is also called gut feeling in common usage.
The phase of the Sun while rising is called prastAva. The phase when first traces of air are inhaled is also prastAva. This phase denotes the efforts people make. People try to learn from their mistakes and do better. They try to imitate ideals set by themselves. They are desirous of praise and reputation. They strive. All these are various features of prastAva. What people term as 'muddling through ideas' or 'speaking through the brain' is also called prastAva because, the prastAva stage is itself a reference to (and the result of) the knowledge contained in the brain that was not yet absorbed by (or acceptable to) the body.
When the Sun has risen, it is without its intense rays. When the Sun starts spreading its rays, that phase is called Adi. During inhalation, stomach expands in the prastAva stage because that is the easiest way to breathe. When more air is required, chest also expands. The transition from expansion of stomach to that of chest is Adi. During this phase, for a fraction of a second, people feel independent, and that they are not bound to anything.
Thereafter, the phase the Sun has till it reaches noon, is uthgItha. The last portion of inhalation wherein free and unconstrained inhalation takes place, is also uthgItha. This denotes the leadership which is in every person; only people do not realize it. uthgItha denotes leadership emitted, as well as received.
Thereafter, the phase the Sun has when slowly coming down, is called pratihAra. The phase when first traces of air are exhaled, is also pratihAra. During this phase, people tend to step back, apprehending something may go wrong if they proceed any further.
The phase the Sun has while setting is called upadrava. In the breathing cycle, at one point during exhalation, air is exhaled profusely and quickly. That phase is called upadrava. At this stage, people tend to drop all their initiatives and run away because they fear something may really go wrong if they stick on.
The phase of the Sun while setting, is nidhana. The last stage of exhalation is also nidhana. This denotes understanding of the idea taken up at that time by the body. When people say 'Yes, I know, I agree' they are actually meditating on the last portion of exhalation.
From pratihAra and upadrava we may derive an important lesson: Stepping back and running away are built into the breathing cycle. There is nothing unnatural about them. There is also no need to show false prestige and resist these feelings. There is surely a need to step back from wrong initiatives, and one should indeed drop illogic as fast as one can.
The interpretations given above explain the distinct moods observed in the sAma cycle in general, and breathing cycle in particular. These feelings can also be observed by a person sitting on a Ferris wheel. The upswing of the Ferris wheel has four parts, and the downswing has three.
The Vedic seers had always held claims of accuracy and authenticity of their concepts. Considering this, if different parts of the breathing cycle are associated with different moods, did not the seers explain the cause of this phenomenon? Surely they did. It can be established that the theory of Sevenfold sAma originates from gAyatra sAma.
Literally, gAyatra sAma means a protective song. This represents the thought cycle as a psychosomatic song sung by the body, mind and sense organs together.
According to this model, the mind (brain) is himkAra because all thoughts originate in it. Speech (vAc) is prastAva because Speech tries to give a name to every thought. In Vedic notation, the word Speech is used as a collective noun for nervous endings in the regions of mouth, lips, tongue, neck, face, eye lids, eye brows, chest and shoulders. The first expression of every thought, however unnoticeable it may be, is found in this region. Psychologists observed that the habits of a person are stored in this region.
The eye is uthgItha because the leadership of a person can be judged from eyes. The ear is pratihAra because people listen to others leaving the initiative to them. The involuntary nervous system, termed as prANa in the Veda, is nidhana because all thoughts merge in it and lose their identity. About the stages Adi and upadrava the text is silent. In the opinion of the author, the heart is responsible for Adi, and the control of upadrava lies somewhere in the hind brain. (Some times the parts Adi and Upadrava are ignored because they are observed only for a very short duration. This model is called pancha-vidha Sama having only five parts.)
More Examples of Sama in Nature
The winds blow; that is Himkara. The clouds form; that is Prastava. That it rains is Uthgitha. The thunder roars and lightening flashes; that is Pratihara. The rain stops; that is Nidhana.
That one rubs two pieces of wood (to create fire) is Himkara. That it sparks is Prastava. That it lights up is Uthgitha. That it smokes after fire is put off is Pratihara. The embers remain; that is Nidhana.
The above examples illustrate the nature of Sama cycle. The Veda gives a number of examples of such cycles in nature, and we can imagine many such examples on our own.
That one turns on the ignition of an automobile is Himkara. That one gears up is Prastava. That one drives along is Uthgitha. That one applies the brake is Pratihara. That one stops the vehicle is Nidhana.
The movement of stocks in financial markets is also a Sama. That a stock looks dead before it breaks out, is Himkara. That it starts rising is Prastava. That it flares up is Udgitha. That it sells off is Pratihara. That it settles down at the bottom is Nidhana.
The sudden contraction and subsequent relaxation of muscle tissue upon receiving an impulse, is also a Sama having various stages like Himkara.
At the psychological level, human thought process is entirely symbolic in nature. People play with symbols, most often without even knowing about them. The seven parts of the sAma are some of them. Needless to say, even a simple observation of the interplay of these symbols opens up an exciting branch of knowledge.
The parts of sAma also work as protection systems in the thought process. himkAra protects through strength. People speak out their problems with relatives and friends and get relief; that is prastAva. Adi protects through a feeling of independence. pratihAra and upadrava form defense mechanisms. nidhana protects through understanding, because people only feel insecure when they do not understand.
The breathing cycle as Sevenfold sAma is a complete model by itself and includes all kinds of breath control techniques (prANAyAmA) and locks (bandhA) explained in yoga. While there is no substitute for a competent yoga teacher, the meditation on the Sevenfold sAma relieves a practitioner from the ratios and timings of breath control.
The breathing cycle and the thought cycle represent the working of body and mind respectively. And these two cycles are never synchronous. This very asynchronism is the cause of the diversity found in nature.
It can be proved that most passages in the Vedas are compiled by observing the interaction of the breathing and thought cycles using techniques such as Sevenfold sAma. Considering this, the study of Sevenfold sAma will continue to remain a challenge to Vedic students for a long time to come.
2. One should know that all these creatures are indeed connected with that (sun). That (form it has) before rising is himkAra. The animals are associated with that form. Since they are the worshippers of (the division) himkAra of this sAma, they utter the sound him.
3. Thereafter, the phase (that the sun has) when it first rises up, that is prastAva. Human beings are associated with that phase of it. Because they are worshippers of prastAva, a division of sAma, therefore they are desirous of praise and reputation.
4. Thereafter, the phase (that the sun has) when spreading its rays is Adi. The birds are associated with that phase of it. Therefore they fly in the sky, depending on themselves, without any support, because they are the worshippers of the Adi division of this sAma.
5. Thereafter, the phase (that the sun has) just at mid-day, that is uthgItha. The gods are associated with that phase of the sun. Hence, they are the best among the progeny of prajApati since they are the worshippers of uthgItha, a division of this sAma.
6. Thereafter, the phase (that the sun has) after midday and before afternoon, that is pratihAra. Fetuses are associated with that phase of it. Therefore, being held up they do not fall down because they are the worshippers of pratihAra, a division of this sAma.
7. Thereafter, the phase (that the sun has) following the afternoon and before its setting down, that is upadrava. The forest animals are associated with that phase of it. Therefore, on seeing any man they run towards a forest or a cave (thinking them safe), because they are the worshippers of upadrava, a division of this sAma.
8. Thereafter, the phase (that the sun has) when it starts setting down, that is nidhana. The manes are associated with that phase of it. Therefore, they are placed on kuzA-grass (at the time of zrADDhA ceremony) because they are the worshippers of nidhana, a division of this sAma. In this way, indeed, one (who) meditates on the sevenfold sAma as the sun...
swAmi gambhIrAnandA's note: ... to him comes the result of identification with it (the sun). This, i.e., the result is to be understood at the end of sentence.
The primary source for this topic "Vedic Concept of Breathing Cycle" is from chandogya upanSat. This upaniSat is a part of chandogya brAhmana of sAmaveda. The upaniSat has invaluable study material. It comes with the commentary of zaGkarAcharya and I advise reading it cover to cover a number of times.
The idea that the habits of a person get stored in the regions of jaws, neck and so on was contributed by Dr. V K Gupta, Psychologist at ONGC, Dehradun who explained this concept in detail during a presentation on prevention of executive stress (May 1990). Dr. Gupta professes use of both modern and ancient methods of prevention and relaxation.
swAmi gambhIrAnanda explains in a footnote to verse VII.2.1 of chandogya upanSat, that "The chest, throat, root of the tongue, tooth, lips and palate are the eight places of speech.
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