“Brahma, it is I, the Personality of Godhead, who was existing before the creation, when there was nothing but Myself. Nor was there the material nature, the cause of this creation. That which you see now is also I, the Personality of Godhead, and after annihilation what remains will also be I, the Personality of Godhead.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.33)

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अहम् एवासम् एवाग्रे
नान्यद् यत् सद्-असत् परम्
पश्चाद् अहं यद् एतच् च
यो ऽवशिष्येत सो ऽस्म्य् अहम्

aham evāsam evāgre
nānyad yat sad-asat param
paścād ahaṁ yad etac ca
yo ‘vaśiṣyeta so ‘smy aham

To understand the greatness of the works of the Vedic tradition, which are rooted in the highest authority based on the link to the person who was around before everything and everyone else, we can take a hypothetical situation of a writing assignment.

To establish the setting, we have someone who is gifted in the craft. They can express thoughts and ideas with aplomb. They have demonstrated the ability in the past, and they have received numerous recognitions which attest to the fact.

To establish the parameters, there is no limit on the subject matter. There is no prohibition on content or length. As long or as short as the writer would like. The composition can be in their style of choosing. Dialogue. Narrative. First-person. Third-person. In prose or in verse. Extensive use of passive voice. It can even be in the style of copy for a newsperson to read off a teleprompter.

The one distinguishing factor is that the content should be relevant as far into the future as possible. Someone should be able to pick up the printed words one year from now and still find some lasting meaning. They should not regret the time spent reading. They should not feel the need to throw away the copy or use it for other purposes, such as lighting a fire or integrating it into a decorative backdrop for online meetings.

Not just one year, but one hundred years. One thousand years, if the language of composition is still being used. Write something that people will find useful. Not limited to a single subject from history. Appealing to both men and women. The young and the old. The enthusiastic and the morose. The ones happy with their position in life and those who are perpetually suffering.

While the writer contemplates the subject matter which they will cover, we already have literature which meets these parameters. Vedic texts such as Bhagavad-gita, Shrimad Bhagavatam, Ramayana, and many others have the highest value in the modern world. They were originally put on paper thousands of years ago. Since the shrutis refer to that which is heard, there is no way to accurately put a date of inception to the actual content.

We have some history within the content itself, such as Krishna telling Arjuna that the wisdom of Bhagavad-gita was spoken originally to the sun-god, who is one of the people responsible for the human race.

श्री-भगवान् उवाच
इमं विवस्वते योगं
प्रोक्तवान् अहम् अव्ययम्
विवस्वान् मनवे प्राह
मनुर् इक्ष्वाकवे ’ब्रवीत्

śrī-bhagavān uvāca
imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ
proktavān aham avyayam
vivasvān manave prāha
manur ikṣvākave ’bravīt

“The Blessed Lord said: I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god, Vivasvan, and Vivasvan instructed it to Manu, the father of mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Ikshvaku.” (Bhagavad-gita, 4.1)

In Shrimad Bhagavatam, Vishnu explains to Brahma that there was someone before everything. Vishnu was there even prior to Brahma, who is the creator. Vishnu will be there after everyone else is gone. The same Vishnu glances over the unmanifest substance known as pradhana to kickstart the process of creation. To complete the cycle, everything will go back into Him at a certain point in time.

अव्यक्ताद्‍ व्यक्तय: सर्वा: प्रभवन्त्यहरागमे ।
रात्र्यागमे प्रलीयन्ते तत्रैवाव्यक्तसंज्ञके ॥

avyaktād vyaktayaḥ sarvāḥ
prabhavanty ahar-āgame
rātry-āgame pralīyante
tatraivāvyakta-saṁjñake

“When Brahma’s day is manifest, this multitude of living entities comes into being, and at the arrival of Brahma’s night they are all annihilated.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 8.18)

More than just a history of what has happened and insight into what will occur, Vedic literature also explains how everything comes to be. There is an explanation for what God looks like, how He is different from the rest of us, how we can connect with Him, and how that steady connection is what every individual ultimately seeks.

That connection is yoga, and yoga should be the objective in any period of time. Whether living out in the country, in a self-sustained manner, or hustling and bustling through the city. Whether with nothing more than the horizon to provide visual entertainment or a vast library of performances streaming from a smart device. Whether cultured as to the ways of life and death, arya, or deep in the fog of ignorance. That timeless literature, explained through the empowered representative known as the acharya, is forever relevant.

In Closing:

Too long it took,
To pick up that book.

Which though printed in the past,
With wisdom to last.

To my situation applying,
Relevant solution supplying.

Because subject on Vishnu based,
Whose influence never erased.

Categories: vishnu

Tags: books, feature, hare krishna, poem, poems, poetry, vishnu, writing