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Human body is the greatest thing among all living beings in this universe. There is a short story in the Aitareya Upanishad. During the genesis of the Universe, the Almighty first created deities like Fire, Wind, Sun etc. When they appeared, they complained that they had no place to live, where could enjoy their life. So the Almighty gave them the body of a cow. They refused to accept it. Then they were offered a horse’s body, which also they refused. So finally, the Almighty showed them a human body. The deities were overjoyed on seeing it and accepted it immediately, each one chose a place for him and went to live in it. The creators of the Upanishads have showed the importance of human body in a wonderful manner through this story.

It is a fact that the composition and functioning of a human body is really extraordinary. That’s why, the creator of the AtharvaVed, adoring each body part, says in the Kenasukta, "Oh! Who is the great sculptor that made the heel of the human Body, who has filled in the flesh, who has made the shins and the toes with phalanges, and who has made the holes in the organs? Who has created the bottoms of the feet and the supporting portions of the mid parts? With what tools are made the shins and the knees above, joined the thighs? Who made the upper torso with joints of all the four limbs? Who is that master craftsman who has made the tow buttocks covering the joints of the thigh bones? Tell me, who and how many were of those master craftsmen who created man’s chest and neck and breasts, cheeks and the ribs? Who is the great sculptor who made these two arms for doing deeds of bravery? Who has joined the upper body with the two shoulders? Who has created these two ears and the two nose holes, two eyes, the mouth? Who has made these seven holes in the head? Who has placed the tongue between the two jaws, with which it talks? Who is the creator of this head, the forehead, the throat, and the cheeks? Who has fixed the chain of teeth in the jaws? Who has filled this body with blood that is red and comes and goes through the heart and runs above and below and everywhere? Who has given this form to this body, who has given its name and power and greatness and progress and knowledge and character? Who has formed the intersecting Prana and Apana in this body? Who has created the covering of skin over this body, who has formed its life and who has given it power and speed? Who has given it the material with which it can perform reproduction, who has formed the intellect in it, the skill of speech and art of dance?" (AtharvaVed 20/2/1/17).

When one sees the intricately made human body, he expresses the same sense of wonder. With his power of speech, man can convey his thoughts to others, contemplate with his mind, solve complex problems with his intellect. In comparison with other beings, these are the special things about the human body, which is the reason for his superiority.

Human body is a city of Gods. All the Gods of this universe have established themselves in their specific places in it. In the AtharvaVed 11/8, it is said, "All Gods have entered the human body and living here, they are performing a Yajna, using the bones as wood (Samidha), all the juices and blood as water, semen as ghee. All kinds of water, all Gods, the whole universe, even the Brahma Himself is present in this body. The sun is in the body in the form of eyes, the wind is in the soul, fire has the possession of other organs. Wise, learned people consider the human body as a city of Gods. All Gods have come to stay here, just as cows stay in a cow-shed." According to the Aitareya Upsnishad, "Fire resides in the mouth in the form of power of speech, wind resides in the nose in the form of Prana, the sun resides in the eyes in the form of eyesight, all the directions (Disha) reside in the ears in the form of listening power, medicinal plants and herbs reside in the skin in the form of soft hairs, the moon resides in the heart in the form of mind, the death resides in the navel in the form of Apana, water resides in the penis in the form of semen."

As per the AtharvaVed 10/2, 31/33, human body is Ayodhya, the city of Gods, where there are eight Chakras and nine doors. In this city is a golden cocoon covered by a flame, which is called Heaven. A Yaksha resides in this golden cocoon, who only those who are pure living, know. Brahma Himself resides in this wonderful golden city which is full of success and unconquerable.

Thus, from the Vedic viewpoint, human body is a city of Gods, with the eyes and ears and nose each representing a God. So, from the Vedic point of view, this body is not a store of feces and worth throwing away. Man must consider himself fortunate that all Gods have come to reside in his body, and that his own soul lives with them.

Regarding the human body, the Vedic literature also believes that this is a place where a Yajna is performed. One should not consider his body as a means of enjoyment and frolicking; one should also consider it as a sacred place where a Yajna is performed. According to AtharvaVed 10/2/14, Gods have chosen the human body to perform their Yajna.

Thus, saying so, the AtharvaVed accepts that human body is a place for a Yajna. The AtharvaVed say in 11/8/29, that the human bones are the wood (Samidha) for the Yajna, they eight types of blood and other juices are the water used for the Yajna, and the semen is the ghee. The Taitiriya Brahman also describes the human bones as the wood and semen as the ghee. Explaining the importance of mind, it is said in YajurVed 34/4 that with this mantra is performed this ‘Saptahota’ Yajna (Yajna performed by seven persons). This ‘Saptahota’ Yajna is performed by the five sense organs, the mind and the intellect, it is performed in the form of the quest for knowledge and it is performed in the Yajna place which is the human body. The Gopath Brahman describes the Yajna in the human body like this: Man’s body is the place for the Yajna, the mind is the Brahma of this Yajna, Prana is the Udgata, Apana is the Prastota, eyes are the Adhwaryu, Prajapatis are its members, the other organs are the Hotrashansis, and the soul is its host. In a chapter of the Chhandogya Upanishad, this Yajna is described as follows: Human body itself is a Yajna, the first twenty four years of its life are morning prayers, the next forty four years are mid day prayers, the next forty eight years are the third prayers… thus, this a Yajna which lasts one hundred and sixteen years. One who uses his body with this belief can live for one hundred and sixteen years.

This human body is the residing place of Rishis. YajurVed says in 34/55, "Seven Rishis reside in this body. Without doing anything foolish, they guard the body. When the body sleeps, these seven Rishis go to the Atmalok, but there are two Gods who remain awake even then." As described by Nirukta, these seven Rishis are the five sense organs, the mind and the intellect. All of them are ever alert to guard the body. If all of them leave the body, then man cannot see with his eyes, hear with his ears, smell with his nose, feel with his skin, taste with his tongue, think with his mind and analyze with his intellect, and in such a situation, he can be easily killed. Without his sense organs, he won’t even know that someone has come to kill him.

The AtharvaVed describes this human body in a peculiar fashion in 10/8/9: This is a utensil kept upside down, but still works perfectly. Seven Rishis reside inside this utensil, and guard it. A normal utensil won’t work if it is not kept the right side up, as the things put in it are bound to fall out, but this utensil, though kept upside down, still retains all kinds of knowledge put in it. The seven Rishis are the same ones as described above, and guard the it.

The Shatpath Brahman also describes the same Rishis residing in this utensil in 14/4/2, and goes on to say that the two ears are Gautam and Bharadwaj, two nostrils are Vashishtha and Kashyap, two eyes are Vishwamitra and Jamadagni, and the mouth is Atri.

Thus, from the Vedic point of view, we should think of our body as a sacred place for contemplation of the seven Rishis, and we must not soil it in any way.

The human body is also described as a chariot in the Vedic literature. The Kathopanishad describes this as follows: The human body is a chariot, with the soul as its master, the intellect as its driver, the mind being its reins, the organs being the horses, and the sense being the pastures. One who dies not use the driver in the form of intellect and reins in the horses using the reins in the form of his mind, his organs in the form of horses get out of control, just like untamed and bad horses go out of control of the driver. But if one uses his intellect and reins in his mind, his organs always remain in control like good, tamed horses that are always under control of the driver.

Even the Veds use this simile of a chariot for the human body. The RigVed says in 2/18/1 that human body is the chariot of Lord Indra. It has four eras (Yug) and three Kakshas (lashes). It is cleaned and made ready every morning, and driven with good wishes and intellect.

The RigVed, in 10/59/10, says about this chariot of the human body, "O Indra! Drive the bull that pulls the chariot of this body carefully, the bull that sucks the life juice out of Queen Ushi. May the sun and the earth keep curing the flaws in this chariot of yours, so that no diseases will worry you." This Mantra seems to convey the same thing: the body is a chariot in which are riding Lord Indra (the soul) and his queen, Ushi (intellect). The bull in the form of the Prana is pulling the chariot. The soul in the form of Lord Indra is advised that he should drive the bull pulling the chariot carefully, otherwise the bull will let the chariot fall into the pits in the form of diseases. This chariot must be kept in a running condition with the help of sun rays and medicinal plants of the earth, otherwise, the chariot will fall prey to diseases and stop working.

The RigVed addresses man in 10/135/3 like this: "O young man! This new chariot which is without wheels and only one Ishadand (spine) and which runs everywhere with great speed, which you have chosen willfully for yourself, you are riding in it without being aware of anything about it." Thus, this Mantra also describes a human body as a chariot. It is a chariot without wheels and with only one spine. The Mantra says to man, "Dear fellow, you have got such an excellent chariot in the form of a human body, which others don’t get even after performing penances for so many reincarnations, and yet it is very surprising that you are riding in it without knowing anything about it, without even thinking about it. You are riding in it, but you don’t even know where you have to go. What you need to do is, you should fix some high goal in your life, and use this chariot to reach there."

The next Mantra says, "O young man! If you drive this chariot of yours according to the advice of your near and dear ones, only then it will be able to travel at an even pace, and only then it can cross all the rivers in the form of all obstacles in the way, like a chariot put on board a boat."

A question is raised in the same Sukta of the RigVed about the creation of this chariot of the human body: "Who has created this young man, who has constructed his chariot (body), who can tell us today how this is made transferable (from one womb to another)?" The next two Suktas provide an answer to this: "Initially, it gets created from his mother’s womb, and then it becomes transferable (from womb to womb). As soon as it is created, first comes out its head, and then the whole body. This is that chariot of Yam (the soul), which is created by God. See, its pulse is running. It can be controlled with its pulse and veins."

Thus, we can see that our ancient literature considers our body similar to a chariot. Man is advised that just as in a beautifully maintained chariot, he can ride and go to beautiful places, he must maintain all his body clean and healthy and in perfect condition, so that it can be used for a long time. That is the reason why the Veds insist on maintain our body in an excellent condition, healthy and powerful.

In a nutshell, an attempt has been made here to explain what the Veds say about human body, and after getting such a wonderful body, how we should be particular about maintaining it in a perfect condition, and use it for good purposes only.

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 Title : GREATNESS OF A HUMAN BODY DESCRIBED IN THE VEDS Author : Mr S.J.Divakar

Human body is the greatest thing among all living beings in this universe. There is a short story in the Aitareya Upanishad. During the genesis of the Universe, the Almighty first created deities like Fire, Wind, Sun etc. When they appeared, they complained that they had no place to live, where could enjoy their life. So the Almighty gave them the body of a cow. They refused to accept it. Then they were offered a horse’s body, which also they refused. So finally, the Almighty showed them a human body. The deities were overjoyed on seeing it and accepted it immediately, each one chose a place for him and went to live in it. The creators of the Upanishads have showed the importance of human body in a wonderful manner through this story.

It is a fact that the composition and functioning of a human body is really extraordinary. That’s why, the creator of the AtharvaVed, adoring each body part, says in the Kenasukta, "Oh! Who is the great sculptor that made the heel of the human Body, who has filled in the flesh, who has made the shins and the toes with phalanges, and who has made the holes in the organs? Who has created the bottoms of the feet and the supporting portions of the mid parts? With what tools are made the shins and the knees above, joined the thighs? Who made the upper torso with joints of all the four limbs? Who is that master craftsman who has made the tow buttocks covering the joints of the thigh bones? Tell me, who and how many were of those master craftsmen who created man’s chest and neck and breasts, cheeks and the ribs? Who is the great sculptor who made these two arms for doing deeds of bravery? Who has joined the upper body with the two shoulders? Who has created these two ears and the two nose holes, two eyes, the mouth? Who has made these seven holes in the head? Who has placed the tongue between the two jaws, with which it talks? Who is the creator of this head, the forehead, the throat, and the cheeks? Who has fixed the chain of teeth in the jaws? Who has filled this body with blood that is red and comes and goes through the heart and runs above and below and everywhere? Who has given this form to this body, who has given its name and power and greatness and progress and knowledge and character? Who has formed the intersecting Prana and Apana in this body? Who has created the covering of skin over this body, who has formed its life and who has given it power and speed? Who has given it the material with which it can perform reproduction, who has formed the intellect in it, the skill of speech and art of dance?" (AtharvaVed 20/2/1/17).

When one sees the intricately made human body, he expresses the same sense of wonder. With his power of speech, man can convey his thoughts to others, contemplate with his mind, solve complex problems with his intellect. In comparison with other beings, these are the special things about the human body, which is the reason for his superiority.

Human body is a city of Gods. All the Gods of this universe have established themselves in their specific places in it. In the AtharvaVed 11/8, it is said, "All Gods have entered the human body and living here, they are performing a Yajna, using the bones as wood (Samidha), all the juices and blood as water, semen as ghee. All kinds of water, all Gods, the whole universe, even the Brahma Himself is present in this body. The sun is in the body in the form of eyes, the wind is in the soul, fire has the possession of other organs. Wise, learned people consider the human body as a city of Gods. All Gods have come to stay here, just as cows stay in a cow-shed." According to the Aitareya Upsnishad, "Fire resides in the mouth in the form of power of speech, wind resides in the nose in the form of Prana, the sun resides in the eyes in the form of eyesight, all the directions (Disha) reside in the ears in the form of listening power, medicinal plants and herbs reside in the skin in the form of soft hairs, the moon resides in the heart in the form of mind, the death resides in the navel in the form of Apana, water resides in the penis in the form of semen."

As per the AtharvaVed 10/2, 31/33, human body is Ayodhya, the city of Gods, where there are eight Chakras and nine doors. In this city is a golden cocoon covered by a flame, which is called Heaven. A Yaksha resides in this golden cocoon, who only those who are pure living, know. Brahma Himself resides in this wonderful golden city which is full of success and unconquerable.

Thus, from the Vedic viewpoint, human body is a city of Gods, with the eyes and ears and nose each representing a God. So, from the Vedic point of view, this body is not a store of feces and worth throwing away. Man must consider himself fortunate that all Gods have come to reside in his body, and that his own soul lives with them.

Regarding the human body, the Vedic literature also believes that this is a place where a Yajna is performed. One should not consider his body as a means of enjoyment and frolicking; one should also consider it as a sacred place where a Yajna is performed. According to AtharvaVed 10/2/14, Gods have chosen the human body to perform their Yajna.

Thus, saying so, the AtharvaVed accepts that human body is a place for a Yajna. The AtharvaVed say in 11/8/29, that the human bones are the wood (Samidha) for the Yajna, they eight types of blood and other juices are the water used for the Yajna, and the semen is the ghee. The Taitiriya Brahman also describes the human bones as the wood and semen as the ghee. Explaining the importance of mind, it is said in YajurVed 34/4 that with this mantra is performed this ‘Saptahota’ Yajna (Yajna performed by seven persons). This ‘Saptahota’ Yajna is performed by the five sense organs, the mind and the intellect, it is performed in the form of the quest for knowledge and it is performed in the Yajna place which is the human body. The Gopath Brahman describes the Yajna in the human body like this: Man’s body is the place for the Yajna, the mind is the Brahma of this Yajna, Prana is the Udgata, Apana is the Prastota, eyes are the Adhwaryu, Prajapatis are its members, the other organs are the Hotrashansis, and the soul is its host. In a chapter of the Chhandogya Upanishad, this Yajna is described as follows: Human body itself is a Yajna, the first twenty four years of its life are morning prayers, the next forty four years are mid day prayers, the next forty eight years are the third prayers… thus, this a Yajna which lasts one hundred and sixteen years. One who uses his body with this belief can live for one hundred and sixteen years.

This human body is the residing place of Rishis. YajurVed says in 34/55, "Seven Rishis reside in this body. Without doing anything foolish, they guard the body. When the body sleeps, these seven Rishis go to the Atmalok, but there are two Gods who remain awake even then." As described by Nirukta, these seven Rishis are the five sense organs, the mind and the intellect. All of them are ever alert to guard the body. If all of them leave the body, then man cannot see with his eyes, hear with his ears, smell with his nose, feel with his skin, taste with his tongue, think with his mind and analyze with his intellect, and in such a situation, he can be easily killed. Without his sense organs, he won’t even know that someone has come to kill him.

The AtharvaVed describes this human body in a peculiar fashion in 10/8/9: This is a utensil kept upside down, but still works perfectly. Seven Rishis reside inside this utensil, and guard it. A normal utensil won’t work if it is not kept the right side up, as the things put in it are bound to fall out, but this utensil, though kept upside down, still retains all kinds of knowledge put in it. The seven Rishis are the same ones as described above, and guard the it.

The Shatpath Brahman also describes the same Rishis residing in this utensil in 14/4/2, and goes on to say that the two ears are Gautam and Bharadwaj, two nostrils are Vashishtha and Kashyap, two eyes are Vishwamitra and Jamadagni, and the mouth is Atri.

Thus, from the Vedic point of view, we should think of our body as a sacred place for contemplation of the seven Rishis, and we must not soil it in any way.

The human body is also described as a chariot in the Vedic literature. The Kathopanishad describes this as follows: The human body is a chariot, with the soul as its master, the intellect as its driver, the mind being its reins, the organs being the horses, and the sense being the pastures. One who dies not use the driver in the form of intellect and reins in the horses using the reins in the form of his mind, his organs in the form of horses get out of control, just like untamed and bad horses go out of control of the driver. But if one uses his intellect and reins in his mind, his organs always remain in control like good, tamed horses that are always under control of the driver.

Even the Veds use this simile of a chariot for the human body. The RigVed says in 2/18/1 that human body is the chariot of Lord Indra. It has four eras (Yug) and three Kakshas (lashes). It is cleaned and made ready every morning, and driven with good wishes and intellect.

The RigVed, in 10/59/10, says about this chariot of the human body, "O Indra! Drive the bull that pulls the chariot of this body carefully, the bull that sucks the life juice out of Queen Ushi. May the sun and the earth keep curing the flaws in this chariot of yours, so that no diseases will worry you." This Mantra seems to convey the same thing: the body is a chariot in which are riding Lord Indra (the soul) and his queen, Ushi (intellect). The bull in the form of the Prana is pulling the chariot. The soul in the form of Lord Indra is advised that he should drive the bull pulling the chariot carefully, otherwise the bull will let the chariot fall into the pits in the form of diseases. This chariot must be kept in a running condition with the help of sun rays and medicinal plants of the earth, otherwise, the chariot will fall prey to diseases and stop working.

The RigVed addresses man in 10/135/3 like this: "O young man! This new chariot which is without wheels and only one Ishadand (spine) and which runs everywhere with great speed, which you have chosen willfully for yourself, you are riding in it without being aware of anything about it." Thus, this Mantra also describes a human body as a chariot. It is a chariot without wheels and with only one spine. The Mantra says to man, "Dear fellow, you have got such an excellent chariot in the form of a human body, which others don’t get even after performing penances for so many reincarnations, and yet it is very surprising that you are riding in it without knowing anything about it, without even thinking about it. You are riding in it, but you don’t even know where you have to go. What you need to do is, you should fix some high goal in your life, and use this chariot to reach there."

The next Mantra says, "O young man! If you drive this chariot of yours according to the advice of your near and dear ones, only then it will be able to travel at an even pace, and only then it can cross all the rivers in the form of all obstacles in the way, like a chariot put on board a boat."

A question is raised in the same Sukta of the RigVed about the creation of this chariot of the human body: "Who has created this young man, who has constructed his chariot (body), who can tell us today how this is made transferable (from one womb to another)?" The next two Suktas provide an answer to this: "Initially, it gets created from his mother’s womb, and then it becomes transferable (from womb to womb). As soon as it is created, first comes out its head, and then the whole body. This is that chariot of Yam (the soul), which is created by God. See, its pulse is running. It can be controlled with its pulse and veins."

Thus, we can see that our ancient literature considers our body similar to a chariot. Man is advised that just as in a beautifully maintained chariot, he can ride and go to beautiful places, he must maintain all his body clean and healthy and in perfect condition, so that it can be used for a long time. That is the reason why the Veds insist on maintain our body in an excellent condition, healthy and powerful.

In a nutshell, an attempt has been made here to explain what the Veds say about human body, and after getting such a wonderful body, how we should be particular about maintaining it in a perfect condition, and use it for good purposes only.

Tag Names : Athrvaved,Ved
Other articles of this author :
1 THE VEDIC VARNASHRAMI RELIGION AND ITS GREATNESS
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