Association of Vedic Sciences (AVS)

Veda means knowledge in Sanskrit, and the ancient Vedic tradition associated with India is firstly about knowledge. It is not about any kind of knowledge, but it is particularly about knowledge as a means of understanding and experiencing reality. Therefore it is a tradition that does not tie itself down to any particular system. Instead it has an open and inclusive view, which also regards a rational approach as essential. However it does not limit itself to rationality alone, but it also considers an approach based around inner perception, as this forms an important part of our understanding and experience of reality.

 

‘A Vedic Life’ is a presentation of some of the important features of the open Vedic approach to knowledge, and so it is hoped that it will be able to offer something to a variety of viewpoints. Though the Vedic approach to knowledge is not restricted to any particular person or book, it is closely associated with the Vedas (books of knowledge) as they represent its open and inclusive approach. This nature of the Vedic texts is reflected in the following verse from the Rig Veda, a primary Vedic text, ‘reality is one, but the wise call it by many namesⁱ’.

 

The Vedic tradition is not unique in its open approach to knowledge, but it is perhaps the deepest and oldest such system. It is also the best preserved, though much of its knowledge has been lost today. Obviously the system of modern science also aspires to the same goals, however it does not really recognise thinking other than that which is based on rationality and sensory data despite many of its pioneering thinkers having a significantly different view. This book will look at the strengths and weaknesses of the approach presently adopted by modern science, especially in comparison to the Vedic approach to science.

 

As Sanskrit is the main language of the Vedic tradition, much of the terminology used in the book is in Sanskrit. This is not for any ritualistic reason, but because the Vedic language Sanskrit has a highly developed vocabulary in connection to psychology and philosophy. Additionally, an attempt will be made to demonstrate that Sanskrit is a natural language for the purposes of knowledge.

 

The book will mainly adopt the perspective of a rational presentation as opposed to other types of approaches (however it will examine some of these too) to demonstrate the rationality of the Vedic tradition, and also because this is particularly suitable to modern thinking. The Vedic approach is thus not only ancient, but also modern and futuristic. This is especially so when we consider the systems of knowledge it uses, and its perspective on science as an art, and art as a science. We shall see that it is a natural system much like rationality itself, and in this regard it gives nature and a natural approach primacy. Thus it is able to draw on nature’s vast and infinite qualities, in contrast to an approach that places humans first. The importance and necessity of this will be one of the main ideas put forward.

 

The first part of the book relates more to the universal factors of philosophy and cosmology. It forms the basis of the second part, which is an application of the first part at the level of the individual. The first part is like a commentary on the Vedic system of philosophy as presented in the Upanishads, the philosophical section of the Vedas. Though it is abstract at times, it is important as a foundation for the more practical second part, which includes areas such as science, art, medicine and self-investigation. The Vedic tradition is eventually about practical knowledge, or being one with knowledge, rather than just intellectualism. As such the two parts of the book must overlap due to the natural identity of the universal with the individual. It is a state of completeness, contentment and happiness, which is ultimately the goal of knowledge.

 

Finally, like a good astrologer, we can all see into the past and predict the future, especially the most important parts: we were not, and we will be not. Relatively speaking the rest, our finite lives, should be trivial detail. However the consequences of the rest are obviously extremely important from our perspective, and we shall attempt to examine some of these. Such an examination is particularly relevant now as there appears to be a general increase in outer activity in our lives, with a corresponding decline in our concentration skills. Similarly, there also appears to be an increase in depression accompanied by an increase in our consumption levels. The book aims to return to our fundamental and natural strengths in order to try and overcome these trends.