Animal rights In Ancient India

The Vedic Laws of Ancient India prohibited cruelty towards animals and decreed that all life was sacred. The humane treatment of animals was and is an integral part of our glorious culture. The following well- known story from the annals of Indian history is one such example that upheld the rights of even animals.
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The young Chola prince sped through the royal streets in his new chariot pulled by the best thoroughbred horses. The people gathered along the streets to watch the young prince drive the chariot skillfully. They cheered and clapped as the prince handled the corners adeptly and never lost control of the chariot or the horses even when driving at a very high speed. As he turned a corner, a young calf suddenly sprinted across the street. The prince pulled at the reins and tried to bring the chariot to a complete stop but, alas, the calf was trampled by the horses and the chariot wheels ran over the baby calf which was crushed by the weight. All this happened in just a fraction of a second and in front of the watchful eyes of the mother cow which stood helplessly as it watched its child die!
 


The grieving cow ran towards the Bell of Justice and tugged at the bell-rope with its teeth. The bell rang loud and clear signalling the need for justice. The Chola King heard the call for justice and rushed towards the Bell of Justice. ‘Who is calling for justice,’ he wondered as he ran towards the Bell Tower followed by his ministers. He stopped dead in his track when he saw that a cow was ringing the bell. He proceeded towards the cow and stroked its back. ‘Are you seeking justice?’ he asked it and was saddened to see tears flowing from its eyes. The cow led the King to the place where its calf had been hit by the chariot. The King’s heart missed a beat when he saw the baby calf lying under the chariot wheels. ‘Who would do such a gruesome deed!’ he cried.



‘It was me, father,’ cried a meek voice.
The King was shocked to see his son standing next to the chariot. ‘I was driving this chariot when this baby calf suddenly rushed across the street. I tried very hard to stop the chariot but, …it was too late!’ cried the prince.



‘At what speed were you driving the chariot ?’ asked the King. ‘Didn’t you know that the streets are not meant for racing or that driving the chariot is a privilege not your right? You were granted permission to drive after an evaluation of your skills and after you had agreed to follow the rules. It was your duty to drive safely on the streets. Your reckless behaviour has resulted in the death of this calf. The mother cow has called for justice. When I was crowned as the king, I took an oath to protect all creatures and vowed to obey the Laws of Manu. The law is very clear on negligent manslaughter. I condemn you to death,’ cried the king.
 


The onlookers cried when they heard their king condemn his only child to death.
‘It is the king’s duty to uphold dharma. Sinners must be punished by the king according to the severity of the crime. If they are not adequately punished, then, the sinners are forced to endure many severe punishments in hell. You have taken a life. The shastras state that all jeevatmas are equal to one another and the differences we see is because of the bodies they have taken at birth. The body is like a dress worn by the jeevatma. Hence, whether it’s a cow, a dog or a human being, all are equal to one another and we must not discriminate based on their appearance. I thereby, condemn you to death and you too must feel the pain the baby calf felt when it was trampled by the horses and when the chariot wheels ran over its tiny body. I also am condemned to endure the pain felt by this mother cow. Your death will be my punishment. I myself will drive the chariot over you.’



Today in many countries capital sentence is banned and often violent offenders are released after just a few years in prison. This may seem like a humane law but, in reality by releasing such violent offenders back into the society the governments are endangering the lives of the innocent people. This is a classic case of hinsa in ahimsa – i.e injury to the innocent resulting from seemingly non-violent approach.
 


Legend has it that the moment the King drove the chariot over his only son, both the calf and the son came back to life. As the king hadn’t strayed from justice even when he was hearing the case against his son, he was proclaimed as “Manu Neethi Cholan.” The readers may find the justice practised by the Chola King hard to digest especially since in this day and age one cannot expect such fairness even among fellow human beings.

 The Cholas are descendants of the Solar Dynasty and were the upholders of Vedic Dharma in Southern India as noted by the above history in which the King strictly followed Manu Smriti. Manu Neethi Cholan was the Chola king Ellalan who ruled from 205 BCE to 161 BCE. He is proclaimed as a just and benevolent ruler a  statement which is acknowledged even by the Sinhalese. The Mahavamsa composed by the Sinhalese praises him for treating both friends and foes with fairness.

 

 

Scientific Theories In Atharvana Veda

The Atharvana Vedic verses also instructs to spin water in turbines to extract electricity.



வித்யுதஸி பாப்மாநம்  யத் வித்யுத:
தீர்த்தே பூமம் அக்ஷி சூர்யோ  சந்திரமா:
நக்ஷத்ரே இதஸ்தத:

The above verse predicts the generation of electricity from natural resources.


The Atharvana Veda informs us of electricity present inside Earth, Moon, Sun and the stars.

We can see the practical use of the concepts mentioned in the Atharvana Veda in the Kali Yuga We extract energy from the Sun rays by using solar cells. We build hydroelectric plants to extract the energy contained in water and we use coal power plants to generate electricity from coal mined from the Earth.

We memorise the Chemical formula of water as H₂O; i.e a water molecule is made of hydrogen and oxygen gas. It has two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen. The Atharvana Veda gives the chemical formula of water as “pranan ekam anyath dwe” (பிராணம் ஏகம் அந்யத்வெ ) ; i.e per Atharvana Veda, water is made of prana vayu one part (oxygen)and two parts of another gas (hydrogen).



The Atharvana Vedic verses also provide instructions on weaponry and also in health sciences. Three chapters in the Atharvana Veda provide instructions on atomic energy. 

A verse in the Atharvana Veda predicts atomic warfare and the destruction of this world by the release of atomic energy. It states that there are subatomic particles which continuously orbit around the nucleus. Each particle revolves around the nucleus but, if they change direction and collide with each other, a large amount of destructive atomic energy is released. Scientists have recently discovered two tiny subatomic particles called as bottom quarks which could fuse together in theory to produce a powerful explosion so strong that it would equal the energy released by crores of hydrogen bombs!


The Atharvana Vedic verse state that like the subatomic particles, we must stay focused on our swadharma but, when we refuse to follow our swadharma and interfere with the swadharma of others, Vedic Dharma is destroyed and this destruction is more catastrophic than the atomic energy released by the collision of sub-atomic particles. The Vedic Verse is given below.


அணவ: தத் தடவ: தத் அந்தர் பூத பரம  அணவ:
பாம்யந்தி தத்ரைவா நாந்யத் பச்யதி
அந்யத் பச்யதி நேதரா கச்சதி



We are asked to meditate upon Angiras Maharishi to be freed from various doshams because of the powers attained by Angiras Maharishi by performing many types of Yagam. There is a particular yagnam called as Sayana Yagnam which was performed by Angiras Maharishi. The yagnam kundam for the Sayana Homam should be built by mixing earth with the dirt obtained from the surface of the moon. Vedam says “சந்த்ரமஸி  கிருஷ்ணம்”, i.e the soil present on the surface of the moon is dark in colour. Sample of the Lunar Dust is exhibited in many places like the Birla Planetarium and to our surprise, it is grey (Krishnam) in colour!
 
Today, if we want Lunar Dust to perform the Sayana Yagam, we have to fly in a rocket all the way to the Moon after burning a   hole in the Earth’s ozone layer. We do not have the power to obtain Lunar Dust instantly but, with the power of Vedic manthras, the ancient sages closed their eyes and chanted a manthram asking for the Lunar Dust to appear before them and it immediately appeared for their use! This is the main difference between the mechanised , scientific power and the power of the Vedic Manthrams! Atharvana Vedam itself differentiates between the two powers. It says that Vedic manthram is limitless (மந்த்ரம் அபரிமிதம் (வரையறையற்றது)) while yanthram , i.e mechananised power relying on scientific theories is limited (யந்த்ரம் பரிமிதம் (வரையறைக்குட்பட்டது ))

There is nothing which is not mentioned in the Vedas. All the inventions and discoveries are already explained in the Vedic verses!

 
 
 

Agni In Water

The Vedic verses speak about Badaba Agni in the ocean. Badaba refers to a mare, a female horse in Sanskrit. The verses state that there is a fire in the middle of the ocean called Badaba Agni which absorbs the excess water entering the ocean and prevents the water from breaching its shores. This Badaba Agni is also the fire which will destroy everything during pralaya.

Interestingly, NASA has detected many thermal anomalies that appear to be fires in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. We have also heard of the horse-shoe shaped ring of fire in the Pacific responsible for producing earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.  

The ocean currents are generated by a factor called thermohaline circulation driven by surface heat and density gradients. Agni represents energy. It is clear that there is energy contained in the oceans responsible for generating ocean currents and other thermal anomalies noted by NASA. The Pacific Ring of Fire also often spews fire into the ocean. A greater number of the volcanoes which are active on Earth are hidden from our view as they are located on the ocean floor. Isn’t it amazing that the Vedic Verses mention about the Badaba Agni in the ocean is also the fire that will destroy our world during Pralaya! The destructive fire which will occur during pralaya is probably the multiple volcanic eruptions triggered by sub-sea volcanoes which would have a catastrophic impact on our planet.

Another interpretation of Agni hidden in water is the latent heat. Latent heat means hidden heat. We know that all matter whether liquid, solids or gases are made of molecules which are in turn made of atoms. When heat is added to a substance, the atoms vibrate and the space between the atoms increases. This increase in space between the atoms alters the state of the substance; i.e, a solid is turned into liquid and a liquid into vapour. Likewise, when the heat is removed from a substance, the space between the atoms decreases and the substance changes into a liquid or a solid.

This hidden energy , latent heat which is found in fluids is the agni. There is agni in water. When we add more agni to the water, it turns into steam and when we remove agni present in water, it tuns into ice. 

Latent heat can be understood as heat energy in a hidden form which is supplied or extracted to change the state of a substance without changing its temperature. The latent heat assosiated with freezing a liquid is known as the heat of fusion. When water transforms into ice, the heat energy which was hidden in water is released. When 1 mol of water at 0°C freezes to ice at 0°C, 6.01 kJ of heat is released into the surroundings and when the same amount of ice transforms to water, 6.01 kJ of heat energy is absorbed by water. See how beautifully Atharvana Veda explains the concept of latent heat, the heat energy hidden in the water!

 

Ghosts Who Listened To The Ramayana

King Virupaksha II (1465–1485 CE) belonged to the Sangama Dynasty of the Vijayanagar Empire. By the time he came to power, there were a number of claimants to the throne. Many of his cousins, formed a coup against him and the king was forced to abandon his throne. Later, Virupaksha gathered his followers who were loyal to him and entered the palace in the dead of the night and killed those who had risen against him while they were sleeping.  He assumed power once again as the King of Vijayanagar Empire but unfortunately, he was still not free from his cousins who had plotted against him. As he had killed them in their sleep, his cousins became ghosts and started to haunt his palace. Forced to endure a ghostly existence by the King, they became poltergeists and started to trouble the King. The King once again abandoned his palace and moved to a newly constructed palace in the city. The apparitions continued to haunt the palace and the neighbourhood around the old palace. 

In the meantime, there were two Sri Vaishnavite Acharyas Ettoor Nrisimhachar and Sriranganathachar who were brothers belonging to the lineage of Sri Peria Thirumalai Nambhi, the maternal uncle of Swami Ramanujacharya. The two acharyas decided to move to Vijayanagar to seek the support of King Virupaksha II for various kaimkaryams. As they were not from Vijayanagar, they didn’t know that the King had moved into a new palace or that the old palace was haunted.  The two acharyas arrived at the gates of the old palace at dusk with a Srimad Ramayana Grantham. The Brahmma Tejas radiating from them forced the ghostly guardians of the palace to allow them into the palace. Unaware of the hidden dangers, the two acharyas walked down the deserted pathway leading up to the main entrance. The setting sun cast long shadows along the pathway while the lamps lighted by the ghostly presence in the palace cast an eerie glow that only enhanced the dark shadows.  The two Acharyas entered the Royal Court and were greeted by the King of the Ghosts and his ghostly courtiers. Normally the apparitions would have harmed anyone who came into the palace but, the Brahmma Tejas emanating from the Acharyas due to the crores of Thirumanthram and Dwaya Manthram they had recited made the phantoms pay obeisance to the Acharyas.

‘You appear to be holy people,’ said the Ghost King. ‘Who are you and why did you come here?’

‘We take roots from  Sri Satamarshana Maharishi in Krutha Yuga and belong to the glorious lineage of Sri Peria Thirumalai Nambhi the maternal uncle of Swami Ramanujacharya. You may have heard that moved by the devotion of our ancestor Sri Peria Thirumalai Nambhi, Lord Srinivasa of the Seven Hills addressed him as “Tatha” i.e father. Swami Ramanujacharya learnt Srimad Ramayana from Sri Peria Thirumalai Nambhi. We have come here with the sacred Grantham and would like permission to lecture your court on this sacred Grantham as taught to Swami Ramanujacharya by Sri Peria Thirumalai Nambhi.’

The ghosts were moved by the speech of the acharyas. The contact with the acharyas made them realise that they have been given a unique opportunity to study this sacred Grantham. 

‘We welcome you to our abode,’ said the Ghost King. ‘You may lecture us on Srimad Ramayana but, must do so only in the evening as we are tied up with many chores during the day.’

And so, every day in the evening the two acharyas visited the Ghostly Court and rendered kalakshepam on Srimad Ramayana. 
The phantoms listened eagerly and their enthusiasm increased with the passing of each day. They looked forward to the arrival of the two acharyas each day and they slowly developed “Rama Bakthi”. The gloomy shadow surrounding the haunted palace was slowly displaced by the light generated by “Rama bakthi”. After many days of kalakshepam, the day of “Rama Pattabhishekam” came.  The acharyas had requested the ghostly court to prepare special offerings to celebrate Sri Rama Pattabhishekam. The moment the acharyas concluded Sri Rama Pattabhishekam, the ghosts led by their king paid obeisance to the acharyas and showered them with gold coins. 

‘We feel truly blessed to have studied Srimad Ramayana under your guidance. Now, it is time for us to be honest with you. I am not King Virupaksha II,’ revealed the King of Ghosts. ‘You mistook us for the living. We are all ghosts forced to endure this ghostly existence because King Virupaksha murdered us while we were sleeping. We felt angry because we had been cursed to exist as ghosts. We became poltergeist and haunted this palace and its neighbourhood until you arrived here. Because of your blessings and because we listened to Srimad Ramayanam, the curse has been lifted and we are finally on our way to heaven. We are leaving for heavenly abodes now and will not be seen in this palace anymore. We have been freed from our curse because of your grace and hence, we are forever indebted to you!’

The phantoms after paying their obeisance left the palace and were freed from their ghostly existence. News of this incredible event reached the ears of King Virupaksha II who rushed to the old palace to greet the two acharyas.  King Virupaksha II was a Veera Saivaite who like Kulathonga Chola had been hard on all Vaishnavas. King Virupaksha II had promised to give his daughter Padmavati in marriage to King Purushottama Dasa of Orissa but had changed his mind when he learnt that King Purushottama Dasa swept the chariot of Lord Jagannatha during the famous Rath Yatra. Now, King Virupaksha II who had hated Vaishnavites realised the greatness of Lord Rama and requested to be accepted into the Sri Vaishnavite fold.

Such is the power of Srimad Ramayana which destroys the sins of those who read/listen to this sacred Grantham with devotion. The ghosts were indeed blessed that they had obtained the opportunity to study this sacred Grantham under the guidance of prominent acharyas belonging to the lineage of Sri Peria Thirumalai Nambhi! Acharyas from this great lineage adorned the court of later Vijayanagar Kings and they were popularly called as Tathachars. The empire flourished under the guidance of these devoted acharyas. It is very sad to see that in the Sab TV show Tenali Rama, the conniving and greedy Raja Guru is named as Tathachar. This show is a brilliant production which promotes one’s love for this great empire and the greatest of monarchs, Sri Krishnadeva Raya but,  the only regret is that they have named the scheming and greedy Raja Guru as Tathachar. There is actually no need to name the Raja Guru. The Kotwal and his wife have no names on the show and are addressed by their title as Kotwal and Kotwalan. The producers should have followed the same rule and should have addressed Raja Guru by his title and not as “Tathachar”. In fact, the main Raja Guru of King Krishnadevaraya was the great saint Vyasatirtha (c. 1460–c. 1539) belonging to the order of Sri Madhwacharya. The stories of Tenali Rama were popularised as the persistent feud between Tenali Rama and the Raja Guru but, in reality, it must have been a competition between Tenali Rama and some other poet/courtier as the real Raja Guru Sri Vyasatirtha was not capable of such jealous acts. Sri Vyasatirtha was a great acharya and a great devotee of Lord Krishna who was also politically responsible for the development of irrigation systems in many villages.

The famous Tathachar of Vijayanagar Empire was Lakshmi Kumara Thathachariar or Sri Lakshmi Kumara Thatha Desikan ((1571–1643). As seen above, Sri Lakshmi Kumara Thathachariar of Sri Satamarshana Gothram hailed from the holy lineage of Sri Peria Thirumalai Nambhi. This famous acharya also traces his origin from the most celebrated Sri Vaishnava Acharya Sri Swami Vedanta Desikan. He advised Venkatapathi Raya. His father/grandfather probably advised King Krishnadeva Raya who reigned from 1509 to 1529, Sri Achyuta Deva Raya who reigned from 1529–1542 CE and Sri Aliya Rama Raya who reigned from 1542. 

Sri Lakshmi Kumara Thathachariar held the twin post of Raja Guru and Chief Minister of the State. He travelled all over India for the sole purpose of teaching people who belonged to various cadres of society. He has been praised by other great philosophers like Sri Appaya Dikshitar.
Sri Tatha Desikan was a great devotee of Lord Rama. Once, he was travelling with the wealth he had received as a prize from various kings. He was taking his winnings to offer to Lord Varadaraja Perumal of Kanchipuram. He arrived at the outskirts of Kanchi at night and decided to rest with his disciples till daybreak. Unknown to them, a band of robbers who had been following them started to rob them while they slept but, a group of monkeys arrived at the spot and chased the robbers away! They not only chased them but guarded the treasure till daybreak! Thus, the wealth which was meant as offering to Sri Varadaraja Perumal was saved from plunder.  While the monkeys were chasing the robbers, Sri Tatha Desikan had the darshan of Lord Hanuman in his dream who showed him the entire happenings!  Sri Tatha Desikan on waking up found the unconscious robbers and the monkeys who were guarding the treasure! Overwhelmed with joy and devotion, Sri Tatha Desikan used a portion of the funds to construct a temple for Lord Rama, Sita Piratti, Lord Lakshmana and Lord Hanuman. The Lakshmi Saras at Kumbakkonam was built by him for Goddess Komalavalli and this lake is now popularly called as Tatha Samudram.  Sri Krishnadeva Raya made him the "Manager-General" known as "Sri Karya Thurantharar" of all the Divya Desam Temples existing in their Empire.  

This devoted Acharya was also a humanitarian who established many feeding halls were the poor were fed regularly for free. He also established the so-called "Desanthri Kattalai" the "Order to serve Travelers" in various Temples to feed the devotees visiting those temples daily. He was also awarded the Honorary Title "Koti Kannikadhana" because he literally sponsored the wedding of a koti needy couple. 

There is a six feet idol of Sri Lakshmi Kumara Thathachariar along with His consort Sri Kamala Ammangar paying obeisance to Sri Swami Vedanta Desikan in the temple of Sri Varadaraja Perumal in Kanchipuram. It is still customary for Sri Varadaraja Perumal to offer respects to these acharyas by giving satari, teertham and sacred garland before proceeding on processions.

Such is the greatness of this acharya that it is very sad to see his name being sullied in the Tenali Rama TV show. As ardent followers of Swami Ramanuja and Sri Swami Vedanta Desikan, it is our duty to bring the greatness of this acharya to light.  Sri Lakshmi Kumara Thathachariar is considered to be an incarnation who was nursed by Goddess Komalavalli and was the recipient of the kataksham of Peria Piratti who always protected him. It is my humble request to all Sri Vaishnavas to spread the greatness of Sri Lakshmi Kumara Thathachariar, known as  Acharya Mahanubhavan so that people do not think ill of him due to the portrayal of the fictitious Tathachar in Tenali Rama TV Serial.

[ Ref for the Ghost Story: Prapannamrtap of Anantarya , Sources of Vijayanagar History]

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