Introduction

original: "Upodghātaḥ"

In this world, all living beings desire only happiness. For that very reason, they engage and excel in the methods of securing their own food and recreation. Although activities such as eating and recreation are common to all creatures, human beings—who are distinct from other animals due to their faculty of discernment original: "viveka" and who consider material objects to be illusory—desire only that unsurpassed, supreme happiness. This desire is expressed as: "May happiness be mine; may suffering never befall me." This is synonymous with natural will. It is a universal truth that all activities arise for this purpose, and toward this end, everyone strives.

Furthermore, when the inquiry arises as to how that unsurpassed happiness is achieved, the established solution is: only through the knowledge and practice of the meaning of the Vedas. The Veda is indeed our greatest wealth. The Veda has been defined by the Commentators referring to traditional scholars like Sāyaṇa or Śaṅkara as "a collection of words not of human origin" original: "apauruṣeyaṃ vākyam" and "that which makes known the supernatural means of attaining the desired and avoiding the undesired." Based on the etymology "that by which the goals of human life Puruṣārthas: the four aims of life—Duty, Wealth, Pleasure, and Liberation such as Righteousness are known and obtained," it is certain that without Vedic knowledge, Righteousness and the other goals cannot be realized. If Righteousness, Wealth, and Pleasure are not realized, then the fourth goal—Liberation original: "Mokṣa", which is the nature of unsurpassed happiness—will certainly not be realized either. Therefore, those who solely desire to attain unsurpassed happiness must properly practice Righteousness, Wealth, and Pleasure.

The Limbs of the Veda

original: "Vedāṅgāni"

Now, out of a desire to lift everyone across the ocean of this delusive worldly existence, the most compassionate Great Sages revealed and composed the "Limbs of the Veda" the six auxiliary sciences: phonetics, ritual, grammar, etymology, meter, and astronomy and the Philosophical Systems original: "Darśanas" to facilitate the understanding of the Veda's meaning; this is indeed the great fortune of the people. Understanding the meaning of the Veda is not possible without knowledge of the Limbs of the Veda. This being the case, it is no exaggeration to say that knowledge of these Limbs is mandatory. Therefore, for the performance of rituals, the Limbs of the Veda must also be understood.

The supreme and ultimate goal of the Veda, its Limbs, and the Philosophical Systems is Liberation alone. There is no dispute that nothing is achieved without the performance of action original: "karma". The steps toward that goal are as follows: from the performance of action comes the destruction of sins; from the destruction of sins comes the dawn of the knowledge of reality; from the knowledge of reality comes the destruction of false knowledge; from the destruction of false knowledge comes the destruction of attachment and aversion; from the destruction of attachment comes the destruction of delusion; and from the destruction of delusion comes Liberation. Thus it is said: "One destroys sins only by performing the obligatory and occasional rituals." Therefore, the performance of obligatory and occasional rituals is an absolute necessity. For that purpose, [the study] of the Limbs of the Veda...