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“Spiritual hunger is common to all; but tastes differ.
There are different forms of God to suit all tastes.”
Swami Yogaswarupananda, of the Divine Life Society,
a Vedanta-based foundation in Rishikesh,

Veda-Vyasa, the protector of the Vedas
Part I

Gyan Rajhans P. Eng.
BHAJANAWALI RADIO PROGRAM

July 21 is the full moon day of Ashadh, the fourth month of Hindu year 2062 (Vikram Samvat). It is also known as Vyasa Purnima because it is the birth anniversary of Sage Vyasa. It is to him we owe the Vedas, codified and handed down to us. Had he not reproduced the Vedas about 5000 years ago, we would have lost the teachings of the four Vedas which were revealed by Brahman to a few Rishis in the very beginning. The Hindus therefore refer to him as Veda-Vyasa and consider him to be the supreme Guru and celebrate his birth anniversary as Guru Poornima. In this article (Part 1) I will give you his biography and literary creation. Part II to be published in July issue will provide the glimpses of the Guru’s glory.

Biography of Veda-Vyasa

Veda-Vyasa, the son of Rishi Parashar and Satyavati, is also known as Krishna Dwaipayna, because he was dark complexioned and was born on an island or dwipa. He took his birth at the end of Dvapara Yuga, the time of King Shantanu, the grandfather of Pandavas. To him is also attributed the fact that he continued the line of his mother and that Dhritarashtra, Pandu and Vidura were his progeny.

At a very tender age Vyasa gave out to his parents the secret of his life that he should go to the forest and do penance. His mother at first did not agree, but later gave permission on one important condition that he should appear before her whenever she wished for his presence Vyasa took initiation at the hands of his twenty-first Guru, sage Vasudeva. He studied the Shastras under sages Sanaka and Sanandana and others.

He was also called Vadrayan because he lived for some time in the jungles of vadari (jungle of berries) in the Himalayas near Badrikashram. All of his names are famous in the scriptures but Bhagwan Veda-Vyasa is commonly used for him because he is considered to be one of the twenty-four incarnations of Lord Vishnu. In a prayer to Vyasa the Hindus often recite:

Vyasay vishnuroopaya vyasroopay vishnave,

Namo vai brhamanidhaye vaasishthaay namo Namah.

The above prayer can roughly be translated as:

Hail Thee, Vyasa, again and again,

Thou, Vishnu in human frame,

Thou, scion of Vasistha’s ancient race,

It is from Thee that all knowledge springs.

According to Swami Shivananda, “Vyasa is considered by all Hindus as a Chiranjivi, one who is still living and roaming throughout the world for the well-being of his devotees. It is said that he appears to the true and the faithful and that Jagadguru Sankaracharya had his Darshan in the house of sage Mandana Misra and that he appeared to many others as well. Thus, in short, Vyasa lives for the welfare of the world. Let us pray for his blessings on us all and on the whole world.”

Lord Krishna while disclosing His Godhood to Arjuna, singled out Vyasa from all his contemporaries by declaring,, “Among the sages, Vyasa is Me.”

His other literary creations

In addition to compiling the four Vedas as mentioned earlier Vyasa wrote the Brahma Sutras. These Sutras (clues for memory) tell you the real nature of Brahman. The oldest commentary on the Brahma Sutras is by Adi Shankaracharya (see May, 2005 issue). He also wrote the fifth Veda, the Mahabharata, the largest Hindu epic. The Hindu Bible, Shri Mad Bhagwad Gita is a small part of the Mahabharata.

According to a legend, Mahabharata was such a huge book that it needed a Divine mind to write it correctly while Vyasa dictated it. Lord Ganesha was that Divine mind. Vyasa also wrote 17 puranas (traditional stories of gods and goddesses) and 18 up-purnas. He also reproduced Ramayana which was originally written by Sage Valmiki during the incarnation period of Lord Rama. Vyasa’s last work was the Bhagavatam which he undertook at the instigation of Devarishi Narada who once came to him and advised him to write it as, without it, his goal in life would not be reached. What was that goal? It was selflessly surrendering to the supreme God with faith and devotion.

To be continued in July issue

Gyan Rajhans, an internationally recognized heath & safety professional has been broadcasting the only non-commercial Vedic religion radio program in North America since 1981 & worldwide web cast on www.bhajanawali.com since 1999. Mr. Rajhans has published extensively on religious and spiritual matters. Some articles are available on the Bhajanawali web site. He has translated Sri Mad Bhagvad Gita in English for the younger generation. Mr Rajhans has been conferred various titles, including that of Rishi by Hindu Prarthana Samaj of Toronto Hindu Ratna by Hindu Federation of Toronto.

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