Wondering who or what Vyas is? With renewed interest in watching the Ramayana and Mahabharata during the lockdown, this seems like a topic to explore. As a writer, what I find inspiring is not just that Sri Ved Vyas is a revered figure in Hinduism but he was the first meticulous and thorough writer, story teller and chronicler of classic, real time story narration!
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Well, I can understand your confusion. You are wondering who is Vyasa? After all, we are no longer tuned in to our grandmother's stories, are we? We grow up on digital devices and play games on iPhones the moment we can crawl out of diapers! Vyas, to many millennials, may sound like a new digital game!
Growing up in Kerala, most Malayalam movies I watched had jokes about getting confused between the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. The confusion seems to be playing out in real life. Many Indians do get confused between the two.
What is Vyasa?
Now while many of us know that Sri Veda Vyasa is the author of the Mahabharata, very few would know that he is also referred to as 'Krishna Dvaipayana' because of his dark complexion.
After having told you this much, please don't search 'What is Vyasa?' on the Internet. Because Vyasa is a person, not an object!
A beautiful aspect of Hindu puranas is that they show the way forward when it comes to what an ideal society should be and how human beings should value diversity.
For instance, when Sri Veda Vyasa is called by his dark skin or Lord Krishna or Lord Shiva are lovingly called in praise of their dark skin tones, the idea is to appreciate diversity and not denigrate.
When we see an image of Lord Hanuman, we look up with devotion and reverence.
That sense of reverence to everything and everyone irrespective of looks, dear friends, is what our Puranas wanted us to emulate.
Is Vyasa a Brahmin?
Funny question! Personally, I hate having to answer caste related questions. We need to get rid of this whole attitude of defining others based on their caste!
Born to sage Parasaran and Satyavati (daughter of a fisherman), Vyasa is known to have been born out of wedlock. While caste does not matter in the context of spirituality and religion, my understanding is that Vyasa demonstrated his wisdom to the world and proved to be a worthy son of both Maharshi Parasaran and Sathyavati. Now if you still want to figure out caste, file and RTI to find out!
Wait, just kidding and don't be offended!
Where is Vyasa now?
The Vedic scriptures do not mention death for this great sage. It is believed that his abode is in the highest and most secretive places in the upper Himalayas.
What does Vyasa mean?
Notably, a deeper understanding of Vedic scriptures shows that Vyasa means 'The Arranger'. The first Vyasa, whom we are all familiar with, significantly arranged the floating Vedic scriptures into a discipline of 'Samhitas'. Thereafter, it is known that there is a Vyasa in every Dvapara Yuga to make significant compilations of the Vedic texts and 'arrange' it correctly.
The Skanda Puranas explain that there have been 28 Vyasas although the Puranas have different numbers on the same, with few citing less than 28 and few citing more than 28.
If you can spare an hour away from your iPhone and from Facebook/Twitter/Instagram, do read the Skanda Puranas.
I have started studying it and find myself totally hooked to every chapter!
Use time to share these stories and what you understood with your family, especially children because they seem more addicted to digital devices than all of us!
If there is any interesting personality from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata you want to explore, drop a line here and I would love to know!
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