09

Values occupy an important place in the life of an individual. They play a vital role in the development of man’s personality and society of which he is an indivisible part. Since time immemorial the level of finesse of one’s life could be measured by values he possessed. Accepting the significance of values in life, Mahatma Gandhi, a man of the era, went to the extent of saying that it is values that make one’s destiny. The importance of values in life has always been accepted all over the world. Values are indeed significant universally. How? A question can naturally emerge in one’s mind. In this regard, it is imperative to get familiar with the meaning of Value, which is the singular form of the word Values, to get a cogent answer.

Value, Mulya in Indian terms, is the basic force that gets one to realize the worth of constructiveness in his life; value as a tenet guides a human being to indulge in righteous acts, which accord him a lasting identity and makes his life worthy and exemplary. Further, when value becomes the guiding force of life in a community, virtuous acts become part and parcel of community in the same measure; it paves the way for large-scale welfare of humankind.

Thus, along with making one’s life sublime, values tune up mankind for large scale welfare of life on the planet Earth. Undoubtedly, the basic spirit in the root of values is the good for one and all. It is due to this reality that values have played a significant role in the development of human beings, individually-collectively. They are vital for the making of a society, the nation and contribute immensely in the conduction of the systems that work up to the universal level. The worth and timeless importance of values, hence, is self-evident. The Indian perception of values can be well assessed from the Vedic-Hindu viewpoint, which has for thousands of years been the prime basis of life and practices of billions of Indians and others in the world. It has also deeply impacted all socio-religious philosophies the world over.

The Vedas are the most venerable of the holy texts –the fountainhead of Hindu knowledge and belief system. Other Hindu scriptures/texts are based on the authority of the Vedas only. They are the founding resource of all sanctions and standards of all universal truths. In the Vedas the Satya –Truth, emerges as the first and the foremost of all values. God Himself is the basic source of Truth, which can be well comprehended from the following Mantra (1:164:46) of the Rigveda, the First of the Vedas, “Ekam Sadvipraa Bahudhaa Vadanti –Truth is one, and the wise describe it in many ways”, or “Truth is one, and there are many paths to reach it.” Embracing Truth while having Ishwara as the nucleus in all human behaviours, is the pathway to the welfare of all, and to make life meaningful and worthy.

Here one can question that aside from the Vedas or the Vedic treatises, the scriptures of other than Hindu faiths also accept Truth as the first and the foremost of all values. Jainism and Buddhism, the two other chief philosophies of Indian origin, despite having different opinions regarding God, or accepting Him as the Supreme Authority, recognize Truth as the supreme or the leading value. If life is to be made meaningful and if there is a wish of large -scale welfare, according to the tenets of Jainism and Buddhism also, it is possible by following Truth. In such a situation, why are the Vedas considered primordially authoritative? Why is the Vedic approach deemed most important in this regard? Or, in the context of values, why is Indian perception chiefly based on the Vedic-Hindu viewpoint? In answer, some important facts need to be placed in the right perspective. First, the Vedas are the most ancient treatises of the world. The Rigveda is even accepted as the oldest scripture at international level. It is recognized as such by UNESCO itself. Therefore, Truth, the fundamental and foremost value, nucleus of discussion in hand, appeared first of all, there. Later on, it profoundly impacted all socio-religious-cultural philosophies of the world, especially those that emerged in the Bharatiya landscape.

Secondly, along with God as the Supreme Authority and the basic source of Truth, the great value of Ahimsa and the principle of the eternal Law of Change also appear in the opening Mantras of the Rigveda (the First Sukta). Ahimsa and the Law of Change are, as we know, the core values of two great Indian philosophies, Jainism and Buddhism respectively. Undoubtedly, it is an undeniable influence of the Vedas on both.        

Thirdly, it is the Vedic-Hindu view, which acknowledges values to be universal in nature. Unlike other schools of thoughts, which believe that religion is the source of values, the Vedic viewpoint categorically reveals that they are available to every human being through common sense, independent of religion. Each and every individual can realize and follow values in practices. For this, her or his association with any particular tradition, a religious-community or a faith is not necessary. This viewpoint too left its deep and all-timely impression on other philosophies of Indian origin. In short, the Vedas are the basic source of Truth and values. The scriptures related to philosophies other than Vedic-Hinduism are deeply affected by the Vedas and the Upanishads. Therefore, the status of the Vedas and the Vedic scriptures becomes outstanding and authoritative. That is why; the Indian perception of values should be viewed and assessed principally from the Vedic-Hindu viewpoint only.    

Values, needless to say, play a vital role in man’s rise, in making his life worthy. Their place in life can be grasped not only from each and every Mantra of the Vedas, the Shloka of the Upanishads, a great scripture like the Srimad Bhagavad Gita, or great Hindu epics like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, but also from other treatises, especially related to philosophies or the schools of thoughts of Indian origin including Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism.  

Ahimsa, due to its importance in life, occupies the highest place in Indian philosophy at large, including the Vedic-Hinduism. Forbearance and tolerance are the two best expressions of Ahimsa and these emerge as values simultaneously. Likewise, coordination in practices and large scale co-operation among people are also established as the foremost values. They pave the way to unity among fellow beings and bring prosperity through people’s collective endeavours. Acceptance without prejudices and adaptability to prevailing situations play an important role in making life precious. They are, therefore, the time-honoured values. Along with this, it is important to note that these values are within the ambit of the Law of Change. They are, therefore, the subject of refinement as per the demand of time and space while keeping their basic spirit intact. The Indian perception of values emphasize the need of making Mulya an inevitable part of behaviour. It has been said clearly that values should predominate in the thoughts and actions of man. Without values there is no meaning of life. In this regard, in messages of all the founding fathers of different schools of thought of Indian origin or Indian philosophy and propounders of religious communities, it is clear that forbearance, tolerance, co-operation and co-ordination in practices ensure unity among people. Hence, they are the prime values to guide one towards righteous acts.  

The ethical aspect of values dwelling in the Indian perception should be seen in this very context. The message eternally conveyed by the great Indian Rishis/sages and the manner in which they, through their own practices, guided people, is a transparent testimony in this regard. It, thus, gets its all-time significance stamped on eternity for the progress/welfare of mankind. This issue of the utmost importance in respect of values in the Vedic-Hindu viewpoint, predominant in the entire Indian perception related to them, especially in global context in current perspective, is its call for human unity, collective efforts and unison. The manner in which the word ‘WE’ (हम) signifying oneness of the whole humanity emerges as a value in itself in the Mantras of all the four Vedas, a keen desire for large scaled welfare by joint efforts of all in the Shlokas of the Upanishads and message of tolerance/universal acceptance to the world that makes the Vedic-Hindu perception of values unique and exclusive, which can be well realized from the fact that this viewpoint is entirely free from the state of isolation. Every human being, without discrimination on any basis/at any level, falls within its perimeter. It is dedicated to omnipresence and longs for co-operation of all for the welfare, prosperity and progress of every one. In this context the starting nine Mantras of the Rigveda are worth mentioning. In them God is prayed by the word ‘WE’, wishing Him, in fact, to accord unity among fellow beings for the universal welfare with His own benediction. He is beseeched through the same word to save people from the evil of violence (Adhvaram). He is prayed to grant enough vigour for stepping forward jointly and continuously to do anew (Nuutanairuta) that is welfaristic. In other words, to proceed incessantly to the pathway of progress keeping the eternal Law of Change as the nucleus of actions.    

In the last Mantra of the Rigveda (10:191:4) it appears, “Samaanii Va Aakuutih Samaanaa Hridayaani Vah/ Samaanamastu Vo Mano Yathaa Vah Susahaasati// –“Let us work together, let us speak together, let our minds and hearts be united for a great cause!”

It is, undoubtedly, the best revelation of truth-based unity among human beings, the most excellent and all-timely, or everlasting message of oneness among all on this planet on the strength of which quality and quantity, both, can be achieved for all in a great measure. For centuries, the people of the world have in the process of ongoing progress come close to one-another step-by-step. Now, in a rapidly increasing process of development, the planet Earth is converting into a global village. Everything, grief-pleasure or loss-gain is common now. In such a situation, the significance of Indian perception of values can be well assessed from the above discussion, having the Vedic-Hindu viewpoint as the nucleus. While doing so, if the Indian perception of values is seemingly connecting Vedic-Hindu viewpoint with the Law of Change, equally applicable on values, the eternality and absolute Truth will reflect in it. This, in fact, makes the Indian perspective of values exclusive. It can be the concrete basis of equal welfare, prosperity and progress of one and all on this planet. It is high time we Indians first understand this truth-based perception of values. Then, we can become conduits to the world realizing the importance of it so that the uplift of everyone on the planet by collective endeavours could come about. The age-old Indian slogan, “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” could be transformed into a reality, which is also the basic spirit in the root of Indian perception of values.