2. Why are some scriptures sources of
wisdom for Hindus?
“O Divine mother/father, our hearts are filled
with darkness. Please make this darkness distant
from us and promote illumination within us.”
(Gayatri mantra from the Rig Veda written about 3,000 years ago)
Does age give wisdom?
3. Smriti = remembered
Mahabharata
Ramayana
Puranas
Dharmashastra
Two sources of wisdom in Hindu
scriptures
Shruti are ‘heard’ by rishis or holy men and passed down
over thousands of years. They are the oldest scriptures
containing hymns and prayers used daily.
Smriti are ‘remembered’ by gurus and contain much loved
stories and poems known by most Hindus.
Shruti = heard
Vedas
Upanishads
4. Shruti (heard)
Eternal
Unchanging
Divine instructions
Authorless
Direct experience
Divinely inspired
Static
c. 3,000 years old
How are Shruti and Smriti different?
Smriti (remembered)
Temporary
Can be modified
Divine dialogues
Authored
Edited writings
Human thoughts
Dynamic
c. 2,500 years old
5. How Shruti is handed down today
Chanting
Learning
Meditating
Repeating
Study
Memorising
Hindu priests can recite Sanskrit mantras from many
Shruti texts
6. Memorise and Recite
“O Divine mother/father, our hearts
are filled with darkness. Please make
this darkness distant from us and
promote illumination within us.”
7. The Laws of Manu (Smriti)
“In childhood a female must be
subject to her father, in youth to
her husband, when her lord is
dead to her sons; a woman must
never be independent.
“She must not seek to separate herself from her father,
husband, or sons; by leaving them she would make both
(her own and her husband's) families contemptible.
“She must always be cheerful, clever in (the management
of her) household affairs, careful in cleaning her utensils,
and economical in expenditure.”
Manusmriti 5: 148-150
8. What counts as wisdom?
1. Teachings that have remained unchanged for
thousands of years.
2. Teachings that are relevant and valued today.
3. Teachings you can live your life by because
they inspire you.
4. Teachings you refer to daily.
5. Teachings that can be passed on through the
generations.
Editor's Notes
Aims of this presentation:
to help students understand the difference between shruti (that which is ‘heard’ or perceived) and smriti (that which is ‘remembered’ or inferred) the two categories that cover sacred writings in Hinduism. Shruti are generally believed to be more authoritative than smriti because they are divinely inspired, timeless and contain the most important hymns, mantras and rituals in Hinduism.
to explore Hindu beliefs about shruti and smriti in relation to the larger question, Why are some scriptures sources of wisdom for Hindus?
to enable students to answer the key question.
Introduce students to the key question: Why are some scriptures sources of wisdom for Hindus?
Explain that by ‘wisdom’ students will be looking for guidance on the important questions of life, for example, what is the real meaning of life? Who or what is God? How can we live a good life? and so on.
Explain that the Gayatri Mantra is one of the most well known hymns recited daily by many Hindus sometimes silently and others chanted.
Show a video clip of the first five minutes of the Gayatri Mantra from the Rig Veda. (The Mantra repeats after about nine minutes): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SarlTxrAbIY [remembering to exit the adverts and ‘subscribe buttons etc!]. Point our that the words being chanted appear at the top of each page. Stop the film at each page of the ‘Detailed Meaning’ book as the pages turn and point out the meanings of some or all of the key words: ‘Om’, ‘Bhoor’, ‘Bhuva’, ‘Svah’, ‘Tat’, ‘Sa-Vi-Tur’, ‘Va-Re-Ny-Am’, ‘Bhar-Go’, ‘De-Vas-Ya’, ‘Dhi-Ma-Hi’, ‘Dhi-Yo’, ‘Yo’, ‘Nah’ and ‘Pra-Cho-Da-Yat’.
Ask students to note down three reasons why the Mantra might be seen as a source of ‘wisdom’ for Hindus, i.e. what might Hindus learn about life, God, and human beings. [For example, that riches and materials things are often disappointing, that meditation, understanding and intelligence are encouraged, that God is the source of all life, and that there is ‘wisdom’ to be gained through the spiritual practice of the chanting itself.]
Show this slide and explain that one way of thinking about the Hindu scriptures is to divide them into two sorts: the first is shruti, which refers to the scriptures that were ‘revealed’ to holy men thousands of years ago. What they ‘heard’ or ‘perceived’ has been passed down over the centuries. The second sort is known as smriti, and refers to the scriptures that had been remembered from sources that had been previously lost.
Explain that in terms of content, shruti is focused primarily on rituals, prayers and hymns, smriti is largely concerned with social interactions and right behaviour.
The highlighted letters on this slide may help students to remember the differences. [‘H’ for ‘Heather’; ‘M’ for ‘Maroon’?]
Encourage the students to read the information and write down on sticky notes which they think would contain most wisdom and give one reason why: ‘I think shruti or “heard” scriptures would contain more wisdom because…’ or ‘I think smriti or “remembered” scriptures would contain more wisdom because..’ [Remind them of what they said about Gayatri Mantra].
Show students this slide and ask them to create revision cards with Shruti one side and Smriti the other using five key points chosen for each from this list.
Ask them to spend five minutes revising silently and learning what is on the cards.
Encourage the students to test each other with key words to identify whether it is shruti or smriti.
Ask them to provide reasons as to why some Hindus might regard the shruti scriptures as more important than smriti. Why might some Hindus regard smriti as providing more wisdom for living a good life?
Show the students this image of a modern day Hindu priest. Explain that Brahmin priests train from an early age to learn Sanskrit verses, mantras and hymns from the Vedas and Upanishads (Shruti) to use in ritual and worship. It requires great skill and the help of a good teacher to memorise exactly without any alteration.
Encourage the students to try at least two memory techniques, e.g. a) show slide then blank the screen to practise photographic memory of key ways in which Shruti is handed down, and b) a mnemonic using the initial letters of the transmission techniques on this slide, e.g., Really Strong Men Can Lift Motorbikes. The slide is designed to cover up the key words with a couple of clicks and then to bring them back into view.
How easy or hard was each method?
Let the students know that this is an exercise relating to the transmission of shruti.
Show them this slide: a version of the Gyatri Mantra that we started with.
Ask them to identify what kind of (poetic) wisdom is contained here, e.g., the idea that there is a female aspect to the idea of divinity; that people are often filled with dark feelings; that there may be a way to find relief from such feelings.
Can they see why Hindus find this mantra compelling / meaningful?
Explain that there are different ways of reciting shruti, e.g., pausing after every word, and pairing words that have a pleasant sound.
Ask them to work in pairs to put these words to sounds/music/chanting/rhythm. If they do not feel comfortable working with a Hindu mantra, invite them to use a verse from a poem, such as Emily Dickinson’s ‘”Nature” is what we see’:
Nature is what we know— Yet have no art to say— So impotent Our Wisdom is To Her Simplicity.
[For the whole poem, see, e.g., http://www.bartleby.com/113/5034.html]
Ask the students in pairs to learn the words ‘off by heart’ and then to take turns in reciting the words to each other.
At the end of the process, ask about the benefits of learning such verses off by heart. Did any feel they had UNDERSTOOD more deeply?
Remind the students about their revision cards for smriti and highlight those things that mark it out as such (e.g., human thoughts, teachings that can be modified, temporary and dynamic).
Show this quotation from the Laws of Manu and explain that these teachings were first written down around 2,000 years ago and applied in a particular society. They were written by a sage (wise teacher) concerned to regulate the conduct of different parts of society in a way which would lead to a harmonious and divine-centred life.
Explain that if smriti contradicts shruti it is rejected and smriti can become obsolete and be changed or modified. The Laws of Manu, for example, do not fit the social values of today, particularly in relation to the position of women. They were written for a patriarchal society that required men to honour women, but proposed a subordinate and subservient status to them. Many Hindus today see how the Laws are an important part of the development of Hinduism, raising important questions of power, control, order and discipline, but do not want to adhere to the specific regulations. For an example of this see: http://www.youthkiawaaz.com/2016/03/manusmriti-caste-and-religion/
Encourage the students to reflect on the idea that a ‘holy’ book need not contain eternal unchanging truths, but may contain ‘truth’ that can be reinterpreted in different times.
Ask them to add this point to their revision cards and to create a symbol to remind them of this key point.
Show students this slide and ask them to work in pairs to agree on the three they think might be most important for Hindus. Ask them to explain their thinking.
Encourage them then to prepare and present a one minute talk on ‘What counts as wisdom’, using all the key words learnt so far (revision cards can be used for reference only).
Students can then use their presentations as the basis for a piece of written work which answers the question from a range of possible Hindu points of view and what non-Hindus might learn from this.
Learning outcomes:
suggest reasons for similar and different interpretations of scriptures and other important texts;
provide good reasons for the views they have and the connections they make.
