God created the universe and the creatures in the world. The only thing that differentiates humans from animals is the mind. Humans have the capability of thinking, which the animals lack. Therefore, the humans are referred to as Maneesha, which signifies the ability to know about everything. As such, man is known as Maneeshi or Manishi.
God has granted such mental ability only to the humans. It is the duty of every human being to know the characteristic and tatwa of the Parabrahma who created them. If the mind is not utilised for that purpose, then it is wasted. The Vedas provide the ways and means to understand the tatwa of the Lord Paramatma. Hence, they are also considered as the reflection of the Lord Paramatma.
The Outcome of Veda Study:
According to Devipurana, the Veda is the premier gateway to receive endless fortunes and welfare. The study and teaching of the Vedas takes the practitioner directly to the Lord Parabrahma. A sloka in the Kashikanda states that the study of the Vedas is in itself great tapas. Some commentators state that the Vedas have to be studied along with the Vedangas.
The Siksha Sastra in the Shadangas:
An individual is required to study the Shadanga Veda after the upanayana. In fact, the scriptures had made it mandatory for every person to study the Vedas in conjunction with the shadangas. The first of the shadangas is the text relating to practice, termed the Shikshas. The Prathishakhyas and the Lakshana books teach the pronunciation of Veda words. These texts provide guidance regarding the pronunciation of the mantras and words of the Vedas. Therefore, the study of the Vedas requires knowledge regarding the formation of sentences, words and the details of the alphabets. All this information is provided in the Siksha Sastras.
Lopa – Agama – Vikara:
The Siksha texts describe three types of practice, namely the Lopa, Agama, and Vikara. A student of the Vedas should have knowledge about these three practices. In the absence of such knowledge, it will prove to be very difficult to understand, when a particular alphabet or word is to be used, whether it exists in the form of agama or adesha, and where there is a lopa of the alphabet or word, in the Vedas. The word in a phrase or sentence is not necessarily being in the same form everywhere. This situation promotes doubts in the learner. In order to clarify these doubts, the student has to refer to other texts, like the as Prathisakhya.
Studying the Vedas is like learning a language. A person who learns a language will have to first learn the alphabets and words in that language. This is the natural procedure; similarly, the student of the Vedas must learn about the words and their transitions. This knowledge is indispensable, and the essential parts to be learnt are the Guru and Laghu forms of verbs or words. The learning of these gurus and laghus, entails the practice of lopa, agama, and vikara.
1. Lopa:
Lopaindicates absence. It indicates the unavailability of a specific letter or alphabet. The missing letter or alphabet is called the lopa. The Prathisakhya teaches about the lopa. The letters are inherent in phrases or parts of sentences. If these letters are missingor some other alphabet supplants the original, then it is called lopa. In Grammar, this is termed as the AbhavatmakaAdesha. The grammarians omitted the Lopas in the Pratisakhya . They have mentioned these lopasseparately. The Prathisakhya also contains these versions of the principles.
2. Agama:
Agama is not like adesamu, a grammatical permutation. In adesa, a letter is either inserted or substituted for another letter. In the agama, the first and last letters remain unchanged but the middle letter is substitutedwith another letter. The purvacharyasterm this as upajanamu. The Prathisakhya contains several agaamas, namely the purvagamamu, abhinidhanagamamu, and anuswaragamamu.
3. Vikara:
In the Prathisakhya, the adesamu is denoted by the term vikara. If a letter is replaced with an equivalentr, then it is vikara. There are several vikaras, such as the Refadesamand Shatwadesam. The Prathisakhya describes all these vikaras.
The Prathisakhya provides a number of principles with regard to Lopa, Agama, and Vikara. Several other grammar texts also address these principles. The Veda students are bound to commit mistakes, while pronouncing the words, if they lack knowledge about the agamas. Similarly, the teachers must have comprehensive knowledge about the position of the letters and their correct pronunciation. They must know about the intricacies relating to the technical terms, like the Guru, Laghu, Kalamu, and Vivruthior pause.
The Vedas have to be studied in the above format to reach the Lord Paramatma.
Sri Guru Datta