Rig Veda to Purana - Maintaining Continuity Part 3

It is not clear how Rig Vedic age transitioned into the Puranic age. Purana and Mahabharata goes hand in hand as both were composed by Krishna Dwaipayana (Vyasa). There are many Puranic stories in Mahabharata, albeit in some changed forms. This may be because the Puranic stories in their present forms have been told and retold by many sages and at some point there many have been inadvertent changes in the main story. However the basic theme remains the same, for instance the story of Indra and Vritra or the story of ocean churning. The story of Indra and Vritra goes back to Rig Veda. Even Mahabharata invokes Rig Veda in certain places like the hymns recited by Utanka to Indra or Upamanyu to Aswins. Even though in Mahabharata the Rig Vedic gods have undergone a transformation as Indra, Varuna, Agni, Rudra, Soma, Aswins, Maruts, Parjanya, Pushana are all there but some of them have been relegated to the status of Adityas and Vishnu and Rudra as Shiva or Mahadeva had come to the forefront along with the advent of the creator god Brahma. Devi Durga or Uma Haimavati had also come to the forefront along with Maheswar. Mahabharata marked the spiritual transition from many different names and forms of the Supreme Being to one or two powerful entities who represented the Supreme Being as incarnation or as God or gods. Rig Veda contained the seeds of Bhakti which was nourished by Mahabharata and which developed fully in the Puranas. The path of Bhakti resulted in the creation of personal gods who would confer material and spiritual wellbeing on the devotees. The reason for the change in names and forms is not hard to speculate. Indra, Agni, Varuna etc, even though were names of the Supreme Being, they were also identified with natural forces as powers of the Supreme Being and hence could be looked upon with awe and reverence, but never could be loved or worshipped in the same way as an ardent devotee would like to do. Hymns in their names are eulogies – not devotional love that pines for the objects of love. Rig Veda was for jnanis, not for bhaktas, even though seeds of bhakti was there. Common men could never have understood. Yet the common men worshipped the five fires and reached to the gods through Agni and also getting heaven was the highest goal. So the concept of moksha for common men was completely absent. Even in Mahabharat the path of moksha is not encouraged for all and dharma, artha and kama are considered most important and householder’s duty is considered to be superior to that of other modes of life – viz. vanapratha and sannyas. It is only in Gita, Lord Krisha advocates the path of moksha for all – including women, vaishyas and shudras, i.e. all who were denied the path by the Brahmins of that age. So change of needs of religion and spirituality demanded that there be change in the way spiritual teachings are delivered and the needs of the common men and not only the ascetics and jnanis are considered. The major steps taken by Purana in this direction are – a) The forces of nature become subservient to their Lord, the Supreme Being b) the gods representing these forces are lose their prominent positions along with the change c) Need for personal gods or ishta devatas for catering to the needs of devotion – path of bhakti for common men d) Concept of divine incarnation for every age. Since the gods representing forces of nature could not satisfy the needs for personal gods who could be loved and worshipped and who would incarnate every age, it was necessary to identify the ones who would be able to do so and hence Vishnu, so far an obscure deity in Rig Veda, who did not represent any force of nature, became synonymous with the Supreme Being in His representation of the God of Preservation. Shiva or Rudra became the other representation of Supreme Being as the cause of Destruction and bestower of grace and boons for the well fare of all. Shiva probably was really and truly a common man’s god. Even Asura’s worshipped him, which means he probably was also the god of the tribals and non-Aryans. So he became the deva or all devas, Mahadeva, the God of all beings, easy to satisfy and easy to worship. Tantra also evolved probably during this time and along with Shiva, His Shakti or the Devi who represented the divine feminine or the eternal aspect of the Mother Nature, the force behind creation, preservation and destruction, became another aspect of the Supreme Being.