Talk:Siksa: Nose of the Vedapurusa

By Sri Chandrasekharendra Saraswati Swami

Śikṣā comes first among the six limbs of the Vedas. It is the nose of the Vedapuruṣa. Here the nose is not to be understood merely as the organ of smell. It is also the organ of breathing. Indeed, it is through the nose that breath is sustained. In the same way, Śikṣā serves as the life-breath of the Vedic mantras.

Where does the life of a Vedic mantra reside? Every syllable of a mantra must be pronounced according to its proper measure, with perfect clarity of articulation. In addition, each syllable must be intoned correctly as udātta, anudātta, or svarita. When these rules are faithfully observed, tonal purity is preserved. A mantra yields its intended fruit only when every syllable is pronounced with both phonetic precision and correct accent.

Indeed, the phonetic and tonal exactness of a mantra is even more important than its meaning. In other words, even if the meaning is not understood, the mantra will produce its intended result if its sound is correctly preserved. Thus, the life-breath of the Vedas, which consist of mantras, is their sound.

There is, for example, a mantra traditionally recited to cure the sting of a scorpion. Its meaning is not generally explained. Its efficacy lies in its sound. Certain sounds possess certain powers. It is sometimes asked: "Why should the Śrāddha mantras be recited in Sanskrit? Why not in Tamil or English?" Those who ask such questions fail to recognise that what is essential here is not the language as such but the sound. If a sorcerer were to lose his teeth, his spells would lose their efficacy because he would no longer be able to pronounce them correctly.

For this reason, the correct pronunciation of the mantras is of the utmost importance in the Vedic tradition. How is this accuracy preserved? It is Śikṣā that determines the proper character of every Vedic syllable and teaches its correct pronunciation. The science that studies the sounds of human speech is called phonetics, but in the case of the Vedas it assumes a significance unmatched in any other language. Even the slightest alteration in the pronunciation of a syllable may diminish the efficacy of the mantra, and in some instances may even produce a result contrary to that intended.

It is because of this supreme importance of Vedic phonetics that Śikṣā has been placed first among the six Vedāṅga-s.

It is discussed in the Taittirīya Upaniṣad. The Śikṣāvallī begins with the words:

Atha śikṣāṃ vyākhyāsyāmaḥ.

"Let us now expound the science of Śikṣā."

The name of this discipline occurs here, as in many other Vedic passages, with a long ī (Śīkṣā). In his commentary, Śaṅkara explains this by observing:

Dairghyaṃ Chāndasam.

This means that the long vowel is a characteristic of Vedic usage, although the word ordinarily has a short i. Similar examples are found in Tamil poetry as well.

I have already told you that the language of the Vedas is not ordinarily called Sanskrit but Chandas. Accordingly, Chāndasam here denotes a usage peculiar to the Vedas.