Reply to David Frawley’s “Call for the Intellectual Kshatriya”
by Robert E. Wilkinson ©
To persons of knowledge, David Frawley’s (1) Call for India’s Rebirth is an unfortunate misrepresentation of the realities of a Hindu renaissance. His limited understanding of the process not only deflects attention away from the serious work of transformation now going on in India but conceals the surprising fact that his own beliefs are an impediment to the very rebirth that he seeks.
Frawley’s impassioned ‘Call for the Intellectual Kshatriya’, while no doubt well-intentioned, reveals a profound lack of understanding of both the underlying cause of the problems of modern Hinduism (2) as well as the proper means of bringing about its recovery. It simply boggles the mind to see him suggest that a Hindu renaissance might be brought about through a media war in which activist pundits such as he might arouse the ‘timid, feeble, half-hearted’ Hindu into a powerful and progressive social force. This would be no renaissance but the way of the religious revivalists who seeks to proselytize the masses with rajasic rhetoric. This approach will not work with Hinduism because it is not a religion, it is purely metaphysical in its essence and cannot be coerced into renaissance by the contrived actions of an elite intelligentsia. The moment of its resurgence is totally dependent upon the Time-Spirit, Mahakala. It knows this and waits patiently for the hour.
A true Hindu Renaissance and by consequence an Indian Rebirth is predicated upon one thing: a restoration of the “Sanatana Dharma” - the eternal truths of the Veda. Frawley’s claims notwithstanding, it is impossible to speak authoritatively of the future evolution of humanity and a yogic vision for all to follow without acknowledging the contribution of Sri Aurobindo (3) and his line. Their revelation of a New Supramental Consciousness and Realization and the forms it evolves for its manifestation are utterly unique and they alone hold the promise of a transformed Indian/Hindu society. Frawley is evidently unaware of this because in his article he lumps Sri Aurobindo together with Ramana Maharshi, Shivananda and Chinmayananda, making no distinction of their different evolutionary visions. This suggests either a superficial understanding of their work or an inability or unwillingness on Frawley’s part to go to the heart of the issue.
The Vedic way to an Indian renaissance disclosed by Sri Aurobindo, the Mother and Thea (Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet) is based upon profound yogic formulas given out in great detail in the Rig Veda itself. Through the lived experience of this yoga they have discovered the means and mechanism of restoring the Sanatana Dharma and returning India to its rightful place in the community of nations. Almost no one today, including David Frawley, is aware of these discoveries because the realization of these eternal truths requires more than just a scholarly, intellectual knowledge of the Veda. Sri Aurobindo explains:
“The perfect truth of the Veda, where it is now hidden, can only be recovered by the same means by which it was originally possessed. Revelation and experience are the doors of the Spirit. It cannot be attained either by logical reasoning or by scholastic investigation… [Sanskrit text]…‘Not by explanation of texts nor by much learning’, ‘not by logic is this realisation attainable.’ Logical reasoning and scholastic research can only be aids useful for confirming to the intellect what has already been acquired by revelation and spiritual experience. This limitation, this necessity are the inexorable results of the very nature of Veda.” - Sri Aurobindo, The Life Divine
Part and parcel of this Vedic realization is the profound relationship between the Cosmic Order and the symbols of its manifestation upon the earth. This knowledge is found in every Vedic temple which, if properly built, is a symbolic reconstruction of the universe, binding together the world of the Gods and man. Rituals to the Vedic Gods and the timing of their collective worship was considered the most important aspect of temple culture because it imprinted upon the worshipers the correspondences and equivalencies designed to awaken an awareness of the common Center that exists in both the cosmic order and the human soul.
There is one thing I can agree with in Frawley’s thesis and that is the need of a MODEL to revitalize Hindu society. If he had bothered to go deeply into the Supramental Knowledge of Sri Aurobindo, the Mother and Thea (Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet), Frawley would know that just such a model exists. It is the Mother’s Temple/Chamber (4) unveiled in its totality by Thea (Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet) in her opus work, The New Way. (5) It is the greatest feat of sacred architecture yet to be realized upon the earth; what the Mother called, “A Symbol of the Future Realization.” Those of us who have been initiated into its mysteries can state unequivocally that it is not some call to arms of an intellectual warrior class that will catalyze a Hindu renaissance but a Temple, a new model of the universe that resonates with the Hindu Soul. “Ayodhya” should serve as a profound example of how a symbol such as this can arouse the sleeping energies of the Hindu Samaj.
In addition to the Inner Chamber as our guide, the work today of those who seek a true Indian rebirth and Hindu renaissance follows a form inspired by Sri Aurobindo and articulated by Thea as a vehicle for the deployment of the Supermind. It is a “Sangha”, a seed community that embodies the Vedic principle of action from a Center. Like the hub of a wheel, all that happens in the periphery extends from and has its origin in the Hub or Center. (6) From that Soul/Center/Skambha alone can one obtain a vision of the true order of things and bring about the needful changes in the periphery. One of the most profound examples of this “Seeing” from a Center is Thea’s unveiling of India as the Soul of the Earth. Her “Indocentric Cosmology” (7) precisely confirms what the Mother wrote years ago about the Destiny of India:
"INDIA is a divinely chosen country with a unique spiritual heritage. She is not the earth, rivers and mountains, nor simply the collective name for the inhabitants of this land. India is a living being, conscious of her mission in the world and waiting for the exterior means of its manifestation. India alone can lead the earth to peace and a new world order." – The Mother, "On the Destiny of India"
The Mother’s vision of India’s Soul and its unique mission in the world is yet another, more global example of a harmonious action from a center. It follows precisely the laws of correspondence laid down in the Veda and establishes a common denominator between the Individual and the Nation Soul. In order to obtain that Centered vision and rise to fulfill their sacred Dharma, both must reconnect with the true Cosmic Order laid down by the Rishis of old.
As it stands now, nearly all Hindu temples base their ritual celebrations on an Astronomical rather than Vedic system of measure. The Nirayana, Sidereal system of calendar measure espoused by David Frawley is unreliable, confusing and contradicts the verses in the Rig Veda that describe “One Wheel of three-hundred and sixty spokes, firmly riveted that shake not in the least (8)” As a result of this confusion, almost the entire Hindu Samaj celebrates the most important Hindu festival, the Makar Sankranti or Winter Solstice on 14 January, some 23 days after the actual Winter Solstice. How can this possibly be? The Winter Solstice - Shortest Day of the Year is not a matter of interpretation. It is an unmistakable event that occurs every year on 21 December with the change of the Sun’s direction from the Lower Hemisphere (Daksinayana) to the Upper Hemisphere (Uttarayana) and into the sign Capricorn, India’s zodiacal ruler. Yet most of the Hindu community, unaware of their error, continues to celebrate the Makar Sankranti 23 days after the actual Solstice, and Capricorn gateway, thereby following the constellations rather than the tropical/seasonal UNCHANGING ecliptic zodiac . Few may admit it, but it is precisely this kind of fuzzy un-Vedic calendar measure that sets the faithful on a path of adharma and prevents both individual and nation from rising to fulfill their mission.
Knowing the critical importance of this true Vedic measure to the Hindu temple culture, Thea convened a Movement for the Restoration of Vedic Wisdom (9). Its mission statement was to educate the Hindu community about the importance of Vedic Cosmology and the deeper symbolic meaning of their ritual celebrations. Since 2006 the Movement has reported 30 (thirty) temples (10) in South India that have incorporate the Tropical Sayana system and have re-poised their ritual worship on those eternal foundations of solstice and equinox. This is a modest beginning to be sure but it represents a decisive turn in the Hindu psyche towards a reconnection with its collective soul. This is the way of Renaissance, the Vedic Dharmic Way.
If David Frawley and his Hindu intelligentsia are sincere about becoming a meaningful part of India’s great adventure of renaissance, let them move beyond the mere mental ideal and commit themselves to the rigors of a personal transformation born out of the practice of a Vedic Yoga which alone can produce a new consciousness and a new species. For who has the right to call for an awakening that they have not experienced themselves?
Robert E. Wilkinson
April 30th, 2008
For those interested in learning more about Sri Aurobindo’s, the Mother’s and Thea’s evolutionary work and becoming part of this great adventure of Vedic Renaissance described in this article, Aeon Center of Cosmology and the Movement for the Restoration of Vedic Wisdom are offering an international conference in India on September 20 – 26. See LINK for details.
1. David Frawley is a well known Astrologer and American Hindu pundit who came to prominence through his scholarly works debunking the colonial-inspired “Aryan Invasion Theory.” He is also the founder and director of the American Institute for Vedic Studies .
“Call for the Intellectual Kshatryia” - http://www.hinduvoice.co.uk/Issues/13/IK.htm
In his book, The Astrology of the Seers, p. 48, Frawley writes: “Vedic astrology considers the Sidereal zodiac to be more important.”
2. 'The Origins and Nature of Hindu Decline': Part I , Part II, Part III, Part IV – Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet, November - December, 2006 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/movementforrestorationofvedicwisdom/message/13
3. See: The Supramental Line - http://www.aeongroup.com
4. See: The Mother’s Temple - http://www.matacom.com
5. The New Way Vol. I & II: A study in the rise and the establishment of a gnostic society, by Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet, at $45.00, from Æon Books, ISBN: 0945747063. The preeminent symbol of a new consciousness now manifesting upon the Earth is a cosmological structure known as the Mother's Inner Chamber. This sacred structure is a living manifestation of the descending Truth-Consciousness into Earth's atmosphere and symbolizes Earth's emerging Soul. Written into its architectonic structure are keys to the harmonies of the cosmos and the secrets of Supramental Time. Ms. Norelli-Bachelet explains the origins of this contemporary temple design and its occult measurements which define the evolution of consciousness on this planet.
The New Way, Volume III by Patrizia Norelli-Bachelet at $36.00, Rs 750 from Æon Books, ISBN:0945747039. In this volume the INDIVIDUAL is featured in his evolutionary journey. The contemporary process of evolving a completely new condition of being, called the Supramental by Sri Aurobindo is the theme of this volume. To illustrate the method, the author reveals the occult significance of Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, the famous drawing of a man within a circle and a square which she calls the Universal Being. On the backdrop of the Mother’s Inner Chamber, the central revelation of Volumes 1 and 2, through Leonardo’s drawing the author carries sacred art to dimensions never before reached. The author also elaborates further on her discoveries concerning Time and its role as an ally in the evolutionary process we are all experiencing. She writes about the importance of experiencing Whole Time, the complete cycle of experience, previously unknown and now open to humanity and with it the ultimate conquering of Death.
6.) SKAMBHA is mentioned in the Rig Veda and Atharva Veda as the Supreme Principle of Creation. The realization of Skambha goes to the very heart of creation and unveils the mystery of existence itself. Its ontological significance as the Support of the Worlds follows upon the Rishi’s declaration that the universe was born and developed… from a core, a central point (Rig Veda X –149) – ie. The Hub of a Wheel.
7.) Temple India – an Indocentric Cosmology - http://www.aeongroup.com/caprcrn.htm
8.) “Twelve spokes, one wheel, navels three.
Who can comprehend this?
On it are placed together
Three hundred and sixty like pegs.
They shake not in the least.” (Rig Veda 1.154.48)
“One is the wheel; the bands are twelve;
three are the hubs – who can understand it?
Three hundred spokes and sixty in addition
have been hammered therein and firmly riveted…
Though manifested, it is yet hidden, secret,
its name is the Ancient, a mighty mode of being;
in Skambha is established this whole world;
therein is set fast all that moves and breathes.” (Atharva Veda X, 8)
9. Movement for the Restoration of Vedic Wisdom: 'The Zero, the Veda, & the Divine Measure of the Year'
10. Temples in South India that are now incorporating the Sayana calendar for Hindu festivals:
1. Sri Mahamariamman temple, Valangaiman.
2. Sri Kailasanather temple, Valangaiman.
3. Sri Kothandaramar temple, Valangaiman.
4. SriArunachaleswarar temple, Valangaiman.
5. Sri Swarnapureeswarar temple, Andankoil.
6. Sri Pasupatheeswarar temple, Avoor.
7. Sri Anadeeswarar temple, Saluvanpettai.
8. Sri Lakhsminarayanaperumal temple, Saluvanpettai.
9. Sri Kalinganarthanaperumal temple, Uthukadu.
10. Sri Ayyanar temple, Kiliyur.
11. Sri Lakshminarayanaprumal temple, Udayalur.
12. Sri Kailasanathar temple, Udayalur.
13. Sri Selvamahakaliamman temple, Udayalur.
14. Sri Lakshminarayanaperumal temple, Mathur.
15. Sri Kamakshi temple, Sithanvalur.
16. Sri Subramanya temple,Engan.
17. Sri Adheeswarar temple, Athanur.
18. Sri Athanooramman temple, Athanur.
19. Sri Mariamman temple, Salem.
20. Sri Mullaivananathar temple, Thirukarukavur.
21. Sri Abathsahayeswarar temple .Alangudi.
22. Sri Abayavaradeeswarar temple, Alangudi.
23. Sri Rajagopalaswami temple, Mannargudi.
24. Sri Santhanagopalaswami temple, Needamangalam.
25. Sri Kasiviswanathar temple, Needamangalam.
26. Sri Moolanathar temple, Poovalur.
27. Sri Kailasanathar temple, Uthukadu.
28. Sri Saragapani temple, Kumbakonam.
29. Sri Vasishteswarar temple, Thittai.
30. Sri Ramaswami temple, Kumbakonam