The Creation in Rig Veda 10:129The Paradox of Origin
Rig Veda 10:129 is in a famous hymn of the tenth mandala. It is generally regarded as one of the later hymns, probably composed in the 9th century BCE. It has the Indian name Nasadiya Sukta, "Not the Non-existen", and is often given the English title Creation, because of its subject.
The Paradox of OriginThe advanced abstract reasoning in the hymn has brought it a lot of attention, not only within indology, but from scholars of philosophy and the history of religion as well. Its line of thought relates splendidly to cosmological thinking of the philosophers of Ancient Greece, all through to present day astronomy.And it ends with what seems like a punch line, a paradox taken to the extreme, almost as if the unknown poet of it was making a joke. Here are the last lines of it (in Max Müller's translation):
 Present-day India on the world map. Mainly, Rig Veda 10:129 reveals an insoluble paradox in which the human mind of the past as well as the present easily gets trapped: How can the universe have sprung into existence, i.e. how can something come out of nothing? How can there be a beginning, before which there was nothing? Much of what puzzled people three thousand years ago, still puzzles us today. This dilemma, too. Present-day scientists wrestle with the paradox, speculating about multiverses and such in an effort to explain the something out of nothing. Doing so, they might just move the problem to another location, not solving it at all. So, we should be wary of taking for granted that our ancestors were intellectually inferior to us. We have more facts, but they knew what we still would not know today, nor tomorrow. That's what this Creation hymn of Rig Veda points out.
Synthesized Version of the Rig Veda 10:129 HymnAfter studying seven English versions of the Rig Veda hymn, I made my own synthesized version. Click the header above to go directly to it.
About Max Müller's Translation of Rig Veda 10:129The Creation in Rig Veda 10:129The Paradox of Origin
MENUCreation Myths Around the WorldHow stories of the beginning began.
The Meanings of MythologyTheories through history about myth and fable.
Archetypes in MythsThe mythological symbols and what they stand for.
The Logics of MythPatterns of creation.
CREATION MYTHS IN DEPTHCreation in Rig Veda 10:129The paradox of origin, according to an Indian myth.
Genesis 1The first creation story of the bible scrutinized.
Enuma ElishThe ancient Babylonian creation myth.
Xingu Creation of ManThe insoluble solitude of gods and humans.
ContactAbout Cookies
ON MY OTHER WEBSITESPsychoanalysis of MythWhat Sigmund Freud and C. G. Jung thought about myths, their origins and meanings.
Myth of CreationAn introduction to the subject of creation myths and the patterns of thought they reveal.
Cosmos of the AncientsWhat the Greek philosophers believed about the cosmos, their religion and their gods.
Life EnergyThe many ancient and modern life force beliefs all over the world explained and compared.
TaoisticTaoism, the ancient Chinese philosophy of life explained. Also, the complete classic text Tao Te Ching online.
|
Archetypes of Mythology
Psychoanalysis of Mythology
Cosmos of the Ancients
Life Energy Encyclopedia
Sunday Brunch with the World Maker
Fake Lao Tzu Quotes
Stefan Stenudd