Most Ancient Aryan Society

Author(s): Ram Chandra Jain
Publisher: Institute of Bharatalogical Research Sriganganagar Rajasthan

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barsher way in those tribal days, as Vincent Smith wrote the imperialist history of British India. But they per force could not write of their achievements without bringing in the accounts, though perverted, of their adversaries. They could not hold the neck of their adversaries in bell without themselves being there. That gives us some relief. We have to be very careful and cautious to screen the truth out of the horrible mass of falsehoods but fortunately today, we have other methods to measure the truth against falsebood. The Science of Comparative Mythology has rendered us some help. If these accounts are tested in the light of truths given by archæology and other sciences, we may know the real state of affairs. The Vedic and Greek studies, from this viewpoint, are far more important to us today than they were to William Jones, Maxmuller and the later band of great Indological scholars.
The Aryans exhibited a great flexible character that helped much their materialistic culture to survive, even for this small period of bistory, without which it had no chance. Their society assimilated their own vanquished adversaries by conversion. Their thought was flexible and assimilated all the best ingredients of the former cultures. They had the sagacity to convert that as their own which belonged to the others. That gave them life and vitality. The Aryan Man and the Aryan Society is completely dead but the Aryan way still survives even to this day. The two contradictory currents are clearly discernible in the Aryan literature. We find total violence in Rgveda and Homer but peace in Upanişads and Orphism. We find Purandar Indra in Rgveda but Supreme Ek-Vratya in Atharvaveda. We find earthly happiness in Vedas, heavenly happiness in Brahmaṇas and Supreme Bliss in Upanişads. One current cannot grow out of the other. Animal-sacrificer Brahmă could not be the all-pervading ethereal Brahma. Poligamy and marriage do not go together. Ganapatiship and Rájan are incompatible institutions. Family and tribal unit contradict each other. We have to discover some method to explain these contradictions. Fortunately, we have discovered the method which is the surest standard and guide to separate the Āryan and the pre-Aryan from the Āryan literature. The world has been too