The Veda in Kashmir, Volumes I and II: History and Present State of Vedic Tradition in the Western Himalayas by Michael Witzel is the result of painstaking research of a millennia-old tradition. This research started in 1973 and culminates in this work nearly four decades later. The two-volume work is an extensive study of the practice of two particular branches of transmission of the four Vedas in the northernmost valley of India, Kashmir. This task is enormous because of its sheer size. Witzel states in the introduction that this work went through various obstacles and many revisions. Witzel feels that the two volumes are “still fragmentary” but will “provide an idea of Veda tradition in the Valley” (2).
The work contains fourteen chapters in four sections, twelve appendices, and an extensive bibliography. The book also includes various tables and facsimiles of Vedic mantras, along with a number of photographs of Vedic rituals in Kashmir. Additionally, the work includes two DVDs, which contain old video footage of Kashmir, Kashmiri music, Kashmiri recitation of Vedic mantras, the two-volume manuscript itself, and photographs of various manuscripts of the Vedas referred to in the book. Finally, the work contains the complete manuscript of Hertha Krick’s Materialien zur Kathaschule (Materials on the Kaṭha School). Witzel begins with a detailed historical introduction of the Kashmir valley and the various attacks on it, including the many conquests by different empires (e.g., the Mughal Empire).
Witzel’s precise historical analysis is staggering. He comprehensively covers Kashmir’s history, delineating the different dynasties and their religious influence. He studies in detail the caste or social stratification systems that were in place during various periods. He does not shy away from discussing the emigration and exodus of Kashmiri Brahmins from the valley, and provides an exhaustive list of the subcastes of Kashmiri Brahmins. He portrays their various customs, which revolve around a person’s life from birth to death. Some sections of Witzel’s work are effectively manuals of Kashmiri rituals, with elaborate instructions, diagrams, and photographs, preserving for posterity the ancient traditions of Kashmiri Hindus. Witzel analyzes the influence of communities outside Kashmir on the rituals and practices of the Hindus in the valley.
Witzel carefully reads the Kashmiri manuscripts of the Ṛg Veda, traces the influence of Kashmiri pronunciation, and suggests the correct forms of words that have been misspelled because of the local language. He has patiently studied thousands of tree-bark manuscripts. These are called bhurja-patra and were written on the bark of silver birch tree named bhurja. This scholarly effort is admirable. Witzel gives an unprecedented account of the syllabi used by teachers of the Vedas and their pupils.
Witzel thoroughly examines the Kaṭha and Paippalāda branches of the transmission of the Vedas through their manuscripts, traditions, recitations, and rituals. He studies the pronunciation traditions of these two schools of the Vedas. He provides excerpts from various manuscripts and shares many photographs to describe his unique experiences with great masters of the Vedas like Lakshman Joo from Kashmir. He also points out some errors that have crept into the text of the Vedas used by various schools. It is difficult to find such extensive work on the Vedas based on a particular geographical location.
This book has been published at an opportune time because the history of Hindu traditions in Kashmir has been contested in various political and scholarly circles. Witzel’s work reminds the reader of similar works by scholars like Shonaleeka Kaul of the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India. These scholars try to correct the mistaken notion that there is no Hindu practice in Kashmir by showing an unbroken Hindu tradition, in both precept and practice, in the Kashmir valley. My one criticism of Witzel’s work is that the massive volumes lack an index, which would have made them easier to navigate.
The Veda in Kashmir, with its companion DVDs, provides an exhaustive history and ethnographic study of how Vedas are preserved and practiced in Kashmir. The book would be helpful to historians, scholars of Indian studies, religious studies, and anthropology.
Swami Narasimhananda is the secretary of Ramakrishna Mission Sevashrama, Kozhikode, India.
Swami Narasimhananda
Date Of Review:
March 31, 2023
